Pug plushie

Hello! Oh my gosh, I've been gone from here a while! If you follow me on Instagram then you'd be pretty caught up but I've just finished my post-graduate studies and become qualified to be a librarian! I start my first ever librarian job on January 2nd 2018, but in the meantime I'm hoping to get lots of crafting and skating done ^___^

First up: this adorable little pug plushie! I found this pattern on Cut Out + Keep and thought the cute little puppies could easily be cute little pugs. The pattern is free to download, but there are no instructions included; you will have to get hold of the book "Palm Sized Softies" by Hitomi Takahashi if you need them. However, I didn't find it too difficult to complete the plushie without instructions, so maybe give it a go even if you can't get the book ^____^ I do kinda want to look at the whole book now though, since this pattern is so cute!

I used polar fleece to make my puppy, in tan and black for that pug colouration. To try and make them look more pug-like I also added black rings around the eyes and a black muzzle. For the nose I glued on a tiny piece of black pleather. Black on black is hard to see, but I think the different textures work well together.

This puppy does have a black leather collar on, but I thought they should look a bit more cheery so I also tied on a bright red bow!

I added a short piece of pipe-cleaner in the tail to try and make it curl like some pug tails do, but I don't think the tail itself was long enough as it didn't really work. It does curl upwards, just not in the corkscrew way I was aiming for.

I also think the ears turned out a bit bigger than how the ones in the original pattern picture look, which is odd because I followed the pattern exactly! Still, I think this little pug turned out pretty darn cute! 

What do you think? Pug or not? Cute or not? ~___^

I'm working on a big blanket project (ummm, when am I *not* working on a big blanket project?) but hopefully I'll be back soon with some smaller projects too! I've got something in the works for those who wear helmets (can you guess?) ^____^

- Lisa xx

Welcome to Night Vale eyeball plushie

Hello! I went to a roller derby skills night last night, and I am still sore! It was so much fun though; we learnt how to do slides and knee taps and jumps and all kinds of exciting things that you can't really do when you go to social skates and you get in the way if you keep practising stops while everyone else is trying to go in circles (oops!). I've signed up for a twelve week roller derby skills course next month (gah!) so stay tuned for more skating news ~____^ In the meantime though, let's talk crafts! ^___^

I made this plushie version of the Night Vale eye. Does it serve any purpose whatsoever? Nope. Do I adore it anyway? Yup! ^___^

If you'd like to make your own, you will firstly need to know how to crochet a sphere. Or, if you're more like me, be prepared to spending some time making it up as you go along and then getting it wrong and undoing it. I started off with black wool, to make the pupil, then changed to purple, for the iris, and then finally white for the rest of the eyeball. When you are almost finished the sphere, stuff it with plushie filling and then change colours one final time to red and decrease to close the sphere. 

 

Then, before tying off, crochet a length of chain from the middle of the back of the eyeball. This is going to be the largest nerve! Single crochet in each stitch back down the chain, and then fasten off. I added six more smaller nerves around the larger nerve, just by tying on where I wanted the nerve and then chaining to a random length and tying off. I didn't trim the ends of the chains as I rather liked how it looked with the ends still on.

 

I tied a length of the red wool around the ends of the nerves, so they were gathered together in a little bundle ^___^

 

  

And then it was time to make the most important part - the crescent moon! With it, after all, this plushie is just a purple eye! I used this pattern by Zaaynab Le'Von, which was the perfect size ^____^

I stitched it on with a little bit more white wool and then the Welcome to Night Vale eyeball was complete!

 

 It's quite a large eyeball; as you can see, I can barely get my hand around it!

I'm not going to post next week as I'll be quite busy but after that I'll have much more time on my hands! I might even try to post twice to make up for it ~____^ I'll see you in two weeks, but, in the meantime, tell me what your favourite fandom is! I love to make nerdy crafts, but it's tough to choose a favourite! I think probably Adventure Time is the most crafted fandom for me though ^____^

- Lisa xx

Crochet Nyan Cat Pillow Plushie

Hello! How are you? My friend Molly is a fantastic knitter and a lover of all things rainbow so, for her first child, I simply had to make something woolen and colourful! However, since my knitting skills could in no way measure up to hers, I decided to crochet instead ^___^ Molly suggested that I make a plushie, but I was so worried about making something for a baby that had parts that they could potentially swallow (what if they rip off an ear to eat???) that the Nyan Cat I made ended up being more pillow than plushie ~___^ Nonetheless, I think it turned out pretty cute and I hope baby Orin agrees! ^___^

I started off by crocheting all the parts for Nyan Cat separately - and there were quite a few parts! However, since Nyan Cat can be easily broken down into simple shapes it was time consuming but not difficult.

 

Nyan Cat's face was made from one circle and two small triangles. I embroidered the face details with straight stitches and some scraps of wool. I think my favourite part is the cute little blushing cheeks ^____^

The pop-tart body is just made from two rectangles; I embroidered on some hot pink sprinkles to the icing section before sewing the two rectangles together.

