It's Fat Tuesday!

Today is Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras, or as we call it in England - Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day! Here in Bosnia and Herzegovina they call it Maskara and their tradition is to do 'trick or treating' like we would do for Halloween. I'll wait and see how many of the kids we know knock on our door tonight! We will be observing the British tradition of eating pancakes :)

As the Plush Team we are celebrating this day by doing a Mardi Gras themed plush swap. Mine still hasn't arrived - but I haven't been to the post office yet today so maybe it's waiting for me there... This is the plush that I sent to Jen of FuzFrenzy.

Introducing my Book Fairy

So much has happened since I last blogged. I've been in 8 countries in 3 continents for a start! Once life gets back to normal I will post more photos and blog a bit more about what we did and saw, but for now here's a picture of my lovely book fairy which I bought at the opening of the Plush You! show at Schmancy Toys in Seattle. This amazing doll caught my eye when Kristen posted a picture of her on instagram when it arrived at the shop for the show, and then when I saw it in real life I knew she had to be mine! She is made by Pheleon Creations. I have lots of photos from the opening of the show and will blog about it in a few days time.

Video Game Question

I need your help on this one. I want to know if this amigurumi is recognisable as anything to anyone other than me! What old video game do you think is it from? Leave me a comment and let me know! Thanks!

Gabby in Grazia Magazine

Modamo Kreartiva Sajam is just 2 days away. They have done a great job of advertising it in newspapers, on TV, on websites and now in Grazia Magazine. If you look in the bottom right hand corner of this picture you'll see Gabby!

Ako zivite u Mostaru dodite u subotu ili nedjelju 10:00-20:00 u prostorijama HKD Herceg Stjepan Kosacka.

what do you think?

This is the first amigurumi doll I've finished in ages! I've been so busy that I haven't had time to make any. Maybe it's because I'm a bit out of practice, or because it took me so long to finish her, but somehow she didn't turn out quite like I wanted. I haven't decided yet if I will put her in my shop, and if I do I need to think of a name and a story for her and some kind of accessory.... What do you think?

Crafty Peeps Swap

This is the second time I've been part of a swap hosted by StrumpetsCrumpets.

This time my partner was a candy loving, red headed girl from Poland. This is the gift I sent her. She makes the most amazing and beautiful notebooks which she sells in her Etsy Shop - Marysza.

She also has a great blog which you can read by clicking here.

Were you right?

you might remember I posted a blog a couple of weeks ago called Can you guess what it is yet?. Well now is your chance to see if you got it right! This is the gift I sent to my StrumpetsCrumpets Valentine swap partner Annie from www.wattlebird.com. When I am making dolls for specific people rather than just for my shop I like to make the doll a caricature of that person. This is easier to do when you really know someone but you can actually find out enough about someone just from reading their blog to make a pretty good go of it. Annie said that she was wearing almost the same oufit as this little doll the day she arrived! You can read more about what she thinks of this doll by clicking here and reading her blog.

Major Periwinkle

After serving Queen and Country for many years Major Periwinkle is now a retired gentleman. He spends his days at the Rotary Club, looking after his grandchildren and walking in St James Park. His shock of white hair is a little alarming at first sight but when you get to know him you will find him very friendly and always ready to entertain you with stories of his adventures in Her Majesty's Service. Oh - and contrary to popular belief he doesn't have a sword hidden in his cane - honestly....

Cream Cheese Brownies and Amigurumi

For those of you (is there anyone?) who read my blog regularly you might remember a month or so back I posted something about cream cheese brownies. I posted that because the amigurumi I was working on was for a friend and she didn't want anyone to see it before her and so as I couldn't blog about amigurumi that day I blogged about baking instead! Well I have now seen that friend and given her the doll so I can now show you some pictures. I'm really happy with how she turned out. I think the eyes are great - even though I may say so myself! And the bag is pretty good too :) The doll is about 30cm tall. And funnily enough, today I made some more cream cheese brownies for a Hen night that I'm just about to go to!

