Accessories

     I have been picking away at all the accessories for my next live sale. I was working on another batch of little backpacks. 

And I managed to get 4 more finished. For some reason I seem to work on them in batches of 4, I have no idea why, but that seems to be the way I have been doing it. 

       I had a big stack of saddle pads all cut out and ready to be sewn. 

      After I got several doll outfits made I got those 9 saddle pads finished. I think I have 11 more prepped and ready for sewing. I just need to find the time for another long session at the sewing machine. I have bareback pads ready to be sewn as well. 

      I put in an order with Spoonflower the other day for some more cute micro print fabrics. I worked with a few of the designers to get the small patterns shrunk down even further. I am pretty excited but what I have coming. I have plans for more mini backpacks, saddle pads, and backpacks! So far I am enjoying making the backpacks, but it has been a battle trying to get myself to work on the saddle bags. So far I am losing. 
 

Gaming/Side Saddle

      I didn't get a ton of dolls finished last week. I had some days where working on my order books, gathering reference and doing a lot of prep work took up most of my working time. But I did get a couple of dolls finished. One of them was this gaming rider. She has a super blingy belt and that makes me happy. 

      She also needed a removable side saddle apron that tied in with the rest of her outfit. This is what I came up with. I thought it was fun. There is also bling on the apron.

     I didn't manage a lot of doll time last week but I did get a couple of dolls finished. I also worked on a lot of smaller items. I even posted a tutorial that not many people seem interested in. It was a decent week, though we had a couple of super cold days. I got a bit done on a variety of things. Maybe this week will be even more productive. 
 

Orange is Not My Favorite Color

      I don't really like orange. Travis loves orange, and he looks good in orange, so I often buy orange shirts, but I don't much like the color. Recently I had an order for a doll who was to match a saddle pad. The main color was cream with a bit of light blue, chocolate brown and orange. I felt that skipping the orange would make the doll only sort of match the pad. I didn't want that. 

     I had a bit of this fabric (I think this one came from Maire's stash) that was sort of a pale orange color. So I cut out a bunch of the designs and put them on light blue glitter fabric and then glued those shapes onto the doll. I added a bit of brighter orange trim in a few places. And I actually really love how this turned out!

      I still don't love orange, but I do love when the need to make a doll with different colors stretches my imagination a bit and let's me create a new doll design. I really like the overall look of this one. I may need to see if I can somewhat replicate it a bit in different colors. That will be another interesting challenge. 

Little Things

       I have been picking away at several projects. I am working on things for my next live sale, which will be held on Saturday March 27th. One of the things that is getting closer to being done, is a batch of cross country kits. The other day I made a big pile of watches and medbands. Then when I went to put the kits together I realized I was out of the correct size baggies for them. *sigh* always something. 

       Another little thing I have been working on is the mini backpacks. I have 3 that have a drawstring, which I definitely like, but it makes my fingers really sore to put the string in. So I tried doing just a couple of side folds and a piece of Velcro to hold it. Sometimes the Velcro doesn't  hold super well and it annoys me. But the bags don't hurt to make this way. I do like that. The cookie backpack started while I was cutting out saddle pad pieces. I didn't have enough of the fabric left for a second pad, but it was enough for a super cute backpack!

       I got the furniture I ordered from Terri Wright. I am starting to think I have a problem, lol. I now have 2 pink chairs and a pink sofa, all done in different fabrics (on purpose). I have a gorgeous bookshelf and a cute side table. I *may* also have a bed on the way (not from Terri)... I may have a problem. 

      While Terri and I were chatting about furniture, and my apparent need for a 1:9 scale lamp, I shared some of the other tiny things I have. The 3 little wood pots were ones Ethan made. The candy box has a skull on the top that is not really showing in this pic. 

      And my tiny cabinet of curiosities definitely needs more added to it. The tiny tea set is really just a place holder. Other than that I have the skull, the liver specimen, a tiny geode, and a couple of statues. 

      I really love all my tiny things. I also really wish I had space to build a 1:9 scale room box. Or house. How cool would that be? For now though I will just collect cool little things and think about ways to make maybe a collapsible 1:9 scale house. That could work. 

