A Few Knitted Things

The "One Button Cardi" shown yesterday can also be worn backwards as a "pop-top".

The simple pull-on pants are my own design.

It can also be paired with the knitted dress. The dresses were knit using the "Pukifee Dress" pattern, but using fingering weight yarn and larger needles.

For chillier days the dolls each have a long sleeved sweater too.

I knit the sweaters using my "Laceweight Pukifee Sweater" pattern, but using fingering weight yarn and larger needles and using less increases in the body section. 

Sewn Dress and Accessories

Bloomers and sundress were sewn using "My Own Little World" pattern, "The Little Dress".

Hats were crocheted using AntiqueLilac's free pattern.

Slippers are knit using my own pattern, which you can download free.

The little "One Button Cardi" was knit using my Pukifee pattern, but using fingering weight yarn and larger needles. 

The BIG Project

In the weeks leading up to Christmas I was very busy with a secret project that I couldn't blog about. Now that Christmas is over and the gifts have been given I can show you what I was up to.

I did a lot of miniature knitting.



A bit of crocheting.





And some sewing.









So that the dolls we bought our granddaughters for Christmas would not have to go naked.





The dolls are lacking wigs though (the wigs worn in the first few pictures are borrowed) so the girls used some Christmas gift money from their great grandpa to order the wigs of their choice.





More photos tomorrow of the wardrobe pieces being modelled by the dolls.

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas.

Elfonda Schelf is Ready for Christmas

Elfonda has been busy preparing the Tulusson family shelf for the Christmas season.

With six of them living on top of a vintage sideboard they don't have a lot of space, but I think Elfonda has done rather well in creating a cozy, festive atmosphere.

Zen's Wife Is Here

When my big Feeple60, Holly, arrived she stole all the attention around here, and the poor little Minifee Soony Elf event head did not even get a mention. She arrived blank and bodiless, of course, as event heads always do. 

(My apologies to those freaked out by eyeless disembodied doll heads!)

I was busy with other things and, other than taking a moment to insert temporary eyes and try the head on a Minifee body already dressed in Mariah's clothing, I set her aside. It's hard to get a feel for the character of a blank head before they receive a faceup.

Zenawii Tulusson seemed to be pretty pleased that his wife was home though, faceup or not.

Then late one night her name and character suddenly came to me. I resisted, but she insisted! In fact she was adamant that I not introduce her publicly until I had created a traditional folk costume for her befitting her family heritage.

Her name is Elfonda Schelf. That's right, she comes from rather famous lineage. You have probably met some of her relatives.

Scarves and Cowls

Quite some time ago I received "Scarves and Cowls, 36 Quick and Stylish Knits" by Fiona Goble to review. I looked through it at the time, amused and entertained by the vibrantly colorful, fun, and unusually playful photography. Unfortunately it fell rather flat from there and, intending to review it when I had more time, I set it aside and forgot about it. I unearthed it today while sorting through a pile of "to do" items.

To be fair, this would probably be a fun pattern book for a very beginning knitter as there are projects that take you from the absolute newbie knitter project, scarves done solely in garter stitch, through those with very simple shaping or textured stitches, on to beginning lace patterns or more complex shaping. So for a new knitter there is the potential for growth at least.

So, how did it fall flat? Well, as a more experienced knitter I was disappointed by the selection of patterns, most of which are very simple and rely heavily on the yarn itself for interest, or are a variation of similar designs readily available for free on Ravelry. There is not much there that really interests me enough to bother digging through my stash and casting on.

This book has merit as a resource for new knitters wanting to knit up some simple yet popular scarf styles with which to show off their newly emerging skills. More experienced knitters will likely enjoy the playful, well done photography, chuckle, and put it back on the shelf.

Don't Worry About Neelie!

Neelie is fine, so don't worry about her. She's just playing with a friend's wheelchair.



She sure knows how to put on the sad, woe-is-me face though, hey?

Combed and Clipped

Trying a new hairstyle on Holly.



This is the same Fairyland fake fur wig she was wearing in one of the earlier posts but it has been combed, parted, and clipped to the side.

I think I like it!

Holly Has Arrived!

My new Fairyland Feeple60 Moe-line Rin has arrived.



Her name is Holly.

 

She is still finding her "look". Trying on different wigs, and outfits,





Her new jeans from Nine9 Style arrived just before she did.



She came with a free pair of high heels, but just like me she has trouble standing in heels!



 Luckily I had also bought her some sneakers.

 

I'm still working on getting a Minifee pattern line ready for publication, but I have promised Holly I will work on some knitwear for her once the holiday's are over.

The Underthings

Luckily the top and stockings didn't take nearly so long as the dress to sew up.



I used a new, yet uncomfortably ill fitting, t-shirt as the fabric source and the same Adams-Harris pattern I used for the dress. I also made white stockings for her from the same fabric.

Dress for the New Girl

This took three very full days to complete. I started late one evening with cutting out the many pieces.



The next day I worked on sewing the bodice. With princess seams and fully lined there were a lot of pieces to deal with. I improvised a tiny "pressing ham" for the bust seams using a slightly felted ball of wool.



The zipper caused lots of angst. It had to be meticulously hand sewn. I got it all in, looking good, and removed the basting. It was then that I realized it was misthreaded and it split. I had to take out all that I had done and start over again!

Second time was successful. This is the first time I've gone to all the trouble of inserting a real (but tiny) zipper in doll clothing.



Layers of ruffles means lots of gathering and basting to do. There are two skirts, a lace layer, and an underlayer insert, all which had to be gathered and then hand basted before machine sewing.



It took hours!



But the finished dress was well worth all the effort. I only hope it fits her when she arrives!



I still plan to sew a white top and stockings to go with it.

On Her Way!

A new doll size is on its way to me. Way back in August I ordered a Fairyland Feeple 60 moe-line girl with the "Rin" faceplate. That's "FM60 Rin" for short.

This doll is bigger than any I've had so far. She stands 54cm tall, whereas the Minifees are only 41cm. I bought her more as a size model for  designing, sewing, and knitting than anything else as she is too large to interact realistically with the dolls I already own and will be displayed in an entirely different area. 

Now that I know she is on her way, and will for sure be arriving before Christmas, I'll go ahead and sew a dress for her that I bought the material for quite some time ago. It will be a Christmas dress in green, red, white with accents of gold.

Hanging Kitchen Towels

Much of the last two of days I've been busy sewing up fourteen hanging kitchen towels. I did it assembly line style saving myself from having to reset the sewing machine for various stitching tasks over and over.

First I cut out all the pieces for the toppers; two patterned fabrics and a piece of flannel for each of the towels.

Once I had the seams sewn and trimmed I gathered the whole bundle and sat in my comfy chair in the living room to carefully turn each topper right side out and get it pinned in place in preparation for pressing.

Each of the kitchen towels was cut in half and the raw edges were inclosed in a final seam of the topper.

Back at the sewing machine I made buttonholes. I used the machine to sew on the buttons too.

With one yard of fabric and 7 kitchen towels (total cost of less than $20 CAD), I was able to make 14 hanging towels, 2 each of 5 designs and 4 of the one printed with a cardinal.

If you are wanting to create quick and easy Christmas gifts on a budget these might be just what you're looking for. The tutorial and free pattern are here: http://kleiosbelly.wordpress.com/2010/01/04/christmas-prezzies-6-1-for-you/#comment-1934

I'm keeping one each of the six designs for my kitchen, I let my daughter and granddaughters choose 3 for their kitchen, and will take 4 or 5 to the local elementary school for their Fun Night fund raiser.