Robbie Bunny

I ordered the Cottontails kit from Mary Maxim which you can purchase here after seeing it in the catalog. When you click on the kit details it tells you that the yarn for this kit is Ultra Mellospun but the white yarn is actually Mary Maxim Baby Value Yarn. Only the yarn for the clothing is Mellospun. According to the website the Baby Yarn is a 4 weight but it is more like a sport or DK weight and it while soft I had 2 issues with it.

First, with a g hook I found the stitches were too big not to show stuffing so I went down to an e hook to get the right look. Secondly, it was not a great yarn to use when you want tight stitches like one uses with amigurumi because I found it difficult to frog the stitches after making the tight, like when I realized I needed to move from a g hook to a smaller hook to keep the stuffing from showing.

I made the second bunny using worsted weight yarn on hand and found I had fewer issues with the yarn.

I have much to learn about sculpting so I will take the blame for that part of the pattern challenge. I found however, that I remade the body the second time when I made the girl doll because the neck on this doll was not solid enough to hold the head up until I did some reworking when I followed the original pattern. It had a bit of a bobble headed look to it. I am sure the fault could easily be mine but directions sometimes can help avoid these challenges, too.

The shoes were adorable. I often find patterns for girl amigurumis with shoes, but sneakers for the boys are also cute. I chose to sew the buttons over the holes as I liked the look better and wasn't planning on removing the clothing after the fact. I made the bow tie but chose not to add it after making it. I liked the way he looked in his overalls. The tail was a cute addition.

I am not a huge fan of having to embroider facial features. The kit comes with eyes and I added a nose that I purchased from CRC Crafts.

With all that is going on in the world I am happy to have some new Easter decorations. I decided to keep this pair and work on a different pattern to send out in the Easter box.

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.

St. Patrick's Day Itty Bitty Dolls

I love the holiday 5" dolls but I've never had much luck making the crochet clothes and I'm not a knitter. A friend at Crochetville has sent me some Thanksgiving and Christmas ones and when Mary Maxim started making the knit kits, I talked my Mom into knitting the kits if I bought them and sent them to her. The dolls have added some simple holiday cheer and with help from friends and family I've greatly expanded the holidays I now have dolls to line my mantel during the year.

For those of you interested in purchasing the knitted kit you can find it at Mary Maxim here.

Moses Basket for 5 Inch Doll

I promised myself I was going to finish off kits and yarn that I bought last year. So right after Christmas I dug out the Little Lullaby kit I was able to pick up on sale at Mary Maxim. I was crazy to think I would get it done for the donation last year, but getting it on sale was not a bad choice. For those of you who don't like buying the kits, the pattern is also available for purchase at Maggie's Crochet here.

I still need to make the outfit for the doll and I have some additional outfits from another pattern I am hoping to complete before the project deadline. However, I feel pretty good about finishing the cradle. At some point I really want to make a cradle purse. I have the Annie's Attic Itsy Bitsy Babies and their Bassinet Purses pattern, found here that provides you with the cradle pattern and clothes to outfit the 5" doll. I thought completing this would be a good starting point to prove to myself I would see the project to the end point.

For those of you interested in free cradle purse patterns I have links on my Doll blanket page here for free patterns to crochet, knit, or sew the cradle purses.

I feel good about my progress for my donation project. Getting this done was a huge push forward. The clothes will be easier to get finished in between other projects. The cradle was a project I needed to push through to complete.

Barbie and American Girl Doll Free Patterns are listed on my blog at these locations:

Barbie Crochet and Sewing Page

Barbie Knitting Page

Ken Page

Kelly/Skipper Page

American Girl Doll Crochet and Sewing

American Girl Doll Knitting

Doll Blankets and Pillow Patterns

Baby Doll Patterns:

Baby Doll and Cabbage Patch

Additional Doll Patterns also Available on the Holiday Blogs:

Christmas

Valentines

Easter

Graduation

Patriotic

Halloween Page

Thanksgiving

Pictures may not be used without written permission.

Baby Brianna

This was a wonderful and busy summer. I finished some crochet projects, but spent lots of time with family, too. What I didn't do, was blog.

As fall approaches, my annual Christmas donation deadline looms. I looked in the bags I have my finished projects stored in and was relieved to discover I had forgotten how much I finished last winter and spring. I still have a long way to go if I want to get everything I planned ready for that early December deadline.

One of the things I did this year when Mary Maxim had their 40% off coupons was stock up on some of their doll projects. At full price, I have trouble justifying the cost of the kit and shipping. However, when I can get a discount, there many levels of savings. I have trouble getting the sports weight and lighter yarns locally, so even if I'd bought the pattern digitally and avoided paying shipping, I'd still likely have had to had the correct weight of yarn shipped in order to finish the project.

I posted about one of the 18" doll kits I finished a while back. This is the first of the 15" baby doll kits I have been working on. I played a little with the gauge on this, but I suggest you make a swatch before starting. The second kit I just started seems to match the gauge without any adjustments, but it is also a different brand of yarn. I often find myself adjusting hooks depending on the pattern, so I don't suggest my experience is typical.

I did opt out of making the flowers do to time constraints. I also chose to make this a summer dress as I am making several other outfits with longer sleeves. One other note, which those that read things closely will catch, the blanket makes a 12" blanket, which is not large enough to cover the doll. I made one and when I realized the size issue, used it for my other smaller donation baby doll. I extended the pattern to make it large enough to cover the doll. As I said those who read closely will catch this, but I missed it.

You can find the kit at Mary Maxim here. If you'd prefer to buy just the pattern you can find that at Maggie's Crochet here.

I was gifted a doll diaper bag kit from a wishlist on Crochetville, so I will hopefully get pictures of those projects posted soon. I made one for the 15" baby doll and one for the 12" Baby Jenna doll.

If you arrived here looking for free patterns you may be interested in the following blog pages:

Dinosaurs and Dragons

Knit and Crochet Food Patterns Great for Play Food

Hello Kitty

Crochet and Knit Puppets

Crochet Amigurumi Animals and Stuffed Animal Free Patterns

Knit Amigurumi and Stuffed Toys

Crochet and Knit Amigurumi and Other Dolls

Knit and Crochet Toys

Teddy Bear Patterns and Clothes

Halloween Page

Thanksgiving

Christmas

Valentines

Easter

Graduation

Patriotic

Pictures may not be used without permission.

Pumpkins

There have been so many things going on that I got very far behind with my posting. This set was one of the first crochet projects I finished after my surgery in May. I bought the Pumpkin Trio kit from Mary Maxim as a present to encourage myself to get back to crocheting after a health related break.

I love the Prism yarn. The colors were so perfect for my fall decorations and the texture felt so nice on my hands. It did break a bit easier than more traditional yarns I use for ami's, but since these were fairly straight forward round projects it was not much of an issue.

These are going to make wonderful fall decorations. I rarely buy kits and I even more rarely make items to keep for myself. I am very excited to have finished these to have for my fall decorating. I do have a full skein of the Prism yarn from the kit left, so I could make another set before the fall weather kicks in.

If you arrived here looking for free holiday or toy patterns please see the following pages:

Dinosaurs and Dragons

Knit and Crochet Food Patterns Great for Play Food

Hello Kitty

Crochet and Knit Puppets

Crochet Amigurumi Animals and Stuffed Animal Free Patterns

Knit Amigurumi and Stuffed Toys

Crochet and Knit Amigurumi and Other Dolls

Knit and Crochet Toys

Teddy Bear Patterns and Clothes

Halloween Page

Thanksgiving

Christmas

Valentines

Easter

Graduation

Patriotic

Pictures may not be used without permission.