 

Micro Pouch Tutorial

        I don't really do tutorials. One of the reasons is because it usually takes me a lot of time to work up patterns and things. Another reason is often even with a pattern the finished result has been tweaked so much that a pattern would not really be very useful. Another reason is writing tutorials takes a lot of time, or it can, and I don't have a lot of time. While I am typing this I should be washing the dishes and getting photos of a western pleasure doll that is one glued hat away from being done. 

        Instead, I am writing a tutorial. Some of you may recently have seen my micro horse pouches on Instagram and my Facebook studio page. Last Sunday I got the idea in my head that I NEEDED to make some micro horse pouches. It would not get out of my head until I sat down to make one. So I made one. And then a few more. They were actually pretty easy to make. Though I have been working in miniature for a really long time. Maybe they only seem easy to make. 

       I do not have a pattern or measurements for this project. I can give you a supply list though I guess:

Cute cotton fabric (or solid, whatever)

Plain solid cotton fabric (preferably light colored or colorfast)

Thread in any color you like (I use invisible, it is super hard and annoying to use until you get used to it)

Wicked sharp scissors

Something pointy but not sharp (end of a skinny paintbrush could work)

A sewing machine

A micro of your choice. 

      1. The first thing you want to do is lay out a piece of fabric. You want to to be about 2 and a half times as tall as your model. You want it to be a bit wider as well. If you are not comfortable sewing very close to the edge, add a bit more all the way around. Cut a piece of your lining fabric that is the same size. 

      2. Next lay your fabric down right sides together (print side in). Start on the long edge about 1/3rd of the way down (I forgot to take a photo). Stritch down the side, down the short side, all the way up the long side, the second short side, and the top 1/3rd of the first long side. You should have a gap left open in the middle of the first long side. 

      3. Next, if you left a large seam allowance trim these, but not too close to the seam! Flip your fabric right side out. Use the pointy tool to poke the corners as square as you can make them. It will not be 100% square. If it is you have likely popped the seam. 

     

      4. Do a straight stitch along both short edges, as close as you can get to the edge. I mean, super close and almost sewing nothing. 

      5. Now you want to flip your piece (the open side seam is fine, leave it) so the printed side is facing up and upside down. If it's not a directional print it doesn't matter. But if it is putting the piece upside down will make the pattern right side up when the pouch is done. Fold the TOP down first (I know this photo makes it look like this is not where we are heading.) and the bottom part up. You want there to be a slight overlap, with the top being higher than the bottom. Make sure everything is as squared up as you can make it. Feel free to use pins if you want. Even though they are not on the supply list.

      6. Stitch up both sides of the pouch. This will also close up the open edge you had from step two. Next you can trim the seams like I do, but you do not have to do this step. I feel that it takes up less space inside if you do this. 

         7. The last step is to flip the pouch right side out. If you find your pouch is way too big for your micro you can flip it inside out again and take another stitch up one or both sides and retrim. Don't do too much at a time. In micro scale millimeters are a big deal!

      In the end you will have a cute little, lined, horse pouch for your micros. These can be for playing with your dolls or bringing to shows. Or just because you had the idea in your head and you needed to try it out. 

       I am really glad I made these. They were kind of fun to do and I got the project out of my head. I messed up a couple of things on these a couple of times while I was working out the process. I tried to stress what you really need to watch out for. I forgot to do some of the photos. If you can sew, you hopefully followed along. You could probably do this project by hand. I don't recommend it, but I bet it could be done. 

        I may be offering some of these at my next live sale. I have not decided just yet. Though I am pretty sure the sale will be on Saturday, March 27th, sometime in the afternoon. I may also offer some as show prizes at the Field of Dolls Spring Online show. But I have not decided that yet either. But I do know they are pretty fun to make!

      I guess now I should go and put the doll's hat on and take photos. Then I need to wash the dishes. Writing tutorials is definitely more fun than washing dishes. 

 

Letters Home-Caifornia

    My Little Elecktra Doll stayed in Colorado over the holidays since the mail was a mess and we didn't want to risk her getting lost. But now she has made it to California to visit Corina Roberts and her dolls. All of the photos in this post are by Corina. 

