Millie - Mimi's Purl Soho doll pattern

So this is another doll pattern that's been in my to-do archives for ages. It's a free pattern that the amazingly talented Mimi Kirchner created for Purl Soho. As you probably know, Mimi works with wool felt and embellishes her dolls with applique and embroidery to make them extra special.

This pattern is perfect the way it is, but I ended up making a few changes for mine. Bradley had bought me a beautiful felted wool fabric pack for my birthday which I was dying to use. But this felt wasn't the dense commercial kind that won't unravel. So I added a seam allowance when cutting out the pattern pieces.

I also decided to make the doll a wee bit smaller to fit in with the size of dolls I've been making lately. So I printed out the pattern at 80%. And as usual I did the face and hair a little bit in my own way. This was my first time stitching a raised nose, it's so simple and effective.

Then lastly I didn't have a big enough piece to do the dress as is, so I used the light blue felt for the body and arms so it looks like a sweater, then made a dark blue skirt in the style of the pattern. Mimi does this with some of her girl dolls and it's so charming.

Lastly I added extra pieces, a little coat and bag, also inspired by Mimi's creations. I love the sweet little feet for this pattern, I embellished the boots with embroidered laces. A big thank you to Mimi for sharing this lovely pattern.

You can make this doll yourself, just nip over to The Purl bee for the pattern. And while you're at it, be sure to visit Mimi's blog for an endless array of beautiful and inspiring work.

If you get the chance, you're invited to the Spring Trunk Sale at the Workroom. One day only, 12-5pm on Sunday, May 15th. I have a table there, and will be bringing everything in my shop plus a few extras I have tucked away and even some sewing themed rummage!

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Valentine's craft project

 For some reason my camera doesn't photograph red well. It turns into flourescent bright red which I toned down in Photoshop. This is a cherry red sweater.

My idea for a Valentine's craft project is a cosy for your hot water bottle. This project is very easy and you can do it in a couple of hours and have it ready for a gift in no time if you like. Mine was going to be a Valentine's present, but it turned out a bit girly... anyway here's how you make it.

Step 1
Felt a sweater. Mine was a lovely soft cashmere sweater from a thrift shop, but it had frayed a lot at the edges and had developed huge holes in the elbows that made it less than cosy. Felting is fun because you can do the opposite of whatever you usually do to look after your woolens. Throw it in the washing machine. Use lots of soap and hot water. Agitate it as much as you can. Shock it by throwing it into cold water, than back into hot. Run it in the dryer until it's piping hot. Once it's shrunk and thick and felted you're ready to go.

Step 2
Trim your sweater at the seams so you have two nice big panels to work with. This way if you have a medium sweater you can probably make two cosies.

Step 3
Fold the panel in half and cut around the bottom and other side using your hot water bottle as a guide with a little extra seam allowance. I curved the corners at the bottom.

At the top you can curve around the shoulders and make a collar around the neck. This keeps the bottle snugly inside the cosy. To get the bottle in, just roll it lengthwise while it's empty and put it in, then fill the bottle while it's already in its cosy. Sounds simple, but it took me a long time to figure this out!

 Step 4
Sew the seams up, then add some zigzag stitching to finish the seams if you wish. If the sweater is well felted you shouldn't have to worry about it unravelling.

Step 5
Sew a bit of bias tape around the neck, or roll the top down and stitch it for a nice finished look.

Step 6 (optional)
Embroider a picture on the front with yarn. I used a chalk pen to draw a heart, then embroidered it with light blue wool yarn.

You're done! Now stay nice and warm in bed until Winter's over.

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Wool felt embroidered watch strap

My favourite watch is a Swatch that had a red satin embroidered strap. Unfortunately after tons of wear it became pretty worn looking and then finally the buckle broke. I was inspired by this blog post to make a new strap for it.
First of all I used the old strap to make a paper template and cut out wool felt pieces from it - two for each side. Then I used a piece of twill fabric (with anti-fray) to make pieces shaped like forks with 3 strips that fit through the slots on the watch and stitched them in place. Then the wool straps sandwich the twill piece, top and bottom and get sewn together.After trying it out I realized it was a teeny bit scratchy on the wrist, so I added a ribbon lining. I used anti-fray to the ends. The last step is a snap closure.
The embroidery is done with wool, just a simple flower pattern.
Now I can wear it again!

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