As the World Gets a Little Bit Colder...

I know that here in Alaska the winter solstice has come to pass and we are finally gaining light again (thank goodness) but unfortunately we have the coldest months to come. So in the interest of everyone keeping their girls warm, I decided to share this...

Fingerless Glove and Scarf Set

Knit on size 1 needles in lace weight yarn (I used angora here)

Gauge - 38 stitches over 4 inches

Scarf

Cast on 8 stitches. Knit the first 2 rows.

3rd row, (wrong side) knit the first two and last two stitches of the row, but purl all the middle stitches

4rd row, (right side) knit all stitches

Repeat the 3rd and 4th rows until you reach a length that nicely drapes the chest of the doll (you can of course make the scarf much longer if you like). End with a right side row.

Final row (wrong side) knit all stitches

Bind off in knit.

Fingerless Gloves

Cast on 10 stitches. Knit the first 2 rows.

3rd row, purl

4th row, knit

5th row, purl

6th row, knit 4, bind off 2 stitches, knit to the end.

7th row, purl 4, cast on 2 stitches, purl to the end.

8th row, knit

9th row, purl

10th row, knit

11th row, (wrong side) knit

Bind off in knit

Fold the long way and seam together

Then slip on your doll's hand with the thumb through the thumb hole.

If you want to sell finished products made from my patterns you may, but please give me credit as the designer in all listings. The pattern itself is copyrighted and no part of it may be reproduced (by any means) for sale. © Monica Bovee

Have fun and stay warm : )

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Festivus!

I asked my girls what holiday they'd like to celebrate this year and they chose Festivus... I don't know. That one involves an unadorned aluminum pole instead of  Christmas tree right? Hmmmm... I suppose a large knitting needle might do for that. But then what are they supposed to do with it. Dance around it? Pose for pictures by it? Hmmm... I'm unsure about this one. Anyway, this was the holiday they chose when I entered the winter holiday swap. And this is what my wonderful swap partner Cara sent me...

 

Two gorgeous little outfits. And get this, the little hat has Festivus embroidered on it! Adorable!

And this is Lady Leopy wearing a fabulous holiday hair bow. Cara also sent us a sweet little puppy ornament (you see the girls are a quite open minded.... they picked out their holiday, but they're not above taking part in mine too).

 There were lots of fun candies too, but the best bit was this...

"Booyah! I know what we're doing tonight!"

A bowling game! It has to be the just the most perfect little Festivus gift ever. Well kudos to Cara for this most clever of gifts.

And Wren is able to hold the ball without dropping it, It's a Festivus Miracle! (actually that took a bit of doing, let me tell you)

Well, it seems to have turned out to be a sweet holiday for them. I'm still not sure why they chose it. I'm a little worried that it might be that 'Festivus doesn't end until you pin the head of household' thing. LOL! Isn't that just the sort of thing that all those people who are frightened of Blythe dolls fear? He he he...

And now for what I sent to Cara...

Her holiday was Christmas, so I started with the obvious.

The ornaments I wire wrapped myself, the string of lights actually light up, and the tinsel garland is silver fun fur.... I think it works quite well. And then for the tree topper I made this...

Sorry the pic is a bit fuzzy, my camera doesn't do tiny things well. It's Angelica Eve of course. I printed her out on Shrinky Dink material, cut her out, shrunk her down, and then affixed her to a thimble and sealed her. I think she makes the perfect little angel for the tree top.

And I sent along these...

I painted and customized these a bit (they used to be white and bright pink!) You see Cara had just done up a lovely house for her girls and I thought she could use some furnishings. Hope she likes them.

And lastly there's these...

A gingerbread dress, some Twilight book miniatures (she's fond of Twilight), a tray of cookies, a nutcracker (it's not Christmas with out one of those right?), some cupcakes, and of course you'll recognize the fruitcake I posed how to make earlier. And lastly, the gingerbread house. Just perfect for a large size gingerhouse for a Blythe table, but it can also be hung like an ornament. And... it's real gingerbread! completely edible! Royal icing and everything. So when you get bored of looking at it, you can devour it. : )

Here We Come A-Caroling...

...or a-wassailing if you prefer. I thought it would be fun to share a little coat pattern for the holidays. I think I've featured this coat here before, most recently on my Mother-in-law's doll Noni. But here it is again.

This little number would be perfect for the season if you've got a girl who wants to go caroling... well, maybe not in the hounds tooth I've made it out of here, but perhaps in a nice fawn or wine color.

Can't you just see your girl singing from door to door, begging for wassail... wait, does anybody drink that anymore? Hmmm... I expect that's why they changed the name of the song. But anyway here's the pattern.

Bear with me now, I'm a knitter not a seamstress but I'll explain the way I did it the best I can. Keep in mind this pattern is not lined so if you want a lined coat you'll have to cut out extra pieces as needed, also I make very small seams (1/8 to 1/4 inch) so keep that in mind and cut the pieces larger if you need to. If the picture above is not of a decent size you can also find the pdf HERE (just remember where it says 'left back' on the body it's supposed to say left front - I corrected it in the picture I've posted above) Here we go...

