Sneak Peek! More Sweet Stufflings on the Way!

I'm sure if I counted each tiny stitch as I sewed, I'd have second thoughts about making any more of these little sweeties!  I really was hoping to have all six finished by tonight, but alas, I underestimated how long each one would REALLY take to 'whip' up!
Anyway, I got three finished and the others are well under way.  Here's a little sneak peek...

These three are the creamy ones, the others are a tad more colourful.



I have some names picked out, but would like some opinions please!  Tickles for the bunny, Waffle for the bear and Pickle for the kitten.  Please let me know what you think:)

Of course, I couldn't end this post without a work in progress shot!  I'll post pics of the rest as soon as I'm done and they'll all be in my shop soon.

Hope you all had a SWEET halloween!

The Beginnings of a New Idea...

Don't you just love it when you come up with an idea that you can't wait to make?  I had such an idea this week and couldn't wait to get started on my new creation! 

I took my original bear pattern pieces and tweaked them here and there, adding length to the body, rounding the belly some more, trying different ear shapes and eventually I came up with Periwinkle, a cloth and woven felt bear.  I'm working on six more, each in different colour combos, shapes and sizes. 

As you can see, Periwinkle is able to sit or stand, and she wears a double ruffled collar to which I've attatched a pretty rose and a rusty bell.

Periwinkle is on her way to one of my favourite customers in England where she'll join some of the other dolls and bears I've made in the past.  I'm sending lots of hugs with her for her new mom!

I had fun making some new outfits for my mom's shop this week - I did three Domestic Goddess outfits, each in a different colour but all included the dress, reversable head scarf and an apron.  Perfect for the girl who loves to keep everything spic and span! 

By the way, we have a new girl on the way....  She's an Angelica Eve Blythe and the girls and I are super excited about her arrival!  Now, just got to think of a name for her:)

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!



Jack-o-Lantern and a Fish Treat

Pumpkin Petal, a sweet Anime Kitten, is meowing with glee!  She just got her very first Halloween treat and it's a favourite of hers - a fish! 

I created a tiny felt Jack-o-lantern which I embellished with a beaded wire handle and embroidered features.  Her fish treat is  made from moss green felt and decorated with cream stitches.  Pumpkin wears a cream scarflette and an orange flower which is beaded with black glass beads at its centre.  

Pumpkin measures about 5 inches tall, a little taller than the Pink and Blue Petal Bears.  She was made with lots of love and a few generous pinches of fragrant lavender.    

Petal Bears - A New Collection of Sweet Stufflings

Just wanted to share my newest Petal Bear - Blue.  I am having soooo much fun working with mohair and for this bear, I tried a longer pile mohair, which I thought gave a sweet, scruffy look to my newest bear.  Blue Petal wears a cotton scarflette around her neck with a detatchable felt flower that I've beaded at the centre.

She's been stuffed with fragrant lavender and polyfil and I plucked bits away from her eyes, paws and belly.  I used a watered down brown paint which I  rubbed around her eyes,  on the ends of her paws and feet and then I blushed here and there with powder blush.

I even tried the 'dreaded' cotter pin - which I thought was going to be hard, and it was!  But it was worth it because she can gently move her head from side to side.  Love it!!

Here's a pic of my work area earlier today.  Bits of mohair, waxed dental floss, embroidery thread, cotter pins, lavender, tweezers and of course bits of thread everywhere are slowly taking over my tiny apartment!

Petal and Bungles

I did something 'scary' this week that should have been done a  l o n g  time ago.  I cut out some mohair.  Now, I've had this mohair for months and every time I took it out and looked at it, I would run my fingers over the beautiful fabric thinking of all the sweet little bears/kittens etc. I could make with it.  But, silly me, I was too nervous to try and cut it up because I was worried about cutting it incorrectly!    As most bear makers know, only the backing must be cut while the little hairs must be avoided to ensure the seams stay nice and furry.  My, but I can waste a lot of time by being too scared to do something!  So, as in most things I do, I waited for the appropriate amount of scaredy cat time to pass and then I thought 'What the Heck' and just went for it!  When will I ever learn to just do whatever it is I want to do without spending months agonizing over what might go wrong??

The mohair came in a kit with a sweet bunny pattern by Vivianne Galli http://www.etsy.com/shop/theoldpincushion, so I very carefully cut out each piece, only wrecking the first piece mind you, and in no time at all, my little Bungles came to life.

 

I named him after a doll I had when I was little.  It's a strange name, but I guess I must've liked the sound of it then, though who knows how I came up with it!

I wanted to give Bungles a vintagey, well-loved look, so I rubbed him with watery brown paint and plucked hairs from around his nose, eyes, paws and ear tips.  I added blush to his nose and ears and to finish him off, I gave him a silvery mauve bow with a tiny bell at his neck.