     Hi Mom!

         I had such a great time in Colorado with Jennifer but I have finally gotten back into my travels! Corina picked me up the other day and brought me home. I was so excited to see my cousin Grace again. We of course had to get a photo together. The great thing about being a doll is we can do things like this without masks!

      We visited for a bit and I had a great time talking to Skye. I have not seen her since she came to stay with us for a bit several years ago. We could have talked for hours I am sure, but I was so exhausted from my travels. Skye said I could take the top bunk since she likes to play with the animals and she didn't want to disturb me. That was so sweet!

I put my hat over my eyes and konked right out. What it is about traveling that is so tiring?

      When I got up from my nap Grace, Sky and I went out for a ride. The mountains are so beautiful! When I get home we should go on a hike again. Though I know the more mountainous terrain is hard on your bad ankle. Maybe one of the less steep hiking trails. And hopefully when it is warmer. California is amazing. 

     Grace is working on getting her NaMoPaiMo horse ready for February. It is going to be wonderful! I am not sure where I will be yet during NaMoPaiMo. I had so much fun participating last year, but I think going visiting is going to be the fun for this year for me. 

     That's all I have for now. I miss you but I am having so much fun visiting our hobby friends. I'll write more soon!

       Love,

          Elecktra



 

Repairs

      I don't love Breyer youth dolls. Out of the box they are just about useless as riders and are really only good as standing around prop dolls. Some of them are not even particularly good at that. Youth dolls take a lot of work to be good riders. Even then, they are somewhat delicate dolls.

     Recently (OK, I had this doll WAY too long before I got around to fixing her) a youth doll came back to me with a broken leg. The way I made youth dolls is to take the legs off, cut the leg below the knee, drill a hole and super glue sculpting wire into the hole. I then wrap the leg with gauze and medical tape. This particular youth doll had the wire in her leg snap. 

     My first step was to get a sacrificial doll and steal one of her legs. I thought about replacing both legs but then I figured I would try out a repair instead. I unwrapped the broken leg and trimmed off a new piece of sculpting wire. 

      The next step was to drill a hole in the new leg and add in the wire. I use Gorilla gel glue, which I have found is great for a variety of projects. 

     This next bit was a complete experiment. I spread some of the gel superglue on the wire protruding from the leg and up the wire from the original leg. Then I took a piece of gauze and wrapped it around and around so the gel glue squeezed out into the gauze. Yes, I did glue myself to the project at one point. It is almost impossible not to. My hope was that when this all dried and cured it would hold the leg on and also reinforce the part that bends. 

      Next was taking the original foot and boot and putting it on the new leg. I trimmed the ankle down a bit since it was too long (there is a lot of cutting involved with making youth dolls) and then I pushed the pin from the foot into the lower part of the new leg. Once the boot top was back up and glue in place again I had everything almost back together. Cutting off the feet and pinning them into the leg (literally) is how I can get youth dolls to have flexible feet. 

      I got all the clothing back in place and did the stiches to hold the breeches under the foot. This make them look the way they should and also ensures that the pinned foot is very unlikely to come off. The doll is still fairly delicate, she doesn't have a lot of Breyer youth doll left to her, but she is back in one piece and ready to ride again. 

 

Project

       I have been wanting to make bareback pads for a long time. It was one of those things that I would think about, think about the process, and then not seem to be able to find time for. Finally, I made some time. 

      I started out by making a pad shape pretty much like I make western saddle pads. I made 2 versions of this one before I liked how it came out (the first had fleece instead of felt on the underside and "piping" sewn in... which was a hot mess!). In general, designing this part of the project was super simple. Sewing is the part I am good at. 

      Next I had to work  out how to put a girth on. This was the first attempt. I did not like the ribbon on the edge, the handle was too big and the straps just looked kind of sloppy. 

      I got some different materials and I liked this version a lot better. Though it still needed a girth. 

      The next day I was planning on tackling the girth. The largest buckles Rio Rondo carries are still too small for the ribbon I got to make the girth from. Poop. Now I had to rethink everything. Again. 

