Hot air balloon

I have been wanting to make myself a fun pincushion for quite some time now (as I don't have one at all, somehow...)  But what would I make?

I was thinking about steampunk stuff, and what I first thought of was a hot air balloon.  I love the way steampunk styles everything as it were in the Victorian era.  And I also love hot air balloons for another nostalgic reason - as a kid, we would always go down to an area of town in Prescott Valley, AZ (my hometown) to watch as the hot air balloon pilots filled the balloon.

Thus, I made myself a new air balloon pincushion out of felt!

This was the first go at the basket.  The blue was to simulate sky...I ended up tweaking it as you will see.

And here are all the pieces of the balloon itself.

Almost done!  

And the final product!  I think it helps that I love the pearlized pins, so they made a great addition. I know its not super steampunk, but I love it none-the-less!

From above...

Quite a large pincushion, but the most fantastic one I have ever had!

Happy Sunday!

Ash