Maybe you are thinking that she looks a little over-dressed for April but it is snowing (again) out my window today. Enough already! I got a little behind with my posting this weekend but with the various holidays I figured it wouldn’t matter. Now, back on track!
A plaid fox because it is the perfect colors.
He is going out for a hike to do some amateur scientific research.
Here are his supplies from his backpack- a notebook and pencil, a map, a snack, and a bit of money.
I take apart/cut up cashmere sweaters from the thrift store to make these sweaters for my foxes. I wash the cashmere but it stays soft and drapey, perfect for the way I use it. On this one, I cut out the sweater pieces so that the original sweater’s ribbing could get used for my little fox sweater. Then, I took off a ruffle that went all the way around the original sweater’s button front and neckline and sewed it on for this sweet girl. Now she has the fancy sweater! Also a silk bow.
And a Liberty lawn dress.
She is made from a rough weave wool- it is kind of scratchy and coarse but an excellent rich color. And, such a contrast to her cashmere sweater.
She has a picnic basket-
Here is his gorgeous vest-
He is made from an interesting reclaimed wool fabric. I bought an old wool kimono type garment at a yard sale at a local Japanese School. It had some moth holes and worn spots so I felt guiltless cutting it up and giving it a new life. It has a very interesting textured weave.
This Liberty of London lawn is just gorgeous, isn’t it?
Her school bag-
I’m seeing signs of Spring- there were blooming crocus where the snow has melted!
Felt crown, cashmere sweater, cobweb-by lace shawl.
A smaller fox toy pin.
I didn’t quite get this baby finished before I left for LA so I brought it along as a demo doll. I figured I’d finish it while I was out there. Nope, more than a month later and I finally finished the last few details yesterday.
Yes, it has been more than a month since I have finished any of my dolls. I’ve got a ton of work in progress but now it is time to get some pieces finished! In less than a month, I will be heading down to Washington, DC for the Smithsonian Craft Show and I am feeling the pressure. There won’t be any dolls available for sale until after that show, so that means the beginning of May.
Look- signs of melting and Spring! There is hope!
I’m part of a blog tour for Simone Gooding’s new book but most people don’t have blogs anymore so it is mostly an Instagram tour. But I still have a blog and I am happy to show you this beautiful book!
Simone reached out to me to ask if I would participate in the tour. I had never actually seen her work before but thought it looked right up my alley. I received the book before I left for LA and was impressed by how attractive it is- gorgeous photos and thoughtful design. I love the details like handwritten page numbers.
She asked that the tour participants choose a project. I decided on Thistle, a sweet bunny, because I thought it would interesting to see how someone else put animal clothing together. The rest of this post is my review: of the book and also of me, as a maker. Any time I make someone else’s design, it is all inside-my-head arguing and I am not very good at following directions. Weirdly, I want the directions to be there and then I can discard them if I want to. I know. I might not be the best person for a job like this! So this was my experience.
I cut out the pieces and got the bunny together. I used shoe button eyes because I had them. Ears-hmm. Not quite liking how they look. Tail? I used a wool felt ball instead of the pattern directions.
I wasn’t happy with the eyes or the ears. I took the button eyes off and embroidered them instead and then they looked more like Simone’s original design. My way had changed the shape of the head. Not good. I took the ears off and played with the placement. I sewed them on my way. I know- I can’t just follow the directions!
Then the clothing. There was a lot of hand-sewing called for in the instructions. Um… I mostly didn’t do that. I was disappointed that the dress was sewed onto Thistle. I like a dressable doll and it would have been easy to make it that way.
Here is the dress from the back. You can see that the fit isn’t great.
Next, the jacket. It looks really cute! And isn’t she the sweetest? She stands up by herself too- I love that! It’s not exactly looking like Spring around here.
So my review would be-
On the plus side-
It is a beautiful book. Gorgeous large color photos. 10 projects made mostly from wool felt. Full size pattern pieces that I easily copied on my copier. I appreciate that! It is a nicely made book too- when you open to the design you’ve chosen, the book stays open on the table.
But then…
I don’t think this is a book for beginners. If you don’t have some experience hand and machine sewing and also with basic toy-making, you might have problems. I never discovered what the seam allowances were suppose to be until I’d finished because they are listed in the supplies area and not with the pattern pieces or the sewing instructions. I am bad about reading through the entire design before I start- I’m more of a jump-right-in kind of maker and so factor that in about my experience. There are no markings for the placement of the arms and legs, or for the ears. The pattern pieces are great and all fit together but the written instructions were confusing to me. I ended up having to redo several parts; ex. the arms of the coat were too tight so I restitched them with a smaller seam allowance. I would have liked photographs of the bunny with no clothes on and with just the dress, in addition to the glamour shots of the finished doll. I ended up with a lovely little bunny though so all of this being picky.
I’d recommend this book for a maker with some sewing experience who’d like to jump into the world of felt and make adorable animals and lots of accessories.
Simone is having a giveaway on Instagram if you want to check it out. Here are the other participants of the blog/Instagram tour. There is a hashtag #littletravellerbook if you want to check it out on Instagram.
15th March – Simone Gooding (@simone_gooding)
16th March – Winterwood (@winterwoodcraft)
17th March – Kerri Horsley (@sewdeerlyloved)
18th March – Shelly Down (@gingermelongirl)
19th March – Mimi Kirchner (@mimikirchner)
20th March – Lauren Wright (@mollyandmama)
21st March – Anne Sutton (@bunnyhilldesigns)
22nd March – Jennifer Goldsmith (@frazzydazzles)
23rd March – Manuela Trani (@nuvolinahandmade)
24th March – Jess Cunningham (@pastyourporchlight)
25th March – Simone Gooding (@simone_gooding)
26th March – Jo Molony (@deerdarlingdolls)
27th March – Minki Kim (@zeriano)
28th March – Jooles Hill (@sewsweetviolet)
29th March – Sedef Imer (@downgrapevinelane)
30th March – Ayda Algin (@cafenohut)
31st March – Katy Livings (@katylivings)
1st April – Jodie Carlton (@jodiericrac)
2nd April – Melinda Hume (@mooseandbird)
3rd April – Simone Gooding (@simone_gooding)
Yikes, it has been almost 2 weeks already. Time to post, right?!
The Swaddled Baby class went really well. There were 15 participants, 2 5-hour days, and beautiful handmade babies at the end.
Babies in progress-
The first day we focused on the hard parts- the face, getting the body stuffed and closed up, basic designing. By the end of the first day, pretty much everyone was ready to move on to the fun part- designing, embellishing, stitching. I didn’t get any pics at all from the first day!
Busy hands-
Lots of pieces-
And here are (almost) all the babies at the end of the day. (A few left early.)
They are all different and amazing! Most people didn’t finish but it seemed like everyone was well on their way and had fun getting there. Here are some of the dolls that went home on Sunday afternoon-
Frida Baby!
Another great class at French General!