Ah, the fascination of mushrooms, with their bizarre, alien quality. This group includes some real mushrooms I found and used as props and some I made. The first photgraph is of some mushroom houses that I made for a scene that was used in an educational reader illustration in 1979. To see more mushroom houses and read about the story in another post go here.
mushroom houses, 1979
Skip ahead 20 years to this photograph, which shows some of the first Blossom Fairies that I offered as kits in 1999.
Blossom Fairies on a mushroom, 1999
This is a pair of wee folk sitting in a cluster of mushrooms that were growing so fast that I had to run home and get my camera before they changed shape.
Wee Folk under mushroom, 2002
I molded the next mushroom from clay, glued kid leather on top and painted the leather red. For the photo shoot, I put some drops of glycerine on the mushroom to look like rain.
mushroom made from kid leather, 2005
This last one is from my up-coming book, Pocketful of Posies (Sept. 2010).
detail from "Pocketful of Posies" 2010
Note: See other posts in the Close-ups series archive here.
SALLEY MAVOR 
Wonderful mushroom houses (1979). Beautiful stitching in the ‘Pocketful of Posies’ pic. I love it all.
I love al lthe mushrooms! Especially like the kid leather mushroom with its realistic drops. However, I could not pick a favorite–they are all so fantastic!
The mushroom made of kid-leather looks too real! Amazing and beautiful.
Oh, what a delight to see this needlework! I am enchanted!!!
I love the house number in the first photo! The idea of mushrooms with house numbers makes me laugh. And your handmade kid mushroom is amazing.
These are lovely. I adore your mushroom houses in the first photo!
I adore your mushroom made of kid leather, and the photo of the illustration going into your new book! love, Beth
Oh my! These are amazing! I LOVE the mushroom architecture of 1979. Any chance it may make a comeback?