To coincide with One Red Robin’s participation in this month’s Poppytalk Virtual Handmade Market, my shop will be updated this Tuesday (15th April AEST) evening with the following:

Baby Chibi Doll Naomi:

Made from a delicious vintage folksy fabric which Kristy generously sent my way.

Baby Chibi Doll Carys:

Made from a gorgeous vintage (1960’s) print from Retro Vintage Fabrics.

And 5 Peg Bunnies, featuring limited edition screen-prints from 5 very talented independent Aussie Designers:

(Left to right: Shannon Lamden, Kristen Doran, Danielle Smeets, Lara Cameron, and Bianca Van Meeuwen). These Peg Bunnies have either terry fleece or minky fleece tummies and ears, and are backed with a cream wool flannel or a grey wool flannel. More solo pics of each Peg Bunny will be over at my flickr and in my shop on Tuesday.

I hope to have Part 2 of the update ready by the end of this month and it will include some Peg Bears, a Doddi Bear or 2, and 2 Happy Chibi Girls. Please note that this will be my last major shop-update until October this year, so that I can focus on a few other projects. I will only be updating the shop between now and October to restock patterns and prints as required.

Thanks to Lily and Agathe, this week’s “This Is” theme is “This Is . . . My Perfect Dinner Party Guest List“. The deal is to choose 6 people and explain why they would be invited. Here’s my list:

I would love the pick the brains of these inspirational people to know more about what motivates,inspires and informs their creativity:

1. J.R.R. Tolkien
2. C.S. Lewis
3. Shinzi Katoh
4. Mary Blair

And I would also invite my Grandma Betty, who at 94, is still the life of any party. Being a Seamstress, she was the first to introduce me to a love of fabric and design and I wish I could spend time with her more often (she lives in California). I would also love to invite my cousin Genelle, who also lives in California. She’s a kindred spirit and we just can’t seem to stop laughing when we’re together :-)

Wishing you all a happy week ahead!

I must admit that the theme I picked for “This Is . . .” this week was a challenge for me too. I’m not into posting up pictures of myself on this blog much, but since I told myself that this year was about stepping more and more out of my comfort zone, I decided to go with it - and even managed not to hide behind the camera :-)

So that’s me and my favourite accessory at the moment - a Shinzi Katoh bag with mushrooms and a deer. I tend to wear a lot of dark colours so this bag provides some nice splashes of happy colours.

I don’t get to wear the bag often (e.g. not to work, or times when I need a bigger bag when I’m out with the girls), but I think that’s why it always feels more of a special treat when I do get a chance to bring it with me. I’m looking forward to seeing what all the other participants post up - I hope they had fun with the theme!

In crafty news, this Babushka-style softie was completed this week, and the pattern and instructions will be available in an Aussie craft magazine in a few months time:

She was heaps of fun to work on and the trickiest bit was getting the base right so she could stand on her own.

And I’m sure you will pick up on a little bit of “Kokeshi” in her look since that’s where my inspiration seems to be coming from at the moment :-) Speaking of which, this one is not exactly a Kokeshi but she is a vintage doll from Japan and I just couldn’t help adding her to my collection (from eBay).

I’m currently working on what should be in the next shop update. I seem to receive a lot of requests to make some of the pictures I take of my softies into artsy prints. I’ve been playing with a few images and these three will most likely make it into the update (printed on 285 g/m2 fine art paper):

Larger images of the prints will be in my Flickr soon.

But the little ones have just woken from their naps so must rush off for now! Have a lovely week!

Thank you to everyone who commented and emailed regarding my last post. Your sentiments, encouragement and support is much, much appreciated. The update is that one of the expo administrators wrote back to me to say that they had spoken to the lady in question. They were told that the intention of the class was for everyone to design and make their own ‘monsters’ and not make the Shmerpi that was pictured.

My issue with this explanation is that a) the description of the class on the website is markedly different from the intention provided by the administrator, and b) if that is the case, why use a photo of my Shmerpi??? So anyway, I asked that they remove my photo immediately and change the description as the current description + Shmerpi photo is a completely false representation of the class. The administrator has advised me that the webmaster does not work weekends so the changes to the website will be made next week. So that’s where it’s at.

I still haven’t heard anything from the lady who is supposed to be teaching the class, despite emailing her.

