Ring Bling + Gift Ideas + BJD WIP

This week I've got some crafty updates for you. Two of my craft content pieces went live over at  and. 

My Poppet

First up, My Poppet has you bling craftsters covered with a Glow in the Dark ring tutorial.

Kidspot

Over at Kidspot you will also find a 'no sew' way of making a fabric gift bag. Hint: It's a Teacher's Gift inspired project.

This week has seen incremental progress with my BJD project. Onto blue print number 9, and a second head and body. The elusive limbs are my next focus.

Quickly Now

    This will be short and sweet. I promised my youngest to read a couple of library books to her, so very quickly I will share with you my current progress on art projects…

I am in the middle of cutting up the pieces for a 'final' wolf mask.

I also framed a paper cut Street Fighter image that I made a few weeks ago.
A telling sign that I just may be dyslexic - the first time I framed the image
I put it in reversed and didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with the 'sv'
for a good 20 minutes.

Look At That

Melissa Gaggiano doll design

    Will you look at that. I wasn't sure how I'd address Link's hair. Using my usual felt wigs [the mermaid dolls] and the floppy yarn hair [a more recent design feature] wasn't going to work with this doll. Staring at the illustrations of Link I realised that his hair needed to be flat, curved and layered in individual pattern pieces.

Hard To See

Melissa Gaggiano doll design

At first it's hard to see how it's all going to come together when faced with a couple of unconnected, flat pattern pieces. But as you build on it, that doll takes on a life of it's own. Keep on, keeping' on!

Legend of…?

    A new project in the works… A Legend of Zelda doll. Not saying much. Very busy. Here's a snapshot of where it is at. Gotta keep on, keeping on.

Melissa Gaggiano Photography

Cute + Scary

Doll design by Melissa Gaggiano

    I have begun work on a doll design for my eldest. Knowing that I was making a Monster High doll for my youngest, she wanted to have her own. So I asked her to do a drawing of how the doll should look. I have interpreted the drawing with a couple of modifications.

    My eldest is super excited and can't wait for me to finish the doll. If she had her way I would have been working on the doll well into the night, but after 8 hours I had to put my foot [and sleepy head] down.

All That Hair

Doll design by Melissa Gaggiano

    After three hours of hair work, I am almost there. Next step is to design and sew the goggles that sit on the doll's head.
    Goodnight, so tired now.

Almost There, Just a Littler Further

Doll design by Melissa Gaggiano

    Getting there with the Robecca Steam doll. Only two things left to to make - the hair aaaaand the steampunk goggles.

Progress

    My youngest is an excellent manager. She has been making sure that I stay on track making her Robecca Steam doll. So I really don't have too much time to wax lyrical about how well the project is coming along, because I know the little one will come in any moment and ask me to keep working on the doll. But I thought I'd share this snapshot of where it is at…

Doll design by Melissa Gaggiano

Tastes like Cherry Cola

    A couple of months ago I came up with a new doll body template. She got made but then just sat in a bag without hair, face or clothes to compliment her. The poor thing! All she had were a pair of mix match shoes on her feet.

    Then one incredibly boring day this week I decided it was time to do something about this unfinished doll. That's when I realised that I had a spare felt wig left over from my mermaid collection - solving the problem of the hair. Next came the face which all got sewn on while watching The Notebook [the first time I've been able to watch this film without blubbering].

    And now I am working on the doll's outfit. I found this hairy, swirly, rainbow,yarn, and I have been crocheting the skirt. And to top it all off, my eldest has christened the doll Lola. World meet soon-to-be-dressed-Lola.

Doll design by Melissa Gaggiano

12 x 17

    It has been a while since I last posted about my granny square project. But that doesn't mean it is dropped or forgotten. In actual fact I finished making all my granny squares. Now is the patient task of crocheting the pieces together. I imagine this will take one or two months to complete.

Click here to see the full progress of my granny square project.

10 x 10

Image by Melissa Gaggiano

    Will you look at that... One hundred granny square pieces done. Just another 105 to get through. I haven't worked out what colour I will use to thread the pieces together. Perhaps it'll be something light coloured.

Click here to follow the entire progress of this project.

WIP It

I am still knitting a winter skirt for Gwennie. You can see the progress as per the above photo.


What else can you see in that photo?

• There is a sketch/art journal, which includes my knitting notes.
• There is a mess of wool — which my daughter got stuck into and had fun with.
• A dressmakers measuring tape, so I know when to stop knitting.
• And there is a library book, that I have just started reading — Ghouls Gone Wild by Victoria Laurie.