Busy Bunny

Lots of busy bits of work going on here.

The doodle dolls are coming along just wonderfully, I'm so happy with how they are turning out and am hoping to do a bit more on them tonight.

The laundry girls are being stitched together, and there is another trio of ladies, who I'm close to being ready to share as well.

And that's just the girly stitches and scribbles.

There is cake, bunnies and a couple of etceteras on the go too!!

Flossy Bunny Badge

I made up this little felt badge of Flossy last week.

I tried to make it look closer to my sketch for the bunnies, rather than how the softies look. I think it came out a nice between of the two.

Not sure yet if there will be more of these, but there are some biscuit-coloured Flossy friends in the WiP box.

Its back to the busy for me now.

Hope your wednesdays are wonderful!

xo

Girly Stitches

I did spend the entire weekend working on some stitched girls.

I made two embroidered versions of my laundry girl.

One on white and one on black.

I will be stitching them in to something useful later in the week. 

Can you guess what? hee hee

***

My other girly stitches come in the forms of these blurry figures.

A second attempt at the doodle dolls. 

I made a couple of different sketch and patterns and have made up a couple of them to see which works the best. I'm feeling pretty hopeful about them all of them :)

Its been very much a WiP post today, although today hasn't seen much work at all.

There's still a few hours to change that though.

Hope your weekends were lovely!

xo

Doodle Doll

"Frankie"

I had a go at bringing one of my scribbled girls to life in doll form.

Overall, she is quite cute and almost as I hoped.

 

But if you look closely, there is a bit of monster to her.

The giant head that flops backwards and disappears, the muscleman shoulders, not to mention those hands (eek!)

 

Despite all that, I do still like the idea and think it will be absolutely lovely when all figured out and done properly. 

A new, more ladylike pattern will go a long way, me thinks. And a little more attention to detail as I draw, especially on those hands.

I may have a go at it over the weekend, as my head is filled with girls and stitches at the minute.

In fact, I'm off to do some girly stitches right now.

Have a wonderful weekend!

xo

Scribbled Pencils

More tidying, cleaning and organising for me today. 

And organising includes the use of this:

My new scribbled pencil case!

Scribbled pen and pencils tied with a red satin ribbon.

Just perfect!

xo

Happy Bears

"Peace Offering"

Blueberry Joe is such a sweetie. He couldn't stand the thought of JoTwo being all grumpy, so he cheered him up with a bag of multicoloured buttons. What more could a sock bear wish for.

**

I've had a boring non-craft, plenty-of-housework day. I tend to float away from reality while doing cleaning, which could go some way to explaining how deeply I have managed to get into the sock bear nose feud. I promise that's an end to that now.

Love and Buttons,

jenny

xo

Blueberry Joe is ready for his close up...

I managed to get some better photos of my latest bear friend. yay!

"Blueberry Joe"

Here he is, that little sock bear with the much debated nose. 

Much debated between me, JoTwo and Blueberry Joe that is (see bottom of this post) , and we have decided that stitched noses on sock bears are cuter.

JoTwo is a little grumpy about this decision, he still loves button noses best.

Blueberry Joe is my second attempt at a sock bear, and I seem to have worked out most the kinks that JoTwo had. 

I'm happy with how he turned out, BUT he does look lumpier in the picture than he does in person/bear, and I am finding that it is difficult to get the filling as smooth as I would like. It may be as I make the bears from (unused) flight socks, I will try thicker socks at some point to see if it makes a difference.

 

As well as sorting some sock bear kinks, I got a chance to get a tiny bit of knitting practice on that little blue scarf. I'm still at the beginner knitter stages, but I want to make more time for practice as I'm desperate to make one of these.

Enjoy your Tuesday and

Bear hugs for All

xo

To the happy couple,

A cake I have been waiting and waiting to share.

The Wedding Cake Softie

Made from felt, lace and lots of stitches. 

It is three tiers (and 13cms) high, trimmed with gorgeous beaded lace, ribbon flowers and embroidered with happy face and names/date stitched on the side.

This is my most exciting project yet. 

When my friend asked me to make a wedding version of my birthday cake softie, I just jumped at the chance. I was very busy with this cake for quite awhile, and at times I was bursting to share little glimpses. Making this cake was so much fun, shopping for lace and embroidering those eyes were my favourite parts. 

I have to thank my friend, Claire, who asked me to make this cake and of course a mention to; 

Robyn and Dean, who married on the 19th of April 2008

Hope you have a long, happy life together

xo

A day late..

I've been having a forgetful week here, and I forgot my usual Friday post. Oops.

What was I up to while forgetting to post?

Adoring my new papercut!!

