Witcher Plushie

I finally got my ass in gear and finished the Geralt de Rivia plushie in a bathtub.  This is for a swap on swap-bot.  The pattern I bought for this plush proved to be too difficult for me to understand with regard to the body.  I ended up keeping the head from that pattern and used a body pattern that I was more comfortable with.  I had to redo my tub because the new body was significantly larger than the one I'd previously planned on.  No, those aren't rocks in the Witcher's tub.  They're supposed to be bubbles, but I guess they are a little big.  He looks really sad about bathing doesn't he?  

Toss a Plushie to Your Witcher Plushie Swap - WIP

Megan, spoilers ahead.  Avert your eyes! 

I'm in a Witcher plushie swap on swap-bot with my pal, Megan.  Megan is far more advanced when it comes to sewing than I.  They can make clothing and costumes.  I can "get by" when it comes to making doll clothing.  I really don't do removable garments.  I'm pretty good at props though.  I found a vinyl toy online of chibi Geralt of Rivia in the tub.  I decided I'd be ambitious and turn that scene into a plushie.  I started out by making the tub because I wanted to see if I could pull it off.  If I couldn't; I'd be going a totally different direction with my plush. 

It was actually pretty easy.  It's not perfect and is a little wonky, but I think it'll take shape once I stuff it, add the doll, and cover it with water (felt).  I'll be using BabyLondonStar's sit pattern for the actually plushie.  The tub was made without a pattern. 

Printable Planner Stickers and Dotee Dolls

I just reopened my third shop on Etsy, Little Happy Day. Here you'll find instant digital downloads of printable planner sticker sheets like the ones pictured below.

I'm really hoping that this shop is successful despite being in a saturated market. *crosses fingers*

After a 2 or 3 year hiatus, I'm back to making Dotee Dolls. I just joined a group on swap-bot dedicated to making and swapping these unique dolls. So far I've made five in the past month. Here are two of my favorites.

Dotee Dolls are little dolls originated by a woman named Dot. They are only meant to be traded, and are never to be sold. The bodies are usually between 3 to 6 inches in length. The dolls have both a hanger and some sort of tail. If you search them on Flickr or Pinterest, you'll see how diverse these dolls can be. In the past, I've made a nun, a luchador, and Spiderman among dozens of others. I just set up a swap for a tiny Dotee. The body is required to be 2 inches or smaller. I've already made mine and I look forward to see what my partner comes up with.

Early Happy Birthday, Edgar!

It's been about 6.5 years since my last post. A lot has happened during that time. I won't bore you with the details. I probably can't recall them anyway, so I'll just keep this post crafty in nature. I am still very active on swap-bot. For a recent swap, our mission was to create a 3D piece of art inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's life or work. The twist was to also make our artwork cheerful as we were to incorporate a birthday element(s). (Poe's birthday is January 19th.) Of course, I chose to make a felt doll of old Edgar. For the base of my doll, I used the Albert Einstein doll pattern from Noia Land on Etsy. I altered the hair, face, and clothing to fit my needs. I ripped the head off a plastic, Halloween skeleton and sewed it onto Edgar's tiny hand. It was a perfect fit! I made the birthday hats out of wool blend felt, pom poms, and metallic pipe cleaners (glued on). I think that the petite Poe turned out really sweet. My partner liked him so much that she decoupaged the inside of a box to look like a library in order to display him. I haven't received from my swap partner yet, but I'm excited to see what she comes up with. One of the best things about swapping crafts is seeing the different interpretations of the swap guidelines.

Smash Books, Mini-Zines, and ATC's, Oh My!

I've been trying to branch out to other crafts besides sewing. I'll have to say I'm a little burnt out on Dotee dolls at this point. Yesterday I decided to make myself a Smash Book. A Smash Book is like a journal that you put random stuff in. K and Company has an awesome line of Smash Books and embellishments. I thought it would be more fun to create my own. I painted a composition notebook and added stickers and other elements to the cover.

So far, I've started one page in my Smash Book. The page includes two mini-zines that I completed yesterday. There is a current swap on swap-bot called "Fill It." For this swap, you download a page with prompts on it, fill in your details, draw some pictures, and then fold it mini-zine style. HERE is the blog that explains the project and where you can find the downloadable prompt sheets.

I've also been working on some ATC's (Artist Trading Cards). I made this Frida Kahlo ATC for a tag on swap-bot.

I actually painted a Studio Ghibli inspired ATC for a swap. I usually hate painting, but this was really fun to do. I only hate painting because it's something that I'm not particularly good at. Here's my winter themed Soot Sprite.

I've not decided what I'll work on today. Don't get me wrong, I haven't given up sewing, I'm just taking intermittent breaks. I actually completed two plushies yesterday as well (I was super busy!). The first one is a felt doll for a swap.

The tutorial and pattern can be found at The Purl Bee.

I also made a Spock plushie for an upcoming commission next month. I am to make 3 more Star Trek characters for this order.

Buy a Doll, Give a Doll!

Sofia

One of my pass times when I'm bored is entering handmade giveaways. I've won a lot of wonderful goodies by entering. I ran across a giveaway on Etsy Giveaways today that really caught my eye. The giveaway is for a custom doll from beMarybyHand. This shop had already found it's way into my Etsy favorites before seeing this giveaway because the dolls are really simple and gorgeous. So of course I had to enter the giveaway to see if I could win one of these dolls. That's not all though. Throughout the month of February, for every doll sold in the beMarybyHand Etsy shop a doll will be given to a child via the Mwangaza International organization. beMarybyHand is also honoring Black History Month by offering 30% off the ethnic dolls in the shop.

Jane

Head on over to beMarybyHand's blog and enter the giveaway and/or visit beMarybyHand's Etsy shop and make a child happy by purchasing a doll this month.

Photos taken from beMarybyHand on Etsy.

My Favorite Doll

This is my favorite doll, Little Miss No Name. She was made in the 1960's and I bought her off of eBay. Some find her scary; I find her adorable.