Doctors flannel -update

Hi Guys,

Sorry to interrupt the Milton series.....

Just popping in to give a little update on the patterns. Some people are finding the doctors flannel for dollies hard to come by - I get mine here. from Ballarat Patchwork. It is delicious stuff.

I have also made a flickr group for people to post pictures of their kinder girls and boys when they are made. It is a funny feeling seeing "my dolls" popping up made by other people. They are the same but different if you know what I mean.

Did you see Michelle's tea set that she made her mum for mothers day? It is fantastic.....

So here I am in my P.J's and not-for-public-consumption dressing gown, with a cup of tea, on the first day of school holidays. Two cats are wrestling behind me, the teenagers are still in bed , I have Milton to work on today, I am getting emails from people showing me what they have made with the my patterns ........and I am feeling like a proud mama.

STEP 1 - But where does it come from?

I want to make a doll - not like my normal dolls- a different doll.

A doll with details.

I thought it might be interesting (or possibly as boring as bat poop) to share the whole process with you guys over a few posts. It may even help me to work through some of the "problems" this way...and in a way I can revisit later I guess.

(Be warned: it could take a while and you know I am prone to craft-related tantrums.)

Step 1: Where does the initial idea come from?

So here's the background- I sew - a LOT! I sew weird things sometimes, chip packets, laminating sheets, tape measures etc. This means my sewing machine seems to visit the sewing machine repair man quite often. In fact, over time I have developed a crazy on-the-phone type relationship with Milton the sewing machine man.

I never bother to give full and detailed descriptions of the problems on the little sheet provided when I drop off the machine because I know Milton will ring and he will understand my discussion of thingos and doo-dads and you-know-that-weird-little-wire-bit-just-under-where-you-bring-the-thread-up-again....

Milton speaks my language.

I may have mentioned my "love" of Milton at the local patchwork shop after he had returned my machine from what I thought was certain death. Have you ever met him they asked?

I haven't ! That got me to wondering? Was Milton young, not so young? I imagined a Milton. Milton had a moustache.

I decided to make a Milton.

That's it! So that little project gets tucked into the overflowing back-of-the mind list of projects where it bubbles along. Occasionally I will see something or think something and add it to the "Milton" file. A collar and tie? Some tools?

At some point, maybe I find the right bit of fabric, or maybe something like an upcoming birthday means that the project gets to see the light of the sewing room. Then it is time to try and get the ideas out of the brain and into reality, but thats Step 2.

(stay tuned, this step was the easy bit. Step 2 is the one that often ends in tears, it is Fantasy versus Reality)

What is going on here.

I'm not sure what has been in the water lately but it seems once again it has become "be nice to Jodie" time.

Case 1: It started with a prize from UpstateLisa.

Do you know this woman? She exercises - I mean really exercises, you know with sweat and everything! Not only that but she does it in the extremely early morning.

I admire her for all this,

But mostly I admire her quiltmaking skills.
Here is my heartstopping piece of gorgeousness. This piece just screams at me - I adore it, it is the texture of all the whites that kill me.....

Case 2: A little while ago Nanette sent me a "just because " present. I had mentioned that I was feeling a little bit house obsessed (in a crafty sense) and before I knew it - this wonderful mini-quilt arrived in my letterbox.

(Yes Nanette I know you think it is a potholder but this piece of art will never be holding a pot in my house). Nanette and I have been lucky enough to do a few little mail things for each other and I am going on record as saying she is the sweetest person in all of blogland.

Case 3: Also this week I got the most wonderful gift from a new artist on the block. As a Librarian, bookmarks are tools of my trade and therefore highly prized.

This one is my brand new most favourite bookmark ever and it came from one of my new friends Amy.

Case 4: At the show I met a woman called Sue. Or maybe my mum did. ( I have to say some of it seems to be a blur of meeting people) Anyway, Sue bought a doll pattern from me. She went home and made a doll. Then she asked permission (how nice is that?) to make some for charity. Of course I said yes and sent her along a boy pattern so she could make some boys as well.

