Another member was added today. I like playing with these guys. You can put them in all different positions in relation to one another and make up little narratives. "Will these eggs ever hatch?" "I'm not so sure I want a sister or brother anyway."
Archives for March 2011
the penguin chick
The penguin chick is done. I didn't make him fluffy, at least not yet. My gray roving doesn't match my gray felt. I think I like the unfluffly look anyway. Roxanne wants you to know that this adult penguin is not the same species of penguin as this chick. She can identify every species of…
A family of penguins
I am working on a family of felt penguins for a group show I will be part of at bookhou in Toronto in July. The show will be called "Winged Migration" and will include work by Gennine Zlatkis, Abigail Brown, Margie Oomen, and Arounna Khounnoraj. I'm very excited. I wanted to try making my birds…
Book Review: Big Little Felt Universe by Jeanette Lim
I love house plants to death. I saw a beautiful jade plant at Trader Joe’s last year and brought it home to live on our kitchen table, under the window. I admired it every morning at breakfast, I watered it frequently. Too frequently. As its leaves began to drop off one by one I was…
CraftSanity Magazine is out!
Have you seen the second issue of CraftSanity Magazine? It's beautiful. Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood of CraftSanity podcast fame has put together a truly fabulous magazine filled from front to back with projects. Every page has something to create and Jennifer tests every project before the magazine goes to press so you can rest assured that the…
And the winner is…
The winner of the Anatomy of a Doll eBook is… #21 Hilda who said, "I'd love a chance to win the ebook. Right now I'm up to my eyeballs quilting donation quilts, but hope to work on a bird softie soon." Congratulations, Hilda, and I hope you really enjoy the book. C&T publishing will be…
Elements of Soft Toy Design #16: Baseball Head
Editor's Note: This series of posts became a book! Stuffed Animals: From Concept to Construction was published by Lark Crafts in 2013. +++++ One good way to create a round head for a softie is to sew pattern pieces that come together like the seams on a baseball. The pieces are simple and create a…
a new bird in time for spring
I made a springtime bird last night. It is now up in my shop. I am most likely going to be teaching a fabric bird-making workshop at The Button Box quilt shop here in Wellesley on Saturday, April 30, from 10am-4pm. These are the birds that we will make. If you live nearby I hope…
a lion just for fun
It had been a while since I made something that wasn't for a show or a workshop or a book, something just for fun. I wanted to try the stalking leopard pattern as a lion. I shrunk the pattern down 85% and made it in wool felt. And added the mane, of course. He is…
The Artful Bird Book Launch: Purl Soho and Handmade Crafternoon
I had an awesome trip to New York. Purl Soho was beautiful, as expected, and Handmade Crafternoon was so amazing it is hard to describe. When I arrived there was already a line out the door. There were 90+ people there to sew birds. Wow. A huge thank you to Robert Kaufman for the yards…