Waldorf Toys and the the free play fun over the holidays...

I love to see my children use their beautiful imagination while playing with free play toys and games. I enjoy watching the brilliant process of free-thought and spark cross their faces as they learn to think and be creative.
I want my children to be active in their play!
I want my children to learn through play.
I want to feel confidant that they are happy and engaged.

I also love to give these type of toys to other children and introduce the idea of simple and creative toys to others. I find that parents are very receptive to toys that promote independent thought and NO batteries. Give the gift of exploration and creativity this year!

Here are my top five Waldorf Holiday toys to give over the holidays and for birthdays:

Waldorf Dolls: ( simply beautiful and fosters creative play)
Found Here.




Play silks (Gorgeous!Anything! A Cape! A river! A tent! Clothing!)
Found Here.

Waldorf Wood figures (thoughtful and free play fun! Make up stories! Dream!)
Found Here.

Friday Interview with Beneath the Rowan Tree

Today's interview is with the NaturalKids team member, Beneath the Rowan Tree. Rowan's lovely silks and toys are all hand dyed and hand painted and she has a wonderful eye for color. Come meet her....

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how and when did you get started with arts and crafts?
I always felt like the ugly duckling in my family! Thank goodness my grandmother was naturally crafty and saw the spark in me~ this forged a deep relationship between us and strong connection in a family of non-crafty types.
I have always loved to make things with my hands and to give them to others. Over the years I taught myself numerous crafts: knitting, cross stitching, sewing, scrapbooking and quilting to name a few.
With quilting my love of color and texture really began to blossom. For me the best part about quilting was wandering through the fabric store without a plan, just heaping on bolts of fabric until a vision emerged.
After my daughter was born, I dove into dyeing and painting clothing out of frustration about clothing available for kids. It turns out I *could* paint~ which was a real shock! Dyeing satisfies the need for color and adds the element of surprise and chaos which keeps me centered and reminds me that beauty emerges when we don't try to control every outcome!
Most recently, drawn by the gorgeous colors and textures of fibers, I began needle felting and I am hooked~ it just resonates with me and draws together all of the satisfying and challenging aspects of craft and has pushed me along towards seeing myself as an artist.

What is the main thing you make and sell in your store? What else do you make and/or sell?
My core product has been my hand dyed and painted clothing for babies and toddlers, although with the holidays approaching and my mercurial interests, I am working much more on my natural toy offerings: wood, wool and lots of silk.

Who if anyone has been instrumental in helping you hone your craft?
I tend to be self-taught and a real grazer~ gathering tidbits of information here and there and generally running off half informed to work it out myself. I appreciate the needle felting forums and community for direction, challenge and inspiration.

Where do you get your inspiration?
Everywhere, my child, the skies (every skyline calls out for a flat felted landscape these days!), the seasons. I try to remain open (and keep notes). Since my crafting business is my 'sideline' to my full time vocation/ work I allow myself the freedom to follow my whims and do what I like.

What are your favorite materials?
Wool and silk. So pretty, so versatile, so dyeable!

What advice would you give to beginners in your main craft?
If you are dyeing, use quality chemicals, practice safety precautions, keep a clean work space and dye everything and anything you can to learn about color and fabric and results. Expect surprises. Be bold. You can always re-dye something, until you hit black, and then you bleach! Just kidding!

What is your Etsy shop address and name? Where else can we find you?
http://beneaththerowantree.etsy.com
http://beneaththerowantree.com
http://beneaththerowantree.blogspot.com
http://flickr.com/photos/beneaththerowantree

Instructions Not Included

I'll never forget one day at a neighborhood playground about two years ago, when I was sitting on the sidelines watching Eva, now four, play in the sand. Next to me was a woman who was on her hands and knees in the sand telling her two-year-old how to play with his toy. It was a complicated sort of gizmo the use for which, only the mother, evidently could decipher. It begged several questions in my mind; Who's toy was it, really? How necessary was it to get using it correctly right? Was there really only one way to play with this toy.

I've said it before in my blogs, but every time I look around, I see how deep the truth of this idea of Rudolph Steiner's is...that the child should be able in some way to complete the toy; it needs to be open ended. (Eva, pictured here, dresses herself and two of the needle felted dolls I made for her in silk. She has cast herself and the others in a "puppet" show.) Eva wears her play silk, or "Rainbow" as she refers to them, as a "wedding dress." But her silks have become baby slings, rainbows, flags, vaccuums, ropes, etc...

There is no correct way to play with these; no end to what this simple square of color can become, such as with Birchleafedesigns's play silks shown here. These are not only beautiful but processed with low-impact dye, making them and most of the other items featured environmentally friendly.

I'd like to explore the ways in which toys can be simple and open ended, using images from my Etsy.com Naturalkids Team colleagues for examples. With Winsomehollow's endearing gnome play set, there are no rules. There is no "branded" personality for him...or her. The little island can be anywhere the child chooses. His or her story will be new and original.

