My Creative Space...

This week we are starting preparations for the Kustom Kraft market on May 23rd. It will only be the third market that we have done and we thought that it was time to spruce up the stall a bit.

First up some red and black felt bunting for along the front of the table.

Ironing bias binding, the epitome of excitement and burnt fingers

Pinned up and ready for sewing

Even though we predominantly sell fabric and buttons at our stall it is always nice to round things out with a few handmade items.

Some Voodoo Rabbit skins ready for Cloud to put together this weekend
(told you I would be cracking the whip)

Don't forget to check out Kirsty's blog for some more creative spaces.

Ky

Toy Making Workshop - May 14th 2011

Calling all Brisbane Bunnies!

Voodoo Rabbit, in conjunction with Pauline from Funky Friends Factory and Linda from Urban Sewing Lounge, will be running our very first toymaking workshop. During the class you will learn basic toy making techniques while making a Plattie Platypus. We will be offering this first workshop at a special discounted rate of $25 + Kit Cost.

There are only 6 spots available so contact us at sales@voodoorabbit.com.au before May 10th if you wish to attend the workshop.

Where: Urban Sewing Lounge, 5 Longlands Street, East Brisbane

Date: Saturday 14th May 2011

Time: 12 - 4pm

Cost:
Workshop - $25 ($15 discount)
Kit - $17.50 (includes pattern, fabric and recycled PET Toy Fill)

Requirements:
Students must have basic sewing experience on a sewing machine.
Sewing machine hire is available for $5.00 (limited number of machines available) otherwise you will have to bring your own machine.

We are very excited to be running our first workshop and hope it is the start of many more to come:)

- Ky and Cloud

My Creative Space

While I was busy making a pile of Gingham Invaded Cushions last weekend, Cloud was having fun making our latest Funky Friends Factory sample up. Facebook followers may have seen a picture called "Camel Foot". This is who the foot belongs to - Crissy the Camel!

Cloud needs to start planning for Christmas early (she's so slack) so it's a good thing she has made Crissy now. I think Crissy is pretty cute for all year round.

Pattern:
Crissy Camel by Funky Friends Factory

Fabric:
Holiday Happy Scattered Snowflakes by Happy Zombie for Lecien (body)
Holiday Happy Little Santa Red by Happy Zombie for Lecien (feet and inner ears)

Crissy is a fully jointed toy so you can make her sit down, stand up, stand on 3 legs, wave...

Funky Friends Factory will be sharing a stall with Voodoo Rabbit at the next BrisStyle Twilight Markets in King George Square on the 29th April. We will have all the Funky Friends, including Crissy Camel, patterns and kits for sale.

Voodoo Rabbit will have the kits for sale in our online store in early May.

The home of My Creative Space is taking a break this week but we thought we'd still play along.

- Ky

My Creative Space

This cute little bunny was a custom order for a little baby boy.

He is based on Funky Friends Factory Baby Bunny pattern but he has extra long ears.

The fabric is our very own Bunny Goth Scatter in blue.

Pop over to Kootoyoo for more Creative Spaces.

- Ky

My Creative Space

We ordered some more Funky Friends Factory patterns since they are just so cute.  Here is the latest sample and our favourite so far. Introducing Geeky Chook, once he was stuffed we decided that he looked so geeky that he needed a pair of glasses.

Cloud did all of the sewing on this one and made the little glasses, I just sewed up the stuffing hole, and did the hand sewing on his wings and attached the eyes and glasses.

The pattern is called Cheeky Chook by Funky Friends Factory. The fabric used was our very own Gingham Invaded for the body. Red homespun cotton for the comb, giblets and feet. Early Bird Yellow Crosshatch by Cosmo Cricket for the beak.

This is a fairly easy patterns to sew together, probably on a similar level to Stu the Sea Turtle.

We now stock 10 Funky Friends Factory patterns in our Coorparoo Market store, new patterns are Mitch the Monkey, Patty the Cow, Cheeky Chook and Silly scrap snake. Samples of the rest to come;)

In other creative pursuits I have also managed to cut out two dresses for myself, hopefully I will be able to sew them together before the start of the new year.

