Where has 2012 nearly gone?!?

I can't believe it's December already, and that my last post was sometime in July! As any crafter knows, Christmas gets here all too soon when you intend to handmake as many gifts as possible.

But this year I just could not get myself into the spirit. I have other projects I wanted to finish this year and all the Christmas crafts I was interested in were just too fiddly.

I tried these birds but I'm not happy with them - at all! As my kids and their peers would say.... FAIL!!!!

Okay, they're not that bad, but not quite what I was hoping for.

Looks like I'll be running the gauntlet through my local shopping centre this year.

Rufus Rabbit

Vintage Bunny

Speaking of this year, here's a quick catch up on some the cuties that I have been happy with....

Vintage Houndstooth

Pinkie Pig

 One of my Beautiful Chemo Girls - 'Bald Is Beautiful'

Another of my Beautiful Chemo Girls - 'Bald Is Beautiful'

That's all for now, folks!

At Penrith Dolls Bears Craft & Collectibles Show, June 30 and July 1.

You win some, you lose some!

I'm coming down off a high after a dud weekend at the Doll, Bear and Craft Show at Penrith. As ususal, I stayed up too late making fussy litte preparations and as a result, have come home both days totally drained.
It doesn't help that I didn't sell one single doll :-(
I sold a few small owls ($8 each) but that was it. Considering that people were paying several hundreds of dollars for reborn dolls etc.  I was in the completely wrong setting, but I did meet some lovely ladies and enjoyed being around artistes. I also learned something about the Zonta Club, which I had never ever heard of before.
So anybody with ideas about what the best venue for my style of dolls is most welcome to give me advice.

Mermaid Tail Tales



I got help with this light blue tail from a beautifullly talented friend, Melody Tallon. She does beautiful quilting work (as well as stunning polymer clay jewellery making) and I asked for her help when I was struggling with the slippery and stretchy fabric I was using.



All my work is pretty much experimental. I always start with a basic pattern, but no two items are ever the same. I experimented with hand sewing, machine sewing, and using different types of thread on these tails. 

New Mermaids, New style of Tail!!!

 My love affair with mermaids continues. I don't even know how it began. Well, I kind of do... it originally arose from laziness
(a tail is so much easier and so much more magical than a pair of legs!) 
But now I just love mermaids because they're mermaids.

 Check out the new tail designs!
Hey, I don't know if you've even seen my old ones. Have to get onto that asap.

This tail pattern was hand sewn by my talented friend, Melody Tallon of Artefacts Jewellery Design

This is the pattern I originally started with but the stretchy fabric wouldn't hold its shape as I tried to the do the free flow stitching on the sewing machine. I am now going to hand sew the way Melody did for me.

The Babushka Door Stops are finally here!

At my market stalls people would often pick up my Mondie Dolls (Babushka Doll softies) and then look at me disappointedly, declaring, "Oh, I thought they were doorstops!"

It happened so much that I considered collecting a dollar for each time someone said that to me. So eventually, I decided to give it a go. So here are 5 of the 6 I have made so far. Of course, at the market yesterday, many people said "Oh look that those gorgeous stops!"... but nobody bought any!

I won't be posting these on my MadeIt.com page because the postage costs would be inhibitive. But if you're local and you're interested in one, please drop me a line. They are AUD25.00 each.

Thank you!

- t -



Experimenting with new styles

For a little while there I decided to take a break from mermaids. I made a few softie monster things, which I enjoyed because they require a fair bit of handsewing and I find that so therapeutic. But monsters ain't quite my thang, so I gave dollies a go!
I could not find a single pattern that totally appealed to me so I made my own. One doll turned out a little on the thin side, one was a little on the tubby side and two landed somewhere in between. I love them all and enjoyed every step of the process.
I nearly freaked out when I realised that I had to clothe them (that's the beauty of the Mondies and Mermaids - I don't have to make actual outfits for them), but I gave it a shot and was really pleased with the results. My favourite is Dapper Dan. I think we need to see more handsomely dressed boy dolls out there. I didn't want him to look old fashioned but I wanted him to look dashingly cute. I hope I succeeded.
I've held a few stalls at my local market but I'm not sure if the location is right for my stuff. People tend to visit those markets for the fresh fruit and veg, the odd bargain and the ocassional gift.
I believe that my prices are reasonable but I understand that people don't particularly approach those markets with the intention of spending more than $10-$20 on a child's toy.
I'm building up stock to try the April markets then I'll decide whether to stay on.
** Teboho**

Introducing Dapper Dan and Friends!!!