For the rainbow, I crocheted each colour in a separate rectangle and then sewed them together and then sewed the entire thing to the pop tart body. I crocheted the rainbow width ways so I could measure the stripes against each other to ensure they were all the same length. If (like me) you're using a mixture of yarns, this is a good way to do things because even yarns that have the same offical weight will sometimes work up differently.

 

The feet and tail were made by crocheting a chain and then single stitching around the chain. This makes a more rounded rectangle than just crocheting in rows, which is perfect for little paws ^___^

 

After I had crocheted all the body pieces, I sewed together the rainbow, body, tail, head and ears and then started crocheting around the entire shape. I chose dark blue because Nyan Cat should be flying through the sky ^___^ I was going to embroider some stars, but I thought it might make the design too busy so I ended up just leaving it plain. I crocheted around and around until I had enough sky to sew the feet to.

Since this project ended up a weird shape, I decided not to try to reproduce that shape in crochet for the back. Instead I used this glorious Minky Dot fleece; it's so soft and the little bumps are really sweet! I cut the fabric bigger than the Nyan Cat and then folded the fleece under itself before stitching the front and back together with a blanket stitch. This prevents ugly looking edges and is a good way to ensure the fleece isn't going to fray.

I haven't seen Molly yet, but I don't think she reads my blog so this gift should still be a surprise! I've only got two weeks of uni left and then I will have time to actually visit people which will be amazing! 

Until next time,

- Lisa xx

Companion Cube Plushie

Hello! How are you? I'm getting down to the business end of semester and I'm currently working on three final assignments - argh! Today though I gave myself a break from studying to go and see my optometrist (my scrip hasn't changed, so yay!), redye my hair, and finally share photos of my latest project with you! ^___^

Scott decided that his birthday present this year should be a Companion Cube and, as a fellow fan of Portal, I was happy to oblige! ^___^

  
The Cube is made from a polar fleece and felt cover over a foam square, and is about seven inches tall/wide.

The start of the Companion Cube was this pattern by Eyespiral-stock; I just printed it out at full size and and used it for my paper pattern ^___^

 

I was feeling lazy, and I didn't want to cut out lots of little shapes from the light grey polar fleece so instead I cut out two squares of the light and the dark grey fleece and pinned them together, right sides up. I cut the paper pattern so that it was missing the parts that would be where I wanted the dark grey to show through, pinned it over the two fabric squares, and starting sewing around it. Then I cut through the light grey fabric, exposing the dark grey fabric. I think this was a good way to do it, because I didn't have to keep track of tons of little cut outs! ^___^

I did buy some pink polar fleece for the heart and the thin lines, but it was so flimsy it started coming apart without me evening cutting into it! It was "nursery" fabric, so I guess it's just really, really soft? I don't think making fabric soft enough for a baby to gum through is a really great idea, but I guess that's why I'm not a fabric manufacturer ~___^

 

 

 So instead I used some acyclic felt, which was much more structurally sound ^___^

 

Probably the trickiest part of this project was trying to get the lines matched up, and, as you can see, I didn't always succeed in this aspect! I'm not sure how I could have improved here though, and I'm fairly happy with how it looks nonetheless.

This Cube is also not completely square, because my foam cube ended up being too big for the cover I had made! That's what happens when you're not very good at maths ~___^ Instead of remaking the cover, or using a different filling, I took a knife to the foam and slimmed it down. It's still square-ish, and it's lopsidedness is less apparent in real life ~___^

I'm still working on my knit tea cosy for the Giant Pineapple Cosy KAL, and I'm hoping to finish in time for the deadline on June 2nd! If you're a fast knitter or crocheter (or just don't have university taking up way too much of your crafting time ~___^) you've still got time to join us! And then, after that ... maybe a potato GLaDOS to go with the Cube? ~___^ I've still got a list of 57 (!!!) projects that I want to complete this year but, like every year, I really don't think I'll finish them all! Especially since I keep adding things to the list ~___^

- Lisa xx

Spawn more Overlord (plushie)!

Hello! Gosh, only a day between posts? What's happening?! I figured that since now I don't have uni *or* Christmas to spend time on, I'll upload additional posts whenever I have them ready! So, the posting schedule is going to be kinda weird for the next month or two, but I'll still post a least once a week so you really just have to worry about getting sick of me! (Which could totally never happen .... right?) ~___^

Anyway, here is Scott's Christmas present - an Overlord plushie! Yay!

 

He's got kinda funny face, huh? ^___^

 

 

I used a sewing pattern from Arixystix which required more skill than I have! I'm not that experienced making plushies, and so I had some troubles with the pattern which is an advanced one.

But I finished him, and Scott's happy, and that's really all that matters, right? ^___^

Anyway, Scott has named him Gasbag; apparently Overlords are basically full of hot air? *shrug*

 

 

 Here's Gasbag with Squishy, for size comparison. They're totally buddies now! ^___^

Our wedding anniversary is coming up soon, so I'll have to hunt around for another Zerg plushie to make for Scott! It's good to have a go-to theme for gifts, don't you think?

