LYNNWOOD — Caralee Hudson started making “nut babies” in 1982.
The idea, from “Family Circle” magazine, was to mold simple figures from flour, salt and water, and bake them nestled into a walnut shell.
She’s way beyond that now.
Recent creations include the side-ponytailed Wyldstyle from “The Lego Movie,” for a granddaughter who loves Legos, and Lord Farquaad, the villain from “Shrek,” whom her grandson played in a production at Lynnwood High School.
Add a paper clip for a spine and hook, and you have ornaments ready for the Christmas tree. The rest of the year, they store nicely inside egg cartons.
Only one ornament, a raccoon made for her mother-in-law, survived from Hudson’s first batch in 1982.
She didn’t try again until 2001, soon after she became a grandmother. And she’s moved on to more sturdy modeling clay.
Hudson, 69, a retired nurse, lives in the Meadowdale area with her husband, Steve. Their family includes three sons, their wives and six grandchildren.
“Every year, I make one for each of them,” she said, with the total now somewhere around 110.
She starts in September, with the craft table close to the TV. She includes details that only the recipients might recognize. For example, when one grandson was young, he always had to hold his baby blanket a certain way — and so does his Tigger ornament from the time.
On Monday, Hudson pushed clay through the shaker holes in a spice jar lid — creating tiny “yarn” to fashion the poof atop a knit hat.
Hudson wants her loved ones to know she pays attention to their interests and accomplishments.
“I’ve invested time, meaning love, into this,” she said.
She recently taught the art to teen mothers at Youth for Christ Parent Life, as something to do for their babies.
“It can be something special that a mom or grandma makes — or grandpa.”
She’s yet to create a nut baby for herself. Or Steve.
“By the time I’m done, I’m done,” she said.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @rikkiking.
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