For now, I’ll move onto some recent mail goodies and good finds :-)

I was super happy to be able to snap up some of Shannon’s “Cookies” in cherry and “Knitters” in black late last month. Not sure what I’ll use it for just yet - but sometimes, who needs a reason, right? :-)

A few weeks ago, I was surfing some of my favourite shops on etsy with Ava sitting on my lap. She saw the print below by the multi-talented Jade, and immediately requested that we buy one for her room. Jade also sent the cutest penguin fabric. Thanks Jade!

Some of you may have picked up on Superbuzzy’s sale a few weeks ago. I’ve had my eye on a Shinzi Katoh bag for months - I was stoked when I realised it was on sale! Of course, I couldn’t just order the bag from Superbuzzy, so a few pieces of sale fabric also came my way including a really sweet vintage owl trim.

And speaking of Japanese fabric, this is what I found in the latest Spotlight catalogue:

Looks like Spotlight have caught onto the Japanese fabric craze! I did notice that they started stocking a limited range of Michael Miller and Kaffe Fassett fabrics a few months ago. The pricing is very reasonable too. However I checked whether my local store had some of the fabric and they said that stock was running a little behind schedule in terms of delivery - not sure if that’s the same case for other stores too.

Okay, off to enjoy a gorgeous sunny afternoon!

Thank you all for your emails and comments on the article!

After weeks of feeling under the weather, my energy levels have finally returned to normal and I am happily getting through my list of things to do. I’m hoping to knock out 2 remaining wholesale orders this week. To that end, some Shmerpi creatures are patiently waiting for their little softies:

. . . and some Baby Chibi dolls are in progress . . .

. . . which inevitably means that the floor in my studio looks like this:

I also wanted to share with you a lovely package I received yesterday:

It’s from A Little Goodness (thanks for the recommendation Jade!), who’s shop should really be called A Whole Lotta Goodness! I couldn’t resist buying some fabric, including a super cute Shinzi Katoh print on canvas. She also threw in some lollies plus some extra fabric (the white one with pink and red fishes) and an ecobag, because I had won a competition she was running (which I had no idea about :-)). I am currently resisting the urge to drop in on her shop again because I know that if I do, my Paypal balance will be substantially depleted.

I also bought this book from her shop: “Girl’s Clothing” ISBN 978-4-529-04437-0

I know I have said this many, many times before but I am seriously going to try to make clothes for my girls - after the wholesale orders and custom orders are done, this is on the top of my list. Really, it is. And I just adore this book - I can honestly say that I will be trying to make every single piece of clothing in this book. Just look at all that loveliness!

Dawn tagged me a few weeks ago with the 8 things meme that’s been doing the rounds lately. So here are 8 completely random (and most likely useless) facts about me:

1. I literally married the boy next door. His family lived in the house right next to my family’s house, as in just over the fence.

2. By choice, for the first 2 years of our marriage, hubby and I lived without a TV in the house. Instead, we had people over all the time for lunch or dinner, and we went out and travelled a lot.

3. I used to play the violin and the guitar. I’d love to take them up again but there really aren’t enough hours in a day!

4. We’ve had 4 pets: a white Labrador named Indi, a yellow Budgie named Kai, a blue Budgie named R2, and a German Shepherd named Cisco (named after the company, not the musician - can you tell hubby and I work in IT???). At the moment we have no pets.

5. Apparently my ancestry is a mix of Filipino, Spanish, Chinese, Portugese, Indian and French.

6. I used to be addicted to Writing.com. I met so many talented writers through that site and it was also a wonderfully creative community!

7. Silence makes me very uneasy - I need to have the radio on or a CD playing. Back in Uni, I used to study for exams in front of the TV.

8. My closest friend and I have been best friends for 19 years (since Year 7)! BFF indeed!

To keep the ball rolling, I’m tagging all the people who kindly left a comment on my previous post!!!

Okay, back to the sewing machine I go :-)

Here are a few of my Flickr favourites at the moment . . .

1. nest of thread III, 2. mães que nos fazem sonhar, 3. Le pingouin, 4. duckling drawstring bag for my etsy shop - detail, 5. A Goodly Hug ACEO, 6. Monstrinho amigo!, 7. Sathiko03_01, 8. What now… mini art quilt, 9. :), 10. 2904, 11. aqua imago, 12. Remember, 13. WAWAYA20070420, 14. Owl, 15. hen and egg, 16. the cardinal, 17. Tea in the garden!, 18. Seahorse Softie, 19. troca do avental bolinhas…avental com bolsos…, 20. caderno whw 11, 21. Iara (03), 22. A birdie in her floral home, 23. Amor de filho, 24. For little one’s room, 25. table 5

Ahhh, so much inspiration. It is so very easy to lose an hour just clicking through all the crafty goodness on Flickr!

