Fluff Project UPDATE!!

That there is my happy face at finally getting this latest round of Fluff sewing DONE.

It's also my happy face at having changed the way I'm doing my charity sewing (just a wee change).  Instead of trying to make a set number of items per month, I'm just going to aim to for one huge total for the year.

My previous goal was 10 items per month, which brings the yearly total to 120.  I'm going to up that to 150 items total for the year and do away with the "monthly" thing.  That way I don't feel the odd pressure I feel (yeah, that sounds dumb, I know) when I fall behind and am still working on X month when it's now Z month.

It also frees me up to share the charity items with whatever charity comes along.  Fluff Project will always be my number one outlet for the stuffed toys I make (and I'm dedicated to 60 items per year minimum for them no matter what) but I like sharing the love.  That and Dolls of Hope contacted me over Instagram letting me know they're all about the handmade dolls/bears for their charity work and I like the message they're putting out there and they have two particular patterns they make which made deciding what to make a no-brainer (remember, I am lazy).

Blah, blah, me rambling about how I've been a slow poke with my sewing. . .get on with the pictures, right!

Ok. . .you're right.  Pics or it didn't happen.

BOOM, in your face with 32 two items.

UGH!  That's me thrusting my pelvis in the direction of those babies and bears and being ever so modest and composed and. . .yeah, you know I like to show off my stuff and that's a big fat buttload of stuff I finally finished.  (and why the whole "X per month" thing was making me uptight when it took a lot longer to churn these out then I wanted).

BABIES!!!!  A veritable United Colors of Benetton of babies right there.

Four different shades, none of which is "super light" because those pale ass babies show too much stains/dirt marks.  Yes, I just typed that out but it's true.  These babies are going to kids in refugee camps (among other places) and darker fabrics will fair better.  Oh, and it's also NICE to make ALL skin tones so kids can find a baby that matches them (if they want) or maybe they just WANT a baby that doesn't look like them because they think that baby is pretty/cute.  I feel you on that one, I'm a particular fan of the darker skin baby with the orange hair there on the left of the pic.  That's a groovy combo if I do say so myself.

Honestly, I really like the darker face shades because they're more forgiving when it comes to the marking pens I use to draw in the faces (for the embroidery).  The lighter fabrics tend to cling to the ink (even though it's disappearing or air/water soluble) and you can get ghost images if you veer off course when embroidering.  And my ass veers off course all the damn time.

What goes perfectly with infants?

Why predators, of course.

Buncha bears.  Grrr!

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE picking out fabrics for projects.  It's my favorite step and these bears were extra fun because they don't have to be "realistic" (like the baby faces need to be).  Purple bear?  SURE!  Chartreuse?  HELL YES.  I love chartreuse so much I know how to properly spell it without having to double check.  That is LOVE right there, folks.

The one thing I noticed about the bears (which amuses me to no end) is they get busty as you stuff them.  I had to mash them around a lot so they all didn't end up looking like Dolly Parton.  Though a Dolly bear would be fabulous (but I don't know I'd want to work with glittery fabric or deal with the wigs. . .holy crap, the wigs!)

OH, and shout out to the Care Bear fabric.  Some very kind person on swapbot (sorry, I forget who they are now. . .it was a long time ago) gave me that fabric as an extra in a swap we were in.  Out of nowhere they just wanted me to have YARDAGE of this super adorable Care Bear fabric because they knew I sewed stuffed toys for charity.  SEE. .. .that is kindness in action right there.  It had to be a yard and a half to two yards (it was a big ole piece) and I got a ton of items out of it and I think there's still a good piece left.  It was just so perfect for the babies in particular and I'm grateful to that nice person for their kindness.

Be kind to others and make the world a better place, folks.  It's not that hard to do and you'll get a rush out of it.  Really, you will.