     I hunted around on the Rio Rondo Website and I thought about getting the large buckles and making a girth from some leather of the correct width. I still might do a version of that idea, but this is what I currently came up with. Most bareback pads have a single large buckle on each side, but I did see plenty that have a double buckle girth. So I figured I would make one like this so I could at least have a working prototype to play with. 

     And I really love how this came together. I asked Jennifer Buxton for her tack makers opinion on things and she said I should make a shorter girth so the buckles end up lower. She says if the buckle is here on the real thing it is very uncomfortable. Good to know. 

     So this set will get tweaked a bit more. Once I shorten the girth and make new straps I can start to work on some more bareback pads. I want to offer these at my live sale. 

      Hoodie dolls need these after all!

     My current plan is to make them all in black with different colors of trim. I think that can really streamline my process. Later on I will likely do other color combos. But for now I think I'll try to keep it a bit simple. 

In Progress

     I did not get many dolls finished last week. Actually, all I managed to do was wrap up a few extras that went with a doll that was already done. It was not a good week for dolls. I did dremel a batch and I got a couple of outfits cut out and sewn. But not a ton of progress happened. 

     I did however get a bunch of work done on several doll accessories. I started working on a batch of cross country kits for my next live sale, which will be at the end of March.

      I found that picking away at bits and pieces of these when I had a few minutes got them put together fairly quickly. I have a few more I would like to make, but I am waiting on some ultra suede for one particular color and to see the color of another piece. I am aiming for 15 sets for the sale. I am getting closer. 

      I also took what I learned while making my prototype backpack and improved on things a bit. I definitely love this vintage plaid fabric. I have been posting progress pics of all kinds on Instagram. I am definitely having fun with miniatures this week. 

     By the end of the week I had managed to get the 12 vests and pinnies all put together. I need to make the medbands and pinnies, but progress is good. I also have four mini backpacks finished for my sale. 

       I really like all of these a lot. Even though they are not pink, lol. I needed to take a bit of a break from these. The process for putting the drawstrings in makes my fingers really sore after a bit. But I am for sure planning on more backpacks. 

       I got a bunch of judge name tags finished this week as well. I need to start on some more clipboards and put together some judges kits. I have a couple of other new miniature projects in the works as well. One is only in my head so far and the other is in the finished but likely getting tweaked phase. I think I will talk about that more tomorrow. 

Halter Pics

      I am not a halter shower. I understand it, I know you need to assign a breed that your model plausibly can be. You need to make sure it is in good condition. Then you need to put it on the table, in the correct class, and hope the judge agrees with your breed assignment. I am not a halter shower. I don't like breed assignment and I don't particularly like naming horses. Unless they are performance horses. I still care very little about the breed but the name matters more then. Recently I decided to enter the Breyerwest show. There is unlimited entry into performance but I do not have a whole ton of Breyers of any size. But I do have some. I took some performance photos, though I have a couple more horses I could get photos for if I had time, good weather and the desire to do it. I think I am lacking the desire. 

     Since I entered the show I figured I might as well put some halter horses in. Now I have to figure out things like collectability, do breed assignments... these halter pics may not end up in the show. I also had to name a bunch of horses. So please enjoy some halter pics I took recently, or in the past and dug up, and the weird and lazy names my horses have.

Jewel

Lilith (who shows in performance)

Apparition (because that is what I name gray horses)

Kevin (because Jennifer said I need one)

Just Because (who is a performance horse)

Chili Pepper (who I have had since I was a kid and used to have a longer name)

Skippa Latte (who is also a performance horse, though not recently)

Butterscotch Chip (because she is butterscotch colored and I hate naming horses)

Jazz (who I named after the horse I named at the trail riding place where I used to volunteer)

Jeff (because I like that name)

Jack Daniels (because I name horses after booze)

Dot Matrix (because I am old and it has spots)

     Some of my horses should get new halter photos, but I just don't have that much desire to show in halter. I will do it because why not. Well, that's if I can figure out how to add info to the photos. I am sure once I get it everything will be easy. But until I understand it... I have a lot of photos uploaded on pony bytes with no info on them.