- Ky

My Creative Space

Even though My Creative Space is officially finished for the year I thought I would still try to do one each week. Here is the last of the Funky Friend Factory samples for the patterns that we have in stock.

Meet Larry the Lion, isn't he adorable? He was a joint effort between Cloud and myself.

Larry has been made up using Tailor Made Scissors teal by Cosmo Cricket (body), Tailor Made Floral Outline by Cosmo Cricket (Main, Nose and Feet) and white homespun cotton (muzzle).

Larry's design includes footpads and gussets so he is of a similar difficulty to the aardvard and hippo patterns, maybe slightly more fiddly. He can be sewn in either woven or stretch fabric and you could easily turn him into a lioness by leaving off the mane.

Pauline very kindly sent us 2 extra patterns to try out so we will be making them up next ; D

- Ky

My Creative Space

This week we have managed to make one more Funky Friends Factory toy, introducing Plattie the Platypus.

He is made up using Daisy Doogle Lime by Michael Miller for the body and Adventures in Wonderland Faux Leathergrain by Winham fabrics for his bill and feet. This is a very simple pattern that goes together fairly quickly and easily.

His bill got a little squished in my bag on the way to the shop, poor little Plattie.

We are halfway through the Larry the Lion plushie mentioned in last Fridays post, hopefully he will be finished in the next day or so.

Join in the last creative space of the year with Kirsty over at Kootoyoo.

- Ky

My Creative Space

Lots of sewing has actually been happening here at Voodoo Rabbit : )  This week we have been making up samples of some new Funky Friends Factory patterns that we are stocking in our Coorparoo Store. All of these patterns are designed by the very talented Pauline, a Brisbane local.

Stu the Sea Turtle
- Shellburne Circus Wheels Black by Windham (shell and beak)
- Shellburne Circus Flags Black by Windham (head and flippers)
- Ta Dot Black by Michael Miller (tummy and sides)
We found that this pattern went together quite easily, the trickiest bit is sewing the curves but as long as you go along slowly it isn't too hard. We used 3 fabrics but he could easily be made up in just two if you make his tummy out of the same fabric as the shell and his sides out of the same fabric as the head.

Heather Hippo
- Apple Dot Autum by Sandi Henderson for Micheal Miller (main body)
- Early Bird Yellow Crosshatch by Cosmo Cricket for Andover Fabrics (tummy, ears and feet)
This pattern was a bit trickier, as soon as you introduce gussets, foot pads and snouts the difficulty level increases. The result in well worth the effort though.

Prince Charming
- Send in the Crowns Plum by Micheal Miller (main body)
- Small Leaves Black by STOF (tummy)
This is probably the easiest of the 4 patterns so far. There are only 2 main pattern pieces plus the eyes and crown. Once again as long as you sew slowly around the curves you shouldn't run into too many problems. The pattern suggests using plastic pallets in the feet but we found that this didn't look very good since we used cotton fabric (would be fine in fleece) so we have just used poly fill.

Artie Aardvark
- Early Bird Geometric Floral by Cosmo Cricket for Andover Fabrics (main body)
- Early Bird Yellow Crosshatch by Cosmo Cricket for Andover Fabrics (tummy, ears and feet)
The aardvark would be on par with the hippo in regards to difficulty level, the snout is a bit trickier and we recommend sewing it in by hand as there just isn't enough space to get you machine in.

We still have a platypus and lion pattern to make samples up so stay tuned. I have also just found a tutorial on Pauline's blog on how to sew in the perfect foot pads, which I will be following dilegently next time I need to sew a footpad in.

For more Creative Spaces head over to Kirsty's.

- Ky

Spotlight - Hippie House Dolls

Here are some adorable dolls made by the very talented Kylie of Hippie House Dolls featuring fabric she purchased from us. Kylie creates Premium Handmade Waldorf Dolls made with natural materials. Both of these cuties are custom orders and come with two outfits.

Skully (aren't her shoes cute)

and in her funky pants

Custom Order - Super Mason

Every super hero needs a cape.

Watch out he also know karate.

