Inedible Desserts, the Un-Patchwork Dress, and TIB's Heroes Contest

Aloha all! I have been deep in the crafting mines yet again, which is why I've been away for a bit. However, I thought it was about time I resurfaced for a much needed break. I must often remind myself to smell the roses, make some human contact, and to basically stave off my inevitable future of being a crafting hermit for just a little bit longer.

So I've had cupcakes on my mind lately. Like really badly. I am not sure what it is exactly since I'm more of a muffin sort of gal then a cupcake one. It could very well be due to Linda and Molli's influence. All their talk of cupcakes with accompanying yummy-licious photos have planted a sugary sweet seed in my head. I've been wanting to make cupcakes ever since, but since I can't bake worth beans . . .

This is my first crack at making an amigurumi cupcake. It came out looking more like a bloated, frosted acorn. Back to the drawing board.
These are cupcakes Version. 2.0. They definitely look more cupcake-y, less acorn-y.

Here is a shot of their frosted tops.

I really enjoyed making these cupcakes. I did them free hand, which kept things interesting and novel because I never knew how they were going to turn out. Not only is it a really fun and cute project, but it's also a fabulous way to use up scrap yarn.

Keeping with the dessert theme, I also crocheted this nutty mocha sundae beret for our friends Sandy and Sarafina. Thank you Sandy!

As for Loovee's patchwork dress from last post, I'm afraid I got sidetracked. Sometimes you just have to go where inspiration takes you and this week inspiration arrived in the mail in the form of these kawaii linen fabrics from Sweet Flavor and Plum Tickled Fabrics.

I know I said I would have the patchwork dress from last post finished by now, but I just went mad over the circus elephant print fabric as soon as I saw it, and I just had to do something with it immediately. I decided to use the same pattern as Loovee's old apron dress because I wanted a simple style, where the kawaii print is easily visible. I gave it a bit of a twist with a wider contrasting border and some vintage rick-rack. I also made a head kerchief to match.
It looks very playful and summery to me. Like something Loovee could wear skipping on the beach.

I'm so sorry to everyone that was expecting to see the patchwork dress in this post. The word "willy-nilly" is not in my blog title by accident. It definitely describes how scatterbrained and impulsive I am, and how keeping a certain order is a difficult thing for me to do. I swear you will see the patchwork dress in the near future (barring any more sudden inspirations and cute distractions).

A Blythe project I'm very excited about is the Heroes Costume Contest hosted by TIB. Have you all heard about this? Gina Garan says, "The theme is 'Heroes' and the basic premise is to dress up to 3 of your girls as any notable figure, living or non. She can be anything from a popstar to a politician to a flying monkey (Dorothy's buddy)." Doesn't that sound like such fun? Deadline is May 15 so get started everyone! I have some ideas for Loovee's costume already! It will be thrilling to see what interesting and creative costumes everyone comes up with!

Well, it's been very good chatting with you all again, but it's now time for me to dive headlong into the bottomless depths of craftiness and cute once again!

The 2nd Annual Softie Awards and a Bunch of Blythe Goings-Ons (is that a real word?)

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for all your congratulations on my little ami bunny softies. I appreciate it so much!So there is even more softie fun to be had! The 2nd Annual Softie Awards Contest is now in session! There are a lot of fun categories this year -- Picnic Food, Elephant Tribute, Cutest Face, Pink or Plaid, and Embroidered to Death. Consider entering if you haven't already. It's so much fun to play along! Do check out the Softies Central Flickr group to see all the entries so far and prepare to be inspired!
I think I will enter my little Albino Koala in the Cutest Face category. That's her face peeking out of my banner up there. She was the first softie I ever made of my own design so she is very dear to my heart. It was inspired by a real life albino koala, Onya-Birri.

For the Pink or Plaid category I plan to enter my Good Luck Cat.

This week in Blythe I finished this nutty strawberry sundae hat for Gina & her girls. Thank you Gina!

I also made this sketch of a dress that's been bouncing around in my noggin for awhile. It's a very simple sundress, which features a gathered patchwork skirt. I like the idea of it, but I think it's in danger of turning out sort of hippie looking, which is not the look I'm going for. I want it to be sweet, childlike and playful.
I've chosen these fabrics for the dress so far. I stuck to pastel colors (with lots of pink :) and dainty prints, which hopefully will avoid the whole hippie issue. Another fear that I have is that all the seams in the skirt will make it look rather stiff. To avoid that I've chosen the lightest, most airiest fabrics from my stash -- cotton gauzes, handkerchief linens, and London lawns.

Next step is to draft the pattern. If all goes well you'll see the final product in my next post.

Take care until then!