Mixed-media house

Cloth Paper Scissors magazine recently featured a "home sweet home" reader challenge. In their May/June 2011 issue, they included a pattern for a little house (about 2" x 3" x 4" tall) and invited readers to use any media they wished to decorate it, then send in some photos. My FANE group decided to make these as well, and they may be included in our next show at the Mahopac Library coming in September.

The deadline for submission was July 1, so I didn't get this done in time to submit it, but I sure had fun pulling out all my boxes and bags of materials! I could think of a bunch of ways I wanted to approach this but decided on a "Four Seasons" theme.
The front of the house is obviously winter, and features a currogated cardboard "log cabin" exterior, two needle felted wool evergreen trees sprinkled with snowy glitter, a rick-rack wreath, and little snowflakes I cut out of a piece of lace ribbon.
Spring features a fabric tree, some blooming seed bead daffodils, and a felt bunny.
Summer might be my favorite. I painted a beach scene with Caran Dache watercolor crayons and added some sparkle tulle for water and sprinkled on real sand. I happened to have a small piece of picket fence I picked up at a craft store years ago but knew I would use some day and today was the day!
Autumn was the first wall I finished. I machine stitched on the yarn for a tree and used some oak leaves I cut with a small paper punch. I glued a little black cat in the window - can you tell?

The roof is a flattened piece of birch bark I've had laying around, which I cut into shingles and glued on. I'm happy with the overall look and really enjoyed playing with all my supplies. It was fun to think of something I might use and then look around to see that I had it and didn't need to run to the store! It was also fun getting to use a variety of materials, instead of mainly fabric. Now I only wish I had made that July 1st deadline!