- Ky

Etsy Favourite - Astaire the Hypno-Bunny

Our Etsy favourites list is quite large, there is a lot of very talented handcrafters out there. We thought that we should show off some of these awesome items.

One of our favourite Etsy stores is Static White's Stichery where you you will find OOAK (one of a kind) ornaments, art dolls, unique clothing, accessories, home decor, & more... All created with an artistic eye, stitches like sutures & a wee touch of madness.

This little feller recently caught our eye, let us introduce Astaire, the Hypno-Bunny w- Felt Carrot Knife Plush by Static White's Stichery.

 

Astaire is approx 9.5" (24.13cm) tall from head to toe (not including ears) and has an awesome carrot knife...

and look at his little tail, so cute.

 

- Ky and Cloud

Thanks to everyone who voted

Squee came 16 out of 93 entries, thank you to everyone who voted. We should have our sample print of Count Squeecular next week, we will sew him up ASAP and show him off.

- Ky

Spoonflower Fabric of the Week: Vampires

A new fabric design for this weeks fabric of the week comp at Spoonflower. This is the first in what we hope will be a series of toys based on Squee Bunny. The title of the series is Dress up With Squee and this is Count Squeecular. Each toy is printed on a fat quarter and all you have to do is cut, sew and stuff.

We are please as punch over how he turned out and are eagaly awaiting our test fabric to arrive.

What do you think?

If you would like to vote for Squee head over to the voting page at Spoonflower. The designs appear in a different order for each person who votes in the contest.

Vote by clicking on the images of Count Squeecular. It is called Dress Up With Squee - Count Squeecular by voodoorabbit. A green box will appear around the design you select for voting. Your vote is submitted only after you reach the end of the voting pages and click the button to submit your vote.

- Ky

My Creative Space

We didn't have a market this weekend so I got my creative on! It has been a while. Too long in fact. I bought a the third of the 'Softies' books recently - Simple Softies - which is chock full of patterns for toys that can be made without a sewing machine.

I got the book mainly so I could make the Sampler Kitty. Here's mine:

He has the sweetest little face! This was done with Satin Stitch and Chain Stitch.

To embellish him, I used a scrap of our Gingham Invaded Black on White & handstitched a sampler of different stitches. From the top:

Whipped Whipped Stitch (I think that is what it is called)
Single Feather Stitch
Cross Stitch (to hold down the Gingham Invaded fabric)
Raised Stem Stitch
Arrowhead Stitch
Running Stitch

He was assembled with Whip Stitch.

Kitty sits on my window sill at work and makes me smile during the day. He's so squishable & cute!

Head over to Kirsty's blog to see what other people have been doing this week :)

- Cloud

Free Grug Pattern

Some of you may remember that earlier this year I blogged about this awesome Grug toy that Sue (a fellow ASG member) made for one of her grandchildren. Sue very kindly supplied me with the rough working pattern that she created to make Grug. Since then I have been faffing around trying to write up some instructions and create diagrams so that we can share this pattern with you all.

The pattern can be downloaded from here.

Before you jump in to make a Grug of your very own here are a few disclaimers:

• Grug is a copyrighted character so you cannot sell the complete toy or the pattern.
• The instructions (pages 1 - 4) are on A4 size pages and the pattern pieces (pages 5 - 7) are on A3 size pages.
• The difficulty level of this pattern would be for an intermediate to experienced sewer. I have made some assumptions of knowledge when writing the instructions.
• I have not personally tested this pattern (I hate using furry fabrics) so if someone would like to volunteer to pattern test it would be greatly appreciated.
• If you encounter any errors please let me know and I will update the pattern.
• Grug is just over 30cm tall when completed.

- Ky

My Creative Space

We've been busy little bunnies this week preparing for the markets we will be attending during August.

We wanted a nice way of displaying some of our fabrics so we stretched them over painting canvases so we can hang them up. Cloud managed to not staple gun her fingers so we count this as a huge success.

Cloud finally sewed together the first Giant felt Squee Bunny. That's my hand holding him to give you an idea of the scale.

I made some awesome Felt Playing Card Bunting (for sale not for our stall). There are also lots of Mini Squee Bunnies to sew together after last week's monster cutting out session that I did.

