Monday, October 25, 2010

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 Here is a tutorial on how to make an adorable tree doll for your little tree hugger. This took me about 1-hour to make, so this is a quick little project that is just too cute!

 

I found this fabulous fabric at Ikea. It has trees, about 12-inches tall, in two color combinations. I cut around two of the trees with a 1/2-inch extra left around the edges. I chose to use both color combinations to add interest. You could just draw out a simple template out of paper and cut out two out of any fabric of your choice. You could also make this out of two different fabrics, a solid for the front, and a pattered fabric for the back. Or you could even make the trunk out of one fabric and the top out of another. It's totally up to you.

Next, I made the eyes. I cut two circles from white felt, about 1.5-inches in diameter, and two circles from black felt, about 1/2-inches in diameter. I used fabric glue to temporarily attach the eyes to one side of the tree. Then I took black embroidery floss and used a blanket stitch around the black circles and the white circles.

The mouth is a simple V shape made with red embroidery floss. I first sewed several V's to create the basic shape and width, and then sewed perpendicularly around the long part to make it fuller. It also keeps little fingers from getting caught if your V is especially large.

I sewed the doll together by matching the good sides and pinning them together. I sewed, following the pattern of the tree that I could see through the back of the fabric, and securing the beginning and the end and leaving about 2-inches open on one side of the round part of the tree to allow for stuffing.

I turned the tree right side out and stuffed the tree with a mixture of poly filber fill, crinkly celephane, and one jingle bell.

To finish it off, I turned the seams to the inside of the doll and sewed very close the the edge with the machine, securing the beginning and the end. In order to make that match on the other side, I sewed at a similar location.

Viola! You have an adorable tree doll for your little tree hugger!

Sunday, October 3, 2010

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Here are a few of my favorite Etsy finds for October 2010. Enjoy!




Thursday, September 2, 2010

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Here are a few of my favorite Etsy finds for September 2010. So much cute stuff! I couldn't resist the octopus costume and little Ady is going to wear it for her first Halloween.




Wednesday, August 18, 2010

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Here are a few of my favorite Etsy finds for August 2010. Just plain wonderful!




Sunday, May 9, 2010

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Happy Mother's Day everyone!!!!

Today I answered the question: What do I love about being a mother?

I love being a mother because I have a little monkey to share joy with every day. I get to say and do things I never thought I'd ever do or say. Like, for example, saying "good girl!" when she lifts her leg and rips a fart. Or "don't put the dog's tail in your mouth". Or "don't bite my boob!" I get to smile and laugh a million times a day. I get to teach her and she get's to teach me. These are just a few of the millions and billions of things that I love about being a mother.

What do you love about being a mother?

Have a great day!!!

-elke

Friday, April 30, 2010

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I have added a new feature where I list all of my favorite stories that I've read to my little Ady Wren. You can see it on the sidebar. Support this blog by purchasing directly from the link!

I read to my little one daily and she just loves it. She's now 6-months old and is really starting to pay attention to books. She used to be content just to listen to me read, but now she needs to see what's going on too!

Many of my favorite books blend fabulous illustrations along with a very good story. There need to be several components that mix to make it onto my list. I'm sure as Ady gets older the list will tailor to her likes a little more.

Here she is at 6-months:



I hope everyone has had a wonderful April. May is my birthday month and my first mothers day as a mama. I have a feeling it will be a very very good month. :)