Storyteller and Son Chocolates...SALE

Valentine's Day Sale: Half Ounce Triple Chocolates (dark chocolate dipped in milk chocolate and covered in white chocolate) are three for $1

Shipping is not included

Chocolate Truffles, Oh My!

The "traditional" truffle...dense and creamy dark chocolate center, dipped in chocolate, and then rolled in powdered sugar. Maybe a few rolled in coccoa powder... maybe some Aztec variety with cinnamon & a little red pepper. Is your mouth watering yet? Ready to try some Storyteller & Son Chocolates at the Fairfield Chocolate Festival February 11th?

How about an all natural blueberry & chocolate truffle, dipped in milk chocolate, and then dipped again in dark chocolate? Mmmm yum. These are going to be my favorites I am sure!

Gourmet chocolates made fresh from all-natural ingredients, including pure butter, fresh whipping cream, and the finest quality chocolate. Hand-rolled, hand-dipped.

Winter Flowers

Felted flowers on the vine...is it too early to start thinking of your Valentine?

I'm thinking of the Fairfield Chocolate Festival. Visit me there, or look for other felted flowers and art for those you love upon my Etsy sites: BarefootStoryteller.etsy.com and MothersMoon.etsy.com

Introducing....

Storyteller & Son Chocolates... debuting at the 2012 Annual Fairfield Chocolate Festival in February

Beautiful New Year

"...and Son" * I am so very overjoyed to make this public declaration of the New Year in business! He has always been such a big part of what I do, creating by my side, being my inspiration, and now a bit of the recognition he deserves. Now just wait until you see the new ideas we have together!

Celebration

If you don't mind my saying, I do love my colorful felt star & satin ribbon wands...for New Year's Eve Celebrations and Birthday Wishes, and small bits of magic anytime.... also putting on the Party Hats tonight! BarefootStoryteller.etsy.com

Felted Bird House

When I saw one of these created by a fellow felt artist, I just knew I had to make some too! They are a wonderful all natural, biodegradable, warm and cozy home for your feathered friends! They are weather resistant (water does not soak in) but eventually will begin to show wear...when that happens, the birds will then be able to use bits of the wool to line their new nests! These are cut with holes that suit my Chickadees, but you could widen for larger birds. Bottoms are sewn shut, but you can remove stiches to clean house if desired, and then sew back up! There's one available over at my Mothers Moon etsy shop. MothersMoon.etsy.com

Shop Local

Popular at the Ashwood Waldorf School's Holiday Faire, these last two felt "Kris Kringle" ornaments are soon be be on their way over to one of my etsy shops BarefootStoryteller.etsy.com where they'll join some other Yuletide type goodies, such as felt holly & berries pins, large felt mushrooms, soft gnome dolls or red and green, a few white doves of peace, and more. Please visit!

And please shop handmade this season, shop small businesses, shop local. Shop were it matters most.

Liesl & Po

Thank you Harper & Collins, for offering a free online reading of Liesl & Po written by Lauren Oliver and illustrated by Kei Acedera, from now until January 31st. Just click here to start reading.

Little Green (and red) Apples

Had a wonderful time at MOFGA's Maine Apple Day on Sunday! I gave needle felting tutorials on how to make these little apples, and a few other things. My booth was located right across from the cider press and it was a joy to watch the children especially take turns winding the crank, and feeding apples to the machine. The very best part, of course, was a near constant supply of the very best raw apple cider I have ever had! (at least since last year's pressing!)

Barefoot Books Opportunity!

Blogging about the latest Barefoot Books opportunity (and it's a nice one!) over here on my Barefoot Books blog

Common Ground Fair

Getting ready for my appearance at the Maine Organic Farmer's Association Common Ground Fair in Unity on September 23rd. Taking to the stage again at 2:45pm Looking forward to it!

Storytelling Festival

The Western Maine Storytelling Festival (the first annual) takes place in downdown Farmington, Maine August 5th & 6th. Simply show me a copy of The Barefoot Storyteller ad from the festival program, and receive a 20% discount on any Barefoot Storyteller event booked in August!

