Violet

I do hope everyone had a wonderful festive holiday, however you celebrate it! I was lucky enough to be super busy with making my Lou dolls, I plan on sharing them with you here, it really is time that I kick started this little blog of mine!

This is Violet and she now lives with the lovely Lily and Lily B that I shared with you in a previous post. Lily and her Mum Orla gave me the most perfect design brief, as long as she had purple hair I could do whatever I wanted, even choose her name!!

This lavender and gold theme was immediate to me and I had been hankering after this fabric from the Brambleberry Ridge Collection by Violet Craft ( I am just now realising the name connection! I didn't realise this before!!) and recently I have just been loving the metallic trend that has been seen quite a bit in recent fabric collections. I got this piece from the simply wonderful Simply Solids (Hi Lisa!) who I get to see at most of the Knitting and Stitching Shows.

I loved how Violet turned out and I had a fine ole time working on her, I knew that Lily has a real quirky sense of style and I wanted Violet to reflect that.

Also.... extra shoes because who doesn't need extra shoes right? :)

Thanks so much Lily and Orla! I hope Violet is settling in well and behaving herself :)

Miss Lily Bee

Invariably, I love every doll I make, otherwise I would never hand them over, but sometimes I become particularly enamoured with one, my heart swells with pride and I indulge my ego, for just a second with a pat on the back.

 

Miss Lily bee was one such doll...

 

 

I think I may have mentioned this before, but you are never quite sure how a little face will work out or how symmetrical a hair-do will be until it is finished.... until it is embroidered, turned out and stuffed. I kinda love that, each one has their own character and I'm really pleased how Lily came out.

 

 

 

Miss Lily Bee was made for Lily who, after perusing lots of 'Lou Doll' photos over on my facebook page, chose the theme, hair colour and all the little details herself! I think she did great! What was even better was that I got to meet Lily herself, when she, along with her lovely Mum and Brother, came to collect her new doll. That really was such a pleasure for me as I don't often get to see that first reaction. It was lovely to see Lily give her new dolly hugs and check out her dress and shoes.....

 

 

 

 

 

On another note..... The Christmas order book is almost full, so if you would like your own custom Lou Doll then head on over to my facebook page or drop me an email, I'd love to hear from you, also I am now taking bookings for 2015, so if you have an idea in mind for a special birthday, anniversary, wedding etc. then get in touch :)

 

 

 

Off to see the Wizard...

 

So, a little while ago, I got a query from a lovely mummy, Claire, asking if I could possibly make a Dorothy doll for her daughter, Lily's birthday..... now, if you know me you know that I LOVE and I mean LOVE The Wizard of Oz... I jumped at the chance, I was willing to beg her to let me do it if need be :)

As a kid I would often watch a little bit of the movie whilst eating my cereal before school! I watched it whenever I have the chance really, but only from the part where Dorothy opens the door and finds herself in Munchkin Land! I also remember my much coveted ladybird book and compendium of Frank L Baum stories that my Dad gave me.

Claire told me how her Daughter is a massive Oz fan and dresses up all the time as Dorothy and sings all the songs, I was even more excited about making her doll, my head swam with ideas...

I used quite a few techniques that I hadn't used in other dolls, I drew up new pattern pieces for her hair, blouse, dress, shoes... all of these were new designs, I added braids too, which I have never done before. I wanted to add as many authentic details as possible, like the tiny blue triangle trim around her blouse collar and sleeves, I even sketched Judy's iconic pout to embroider.

Of course the best part of all this stichin' was the ruby slippers! I had to restrain myself from making them first, before I even had body pattern pieces cut!

Cant forget her basket and little Toto either!

And finally, hands down my favourite part of this whole doll making thing that I do is this ......

Lily and her Dorothy.

Hope you had a lovely birthday Lily :) It was a pleasure to make your Dorothy doll :)

P.S this is a much larger design that is available to order, if you would like your own custom made 'Lou Doll' then get in touch with me via email or facebook :)

Everyone loves a good cushion, right?

  I don't know about you but I sure love a nice cushion or two... or three! I have been using my spare time from dolly making to stitch me up some pillow beauties. Have you ever tried making your own? The great thing about sewing your own cushions is that you can adapt your design to your own skill level... two squares of your favourite material simply sewn and stuffed, or a complex and intricate patchwork piece backed with a hidden zip closing, either way you end up with something beautiful, something YOU made.