I loved making him so much that I decided to make another one the next day using a pattern I designed.

This is Petal.  It took my a few attempts at getting the pattern just how I wanted it, but I'm loving it!  I think she's soooo sweet!

Again, I distressed her with the watered down brown paint, concentrating it around her eyes, paws and belly.  Instead of the German glass eyes, I used safety eyes and appliqued a little nose on.  A crocheted cotton scarf with a detatchable beaded flower is tied at her neck.

I can tell you one thing - life's too short to worry about messing something up!!

Both Bungles and Petal make wonderful companions for Blythes, Pullips and other collectable dolls.

The Visit... Oh and the Giveaway Winner too!

We have a visitor!  Emily has come all the way from Illinois for a little make-over.  Her mom, Beth, recently bought one of the Blythe dresses I made and she loved how I'd cut my Saffy's hair.  So, she's sent her little girl over for a new do.

I just had to share the picture above because when I was setting up for the photos, my cat, Beast, was very interested in what was going on!  Normally, he is not allowed to be on the couch when I'm photographing, but I couldn't resist this shot!

It's hard to believe that my little Skye looked exactly like Emily once upon a time!

We had a lovely Thanksgiving Weekend, complete with the most wonderful turkey dinner!  My dear hubby was in the kitchen all day yesturday preparing the feast!  Had to give thanks that I have a wonderful hubby who loves to cook!  Anyway, after dinner, he drew the winner's name and the needlebook goes to Celena Cavala of The Filigree!  Hope she loves it!  Thanks to all who left comments on my blogs and on Flickr!

Thanksgiving Weekend Give-away!!

Yay!!  It's Thanksgiving Weekend here in Canada!  I just wanted to say a Huge Thank You to all the lovely people I've met through my blog, flickr, The Hive, and Etsy!  You guys are all wonderful! 

So, to celebrate the holiday and  show my appreciation for all your fabulous feedback/comments, I am having another give-away!   Up for grabs is a handmade needlebook, which I made with a gorgeous turquoise and cream hand woven felt.  A beaded felt flower adds charm.

Unfortunately, I only have one, so if you'd like a chance at winning it, please just leave a comment and I'll add your name to the draw.  I will announce the winner on Thanksgiving Day - Monday, October 11.

Best of luck to you all:)

Think Pink... October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

It's so important to have a clinical breast examination by a trained healthcare professional at least every two years! Please don't wait till it's too late ladies!

My dear Nannykins, who's just celebrated her 93rd birthday was diagnosed with breast cancer in the 1950's. Despite losing both breasts to the disease and undergoing numerous bouts of radiation, she is alive and still going strong! Early detection can save lives!

Our local Curves is having a benefit to raise funds for Breast Cancer Research, and the members were asked to donate prizes that are to be raffled off and the money raised will be donated to the Cancer Society. I decided to make a special anime kitten for the occassion and will name her Pinky.

She is made from a hand woven wool felt and I made a little boquet of roses for her to hold. Hopefully she'll add a nice donation to this worthy cause!

Emma and Smudgy the Clown

Well, I've finally finished the last of the batch of Petite Poppets I started and her name is Emma.  She's a blue eyed girl with chestnut locks in organic wool.  Her little dress is made from Japanese cotton with a dear animal print and as usual I've embroidered her little felt shoes and undies.

I am going to take a bit of a break from sewing for a while and move on to something else.  I find I get very restless doing  the same things for too long, so it's time for a change until I get the urge to make dolls agian!

So, whilst browsing through the new issue of Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Crafts, I came across a cute Lollipop Clown which I set about making.  Instead of using papier-mache, I chose to use paperclay and was quite happy with the results until, horror of horrors, I smudged his face in my eagerness to finish him!  Ooooh, what silly thing to do...  That'll teach me to wait till the paint dries!

Can you see that mess??  Oh well.... tomorrow I will attempt to fix him up and carry on.  He needs an antique stain all over, some glitter and I'm thinking he'll need a little bell to go with the silver and purple ribbon that I'll tie around his neck.  Lastly, I'll make a hanging hook and he'll be all ready for the Christmas tree! 

The Hive Creative Challenge - Autumn Poppet

I wanted to make someting special for the Hive's Autumn challenge, so I created Audrey, a Petite Poppet, to celebrate the new season.

Audrey's hair is made from a gorgeous autumn orange, organic wool.  She wears a long sleeve dress (perfect for chilly days), edged in creamy cotton lace and embroidery thread.  Her little felt shoes and tiny undies are embroidered with orange daisies and, to complete her outfit, I made a matching hair clip in co-ordinating fabric with amber glass beads at its centre.



Audrey's features have been hand painted with fabric paint and heat set with an iron.  Her hair may be left down or may be gently coaxed into different styles.



I've enjoyed this challenge immensely and am looking forward to participating in the next one!
Wishing you all a wonderful week:)