Dolly's bed is finished:
I used a Sterilite Underbed Box 28 Qt., Model #1846 DH found at Walmart for $4.38. To keep the mattress from sinking into the depression when Dolly lies down, I cut a piece of an old political sign the same size as the mattress, which is 16 X 23”, 1” foam (left over from Dolly’s chair), and put it in the mattress cover at the base of the foam. I put the seam of the mattress cover in the middle, so it wouldn’t show. Dolly doesn’t sink in, but the mattress is still nice and soft, so she can sleep well.
The dust ruffle is four 7" WOF strips of quilting fabric sewn together and hemmed 1/4" and an additional 1/4", gathered at the top and sewn with a 1/4” seam to a piece of muslin cut the shape of the lid of the storage box.
The “fitted” bottom sheet was a simple sack, similar to a pillow case, as I showed in last week’s blog post. I used some nice quilting fabric to trim the top sheet and pillow case. The blanket is a piece of fleece, cut to size and trimmed with satin doubled over (like quilt binding) and zig-zagged along the loose edge, to replicate the look of a real blanket.
The quilt was the last item to finish:
It’s a simple 9-patch with sashing. I used some fabrics from my stash collected when a quilting buddy brought out some fabric sample books given her by a relative who was a fabric distributor. I thought Daphne might like the bright colors, which are not really my style. I’m not a machine-quilter, and I don't have a walking foot for my Featherweight, but this project was small enough I decided to have a go. I sewed in the same direction for each vertical line of stitching, starting with the middle, with pins to hold the three layers in place. Then I sewed all the horizontal lines of stitching, also starting with the middle line of stitching and always sewing in the same direction. When I finished, I pulled the top threads through to the back of the quilt, tied it together with the bobbin thread and used a needle to thread them through to the inside of the quilt.
So Dolly didn't need to sleep in her clothes, I sewed some pajama bottoms and knitted a camisole top.
…and a robe. I used McCall's 2506, now out-of-print, for the pajama bottoms and the robe. Sewing the fleece was a job. I had to use a lot more pins than usual when setting in the sleeves. The fleece kept sliding to the side.
The shopping ensemble is finally finished. You may remember (or not) that I started this outfit right after I bought all the yarn for it and the Valentine’s Day ensemble, beginning with the skirt. January 1st the KAL started, so I made the top that went with that outfit, so Dolly could wear it with the finished skirt. Dolly gradually changed clothes as the other items were finished. The white top goes very well with both outfits.
A bonnet pattern was given for free to each person who completed the KAL. I had yarn left from the shopping ensemble skirt and the same yarn from some socks I made a few years ago, Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino.
Here’s the complete outfit, including Dolly's new shoes, roomy enough to get on over her socks without too much effort:
Common Threads met at Karan’s on Thursday. Margareth brought her new Jakob doll wearing the outfit she made for him.
Margareth is expecting her first grandchild, a boy, so this doll will be for him to play with when he visits her. She has plenty of time to outfit him completely. She also showed us this diaper bag she made. The base is a changing mat that comes out, and the straps can be positioned to fit over one shoulder or used as a backpack.
Sundance has started. I had my first shift on Friday. Before my first shift, I met up with fellow fiber fan and Aloha Blu Fiber Shoppe owner, along with her husband.
She brought me this lovely swag:
That will probably be the only swag I get from Sundance this year, but you never know. It was undoubtedly the best, though. You can only use so many oversized T-shirts.
Spinners, don’t forget, we’re having a Spin Along on the Knitting Community if anyone wants to join in.
Where? Right here, in the Knitting Community Spin Along.
When? Noon on Friday, February 5 - noon on Monday, February 8, 2016, in whatever time zone you're in.
Equipment: Spindle or wheel. (If you want to use the pencil method to spin, that's OK, too.)
Materials: Any spinable fiber. (Dryer lint, anyone?)
No prizes, no pressure, just spinning together and sharing what we’re doing.
What's on my needles: A cape for Dolly. The Trickle Socks, waiting.
What's on my Featherweight: Finished Dolly’s quilt. Still a few things for make for the doll.
What's on my iPad/iPhone: Still listening to The Final Empire by Bandon Sanderson. Got a special deal on it, along with the next book in the series. Still reading The Other Harlow Girl by Lynn Messina on the Kindle app.
What's in my wine glass: Crane Lake Malbec, a good wine for the price.
What's my tip of the week: I don't know if anyone has mentioned this, but here's a tip I've shared with my local quilt guild. It always surprises me that more people don't know about this, so I'm sharing it here.
To reduce bulk where four or more seams come together, you can often fan them out in opposite directions. You have to take out a few stitches in the seam allowance. (See photo.) These seams are sewn over, so the seam doesn’t become weaker when you do this. This is especially useful when working on miniature quilts, smaller-scale quilts, or quilts that have very small pieces.
Here is a 9-patch block (five of one fabric and four of another fabric sewn together in alternating order) from the doll quilt. The intersections on the lower part of the block have been "treated." The intersections on the upper part show the stitches that are being removed. I use an awl, but a seam ripper (sharp side away from the thread) may also be used to undo the threads from the seam allowance.
Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.
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