Although Woolcomesalive's toy set, pictured here is described on her site as a barn with sheep and bails, all of those pieces can have new identities in the mind of the child. For, they are not so specifically formed and have no back story created by marketing executives.

Oritdotandolls' fairies are light and ethereal. Literally, faceless, the child can project whatever image they like onto it. Though Orit names this one a "blessing," perhaps it is a "gifting" or "singing" fairy to the child...or just "Lucy." Refreshingly, nothing about this fairy disproves any of the child's notions.

We see that Littleelfstoyshop's daffodil girl holds a yellow flower...but what is the rest of her story...and can that daffodil be a flag or a horn? Sure. And her expression, like most Waldorf-inspired dolls is enigmatic, leaving her attitude up to the imagination of the child who plays with her. Here is another example of that open expression from Auntboosbabies. One might think that this lack of expression may feel cold to a child. On the contrary it is inviting. When you combine that with natural materials, like recycled cotton and other natural fibers, as many of our Naturalkids Team team members use, the doll is even softer to the touch...even more loveable.

I would like to continue with these examples and feature additional sellers from our team in my next "Part Two of Instructions Not Included" next time. In the meantime, I invite you to click on their links on the blog site and visit the wonderful and creative worlds these folks inspire through their artistry.

I leave off with the image featured at the top of the page from Dosidough. This team member creates a natural version of playdough - a toy which defies all rules and for which instructions are neither included or requested.

By Rebecca Varon-Remstein
nushkiedesign

Friday Interview with German Dolls

Today’s interview is with team member Ulla of the shop German Dolls. Her lovely dolls and sweet doll outfits have a wonderful old world feel to them and her shop is full of these simple childhood joys. I really enjoyed getting to know Ulla better and I think you will too!

Tell us a little about yourself...
Guten Tag!
My name is Ulla Seckler. I was born and raised in Germany and moved to the United States in 1996. I am married and live in beautiful Colorado with my husband and two kids.
I have been sewing and making things practically all my life.
Back in good old Germany children are instructed in needlework at a tender age. I still remember the old lady, named Frau Knebel, who came in with two gigantic knitting needles, the size of poles for pole vaulting (it seemed), and taught all the girls and BOYS how to knit in elementary school.
Sewing is in my blood. My great grandmother was the village seamstress and called in whenever somebody got married and needed custom-made, hand embroidered table and bed linens. She taught my grandma and my mother. And I watched my mother sew, crochet, and knit all my life. She did not have to make a living that way, but whenever she had a minute she was doing something. Her hands were never idle, and I grew up in a world where handmade sweaters, mittens, and scarves appeared overnight. All it took was a snowfall. My dolls and I never lacked a new outfit and were dressed appropriately for the season . . .
After I had children of my own in the US; I was worried that they would grow up without the same quality handmade items and toys that I had when I was little. So I started making dolls after my daughter was born. And once I started making the dolls, I began making clothes for them as well. Some of the patterns I use were handed down in my family. But most of the designs are a combination of the old traditional patterns and my own more modern spin on Waldorf.

What is the main thing you make and sell in your store? What else do you make or sell?
The main thing I make and sell in my store is dolls and doll clothing. Once I started making dolls I became a total addict. First I made dolls for my kids, then for all the nieces and nephews, then for friend’s kids. I just could not stop. The dolls began to clutter the house. My husband complained that there was never a place to sit down any more...He said:” Honey, why don’t you sell some on eBay.” I did - and “the rest is history” as they say.
Last Christmas I got a needle felting kit as a present. I instantly fell in love with this craft. I have a few needle felted items in my store and would like to expand in that area..

Who if anyone has been instrumental in helping you hone your craft?
The one person who has been most instrumental when it comes to my craft is my mother. See above. She did not teach me the art of Waldorf Doll making per se, but she taught me all the skills needed to make a beautiful handmade toy.

Where do you get your inspiration?
My daughter’s birth inspired me to make my first doll, and watching her play with all of her dolls every day is my greatest inspiration!
My German heritage is certainly very important and a great inspiration in what and how I do what I do. I miss the dark, green, Fairytale forests of Germany. But at the same time my life as an immigrant has given me a very unique perspective on things. I see many playrooms in the United States filled with gobs and oodles of ugly plastic toys. The main criterion in many households appears to be mass rather than quality. I hope that more people will learn about Waldorf and Natural toys.
If it had not been for coming here I don’t think I’d be a doll maker. I probably would have bought a handmade doll in Germany and let it go at that. I think my work is a great example of how the New World and the Old World come together to inspire wonderful art.

What are your favorite materials?
I still get excited every time a new shipment of supplies arrives at my doorstep, especially when it was mailed from Germany. I love Color! Cotton velour is my favorite material! And it comes in so many bright colors =)! I get sad whenever I run out of a color. I make my Wee Pocketbabies out of this wonderful stuff, but it is also great for doll clothes and other cuddly toys.
I love wool in any shape and color! Wool felt, wool roving, yarn, carded wool fleece. Wool is what my dolls are stuffed with, soft warm springy natural sheep’s wool. Who likes to hug plastic? This is my slogan.