So, what do you think? Do you have a thing that people always make or buy for you? For me, it's craft supplies; surprising, huh? ~___^

- Lisa xx 

Sweet tooth plushie with free pattern

Hello ... do you have a sweet tooth? No? Would you like one? ^__^

This project has been on my list for quite a while, but last night I finally decided that I couldn't wait any longer and quickly whipped up this little fella with 100% stash items. Huzzah! ^__^

This wide eyed smile is calculated for maximum cuteness level, so I know you'll all want one of your own ~__^

 So I made a pattern for you! Yay! ^__^ Click on the image above to download the .pdf from my Google Drive (and, as always, let me know if you have any problems! ^__^)

To make your own sweet tooth plushie, you'll need;

- white fabric (I used some new jersey that for some unknown reason I had in my craft stash, you could also use cotton, fleece, felt, an old t-shirt ... anything really!). The pattern is sized to print on an A4 page, if you make it that size, you'll need about half a meter of fabric. 

- black and red fabric scraps. You only need a very small amount of fabric to make the face. I used felt because it doesn't fray ^__^ 

- toy stuffing

- white, black, and red threads

- sewing machine. This is probably optional, but I find sewing plushies much easier with a machine, because the seams are much less likely to come undone.

Then all you have to do is cut out two tooth shapes from your white fabric, sew them together (leaving a gap in the seam), turn it inside out, stuff, and then add the face! You could also add the face on first, if you're not forgetful like me ~__^

Yay! I hope you like this little sweetie ^__^ And if you make one for yourself, I'd love to see!

- Lisa xx

OH MY GLOB: Lumpy Space Princess plushie with free pattern

I have wanted to make a Lumpy Space Princess plushie for ages - and now I finally have! Yay!!

I made her from some purple fleece that I had leftover from Scott's baneling plushie, and also some yellow and black felt.

 

She was very easy to make, and she has floppy little arms that you can pose! 

 

 

 And I made a pattern so you can make a LSP too! It's a really, really basic pattern, but it did turn out really well so I hope you like it anyway ^_^ The .pdf is hosted on Google docs and so if you click the image above, it should take you there! (Let me know in the comments if it doesn't work!)

I don't really like turning plushie pieces inside out because I find that I never get the crisp lines I'm after, so I made LSP in what I *think* is called gingerbread style? It is quite possible that I'm just making that up, but I seem to remember my mum making some dolls this way when I was a child. Basically it just means that you sew your plushie together with the wrong sides in, and then trim the seam allowance afterwards. If anyone knows the actual term for this, I'd love to hear it!

Anyway, here's how to make your own Lumpy Space Princess plushie:

1. Print out the pattern on to A4 paper - it should take up the entire page.

2. Cut out your fabric shapes, and remember to add a pretty wide seam allowance to the purple fleece. With her arms, I folded the fabric over and placed one of the arm edges along the fold.

3. Sew on LSP's facial features.

4. Pin the arms together, wrong sides in. Sew around the edges that aren't on the fold.

4. Trim off the excess seam allowance, and then sew them on to LSP's front. Remember not to stuff them! This makes them floppy enough so that she can cross them ^_^

5. Pin LSP's front and back together wrong sides in and sew her up - remembering to leave a small gap so that you can stuff her!

6. Stuff, stuff, stuff.

7. Sew up the gap, and trim the seam allowance all around the edge.

8. She's done! Now give her a hug, take a selfie, and prepare to become best buds ~_^

We're friends now. We're having soft tacos later.

Do you like her? I hope you do! 

- Lisa x

Baneling plushie

Today is Scott's birthday and, unlike other years, this time he actually told me what he wanted! o_0 He was looking through some StarCraft forums when he saw a picture of a plushie baneling - since Zerg is his favourite team to play *and* a pattern was available, it was really a no-brainer!

The pattern is very good - I can recommend buying it, especially if you're like me and don't really have a head for making soft toys. My brain just kinda shorts out when it's trying to figure how to make things 3D. There was a slight issue with a claw pattern, as the purple shape didn't really fit onto the brown shape, but since it was bigger, it was easy enough to cut down to the correct size.

 

It was also pretty quick to make - I started Friday night after dinner, and finished it off this morning. The basic shapes were sewn using my machine, and then I handstitched the shapes together and the purple detail that covers up the neck joins and the facial details.

Awww, look at that face! Who could resist making this little fella?

 

I'm now hoping that the same designer will make patterns available for some of the other Zerg units - since Scott owns pretty much everything that could possibly be related to Star Wars now, it might be good to start on a new geekdom!

And, just for fun, here's the baneling wearing a fancy hat. Spiffing!

We haven't decided on a name yet; Scott wants something simple like Bob or Squishy where I fancy the more, let's say, eleborate names like Balthazar McBlastybutt. The pattern's name is Mr. Doomsfield. What do you think, any name suggestions for the newest member of our family?

- Lisa x