After my last post, in which I was swooning over the amazing papercuts of Rob Ryan, I found this tiny framed one in a local antique shop. I felt so lucky to come across such a sweet little thing. 

It makes me think of fairytales and old fashioned romance.

***

As well as shopping for handmade treasures, I've been busy stitching this week too. 

So this is a bit of practice stitching from a couple of month ago, but it does illustrate what I have been up to this week, girls and embroidery. 

The reason it is this and not the actual weeks work is because I'm up to some secret gifty pieces again, and I don't want any peeking!!

I also made another sock bear, so JoTwo wouldn't feel left out with all the bunnies that have been passing through lately.

His name is Blueberry Joe. 

Him and JoTwo get on brilliantly, they sit on my side comparing scarves and talking about honey and bee stings all day long. The only upset so far has been a small argument about whether button or stitched noses are best.

I had more photos but they came out absolutely awful and need to be re-done! Good photos are hit-and-miss with me so if anyone has any photo-taking tips, they would be very welcome :)

Happy Saturdays

xo

(Blueberry seems to be a little theme this week, as a blueberry cutie turned up here this week too!) 

Once upon a week ago...

...I went on a little trip to Oxford. Upon my return I promise to tell you a little about it, but then was distracted by bunnies, nuns, cakes and curly-haired girls.

A week and a bit later, I remembered and wrote this post...

Oxford is a wonderful place. I love cities, as nothing seems further than a walk away, and we spent most our time wandering. I wish I had taken my camera, the streets were so inspiring. Houses of every age, style and colour were squeezed together along some of the tiny little lanes. Big, grand, carved-stone university buildings next to pink cottage-type home, it really was a fascinating sight. I have come home with a love of houses and am plotting to do some house-inspired craft.

I also came home with these shoes, which I had to have the moment I spotted them. They are Paul Smith canvas trainers with a beautiful, fascinating print by Rob Ryan.

"Have Faith In Me..."

I fell deeply in love with Rob Ryan's work when I first saw the paper dress he made for Vogue, and I am now in total awe of his magnificent papercut work. I love the way you have to take your time and really look before all the figures and what they are doing appears. 

"Down With Laziness"

As well as his own site, he also has an Etsy shop and a book out (both of which are on my "must buy" list). I'm so happy to have these shoes and a piece of his work in my life.

I Y  handmade

xo

Meet "Flump"

She is called 'Flump' as the pink and white reminded me of marshmallows. 

She is also very soft and fluffy too.

Flump is Bunny number 5. 

Like the others, she is just under 30cm, has a fabric dress, bow, embroidered eyes and freckles and is numbered.

She will be the last white bunny, as there is no more white jumper left... but, there is more of the same kind in different colours.

The jumpers I use have been shrunken (accidentally) and are made from angora. Angora is a super soft natural fibre that comes from rabbits. If you've never seen a real angora bunny, you  have to take a look at this one. Oh so fluffy!!

'Flump' is at the shop waiting to be adopted, and 'Duffy' is also there keeping her company.

xo

Girls with Curls

A bit of a continuation of yesterday. 

More shopper-size totes with pretty drawn girls for today's post.

"Curly-haired Katie"

"Curly-haired Kathy"

Kathy and Katie are sisters. At the moment, they are all alone in the world. They have each other and thats all they need. Although, I am sure they have many more curly-haired relatives who are waiting to love and care for them too.

I can say that with some confidence, as I really enjoyed drawing these girl. There was something relaxing about making waves and circles with the pen, watching each curl appear on the cotton. I could spend hours drawing these girls...

These are the same size as the Red Flower Girl Totes and are also at the shop.

There is just one more bunny to be shared tomorrow and that will be the end of the "What's in the shop" post.

And then I can get started on some new things and ideas...

xo

Red Flowers

A couple of the bigger totes, mentioned at the end of my last post.

I have decide to go with a little theme of my girls to have flowery names and their corsages to match. 

"Rose" Shopper

Rose is a thoughtful girl. She sees happiness and beauty all around.

Her corsage is a very simple rose with pretty stitched edging and a red button in the centre. 

"Poppy" Shopper

Poppy has a young soul. She dreams of childhood games and collecting flowers.

Her poppy corsage has a stitched edging and lots of raised french knot seeds in the centre.

The bags themselves are 36x27 cms, a good shopper size and will hold the chunkiest issue of your favourite magazine. They are made from 100% cotton with a slight wrinkled look, giving a rustic look (which can be seen in the pics if you look closely and I think add to the charm of the girls), and the handles are triple-stitched so nice and strong. All bags can be hand-washed at a low temperature.

Each is drawn by hand, with their name and my scribble of the inside.

More pictures here.

These two girls are at the shop now.

