Rosabell

My sweet G has a lot of dolls, but I love that this funny rag-doll I made is one that comes out most of the time.  Yes her limbs are extra long and skinny, and she is definitely sort of rustic,she has a scar on her forehead (a repair to a tear), but she is big and squishy and even G can change her clothes if she bothers trying (our G is not big on trying things on her own if she thinks she can get someone to help her).

Her name is Rosabell, and she has started going to school with G. so she can snuggle during nap time.


"Can I bring a different doll Mom?
   "Sure babe, go grab one"
"But I want to bring Rosabell"
   "Okay, bring Rosabell"
"But M and D said that she was ugly"
   (sadness sweeping through my mama heart)
   "well, what do you think?"
"I love her, I think she looks funny but pretty"
   "Then it doesn't matter what they say, does it?  Just tell them that you think she looks great!"
(great internal conflict ensues... running all around the house not finding quite the right other doll... barbie?  Isabell (american girl)? Bunny?  tears, confusion... torn between trying to bring in something her friends would think was beautiful and her own preferences... maybe not really knowing the difference right now,  Mom applying pressure because we are already 15 min later than we should be... and in the end with not a lot of confidence...)
"I'm going to take Rosabell"

(we finally finally get into the car to head to school, when we arrive she happily grabs her doll, and brings her in and installs her properly in her cubby before going off to play doggies with a friend)

pshew.

zipper pouches, zebra dress

 Oookay, I love love this funky loud zebra pattern, I wanted to make a bit more of a fitted dress, but Grace chose this pattern.  It has some cute pockets and looks sweet on her, but G won't wear it much yet.  We will see if it is the result of the lack of sleeves and the wintry weather, or the more typical G. particular opinions on what she will and won't wear.

 Zipper pouches. I love/hate zippers, so I decided to try again with some more care and a tutorial.  These turned out pretty well!  I do love a zipper pouch.

 Lined and everything.  We even dyed some old sheets with our sumimingashi kit and it looks pretty cool.  It is hard to get the pattern even (especially when I want really bad to have a nice even print).  However, as a lining, and some fussy cutting it looks pretty cool.

ouroborus

This is a better shot of Owen's 2014 t-shirt design for the cousins this Christmas... He wants me to report that although it's a good dragon it is not his best dragon and he could do better... more details.

Tooth pillow - zoom loom - screen printing

I made Grace a tooth pillow!  Just in time too.  It was a fairly spontaneous project, we were out eating a roll at Grand Central and talking about her first (barely) loose tooth.  She was wondering when she would get a pillow for her tooth like Owen... so we sketched one out right then on a napkin.  

 we got home and cut out the pieces and sort of free-handed sewed them together.  Really I am not sure how to use the embroidery foot on the machine, it made a mess on the back of the fabric but the front looked pretty cute!

 
 So... when Grace lost her first tooth today... we put it in mousie's little pocket up front.  When we dropped Grace off at school, her teacher asked about what would happen with her tooth?  I told him that the tooth fairy would come and replace it with a dollar!  Grace was wearing her fairy-mouse-ballerina shirt and he told us that in Mexico, it is a little mouse that takes your tooth. So in an abundance of coincidences... we also designed a little mouse for her tooth pillow as well... so if reality is the average of everyone's story, it is probably a fairy mouse right?

zoom loom ... for my HS amigos, I made coaster sets this on a zoom loom that I got as a prize from a drawing earlier this year.  They are pretty fun to make, each takes about 15 minutes, so pretty quick (until you start adding all of the individual coasters up!).  They are great for a little bit of stash busting (a very little bit), but I thwarted my own efforts and got some bright warm colors as well from the needlepoint store.

I have a few around that Owen made me and they actually work really really well, they are lightweight, but don't stick to the bottom of your cup, the are absorbant and don't have problems of seeping through.  Plus, they are thin... which means I don't have to raise my blinds to get my cup on the window sill (important things I know).

 Finally, for our big burst of christmas presents... Owen designed this dragon for t-shirts this year... as well as a pretty clever chop.

 It is pretty cool!  The cousins seemed to like them!

I love hankies

These were also gifties this year... pocket squares or hankies... whatever floats your boat.

Yes, I love my new serger, my favorites are the darker chambray, they look the sharpest, but I"m not sure how they are on the nose.... the ginghams are super fun too... and can I tell you, cotton gingham is hard to find.  That's all I found folks... pink and blue plus these have a bit of stretch to them (I can't remember the blend, spandex maybe, but at least they are not printed and soft enough).  what's up with that?  Isn't it practically a staple?

