Penelope

So I must admit after much hard work and sore hands I went through a period of almost, totally not liking my own doll.  Disappointment.  Looking at her and thinking, "oh you are so not cute"  all right I will say it "ugly"  And feeling badly about it.  She is my creation how could I not like her?

So yesterday when I picked her up, suddenly she had a name, Penelope!  With a name she became real, and feeling real I suddenly realized I did like her.  She is mentoring me through this doll making process.  She is teaching me.  And I am learning so much from her!  I know she will always be here, my first doll and she will be prized for all her lessons.  She is beautiful in her own way and she is mine!

She will be like her predecessor

Isn't he cute?  I made him some 25 years ago or so.  Not sure what he really is.  I found some scraps left over from my mothers mom.  And I created this bug?  Spider?  Dog?  Well that is what my husband thought he was, when I asked him "what do you think this is?"  Pretty sure he is not a dog!

Hmmmmmmm posing like a dog, well maybe.

My own mother not a sewer, but both my grandmothers were.  I remember how much I loved finding the long forgotten scraps and what nots and wanting to turn them into things.  I was probably about 9 or 10 when I made this "Bug" , rounded up what I could find, scraps, buttons, blue thread, orange thread, and wowla!

I have kept him with me every since!  On my nightstand back then, packed in a box and not seen for years when I was a young adult, a box that moved with me many times, once, twice.................six times.  I attribute this Bug creation to my beginings of my desire to create.

Penelope, a Dollar Store Waldorf Style Doll

Children keep us so busy, amazing how much I don't get too! 

But I really want to finish my Dollar Store Waldorf Doll, she is my challange!  What a way to start any attempt at making a doll than with a challange!  Turns out cotton balls are very hard to sew threw.  I am really hoping wool gives to the needle a wee bit better.  My husband keeps looking at me weirdly and wondering if I am every going to crack into the box of lovely supplies I have waiting! 

But at last, I have to finish Penelope first.  Yes she got a name tonight, I picked her up and looked at her this evening and sure enough, she said Penelope!

So here she is, she has her face on!  Technical note, I liked the shape of my head in the begining but it seems to have squashed  flat some how during the embroidery of her face.  Characterisctic of rolled cotton balls, maybe?  Compacted and rolled cotton seems to be incredibly hard, she has the hardest doll head I have felt!

Her hair is started, it is certainly pretty hair.  A girl has a lot going for her if her hair is pretty!  This is only layer one, so I got some sewing to do, tonight?

But ummmmmm oh what am I going to do about this?

Yikes!  Girlfriend needs some legs!  I know, I know.  I have probably gone about her creation all wrong!  But is there a right way?  The first night I sat down and rolled a head and then I figured out how to cover it in socks (skin), and made up some arms, didn't think it would take to long to give her a little torso.  But I got totally stopped up, tired and frustrated of cutting parts from socks and that is where her body ended that night and has stayed! 

Thought if I got some pretty hair going, I would get inspired to get the legs going, but she has been just hanging out legless!  Right so legs, will give her legs before the end of next week, promis.





A Dolls Outfit

                                                     

A Dolls Outfit!

So back in the fall I was really getting the itch to sew something, anything!  I got my good old 1974 Viking Husquavarna machine out that I had inherited from my grandmother, a very good seamstress.  I had been lucky enough as a teenager to sew a few items with her before she passed on.



Well sadly she (the machine) had sat for quite a few years, I got busy in life.  So that night I got her out and started her out, it wasn't good.  A slow start, thread getting all caught up.........................I left it to sit while I went and combed through it's user manual.  DH kept saying "bet it needs oiling, I can do that."  I said stay away from it"  Well he got sassy and sat down and pushed the foot peddle to the floor and weeeeeee off the machine flew and then ohhhhhhhhhhhh, all that burning smell and it came to a jammed up halt.  Right well then that is not good.  I am emotionally attached to this machine, my grandmother left it to me, out of 9 grandchildren, she left it to me!  And this was the good old kind of machine I learned to sew on in school, real work horses, all metal parts, no cheap plastic.  I couldn't even fathom where to begin a search for a new one.

Okay long story short, my father is also emotionally attached to this machine, grandma was his mother.  He has many fond memories of her sewing and creating.  So Dad took it upon himself to take the machine back to the shop that it was originally purchased at and get it repaired.  He called me up and said "what is the machine worth to you", I said "it was grandma's"  So he said ""how much would you be looking to spend on a new machine.  So I told him what I thought the price bracket would be that I would be looking in and he said well that is roughly the same to fix this machine.  I said I liked that machine the best good old quality, he agreed and bless him he paid for the repairs.

But while my dear machine was away I wanted to sew something so badly, so I took to hand, needle, and thread, ironing board and pins and lots of patience.  My tidy little stitches amazed me.  My time consuming method of folding all the raw edges over twice and pressing them flat and then sewing the down so there would be no ugly raw edges was NUTS.  But it all turned out so nice after pressing and sewing for a week in between taking care of all 4 kiddos.

 



And here it is on a very pretty girl by Gopita, a beautiful christmas gift from  my sister.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/gopita?ref=seller_info

                        

 

an inside look at the seams                   everything folded, hidden and pressed                 

Inside of the top, all raw edges pressed under and sewn down and I made a cute little hand made by Tag.

She does look very nice in this simple pant suit.  I think the super cute print of the fabric makes the outfit!  I spent a long time sketching tops and bottom and then turning them into pattern pieces before I had it mostly right!

The back has ribbon detailing to match the waist band of the pants.

I actually like how using ribbon makes a pretty waistband, don't tell anyone I did it because I found my pants were running a little short in the inseam and this was the best way I could figure out how to add length!  And it is pretty!

End result a comfy, pretty outfit that dolly could wear to a festive occasion or just go out in the fall leaves and do cartwheels!

A Dollar Store Waldorf

When this link was shared with me by my sister it seemed like a great challange!  http://dollarstorecrafts.com/2008/11/make-a-waldorf-doll-dollar-store-style/  And yes indeed challenging!  So I ran right over to the nearest dollar store and spent maybe $10.  I got extra socks and bags of cotton Balls.

So here is the stuff I picked up for this experiment.

In the link that gave me this idea I could not find actual directions on how they did it. So other than the materials list and the idea I am winging it!

First up rolling the head.  I have never rolled a Waldorf head even out of wool, so with cotton balls and no idea, this is what I came up with. I unrolled the cottong balls and twisted the first ones to roll a tight ball.  After I had a decent ball started I just unrolled them flat and then rolled them on.  I also ended up dampening the cotton, which seemed to make it stick to itself and form better.

When I couldn't stand to roll on another cotton ball, I decided the size was good.  I tied it into a nylon stocking.  Then I rolled a tiny little nose and tied it into a little piece of stocking and sewed it on to the face.

I wrapped twine around to mark the eye line, and then covered the whole base in another nylon stocking 
Dollar store socks are awfully thin so
I used a white sock first and then
the tan sock

Afer wrapping the thread around

the inner sock I brought it out on the side

Wrapped it around the neck and tied it up, looks all right at

at this point

Next up I cut open the socks so I could visualize where to go next



I think I am seeing a body and an arms

Body arms, legs, I think I can see them

1 arm created!

I traced that one on paper and made the 2nd arm

rip up the cotton balls to do the stuffing

Here we go Head, body, arms, have to figure out something with the neckline, but I am sure it will come to me.

Went and grabbed some yarn, and embroidery floss, so these are going to be her colors, not sure if it is going to be brown eyes or blue eyes.