And here’s Sugar the Shmerpi and her little scottie dog (a custom order). The request was for bright and colouful, and with a dog softie.

I’ve used mostly Japanese fabrics and a cute Shinzi Katoh trim. I named her “Sugar” because she reminds me of a big, fluffly cupcake!

It’s always challenging and fun to make custom soft toys - working with the customer’s requirements and trying to add my own little touch to it as well :-) However, in an effort to complete a few overdue projects and try out some new things, I am ceasing the option to order a custom-made soft toy from tomorrow (so I’ll be removing the items from my Etsy Shop). I’ll offer the option again in early July but will probably limit the number on the Shmerpi and Baby Chibi dolls just to keep it manageable.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll probably be posting less as well - perhaps just once a week. June is looking like another very busy month for our family with important decisions to be made - including the direction and future of this little blog and One Red Robin :-)

But for now, I think it is definitely time to offer up another GIVEAWAY!

So here it is: on offer is a Baby Chibi Doll which will have the cute, colourful Japanese fabric that you can see on Sugar’s top (above). The Baby Chibi Doll will be holding a sweet little cat in its hands.

To be in the running to win, all you have to do is leave a comment on this post - in keeping with the “sugar” theme, in your comment please let me know what’s your favourite sweet/chocolate/lolly - I’m always on the look out for new sweet treats so your recommendations would be much appreciated!

Please leave your comment by midnight, Sunday 3rd June (Eastern Aussie Time). One of my sweet real-life chibi girls will draw a name and I’ll announce the winner on June 4th.

Til then, wishing you peace and good health :-)

I received the “One and the Same” print from Sunberst yesterday and I have to say it makes me SOOO happy!

It is truly gorgeous in person and the quality of the print on matte canvas paper is superb. She also included a beautiful postcard and some fish lollies :-) Thanks so much Beth!

Here are a few other things in blog world that are smile-inducing:

• Kids Week at Print & Pattern - an awesome showcase of kid prints, patterns & illustrations. I love the post on Shinzi Katoh and especially love those mugs!
• This toddler shirt made by Carol at Kidding Around.
• Soft Toy Show by Abby of While She Naps
• Amazing contributions from artists all over the world to the Paper Quilt Project
• Kidlet Wall Pocket by Jennifer of JC Handmade
• Small People Collage series by Marianne of Applehead

And finally, just wanted to say that the 2 puppies, Rufus & Misha, are now up in the shop, plus the brown Bib-&-Burp-Cloth set and this green set as well (which incorporates some of my bird pattern).

That was a longer blogging hiatus than I had planned! I have enjoyed taking a little break from cyberspace to catch up with friends, prepare for work next month, and to undertake preparations for Ava’s first day at pre-school (also next month). But it sure is good to get back! If I owe you an email, thanks for your patience - I hope to reply to you very soon :-)

I haven’t had much time to work on more complex craft projects but I have managed to complete these little elephant pillows:

1) Winfred is made of acrylic suiting, wool felt, various cotton fabrics, and a cute elephant trim.

2) Claudine is made of wool-blend herringbone, wool felt, various cotton fabrics, and a sweet trim called “Delicious” by Shinzi Katoh.

They are both currently available in the shop with additional photos.

The following simple softies have been made with a simple purpose in mind - to be hugged! They are sized to fit perfectly in toddler arms :-) and have embroidered and appliqued features. They are both clutching their own security blankets :-) You may notice that they are loosely based on my Baby Chibi Girls.

1) Little huggable Green Rabbit is made of mint-green polar fleece, cotton prints and embroidery floss.

2) And little huggable Pink Cat is made of pink polar fleece, vintage cotton prints and embroidery floss.

They will both be available in the shop tonight. Next on the list is a Happy Chibi Girl for Ava, who turns 3 in a few days - right after I spend a few hours catching up on my Bloglines!

[Update: The Little Huggable Rabbit & Cat are now up in the shop :-)]