A doll for Alice

My little baby girl is going to be 1 tomorrow. Sob. Growing so fast, she is our little miss independent now, and has everyone in the house wrapped around her cute little finger!

I wanted to make her something to mark this very special birthday, and when I came across an adorable doll pattern by Hopscotch Lane on Etsy, I knew I had found just the thing.



The pattern is a great one, very easy to follow, takes about 10 hours. I added a ruffly skirt (my own pattern) and also used a smaller flower for her brooch. I love the fact that her hair is so lush and can be put into any style, not just pigtails.

I posted a picture of her on the Down Grapevine Lane Facebook page a while ago. She was such a huge hit that I have been inundated with requests since! Here are two more versions I have made, one is a caramel blonde with a vintage pink dress, and the other is a red haired little miss with a mint dress. Which one is your favourite?

Bunting love - 2

I am finally starting to catch up with life! I can honestly say that I have never been so busy before (and that's saying something coming from a 90-hour-a-week-ex-banker!). I am glad to say that I am finally finding my groove, and dare I say it, even finding time for a few personal projects. Will share them with you real soon.

In the meantime, here's some more bunting love for you. This red, grey and white bunting is a particular favourite of mine. I love the bold colours and even though it has been quite popular for boy names so far, the design and the fabrics are quite gender-neutral.



And here is the same bunting again but this time with teddy and puppy end flags.



And in the pink corner, I present you this special pink and apple green bunting which was designed for a friend of mine to fit with her nursery decor. So bright and cheerful and the perfect colours for spring.



Next week we will be celebrating Alice's first birthday - she has turned into such a wonderful little lady and I am so very proud of her. I started Down Grapevine Lane when she was only 3 months old and I can't believe how fast time went!

On the cover of Homespun

This week was the most thrilling and proud week for me. I had my first magazine feature published in Homespun (leading Australian crafts magazine for those overseas). And not just published but actually on the COVER of the magazine - squeal!!



Remember my french knot Easter bunny project? Back in March I got contacted by the editor of Homespun magazine after they saw it on Pinterest. They had loved the concept and wanted to commission a piece using the same french-knot-sprinkles technique. After some brainstorming and a little graphic design we finalised the drawing - an umbrella and a pair of gum boots.



I took pictures at each step during construction so it could be turned into a full photo tutorial for the magazine.



The article has a little profile piece on me and Down Grapevine Lane as well.



The September issue of Homespun magazine is now in the shops, if you wanted to get a copy of the project tutorial for yourself!

Bunting love - 1

Long time no post! August has been an insanely busy month here at Down Grapevine Lane headquarters. I have been designing and sewing bunting - the new product line in my Etsy shop. And working on my second project for Australian Homespun magazine which I only completed and submitted yesterday. Also dealing with regular customer orders and keeping two pre-schoolers happy, clean and fed. No wonder I am exhausted!



I wanted to share some of my bunting designs here on the blog so you can see what has been keeping me so busy. I had no idea I would enjoy designing bunting as much as I do - the part I like best is the mixing and matching of fabrics. It's like patchwork, but on a bigger scale! Sometimes I cheat and use coordinating fabrics from the same fabric line, but most of my bunting have fabrics from all sorts of designers. Makes it more fun!

I have already shared two designs in previous posts (here and here). I will have to spread the bunting love over a few posts as there are quite a few different sets now and it would be too many photos in one post! Hope you enjoy these two - a girl's bunting with Lecien Princess Rose florals and a transport themed boy's bunting.

Tutorial: 'Balloon Girl' embroidery & applique

Here is the pattern and a tutorial for the little girl with balloons that was the centrepiece of a patchwork cushion I made recently. I drew her in Adobe Illustrator (as I am not so good at drawing on paper!). Her dress and balloons are appliqued fabric and the rest is hand embroidered using three basic stitches.



STEPS:

1. Print the pattern (download it as a PDF from here and print it to A4)

2. Trace the pattern onto your fabric. You can refer to my tutorial 'Tracing an embroidery pattern' for this. If you will be using the pattern to make the centre panel of a patchwork item (as I have done here with a cushion) I suggest you make your patchwork first, then trace the pattern and embroider/applique. This will make sure the design is centred in the finished product.

3. HOW TO DO THE APPLIQUE - Cut out the girl's dress and one of the balloons from the paper pattern. For each item (ie dress and 3 balloons), cut a piece of fabric large enough (in a rectangle or square) and a piece of 'Heat'n Bond Lite' the same size as the fabric. Put the fabric down on your ironing board (right side down) then the Heat'n Bond on top with the glue against the fabric and the paper facing up. Press your iron down on the paper backing with even pressure (no steam) for approx 4 seconds until the glue has bonded onto the fabric. Take the paper patterns you cut out and put them on top of the paper backing face down and trace around each. Cut the pieces out along the trace line. Peel off the paper backing, place the dress/balloon on your main fabric, and iron with no steam for approximately 6 seconds with even pressure until your applique has bonded. With black thread sew all the way around each balloon/dress 1mm from the edge.

IMPORTANT NOTE: It is important you use the Lite or 'sewable' version of 'Heat'n Bond' as the regular version will clog up the needle of your sewing machine.

4. Embroider the girl's face, hair, arms, legs, and the balloon strings with back-stitch. The girl's eyes are satin stitch and the bows on her hair and ankles are made with lazy daisies for the loops and backstitch for the two bow ends.



And there you go! A very easy project and I hope you enjoy making it. Please leave me a comment with any questions.