Maid a-Milking samples

I'm getting very close to finishing the Maid a-Milking pattern! I plan to sequester myself upstairs with Squeegee Beckinheim* over the next few days to finish up. My youngest's school play is over and I'm looking at a mostly commitment free weekend. I have to tell you I'm a little panicked to find myself so close to Thanksgiving and so little prepared for December. This should be a familiar feeling since I'm NEVER prepared to meet December. It's always a surprise. It's only been twelve months since the last one!

Do you want to know more about this Twelve Days ornament series? Click here.

*Gilmore Girls reference. Are you guys excited about the new episodes? I want to be. But I have a dark premonition that the magic will be gone. Oy with the poodles already.

done with Early Bird/Night Owl prototyping

A growing collection of Early Bird/Night Owls. (Yes, my fabric shelves are a disgrace. I own it.) [You should see the pile on the floor.] The last prototype is just finished {Mr Second From Right} so after more rounds of tweaks than I was anticipating in January, I'm finally happy with the design and sequence of steps!

Now on to the diagramming! Beta pattern will be ready soonish.

shown up by my kid

My 11 year old said, "Mom, I think I want a rabbit doll. I'm going to make one." And now I confess to something a little bit selfish and terrible. At that moment, instead of being happy that she is sharing my love of handcraft, I thought something like "errrrrrgh, I'm kind of busy and she's going to want to use my Katy Kitty pattern and then modify it and I don't have time to help her with all that right now".

Well, she didn't need my help. She came to me for nothing.
*Cat's In The Cradle is now playing softly in the background of this post.*

She drafted the whole bunny pattern from scratch, worked out how everything would go together and cut all the pieces from fleece. She designed the clothes, which are removable. Several nights in a row she was sitting in the living room floor hand sewing the whole thing together while her sister played Xbox. I actually kind of took over when she got to the very last part and showed her how to gather and hem the skirt because I was feeling, yes, a bit left out.

Serves me right.
Isn't her rabbit doll cute?

nesting, bobbling Larissa magnets

If you've stuck with me any amount of time you'll know I love matryoshka dolls. Do you collect them? Small, cleverly made things are powerful Larissa magnets. I'm drawn to them by an irresistible, tractor beamish force. The same force opens my wallet and turns down the volume on the sensible 'save your money' voice. These are two recent purchases that give me much joy.

This wooden set is designed by one of my favorite illustrators ever, Helen Dardik. Oh, how I love her cheerful, bizarre drawings and print patterns! I'm the proud owner of three of her watercolors. I was so lucky to be able to buy this matryoshka directly from her. I loves it. Animals who are holding tasty things to eat. Mr Bear with an apple. Mrs Owl with a bowl of um. Pistachio pudding! Obviously.

I'm actually not sure what Mr Middle there is. No ears. But has a snout. And claws. (Bear/Owl love child?) And clutches a bowl of...Greek yogurt. Hmm. Mr Squirrel is eating a fish. I didn't know squirrels liked fish. Maybe it's a fish-shaped nut loaf. Or maybe Mr Squirrel is really Mr Beaver. Do Beavers eat fish? No. Maybe Mr Squirrel is just taking his pet fish for a walk. The fish looks keen. And a nervous girl (Goldilocks?) who is hoping 1) she is not the main course 2) they will share their snacks.

I like a bit of drama and mystery in my nesting dolls.

 And they have tails! Except for Goldi, of course.

And this vintage bobble-head Japanese set I picked up on Etsy a while ago might be my favorite in the Crazy-Tiny Wow Factor category. I love the dry brush paint strokes. Did I mention they bobble?

As in, they all have bobble heads. Not just the big one.
(Imagine some really stellar gel polish or Jamberries on my nails, will you?)

 All the way down...

 ...to this guy. Yes. His head bobbles too. 

(I know!)

So you see. I had to make them mine forever. I know you support me in this.

handmade gifts 2014: replacement doll for audrey

Meet Amelia. A little bird told me a few months ago that a certain puffy green doll was lost in the move and that there was sadness. Well, we can't have that. While I couldn't remake the doll to match Miss MIA, I did make her a red-haired sister. Blue, flowery and not as poofy puffy. I was excited about this at first but I hope that doesn't create more sadness. You never know with these things. There may be green terry cloth nostalgia to overcome.

You can't really tell but she also has pink streaks in her hair. I thought Audrey might like that. I tell ya, I made a royal hash of the hair at first and you can probably tell if you look closely (so don't look closely). It has been six years since I made the first doll and the instructions are a study in brevity. They don't include tips for the long hair so I have no idea how I did it for the first doll. This doll does have hair, and it is sewn on in places, so I'm calling it a win.

If you make the Martha doll, be sure to use very stretchy jersey knit for the head, hands and feet. Also it's very helpful to sew a basting circle on the feet and hand squares to use for gathering, draw them up, tie them off, and then stuff them, not the other way round. I didn't use batting to fill them as instructed, I used polyfil for the whole doll.

I think the pocket on the original doll was intended for baby teeth. This doll has a wee little pocket too, which is still good for teeth or whatever tiny treasure needs to hide there. Maybe small, folded, very secret lists.
 

