Fabric Scrap Dolls

 

If you're looking for a quick and easy craft to use up fabric scraps and create something lovely, then this is right up your street.  These lovely little dolls are cute and can be as complicated or simple as you want.

I first came across these amazing little dolls at the Medieval Christmas Fayre at Ludlow Castle a few years ago. 

I lovely lady (who I knew from my previous existence in Medieval Reenactment) had a little craft activity where she showed how to make them, and also sold them.

I immediately bought this little family:

To make these dolls, here's what you need:

• a circle-ish of cream or white fabric
• a little bit of toy stuffing (just for the head)
• thread (I use white/cream and black)
• fabric and wool scraps, felt, binding, fripperies etc. 
• pinking shears are very useful depending on your fabric - felt doesn't fray, but most other fabric will unless you pink or hem the edges

Instructions

To start with you will need your circle of fabric, your toy stuffing and about a metre of white/cream thread.
Place a little bit of toy stuffing in the middle of your circle.

Gather the fabric together and wrap the thread around tightly to create a head.  Fasten the thread around the neck.  You may need to arrange the fabric a little here so you don't have a big wrinkle where the face will be.

You now have a head, and four corners of fabric hanging down. Take one corner, fold it under and then gather up to make an arm. 

Take one of the loose ends of thread from the neck and wrap it firmly around the arm in a spiral down to the hand and then back up again.

 

 Hold it in place while you do the same with the opposite corner and other end of thread to make the other arm. This may take a bit of trial and error to get the arms the right length for the proportions of your doll.

Wrap the threads diagonally across the front and back to create a torso and waist.

You have now created the basic body and for a female you would just need to add clothes.

To make legs, you manipulate the final two corners of fabric and repeat the same process as for the arms.  These can be a bit rougher as most of them will be covered with fabric.

Next, make the clothes using fabric scraps:

• Some bias binding or a strip of fabric wrapped around and held in place with a couple of stitches are good for leggings or trousers.
• a little felt hat or a fabric scrap headscarf are good, or you can sew some wool scraps in place for hair.
• A simple tunic held in place with a wool belt are nice and easy, but you can wrap fabric into a dress, skirt, cloak or apron, or even add wings for a fairy. You could also sew on little facial features.

My nine-year-old daughter sat and made these with me and was delighted with the results.  It's such a quick and simple activity, and a great way to make use of your scraps.

This is one of the activities in our "Year of Crafts". I'd love to hear how you get on if you try this activity. Let me know in the comments.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

 

Anybody here like cake?

Hands up?

Yes, me too. And this particular cake is a bit of a sweet-toothed 80s bright coloured throwback, to a time when exotic fruit in a tin was the highlight of the week.

Making this seems a long time ago now, as it's two weeks since I last ate. 

(Not strictly true, but I am sticking to the diet pretty well and cake is not currently happening).

This cake is the perfect comfort food for a winter's evening.  Enjoy with custard.

Ingredients

butter (melted)                   100g

brown sugar                       1/2 cup

pineapple rings (drained)     440g can

Pineapple juice                    2tbsp

Cream cheese                    125g

butter (softened)                150g

caster sugar                        1 cup

rind and juice of 1 orange

2 eggs (lightly beaten)

self-raising flour                    1 cup

Method

1. Preheat over to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Tip the melted butter into a 24cm round cake tin, brushing it up the sides to grease. (If you're using a loose bottomed tin, like me, be aware that it will ooze out in cooking).
3. Sprinkle brown sugar over the butter and then arrange the pineapple rings over the base of the tin.  I popped glace cherries in the centre of each one for a really vivid pop of colour.
4. Mix the cream cheese, butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  
5. Add the orange rind and juice, 2 tbsp of pineapple juice, eggs and flour.  Mix well until smooth.
6. Spoon the mix into the prepared tin over the pineapples.
7. Put the cake into the oven for 40-50 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.
8. Leave to cool for 10 minutes and then turn out carefully onto a wire cooling rack.

This is one of my creative endeavours this month in my year of creativity.  Considering I had five creative things to do this month I've made a remarkably slow start. 

The crochet is going well, but I'm not sure if I'll finish this month.  I have at least bought the bottles I need to make the wine. I haven't even begun to think about the cushion covers or the macrame and the stuff to make the little dolls is just sitting there waiting for some attention! 

On the other hand, I have been running two Beaver meetings and two Cub meetings via Zoom, I have a lot of Phonics videos on my YouTube channel, and the children are getting on well with their home learning. There's certainly been some creativity going on in the house, even if it hasn't all been mine.

Endangered animals masks made with Beaver Scouts

I really don't know the purpose of the cardboard fort or the Harry Potter x Victorian costume - sometimes it's best not to ask.

Charlie's tin can tealight candle holders that he made with Scouts.

Charlie's pelican, penguin, cat mash-up that he did for an Art lesson.

2021 - Our Creative Year

One of my New Year's Resolutions is to allow more creativity back into my life. It's easy to become too "busy". I'm certainly guilty of wasting time on social media or on games on my phone.

This year I wanted to put the emphasis on my creative self. Creativity is a type of playfulness (see my other blog www.the-playful-way.com) and I think we all need a bit more of that in our lives.

It also allows you to express yourself, to find your self or your voice.

To help keep me on track and to explore a whole range of different types of creativity, I've come up with 52 different craft activities (this isn't even touching on the creativity I enjoy in the garden, in my writing or in my teaching or tutoring!).

I've divided them into seasons, with the intention that I'll do four or five each month. 

For example, this month I'm hoping to

- macrame a plant pot hanger for the bathroom (1st attempt at macrame)

- make wine (I've been meaning to do this for ages!)

- make at least one cushion cover

- crochet a window valance (like this)

- make some little fabric scrap dolls.

 

What I really like about this is that my daughter has taken a copy of my list. She's ticked the ones she wants to do with me, and has added her own crafts to replace the ones that she doesn't think she can do.  We're going to get crafty together!

I've not been terribly good at maintaining the blog in 2020. I'm hoping that I'll be a lot better in 2021, and blog regularly about my crafting, writing, gardening and family exploits, so you'll be able to see how I get on with some of these crafts.

What are your crafting and creative intentions for 2021?