Capelet Coat for Blythe

Cut out body and sleeves.

Position sleeves correctly (the F and B indicate front and back and should be positioned so they match with the front and back of the body).

Sew sleeves onto body, right sides of fabric together.

Sew sleeve cuffs

Sew sleeve tops (indicated by stars). Please keep in mind that the tops of the sleeves will make up part of the neckline.

Cut 2 of front capelet

Cut 1 of back capelet

Sew front capelet to back capelet along the top, with right sides of fabric together (indicated by open circles).

Sew all sides (except at the neck) on both the capelet and the coat (indicated by solid dots).

Cut out collar

Fold collar in half the long way, right sides together, and sew the short sides together. Snip corners and turn right side out.

Sew capelet to coat, wrong side of capelet to right side of coat, leaving about 1/2 inch of the coat out past the collar on both sides.

Now sew the collar to the capelet and coat matching the sides of the collar to the sides of the capelet (not the coat)

Fold down the raw edge of the collar and sew the remaining raw edge of the coat neck under (lift the capelet up and sew under all of it to do this). You're basically just going along the same seam again with the raw collar edge folded down.

And that's pretty much it. I hope you all enjoy it. I know I usually say go ahead and do whatever you want with the pattern but because this one is based (albeit very very loosely, and with a LOT of modification) on a coat that my mother made me as a child, this one's going to have to be for personal use only. Have fun!

Oh, if you like the hat and want to make that too, it's not one of mine, it's on Ravelry HERE. This is a brilliant little pattern. IIRC I knit it using two strands of Patons worsted wool yarn in black, on size 8 needles so I could match the needed gauge.

Oh and one more thing... a recipe for Wassail. Given to me by a friend long ago.

 Wassail

1/2 gallon apple cider

1 can pinapple juice from concentrate

1 can orange juice from concentrate

2 cinnamon sticks

1 tbs whole cloves

1 sliced orange

 add rum to taste

Put in a large pot and allow to simmer, serve warm.

Happy Holidays!

Mod Girl

Just having a little fun with some left over fabric... you see I was gifted a pair of tights which I absolutely adored but didn't have anything for the girls they would go with. I dug out the old A line pattern and some fabric and viola!

 

 

I think the dress and tights (and the little white boots) go together nicely.

Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful....

It warmed up to a balmy 4 below today so I took the girls outside in their new hoodies for a few quick pics...

Wren in her toasty wool

Sophie in her pretty orange (love the little flower buttons here)...

 

And Moonyeen in her sequined blue. So pleased they turned out so well   : )

Hoodies Galore

Been absolutely loving the Blythe hoodie pattern by NxtDrGrrl. I've just knit two more to go along with the orange one I started with...

I used the sock knitters trick of knitting two at the same time to avoid pattern fatigue. One is in a nice self striping wool, and the other is a beautiful sequined blue. I'd run out of the cute little millefiori beads I'd used for buttons on the last one so I used large seed beads on the new hoodies... with I think very good results.

The pearl blue colored ones go particularly well with the icy blue yarn. I will most certainly be making more of these in the future. : )

Happy 50th Doctor!

Sophie... a gift bought for me by my husband at the 1st and only Doctor Who convention I'd ever been to. Now fully restored and with a new pull charm and a 4th Doctor scarf knitted on the day of the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who!

As it's been 50 years I just had to do something to mark the occasion. The scarf was knit all in one day. A quickish knit, but oh so many ends to weave in...

A Little Christmas Treat

You know what your Blythe needs for Christmas? You guessed it! Fruitcake!

 Here's how I made some Blythe sized fruitcake myself (yes I know I'm a bit strange).

First I took some of those polystyrene crystals one gets in the Makit Bakit kits and spread them out on an oven safe surface (Any pan that can go in the oven with a bit of aluminum foil over it will do nicely, I use a ceramic workplate, but that's just me). You'll want to spread these out a bit so they are not touching, otherwise they will do what they are meant to do and glom together, you don't want that, so spread them out like so...

I used mostly red and green to simulate candied cherries, but I also threw in some yellow, black, and brown for pineapple, currents, raisins, ect... Then you pop them in the oven at the recommended temperature about (375 F) and bake them until they soften and turn into little hemispheres, like this...

Then you take them out of the oven and let them cool completely. Remove them from the pan and set them aside. Reduce the oven temperature to that recommended for polymer clay (275 F) and while it gets to the proper temperature you can begin sculpting a cake out of brown polymer clay. Like so...

In this particular picture I'm shaping a bunt cake and removing the center with a plastic straw, but you can just as easily shape it into a loaf or brick fruitcake if you like.

Once you've got the cake shape the way you like it you then take your newly rounded crystals and decorate the top of the cake with them rounded side up...

... and with the flat side sticking outward on the cut side of the cake, (as you see in the pic I cut away some of the cake so the the "fruit" on the inside could be seen). On those vertical edges you place the crystals with the flat side sticking outward so it has that "cut" look. In the case of a loaf cake you'd simply do this on the end of the loaf. Make sure that when you put your crystals in that you sink them far enough that they look aesthetically pleasing but are unlikely to fall out later.

