Craft Schmaft

I’ve had this idea for a pull-along sausage dog in my head for over a year. There was a time when my little munchkin was obsessed with anything he could pull or push along and I just think there’s nothing cooler than a sausage dog at the mo. Sausage shapes and socks are best friends so the body is super easy and the ears naturally stick out a little which I love. The tricky part with this one is getting him on wheels. What you can see in this picture is the first attempt disaster with plastic wheels and the shape is a little wonky – it’s actually really hard to find big wooden wheels in hobby stores.  Eventually I found some wooden wheels with axles and am experimenting with attaching those to the base… oh I really hope this one works! If all goes well with the wheels in the next couple of days I’ll have a pattern ready for testing by the end of the week and ready for Stitches & Craft in Sydney and Melbourne.

I’ve started on a new bunny design for easter. I’m hoping that she’ll be able to hold a big easter egg for Oscar on Easter Sunday. I started with a  pair of cashmere/wool blended socks which seems very decadent for something Oscar is going to throw around but they’re just so cuddly that I couldn’t resist. The fabric is Minny Muu Little Stamps by Lecien and the yarn is a bamboo/wool blend to make a pom pom tail.

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Now I know that this is all very pink and it’s for a boy but traditional bunnies have pink ears so I refuse to bow down to the “blue for boys” thing. However, fear not, I’m also planning on creating a twin for this little bunny which will be far from pink – in fact I’m going for the good twin, evil twin scenario. So the pink and goodness bunny will be known as “Bien” and her brother “Badass”.

So far, so good. The trickiest thing will be to get the face looking cute. My first attempts usually resemble something looking like an axe murderer or the grumpiest sock toy you’ve ever seen. Faces always take me three to four goes before I’m happy but I get there in the end. Perhaps I should have started with the evil twin? Oh well, stay tuned for facial disasters.

I’ve wanted to try making a little mushroom from left over sock bits for ages. I wasn’t sure it would work but here’s the first attempt. I think it definitely has potential and talk about quick. It’s made out of the toe and ankle band of a sock with two pieces of felt. The thing I really like about this, and working with socks in general, is that every one you make turns out slightly differently – variations in size, pattern, elasticity and fibres mean you never quite know the exact shape you’re going to get. I love that they all have a personality of their own – little quirks and looks that they’re born with.

I’d like to create a little cluster of these in different colours, sizes and shapes, just like you’d find at the base of a tree in a forest. The other thought at the moment is to embroider a little door and windows, perhaps some spots on top and turn it into a a tiny house. *sigh* there’s nothing more wonderful than the possiblities of a new project, before you get in there and start realising that certain things just wont work.

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What are you daydreaming of?

The shoemakers children are the last to get shoes. Poor Oscar has been the last to get sock toys lately. This morning he decided to take matters, or the newly completed chocolate woof woof to be precise, into his own hands. Nooooo… it’s mine. Mine. Mine. Mine. Mine. Miiiiinnnee. I lost yet again to the will of an almost-two-year old. To be honest I didn’t put up much of a fight. Oscar was cuddling the woof for dear life and it was so cute that I didn’t have the heart to pull them apart. I still get a thrill out of the fact that the muchkin loves my softies so much. Although in fairness he also gets a thrill out of kitchen mops and brooms.  I think I’ll stop typing now.