Maine Artisan Bread Fair

Looking forward to returning to The Maine Artisan Bread Fair event this year! You'll find me there with some wood burned items (as I wrote about in my May 25th post on this blog), some of my felted veggies (a little peek seen on this blog listing) and also little felt chicken puppets to go along with my reading of "The Little Red Hen and the Grain of Wheat". You'll also find some Maine Made Jams, and a few Barefoot Books publications such as the Kids' Kitchen deck, Herb the Vegetarian Dragon, The Beeman , The Gigantic Turnip, and more.

20% of my proceeds of the day will proudly be donated to the Maine Farmland Trust again this year.

For those of you who are unable to attend this Saturday event in Skowhegan, the wood and felt art will be added to the Barefoot Storyteller etsy shop sometime after the event (if there are any of them left!) and the Barefoot Books publications can be found on-line upon my link www.BarefootBooksStoryteller.com

Though I won't be offering any Chronicle Books for sale at this event, I'd like to share a special on-line sale for them with you...just click the button below to receive 30% off cook book orders!

Events

Summer is certainly in full swing here...and I am gardening (or local farm stand purchasing), preparing for upcoming events, looking forward to my son's presentation at Pecha Kucha Night Waterville July 20th (and his performance in a Lakewood Theater's Young Performer's Production July 30th) doing some kayaking on the pond, and waiting for a cool breeze. Not the time of year for making soaps or doing too much felting, but excellent time for hanging herbs to dry.

Should soon be ready for Waterfall Arts Lawn Bazaar and Let Art and Nature Collide on July22nd in Belfast. Not sure if I'll be inspired to tell stories, but will have the "create your own story" stand up for the kids as usual. I'll be selling my wares for sure though, thinking of doing a blending of my handmade naturals and some books, and maybe a few other items. Can't decide who to give my usual event % donation to, so will be choosing four! Maine Farmland Trust, Thor-Nox Educational Garden, Camp Forest, and, the Maine Autism Society! After that is the Belfast Bound Book Festival on the 29th, and the Maine Bread Artisans Fair in Skowhegan July 30th.

Thor-Nox Educational Garden

The soil is tiled, and the garden is underway! Now I begin a photo essay to accompany and document the experience. Located adjacent to the Mount View School complex in Thorndike, the garden sits upon a piece of the historical 420 acre farm which is under conservation easement, owned by Shirley Bessey. Kelly Desrosiers, Mount View Elementary School Art Teacher and Project Based Learning Adviser, is helping to develop this educational garden on Ms. Bessey's land, with great enthusiasm from Ms. Bessey herself. The garden will be a hands-on project for students and the community, from planting, to tending, to harvesting crops for the school cafeteria. Along the way will be nature journaling and many other activities to encourage appreciation of the natural world just outside the children's proverbial back door.

To keep up to date with the going on in the garden (including when I'll be having my Afterschool Performing Arts group presenting an adaptation of "The Gigantic Turnip"!) please visit the Thor-Nox Educational Garden facebook page

Pecha Kucha Night, Waterville

My son Jakob has been selected to be a presenter at the next Pecha Kucha Night in Waterville. He'll be sharing 20 of his hand drawn sketches of charactors from the "new" BBC Doctor Who series. We are told he is the youngest artist ever the presentation would take place four nights before his 10th birthday) to submit to PKN Waterville. I am quite proud!

MSBA 2011-2012 Reading Group

I have placed the bare bones information about the Maine Student Book Award Reading Group for Mount View Elementary upon the Barefoot Storyteller web-site. And created a Maine View Elementary MSBA Readers Blog

If you are interested in purchasing the books yourself, I have provided links for them through Amazon for ease of ordering, as they are often the least expensive. Some titles are also available through the Scholastic Book Club, and if you chose to buy through them instead you will earn free books for the entire Mount View Elementary Summer Reading Program. After you and log on to the Scholastic Store, and create your parent password, use the classroom code HL23F and you will be able to view the program wish lists and recommendations relating to the MSBA. (some may appear more than once as they are in multiple catalogs) You are also free to browse and shop for any other books there, and all books can be picked up at the Summer Reading Program.