T is for Teeyore

In a previous post I mentioned that I was designing a softie doll based on the Japanese Kokeshi dolls. Well I have finally perfected a version that I am really happy with. I call them Amkia Dolls. Amika is a japanese name which means bright & beautiful, which I believe these dolls to be. I have finally opened up my new etsy shop.....t is for teeyore. See it here. There is only the one doll for sale at the moment but she has 5 sisters almost ready to go on sale, just finishing the embellishing on them.

This is the original Amika doll that I made....I'm not selling this one as she has very special importance to me.

This is the first one I have for sale in my etsy shop.
Amika Doll #1

A girl at work wanted me to make her one in soft girly colours. Not what I would usually do but I think she turned out quite pretty.

Here is the first batch of these little ladies, waiting to be sewn together and stuffed. Don't they all look yummy together?

And here they are waiting for the finishing touches....beads, buttons, trim & ribbons. This is the best part of making these little dolls. It is so relaxing sewing on the beads and other details.

I also finished another Ruby Doll. I love these little dolls.

I made this special round dotee doll as a surprise for a very special person. I really hope she likes it. I loved the brown & pinks on this fabric.

While I was sewing in my studio I looked up and saw all these pretty dolls.....and thought what a lovely view.

Here is a photo Kiara took of Lockyer. Not really immpressed that she put him in my bed..... but he does look cute doesn't he?

Well that's about it for this blog post. I have some more dolls waiting to be embellished.

T xx

I had so much fun sewing all the beads and trim onto her. I have nearly finished another one in a blue and green colourway which I will share with you. They are very addictive. If you want to have a look at some other versions people have made check this out.

Here is a dotee ATC that I made for a swap on swap-bot This little item should have arrived in the USA by now.

I really love the orangey pink against the teal background.

This gorgeous duo also arrived in the mail last week for me.

They were made for me by the lovely and talented Niss after I was flaked on in a mummy & baby dotee doll swap. Niss kindly agreed to be my angel and I think she has done a wonderful job. Thankyou so much Miss Niss, I love them both and have them hanging up in my studio.

I also received one of Dot Cristian's Amelia dolls in the mail this week.

I have long admired Dot's work and unfortunately she has closed her blog so can't provide a link to it here for you. It is such a shame as she does some amazing art which is very inspiring. Dot sells these dolls on etsy. If you haven't looked there please go there is such wonderful and creative stuff to buy or just look at to gain inspiration. I love the colours and all the beadwork on this doll ans she now takes pride of place on a shelf in my studio.

I was also lucky as Dot also sent me a dotee doll kit (she also sells these on etsy). Love the colours, beads and charms she has included. I am looking forward to making a Dot version of the dotee doll.

Now some of you may know that I used to have a stitchery design business. It was starting to generate some success and had shops locally & in NSW stocking my products. Unfortunately I wasn't able to give it the attention I would have liked due to work and family commitments and of course Uni this year, so ended up closing it. However, the plan is to relaunch it next year (when I've finished this course) under a new name with a new website. I have been steadily working on some new designs (when time has permitted) and here is a sneak peek of my latest design which will end up being a small quilt. The stitchery is redwork and I'm planning to team it with some pale blues and all sorts of 3D embellishments.


Another project I have been working on is creating some small siftie dolls based on the japanese Kokeshi dolls. I really would like to have a go seling these on etsy. Here is the first version I created on the weekend. I haven't completed all the embellishments as I'm not sure if I'm happy with the overall shape. I'm thinking of making her head just a bit bigger so you can see more of the fabric that it's made out of. What do you think? Am I stark raving mad and should just quit while I'm ahead? Please let me know your thoughts.


I have also acquired a new toy which arrived in the mail this morning.

I am such a gadget geek but I really need this item this time (really I do). It is a PDA and with everything going on in this house, work, uni, kids, etc I was starting to feel like my brain was going to explode as I tried to remember dates etc. Now I realise that diaries have been around for ages and people use them all the time. Believe me I have tried to use one, but keep forgetting to write stuff down in it. I really think that as I love gadgets that I would be more inclined to use this as opposed to a paper diary and it also does alot more. You can buy add ons programs that organise your budget, keep track of your diet & exercise (which is handy as I'm in the process of ridding my body of the excess weight I've gained this year), write shopping lists etc. Now I just have to wait for it to charge up so I can start playing with it. I hope it's easy to use. I may love technology but I hate it when it doesn't work easily.