Then bake your cake! The polystyrene crystals will not melt anymore, it's not hot enough for them, but the polymer clay will harden up around them. Remove your cake from the oven and let cool, seal with a matte varnish (this helps seal in the crystals), and viola...

After all WHO doesn't love fruitcake?

A Little Witch

Some fun with some left over fabric...

 

I Gotta say, I like the clasp...

The Fairies of Summer... er... Fall

Sorry it's taken so long too post, reality has a way of pulling you away from the fun things in life. I haven't been in the swaps since July. But I did in fact receive my Fairy swap. And here it is :)

Cheri of course loves purple. This has a bit of Gnome going on here. I almost think her sitting on a little mushroom would make this picture perfect.

And I love this little key, you just know she's got a secret garden somewhere : )

Now these are beyond adorable. And the tiny little knitted dress! Such detail!

And a patriotic fairy, I never would have dreamed up this combination. But I think it works quite well.

Magenta?

Well the Rit box said Petal Pink. But this petite's hair was sort of yellow to start with, and this is the result...

 

I dunno, I kind of like it. Gonna have to do something about those dark marks on her arms... like not putting the dress she came in back on her, ever.

Fairies in the Garden...

Well I've been wanting to do something fairy themed with my petites for some time, so when the latest swap I'm taking part in was Mystical Garden Creature themed I decided I had to jump on that. Here's one of my ideas for the swap...

These were such fun to make. The dresses are simply 15 stitches on size 1 needles. You start with a couple rows of garter stitch (2 to 4, your choice) then continue in stockinette until you reach a length you like that comes just up to the bust, bind off on both sides leaving 5 live stitches in the center. Continue in garter stitch for 2 to 3 more rows then bind off. Seam up the back and attach straps to tie around the neck. That's it! :)

Now the wings are a different matter. Once you've finished the dresses you can attach wings of your choice. I used E6000 to attach these wings and it works really well. For those who don't know, E6000 is an industrial strength adhesive and it can glue just about anything to anything. It's excellent stuff and I use it in many of my crafting projects. The wings I used are those silk flower butterflies that have recently been showing up in silk flower bushes and garlands. I'd been seeing a lot of them at Micheals lately and since I needed some flowers for another project I saved the butterfly wings for just this purpose. The swap finally gave me the excuse I was looking for to put them to use. If anyone wants to use wings like this, it might be a good idea to fray check the outer edge of the wings (I did) because just like silk flowers they will fray a bit with repeated handling.

This was such fun... now what other Mythical Garden critters could I make... gnomes? sprites? pixies? hmmmm... I'll have to think on it. :)

Point and Click

Just picked up this lovely little toy for Wren...

It's an adorable little camera key chain (I removed the split ring and chain of course... I plan to put a little black wrist strap on there so Wren can tote it about).  

It's the cutest little thing and we are selling them now at Micheals. Naturally I had to get Wren one, she's been jonesing for a camera for quite some time. 

And it even has a flash and sound....

 

A Hard Look at... Eraser Food

I've heard a lot of talk about eraser foods and weather or not they're an appropriate accessory for Blythe. Obviously some people like them, some don't care one way or the other, and some downright hate the little buggers.

Personally I fall into the middle category, they seem cute enough, and I can easily see them working in a photo shoot. As far as lasting ability... well I've never kept any around for that long, I usually snap a few photos and then hand them over to my niece to play with. But lets face it, they are erasures. Anyone who's had to dive into the supply drawer (and you know which drawer I'm talking about.. the one filled with all the little bits and bobs we never seem able to throw out because, God help us, those things might be useful) quickly discovers what becomes of erasures after they sit around for several years. They dry into some nasty crumbly version of their former selves which have lost the ability to even do what they were intended for... erase.

But what of erasure food? Is it a good miniature for Blythe? If by miniature you mean a dainty little keepsake that you hand down to your grandchildren then heck no... not even close. But if you mean something small, cute, and dare I say fanciful (and yes you have to admit it some of them are), as well as inexpensive and easy to find, then these little guys work just fine. They can make adorable little props in photos, and (as far as photo shoots go) what they lack in lasting power they make up for in ease. Besides how many pics can you take of those miniature drinks you bought on Etsy before you get bored and put them back on the shelf to gather dust. : )

A Passion for Purple

My favorite color swap came in. And as you might have guessed. The color was PURPLE!

My swap partner, Anne of AnneArchy, sent me the most wonderful stuff. There were some wonderful crafting materials which I can't wait to break into. As well as two hats, a sweater top and skirt set, and a lovely green and purple sweater. They are all so perfect. She definitely has skills!

This is Betts in the little sweater set... so sophisticated!

And Cheri in the purple and green number

Moonyeen and Wren quickly snatched up the hats for themselves...

...and even little Ivy (yep that's her name now) "borrowed" the gnome's hat and claimed the My Little Pony :)

All in all this was an awesome swap to participate in, I had fun creating and picking out the items to send and I received the most wonderful things! Who would have thought that just color alone would make such a fulfilling theme : )