I found this gorgeous embroidery pattern over at Urban Threads, its from their Anima collection, I fell in love with it and dropped everything to start stitching it straight away, this behaviour is exactly why my to-do list and unfinished project stack is getting bigger and bigger! lol  I used some lovely blush coloured Irish Linen, which was a joy to work with, and a simple envelope closing at the back (you can find a great tutorial on this here).

 Now, if you didn't know, let me tell you, I am a Liberty Fabric obsessive, and I covet every single piece in my small but growing collection! I have mentioned before that I get most of my Liberty from Alice Caroline, and in their beautiful online shop you will find packs of precut shapes like the little squares I used to make this patchwork cushion. Easy peasy.... if you fancy having a go at something like this have a look at this great tutorial over on Fussy Cut!

And speaking of Liberty, if you pop over to their craft blog you will find instructions on how to make this cute cloud pillow. I stitched the word 'Slumber' on mine and I kinda wish I hadn't, I can't make up my mind if I like that part or not :)

Can you spot the skinny little Greyhound butt in this pic? lol

So go on grab yourself a piece of fabric, embroider it, appliqué it, bead it, draw on it, needle felt on to it, make a bit of patchwork, or even knit or crochet, raid your wardrobe for those tops or dresses that you never wear but love the colour of and make a cushion!!!!

Phew... all this looking at pictures of my bed makes me want to get in to it!! Goodnight all :)

Roma

Little Roma was a custom made order from before Christmas that I really should have shared before now! She was ordered by the lovely Natasha who told me that the real Roma was crazy about art, so we thought it was only fitting that her dolly namesake was too!!

I made her artists palette from felt, using teeny pieces for the 'paint' which I pressed, rolled and sort of felted them on to the main piece, I sculpted the tiny paintbrush from fimo clay!

I never really expected for the majority of my work to be custom orders when I initially started Lou Loves This, but I am more than happy that it is! It is easily my favourite kind of work, and very healthy for the creative muscles! I love hearing each story, who the doll is for and why, what colours to use, personality traits......

Roma's little hairband is made from turquoise Irish Linen with felt and her dress is made from Liberty fabric. Don't you just love the print of this? I get all of my Liberty pieces from the lovely Alice Caroline.

I hope everyone is having a perfectly lazy Sunday! I am working on and owl made from Donegal Tweed that will be flitting off to France soon, which is not a bad way to spend a Sunday :)

Oh, and if you would like a custom made Lou Loves This doll of your own or for someone special, drop me a line! All my links are over there on the right, the best place to get me is on my Facebook page.

Lou x

Luna Lapin...

I know, I know, its been too long... I think I hibernated...do you hibernate? I may be making a habit of it judging by the last few winters lol. Anyways Spring has finally sprung and I am awfully glad! We are in full on 'up-and-at-'em' mode at Chez Lou. Things have been going well for my little dollies, I had a crazy busy Christmas, stitching 12 or 13 hours a day, not that I'm complaining... I LOVED it! I stitched some tattooed dolls and made a little artist and even stitched a whole family of five children, ! I should do a montage and share some photos soon.

I digress... I wanted to share with you my version of Cool Crafting's Luna Lapin...

Isn't she lovely? I am in love with her! I was lucky enough to be at the Creative Stiches and Hobbycraft Show in Glasgow recently and Cool Crafting were our sweet neighbours for the four days of the show, I spotted Luna on set up day and knew she was coming home with me! She comes as a kit that has everything you need, including some beautiful liberty fabric for her dress! I also picked up a kit for her coat, she has a whole wardrobe of clothes that you can make for her!

Speaking of her coat....

I want one just like it please! The pattern is perfectly written and, as I mentioned, has everything you need down to the very thread! I hand stitched all of her, that's my preferred method, but you could absolutely use a machine for her dress and coat... I just love all the wee details!

I think she needs a beau.... maybe he's a sailor, with a moustache and a navy pea coat? Maybe his name is Bill, or Doug? I named her Céline by the way... which I'm told means moon.

I hope everyone is feeling the joys of Spring....