Wee Princess Pea pattern review by Wendi Gratz of Shiny Happy World

 Photo courtesy of Wendi Gratz

Do you know about Wendi Gratz? She's the creator and author of Shiny Happy World, a name which aptly describes her brightly colored and cheerful softie, quilt, and embroidery designs. Here are just a couple of things from her shop:

 

 

You can see she is quite a talented designer and maker with a lot of practical know-how and I am so delighted to share this pattern review she wrote recently for my Wee Princess Pea.

If you've been toying with the idea of making that project you'll find she's written a helpful and thorough review. I love how her Wee Princess turned out! That's a photo of her set at the top of the post. Look at the pretty contrast blanket stitching and happy colors. She made a few clever mods and gave it her own signature style. There are more great photos to see on her post.

After a look at the review, you'll thank yourself to have a look around the rest of her site for her free patterns and very helpful tips and lessons. Thank you, Wendi!

tiny things making me happy, part four million and one

This is Mr Owl and Mr Bear. They fit nicely in your pocketses. Mr Owl is 3 1/4 inches tall and Mr Bear is an inch taller. They were designed by Ingela Arrhenius, whose happy, vintage-style illustrations I admire a lot. Let's see what's inside.

 Mr Lion.

Mr Green Owl. I wonder if you know the other Mr Owl?

Mr Tiger.

 There you are, Mr Otter.

 Don't be shy, Mr Penguin.

 Wait a minute, you open too?

 Hmm. You are empty. It's a mystery. No matter. Nice place to hide a jelly bean.

 The whole zoo family.

 Now for Mr Owl. What's inside?

 His brother, Mr Owl.

 And his brother, Mr Owl.

 And his other brother, Mr Owl.

 and his other other brother, Mr Owl.

 And his littlest brother, Steve.

 Hey, Steve. You do not open. I've tried.

All the Brothers Owl together.

These are made of sturdy plastic instead of painted wood so they are kid friendly, but I'm having a problem sharing my toys. You can see more nesting dolls Ingela has designed (and other cool stuff -- the plates!) right here.

You may have noticed I have a little fixation on matryoshkas. I have a board dedicated to them, if you would like to look!

hello, my name is Princess Snow Cream

And here's the ornament for my 9 yr old Thing 2. See the previous post for a closeup of Thing 1's. I'm so excited about these! I love to make them. They are 3.5 inches tall and can stand on their own with the help of their royal robe. They each seem to have their own personality and sky's the limit on hair color. Which is fun! (They are made using my Wee Princess Pea pattern.)

I guess I still have a little girl's fixation on long hair. I used to wish for it with all my might, and pull yellow t-shirts inside out over my forehead to pretend it was long blond hair. You probably did that too, right?

*crickets*

hello, my name is Princess Candy Cane

Another ornament from the Wee Princess Pea pattern, this time for my sweet eleven year old Thing 1. I cannot wait for her to take this out of her stocking and see her hang it on our tree! I added a loop on the top of her head (that's the silver thread you see at the top there) and a wee little present in her hands. It's glued in place so it doesn't get lost. Her name is written in white ink on the gift tag, but I touched it out.

I didn't forget my Thing 2. Her princess ornament is next!

I am the Frost Queen

...and I decree it shall snow!

This Frost Queen ornament was crafted recently just for Juliette. It was nice to sit down for some quiet time with just me and craft supplies and Vampire Dia--I mean Ken Burns' Civil War.

Juju's been a longtime cyber friend, and I admire (covet) everything that girl makes. She can make anything. She has a loom in her living room! Whatever she tackles, she masters. When she generously carved this feather stamp for me, I wanted to return the kindness. Juju is outnumbered by boys in her house, so I thought she needed a really girly girl ornament all her own. 

It was made using my Wee Princess Pea pattern with no mods except for the addition of the snowball scepter and hanging loop. Just thread a hanging loop through the bead before you attach the head and the glue holds it in place.

My favorite part is her icy blue hair! 

Hugs to you, Juju.

{My favorite holiday has arrived. Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Americans! Especially to Robyn, who is wizarding up an American feast for her small outpost in Rio de Janeiro. Love you, Robyn, and I'm so thankful for best friends today!

I can't express how blessed I feel to be gathered up in the controlled chaos and surrounded by the love of family today. And the food is pretty awesome too. I wish everyone the warmest (and tastiest) day today, chock full of love and the things that truly matter.}

pattern testers extraordinaire, part 4

This brunette Wee Princess Pea, by wonderful pattern tester Kate of Popsicle Toes, is destined for her Future Grandchild Box. Look at the awesome castle backdrop and the Persian carpet she made for it. Kate, I love her sweet face and the rosy cheeks you added!

pattern testers extraordinaire, part 3

This blonde Wee Princess Pea was crafted by the talented Stephanie of Peas In a Pod, whose daughter is just the right age to enjoy this set. I love those millefiori buttons she used for the closet legs up there in the first photo.

I think a lot of the fun of making this pattern is in choosing the fabrics and colors. If you are a scrap hoarder like me you will have almost too many possibilities! Small prints look best for the mattresses and pillow because of the diminutive scale. I really love the idea of making a set that matches your daughter's hair and favorite colors.

Up next, pattern tester Kate!