Welcome, Spring!

An early Spring snowstorm dumped over eight inches of the white stuff on us.  My husband declared a snow day and we walked to the park that is 1/2 mile from our home.  It looked beautiful in it's blanket of white, before anyone else had trod on it.

Another embroidery project

A simple embroidery project inspired by the Forget-Me-Knot kids.  The motifs are my own, with the exception of the bunny and the stump, which came from the book Doodle Stitching.  This is a fun book, full of very simple line drawings of just about everything under the sun that you might want to embroider.

I used very simple stitches:  stem stitch, lazy daisy, French knots, and satin stitch.  It is fun to color in the larger areas with colored pencil, an idea from Shelly at Gingermelon dolls. 

Now all I need to do is finish the project...any suggestions?

From Doodle to Embroidery

I wanted to create a little logo for my Forget-Me-Knot kids, and one thing led to another, and it became a small embroidery project.  On the left is my original drawing, and the right is the same rendered in simple embroidery stitches.

The coloring of the little girl was done with colored pencils, an idea I borrowed from Shelly at Gingermelon dolls.   Shelly has used this technique to lovely effect on some of her sweet embroideries.  It is a great idea if you don't want to fill the open space with embroidery stitches :-)

Here is a collage with some closeups of the embroidery.  Nothing but stem stitches, lazy daisies, and French knots.

I have a little knit pullover sweater for the Forget-Me-Knot kids to share as well:

Knit Pullover Sweater

The sweater is knit from DK weight yarn (I used Berrocco Comfort DK) and size 1 single point knitting needles.   Her blue jeans are just the panties pattern, lengthened to pants length.









Enjoy the day, and enjoy the crochet :-)

Tiny Trousseau

From a basic underwear pattern, you can make just about any outfit you like for your little Forget-Me-Knot or Nancy Ann doll.   Krystal, in the middle, is modeling the undies which are a simple camisole and panties. 

Nancy Ann on the left is wearing a pretty lavender dress based on the camisole, with a very full skirt and puff sleeves.  Cherry, on the right, is wearing deep red rompers with gold trim, a melding of the camisole and panties pattern.

All of the outfits are crocheted with size 8 perle thread and a size 9 steel hook.  All of them button up the back.

Basic Forget Me Knot Undies

Enjoy the crochet!

Six years on, Nancy Ann and the dolls she inspired

About six years ago, I was smitten by the little doll above.  She is a Nancy Ann Storybook doll.  These dolls were produced from the mid 1930's through the 1950's, and transitioned from all bisque to hard plastic in the 1948 time frame.  The little girl above is a hard plastic Nancy Ann, with move-able head and legs, and sleep eyes.  She is 5 1/2 inches tall, and free standing.

I purchased this book at the time; it is a wonderful reference book for the bisque Nancy Ann doll, and is chock full of pictures, especially comparison shots of the undressed dolls and their dimensions.  A dream book for a dollmaker :-)







The summer of 2007 found me making many, many little crochet cousins of this dear little doll.  I wrote down some rudimentary instructions, dressed them in international costumes, then walked away from them...for six years!

So, this post is more about inspiration than instructions, although I do have instructions for you to make your own little doll, that I call Forget Me Knot Kids

I'm afraid there are no instructions for the outfits above; sometimes it is just fun to sit down with thread and hook and create, without writing down every step of the way.  However, I did record a basic bodice and underwear; every outfit I ever make springs from these simple patterns.

Here is my updated doll, free standing and with a move-able head and leg joints:

And the pattern:  Forget-Me-Knot Kids.

A great source of costume inspiration is Dover Publications.  I used a paper doll sticker book for the International costumes above; I think this book is still in publications.  Paper doll books are inexpensive, colorful, and simply fun :-)

Coming soon: basic clothing patterns.  They can be the start of a creative journey; enjoy the crochet!