Read 'State Flowers, Trees, Birds, and Insects including Butterflies to Embroider' at http://www.KarensGardenTips.com.

When you can’t garden outdoors, needlework involving flowers is a nice substitute.  I enjoy a variety of kinds including crewel, counted cross-stitch, and needle or pettipoint.  With my first grandchild about to be born I was looking about for a project and came up with the idea of an embroidered birth announcement using the state flowers of the states where her extended family has roots.  I am doing this in counted cross-stitch, but any kind of embroidery could be used. And of course, the state flower idea could be used for a variety of projects including a baby quilt, face of a clock, or sampler. You could include state birds. butterflies and trees too.  I used an excellent book that I found in the public libraries of both North Carolina, and Los Angeles for all the state flower patterns; Better Homes and Gardens, “ 20001 Cross Stitch Designs”.  There are numerous cross-stitch sites online that can help with birds, trees, and insects including butterflies.

Here’s a chart with the state trees, flowers, birds, insects and/or butterflies.  Notice in the chart below that some states have state butterflies, some have state insects that are butterflies, and some have both or neither and some are not officially recognized.  Regardless, some of the insects would be charming in embroidery!

*Some are not OFFICIAL STATE insects

Read 'How to Make an Apple Swan Garnish' at http://www.KarensGardenTips.com.

If you want to make a spectacular presentation at a festive event, try making this swan. I admit that this is a “Martha Stewart” sort of project but it is well worth trying because the results can be good even on your first attempt. The keys to success are: 1) have a very sharp, fine bladed knife; 2) take your time; and 3) don’t panic if you make a small slip…it will never be noticed. It is down right amazing how forgiving the apple-swan is!

Materials:

One large round apple free of blemishes and bruises; you will have to make 3 sets of 5 consecutive cuts next to each other so the bigger the apple the more room you will have to maneuver.
Knife with sharp thin blade;
Lemon juice to coat cut surface of apple
One to three traditional toothpicks

Directions:

1. Hold the apple so the stem is up and cut off about 1/3 the apple.  Save both pieces.

2. Place the apple cut side down with the stem facing you. Cut a small V in the top of the apple and remove the piece.

3. Continue making V shaped cuts as close as possible to each other but do NOT remove the pieces until you have completed 5 cuts. Do not worry if you accidentally make a false cut or break a piece off; it will not be noticeable.

4. Remove the 5 cuts all together and slide the layers out as shown. The juice of the apple will hold the pieces together.

5. Turn the apple on one side and make another set of 5 cuts as you did before.

6. Repeat with the second side.

7. Take the small bottom piece you made in step 1 and cut it into 3 pieces. Take the longest, center, piece and cut a small V at the front to form a head on the neck. Leaving some apple at the front cut away a layer of apple flesh to form a neck. You can add whole cloves, apple seeds, or black peppercorns for eyes.

8. Insert a toothpick into the body of the bird and then into the neck. Put the wings in place.

9. Paint or squeeze lemon juice on all the cut edges to prevent browning.

10. Using a couple of tooth picks, attach the swan to a firm vegetable (here broccoli stem). A potato covered with attractive greens makes a lovely base.

You will be amazed at how good your swan will look. The first time I tried this I only made three Vs in each set but the swan was still attractive and added an elegant touch to the dish; it sure beat a sprig of parsley!

Read 'How to Make A Cornhusk Doll' at http://www.KarensGardenTips.com.

In the fall corn husks are used for various decorations and corn husk dolls are one of my favorites. Of course, you can make them any time of year and you don’t need to grow corn and harvest your own cornhusks; you can easily find them in the super market in the Hispanic foods section (for making tamales) or in a craft store. You can use homegrown but let them dry and become straw colored before beginning.

Cornhusk dolls are a craft associated with the American Indians and there are many directions on the internet for making the basic doll. I enjoy dressing the dolls in full skirted dresses with puffy sleeves and the directions here are for such dolls. These materials will make 1 doll about 8″ tall but the size will vary with the size o the cornhusks and the way you use them.

Materials:

About 20 cornhusks, 12 as large as possible.
Twine, string, heavy thread in white or brown
One white or flesh tone pipe cleaner at least 8” long
Cornsilk, yarn, Spanish moss or other material suitable for hair (optional)
Scissors
Dye (optional; fabric dye is best but tea, coffee, food coloring, or water color paints will work)

Directions:

NB. When you finish the only ties you will see are those on the arms to form the hands so don’t worry about their appearance.

1. Soak the cornhusks in tepid water for about 10 minutes and then remove and dry on paper towels.

2. If you decide to use colored husks for the clothing, dye 12 husks (9 of them should be as wide as possible but not necessarily the longest). The dying process is the most difficult and time consuming of the project because the cornhusks do not dye easily. Heating them on the stove seemed to help but the cornhusks vary in the ability to absorb the dye and some colors are absorbed better than others.

3. Arrange the four longest cornhusks with their narrow ends together and tie tightly together with twine. Trim the sharp edges off the stubby end to make it resemble a head.

4. Turn the husks upside down pulling the long ends of the husks over the trimmed “head”. Don’t worry if the “head” is not perfectly round or attractive; you will be putting a hat on it.   Tie tightly under the ‘”head” in the neck area.

5. Lay a 7-8” piece pipe cleaner on a small husk, roll into a tight cylinder and tie tightly at each end. This will form the arms and the pipe cleaner will make the arms bendable so you can pose them as you wish. They will be covered with sleeves so don’t worry if they are not even or are very skinny.

6. Take a 5” x 5” piece of dyed husk and bunch it around the end of one arm, about 1/2” from the end of the arm. Tie securely. This will be a sleeve.

7. Pull the long ends over the tie to the middle of the arm and tie in the middle (this procedure is similar to the one you did to make the head).

8. Repeat on the other side with a 2nd piece of husk.

9. Insert the arms into the body among the husks, position them as close to the head as possible,  and tie.

10. To make a hat, fold a piece of dyed husk over the head, folding in the back, and tie in the back.  Roll a narrow (1/2″ x 5″) piece of dyed husk and tie it in the back to cover the string.

11. For the full skirt, take 8 wide dyed husks and bunch them around the torso with the narrow ends at the waist and the wide ends extending over the head. Be sure they overlap. Tie with twine.

12. Pull the “skirt” husks down into position. Tie down with twine.

13. Cut a husk in half lengthwise, fold it in half, and drape it over the arm and diagonally across the chest and back to form a shoulder. Repeat on the other side. Tie with string. Trim the ends of these pieces like a ribbon for a decorative effect.

14. Roll a piece of husk as you did for the neckband, wrap it around the waist, and tie in back to cover the string.

16. Add miniature accessories such as a basket of hemlock cones.

Dolls are decorated in many different ways using fabric, ribbon, lace,  and a variety of accessories.  Faces are traditionally left blank but sometimes two dots for cheeks or eyelashes are added to suggest features. There are really no rules for making corn husk dolls so decorate yours so that it pleases you.