troll tuesday

last week was shrove tuesday

today is troll tuesday.

nice to be snipping/sticking/painting/messy again on a new book for those nosy crows

todays floor snippings (in a kind of like paper hairdressers floor type way)

goldilock and just the one bear prints!

hey hey.... these are some lovely big fatty A2 prints of my new picture book "Goldilocks and just the one bear" that i have done for nosy crow to be displayed in a foyer somewhere in birmingham. i love big prints.. and these scrub up quite good i reckon.

ps sorry the photo is a little blurry- i took the photo last night and the camera was a bit pooped.

magical mixup "Birthdays and Bridesmaids" book!

my advance copies of the first "magical mixup" doodly chapter book with the Nosy Crows arrived in the post today. Think it will be out in marchish?

I illustrated the book and it was written by the wonderful Marnie Edwards.

It is for ages 7+ and  features bonkers besties Emerald the Witch and Princess Sapphire who whizz about unravelling mixups galore. in the book the mixup is a wedding and a birthday party.

It is the twin sister book for the uber brilliant "mega mash up" series where the reader is encouraged to doodle and design and finish the illustrations... can think of anything more fun!

We are just putting the finishing touches on book number 2... and there are even more to come!

Pencil skirt kitty

.this one is a real easy peasy one to make...

1 Cut out both the pieces keeping neatly to the outside cutting line

2 Pin both pieces together with the printed side facing inwards.

3 Sew around the edge keeping to the printed line as best you can (you can see this through the fabric). Make sure to leave the flat space in between the two ears unsewn . (You will need to leave this open to be able to turn the right way and stuff later).

4 Carefully snip around the curved edges of  the seam (making sure not to cut into the sewn line). 

This will give a better finish and prevents bunching around the seam when you turn it inside out.

5 Turn the Pencil Skirt Kitty the right way around and stuff.

6 Hand sew up the opening.

and here she is... Miss Pencil Skirt Kitty.

She is a bit of an oddity- maybe thinking she is too spindly for a nice big fat comfy cushion, 

And she looks a bit like a big spanner... not sure if i will go full steam ahead with this one for my etsy shop.

Hmm... but maybe she would be good with a tv remote pocket on her skirt (it would be exactly the right shape for that). A tv remote storing cushion... too gimmicky or a brain wave?

McBabby Rabbits

hey there yooall,

i managed a small slice of time to rustle up a couple of fine McBabbys.

again, there will be a few tweaks. but think these will  be fun as one has a squeaker in, (Squeaky McBabby) and one had a bell in (Dingaling McBabby).

1
Cut out all the pieces keeping neatly to the outside cutting line.
2
Make 2 piles (one for Squeaky McBabby,and another for Dingaling McBabby)and follow the instructions below for each one in turn.

 3
Pair up the matching pieces so that you have 2 legs (the longer pieces) and 2 arms (the shorter pieces). Pin with the printed side facing inwards.

4 

Sew around the edge keeping to the printed line (you can see this through the fabric). Make sure you don't sew the flat edge at the top of each arm/leg. (You will need to leave this open to be able to turn it inside out and stuff later). 

5

Carefully make little snips up to the seam around the curved edges of each limb(making sure not to cut into the seam). This will give a better seam finish when you turn it the right way).

 6
Turn both arms and both legs inside out (so now the printed side is on the outside).
7
Stuff both arms and both legs (making sure not to overfill as  will need some space to be able sew onto the body later).

8

Carefully place one of the stuffed arms inside the pinned body with its unsewn edge visable outside the hemline of the body pieces (angling arm down slightly so that it hangs better).  Then sew down one side of the body from neck to bottom corner.

9

Carefully do the same for the second arm. 

10

Place both legs inside the body with their unsewn edge poking out the bottom of the body piece. (This is a little fiddly as the body gets a bit full at this stage) Then slowly sew both legs into position in the body.

11

Continue sewing around the rest of the McBabbys head- making sure to leave about 8cm unsewn at one side of the head.

(oops sorry i forgot to take photos of 9,10 and 11... my naughtey 2 year old dropped my camera and the one i borrowed is way to fancypants complicated!)

12
Turn the McBabby the right way around and stuff the head and body. (For Squeaky McBabby add the squeaker at this point, for Dingaling McBabby add the bell).
13
Hand sew up the opening.

Dah dah!

ps my eebee calls all rabbits "Babbys, so that is why the name in case you are wondering!