Rhubarb the Garden Designer

Rhubarb loves being given an empty backyard, an overgrown garden or an unkempt piece of land and permission to be creative. Trees, bushes, flowers and other plants when put together in the right way can make a once ugly space become beautiful. When she isn't working on a project she travels around the world marvelling at creation, getting inspiration and new ideas for designing gardens. If your garden needs redesigning - or if you just want to meet her you can contact her at my etsy shop.

How to make a head for an amigurumi doll

Use 3.5mm hook and a colour of your choice.

Amigurumi crochet works in un-joined rounds.

These are the stitches used: you can click on any of them for a video demonstration.
Ch – chain
Sc – single crochet
2sctog/dec – decrease

This is the pattern:

The numbers in brackets indicate how many stitches there should be in that round.

The first step is the one I have illustrated in my blog post ‘the not magic ring’

• Ch 2, 6 sc in second chain from hook (6)
• 2 sc in each stitch (12)
• 1 sc then 2 sc in next stitch – repeat 5 times (18)
• Sc in first 2 stitches then 2 sc in next stitch – repeat 5 times (24)
• 4 more rounds of 24
• Sc in first 2 stitches, 2sctog – repeat 5 times (18)
• Sc in first stitch, 2sctog – reapeat 5 times (12)
• Stuff the head

Tweedy Cat

Tweedy cat likes to be outside and to climb trees. As you can see, he ripped his jeans climbing a tree last week and had to have them patched up. Today he had better luck - he climbed up the tree, picked a lovely red apple and put it in his bag ready to eat later on.

Tweedy cat is for sale in my etsy shop.

raspberries and custard

Happy Christmas everyone :)

I finished making raspberries and custard yesterday. She's really got the colour co-ordinated accessories down to a fine art - and check out her mittens, complete with safety strings so she doesn't lose them, just like we all had when we were kids.

raspberries and custard is for sale in my etsy shop.

bunny prepared...

This is bunny prepared. I made him over the weekend. I seem to be on a roll of making bags for amigurumis at the moment - so he has a bag, and in the bag a carrot! He makes me smile every time I look at him. He really looks like he's about to start out on a mission...

accessories for amigurumis!

You may have seen pictures of this amigurumi before - she was a gift for a friend. This same friend saw the Ali(en) cat I made and was jealous of his bag, so asked me to make a bag for her amigurumi! I haven't given it to her yet but I think she'll like it - it matches her outfit and comes complete with lunch. If you are interested in having your own amigurumi then check out my etsy shop and if you really want a bag to go with it then convo me :) he he

Flo

Here she is! I gave up on the idea of sewing a dress - I couldn't get my head round it and my friend was busy and I just wanted to get her finished. I'll sew a dress for another amigurumi. But anyway I'm really happy with her crocheted outfit she's so stylish! She is for sale in my etsy shop and you can see more photos there or on my Flickr account. If you're reading this blog then leave me a comment and let me know what you think! Cao :)

all over the place

This month I have been all over the place - different towns and even different countries. As a result my amigurumi making is also all over the place as you can see from this photo - lots of unfinished projects. And now I'm off again... to Jajce. While I'm away don't forget to check out my etsy shop.

a new creation...

This is what I started making today - he/she/it looks a little strange, not sure yet how it will turn out, but I'll keep you updated as the mystery unfolds. The hair looks a lot better in real life -it's like a big afro except it's not curly.

Ballerina?

This little mouse loves to dance but I'm not sure if she would make it as a real ballerina.... she's a little bit chubby! reminds me of when I did ballet as a kid :) don't forget to check out my etsy shop for more cute amigurumis.

Dress Making?

So - I've noticed that I start nearly all my blogs with 'so'! Anyway, she is finished - all that is needed is to make the dress, and that is where I'm stuck. I had a go at drawing some ideas and kind of thought about making some paper patterns - but I really haven't got a clue how to do it, so I'll wait to hear back from my friend and see if she'll help me later on this week.