Monday, September 3, 2012

Keeping a couple of little secrets


Have you ever had to keep a little secret?  I have been sitting on two for the past few weeks and I call now finally share them with you.  The two items that I have made have now been safely delivered to their new homes.


The first up is a lovely new Mumma bear for Little B. 


 


Coming from Melbourne where layering your clothing is everything due to our 4 seasons in one day weather trick I decided that she needed another layer so a little crochet cardigan was made.  As Little B is only 1 yrs old, I needed to make something that didn’t have any hard pieces, like buttons for eyes, so when I came across this pattern in 'Softies', I knew it was perfect.


Little B’s Mum is one very clever lady who makes the most beautiful mermaid and mermen softies so I thought another style of softie might be a suitable present.  Check out Little B’s Mum’s softies here.


(Full credit to those out there who make softie toys especially if they require many limbs.  I struggled with the sewing of the limbs, trying to fit them all in so that when you turn the bodies right way out everything was sewn in place.  I must have unpicked the limbs at least 4 times as every time I tried to sew them, they slipped out of place and were not connected properly). 

 
My other little secret was a birthday present for my niece Little C.  Last year I made her this little doll, so this year I decided that I needed to make something that she could use with the doll.  I knew that she had a little wooden cradle for her dolls but nothing to put in it, so I made a blanket and sheet set.
 

 
 

I knew I wanted to make a crochet blanket for the top but was unsure on what pattern or style.  I then came across this pattern on my favourite place Pinterest.  As soon as I saw it I was hooked, I knew it was the one.  So off I went following the links only to find that the whole pattern was in French.   My experience of the French language ended in year 8 as I had an argument with the French teacher as to why I didn’t want to be in her class anymore.  She tried to tell me that art (which I was dropping her class for), was not a proper subject and it would never get me anywhere (I then went on to be a Secondary school Art/textiles teacher). 

So what was I going to do?  A couple of the clever ladies in my craft group suggested that I Google translate the pattern.  I tried that and I think a lot of the detail was lost in translation as it made no sense at all. I then decided to just give it a go myself, making a row, seeing if it looked right, if not undoing it and then trying again.  And here it is the finished product.  As you can see I also made a mattress, sheet and pillow to go with it.

I am so excited to be sharing these with you as I have had to keep them a secret for soooooooo  long.

Do you ever struggle keeping secret gifts a secret?



Anna
XO

2 comments:

  1. Hey Anna, great job on your softie, she's very cute. I know how tricky it can be sewing the legs and arms in.....very frustrating at times. I've taken to stitching them (large stitch) into place before I sew the seam and fingers crossed it works. Can be quite an effort to then turn them out, but your Mumma bear was turned out well and I'm sure lIttle B will love her.
    Your niece will definitely love the cradle set, great blanket. The pattern is very eye catching and the colours all go well together.
    No wonder you found this secret hard to keep and yes I do find secrets hard to keep too....

    Claire :}

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  2. Wow amazing secrets! So cute & I love your crib blanket. Very clever.

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