Wednesday Worktable: A Video of My Worktable and What I'm Working On.

I've had an increase in viewers lately, so I thought you'd all like to see a little video. I'm currently in the process of shooting step by step photos of a new pattern.

So enjoy my messy studio and I'll see you back here on Friday! 

Worktable Wednesday: Finishing Up Some Dolls and Another FREE Pattern Offer

I spent an hour digging through various bins of finished and unfinished projects looking for these dolls this morning. I'm deciding on clothes, shoes and hair. These should be ready for my next product lunch in April (date TBA).

Aren't they a lovely ethnic rainbow? I love making dolls of and for all people.

 Here's a custom set I made a while back of a mom and her little boy.

I hope you got a chance to see the FREE Easter pattern I posted on Monday. I also made a different FREE pattern for my email subscribers too.

They received a PDF of a double sided ornament and I think it's so cute! You can get this FREE pattern by just signing up for my email.

I'm currently working on the next pattern, it's for Earth Day in April. If you have any ideas for a pattern you'd like to see me make, just leave a comment!

 

Worktable Wednesday: Tools of The Trade

Besides my hands, these are my most used tools. And yes, I consider felt a tool and a medium that helps me express my vision.

Those little crane scissors are new and I'm in love with them!

Monday's Worktable.

I have finished my commissioned soft sculpture piece! My client hasn't seen it yet so I can't show it until she does. But here is a sneak peek I put up last week.

 I can show wips of my 2015 Christmas Collection which I'm pretty excited about.

 Beginning sketches, turn into tighter sketches which turn into paper patterns.

 A young deer is my first design, I think I'll put a bow on it and make it a girl.

 I have a deer with little antlers and a red nose too. I'm currently working on a snowman and a Santa, what else should I make?

Worktable Wednesday

I had a supply shipment take it's sweet time getting to me so I had a few days to stare at the prototype I made, shown in the previous post. Good thing I had that time cause while sketching out the applique and embroidery designs that I'll be sewing on the final piece I realized the prototype wasn't going to work. So I redesigned it again to give more surface area and now can finally start the final piece.

 One of the designs for the soft sculpture piece I mentioned above.

 This is the color pallet for a project. So fun and festive!

 One of my new felt shipments. I'm so eager to get my scissors into these!

 I used all my current blue felt to cut these babies out. I'm currently sewing 1 set a night while watching tv.

 I have little felt scrap stacks all over my worktable.

 This sweetie is in need of clothes, but has to wait her turn.

I'm super, super busy right now, what are you busy doing? 

Working on The Website and More!

I'm busy working away here in the studio this weekend. I managed to completely mess up my website, (I know just enough HTML to get myself in trouble!) throw it away and create a whole new one that works and looks like I want it to, finally! The walls were blue from my cussing Friday! Lol! I actually uploaded my site live and checked all my links, which all worked..squee! Then I took it back down since I don't have any products in it yet. But soon my pretties, soon!

Shopify has a built in blog you can use on your site but since I already had this blog I was able to link it to my website..whoo hoo! Quite honestly it took a while to figure out but once I did I was like "Duh". I had a lot of duh moments and can now see why people pay others to make their sites even on Shopify. It's possible to do it yourself, I did, but I have a graphics background which was super helpful on a lot of the design part, ie. making the header, footer and buttons match my logo colors. I went pretty simple and then customized from there but you could do simple just fine and use the preset default colors. Just go slow and ask for help from Shopify when needed, the have lots of help pages plus you can get one on one help when you first start.Shopify sent me an invite to a free webnar which showed the background basics and you could ask questions during and after. This was super helpful and then they sent me the video to watch whenever I wanted.

Once everything clicked, it was awesome! So I now have a website! My next steps are to finish my products, shoot photos, edit photos, write product descriptions and load everything on the site. Still lots of work and I'm kind of exhausted already, what with moving the studio and all.

Here's a workable peek from yesterday. I think he's foxy.

Oh yes the other big thing I did this weekend was go through all my social media and selling sites and make them all cohesive. I added my new logo everywhere I have a presence, changed colors and added my new tagline. If you know me other places then you'll notice a change.

I also added a link on my sidebar here to subscribe to my newsletter. So if you want to be the first to know when the website is launched, get free little diy plush and other designs to make, notices for giveaways and great things only for subscribers, you absolutely want to sign up.

Tuesday Worktable

Moss isn't growing on me this year! I've already moved on to my next project. Sketches, which I never usually show and a beginning wip. It's super cloudy and dark here today so this is the best my tablet could do so I hope you can see these ok.

Can you guess the theme? This 2 piece soft sculpture will be up for sale once completed. I wanted to make them for my friend Patrick Gill's EWWL selling site but I'm not sure I'll meet the deadline but I LOVE the theme so am doing the piece anyway.

Worktable Friday

I made a bunch of body blanks to practice new hair styles on. I used to sew each strand one by one by hand but what a time-consuming task that was, I also wasn't super happy with the result either. The first one has crazy, multi - textured hair like mine and is my favorite.

 

I have one more tomboy type hair to do then I'll start making dolls. The dolls won't be orange, I'm just using orange bodies for pattern making etc. I hope these dolls I'm going to make will find happy homes.