“In an age when everything is made of plastic and synthetics and almost every toy says “Made in China,” my Waldorf Dolls are handmade with pure wool and cotton, natural materials that warm to body temperature as they are held. Have you ever hugged a cold, plastic baby doll on a cold winter morning? My soft, warm dolls are unique, huggable, and as individual as the children who love them.”

What advice would you give other Etsy sellers and those interested in opening up a shop?
Don’t quit your day job! It takes a lot of time and energy to build a small business. We are talking years - not months. Don’t expect to open a store and have a lot of sales right away. When I first started on Ebay it was very tough. I often sold my dolls for little more than the price of the materials. I am doing a little better these days but often wonder if it is possible to make a living being an artist. My husband brings home the bacon!
You have to love what you do to make it through the rough spots. My friends on Etsy, particularly the Naturalkids Team, have made my “crafting life” so much happier. I am immensely grateful for the sense of community and friendship I have found there!

7)What advice would you give to beginners in your main craft?
Patience, patience, patience! You cannot expect to make a first doll and for it look great. It took me many years to perfect all the techniques and come up with the perfect doll.

What is your Etsy shop address and name? Where else can we find you?

I recently closed my Ebay shop because of the impossible high fees. I have decided to put all of my energy into my Etsy shop. I hope to have my own website some day...
My Etsy shop address is www.germandolls.etsy.com
I also have a flickr account. If you would like to see pictures of old and new work you can check out my “archive” on flickr; http://www.flickr.com/photos/germandolls

Playroom Elements that Ignite the Imagination of the Young Child

Rudolph Steiner, the originator of Waldorf Education believed that for young children, play is their work. This is true not only in the sense that they love imitating the actual work of adults, i.e., cooking, cleaning, sewing, folding, toy-making, but also the work of growing through imaginary play. Many of the toys on the market today are plastic, toxic and force the child into a passive role by electronically playing for the child. Parents have an alternative, however; a playroom can be a wonderland filled with safe, natural, handmade and open-ended toys that ignite the imagination and invite the child to enter into active play and create their own world of enchantment as well as a world of imitative work.

Children love "pretend" cooking. This is one of the best-loved imitative play activities. But instead of one of those giant plastic kitchens that detail every aspect of a real kitchen, and therefore, remove any possibility of the kitchen assuming a new role and identity, a natural pine kitchen, like this one from Willowtoys leaves room for the child's imagination to complete the picture or change it from a kitchen to a store counter to the cockpit of a spaceship!

When stocking the kitchen, it is lovely consider items that are also as natural as possible, such as Ohtoseethesunset's wood and wool tomatoes.... They are soft and hard at the same time, stimulating the sense of touch. Additionally, they can become apples, cherries, little red bugs, buds, etc...

These lovely buttons by Unwaiveringfaith can be a long coveted potato chip! Or how about play money or a resting spot for a traveling gnome?

A silk scarf, can be turned into an astronaut's cape, a broom for cleaning or the wings of angels...my daughter, Eva, now almost four, has found no limits to her use of "rainbows," such as these from Oritdolls.

Of course an important part of imitative play is doll play. Providing soft, natural dolls, such as FaerieRebecca's or one of Auntboosbabies' Waldorf dolls provides soft, natural babies for hours of practice in nurturing as boys and girls change them, feed them, love them.

Other types of imitative pretend play connects children with nature through animals and mythical creatures from stories, such as gnomes, fairies, etc.

How about forest animals made from soft, needle felted wool, like Woolcomesalive's magnificent black bear.

Or the kind and mischievous creatures they share the forest with, such as Fairiesnest's pixie...

or Haddy2dogs gnome...

Giving these mysterious beings a place to dwell is also fun for the child, like Littleelfstoyshop's mushroom house play set....Today it is a gnome's house...tomorrow, something else.

In the hands of a child, these creatures and their dwellings come alive and inspire new stories and myths created by the children themselves.

Sometimes children feel inspired by seeing beautiful beings fly through the air, like Nishale's mobile...

or my Nushkiedesign needle felted tapestry of "A Fairy Sleeping By a Tree"

It is interesting to note that all the Waldorf dolls, fairies, gnomes and other creatures featured here have been handcrafted with a minimum of expression. This allows the child to project his or her own emotion onto the toy. All of these elements in a child's playroom leave subconscious questions in the child's mind about how to complete the toy. What is the doll's real expression; is the gnome friendly or prickly; are those buttons or sleds for my tiny baby; are those nobs for cooking or steering a boat? The stories children will create enhance their communication skills, leadership qualities and social interaction skills. The tactile feeling of the natural toys are soft, scratchy or hard to the touch, providing sensory integration for young children, while subtly bringing them closer to nature, even if they live in an urban environment, as my daughter does.

One toy at a time is all it takes to build the elements of a playroom that will enchant a child. With toys like these, are they playing or working, these children? It doesn't really matter; they're simply having fun, naturally.

All pictures courtesy of the identified artisans of the NaturalKids Team.