Monkey Mayhem!

I've been pattern testing!

If you've never heard of Jodie from Ric-Rac, then you should know that she is one of the most awesomest blogging toy pattern maker extraordinaires that there ever was. You should totally check out her blog - Go on! I'll still be here when you get back. If you ever remember to come back, that is.... Her patterns are easy to follow and the results are so loveable that you will be unable to resist, just as I was totally unable to resist this guy. He has evolved quite a bit since he first appeared on Jodie's blog, but the striped fabric really brought out his personality. Jodie has named him "Louie, Monkey of Wonder", but around these parts we call him Marvin, or sometimes just monkey.



When I first saw him, I just KNEW that Noah would love him. I mean, this monkey is not just cute, he's a bit naughty too! You can tell from his cheeky face that this guy is BIG trouble! A lot of Jodie's toys have button jointed legs, but not Louie/Marvin/Monkey. Whilst his arms are button jointed, his legs are put together in such a way that he has a spring in his step and he also has a definite sway in his tail. When he wears his super-hero cape and super monkey jocks, he is ready to save the world. Nobody will know who he is, as he wears a special mask to protect his identity. I also made a mask (not part of the pattern) to protect the identity of his favourite side-kick.



Louie/Marvin/Monkey runs on raspberry icy-poles and has boundless energy, just like my Noah. I can tell that they are going to be the best of friends for a long time, they've been hanging out together all the time over the past couple of days.



If you want a monkey like this of your very own (or know a small person who might), you should be able to get your hands on the pattern very soon. He's coming soon to a pattern dealer near you! If your local quilt shop doesn't stock Ric-Rac patterns, you should ask them to get them in, they are totally missing out.

Tess' Kinder Doll

This happy, smiley Ric-Rac Kinder Doll was made for Tess for Christmas.



Instead of the fabric and ribbon combination for the shoes, I made them from felt this time. In pink instead of the usual black.



I used a stem stitch to sew the mouth and nose this time, instead of the usual back stitch. I used more strands of embroidery floss than the other times, too. This gave the mouth more definition. I made her eyes blue instead of black, too.



You might notice that the fabric matches what I used for Tess, last year.

If you are interested, you can see the other kinder dolls I have made:
Amélie's Kinder Doll
Lima's and Noah's Kinder Dolls
Ellie's Kinder Doll
Adara's Kinder Doll

***Update: The Kinder Doll pattern is now available as a downloadable pattern from Craftsy. Get it Now!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!



I hope you all have a wonderful day, surrounded by loved ones.



If you are traveling, stay safe on the roads.



Pattern: Rudy by Melly & Me

31. Elsie Cabbage

I was lucky enough to test another one of Jodie's patterns, Elsie Cabbage. I put her in a tree, because she's a tree-climbing kind of girl.



In fact, Elsie is happiest when she is outdoors.



I don't know if it is the lop-sided pig-tails, just like her own...



But Amélie has claimed adopted her.



How could you not love this cute, freckly face?



I don't know why we bothered with the shoes, because Elsie prefers to go barefoot.



...and naked, apparently.



Watch out for Elsie Cabbage, the pattern should be available in a week or two. If your local doesn't stock Ric-Rac patterns, give them a funny look and ask them to order some in for you.

Magnificent Mice

I stumbled across this really cute pattern whilst browsing the internet last week and I was so excited by it, I snapped it up right away. The pattern is called Brave Mouse Aviators and is a downloadable pattern by Bustle & Sew. I would love to make them using some lovely wool fabric like in the pattern, but I don't have any so I'm making mine with some wool felt instead. I'll come back and let you know how it all goes when I'm done.

Want to see what other crafty people are doing this week? Head over and visit Our Creative Spaces to have a sticky beak.

I'm having a hat-sew-along during the month of September. If you would like to make a hat during the month of September, you can find my sign-up post here.

Warm Winter Coat

Dolly now has a lovely, warm coat for a cold, Melbourne winter. The pattern is from the kinder wardrobe pattern for kinder girls and boys by the lovely Jodie of Ric Rac. I used a built in embroidery pattern on my machine to do the lovely flower edging. I really need to make more use of those patterns. I used some Gütermann upholstery thread, so it stands out just a little more than it would if I just used normal thread.

You can check back through Dolly's progress here, here and here. Or if you want to see what other people have been doing in their creative spaces this week, you can check that out over here.

A Pretty Dress for Dolly

Dolly has a dress now, so she can go to the party. I hope the birthday girl likes it. The clever lady who designed this pattern made the dress reversible, so she gets two for one.



