I Did It! - Squishy Belly Bunny (Prototype)

I have no desire to ever attempt to sew doll clothes or any other teeny little things. When I'm working on tiny details I find myself gritting my teeth, clenching my stomach, * fussing under my breath. No fun. And we've already established that the fun-factor is of considerable value when I choose to make something once - let alone again & again. My thought process when choosing a new project goes something like 'oh, that's cute...and it looks easy'. Easy is right up there with fun-factor.

Which leads me to this cute, little fellow...littler than I thought it would be.

Cute, huh? I didn't make that one. It's the pic from a really good tutorial at ChezBeeperBebe.

Remember that hot mess I mentioned the other day? Here it is; my proto-type of Squish:

I used one of my dad's old shirts for the fabric. If I can get this pattern worked out I'd like to make a few Squish's to have on hand for gifts, maybe adding a felt flower for girls & bow ties for boys. I've been collecting shirts from my dad & a couple other friends - I even asked a young man at work to give me the shirt he was wearing should get a stain on it. Lucky for him I wasn't holding a big bowl of marinara. I kinda can't believe I did that but then, so what? It was a beautiful green and navy stripe & it would make a super-cute bunny.

Do you see how little Squish is head-to-toe? Only about 6 inches. Sewing the little curves on the arms & legs & ears was tight. Turning it right-side-out was a pinch & not because I'd left the hole too small like I usually do. I did it just like in the instructions. The worst part was stuffing it. Eesh. Big teeth clencher.

The pattern calls for the ears to be attached after the body is completed. Next time I'm going to sew them in when I'm constructing the body. I over-stuffed the ears so they're too heavy & hang straight down. They definitely wouldn't have fit inside the body. I'll give it a try next time. I don't have the stitching skills to sew them onto the head cleanly or securely by hand

I will make this bunny again but I'll enlarge the pattern. I want Squish to be larger, something a kid can hang onto. And easier & funner for me.

One of the skills I want to work on this year is hand-stitching. I don't like doing it so I avoid it which means I don't get better at it so I don't like it. Please, don't analyze that. Anyway, I bought a little embroidery hoop, some thread, & needles & am going to start practicing. This pattern called for a ladder stitch to close the body. I pretty much gave up & this is the result

I wouldn't have left it like that if it were a gift but it's just a prototye so I didnt' sweat it. I'm not even going to attempt a go at embroidering the eyes & nose. I have some practice to do first.

Changing the subject: I keep having this issue with my machine stitching
Can you see that bunching of thread at the beginning of the seam?

It happens on the under-side when I beginn stitching. Somehow the length of thread that's loose (does that have a name to it?) gathers up & makes a mess. It's not the bobbin thread; it's the thread from the spool. It happens time & time again but not every time.

Perhaps I need to finally take a sewing class after all these years. I'm reminded of the story of the golf master, (Arnold Palmer, maybe?)who would work thru his fundamentals every year, just like a beginner golfer. I missed the fundamentals of sewing, having learned by reading patterns & then running to my mom to help me figure it out when I was stuck.

Looks like I have another thing to add to my Do It list.