Cotton spool mice
Coming soon in my December Magazine….
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Softies
Today is a glorious day – there’s real warmth in the sun and the sky is a wonderful shade of blue, with just a few white fluffy clouds dotted here and there – it’s hard to believe that we’re in mid-November and Christmas is just around the corner. Ben is snoozing outside in the courtyard, and as soon as I’ve finished this post I’m off to take him for a walk through the woods behind our village. It’s at this time of year that I become more aware of the animals around us – deer and fox tracks are visible in the mud (yes, the mud has returned!), and often I glimpse a flash of movement in the corner of one eye as a rabbit or pheasant makes good its escape into the undergrowth. I was thrilled to see two large brown hares chasing across a field of stubble when I last dropped Ben at his favourite kennels a couple of weeks ago – I don’t see hares close up very often.
One animal that is regarded with very mixed feelings in our village is the fox. Clever, crafty – and the sworn enemy of chicken-keepers everywhere! But undeniably a very handsome fellow who features in the first pattern for the December issue of my Bustle & Sew e-zine.
I’ve tried to reflect his cunning and curious nature in my applique – I didn’t want him to be too cute – and I hope I’ve managed to achieve the right balance. He’s appliqued in felt and wool on a wool-blend felt background and here I’ve chosen to make him into a cushion cover. When we lived in Hampshire many years ago (when Rosie was a very little girl), a hedgehog used to visit our garden from time to time. I don’t see many hedgehogs here, apart from my very own Hodge and Podge – and I don’t really know why that should be as we have so much other wildlife around us.
Anyway, thinking about Podge, I know that sometimes it can be time-consuming to collect all the ingredients to make a softie like Podge, so I’ve assembled two “Make your Own Podge” kits and listed them in my Etsy Shop. The vintage linen pouches contain everything you (or a crafty friend) need to make your Podge – including the premium item of ……
…. a smooth, round beach pebble carefully selected by my canine assistant for its shape, size and general overall appeal! (well, it’s about time he did something useful.) If you’d like a Podge kit, then you will find them in my Etsy shop – just the two at the moment sorry both sold , as I don’t know if I have any more suitable fabric for her prickles – if these two sell out, then I’ll have a rummage around my cupboard!
PS the pebble was washed before it was added to the kit!
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Christmas is still some way off I know, but if you’re planning to sew decorations or gifts, then you do have to plan ahead a bit – at least that’s my excuse! I love the festive season, especially as my birthday is just over a week before Christmas, so it has always been a special time of year for me.
As well as adapting some of my existing patterns for Christmas (more on that in a future post), I have plenty of new designs for 2012. In my October e-zine I included my Baby Owls Advent Calendar as well as the ”I Saw Three Ships” Table Runner. And now … I am (slightly) proud to present to you:
My fabric reindeer head mounted on (of course!) an embroidery hoop. I say “slightly” proud as I had hoped that he would be a noble beast but, like all my softies, he has turned out to be cute and whimsical instead! He is very cheerful-looking though and I feel sure that he will enhance my Christmas decorating scheme this year, maybe with some tinsel or tiny fairy lights wrapped around his antlers.
When designing my reindeer I referred – as I always do – to this wonderful book by Rudi de Sarigny published by Mills & Boon in 1971. My copy was a hand-me-down, but if you’re interested in softie-making and you find a copy then I recommend you snap it up instantly! It has lots of excellent advice on pattern cutting and technique – and I was delighted to discover in the section on adapting patterns that there is a whole paragraph on changing a horse head into a stag head! What could be more useful?!!
I did indeed note the placing of the antlers, ears and eyes. It’s obvious when you think about it, but when I was trying to visualise my reindeer I couldn’t remember whether it was antlers in front of ears (given that they both had to be inserted in the seam) or the other way around! But thanks to Rudi I got it right!
My reindeer is not at all hard to make if you’ve done any softie making before – his antlers are wired, but that’s all – some firm stuffing ensures that he sits firmly on his embroidery hoop base. I did think I might try to make a video demonstration to go with the pattern – he is a bit fiddly in places and it’s often easier to show rather than to try and explain. I need to make another one now to make sure all my pattern pieces really do fit together properly and this would be ideal for demonstrating too.
Now all he needs is a name!! I feel a competition for e-zine subscribers coming on …….. Meanwhile his pattern (hopefully with video tutorial) will be in the November e-zine and available to purchase separately after then.
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This is Podge, the baby hedgehog softie. Hello, Podge!
And here’s her big brother Hodge with their cousins, Horace and Humphrey. The pattern for Hodge will be in the November Issue of the Bustle & Sew ezine.
The really easy pattern to make Podge is can be found on my Free Patterns Page. If you like her, and would enjoy receiving more free patterns, tutorials and special discounts, then you might like to consider to subscribing to my free newsletter. You can join using the form in the right hand sidebar. (It’s free, safe – and I promise NEVER to share your details with anyone else. I also promise you’ll receive special offers, free patterns and all the Bustle & Sew news before anyone else)
And where are those naughty little hedgehogs heading off to? Just click on the video link below to find out!
PS No newfies were woken during the making of this video!!
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