So, the the tricks are the nice edges... use a wooly thread on the looper, and the corners are really a pain... you sort of have to take the very last stitch on the fabric, go two stitches beyond and turn, and make sure you catch the rest.  If I messed up, I just would run off the edge of both sides, which makes for a decent corner, but I fear unraveling, plus it takes off a bit more fabric and get my hankies a bit off square.  Dab a bit of fray check and voila.

Posie stuffies

 just a few more for gifts.  This guy has his shirt sewn on with felt "buttons" because for a really little baby, I figured buttons weren't a great idea.  Too bad because that fabric is reversible, but that's okay, it looks dapper.

 I did give up on making shoes, in part 'cause they are really fiddly to do, though adorable and also because they were lost almost immediately, and I hated that I kept fussing about where is the Fox's shoe?  Why does he only have one  shoe?

Buddies are better than shoes anyhow.  I got some new felt from Mill End (instead of from my stash) so that I didn't end up with a pastel colored critter, though it would be cute.  They all have the same liberty in their ears... using a small cut there is plenty for all sorts of sweet touches here and there.

Okay two more and that's it.   Here are a little pair with matching gingham outfits / knit outfits.

That is what... five total.  The first two are for the kiddos, the last three are gifties for little ones.O and G's fox also had a little pendelton-esque jacket on that is so very cute, and we have a gingham apron as well.  I have lots of Christmas making to do, but maybe we'll get some other accessories for the gifts as well.

I ought to make some notes.  These didn't take nearly as long as I thought they would, and the blanket stitching was a nice way to spend an evening.  So... if I don't crash into bed as soon as the kids go down, I typically have maybe 1-2 hours ... three if I'm pushing it in an evening to sort of watch TV and make stuff.  I would take a day to cut out the fabric, clothes included for up to two critters.  About a day and a half to sew the pieces, and the last half day to stuff ans assemble, so what three evenings keeping my hands busy while sitting on the couch.  The knitware took a little longer than I thought, but I could do it pretty easily while playing with the kids.  Hmm, sounds like a lot when I write it out like that, but it was easy, relaxing craft therapy time.

Gingerbread soap

So I sprained my ankle, and am sort of stuck around the house on a few fine fall days.  I sent the kids and bri out for a Mushroom hunt, and am trying to squeeze in a batch of soap.  After spending the bulk of the morning hunting for my favorite Shea butter recipe that only currently exists as a print out mom sent me a few years ago, I ended up trying a new recipe (and swearing that if I ever find my trusty recipe,  I will transcribe it here so as not to completely loose it again!)...

A Palm oil free (Recipe)! So that's exciting, I do like the idea of moving away from palm-oil.  I doubled it, didn't have any silk, and unsuccessfully tried for a swirl.  Mess-city by the way....will I never learn?   I had a third of the batch colored with red clay, a third with turmeric ... which looked a lot like red clay... and a third natural.  The batch was setting up too fast by the time everything was blended so really, I ended up with lumpy messes sort of dashed into the molds.  I gave them a quick stir and will hope for the best, though am worried there will be air bubbles and ugliness, and I am pretty sure just uneven odd color chunks throughout.  I got the scent with two tsp of cinnamon leaf, two of ginger, one of clove and one of vanilla, and a half spoon of lemon.  I think it was a pretty good gingerbread smell, not perfect but nice.


Trying deodorant, and with the cooler weather, that last batch ended up okay  and firm enough.This time I mixed 1 tsp each of cocoa butter, shea butter, coconut oil, a half tsp avocado oil and a half tsp of beezwax. I added 1.5 tsp each of baking soda and arrowroot powder as well as 10 drops lime, 10 drops grapefruit, 5 drops lemon ('cause it was out) and 10 drops hops.  It is more yellow, and sets soft still (more beezwax I suppose, but soft isn't too bad really).

When holed up at home, I was actually pretty productive but not in the most directed fashion.  I have put aside all sorts of practical and lovely sewing project to tackle another basil fox and now a maggie bunny!  These guys are so much fun and I sort of love them when I am done (I keep them out, admire how cute they are in their wee outfits).  I have plans for at least one more of each, and then really will tackle that dress that has scared me a bit.