From Sketch to Softie

A week or so ago I whipped up some sketches of little cuties that I wanted to turn into softies.  Here's what I've come up with so far:

Introducing Peanut the daschund...

...and Jasper the Gnome, a little finger puppet!

I can't wait to make some more:)

Raising Awareness About Chronic Granulomatous Disease~For my buddies Max and Jude

This isn't the sort of thing I would normally post on my blog.  Generally I stick to crafty, cute and light-hearted topics. 

Today however, I would like to tell you about Max.

Max was a precious little guy who captured the hearts of anyone who had the pleasure of knowing him.  Everyone knew with in a minute of meeting him what a cute, charismatic, kind, and an all round great kid he was.  What no one knew was that Max had a rare immunodeficiency disease which made his body susceptible to bacterial and fungal infections. Max's white blood cells didn’t have the ability to produce hydrogen peroxide, the body’s main weapon against these kinds of infections.

On August 5th, 2009 two of my closest friends in the whole world lost their son to a disease called Chronic Granulomatous Disease.  At the time of Max's passing his mom  was seven months pregnant with her second son Jude.  Jude also has CGD.  To read more about the Martin family (Adam, Krystal, Max and Jude) and CGD please check out the links to the stories "Living in Your Worst Nightmare" and "Exposure to Bacteria Can Kill" as posted in today's Chronicle Herald.

Please spread the word about Chronic Granulomatous Disease.  Also if you are interested in helping this cause please contact me or check out the Facebook page for the Max Mckeen Martin Foundation in which all money raised goes directly to the Immunology department at the Isaac Walton Killam Hospital in Halifax Nova Scotia.

Softie Sketches

Last night on my facebook page I posed the question "What adorable creature should I craft next?"  The first suggestions I got included a weiner dog, a whale, and a walrus.  Do you see a theme there?  I joked that I could make my very own 'W' series of felt softies.  Here are the sketches I whipped up to hopefully eventually convert into patterns.

I think I can pull of the first two but the walrus may be a challenge.
 
I also sketched up some little gnomes that I might try to make as well. 
 

I am also planning on doing Russian stacking dolls and possibly a fox that was also suggested via Facebook. 
 
P.S.-Sorry about the photo quality the lighting was terrible and these were just lightly sketched in pencil so they don't show up super well. 

Hattie the Hedgehog ~My Original Pattern

I said a few days ago that I was looking for hedgehog inspiration and here is why:

Meet Hattie!

See she fits in my hand like the other hedgehog and is almost as cute!

Hattie is my first 100% original design.  Here is how I made her!

1.  I looked at some cute pictures of hedgehogs and some cute hedgehogs sent to me by Alana from Japan.  I sketched out a picture of a little hedgie.

2.  I cut the sketch into pieces.  I enlarged the face piece by about 1/8th of an inch.  I also made the legs slightly longer so they'd be easier to stitch onto the body.  I also created a belly panel so she could be 3 dimensional and stand up on her own.

3.  My pattern ended up looking like this.  I would like to add a link so it can be downloaded but I don't know how to do that.  Anyone able to help?  If you are interested I can send it to you or you could save this picture and print out using a full page (or 8X10) and that should work.

4.  Next I stiched the face onto the body, just along the back edge.  I then stitched on the quills and attached the legs.  Then I stitched on the eyes and the mouth (which ended up being a bit wobbly).  After all the embroidery type stuff was done I stitched one half of the body to the bell panel and then the other.  Once that was done I stitched up the face and prickly edge leaving about an inch to stuff her.  The I closed her up.  For the finishing touch I added cheeks, little ears, and a nose.  Voila!  Hattie the Hedgehog!



Best of the Globes

In my humble un-qualified opinion here are a few of my picks for the best dressed at the Golden Globes last night.  I know there have been 8 million posts about this and this one is coming a little too late...oh well what can ya do?  I had kids to teach today.

My #1 favorite look of the evening was on January Jones.  She looked stunning in this red Versace dress.

Speaking of globes...I think she should also win the best boobs award.  This lady is smokin'!

I was also loving Natalie Portman's dress by Viktor and Rolf.  I loved how it's flowy-ness showed off her baby bump. 

Not to be out down by her Black Swan co-star, Mila Kunis looked fab in this green Vera Wang number.

Anne Hathaway also looks totally gorgeous in this goldy-bronze, sequined dress by Armani Privé.  I didn't think I would ever say this again but I am totally diggin' the shoulder pads. 

This next one might be a little high school prom-ish but I love it none-the-less.  I love the huge-ness and the sparkly-ness of Olivia Wilde's Golden Globe garb(note my cheesy alliteration) by Marchesa.

Now onto the men.  Generally a tux is a tux but I liked these guy's looks.  Primarily because they stepped out of the box a little.  Robert Pattinson looked handsome in navy Gucci.  Although technically not a black tie look, I think Robert Downey Jr. looked dapper in his grey suite and red tie.

I was happy to see a lot of color on the red carpet.  This probably explains why with the exception of Olivia Wilde all of my choices did not include anything black.  She got picked because what she lacked in colour she made up with sparkles. 

*I am actually now 99% sure after taking a second look at Olivia Wilde that her dress is in fact brown.

