Christmas Creatures/My Folk Art

For those of you who have been following the blog for some time, you know that there's a quirky little side to my personality ;) Once a year, I sit down and make what I call a Christmas Creature for my husband. It all began because I was a bit jealous of a ski ornament that an old girlfriend had given him. Each year I would give him a new ski themed ornament thinking that I just might trump the old, but never. When asked, he would always say that the old ornament was his favorite. Not because he had any ties to the old girlfriend, he simply liked the handmade, quirky aspect of the ornament. Once I finally realized what it was that he liked, I decided to give it a try and see if I could come up with something out of the ordinary. Below is the first little guy that I made, and I am quite pleased to say that the old ornament slips farther and farther down the favorite line. He needs a little work on his mustache. The mustache is made from seeds, and one side broke off. A simple fix.

Below is the group, minus this year's new addition. 

    

I'm always amazed by how they just seem to come to life. I actually feel that I don't do the creating. It's like the little creatures know what they want to be and I'm just there to put them all together.

Love this little mountain man with his horse chestnut seed backpack. 

This was last year's addition to the group, and I think my husband's favorite. Actually, his favorite seems to always be the new addition. 

If I had to pick a favorite, I think it would be this guy. I love his peach pit face and his acorn cap hat. And I really like how the pine cone snowshoes worked out. His walking poles are stems from a large leaf that I found.

I call these two, The Cousins, just two dudes sitting back on their skis with their stogies in their mouths, enjoying the trip down the mountain.

And now for this year's addition to the group.....
He's such a happy little guy!

The body/mouth is a huge horse chestnut seed pod that I found. The biggest I've ever seen. There are 3 seeds in the pod. I was afraid that the pod would open completely, but this was it, and so a mouth was born. 
His eyes are acorns, but I took the acorns out and turned them around so that he had bigger pupils. His feet are smaller horse chestnuts and his skis are milkweed seed pods.

His eyebrows are the same seed pods that I used last year to create the ears on the rabbit.

I really enjoy making the little creatures and seeing them come to life. They are truly one of a kind! 
Now, I'm no Picasso, or even a Grandma Moses, or any other famous artist for that matter, but it's something I never would have thought I had in me. I've always loved seeds and the pods that they grow in, as well as interesting rocks and shells. I'm forever picking up whatever it is that catches my eye. So, if there is something that you find interesting, lay it all out on a table and give it a look. You just might find an artist waiting to be born :)
Wishing you a wonderfully creative day!
Rhonda