We have stayed in one place for three months before (a couple of winters in Key West) but never in one site for that long; in Key West we were always in the notorious rotation between between dry camping and full hook up sites.  By the time we leave Sanibel in late June, however, we will have been in one RV site, #205 here at Periwinkle Park, for a full three month stop.  Such a novel luxury has been a nice change, and has allowed both of us to really “spread out,” by which I mean empty our storage compartments and set up everything we could possibly want or need.

Original version of the mermaid crown

For weeks I had an outdoor tool bench and kitchen under the awning for various projects and undertakings, while Rosemarie has just about every single tool and supply for her hobbies set up on her work bench, the dinette table, and elsewhere.  In a recent post I wrote about her sewing, but she has also been working on half a dozen other things.

While taking inventory of her crafting supplies, she found the last dozen or so clear glass Christmas tree ornaments, and decided to try something new: unicorn ornaments!  Who wouldn’t want at least one of those for their holiday decor?  These incorporate so many of her skills and supplies: bulbs, glitter, shells, artificial flowers, and Cricut generated ears and eyelashes. 

But wait, not interested in unicorn ornaments?  Looking for something more natural?  Then her miniature cork bottled sand and shell options might be for you!  Yes, Christmas is a long way off, but the way things are going (as I write this in mid June, Florida is experiencing a major coronovirus spike) our next market opportunities might be in November, if we have any this year at all.

Y’all remember Rose’ shell crowns?  Of course you do; they have been a hit at many of our craft fairs and festivals.  The problem is some people find them a bit heavy, and thus difficult for a child to wear with comfort and confidence.  So she has been on the lookout for a lighter and more secure alternative.  Behold the new options, a one part head band with flowers, shells, or both:

Mermaid crowns, new version.  The flowers on the left crown are made of shells.

And you can’t have mermaid princess tiara’s without scepters as well:

I’ll admit it: when I bought Rosemarie her Cricut machine for Christmas a couple of years back, I was skeptical that it would be a long and well used thing: boy was I wrong.  It not only paid for itself in the early days by transforming modest clear trivets into fun and decorated variants, it has also produced every single cut and printed backing for the wide variety of jewelry we sell.  It is one of the first things that comes out of the craft storage when we arrive at a new location.  This stop she put it to use for not only the above mentioned unicorn ears and eyelashes, but also for Mermaid tale hair bows.

Lastly, at least for this post, Rose has been diligently working on her novice ukulele skills.  Her uke has remained mainly its storage case since stepdad Tim’s private lessons during our visit last November.  One of the interesting byproducts of COVID-19 social distancing is the number of companies offering free introductory access to their online content.  Fender, for instance, offered a 30 day free trial to all of their music video lessons, and Rose went all in with near daily practice during May and early June. 

Next up: May close out report.