Sunny Days Are Awesome

If you are at all familiar with the Pacific Northwest, you know that our winters and springs are not known for their sunny days.  So when that elusive orb finally comes out, it makes the whole day a little bit brighter.  I took advantage of the beautiful (if still chilly) conditions to photograph my latest peg doll creations.  I'm having fun learning new embroidery stitches and these little guys are the perfect size to try something new.  I like how the middle (pointy hat) gnome turned out; I think I might have to try my hand at applying dye to wool felt more often this spring.

 

 

 

Wool Felt Doll

I have finals to grade (homestretch), but I wanted to do a quick post on a felt doll I made as a gift before I completely forgot.  I bought the pattern from Gingermelon's etsy shop.  The doll is made from the pocket pixie pattern.  This is the 2nd pattern I have bought, and it is just as adorable as the first.

Except for the embroidered face, she is 100% wool felt.  The pretty glittery multicolored wool yarn I bought at Artfest 2012--sorry I don't remember the vender's name.  The hair is needle felted on, and I really liked how easy it was and how well it turned out.  I'm waiting to see how it holds up with gentle toddler play.

My Little Boos from GingerMelon's Pattern

I made these two cute little Boo's from a pattern I purchased from Gingermelon's etsy shop.  The kids love them and are asking for more.  I know I could have probably created something similar, but with a to-do list taller than me, I decided to take a break from creating my own patterns.  I have admired Shelly's dolls and creatures since first seeing them in in Stuffed magazine, so I thought it was fitting to support her creativity and give mine a break by purchasing her pattern.  Her instructions were clear and the end results speak for themselves.

I used 100% wool felt.  The only change I made was to create the eyes with felt and embroidery floss instead of using safety eyes.  I love how the arms move a bit--I will have to use the same technique on some of my other projects.

 

More Peg Dolls

 Here are some of my latest peg doll designs.  I've started using recycled sari cloth on some of my butterflies.  Just in time for the holidays, I've also created a new peg--my angel ornaments.  I love old German wood ornaments, and I tried to stay true to that feel.  Enjoy!

 

 

 

Cloth Dolls

I actually finished these gals in June, but then had thoughts to send them to Prims Magazine or Stuffed to see if I could get published.  I've had a hard time letting go of these dolls, though, and the thought of them sitting in storage at the publisher's wasn't so appealing.  I'm still undecided whether to send them in.

So their bodies are made with muslin and other cotton cloth and their hair is made with wool yarn (except for the sparklies).  I hand painted their faces, a method I rather liked.  I feel like I have more control over their features than if I had embroidered them.  Let me know what you think.

Some Bunnies . . .

I am taking my first online art class.  It's a Mindy Lacefield mini-class called "Frolic" and the subject matter is the adorable bunny.  Here's a link to the class website, if you are interested: timssally.com.

This is the first time I've tried an online class.  Mindy was one of my teachers at ArtFest 2012 and she did a fabulous job.  Here are the first three paintings I have created for the class.  Enjoy!

The Batman Doll is Ready for Action

I finally finished Batman.  Actually, he's been mostly done for quite awhile, but he still needed a cape, which my son was adamant in reminding me about on a regular basis.  So here he is, with removable Batarangs and a utility pocket for his rope.  My son is quite happy with him.

Here are some things I learned from the process:

The paint really does stiffen the fabric, so if you want less of that, use more GAC  (or something equivalent), which thins the paint rather than weakening it.  Since this toy is for a boy, the stiffness and durability of the paint is a plus as the doll will be easier to clean and will stand up a little better to rough use.  He is still squishably soft.

Tacky glue seems to be holding up with the utility belt, quite well.  I generally sew everything down, but glue was more practical in this case.

All in all, I felt this was a success.  My daughter, of course, wants a Batman doll, too.  Gotta love siblings :)  Maybe Wonder Woman . . .

PS, if you want to view the Batman doll before paint, click on the post link here.

Some More Dolls in Progress

Here are two more dolls in progress.  I created the pattern, cut out doubled muslin and cotton fabric and machine and hand stitched these two little lovelies.  I  painted the eyes last night.  I decided to keep the focus on the eyes and make the mouth and nose very simple.  For me this harkens to the Waldorf ideal a bit, where their dolls have neutral, primitive faces to engage the imagination.  The eyes go beyond primitive here, and certainly indicate personality, but I don't think that's a bad thing, in this case. 

I think these dolls must be friends, even though they have very different personalities.  Originally I was making one doll as a birthday present for a little girl I know, and then I figured I'd make two.  I'm torn now, as I'm thinking I'd like to send them in to see if they might get published in Stuffed or Prims.  I might just have to make some more with the same pattern.

I'll post more pictures when they have hair and clothes :).

 

 

DIY Magic Wand

So here is another gift I made for my daughter for her birthday. Sorry the pictures aren't the best. The most time consuming part was painting the wood dowel; the rest was easy. I knotted the ribbon in the middle, then separated into three different sections. I sewed over the ribbon while attaching the two pieces of felt together (leaving a space free to insert the dowel). Then I stuffed the star with fiberfill and used fabric glue to attach it to the dowel. So far the glue is holding. On the dowel, since I used a coat of glitter paint, I went over it again with acrylic medium to make sure the glitter doesn't travel off the wand.

Bunny Plushie Party Favors

Originally, we were just going to have a family celebration for my daughter's 2nd birthday, but this quicky expanded to include a day to celebrate with the family and a party with friends on the following weekend. I've had the idea for these little plush bunnies running around in my head for awhile now, and I figured that this would be a good opportunity to create some to use as party favors. They are fairly simple in design, and their small size makes them great for little hands. I put a loop on them for the older kids, so they could attach their bunnies to their backpacks, if they so desired. The legs are made from an old curtain I made in grad school, and their decorative embellishments are made with scraps. I hand embroidered the faces with cotton floss.  They seemed to be quite a hit, so I think I may make a few for my etsy shop.

Prim Doll for my Daughter

My daughter has been fascinated with the primitive style dolls I've been making to sell, so I thought I'd make her one of her own for her 2nd birthday. She's at the stage where she constantly wants to undress the doll, so I decided to make one that was essentially clothed, but had a removable skirt. I plan on making a couple of other skirts so that she can have a bit of a wardrobe change. For this doll, I decided not to distress her, figuring that my daughter would be doing that quickly enough.

Butterfly Fairy

So here is my latest creation, a butterfly fairy I made for a friend who is giving this to her grandchild. Like the gnomes, she is made out of wood and felt. I'm thinking I might put her up on etsy.com as a made-to-order option. I go back and forth with how much detail to put on the wings. I did a different version that I thought was too busy. I like the simplicity of this one.

I Love Making Gnomes

So, to take a break from making dolls and collages to sell, I decided to make some toys for my kids. I have been wanting to create these little guys for awhile. I came across this style of peg doll when I was researching Waldorf dolls. They fit with the connection to nature that is part of the Waldorf philosophy. Mine are made of wood pegs that I bought. I covered them in 100% wool felt and embroidered with cotton embroidery floss. Everything is hand sewn except I did use a little bit of fabric glue to attach the hats. I'm thinking of maybe creating some to sell. What do you think?

By the way, there are more pictures of these little guys in my new dolls and sculpture gallery on my webpage. You can click here and visit, if you are interested.