My bestest friend had a second child about two years ago (I think that's accurate--I'm bad with little kid ages) and I never made her a "welcome to the world" gift. See, it's easy with the first kid because it's a big ole deal. First baby and baby shower and the whole works. For the second kid, well, I'm lazy so I just plain out forgot.
But I have remedied that situation. This weekend I finished a happy mail gift for not only the younger child but the older child, too. I don't have kids but I do remember being one and it always chapped when a sibling got a random gift and you didn't so I made a small item for each of them (as a kind of Halloween treat) so the older child doesn't get miffed that little sister gets a random gift out of the blue.
Blah blah, PICTURES or it didn't happen!
First, credit where credit is due. I made the monkey doll from a free pattern I got HERE. I've had the pattern FOREVER but just didn't have a reason to make it. I thought about making it for the Fluff Project but it seemed too fussy for that. Really, it's not. I've made fussier things for the Fluff Project. I also worried it would take too much fabric but it's not a fabric hog, either. Especially if you don't use directional prints. Using corduroy for the body does mean you have to keep the wale going the right way but that's not a big deal, either. And as for fussy details, the face isn't any fussier than the damn guinea pigs I made for the Fluff Project. The only down side I can find to making these for the Fluff Project is they're kind of large. So mailing them would be bothersome. But making a few to add to a big box of stuff wouldn't be a big deal.
How damn cute is this monkey? Yes, that damn cute!
I had to make a monkey. See, I made a sock monkey for the older child but I just didn't feel like making a sock monkey. I love them and all but making them can be dull. I needed to try this pattern out since I've had it forever.
Cheeky monkey is cheeky! It's a bit of hand stitching but not that bad at all. I thought the ears would be super fussy but they were really simple and turned out better than I thought they would.
The body is cotton. Sock monkey print for the win. It really worked so well.
If you checked out the pattern link you'll see that my laziness did rear its ugly head. I didn't make the skirt, hat, and shoes. I really didn't want this monkey to be a lot fancier than the sock monkey I made for the older child. If memory serves, that monkey might have had a diaper and that's it. If it was dressed, it was probably wearing actual baby clothes which I assume would have been used on the baby (but what do I know).
This monkey does have the socks. The other pics don't show the color well. It's light blue with white bubble looking dots. I had it in my scraps. So this pattern can be a scrap buster, too.
Ok, I have to review the pattern a bit now. Overall it's an easy pattern BUT. . .there is one issue I have with it.
The tail. Specifically, how you attach the tail to the body. They have you stuff the tail then attach it which is a dumb way to do it. Especially considering the arms and legs are attached un-stuffed. The pattern has you attach all limbs before you sew the front and back together, so you get a nice smooth attachment, which is good. But getting the tail onto the back was a pain in the ass (hah! pun intended). It would have been a ton easier to attach an unstuffed tail to the back seam and then stuff it after you turn the body right side out. No different than how the limbs are done. I'm making a note of that for future uses.
The pattern also wants you to put the face and ear details on after you assemble the doll (but has a note you can do it before) which I think is backwards, too. Attaching before you assemble makes it easier in general. You just have to be a little careful to get the pieces properly centered so you don't end up with a crooked face. I just find it easier to embroider on a flat surface then trying to embroidery on a rounded (stuffed) surface. I always get nicer result embroidery on a flat surface.
So, that's the monkey.
Next. . .
EEEEEE!!!!
So g-darn cute I wanted to keep them for myself. No joke.
Mice finger puppets!
Yes, one is a little bit bigger but not as bad as this picture makes it look. They are a little big for a child's finger but a child should be able to put two fingers in them to make up for the extra room. I just couldn't make them any smaller since the faux fur I was using was super plush.
These finger puppets brought back crazy happy memories for me, too. I had a white mouse finger puppet as a kid. I got it from a school craft fair and I loved that thing nearly to death. It had a faux fur tail (unlike mine with bright pink ribbon tails) but I was afraid the fur would just fall apart if I cut a small strip of it and that would just be sad. The ears are felt and the eyes are tiny pom poms all lovingly STITCHED to the puppets. NO GLUE HERE! (though you could probably glue the eyes on without issue--the ears not as much since you need to get that curl and you need to stitch them to get that).
I debated putting noses and whiskers on them but I decided not to. Adding noses would be easy if the kiddos wanted it. Just a few stitches of embroidery floss and bob's your uncle. Whiskers would be easy, too. Just knot off some embroidery floss (leaving a decent tail after the knot) and, viola, whiskers. Or if you wanted to get super fancy, use filament thread to get a more stiff, whiskery look. But filament thread is a pain in the butt to work with, even if it does make for nice hidden stitches (I love it and I hate it all a the same time).
I hope the kidlets like the swag. I had a blast making it all. Especially the finger puppets. (no pattern for them, it was just a rectangle of fabric and then I stitched a curve over one open end and then straight down the bottom and left the other end open--super simple but my machine was hating on me for wedging all that fake fur into it--I seriously thought it might not fit under the presser foot!).
So gosh diddly darn cute and much love to Auntie. :)
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