Stone soup to upcycled garden

If you have read the story Stone Soup you are familiar with idea of making something from nothing. When travelers enter a village and ask for hospitality they are rebuffed by villagers who have fallen on hard times. At each door our travelers are told that there is nothing to eat, please go away. Our heroes decide to make the magical stone soup, a meal created from only a stone and water. The villagers are curious but cautious and come out of their homes to watch the cooks work. So sad, say the cooks, if only we had a little salt it would make the soup so much tastier and lo and behold one person has a bit of salt at home and races off to get it. Ah, but wouldn’t a bit of pepper be so nice? Why yes there is a smidgeon of pepper at another villager’s home. And so it goes, with an onion and a carrot and some potato until there is a rich delicious soup for all to share. A village with nothing to eat finds all the ingredients for a meal in their own cupboards.

I started making my flowers when our family found itself in a hard place. When my teenage daughter was diagnosed with cancer (and successfully treated) we found our insurance did not cover all the expenses of treatment. I wanted to create a product using what we had on hand, to make something from nothing. Using little loved garments from our closets I began designing hair accessories and marketing them at local shows and farmers markets. People loved the bright cheery blossoms and I was encouraged by my community to grow my business. This is the origin story of my Fairyshadow shop.

But wait, what about all the dolls? Well, I have been making dolls since my girls were little. I have been making dolls for over twenty years. My sister and I had a mail order catalog ( yep, back before the internet marketplace was around ) featuring natural fiber waldorf dolls and children’s costume wear that we made in our homes. After three years and our final printing of 8,000 catalogs we came to realize it was more than we wanted to do while parenting so we put the business on hold. I continued producing dolls for other mail order businesses and small boutiques and later added them to my Etsy shop. I am simply thrilled to have my dolls travel around the world to join their new families.

My work is carried in boutiques and waldorf school stores across the USA and around the world. Follow me on instagram to see works in progress and a bit of home life.