Monthly Archives: September 2016

A Question

If you read my post from yesterday, you know that I want to start sharing the talents God has blessed me with. And, I mentioned how a few ideas have started trickling in.

The first idea I have is to publish a couple of knitting patterns. I used to publish cross stitch patterns, so pattern publishing is not new for me, but writing knitting patterns is something new, so it’s exciting and a bit scary at the same time.

These will be simple patterns, but lengthy and wordy with lots of photos to show you all the steps involved. My hope is that anyone who knows the basic stitches will be able to complete my patterns.

Before I begin this process, I’d like to know if it is something you’d like. If there is enough interest I will go forward, and if not, I will look for another way to share. If you would be interested in possibly purchasing one of my knitting patterns, would you please comment as to which doll, what type of garment or accessory, and if you have yarn weight or type preference? Feel free to comment below, send me a Facebook message, email me, or fill out the contact form on my website, cindyricedesigns.com . Thank you so much!

knitting-patterns-931

And, thank you for your comments from yesterday’s post.

Bye for now!

Going Forward and a WIP for Sugar

5 Replies

I woke up this morning, Sunday, and started to reflect on things. My little world has gone through many changes this year, and I feel I need to change (and grow) along with it, in some way at least.

I believe in giving back, and there are many ways to do that. Mind you, I have put in my fair share of volunteer work, and donating money to various organizations, but I want to do something different; to give back utilizing the talents God has given me. As with everyone, he has given me my talents for a reason, and I love what I do, so much.

So here I sit wondering how to give back while, at the same time, utilizing my talents. A few ideas have started trickling in . . . small steps, hopefully in the right direction. I am working on some ideas, and I hope some of them will pan out. I’ll keep you informed along the way. Don’t worry, I will still be doing what I love to do, creating for our dolls.

Meanwhile, I continue to downsize. I will continue have things on my tag sale page and on eBay (a couple auctions starting tonight) before they head on over to Goodwill. I don’t know how long I will keep eBaying and tag saling; I may get tired of the whole process and simply donate it all. It takes a considerable amount of time (time taken away from creating), to photograph, edit photos, add them to my website or eBay, write descriptions, then pack and ship. Although, I’m not sure Goodwill is the right place to donate boxes and boxes of new dolls though. Does anyone know of other donation sites? I’d appreciate some suggestions.

Back to dolls! I worked on an elbow-length sleeved sweater dress for Sugar (Pukipuki) yesterday. The style is super cute and fall-like, but I am not sure I like the way her arms can’t hang straight down due to the bulk under the arm. What do you think? Really, I’d love to hear; I can’t decide.

sugar-sweaterdress-w-sleeves-275

In the photo below, you can see how her right arm can get closer to her body (I have her left arm further out on purpose).

garden of blues 187

Don’t forget, please let me know of any donation sites you’d recommend, thank you!

And, thanks so much for stopping by for a visit! ❤

A Tiny Twofer

4 Replies

My newest ensembles may be tiny, but I have two for you! Tiny plus tiny equals one regular, right? Hmm, probably not . . . Amelia Thimble’s sets are so teeny tiny; I probably need another one or two of her sets to equal a regular sized ensemble.

I haven’t made anything new for Amelia Thimble and Izzy since Christmastime (wow!), so it took me awhile to get into the groove of this tiny work again. I kept making mistakes while trying to understand my crazy pattern writing, but I figured it out, and am now loving this work again.

Here’s the first one I made. It’s called “A Tiny Bit for Fall”. I took inspiration from the sweater dress ensemble, “Winter Garden”, I made for the Little Darlings earlier this year. I picked out some of the same floss colors and worked my embroidery symmetrically, which I don’t usually do for these tiny dresses.

During the photo shoot I found the yarn color hard to photograph. It’s a bit more purply than this, really lovely. I used a lace weight merino/silk blend. Since I am getting comfortable (and loving) using dpn needles, this hat was knit in the round without seams.

a-tiny-bit-for-fall-058

a-tiny-bit-for-fall-073

a-tiny-bit-for-fall-035

I’ve been watching knitting podcasts on YouTube lately and have been inspired by all of the hand dyed sock yarn out there (there’s tons of it, and it’s all so beautiful). So another Craftsy class I enrolled in was Professional Yarn Dyeing at Home. (They have a sale going on right now.) Even though I’ve been dyeing my own yarn, I still learned some new things. Additionally, I’d love to see a more advanced class and a class for dyeing plant fibers.

I hand dyed my yarn for this next dress/hat set. I wanted to get a self striping effect, so while knitting the first dress I figured out usage amounts along the way. It didn’t work perfectly as a yard knits up more rows in the bodice than in the skirt, but I still like the look. It was fun, and will try more color variations in the future.

Here is my second set for Amelia Thimble titled, “Sunshiny Autumn Days”.

sunshiny-autumn-days-099

I adapted the headband hat pattern that I’ve been making for the Little Darlings to fit Amelia Thimble. It’s so tiny, there’s not even room for a bow, so a little knot has to make do! The headband is a solid color that matches the main embroidered rose on the dress.

sunshiny-autumn-days-115