Several of you commented on the pincushion in last Friday’s post, so I thought I’d share my source! I’m a pincushion collector, and when I saw these on Etsy last year, I just had to have them, so I treated myself to a birthday gift.

I actually have two pincushions from the same place, both with beautiful crochet work attached to a very firm little cushion. I love them both!

If you like them too, you can find them at Namolio And, shoot, now that I’m looking at her shop again, I’m seeing some new and lovely things I just might have to mark as favorites for this year’s birthday!

Have a good weekend, friends.

Some time ago my daughter saw me reading a blog post by Rebecca of Blinking Flights. She pointed to a photo of one of Rebecca’s Dewdrop Girls and said, “I like that doll.”

Well, then, birthday gift it is!

Can you even stand that sweet little face?

The Dewdrop Girl was actually one of the first items I made in the SewStorm. I was working on her at the same time as the paper-pieced ball. (Yes, I am telling the story out of order. It’s my blog, and I can do that if I want. Ha!) Having never made a doll before, I took my time with her to be sure I got her just right.

And isn’t she just right?

My daughter’s favorite colors are pink, yellow, and white, and it just happened I had some pink fairy fabric on hand for another of her gifts (apparently the fairies are flying upside down in this case), some yellow for another project, and of course some plain white and a vintage-looking print to finish it off. I saw them lying on my sewing table and loved the combination, and my version of the Dewdrop Girl was born!

(It wasn’t until I saw these fabrics/colors together in the doll that I realized how great they’d look as a patchwork skirt, which contributed to the frenzy of kid clothing-making that I wrote about on Wednesday. So I guess, in addition to a fabric sale and a friend’s birthday, I can also blame the SewStorm on Rebecca.)

This doll is actually quite a bit bigger than I’d envisioned. Having only seen photos without anything for a size reference, I pictured her so much smaller, but she is a wonderful, big size for snuggling and carrying around. If my daughter doesn’t sleep with her, then I will!

The pattern was very clear and easy for an amateur seamstress (her turned-in toes were an accident, but I rather like them), and it has multiple options for clothing and decorating your doll. And, it has the greatest illustrations. I highly recommend it if you’re looking for something unique and cuddly for a small friend.

In fact, I like it so much that I’d like to spread the goodness around a little. Rebecca has agreed to give away five Dewdrop Girl patterns to you, my readers!

Here’s all you have to do: Leave a comment here with a suggestion for a name for my doll. I’ll close comments on Monday, April 5, 2010, at 10 p.m. EST, and then I’ll randomly draw 5 commenters to receive a free Dewdrop Girl pattern, which I’ll announce the next morning. Hurrah!

Rebecca is an incredibly nice person who I’ve known through the Internets for a while, and there isn’t anything she makes that isn’t lovely. I’m a big fan of her Blinkies and Meekoos as well and fully intend to make one of those for my son the next time I get the sewing bug.

If you’d like to see more of her work, you can find her blog here, her Etsy shop here, and her Big Cartel here. Stop by and say hello!

Alejandra, or Ale as I came to know her, sent me links to her websites, and I just fell in love with her photography. I can appreciate some beautiful architecture, and I love good photography, so I knew all of you creative types would appreciate Ale’s work as much as I do.

Here’s a taste:

(All photos by Alejandra Symonds, used with permission.)

You can find Ale here and here. (Most of the text is in Spanish, so if you need a translation, you can plug it into Google Translator if you like.)

Thanks, Ale. I hope you’ll continue to share your amazing view of the world with us!

After a rather hectic few days, I’m swinging in here pretty late on a Friday feeling a little brain-drained, so I thought I’d do something a little different and feature another blogger/crafter I admire. Aha, Feature Friday makes its return! This time I’d like to point you to the fabulous Lynsey of Swirlyarts.

