Mouse and Pumpkin

As I'm working on my doll donations, and the dino baby blanket, I also have to keep an eye on the calendar as the beginning of the next round of holiday boxes will need to go out in the not to distant future as well. I finished the first Halloween item, the Mouse and Pumpkin pattern that was again a gift from DH. You can purchase the pattern here.

I liked this set because it added a little fun play to the idea of safe decorations for little hands. The mice have made a home in the pumpkin and the child can place a mouse in the hole or play with them around the pumpkin, but there is more than just a pumpkin that won't break should little hands pick it up and drop it or want to hug it.

This pattern was well illustrated and the directions were clear, which was great since I was trying some new things with adding the mouse tunnel. Once you see the directions it does make sense, but it wsan't something I guessed. I will say when she says cut the yarn, cut the yarn, don't do what I did the first time and think you can avoid sewing in ends with slip stitches, the hole ends up being much to small. While I dislike sewing in ends, it is even more frustrating when your realize your efforts to save yourself work made more.

I've started the 3rd dino block and I'm working on another Halloween ami project. I've got to get started on another doll donation project as well. Summer sped by so fast and the deadline is creeping up faster than I can possibly believe on all the projects.

Mary Maxim American Girl Summertime Capri Set

This was the second outfit from the Mary Maxim Summertime 18 Inch Doll kit. There is a shrug and a purse I finished for this set, but somewhere on the way to the shoot for this blog, she seems to have lost them. Thankfully, I found them sitting on the couch and they've been bundled up in the package to go with the donation, but I didn't have time for a reshoot, so you'll have to imagine the rest. If you are interested in the kit you can find it at Mary Maxim here. To make it clear this was a birthday gift from DH and I have no association with Mary Maxim other than I am a customer. I am hopeful they make more 18 inch kits as having bought both their kits and Herschnerrs I tend to like the yarn and pattern directions in Mary Maxim's kits better than those I've bought from Herschnerrs. I will say Herschnerr's has had some adorable designs I've liked and bought, but I've not loved the yarn and I have several uncompleted kits because I found myself rewriting the directions as I went and it was frustrating when I had other patterns I could turn to and complete more quickly.

With that I turn to the second pattern from this kit and say honestly I was not as pleased with the second set as I was with the first. Other than the shoes I really liked the overall design of the first pattern. With the second, I LOVED the capris and will be using that pattern with worsted weight yarn so I don't have to increase the hook size to make the pants fit. The pants were adorable and I can see me making them with different tops. I didn't like the top. It was overally complicated to make for something I really didn't like when it was done. The shrug was a nice finish for the outfit. The purse was an easy to make accessory that I'd make again. The kerchief would have been better if there was an explanation about how it went together.

As with the previous outfit I opted out of the sandals. I found they didn't work well for me and instead made the shoes from another pattern I'd purchased here.

I am hopeful Mary Maxim will continue to make these kits as I do like their yarn and the price point is fair if you can get a deal on shipping. I would like to see some themed outfits in the way they've branched out with the 5" dolls.

American Girl Mickey Mouse Inspired Outfit

I'm always looking for something new and fun to try for my donation projects. It keeps the project engaging for me and I like to think it makes it fun for the kids to get something different, too. This was a gift from DH and you can purchase the pattern here.

The pattern worked up quickly and the directions were clear and easy to follow. I added button holders (chains stitches on the seems the buttons can be held by) rather than using the stitches in the white shirt as button holes. If you are an adult dressing the doll you likely aren't going to have trouble doing this or rip the shirt with repeated efforts to dress and undress the doll. However, when possible I try to think about little hands taking off the clothes and I either use snaps these days or use chains to hold the buttons as I find trying to get the buttons through my stitches can be challenging even with adult hands.

I had fun with the jacket pattern as I'd never done anything quite like that before. I also rather liked the pants pattern and think it could be useful for other projects. I thought the same about the boots. The hat was just adorable.