Worktable Tuesday

Fabrics I'm working with today.

Where Have I Been?

I haven't blogged recently and here's why. I did just start to work on dolls again when my daughter came down with the nastiest case of food poisoning on my birthday. Yep my birthday. I spent 2 and a 1/2 days holding her hair, giving her ice chips, tucking her into to bed with me and promising her she wouldn't die even though she felt like she was.

Then after all of that my chronic illness decided to jump into the party and I've been down and out for days and days. In between all of this I've been taking care of my mom. March has been a really sucky month!

I haven't felt like doing anything. I've been physically and emotionally exhausted. But finally the creative muse slowly crept back and I although I'm working slower than the usual slow that is my normal work speed, at least I'm working.

My once empty work table is full of body parts and embroidery thread.

Here's the guy I'm currently working on. Moriah will know who this is. ;0) Some of you who have been following along will know too. I really love how he's coming along!

Friday's Worktable

Trying to be a better blogger. I have a bunch of new projects on my worktable right now. They are all in the beginning stages so not much to see yet. I know I haven't shown any photos of my newly organized studio yet but well it looks like a bomb went off in here right now so until I have a chance to clean...you will just have to wait. ;0)

Here's a shot of my sewing worktable today. Long time readers will know that this is where my computer desk used to be.

Worktable Monday

Lots of things are going on in Sassy Pack Rat Studios. Still doing penguins, made a bunch of bodies for some dolls and working on my vintage circus piece. I brought a new "flesh" color. Not sure how I'm liking it yet. My work isn't too realistic anyway so it should fit right in with it's peachy self.

Oh dismembered body parts!!!!!!

This will be a crazy week. My mom is having surgery tomorrow. She's getting another new knee. I tease her and say she's going to become Jamie Sommers (The Bionic Woman) and run very fast in slow motion through the woods. (Only people of a certain age will get this reference). I'll be offline all day tomorrow and if you'd be so kind to wish my mom well with her surgery, I'd appreciate it.

The weekend she comes home from the hospital is my nephew's weekend with my brother. It'll be craziness around here! I only hope I survive it.

Be back soon with hopefully more to show!

Worktable Thursday

The main project I'm doing right now is a soft sculpture piece for a Vintage Easter Challenge and Swap that Patrick Gill is hosting over at The Hive. I had a bit of an issue in the beginning but am cruising along now. It's due on my birthday the Saturday after next so I'm really focusing on getting this done in time.

Here a WIP of the bunny. You can see the inspiration piece on my computer. I'm further along then this but don't want to show too much yet. I made his suitcase last night and am starting his umbrella today. His basket isn't done and the head is giving me fits, but I'll be done by the due date!

I have some paper clay pieces started, Easter and several Leprechauns that I know I'll never finish in time for this year. ;0(

I also have another project that has a deadline. I'm making 300 felt penguin ornaments for a wedding. The Bride and Groom want to give them to their guests as favors. This will be a busy Spring for me.

Semi Wordless Wednesday

I carry ziplock bags full of body parts around with me...that's normal..right?

WIP Wednesday

 Let's start with the Never Ending project. Sigh! I cannot make up my mind about this one and keep changing things! One day I'll complete her and proudly show her off to you all.

Trying out some new head shapes. Blurry photo but you get the idea. I have a few more rolling around here...literally rolling around. Had to chase the dog to get one back from her.

Another never ending project. I can't even remember when I started these nor do I know when I'll finish them. A zombie child and some other children who may or may not be turning into zombies. They haven't tried to bite me yet so who knows?

Of course in the midst of all my unfinished work I decide to start something completely new. It's a folk art doll the kind with the big round heads that I love so much. I actually bought a pattern and am doing it in my own Sassy Pack Rat Studios Style. My ADD isn't letting me focus on one thing lately.

I have some styrofoam bodies standing around waiting for clay that I didn't take photos of yet. I'm following Moriah's tutorial on youtube. I'm also getting ready to make my ornaments for The Hive Christmas Ornament Exchange. I still need to work on the Bigfoot plush too. Sigh!

Update: My step dad is doing better. He's off the walker and the oxygen. We are looking into some assisted living for him cause he's going to have a long recovery and needs help with medications, has some memory problems and tends not to eat if you don't put food in front of him. He's on round 2 of physical therapy and has a crap load of doctors visits.

So that's what going on in Sassyland. Hope you are all doing well.

Feltalicious!

18 yards of felty goodness arrived yesterday. Just enough to finish some extra Halloween projects and get a good start on Christmas ones. Yay! Can't wait to drive right in!

Worktable Wednesday and Back to Dolls

A dark Cave. In the middle, a Caldron boiling. Thunder.
Enter the three Witches.

Worktable Tuesday and A Witch.

At the last minute I decided to add a witch to my Halloween Plush Dolls and finished her over the weekend. I think she's my favorite. She's a cutie, isn't she?

 The whole gang is now ready to list in my etsy shop.

 

Some Christmas worktable peeks.

A finished prototype peek.

And yes I went a little nuts last night and started cutting out Halloween owls. How could I not?!