I'm not sure which Crochet Calendar this one came from, but this is another of Michelle Crean's doll patterns and you can purchase the set at Annie's here or her website here. I give you both because Annie's sometimes has sales or coupons, but then they put stuff on clearance and the links die. However, I suspect Michelle will be selling her own patterns for considerably longer. That gives you time to find it if you want it. I find it frustrating to find a write up about a pattern I love only to discover I can't find it so I do what I can to help.
This was a fun pattern to work on. I used up some Caron Simply Soft that I'd bought for a baby blanket project and then changed gears and didn't need so much yarn. It felt good to shop from my stash to finish up another project. I also liked going with the watermelon colors. I don't know why, but this color scheme seems to sneak into my doll donations every other year or so in some fashion or other. A few years ago it was the baby dolls as I attempted to use up some yarn that had been given to me.
So again for the pattern notes. The Caron Simply Soft worked fine for this pattern. It required an I hook to make the size I wanted. Lastly again just a note to help me remember what worked, mark first chain 2 and last hdc with marker for better stitch count. I had a hard time picking these out and thus was confused about getting an accurate stitch count. Once I started putting a saftey pin in these stitches I stopped having issues with my count as I knew where these stitches were located and life become easier.
I'm working on the Valentine Lovey at the moment along with the Gray Lady 18" doll outfit. The ami heart has proven to be the most challenging item for the lovey. I can't remember making one before that wasn't two sides sewn together. I did a quick search on the blog here and as I remembered I'd made some Valentine heart toys for my nephews a few years back, but that pattern had you make 2 sides and sew them together, not the traditional ami style that I was struggling with yesterday. I did however finish one, but it is likely going to be better for a larger toy I wanted to make and send. I'm almost done with the smaller heart that will go with the Bunny Valentine Lovey. I'm slowly getting there and I still have time. My drop dead mail date is the last day of January although I'd like to go sooner if possible. I still need to order the Board Books to send with it.
Edward's Crochet Doll Emporium: Flip the Mix-and-Match Patterns to Make and Dress Your Favourite People
This year's entry is called Diamond in the Sky and I rather liked it. Red Heart makes the blankets a little larger, but I like to give the child the option of wrapping the doll, which a shorter blanket doesn't allow.
