#SewToShare - Personal Progress: May 2015

Been doing a lot of sewing around here and finally taking the time to sit down and do a little progress post. All of this incredible fluff is finished, tagged and loaded into my van for delivery next week.....we can't wait!!! Delivery days are always so much fun for our family! A great way to kick of the summer for sure! 

These little friends were made using the Little Love Bunny pattern from Jennifer Jangles. I was thrilled to win this pattern during an Instagram giveaway! And the best part.....when Jennifer found out that I would be using the pattern to sew for our FLUFF Project, she sent a box of stuffed friends she had made to be included with our next delivery!! Awesome, I know!!! You can find the Little Love Bunny pattern HERE, and be sure to check out the other creative inspiration on Jennifer's site as well....including FREE sewing patterns! 

This is the "Starla Starfish" pattern that I created and offer for FREE! I've added ric rac loops to the ends of each "arm", along with sewn felt eyes, so these friends can be perfect for even our youngest recipients! It also allows a way to connect this soft friend to a stroller or carrier to help keep close by. You can find the FREE Starfish Pattern HERE!

These playful pups are some of my favorites to sew! Simple and quick and absolutely LOVABLE in every way! They are made using the George the Puppy pattern in the book Girl's Word by Jennifer Paganelli of Sis Boom. You can find this pattern FREE here! I have truly lost count of how many of these pups I have sewn over the years!

This is another simple and sweet pattern to sew! This is the Henry & Helga elephant pattern offered as a FREE pattern & tutorial at Birch Fabrics. Find this pattern HERE.

I love sewing these sweet dolls and they are always well received! The potential for making each individual and personal is endless! These were made using the Matroyshka Doll pattern by Whimsy Couture. You can find this darling pattern HERE. I think this pattern has even been updated to include multiple sizes since I first bought it years ago, allowing for the opportunity to make these sweet friends in a variety of huggable sizes! 

And last to share are my beautiful ballerinas that I posted in detail about yesterday! LOVE THEM!!! This pattern is by Blue Whimsy and is a ton of fun to sew with! These little sweethearts radiate cheer and personality!!! You can find this pattern HERE. 

So there you have it! A peek into my sewing accomplishments over the past couple of months!
Learn more about the FLUFF Project and how you can be a part by clicking the image below!

Now.....where to start next!!! ;)

Beautiful Ballerina Dolls! Pattern by Blue Whimsy

 These lovely girls have been in the works for quite a while!

I tend to sew in "batches" when I'm working on items to donate, and sometimes....well, sometimes, I end up on a roll while I'm cutting and lose count on how much I'm going to have to sew. That kinda happened with these girls, so it has taken a bit of time to finish them, but I am tickled with how they've turned out!  

Each one has it's very own style and personality!

This is the Nora Ballerina pattern from Blue Whimsy.

I entered a giveaway that she had going on, knowing that these sweet girls would be perfect for our FLUFF Project. Before the giveaway was even over, she contacted me and told me that after reading about the FLUFF Project, she would like to offer me any pattern of my choice from her shop! Her kindness and generosity really touched me and I was so excited to get to sew this sweet pattern!

These are the ones that will be donated....

 And these I will be offering for sale to help off set the cost of time & materials...

You can find the ones available for purchase HERE!

The pattern also includes sweet little felt ballet slippers, but I chose not to add those due to the likelihood of them getting lost while in the donation shuffle.

The tutus are absolutely my favorite part!!!! They fluff up so darling!

This was a really fun pattern to sew! I loved watching them come to life through the process.

I made a simple change to the final assembly of the doll to make turning easier for me. The original opening for turning is on the dolls back, as you'll be able to see in one of the below pictures. However, I think I made my openings too small, and I struggled to get my first doll turned. And since I sew each step in an assembly line fashion when batch sewing, that meant they were all like this. So, here's what I did as an alternate way to finish....in case you find yourself in the same predicament! ;)

Adjusting the needle to the side, stitch 01 in the image, allows for an easier and more precise stitch along the edge. I used this stitch for much of my dolls assembly.

I attached the arms, and then sandwiched them inside the 2 body pieces, sewing from one bottom edge to the other, leaving the bottom open and legs unattached. 

 After trimming and turning the body, I turned under and ironed the bottom edge and pinned the legs in place. 

After sewing in place, I was then able to stuff the doll from the original opening in the back.  

This is a lovely pattern, one I definitely will sew again! The dolls are already drawing quite a bit of attention from all my friends and family who have seen them! 

You can find Blue Whimsy in all your favorite places....

Blue Whimsy website/blog

Blue Whimsy facebook page

Blue Whimsy on Instagram

Blue Whimsy Etsy shop

Oh....and if you'd like to try one of her patterns for FREE, she has a darling little mermaid pattern HERE so you can! :)

Be sure to tell her you saw her sweet pattern here when you drop by to check out all her other sewing sweetness, so she knows just how much I appreciate her generosity! 

NEW!!! FLUFF Project Tags

So excited about the new addition of tags for our FLUFF Project donations!

Starting with our next deliver, each of our stuffed friends will now include a tag with a personal message.

 The message reads,

This friend is especially for you! 

Provided through the FLUFF Project of Hopeful Threads.

Share HOPE. 

#FLUFFproject

Thanks to our creative and generous friend Amy, many of these tags are hand stamped & colored!!! Aren't they beautiful!?!?!?! The others are punched from colorful, printed cardstock with this handy new gadget I couldn't resist!

All 165 stuffed friends we have prepped for delivery next week are tagged with one of these special tags! A little personal touch can really make such a difference! 

Stay tuned as I share some of the wonderful fluff friends I've been working on and be sure to visit our Flickr group for a look at everything being delivered!

Prepping for Delivery!

No, I'm not having a baby. ;) 

At least not of the living flesh kind. I'm working on a BUNCH of babies in the form of Stuffed Friends for children in Foster Care through our FLUFF Project!

Not familiar with the FLUFF Project? Well, you can read all about it RIGHT HERE!

I'm tentatively planning my next delivery, the first of 2015, of stuffed friends to our Juvenile Court for JUNE 2015. So for those of you fabulous and generous FLUFF sewists, just a little heads up!

Thank you all for being a part of such a meaningful outreach and being such an inspiration and encouragement to me on a regular basis! HUGE hugs and love!

#SewToShare

A Pretty Little Giveaway!

 It's always fun to play along during the SMS Giveaway Days, so once again, I have a little gift to offer! :) First, I'd like to share something extra special that goes on around here, the FLUFF Project. It's near and dear to the hearts of me & my family and YOU are invited to be a part as well. The FLUFF Project is our effort to provide stuffed friends for children in foster care. Click the FLUFF Project image below to read more.

The FLUFF Project

Now see, that wasn't much to read. ;) So onto the giveaway!

My pretty little bundle includes:

A Two Brown Birds - Pretty Little Pincushion pattern card

Some lovely Fat Quarters

Embroidery Thread

Felt Flower Embellishments

Buttons & Lace

Everything you need to make up a bunch of sweet pincushions to use or share!

Super easy to enter too, just follow the Rafflecopter prompts below.
Open to US residents, and our international friends who have sent donations this year (2015) are also welcome to enter!
I appreciate all of your support and generous efforts to GIVE BACK! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Winner announced Monday, May 11, 2015. Winner will be also be emailed and expected to respond within 48 hours or an alternate winner may be selected.

Thanks for stopping by!
Be sure to visit Sew Mama Sew for lots more giveaway fun!

#SewToShare