Well this week Sue sent me a present. This present blew my mind. On the thoughtful, wonderful kinda humbling scale it rates as high as possible.

Sue sent me some fabric and some wool and some knitting needles.

Sue sent me the sweetest little knitted cardigan to fit a kinder kid, from a pattern that she designed

and wrote and sent to me!
Isn't that just amazing.

So I am shocked and grateful and humbled, as always by this crazy wonderful community or crafters and bloggers. I am always so so glad that I started this blog, stepped out of the crafting closet and joined this world.

Thanks for letting me play.

Bee-Bah Bee-Bah Emergency tutorial

The emergency is an impending little boys First birthday.

What started out as plan to make a little soft car, grew into a personalised ambulance.

Someone recently told me this was an organic approach to creating.....OK......I just think its cause I make it up as a go along - but organic sounds good doesn't it???

I took a few slap-dash pics as I went along, thinking that I might want to make a few more variations, so if you would like to join me, I present you with the ambulance - a - long!

Draw your idea of a car, truck or bus as seen from the side. Don't get too technical.

With fabric right sides together cut out 2 of these shapes. These measurements include the seam allowance.

Iron some vliesofix, wunder-under or double sided adhesive to the WRONG side of your feature fabrics (i.e the wheels, crosses)

Peel of the backing and iron them into place on your ambulance shape. Leave a little gap around the wheels when you iron them in place - this will get taken up in your seam allowance.

I ironed some stabiliser to the back of my ambulance shape as well to help my stitching sit on top. Sew your pieces in place.

This white piece measure 3 1/4 inches x 13 inches .

add to each end of this a piece in black measuring 3 1/4 x 6 inches. This is the centre panel or body of your ambulance.

With right sides together (yes I stabilised the strip as well), start pinning your strip to the ambulance. Start with the white fabric just above the front wheel. The idea is to have the underside of the ambulance black (so it shows the dirt less).. Really , the whole idea of a white toy is totally stupid and I know that but hey....I'm being organic! (No really I just like red crosses on white)

Keep pinning

Once you have pinned all the way around to the next black piece gently turn the ambulance right sides out.

Now you can mark on some ambulance (or car) features with a water soluble marker. I added doors and indicated where I needed the front bumper and windscreen to be.

Sew those details on and remove the water soluble marker.

The windscreen, is a photo printed onto ink jet printable fabric, vliesofixed into place and covered with a piece of thin clear PVC.

Now simply pin and stitch the strip to the right sides of both sides of your ambulance.

Make sure you start at the same point on both sides and the centre panel so you don't go skewiff.

Sew all the way around , leaving the join in the centre of the two wheels. As you can see the black is a bit long - I was just guessing and I do like to overestimate.

Trim off the excess, leaving at least a 1/4 inch for turning under.

Clip clip clip those seams - I know it is a pain in the butt - but it really does help....

Turn out through the gap in the bottom, stuff and close the gap with a ladder stitch.

The siren/lights thingo is just a rectangle of felt, stuffed and hand-stitched to the roof.

Hmmm, I wonder if he would also like a bus ?

Wouldn't a rocket be cute with a little face looking out a round window?

Herbie the Love bug for newlyweds? .......

A bus with photos of the whole family?

Ok. I'll stop now.

simmer on a low heat

After the full-on rolling boil of the months lead up to the show, I seem to have lost some momentum.

There is plenty to do

Daughters frocks to be refashioned.

Cool, lightweight plastic stuff for an attempt at a dolly raincoat

a quilt to be bound and a present for a little friend to be invented.

But I find myself simmering on low heat, stirring occasionally.......

The beast awakens

The sewing room is almost tidy (ish)

The shop is full

and the great green monster has been woken from it's slumber.

Wild thing..........

Wild thing

You make my heart sing

You make everything...

groovy.....

Wild thing

Wild thing,

I...think I love you

Thankyou Jhoanna,

I love her.