Lynsey is the queen of recycling and makes the greatest book covers, envelopes, mini notebooks, gift tags—you name it!—out of recycled papers. I especially love the things she makes with old book pages. She’s used several of my favorites so far, including Charlie Brown and Richard Scarry.

Lynsey is also famous for her cute little “cheeky chickens.” She makes larger sizes as doorstops and some smaller ones to be used as paperweights or pincushions.

On a recent visit to her shop, I just couldn’t resist clicking the buttons to procure this adorable little tweed guy. I have been checking the mailbox every day without fail in anticipation of his arrival (even when it was way too early for him to possibly be here!).

Beyond being a talented recycler and crafter, Lynsey is just an all-around sweet gal. If you haven’t visited her before, check out her blog and her shop. (The shop is currently on vacation but will be back soon.) I feel certain you’ll find something to love.

Ah, now, that felt good. It’s so much more relaxing to write about someone else’s wonderful things, perfect for the end of the week. Have a good weekend!

(Note: All photos were pinched from Lynsey’s blog or flickr page with her permission!)

What better time to feature another crafter and blogger I admire? So, here it is.

I had asked Alison to design a set of tweedie Russian nesting dolls, something my sister collects. (In return Alison requested an embroidered Babushka, which you saw here.)

And this is what she came up with:

Aren’t they sweet?

Part of what makes these items so special is that the Harris Tweed Alison uses is woven by hand in the Outer Hebrides, where she lives, and that’s the only place it’s made.

I didn’t open the package to take pictures, because I didn’t want to disturb the wrapping, and I neglected to take photos after my sister opened the gift. Fortunately, I still have the pictures that Alison sent to me pre-swap, and that’s what you’re seeing here. (Thanks, Alison!)

Not only are the little dolls lovely and tweedie (you can see better photos of the tweed on my flickr page), they also came neatly packaged with a Hessian bag for storing.

Alison was the very first person to ever comment on my blog, back in the day when I was publishing at “the old site,” and she has been a faithful supporter and encouragement and fabulous bloggy friend ever since. All that said, it makes the gift extra special having been made by such a wonderful person.

So, do you want some of your own? Alison makes a lot of other plush tweed items both as toys and decor. (Make sure you check out her newest creation, an amazing little art doll.) Check out her shops here and here and here, and her blog here.

And now, as Alison would say, Cheerio an Drasda!

This debut edition continues my displaying-of-the-Christmas-gifts theme. I’ve spent the last two weeks showing you many of the gifts that I made for others. This post, however, revolves around Christmas gifts received by moi.

My only challenge with this collection of gifts (all from my husband) is deciding where to display all of these great pieces!

The print you see in the middle is by the talented Belinda Kemp of gretchenmist. Belinda’s work, a collection of collage and painting on paper and wood, always makes me smile, and I’m thrilled to own one of her pieces! This one is titled “You Said It Would Be Good.”

Besides the artwork, Belinda also makes her artwork into brooches and pendants, which you can see in her shop. Belinda also writes a blog here. She’s an all-around lovely lady, and I hope you’ll stop by and check out her work!

The other items you see featured above are photographs by a very talented photographer, Kellie of 74 Lime Lane. I’ve mentioned Kellie’s new shop before, and as soon as I realized she was selling prints of her photographs, I sent a link to my husband as a general hint!

I didn’t expect he’d get me so many of my favorite prints, so I was extra excited to open up each one and see what a bounty of Lime Lane goodness I’d received! Kellie is always adding great new photos to her repertoire, so be sure to stop by her shop or her blog to keep up to date.

The last thing I want to show you is this:

Not the book, although that’s pretty awesome as well. It’s the jewelry, a vintage typewriter key made into a ring. I love old typewriters, and I love the vintage look of the whole piece. I’ve worn this ring almost every day since I got it! You can find them at The Weekend Store if you fancy one of your own.

It’s really fun to have in hand actual items made by the artists I admire and so enjoy as bloggy friends. Aren’t I a lucky girl?