A little tip, if you are making this doll; When you are cutting out all the arms and legs, if you can copy the arm and leg patterns, so you have two of each, you will only need to lay them out on your doubled fabric once to get your four of each. This really helps when you have a tight fabric layout. (Somebody remind me to order more Doctor's flannel, so I'm ready for the next dolly).



When you sew the dolly's face on, you need to mark the face with a disappearing fabric marker. I love this pen for drawing the face, because it has an eraser on it. So if your mouth is a bit wonky, or your nose not quite right, you can erase it and start again. Of course, test it out on some scrap fabric before you use it on dolly's face, as it would be terrible if it didn't come out.

I'm thinking that Dolly looks a bit cold. Should I make her a coat?

Well, Hello Dolly!

I managed to get the dolly together last night. All she needs now is a party dress. We've had a bit of a rough day here, with two exuberant pre-schoolers who want to get outside and a really unhappy toddler who just wanted cuddles all day. So the dress isn't quite finished. Hopefully tomorrow.

The dolly pattern, in case you didn't know, is the Ric-Rac Kinder Girl pattern.

***Update: The Kinder Doll pattern is now available as a downloadable pattern from Craftsy. Get it Now!

Fingers in Pies.....

Jodie says she has so many irons in the fire she could be a blacksmith. Me, I have my fingers in so many pies I could possibly be Little Jack Horner. Starting with a dolly I need to finish before next weekend.



In an effort to head off second-sock-itis, I have started my second tropical fish sock...



Slowly working through my cherry tree swing embroidery...



Trying to keep up with my growing boy and supply him with some long sleeved tee-shirts to keep him warm...



As well as a wind-cheater...



And of all things, a picnic basket make-over.... and I believe I may have promised someone a sashiko tutorial? Busy, busy, busy!

Here's the deal. Let's say I finish at least four of these before I start anything new...

What are you working on? Can you stick to one thing at a time?

On My Way to Grandma's House

I was lucky enough to be a pattern tester for Jodie Carleton of Ric-Rac. She thinks I was doing her a favour, haha! Anyway, it was great fun, and I think Little Red may well be Jodie's best pattern ever. I have always had a soft spot for Little Red Riding Hood, as can be seen here, here and here, so I was practically jumping out of my skin when she chose me to test this pattern.



Jodie's pattern even teaches you how to make the cute little basket of goodies. My basket isn't lined like it is in the pattern (part of the testing process) but it does show that if you find the lining a little too tricky, you can skip that bit and it will still be gorgeous. The fruit hides all the raw edges inside the basket, anyway. I think I might go back and re-do the basket, with the lining though, as I do think the lining looks lovely.





The boots are AWESOME! I must admit, threading the laces back and forth was a little fiddly, but oh, so worth it!



The dress is also pretty fancy. It's fully lined, and those little toad-stools along the bottom are pretty cute. I am proud to say that I have mastered the French knot whilst embellishing those cute little toadstools. I also love her hair and her cape. Ok, so I love ALL of her, and she has received lots of hugs and sloppy kisses already, in this house, as the kids all love her too.



Jodie has only just released her pattern, and it is already in stock at Under the Mulberry Tree.

*** Update: You can now also by Little Red as a downloadable PDF from Craftsy

Two Little Boys for Two Little Boys

When Amélie received her doll for Christmas, Liam told me that he would like one too. He was quite disappointed when he found out that the next doll wasn't for him either.



I promised him I would make him one too, and of course, Noah had to have one too. This time I used the "Kinder Boys"* pattern. The dolls remained faceless and without one arm whilst I made their hats and clothes. The boys would never have waited for their clothes to be ready if they were finished, otherwise.



I finished their arms and faces last night and finished off their shirts this morning and snuck them off to the vegie garden before I handed them over, otherwise I would never have gotten to photograph them.



The boys are excited by their dolls!



(You can tell he's an Aussie Kid, by the Vegemite on his face).






*affiliate link

Introducing....

I just couldn't resist this pattern from Jodie of Ric-Rac. First I saw this blog post, and then there were more posts, and then I couldn't help myself, I ordered it! Would you be able to resist?

I started making this lovely elephant when I really should have been making Christmas presents. Or working on the purses I was making in Nikki's class. I finished her yesterday.

She is made of a cotton-linen blend that I purchased from a local shop. I think I got 5 metres of this, so I could probably make a whole herd of elephants from it if I wanted to.


Her dress is made from some American Jane fabric that I got from Amy at Badskirt. I just had to finish it off with some ric-rac from my stash that just happened to match the flowers in the dress. Be careful when ironing ric rac, as the stuff I have melted (as in to a liquid!), so I had to unpick and sew again. She also has snaps instead of buttons on her dress as they are so much easier (for her and for me).

Anyway, I've been saying "she" and "her" because I haven't come up with a name yet.... any ideas?