Sewing a birthday presents....

It's my brother's birthday on the 7th April and every year I struggle with what to buy him.  I always say that he has more clothes than Marks and Spencers and because he has learning difficulties, he is unable to read or use a computer.  He loves the Carry On films but has all those, and a person can only have so many pairs of slippers, can't they!!!  So I generally send vouchers for the local theatre and he and my mum go and see a show as John particularly likes musicals.

However, this year I thought I'd do something completely different.  John has a nautical themed bedroom so I thought I'd make a small 'quilt' for him.  I had some ideas in my head and went to the local haberdashers to get some supplies. I bought some thick beige linen, some natural thick undyed cotton (I think there is a name for this but I can't think what it is) and some fabric for the back.  And I also bought something which I think is called 'batting' a sort of thick stuff for in between the two outside fabrics.

I bought a set of ten 'nautical' themed embroidery patterns on line, downloaded them and made a start.  I didn't use the suggested colours for each design as they were all a little bit dull, instead choosing various colours that I thought would work well.  

When I got to this point, I wasn't quite sure where I should go from here, having never made anything remotely like a quilt before!!!  And it took me ages to realise that I had to use a damp cloth to make the batting stuff 'fuse' to the fabric!!!!  I wondered what on earth was going wrong when I'd stood for more than half an hour ironing it only to find each time that it hadn't fused!

And then I just winged it.  I made all the embroidered 'motifs' into the same size and then I sewed them by hand onto the linen using running stitches.....now please don't laugh, my hand stitching is not very good but I thought the running stitches looked quite effective!!!  After that I started just sewing straight lines all over the place!  And then I attached everything together and this is the end result. 

If you click on the photos they will enlarge and you can see the details better.

This is the fabric I chose for the back, I thought, being of old maps, it suited the theme quite well.

I really really wanted to mitre the corners but I just couldn't do it so in the end I just made them overlap.  I sewed on this tiny metal 'made with love' tag on to one corner....

Hanging on the fence to dry after all the steam ironing!

The finished size is 112cm wide by 56cm deep.  And it's quite heavy.  I cannot imagine how someone could sew a full sized quilt on a home sewing machine, but know that lots of people do it and I really admire them!

I'm not sure I will do another too soon but might consider doing something for my mum for her 80th birthday later this year.  But this time I hope to start sooner and not try to make it all in 3 days. 

It's not perfect, but I'm very happy with how it came out and hope my brother will love it too!

Thanks for visiting.  I hope everyone has had a lovely Easter weekend and that the week ahead is great for each of you!

Springtime in Paris....

Well, not quite, but Springtime in Malaga doesn't quite have the same ring to it, does it? ;)
But we do have Spring, and we also have Paris, well Paris fabric that is.  I spotted it in the haberdashers the other day and bought half a metre...as if I haven't got enough fabric already, but I'm sure those of you who 'collect' know how that goes!

I decided to make a new dress for Leoni, my new Zwergnase Junior, because she has a new sun hat and apparently 'needed' a new dress to go with it.   I used a bodice pattern that was waaaaay too big for her really but somehow it works, these Zwergnase kids seem to suit oversized clothing....I mean, look at the big boots they come with!

I added some fine net to the bottom frill to give it a bit of 'body', the frill itself is just a torn strip of fabric without any finishing, this is done deliberately, I didn't forget to zigzag...honest!  :)  Here she has teamed the dress with her red suede Zwergnase boots and some striped socks that I made ages ago for a different doll.  And of course her chunky wooden necklace....a girl has to accessorise, doesn't she!

And finally, I think it's gone to someone's head that she is the newest girl here but bagged the Paris fabric whilst everyone else has had to wait!!

Thank you for visiting, I hope you all have a lovely Easter weekend and a great week ahead too!

Violet takes a bow.....

A new girl came to live here yesterday, arriving safely from her 'birthplace' in Germany....she is Violet, a new Zwergnase Junior from the 2016 collection.  I have loved the Zwergnase dolls for a while now but I was unhappy with how sparsely rooted their hair is at the front.  It's a shame because the rest of their hair is so thick and full, but the front does let it down, and it has put me off buying another Junior from them.

So imagine my delight when I heard that their 2016 collection included some girls who were now wigged instead of rooted!  Zwergnase Juniors used to be wigged before 2008, when they were discontinued and they first released rooted girls.  But finally the company seems to have listened to their customers and have brought back wigs......I hope this continues.

I was atracted to Violet straight away, but hesitated too long when she arrived at a doll shop in France that I sometimes buy from.   But in the end I decided to order directly from Zwergnase in Germany and I must say, if my experience was anything to go by, I would highly recommend them.  All of my emails and questions were answered quickly and my order was processed with speed.  About two hours after I paid my invoice so I received my shipping notification and my doll and two pairs of extra boots that I purchased, arrived within 5 days, which is really good!

So here she is, my sweet little Violet who is now known as Léonie, because of her 'mane' of lovely hair!  She is handpainted and her wig is full, soft and curly.  Her outfit which consists of lightweight cotton trousers with elasticated waist, sleeveless grey cotton smock top, striped socks and a fully lined vinyl hooded raincoat with patch pockets, is bright and colourful and well made.  Her big boots are real suede. And she has an attractive wooden necklace.   I think I'm going to have fun with this pretty and quirky girl!

Now for photo overload!!!!! ;)

I hope you've enjoyed meeting Léonie.  

Thanks for visiting, enjoy the rest of your week!!

Sew & Sew....& Sew!

One of my lovely 'customers' who is also a good friend, asked me to make four overall/dungaree sets for her Zwergnase Juniors.  She suggested one for each season, so I've been having fun putting together fabrics and styles for these sets.  So far I have made spring, summer, and autumn, so just have winter to complete.  I thought I'd share what I've done so far as I haven't taken many other photos of my own dolls to share with you......and I don't want to let my blog slide!  I hope to rectify the lack of dolly photos really soon!

My model is Marlie, a Zwergnase Junior Marlene from 2014.  Incidentally, Marlie will be moving to the UK when she has finished modelling these outfits and her cousin is coming to live here.....I will introduce her here when she arrives.

Without further ado, here we have 'spring':

 

Next up we have 'summer' which are my favourites of the three sets I've done so far:

And finally for now, we have 'autumn':

Thanks for visiting!   I hope you've enjoyed seeing the 'fruits of my labour' this week and I also hope you all have a great weekend ahead :)  I guess I'll be making a start on 'winter'!!!

Kidz n Cats Julika Makeover - SOLD

This girl arrived yesterday and I knew immediately that she wasn't for me, happy looking dolls just don't seem to hit the spot in my collection!  And the truth is I actually really only wanted her outfit!

I thought I'd give her a makeover so she has had the full works!  Her eyes have been removed and exchanged for realistic pretty blue glass ones, she has been given a full new  makeup with freckles and she has new, more natural looking, eyelashes.  Her eyes are not glued in so that they can be moved or changed if required.  But if you'd prefer them glued in then just let me know.

Julika is from 2015 and was brand new, never removed from box, until I got her yesterday.  She will travel nude and in her original box and shipper to her new home and you can choose if you would like her original wig or this red Monique Gold one which I cut into a bob.  Please note the red wig is NOT new and is sold 'as is'.

I'm asking £150 or best offer, plus shipping.  Paypal only please, gift payment preferred.
I will ship worldwide.

Please email me at  dambuster0662@gmail.com if you are interested in adopting Julika.  The photos are not great as they were taken as the sun started to go down.  I can take more photos on request.

Thanks for looking.  I hope you all have a lovely weekend ahead!

THANK YOU, DOLL HAS NOW SOLD!