Making the Seasons :: October

Helloooooo!!! Welcome to the twelth and final installment of Making The Seasons! I cannot quite believe that a whole year has passed since I first discovered Craftpod, inspiring me to embark on a monthly mission to make something inspired by the seasons. It's been a hugely enjoyable year long project, made even more special by the fact that I've been joined each month by my friend Gillian at Tales from a Happy House. There is something undeniably appealing about sharing the creative urge with a like minded soul who thinks along very similar lines, and I have love love loved creating my monthly makes with Gillian. Our styles are very different, but it's been delightful to see what each month has brought forth for us both and I have truly loved every single project.

For this month {October} I decided to make one of the projects from the Autumn Craftpod box, as these delightful subscription boxes are still making my heart beat as fast as ever, a whole year after I first set eyes on them. The projects are so beautiful, and the whole box is always an absolute treat to receive through the post. This season there is a beautiful Autumn sampler to stitch, a paper mushroom sculpture to make and ooooo some gorgeous toadstoool washi tape which made me squeal!!!

Jo always pops a really lovely seasonal card into the box and the Autumn offering is just wonderful. It's an illustration by Brie Harrison who's work I fell in love with this year on Instagram, I just love the simplicity of her style and the emotions they evoke. 

Sticky tape and stitching aside, I decided I'd have a go at making the Mushroom Sculpture, designed by artist Kate Kato of Kasasagi Design. I've been a huge fan of Kate's work ever since reading all about her in Country Homes and Interiors (April issue) and then stalking her on Instagram......

image credit : Kasasagi Design

....oh her images make my toes curl with happiness!!!! She is so so so talented - you would never believe the things she manages to do with paper. Yes, paper!!! It's such a simple medium, but Kate manages to make it do magical things and her carefully constructed natural still life studies (made from JUST PAPER!!) are things of rare beauty.

image credit : kasasagi design

I love pretty much every single thing she makes (her butterflies and flowers are utterly delightful), but her Autumn studies are particularly stunning. 

So I was curious as to how she would translate her unique art into something that the masses could have a go at - would it actually be possible to make a paper sculpture that resembled a real living thing?

The essence of this project was very simple - there were a whole load of pre-printed shapes that needed to be folded in half and cut out, and then there was glue,  a single pipe cleaner and some tissue paper. Simple materials that promised to deliver great results if you followed the instructions and allowed plenty of time and patience.

There were 72 shapes to cut out to form the mushroom gills, and these shapes then had to all be methodically glued together. It trod a fine line between being meditative and tedious, but I did enjoy the simplicity of applying glue and sticking, knowing that by following some precise instructions, something beautiful would (hopefully) come about.

Once the gills had been assembled, it was time to create a mighty fine mushroom stalk, using nothing but a humble pipe cleaner and some ripped up pieces of tissue paper. 

This was good fun, if a little messy....

.... and honestly? I was a little bit proud of how my 'shroom stalk turned out! 

One of the things i love about Craftpod is the absolute attention to detail. For example, Jo had included the most teensy tiny cute wooden pegs in her box, simply for you to be able to hold the paper gills together whilst they dried. It was such a thoughtful touch, and one that I very much appreciated when I was flapping around with very gluey fingers, trying to hold everything together and make it stick.

The part where you have to glue the gills to the stalk was much harder than it sounded, and it's one of those things where you wish you had six hands. I somehow managed to make it all stick together, although I confess I got impatient and a bit antsy at this point and went in search of the hairdryer in order to speed up the drying process. A good blast with some hot air and I was satisfied that enough drying had happened, meaning I could safely proceed to the next part of the making process.....creating the mushroom top.

This was more fiddly, messy fun (note my fingers absolutely covered in glue), and involved ripping and sticking layers of tissue paper over the top of the paper gills. It was very faffy as it involved trying to spread the gills out evenly whilst sticking the tissue paper in place, made extra challenging by the fact that my fingers were sticking to absolutely everything, including the table.

I kept going, aided by Little B encouraging me along and telling me that I was doing great. I think he was really very impressed that I was attempting to make a lifelike mushroom - gawd I seriously love that my children do not ever, ever question my weirdness. I mean, doesn't every mother spend hours creating fungi out of glue and paper, purely for pleasure??!!

The very last step involved brewing up a very strong concoction of tea, and painting it around the bottom edges of the mushroom. I was doubtful about this (I thought my mushroom already looked fab), but the difference it made was astonishing. It somehow transformed my paper 'shroom cap into something that looked very un-paper like, and honestly I just couldn't quite believe what I was holding in my hand.

Ta-dah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I wish, wish, wish that I hadn't been in a major rush to get out the door and deliver Little B to his friends house for a Halloween sleep over, cos I would have loved to style this project to death. The mushroom was just begging to be beautifully photographed with all manor of natural Autumn finds, but I simply didn't have time to faff. So a few feathers from my feather stash (yes, of course I have a handy feather stash) and a few leaves fallen from the tree at number 28, and that had to do.

