Chelsea Kits for Kids Sleeping Bag

It's April Fool's Day and I'm preposting my Kit's for Kids projects which hopefully have long been delivered by now. I've been using a free beanie baby sleeping bag pattern for years for Chelsea's sleeping bag. However, the two new charities I've added Chelsea to this year have space restrictions. The beanie bag is bulkier and I decided to explore if I could use the thread bag from the Calico Critters to save space as I've adapted a few of Mom's outfits to fit Chelsea before.

You can find the free Calico Critter sleeping bag pattern here.

Notes:

I am always on the hunt for differnt types of thread, especially variegated colors. This is Herschnerrs own brand size 10. I had previously tried it on a dress I've made multiple times with the same hook and it was huge. It also looks larger than my other brands of size 10. I don't have 8 on hand but that would be my guess as it is smaller than my 3 but it is heavier than my other 10's.

Since I was looking to adapt a smaller pattern to a larger doll this seemed like the ideal time to use some of the thread up. I experimented with hooks until I settled on the 1.5mm hook. I may go back to the 1.25 for the one I need for Operation Shoebox as I'm still on the fence about the size.

I followed the directions as written for the basic formation other than I needed more rows for length due to Chelsea's height prior to starting the pillow section. As I do with the Critters I stuffed the pillow and sewed the bottom opening of the pillow closed.

Our Generation Let The Sunshine In

I have one more Kits for Kids project preposted but with this preposting the delivery date for that project is tomorrow. With some challenges I'm having retruning to a project with larger hooks seemed like a good idea.

This project seems to pop up in my to do list every other year or so. Thankfully with binders of patterns I do have plenty to make. I chose this one because it is fairly simple to make and requires basic colors that were in my stash.

That didn't stop me from stocking up on Red Heart Super Saver Navy from my local Walmart as that can be a tough color to find. I can find the lighter blues but Navy is hit or miss for me.

Let the Sunshine In is part of Darski's free Weatherby set found here. The shoes are from my favorite shoe pattern from Sweet Silver Creation's Sailor Pattern and that can be purchased here.

Notes:

All three colors are Red Heart Super Saver. For my own notes the Navy is Soft Navy.

I used a K hook on the dress for the bodice and an I hook for the skirt. I used a K hook for the Bolero jacket.

I went with the suggested hook size for the hat.

This dress ties to close around neck in back and I added chains. This was a bad idea. Use suggested chain length for ties.

Found a previous note to try a G hook for these shoes with the Our Generation Doll and they fit well.

This is the first year I've added white trim to the Bolero jacket arms and I would continue to do this as I liked the look.

These pictures are from my 2022 project and instead of taking new pics each year I keep the old ones to remind myself of what the Bolero jacket looks like prior to full assembly as some years it makes more sense than others and rather than take new pics each year of the process I just post the old to my latest project as that is generally where I turn the next time I make the project.

Lots to Love 8 Inch Baby Doll Cuddle Up Romper Kits for Kids

I wasn't sure this outfit was going to make it into Kits for Kids. It is the last item for the donation but due to some challenges I've not been crocheting much the last week of the donation push. However the Friday before I made a push to finish the last bits for this outfit.

This is one of Amy Carrico's patterns that is currently listed for sale on Ravelry here.

As the Lots to Love 8 inch dolls are no longer being made and my supply is diminishing I've been considering my options.

I will continue to use the doll for Aztec Wishes and Operation Shoebox for 2027 since I've already started my Aztec projects.

However, going forward I think I'm going to double up on my Lots to Love 10 inch dolls for Aztec Wishes and use a Lots to Love 10 inch Doll for Kits for Kids. This will allow me to stretch my supply of Lots to Love 8 inch dolls for the shoeboxes as size is most critical there. I've been looking for a substitute but so far nothing compares to this doll. Hopefully, I will find something before my Shoebox supply runs out.

Likely do to some health issues I was having my guage was all over the place on this project and I was constantly adjusting hook sizes.

Notes:

The yarn was Baby Bernat Big Ball yarn in yellow and pink.

While I normally use a C for the main part of the shirt and a b for the arms this time I needed an e and a d hook to get it large enough to fit the doll.

The pants continued to require a B hook.

The headband went up to a D hook.

Next month I will get to see how these projects work for the intended donation and hopefully get a better feel for what to work on for next year.