Lots of work goes into having a stall at a market but we love meeting our customers so it's worth it.

Head over to Kootoyou to see some more fabulous Creative Spaces.

Ky

Wishlist Wednesday

If you are new to crafting or just want to give something new a try, kits are a great way to get started. They usually come with all of the materials required as well as a pattern and instructions. Here are some cute little kits / patterns that we found on Etsy.

First up is a nice easy one, Toadstool PDF pattern by Gifts Created. This listing is just for a pattern but you can also request a complete kit.

Once you are feeling a bit more confident you can move onto something a bit trickier like this Bunny Head Magnet - Needle Felting Kit by Hi-Fiber Kits

Finally you can step up and try an advanced project like this georgeous Yoki the Dragon KIT by DIY Fluffies Soft Toy Patterns & Kits

Yoki caught Cloud's eye a week or so ago. She'll never make him (she still has patterns she bought two years ago that haven't made it out of the packets yet) and I bet she secretly hopes I will do it for her. She can keep wishing, I want him all for myself :P

-Ky

Soft Toy: Paper Dolls

Over the weekend, I finally got to do some sewing. I hadn't touched a machine in nearly a month because I have been working on shop administration instead of creating. I couldn't stand it any longer so on Saturday I cut out two sets of dolls from the Aunt Lindy Paper Dolls Large Panel.

Here are the results:



The hardest part of making these dolls was the clipping, turning and stuffing. The sewing itself was quite easy (but that may be because I am used to sewing curves). I used a clear machine foot so I could see the sewing line easier and I also had the machine on the slowest speed setting. Getting the polyfill into the little pointy bits of the dolly hair and corners of the dress was the most annoying part because it kept escaping back into the main part of the doll.

It felt so good to be making something again! My favourites are the blue dolly and the little pink puppy.

Cloud

Fabric Friday: Vintage Paper Dolls

Did you ever make or play with paper dolls when you were a child? Cloud did, which is why we couldn't pass this fabric up:

Aunt Lindy's Paper Dolls. Designed by Sibling Arts Studio for Blue Hill Fabrics

Sherri Marquez reproduced the design directly from her Great Aunt Lindy's personal collection of adorable paper dolls which are thought to have been from the early 1900's. We are stocking two fabrics from the range. The first is a panel featuring 8 dolls (2 Boys and 6 Girls) with lots of clothes. It measures approx 110cm x 60cm / 43in x 33in. It would be gorgeous sewn up into a soft book as a present for a little person or mum-to-be. It can also be stretched over canvas to make a vintage nostalgia wall hanging in a kid's bedroom.

The second is another panel featuring 4 different dolls which can be sewn up as a soft toys approx 30cm tall. It measures approx 110cm x 85cm / 43in x 33in. The contrasting 'back' to the dolls is just too adorable and so are the animals that you can also make into smaller, matching toys.

Cloud can't resist and is going to made up the dolls. I think she is doing it so she can keep the little white rabbit and the kitten. Which doll do you think is the cutest?

Ky

A Herd of Zebras

We were sent this photo the other day from Sue (she also made this Grug toy). She purchased a meter of zebra fabric from our Japanese fabric haul and made this awesome herd of zebras from it. Each zebra is approx 20cm tall.

Have you made something from one of our fabrics? We'd love to add it to our blog so please send us a photo or a link.

On a side note, Sue has kindly given us a copy of the Grug pattern that she drafted and I will do my best to post it up here as soon as possible.

Ky

Voodoo Rabbit Stitches

We have started stocking our new Etsy shop, Voodoo Rabbit Stitches. This store will only feature goods handmade by me and Cloud.

Crazy toys by Cloud (yep this is the only one so far but I will crack the whip on the weekend and get her to make some more)

Tote Bags featuring Voodoo Rabbit Original Fabric designs

Homewares - featuring both commercial fabrics from our fabric store as well as Original Voodoo Rabbit fabrics.

We will continue to add new items as they are created and eventually any handmade items currently listed at Voodoo Rabbit will be moved over to Voodoo Rabbit Stitches.

Ky