I am so so pleased with this make - it is so humble (paper and glue!)....

....but so oddly fascinating and beautiful at the same time.

I have a new found respect for all paper/glue artists, it's not the light breeze that you would think and requires a huge amount of attention to detail and painstaking patience.

I was thinking that I would quite like a proper home for my paper mushroom - maybe a small pot full of moss, with a critter or two crawling about....wouldn't that be lovely?

But for now it's resting quietly on the mantel, looking all natural and eye catching. I rather like it.

Please do go and see what Gillian has been making this month, her seasonal posts are always beautifully photographed and a real inspiration. You can find all of my previous MTS posts {here}

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ps my September project is finished and I'll be taking some photographs of it to share with you very soon xx

pps..................couldn't resist taking one more photo................

ppps.....I've just found a wonderful video showing Kate Kato at work - please do take a look, it's just wonderful xx

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Comments

[Zeila]

Dear Lucy, thank you very much for sharing the amazing work by Kate Kato, it's delicious!

[Lynne Stankard]

WOW! Amazing Lucy it looks so real.

[Jill]

WOW! Your mushroom is amazing. Well done you!

[Ness]

Ahhhhhh love love LOVE this! xxxxxx

[Zoe]

That is so awesome!! It really looks great. So lifelike. I'm very impressed.

[Arlene Bomback]

HI Lucy, I am just charmed by your story of sticky fingers and encouraging children. My kids have always been huge supporters of my weirdness as well and I feel very lucky.

Keep at 'er ~ Arlene

[Iuliana]

🦄 💙

[Melissa]

I tell you, when I saw this on Instagram I was like, OMG that looks seriously toxic, why is she playing with mushrooms, oh dear ... that's how real it looks. Well done you!

[Teresa Kasner]

I love that so much.. I'd be tempted to paint it red with white dots!! So cute! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

[Marijke]

Oooh, such patience! But well worth it! Absolutely lovely mushroom and the very last photo deserves to be framed and hung up on a wall.

[Angela- Southern USA]

Well done!!! I love it, and can see it with the moss for sure! Here's a YT channel that makes life like things from simply supplies as well (where the gnomes live), she has a fantastic spooky tree but here's her log that a mushroom would love to grow from.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KCJA_WPIvs

[Wendy]

So neat and so real looking amazing. But then all your craftiness is wonderful Lucy xoxo

[Mary W]

I just had an idea/inspiration. If I use an oval punch to make many 'gills' then proceed as you have shown. I adore this mushroom so! I could make bunches and use gold flakes to finish off the top. I put things on my window ledge that are tiny which I call sill setters. I've painted tiny sticks with the grands. Stripes of all colors up the branched twigs that have no leaves - about 6-8" tall. Stick them as a group into a tiny square of air dry clay and I have instant striped trees that sit in my window along with tiny bouquets of heart punched 'flowers' glued on some tiny branches stuck into antique creamer glass jars. This mushroom will look perfect up there in the window. THANK YOU! I know the grands will be happy creating this, also.

[Mary W]

GORGEOUS!

[Green Girl Gardener]

Wow! That looks so fiddly, but the finished product is well worth it 😁.

[Jill Rothwell]

I am not one for cross stitch or embroidery really , but I just love , love , love the paper sculpture of the toadstool . Fantastic work Lucy , can’t wait to see how you finally display it .

[Charlotte.]

Love it. Not sure that I would have the patience to do it.

[Miss Daisy]

What a lovely creation !

[Maria!]

Πολύ όμορφα!!!

[Jacquie]

Wow, so lovely. I adore mushrooms and these are just so lifelike but super pretty. No wonder you felt inspired Lucy.
Happy November
Love Jacquie xxx

[CJ]

Wow Lucy, it's absolutely amazing. It never ceases to astonish me what clever things people make. I've really enjoyed following you and Gillian through Making the Seasons, you've both made some really lovely things. CJ xx

[Ruth Love]

Just seen the above comment referencing Ann wood - I'm recommending a different Ann wood! She is @annwood on Instagram.

[Ruth Love]

You should check out an artist called Ann wood, she makes things a little like this, I think you'd really like her stuff!

[Jane]

Hello! My first comment on your blog! That is amazing! I couldn't do something as intricate as that as I have clumsy fingers and no patience for fiddly things ( it takes me ages just to thread a bit of DK yarn through the eye of a darning needle! ) I've been looking through some of your previous posts and I'm in awe of your talent! I knit and sew a bit ( though I haven't sewn for over 2 years ) and learnt to crochet this past summer. Your blog will be so inspiring. Best, Jane x

[ChrisTine]

Oh ! j'ai cru que c'était un vrai champignon. C'est beau.