Kits for Kids Little Red Riding Hood Finger Puppet

Back in 2021 I was finishing up a fairy tale phase of ami's and puppets for a family member and I purchased a series of finger puppet patterns that I downloaded and never printed.

The designer is no longer selling in the US but I actually remembered to look for the patterns when I came across her Ravelry listing for the Red Riding Hood pattern here. This link is for my own purposes to keep checking to see if she does begin listing patterns for sale at some point in the future.

Clearly this is not a traditional Red Riding Hood but I do love her red hat. I also loved the idea that it gives the child more freedom to tell more stories beyond Red Riding Hood.

These patterns are incredibly detailed in their directions. The reason I hadn't printed them previously is the number of printed pages. DH took them to be double sided printed for me. I love level of detail. The pictures were specific and helpful for creating the puppet pieces and assembling them once created.

As with many patterns written outside the US the yarn used is not readily available in the US. I chose to use Premier Cotton Fair. I've been picking up more colors for my finger puppets and ami's as Herrschner's has shipping offers.

I had previously used Creative Yarns Sinfonia Cotton but I was looking to try something new. Like many cotton yarns it will split. I had the same challenge with Sinfonia. However, I really like the color selections and I have enough for the first two puppet series I want to make.

I have found working with the small tight stitches can be hard on my hands so this puppet was made in sections. I started with the finger section and kept moving forward. I took a picture of the hair as it took me a few tries to feel comfortable with how it worked out. I'm hoping the picure will help me when I make this again. I suspect Goldilocks may have a similar wig.

Since the head is attached to the finger section of the puppet and stuffed I felt comfortable using safety eyes although not suggested by the pattern.

I have several more finger puppets to make to finish the set. I will continue to make them in sections between Aztec Wishes doll outfits. I plan to start on Grandma next.

Glitter Girl Emry Dress

I made this dress last year for the Glitter Girl and it was a little shorter. I'd return to that length again next time. I think there was a mistake in row counting as I went to add the finishing trim and I believe there are extra cable rows.

This is one of Little Abbee's patterns that can be purchased here. I like it so much I want to get the 18" doll pattern.

The shoes are from an Adoring Doll pattern that can be purchasedhere.

Notes:

I used Knit Picks Palette yarn and I can get almost two dresses from this pattern from one skein. I had to open up a second skein as I finished this year's dress.

This is a note for myself as I don't order Knit Picks as regurally as some of my other yarns. I'm hoping to get some additional Palette yarn at their summer yarn sale. I use this for the Glitter Girl and some Barbie family outfits.

I used an E hook for the dress and shoes.

I marked all chains for this patterns as I found them harder to find when I went back to crochet into them the following row. I had previously marked the button holes but that was not an issue this time.

Adding the buttons before starting the skirt worked for me. The mistake I made regarding the cables was related to moving between this project and another. My counter lost the count.

Chelsea Mermaid

It didn't seem fair to leave Chelsea out of the Barbie family mermaid costume party for the donation but I knew after making Stacie's costume it was going to be more challenging for Chelsea.

I wasn't thrilled with the top I made for Stacie but after flipping through the AG 6" doll pattern set I purchased from Sweet Silver Creations here I realized the Jasmine top would work for my Chelsea mermaid. I would adapt this for Stacie the next time I make her a mermaid outfit.

I'd adapted the free Barbie mermaid pattern to fit Stacie so I was hoping with size 20 thread I could make it work for Chelsea as well. You can find that pattern here.

Notes:

Both patterns required size 20 crochet thread to fit Chelsea.

The green is mint Omega from Creative yarn source. Most of my solid color size 20 comes from them as they have a decent color selection and the cones are larger than Lizbeth.

The main color is Lizbeth 20 Springtime.

I started the tale with a 1.0mm tale changing to a 1.25mm when I realized it was a bit tight. I'd start with the 1.25mm next time. With the smaller stitches and hook I found it more challenging than the previous tales to find the stitches from the previous rows.

After leaving the tale on while I worked on the other pieces it bothered me that it was sliding a little so I added a sc row in the contrast mint and the sliding stopped while still being easy for a child to put on and take off.

The top pattern is not a Chelsea pattern but an American Girl mini pattern so it needs to be adjusted for Chelsea. Even with size 20 thread I needed a .75mm hook to keep the top from falling off her shoulders. The original pattern calls for metalic thread which matches the theme of that outfit. I went with mint to stick with the ocean effect I was trying to create.

Even with the smaller hook the top was still a little loose. I corrected this with the trim sc 2 and the sc tog across the top and bottom. This made the top fit nicely.

I decided on the mint headband with no trim. It likely should have been the main color covered by the mint but I started with mint. When I was thinking about adding the msin color I was concerned the base was not large enough. I'd try the 1.25mm hook for the headband next time.