Spring Portfolio – Wineberry Wood Press

27Apr 2023 by catbird 1 Comment

Fairy Houses

May Day, Nature Art, Play, Spring Portfolio

May Day is said to be a fortuitous time to leave gifts and offerings for the fae. To celebrate we always make a point of building some fairy houses and leaving them some spring flowers and baubles. My kids will build fairy houses independently for hours... In fact, maybe I should be leaving a gift for the fairies! They construct ever growing fairy villages and encampments with different types of buildings, an armory (yes those are fairy swords..) and hidden storage bunkers. There are markets and food storage- what more could a fairy need? The kids spend the day outside being creative and getting fresh air and I don’t need to worry about the fae poisoning my cattle… traditionally many May Day/Beltane rituals were designed to ward off or appease…

05Apr 2023 by catbird 1 Comment

A Basket for Bunnies Made from Trees

Craft Project, Foraging, Nature Collection, Play, Spring Equinox, Spring Portfolio

When I was researching spring holidays for my spring book I was particularly intrigued by a German custom wherein children build a nest in a field or garden in which a hare would lay colored eggs for them. This idea came to the America's with German settlers and seems to be the precursor of the modern Easter basket and the rational for rabbits laying eggs. Eggs and hares were both of course ancient symbols of spring and fertility that predate Easter. All of that to say... I love the idea of making secret outdoor nests for a magical hare to leave gifts in!! I started making a proper basket, but I wanted to simplify it so that it was do-able for kids (and frankly adults...) What I ended up with…

16Mar 2023 by catbird 1 Comment

Botanical Cascarilla Cascarones

Craft Project, Garden, Spring Equinox, Spring Portfolio

There used to be a lady in my neighborhood who made hundreds of cascarones every year for the neighborhood egg hunt. I have no idea how she pulled it off-- but it was always magical. She retired and moved away and while I’m not ready to take up the charge for the whole neighborhood I knew I wanted to make some for Spring Equinox and take them to the next level. Eggs are a classic symbol is spring— they start out hard and lifeless as a rock, then almost without warning they burst open with life. There is a clear parallel to winter, dead and gray and then suddenly there is green popping up everywhere and life explodes. These eggs are dyed with cabbage (blue) and turmeric and cabbage (green)…

26Feb 2023 by catbird No Comments

Magical Color Changing Violet Lemonade

Foraging, May Day, Play, Recipes, Spring Portfolio

Violets are at their best this time of year around us so we pick tons of them (and leave plenty for our pollinator friends too!) to make crafts and recipes. Flowers are an important part of May celebrations historically and people decorated their houses, themselves and their animals. Color changing lemonade is one of our favorites and we make it almost every year. Violets are a pH indicator, so to make this magical drink you’ll actually have to make two beverages and then mix them in front of your adoring fans. We do this by the glass so that every kid gets to perform the magic trick. What is actually happening is that the acid from the lemon is changing the pH of the drink, turning it from purpley blue…

25Feb 2023 by catbird 3 Comments

Dying Eggs with Natural Materials

Craft Project, Foraging, Nature Art, Play, Spring Equinox, Spring Portfolio

Eggs are a classic symbol of spring, while they seem fairly ordinary to us these days, they must have felt magical to ancient people. One minute they look like a cold and lifeless rock, the next they explode with life. It's exactly what the landscape if doing, one minute its winter, cold and dead, and then suddenly new life begins cropping up everywhere. Traditions around decorating and dying eggs substantially predate the easter eggs we now think of. It's a perfect way to celebrate the Spring Equinox. There is always a rash of natural egg dying posts this time of year, but I feel like they often fail to really explain the difference between natural and chemical dying. With those grocery store kits you can pop an egg into dye…

25Feb 2023 by catbird 2 Comments

Spring Ephemerals Hike

Foraging, Hike Ideas, Nature Journaling, Spring Equinox, Spring Portfolio

Spring ephemerals are one of the most exciting treasures to hunt for in the early spring. They are short lived woodland flowers that live their entire lives in the early spring before the trees leaf out. They sprout, bloom and set seed all between snowmelt and when the forest canopy shades them out. Their dainty appearance and short life may make them appear delicate, but these plants are tough. Spring ephemerals have all kinds of interesting adaptations and collaborations with other members of their communities to help them survive in such a harsh environment. Because soil temperatures are low this time of year, water and nutrient uptake is more challenging. Many spring ephemerals have developed relationships with mycorrhiza in order to get the water and nutrients they need. Their environment is…

25Feb 2023 by catbird 1 Comment

Moss Gardening

Garden, Nature Collection, Spring Equinox, Spring Portfolio

Moss is one of my favorite signs of spring- its some of the first real green we see. It's always there, it doesn't die back like herbaceous plants, but warmer temperatures and spring rains seem to make it come to life in the spring. Moss is a fascinating ancient organism. It belongs to a group of plants called bryophytes, which are non-vascular and flowerless. Non-vascular means that they lack the channels that other plants have to transport water and nutrients to various parts of the plants. They are small and form dense clumps or mats, often in damp or shady places. The leaves are only one cell thick. The first plant on earth, moss began to grow on land 470 million years ago. It absorbs carbon dioxide from the air…

19Apr 2022 by catbird No Comments

Vernal Pools & Spring Pond Dipping

Hike Ideas, Nature Collection, Nature Journaling, Play, Spring Equinox, Spring Portfolio

One of the most exciting signs of spring in my house is the hunt for tadpoles and the woodland jewels known as vernal pools. Vernal pools are ephemeral woodland ponds that only appear in the spring. They are usually full in the early spring as snow and ice melt, and dry completely (or at least mostly) by late summer or early fall. These pools serve a critical role in the lives of wildlife- frogs and salamanders lay their eggs in vernal ponds because they are free of fish who would eat them. (Fish can’t live in a body of water that isn’t constant) Many organisms with an aquatic stage in their life cycle have evolved to require the temporary but fish-free water of vernal pools. In the Northeast United States…

19Mar 2022 by catbird No Comments

Spring Eggshell Candles

Craft Project, Spring Equinox, Spring Portfolio

This is a simple craft that doesn't require many materials or a lot of time. Materials: Eggshells Beeswax (pellets, chunks or even old candles bits) Wicks (tealight size) Dried flowers (optional) Crushed mica (optional) Method:First prepare the eggs: I use eggshells from eggs I have eaten or baked with and don't do anything special when I crack them. If you know you are planning to make some, just think about making the crack closer to the skinny end, but as long as you have a solid half (ie don't crush it into a million pieces like my children do...) it should be fine. The fiddliest bit is that you need to pull the membrane out, if you do when they are fresh I can usually just yoink them out in…

Category: Spring Portfolio