Little Hedgie Love

I am not one to gush about and post pictures of cute little animals but this little hedgehog takes the cake on adorableness.  I think hedgehogs are pretty effin' sweet anyways but this guy is just about sweetest thing I have ever seen.  I just want one of my very own to carry around in my purse to pull out whenever I could use a laugh or something to make me smile.  I found this roly little dude while searching for inspiration for my first ever fully original not inspired by others pattern:)  More on that later!

Stuff it!

I just wanted to take a minute to share some links to some softies that I want to make in the near future.  To my friends with babies or those who are expecting babies you may receive one of these as a gift.  Once I get them made I will post some pics of my versions!

I am praying for a snow day on Wednesday.  Maybe if I get one I'll start with this litte one from q.D.PaToOtieS get the pattern here.

I think this next little guy is my favorite.  He looks a little tricky but I am sure I can pull him off.  Check out retro fawn at Craftside.

This little pincushion turtle combo is adorable. 

Find the adorable duo at Craft Passion. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! So cute:)
Also with a retro feel there's this little dude, Tiny Pup.  I just love him.  He was featured on Woman's Day but can also be found in More Softies Only a Mother Could Love. Get Tiny Pup here.

So many crafts, so little time.  Let's see if I actually get around to making any of these.

Blog Mess

Okay so I've been messing around with my blog again and have the colours all screwed up.  Someone who has no idea what they are doing shouldn't go around messing with html and trying to customize things.  I don't have the patience to fix it at the moment so for the time being it's gonna stay as is.  I will play with it a bit more later.

Dreamy Kitchens

I've been thinking a lot about re-decorating lately.  This is really quite a shame seeing as how I live in an apartment and have zero budget for decorating.  When I say zero I don't mean like I have to shop cheaply or look for second hand items...I mean zero.  Like my car needs a new transmission and I have zero dollars in the bank and I don't get paid for another week...zero.  Oh well I am gonna tuck these beauts in the memory bank for the time being.  Maybe even in a few months I can think about adding a little style to my kitchen.  Until then I will dream about these...

1. babiemma flicr photos 2. Hidden in France 3. Wanderer by Trade 4. Can't where  I got this one but if it is yours I will gladly give you credit or remove it if you'd like.
I don't know if I would ever do a pink kitchen but it is very, very cute.  Kind of like living in your own Barbie dream house. I just love the SMEG refrigerator in the first pic.  I am not sure about the light fixture or the rest of it for that matter but the frige is fan-friggin tastic!  I also love, love, love the large blue food storage cabinet from Ella's Kitchen Cabinet Ltd. in the second picture.  I think it would be lovely to have next to my new Kitchen Aid mixer for all my baking needs:) In the third pic it's all about the back splash and the range hood.  I have always wanted a window above my kitchen sink and I love the vintage (or vintage inspired?) fabric curtain.

1.  Once again not so sure... 2. Caitlin Wilson Kitchen 3. House and Garden 4.  Ghislaine Vinas
As much as I love bright colours I also love the freshness of white.  I think I'd be happy in a white kitchen with a few pops of fresh, bright colour.  I am really diggin' the wall paper in #2.

1???? Sorry for sucking so much.  2&3 Pie Bird Press 4. See #1

I think best of all I love the retro inspired collage wall of number three and pretty much everything about number 4.   As much as I really love all of these kitchens I think the more cluttered, kitschy lookin' ones are more my style.  I am a collector of many strange and wonderful things and a very stark, modern, minimalist kitchen would just not work for me.  I actually sort of enjoy clutter, in a somewhat organized fashion at least.  Anyhoo...which one do you think most suits me?  Which one do you like best?

My Crafty Resolutions

In 2011 I want to really focus on original designs and participating in a few larger craft shows rather than a small one every week.  I have tapped out the web for free patterns and really want to step up my creativity a notch and come up with some of my own.  Also, given the busy nature of my life I think I could have more, unique better quality stuff if I focused on a few specific shows rather than rushing around once a week to get things finished and getting up at 5am.  Hopefully this will also free up some time to spend some time with loved ones.

Photo courtesy of Pottery Barn

Bonne Annee!

My Rap *Warning* Explicit Lyrics

This is a little different then the stuff I usually post about (it has nothing to do with crafting, thrifting, baking etc) but it is too funny not to share.  I suppose it's not really very funny if you don't know me or the crazy people I work with, but it's my blog so I guess I can post what I want;) Anyhoo...the other day at work things were a little slow and some raps were written (thanks Aah-lex), here's the one about me:

J to the A to the N.E.T
a woman who well all like to meet,
if she were a movie, I'm hoping hoping double feature,
like David Lee Roth in Hot for Teacher.
A little weird though I have to admit,
short, short skirts and a rack that don't quit.
Finger lickin' good like corn on the cob,
been thinkin bout changing my name to Rob.
I ain't religious but I got a confession,
I'm no student but you can teach me a lesson,
about what makes you tick, how to get you undressin'

Like Aesop me and you like a fable,

wanna bend you over the multiplication table!

Teacher, teacher please say class dismissed,

been countin' on you like an abacus.

                           Written by this guy--------------------->

There are a few more verses but they get more obscene...so I am not gonna post them on here.