Hand-Embroidered Wool Felt Toys

I’ve been spending some time over the past few days making some new hand-embroidered toys.  I used all natural materials to create the toys:  wool felt, sheep wool stuffing, cotton embroidery floss, and cotton stockinette fabric.

Wool felt zebra…only 3 1/2″ tall.

I made a zebra like this one about a year or so ago that I gave away.  Made another one this weekend for my daughters who enjoy playing with dolls.  Miniature animals – whether they are stuffed, carved from wood, or glass – make their way into the girls’ play time and imagination.  

Since the zebra is for the girls, I decided to make a PDF pattern of the zebra that’s available in my shop (Harvest Moon by Hand) so anyone can make one.

Another thing I made this weekend was a doll.  The pattern is from The Birthday Book – Celebrations for Everyone by Ann Druitt.  I’ve had this book on my shelf for some time now, and just pulled it out recently for some ideas.  I was pleasantly suprised to see all the different patterns for children’s toys.

Walking Star Boy

One of the patterns is for a “walking star boy and jester.”  I started with the walking star boy since that was the first pattern and seemed a bit easier than the jester which requires a bit more sewing/embroidery work.  The doll stands about 8 inches high (with the hat).

I haven’t used stockinette fabric before, so this was my first attempt at trying to make a face and hands.  I chose not to put a face on the doll because then whoever plays with the doll can imagine what it looks like and its expression – the doll can be happy, upset, resting – whatever the girls want the doll to express – rather than having the same expression that dolls typically have when they’re purchased from a store. 

Olivia was sick all day, so she rested in bed while I sat by her and made the doll. She chose the colors of the doll’s outfit and hair; and enjoyed watching the doll-making process. By late afternoon, the doll was completed…just in time for her to hold onto as she rested.

Olivia resting with her new doll

In addition to providing comfort, the star boy provided Olivia with some entertainment while she was laying in bed.  Because the doll has a horizontal slit in the back, two fingers can be placed in the legs. In this way, the star boy can “walk” and move around which is a bit different than other dolls the girls have. 

Star boy kicking some felted acorns

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Decorating for Valentine’s Day with Natural Materials

Each year, the girls look forward to decorating the home for Valentine’s Day.  Last year, I made a variety of window stars that I put on the windows.  After the holiday, I packed them away to use again this year. 

It was so easy this year to decorate the main window in the dining room.  Here’s what it looks like:

As the girls and I looked through the bin of Valentine’s Day decor, we came across the paper cuttings I did last year for each of them.  One chose red paper as the backing and the other chose pink.  We hung the paper cuttings with a couple more window stars in the living room.

Since I just put out the winter nature table scene on the dresser in the dining room about a week ago, the girls and I decided to keep it up.  So this will stay up for a little while longer (perhaps right after Valentine’s Day it will be changed to another scene).

Winter Nature Table

Since we decided to keep the winter nature table where it was, Olivia suggested putting a Valentine’s scene on the bookshelf.  The table is more craft focused rather than nature focused since the winter nature table has the nature elements (e.g., rocks, sticks, pinecone, walnut shell beeswax candles). 

Valentine’s Day Items

The display on the bookcase has hand-embroidered gnomes made from wool felt and sheep wool stuffing from sheep who use to live here.  The elf clogs are hand-embroidered and made from wool felt as well.  I made a pair for each of the girls using their favorite colors.  The wet-on-wet watercolor lanterns are made from watercolor paper, kite paper, and tissue paper.  The girls made them a few years ago.  The two cards are handmade featuring origami designs made from Japanese paper. 

The picture is of Casey who died 3 years ago on the day before Valentine’s Day.  An artist painted the picture in exchange for some of my work.  It’s been a treasured picture…and one that has been the focal point of several displays.

I like to make a few new things each year, so this is a new window star I made.  It follows a base pattern that I use for another star, but I changed things up a bit to create a new pattern.  Here it is:

I also made a couple of miniature bears from a wool sweater that I felted in the washer/dryer.  The bears are holding a paper bunting with Valentine’s Day theme paper.  The bears are available in my shop, but I’m going to make another set so the girls have something else to decorate with in future years. 

Bears (made with a felted sweater) holding a bunting

The other item I just started making are bendy dolls with wire, beads, and wool felt.  I use a length of wire and two different size beads to create a miniature human form.  The clothes are hand-embroidered onto the wire frame.  The hat needed to be hot-glued onto the bead head in order to stay…otherwise it just slips right off.

I’m doing some for my shop as well as some for home.  The girls like them because they can bend and be posed in different ways.  Here is the trio of dolls that I made this weekend:

There are still a couple of weeks until February and some more things the girls and I want to do before then that relate to the holiday….more crafts, recipes to try, and activities to do.  Next week, I’ll post some more Valentine’s Day ideas.

