Schizo and Phrenia - a confused plushie

My friend Kai has been coming up with names for crazy plushies and this one caught my fancy. I thought she should be one doll with two personalities. I was going to name her Sybil (remember that book/movie?) but figured my Mom would get insulted as that is *her* name. Although I don't think she ever reads my blog so I could get away with it if I wanted to!!!

I am taking commissions for these things if you think of something you want - just $30 plush shipping (pardon the pun).

I think this one is 'spot on' !

Meet Poxley, he is Measley's little brother. He's a few inches shorter and a lovely lime green color. He was told to stay away from Measley but did he listen? Oh no, of course not! Now he has the itchies too!


Technical note: I hate sewing around a fairly complicated shape like this unless it is a template so even though I said I wasn't going to do it again, I did. This time I stuffed him before I sewed the spots and the face on and it worked out great. How do you like his little belly button and little butt cheeks?

Oh - he's going to my 3 year old niece in Colorado! I hope she likes him.

Look what I got !!! - Part 2

For someone who hadn't traded dolls in years I'm catching up! This is a mermaid pincushion I received from Patti LaValley in exchange for one of my mermaid business card holders. I think she's too sweet to stick pins in though!

As for me ... I made another plushie, this one is a healing plushie instead of a sick one! It's a commission for a friend so I can't post photos right now. I have to make another spotty plushie though so keep tuned!

An infectious plushie

This is not my fault. This is the fault of the girls on FabricDollArt. They think I should do a line of sick plushies - or diseased plushies - or something. So this is Measley - he's rather spotty and since he drank all the Calamine lotion he is doomed to itch, itch, itch.

Now on a technical note, I made a big mistake when I made this guy. I sewed around him template style, turned him right side out, and then tried to sew all the spots and the face on. Not fun and it took me way too long. If I use this pattern again I'll cut it out first, do the decorative work, and THEN sew it together. He's the biggest one yet - 17 inches from top to bottom.

I'm as stuffed up as he is

Meet Phlegming. He's a little monster who has taken up residence in my house. I think he's taken up residence in my head actually. His favorite thing to play with is Kleenex and he's just nasty. I have tried everything I can think of to get rid of him but it's not working. So tomorrow I will go see a doctor exorcist and hopefully he'll be gone soon.

One of those days

I'm sick with a bad cold. It's really hard to be creative when you feel lousy so all I've been doing is reading books and sniffling. I've been waking up in the middle of the night coughing and last night when I went to the kitchen to take a teaspoon of honey to soothe my throat this is what I found ... at least someone is having a good time!

What's not to love???

Meet Farrah. She had an accident with a threshing machine when she was just a wee bit. It has never stopped her though, or even slowed her down. When she wants to get gussied up for a barn dance all the other females are totally outclassed.

Bernie - the killer bee - more plushie joy!

I am learning something new with each plushie I make. This guy taught me it's extremely difficult to stuff a thin neck when the opening is on the bottom. The stuffing wants to migrate down. Took me about three tries to get it firm. Don't think I'll be using this shape again (which is a bowling pin, by the way). A true bee shape wouldn't be able to sit down, LOL. I used my new BigKick machine for the felt eyes and the heart! Whoo hoo! Have to add that this guy is huge - must be about 14" or so.

I must say I laughed like a lunatic when I first turned him inside out and saw that face with the antennae! I'm glad no one was home!!! They would have locked me away! These little things are bringing me such joy.

So - this is Bernie the killer bee. He doesn't understand why no one is afraid of him. He is a good defender of the hive though, he has won many medals from the Queen Bea, although he only wears his purple heart.

Sizzix BigKick - my new toy

I have been 'talking' with Mimi Kirchner about how to cut perfect circles from felt. One thing she suggested was the Sizzix punches; but I found they didn't have them in a variety of circle sizes. That left me the option of one of the machines. I looked into the various die-cut machines available locally and decided to buy the Sizzix BigKick. This is made by ProvoCraft which also makes the Cuttlebug. The BigKick can use any other companies' dies plus do embossing and texturizing. So I went to JoAnns and priced it. Went to Michaels and priced it. Michael's was $25 more and their dies were $5.00 more. Ugh. I talked to the manager and asked if he would match JoAnn's price and he said yes. He called JoAnn's and got the price; I used my JoAnn's coupon and ended up with the machine for $60. Then I went back to JoAnn's and used *another* coupon to buy a 4-circle die plus some other stuff. The things I do to save a buck! Okay - boring stuff over with. I tried the machine on various fabrics (after I figured out you weren't supposed to remove the foam from the center of the die, sigh). Here's my report ...
Acrylic felt - awesome!
Wool felt - awesome!
Flannel - awesome!
Fleece - makes a good enough impression to cut out with scissors
Batik - cut some of the fibers but not all. Easy enough to finish off with scissors.

So - $80 later I can cut out perfectly round eyes for my plushies! Now I have to sell some to pay for the darn thing, LOL. Anyone need any plushies???

OH OH OH - I meant to ask - is the cutting plate supposed to end up with die impressions on it?

It's all about color

I'm still playing with plushies - and probably will for a while yet. I have quite a few kids to make these for, not just the grandbaby that's coming. I am trying to incorporate different textures and colors in these as I experiment. But look - it's not a monster, LOL.

More plushies

So I'm still experimenting with these plushies. This little guy is a pancake pattern and he's made out of wool felt. HA. Wool felt is NOT fun to turn. I won't be doing this again. He doesn't even feel that good. Not that he has an upset tummy or anything - he's just not soft and cuddly.

Hmmmm, and then there is the one I made today. If you thought I was strange before just wait until you see this one ....

You have to understand that it is hunting season in Alaska. I figure if my husband doesn't get a moose he can have this one ....

Paper Art Doll

I said yesterday that I would take a photo of Kate's paper doll and post it. So here she is ... isn't she sick!

Ummm, sick means cool or awesome in today's slang. I'm really too old to talk that way but I got tired ot saying 'cool', LOL.

Posted by judi at 9:02 PM | Comments (6)

Look what I got !!!

Oh my gosh - take a look at this beauty - she came in the mail today from Kate Erbach. We traded dolls. I think I got the better end of that deal! This is the first swap I've done in years and I couldn't be happier. She is named The Queen of Hearts. She's stolen mine, that's for sure! Thanks, Kate - you're the best!!!!

You should see the paper doll she sent me also - it's a hoot! I'll take a photo and try to post it tomorrow. Kate is a multi-talented artist and I'm so glad I've met her through the net!

Plushie love

I've been enamored of the monster plushies for a while now. There are some great young indie designers out there and I get a huge kick out of what their imaginations come up with. Yesterday when I was in JoAnn's hitting the Labor Day sale I found this great book called Plush-o-rama - awesomely fun plushies! So I bought it and today I read through it so I remembered how to put these little types of creatures together. It's been a while since I've sewn arms and legs INSIDE the body and then turned everything. I drew these two up today and I'm totally tickled by them. I laugh every time I look at them. Think they will make good toys for the grandbaby??

This is Marsha. She's a bit upset because she lost her dill pickle.

This is Aunt Edna. She looks a bit sour because, well, she just ate a dill pickle. Shhhhh ...