Got Sew Much Done!

Excellent productive weekend.

First, I'll mention the one thing I didn't take a pic of but I did show off before.  Remember the Fail Bag (the reversible drawstring one) that I showed off a few posts back?  Well, I made a replacement for that bag and it turned out fabulous.  I just increased the width on the cording tube and it worked like a charm.  More fabric to work with (when sewing) and threading the cord was so smooth and it actually draws all the way closed and open.  I'm happy it worked out because I didn't have enough of the cat print fabric to have a third go at it.

NOW. . .on to the pics.

First up:

I got the tattoo boy DONE!  And I think his name is Sherman.  Yeah, he's a Sherman.

He's the companion for the girl (Heidi) I've had done for quite some time.  Both are from Spoonflower.

He has a tattoo on his chest, one on each arm, one on one leg, and. . .

This giant ship on his back.  It turned out very well and it looks great on him.

Heidi and Sherman.  They're just so happy to finally be together.

(oh and Sherman's legs aren't backwards!  my wife said I should tear out Heidi's and fix them but I told him Heidi is the Queen of the Misfit Toys and is proud of her "flaw").

Next up, a commission trio.

They aren't mine to name, but I did start referring to them as Huey, Doey, and Louie.

These are three of the five commission monkeys.  I'm not a big fan of gender assigned colors for babies, so I tried to go more neutral with the bibs.  Though the warmer colored one does read more "girl" if you'e doing the pink = girl, blue = boy b.s.  So if the buyer really wants to do the stereotypical color stuff, they kind of can.

I got to use up some of my fat quarter stash, too.  Lately I'm a bit concerned that I have so much fabric and haven't used enough, so this put my mind at ease.

The bibs were just a quick pattern I drew up on some paper.  At first I thought I was going to do felt on the back and fabric on the front but once I got working with it, a full fabric bib was nicer (and big shout out to the iron, giving me crisp edges!).  All bibs have snap fasteners (and I need to get some larger snaps--I only had small doll clothes sized ones and these bibs are large enough I could have saved my sanity and used larger snaps and it would have looked just fine).

And let me just pause to note how SIMPLE this style of bib (with full straps that go up behind the head) is to make versus the old style (with string style ties).  I was able to go from paper template to finished bib in just a few minutes with no top stitching or drama.  To make an "old school" type bib I'm sure I would have been going nuts.  This style bib also looks more practical (if I was making usable bibs, not just doll clothes).  These snap nice and snug to the neck, so protect from spills better and would stay on better than an "old school" bib (which a baby could probably get off pretty easy).  Though "old scool" bibs are cute, these bibs are simple and look great.

Since these are gifts for babies, they had to be be baby safe.  So no button eyes.  Personally, I prefer button eyes on my monkeys so the "baby safe" ones are kind of boring.  I love pawing through my buttons and finding just the right ones for a monkey.  Felt eyes don't have that same appeal.  Though I was able to give a bit of individuality to the trio, making two have circular pupils and one square.  I think I need to play around more with felt eyes so I can love them as much as I do buttons.

Jeepers creepers, look at those peepers!

And those EARS! 

These are some of the biggest and most professional looking ears I've ever made.  I'm not sure if I love the size but they are cute.  I am sure I love the top stitching.  It's a great look.

If you sit in that chair too long, guys and gals, I'm going to put you to work.

(and for the record, there is some crappy lighting at my office--holy crap, I work in that light!  it's amazing I'm not blind by now)

Speaking of work, I have a buttload to do.  My free time is UP.  Back to the grind.