Dear Creative friends, The changing seasons always  inspire new projects for me. The tea cozy is one of my favorite creative formats for designing and play. It was the  topic of my first HomeLife article of the year in  our local Ashland Tribune. Here is the link: http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091231/HOMELIFE/912310327 Here is some  of the pieces from this design play. As you can see, one of the first  things I do  is bring collections of materials together that I want to play with for each design…here is my table with a collection of tea cozy ’starts’. I start with the one that is really calling me-

Tea cozy 'starts' -some have been stenciled, stitched or have a collection of elements that will be part of the finished cozy

Making lots of them at one time is very stimulating and grows my creative problem solving in  new ways. Here are some of the finished ones…. … I don’t know if I can make something that doesn’t involve sticks! My collection is growing and I have so many special ones to use and enjoy. Here are two of the cozies that had to  have sticks ….they are clearly taking  me off in another direction. I now find my  love of making small sculptural elements ( often showing up as jewelry) are jumping onto my tea cozies. I made the bird from a mans shirt, adding some bits of linen and embroidery thread. She has wire( tie twists) legs and  a bit of shredded bark in beak as she  heads out for a spring nesting spot. Tea Cozy Pattern: If you haven’t seen my Tea Cozy pattern, it is on my website .Here is the link: http://www.dianeericson.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=ReVisions&Product_Code=Pattern-202-TeaCozy&Category_Code=PATTERNS I am NOT done with this tea cozy experience….remember, it doesn’t mater what we are making…it is always inspiring every aspect of our lives…. INSPIRE=To breath in…inspire-ation= to create with what I breath in. What is the winter air bringing in  to your work/play? Much Joy, Diane