Family room window with winter-white stars

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Countdown to Christmas – Day 19 (Santa Watch + Gifts in a Jar)

Bunny on Santa Watch
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

One idea I read about many years ago (and finally got around to doing this year) was to let children put their favorite stuffed animals or dolls be part of the Christmas celebration.

This year, I had the girls put some favorite stuffed animals and dolls by the Christmas tree. Olivia chose a rabbit that she dressed in doll clothes and put on a blanket. Sophia chose three dolls with accompanying pets who also sat on a blanket.

The girls are wondering if Santa will do anything special for the dolls and animals.

Note after Christmas:

Santa did, indeed, give a little gift to each doll or animal that was placed by the tree. Since Sophia put three dolls out, each one received a tiny gift – a necklace, keychain, and crocheted heart.

Olivia’s bunny received a coin purse with a tiny fairy tea set and a crocheted heart.

Here’s a picture of the dolls on Christmas day:

Sophia, Olivia, and I also made some gifts in a jar.  Sophia and I made lemon coconut cookie mix in a jar; and Olivia and I made brownie mix in a jar.  These were given to my mom (the girls’ grandmother) with the instructions printed in 20 point type (since she has vision challenges).  The instructions were glued onto decorative paper and attached to the jar ring with a ribbon.  The lid was covered with matching decorative paper.

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Eco-Friendly Gifts

Handmade Bag and Bear
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

This year, I want to make more eco-friendly gifts that use what I have on hand rather than using supplies I need to purchase. Although the financial benefits of doing this are a plus, the more important thing is that by using/re-using items rather than discarding them, I can make a positive difference on the environment. It’s a win-win situation.

The little bear and bag are both made from recycled clothing. The bear is made from a wool sweater that I felted by the washing machine and dryer; and the outer part of the bag is made from a child’s dress. The inner fabric of the bag is from my fabric stash.

I have hand-embroidered wool felt toys and household items in my shop, Harvest Moon by Hand. Please take a look at some of the items that are available there…especially for the upcoming holiday season.

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A New Life for Old Clothes

Wool Felted Bears
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

These bears were made from a wool sweater that I felted in the washing machine and dryer. I hand embroidered the eyes, nose, mouth, and muzzle as well as blanket-stitched around the body.

There is a fabric square on the middle that I blanket-stitched onto the bear; and hand-sewed two buttons on the fabric.

This was inspired by a picture I saw on a Flickr site. Thought it was cute and wanted to make with the felted wool I had.

The bears are small – they fit into the palm of one’s hand.

The blue bear I kept and will give to Olivia on the first day she goes to the homeschool co-op. (Kind of like a teddy bear she can hide in her pocket.) The green bear I sent as part of a “Recycle Your Clothing” swap on Swap-bot.

I also made these felted cat toys this week. These each are stuffed with wool from sheep I use to raise and have a jingle bell inside. Needless to say, the cats enjoy the toy because they can get the bell to make a noise the more they play with it and toss it around.

Another item I made was a coaster for a mug. Saw this idea on the internet, and thought I’d give it a try. Basically, you cut off the hems from jeans you no longer wear. Using a hot glue gun, you glue the hems together to create a very sturdy and dense coaster. I used 7 pairs of jeans (14 hems) to create one coaster. It took a lot more hems than I thought. The next step is to use the fabric from the jeans to create items for the home (a quilt…more placemats…not sure yet).

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Gingerbread Doll Ornament

Gingerbread Doll Ornament
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

Have wanted to make this ornament now for some time. Green and purple are my favorite colors, so that’s why I chose them for the dress.

I’m going to make one for each of the girls with their favorite colors. I’m going to look for a slightly lighter shade of brown for the hands, feet, and face. I think this one was a bit too dark to show the facial features.

The felt is all 100% wool; and the ornament is stuffed with wool from sheep that I raised. The hand-embroidery features the straight stitch, blanket stitch, back stitch, French knots, and lazy-daisy stitch.

I have some hand-embroidered ornaments in different styles in my Etsy shop; and also take requests for custom work. Please contact me through my blog and/or through Etsy for more information.

Here’s the back side of the gingerbread doll ornament:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/picturesbyann/4868612264/in/photostream/

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Hand Embroidered Sandman Doll

Hand Embroidered Sandman Doll
Originally uploaded by Pictures by Ann

This is a Sandman doll that I made recently. It is made with fleece and felt and is incredibly soft to the touch.

He wants to help a young child fall asleep at home; be a travel companion in the car; or comfort someone who is sick or at a doctor or dentist appointment.

Every part of the toy is hand-embroidered – there are no loose parts. The face, stars, hands, and moon are all blanket-stitched onto the doll. The Sandman is then hand-sewn together using the blanket-stitch around all the edges.
He is stuffed with sheep wool – from sheep that I raised on my organic farm. The Sandman measures about 7 3/4″ x 4″ wide – a perfect size for small hands to hold.

The Sandman doll is availabe in my shop, Harvest Moon by Hand at http://www.harvestmoonbyhand.etsy.com.

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