Spring abounds with hope, enthusiasm, and imagination. The forest beckons with promises of enchantment and that ancient symbol of Spring, the rabbit....can be found in all places wild and wonderful. Especially at the house of Miss Frannie, a Texas farmgirl, crafter, toymaker, and believer in art, magic and much more. To meet Frannie is to find a "progressive farmgirl." She adheres to old fashioned crafting in the best sense of the word. She creates pincushions, farmgirl finds and especially, stuffed toys--but uses recycled material in most of her crafts.
Her one of a kind creations--usually made to the specifications of the person she is making the item for--has recently caught the attention of farmgirls and farmgirls-at-heart. Known as "bonneybunnies," these rabbits come with items such as aprons, sweaters and their own pincushion acorns.

Recently, she spoke with us about her unique skills at creating her bunnies, and the particular magic she hopes to convey in her crafting...


How did you come to create these enchanting bunnies?
My crafting history really started in my childhood. My parents were both crafters, my dad was a carpenter and my mom sewed and quilted and I grew up thinking that if you needed something everyone just made it.

My education was in occupational therapy/music therapy, which at that time was really a profession that utilized all types of crafts for people to rehabilitate with: weaving, pottery, woodworking, minor crafts. Our education required us to become well rounded crafting to help people heal themselves both physically and psychologically.

When I became ill later in my life, I guess I just fell back on those principles to help heal myself. that's how I became a full time crafter.

What are the important aspects of how the bunnies are made?
Well, i think the biggest material is imagination. I have more trouble creating a bunny if I try to force it into what I want it to be, or if I try to create to a deadline.

But in the real sense, each bunny starts with a recycled coat, sweater or any kind of cast off interesting woolen object. The fibers have to be natural, so my favorite materials are cashmere, angora, wools, and I love finding alpaca, it is a treasure and it works beautifully. But its very hard to find, and all the natural fibers are getting harder to find.

The fiber is processed so that I can sew with it, and then as I find out who the rabbit is for, I start to collect other fabrics that will go into that particular rabbit. All the rabbits have clothes that are constructed on them, because even though they are made from the same pattern, each one is a little different because of the fabric they are made from. And, like all of us, they have different measurements. It would be easier if they were more uniform, because then I could just develop a pattern for their clothes and make them in an "on the rack" kinda fashion. But no, these bunnies really end up having couture fashion that is actually made to fit each body.
And, each one has an acorn basket, cause they are great scavengers (gatherers), and they all have a trademark acorn pincushion necklace. They each are also hand-numbered and they come with a little hangtag.


Are the bunnies handsewn?
The bunnies themselves are made with the sewing machine with just a little bit of hand sewing in the actual construction.They are all handstuffed with fine cedar sawdust from a local sawmill.  The clothes are almost all made by hand and are fitted on each one. I use vintage linens, and recycled clothes-things that could be cast off or put into a landfill, and sometimes they are delicate so that is another reason that the garments are hand sewn.

Sometimes a bunny may end up with a hand felted vest or jacket. These items are made from roving from our angora goats, because I haven't been able to successfully spin the roving....yet! So I have an abundance of mohair roving that I don't want to go to waste. The baskets are made from large acorn tops with woven hemp handles and the acorn pincushion necklaces are made from acorns with felted mohair.

I hear that these bunnies also have "stories." What are they?
Each bunny has their own story, so at this point I only know a few of them. Originally the bunnies started showing up here at the farm because we had been a haven for castaway cats that folks decided would survive if they just deposited them at our farm, pregnant or as tiny kittens. We did this kind of rescue for about 10 years. Then last fall our Great Pyrenees had some health issues and she stopped guarding the farm, and the kitties either left or perhaps were picked off by predators, it was a really sad time. no other abandoned kitties have shown up but it is still early spring........

Miss Frannie's Granddaughter and co-crafter, Olivia originally suggested that grandma make rabbits. The rest is history....

In the meantime, I was making my stuffies, little critters that I make from felted wools. I was making cats, horses, pigs,  and one day I asked my granddaughter and co-crafter, Olivia(age 4), "what do you think of this stuffie?"
She told me, "it's very nice, but its not a rabbit.....you're supposed to be making rabbits."

And so i did...make rabbits. And, well, they did what rabbits do and began to multiply and they began to tell me that some wanted to be here at the farm, and some were ramblin' kinda critters and had other places to go.
The first bunny ended up in upper new york state, with a farmgirl friend who is a fantastic thrifter, i met her on the MaryJane farmgirl site (www.maryjanesfarm.org). That little bunny was quiet and polite and a great gatherer and needed a large basket cause she was every bit of the gatherer that her pal nancy jo is.
One of my bunnies runs a shop in Kentucky, well i think she lets the owner have a say now and then, but you can find her runnin the shop at Beehind Thyme (http://beehindthymeprimitives.blogspot.com)
And thats how it usually goes. The bunnies really pick where they want to go and they usually have their own reasons for settlin' where they do. Because people seemed interested in the stories, I started tracking them on a blog, and it's good to know people enjoy them.

What kind of appeal do you think your rabbits have?
Well, they are definitely companions, but they have their own ideas. Since I have been open to the bunnies' world and am helping them find their homes, they have shared their lives and ways with me and their view of the world has already taught me alot. They don't waste anything. they are great recyclers themselves, and great gardeners, they work with nature, not against it. For example, in their gardening, they know which insects protect their plants so they have an ancient history of providing homes for the insects that help them with gardenting. Alot of the younger gardening bunnies actually create places in their homes for the ladybugs and praying mantis and dragonflies.

They also have a very keen respect for wisdon and they recognize the difference between intelligence and wisdom. That is one of the ways that they keep beauty and art alive in their lives. When a bunny gets too old to tend a garden they begin the journey of developing their wisdom which is intelligence combined with experience. That is when they get a chance to spend time on art, music, dance, theate,r and crafting. They share with the bunny world what they have learned about life through things that say the things that words can't always say.
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What are you trying to share with your crafts?
I think making the bunnies and doing crafts is also my way of sharing my life's wisdom. I am trying to share ideas about things we know...for example: beauty can be found everywhere if you look for it, even in items that have been discarded. I mean, that's what all my crafts are--just junk, discards, but as the old saying goes, one man's trash.......

I want folks to realize the way life is connected, that if the ladybug is protected then our plants are protected and that really the plan of nature may not need our interference or improvement; we may just need to tend it a little and let it do what it does.

Do you feel your way of crafting is a lost art? Are handcrafted goods outmoded?
Well, I think it might have been, but I really see that alot of folks have an interest in recycling and seeing the possiblity of the new from the old. I think people in the arts have always had to scramble for raw materials because society still doesn't support and nurture the arts and the artist as a viable part of our world.

In my world they are not just viable, they are necessary for us to survive. Otherwise, I think we run the risk of only sharing the wisdom of the spoken, and all the wisdom that can only be spoken through the heart may not have a voice.  I hope we are not losing that, and I hope we continue to teach our children as I was taught by my parents the value of art, and the art of craft.
 

Miss Frannie's BonneyBunnies can be found at: http://farmfolks-frannie.blogspot.com
Their stories can be found at: http://abunnystale.blogspot.com/
To enquire about purchasing your own one of a kind bunny, please email: dobros@peoplepc.com