I hope you all are having a lazy end to your weekend. I have a date with a cup of tea and my sewing machine now, but I'll be back tomorrow with more goodies.

xo

New Baked Babies

"Baby cakes"

Soft, little felt cakes with a bow and a tiny dummy bead on top.

Two blue boy cakes and a pink girl one.

That is if you want to be traditional, pink for boys and blue for girls works wonderfully too. 

    

You may remember the first Baby cake, posted here. She was made to say 'hello' a little baby girl called Evie. 

     

These little cuties went up to the shop today, and will be available for £4.95 soon.

As well as the Baby Cakes, the Chocolate Nun Mini Totes, these 'Happy' the Birthday Cake Softies and badges from previous posts are at the shop, along with a couple of other bigger bags and a bunny I haven't posted yet. Pictures of those will appear here over the next couple of days.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend

xo

Four World Peace and Chocolate

No, its not a typo or bad grammar, just a bad play on words from me.

Today, I have a little edition of mini totes to share.

Chocolate Nun Mini Totes

Number 1

(click for detail)

A little edition of four, based on the Chocolate Nun tote I made last year. Each one is slightly different, keeping with my idea to make every piece as unique as possible. Each is numbered and signed.

Number 2

(Click for detail)

The picture is hand drawn, and is of a nun praying for "World Peace and Chocolate" (which would be very high on my own list of things to pray for).

The scribble has changed a little different from the original. The nun has become a little softer and cuter, and the thought bubbles a little fancier.  

Number 3

(Click for Detail)

The original Chocolate Nun Mini Tote was made as a 2007 mother's day gift for my Mum. The bag was the perfect size to fit a box of my Mum's favourite chocolates, so the Nun's prayer came true :)

Number 4

(Click for detail)

Being a Mini Tote, they are around 22cms square, a rather perfect gift bag size for chocolate (a well tested theory) or for storing bits and bobs around the house (another tested theory, as I used one as a sewing bag.)

They are made for natural coloured, 100% calico and the ink is heat-sealed and washable at low temperatures. I would advise following a 'handmade = handwash' rule.

I will be taking these and some other wares up to Archie and Mabel's sometime soon, and I am very keen on opening a teeny little online shop (once some pesky paperwork is out of the way),

so here or there, they are going to be available soon.

It's exactly 3 months today that I have been blogging and selling. 

That's a quarter of a year already!! (I know you know that, but I like to say it out loud.) And a very happy quarter-year it has been.

Happy Wednesdays to All

xo

Swaps and Lazy Long Weekend

I am lucky enough to get lovely little pieces of art through my door every so often, by taking part in an ATC swap.

This month's theme was "Underwater Wonderland" 

pencil crayon Atc

As you can see Alice is still very much stuck in my head, when I read the word "Wonderland" I just had to do an Alice-inspired card.

The picture here is a little larger than the actual card (on my screen at least).

I love to work quite small, but wished I could have fitted bigger, floppy fake hare ears than the card allowed.

 

Sketch for "Underwater Wonderland" Atc

More of my Atc's and the ones I have received can be found here. 

***

I have to confess that I have done hardly any work in the last ten days.

There has been moments of scribbles and stitches, but all in all I have just been enjoying myself with other things.

Last week started with visiting my friend in Cambridge, and this one with a couple of days in Oxford (I will tell you more about that with a 'handmade(ish) by others' post later in the week), and there maybe a trip to London next week too, so I am feeling like a mini traveller at the minute. Mini as all these places are not far from home. 

Tomorrow, I will be back to work....

xo

New Moo!!

My new miniMoo cards arrived at the start of the week.

These little cards are so sweet, I'm so thrilled at how they came out.

The pictures are of:

My latest batch of 'Happy' Cakes

Bunny Number 4 

and of the sketches of:

Flossy Bunny

"Sophie"

"Ollie" 

and Laundry Girl

I also had a couple of test bunny cards made up a couple of weeks ago 

(which I forgot to share, oops!)

I heart Moo

xo

This Bunny has been waiting to see you...

Meet Bunny number 4!

I have given her the little name of "Flo" for now. 

Usually, the bunnys and the rest of my pieces get their names as I work on their faces, but bunny 4 is a little different.

She was made a couple of weeks ago as a custom order of sorts. 

As I sewed, I knew this little bunny had an owner so I decided to let her be named by her. She was to be given as an Easter present, (hence why not posted sooner, I hate to spoil surprise pressies) so is already at her new home and it sounds like she will be in lovely company. 

 

***

I have been easing myself back to work today, after my lovely little visit to a penguin-loving friend, by doing a couple of finishing stitches with plans for more tomorrow. It was easier than I ever imagined to step away from the pins and needles, although I'm very happy to be back with them now.

I plan to be back with my usual Friday post so...

see you tomorrow

xo