Well that's all for now, Kiara has to get to dancing and Brady has to get to work.
T xx

Well a couple of weeks ago I went on a bit of a shopping spree on etsy and bought some yummy new fabrics. I was so excited when they all arrived this week. They all look lovely don't they? I can't wait to get creative with them.... I have so many ideas but not sure when I'll get them all done as University has started back this week and it looks like it is going to be difficult.







I also received this cute cupcake themed Dotee doll from a lady named Martha Hannema from a swap-bot swap.


Martha also sent some cute cupcake fabric and cupcake ribbon as well. She is currently hanging up in my craft studio.

On my spending spree I also bought some new quilting tools.



Looking forward to playing with these new goodies.

My little baby turned 11 years old this week. All she wanted was a trampoline (she's actually been wanting one since she was 4yrs old but Mark thought they were too dangerous). She was so excited when she came home and saw it set up in the backyard (as you can tell from the mile wide grin on her face). She didn't have a long time to play however as she was running late for dance class. Happy Birthday sweetheart.



And finally.... an updated photo of Lockyer.... he is getting so big and at times very naughty. We keep finding him asleep on the good lounge chairs, he now can get up on our bed and looks very put out when you make him get off. He is still very cute though and very much loved by every one in the family.



Until nest time,
Terri xx

Well not really but Bruce (a very patient man who has put up with me asking dumb questions about websites for a while now) showed me how I could add some more colour to this blog. So I made this patterned side border..... do you like it? I think it jazzes the blog up a bit. It took me awhile to get it just right and I'll most probably change it later but for now I'm happy with it.

Just received this semesters course work and I am feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment. It was just the same at the beginning of the year. I'm sure I'll be alright once I get started but I have really enjoyed having the last few weeks free to do what I wanted. I plan to try and stay a week ahead of the course work..... only time will tell how successful THAT goal will be.

I have also joined St Aiden's Choir. I used to be in school choirs all the time when I was younger and also enjoyed singing in groups and the fun involved. We'll be meeting every Tuesday night so am really looking forward to it. One of the managers at work is also in the choir so it will be nice to have a familiar face when I go next week.

That's all for now, I have to hop into bed as have an early start in the morning.

Terri xx

Well since I've been pretty neglectful of this blog I thought I would spruce it up with a new colour scheme & banner. Do you like it? These are my favourite colour combo at the moment and are the same colours of my craft studio.

Since Uni is on break I have been enjoying haveing free time to do what I want. I started off by redoing my craft studio, cleaning out all the stuff I've accumulated over the years, rearranging my organisation & having designated work stations. I'm pretty happy with the results and just love spending time in there. The colours are bright and make me feel happy. I really want to replace the green chair with a red one but will have to wait until I have more time and money to make a trip to Ikea.





I've also made my very first matyroshka doll. It is from a pattern created by Maize Hutton. I have always admired Dot's versions of these dolls so spent a lovely afternoon creating one just for me. I really enjoy adding the beading to these little dolls..... it's my favourite part.



I've also made a cupcake Dotee doll for a swap-bot swap. Hasn't turned out exactly as I wanted but I think she still looks cute.

Another swap I'm in is for dotee ATC cards. Here is my first one. Had fun making this and am planning on making a heap of different fabric ATC's card to go on a 7 gypsies ATC rolodex I got at a retreat this year. I already have one for paper ATC's so thought I'd make a fabric version to sit on my coffee table.

I've also found a renewed love of stitcheries and have been designing some new ones. No pictures yet, but will take some soon. I started a pattern business a couple of years ago and had moderate success with it but due to work and family commitments couldn't put the time into it that it required. I know my dad is disappointed that I didn't continue with it then. However, I decided to take a break this year while I attend uni and am planning to relaunch it next year. So will have a new name and web page when it happens.

I also found an online site where I can get mini buttons a lot cheaper than I've been buying them for at Spotlight. Here is the order that I received the other day. I know I bought a lot but I just couldn't help myself.... they are so yummy aren't they.


Well that's enough from me today. I am planning to blog more frequently.... i know that I've said it beore but this time I mean it.... I know I've said that before as well but I really, really mean it this time.

Terri xx

Well after putting in a heap of study time (and sacrificing any scrapbooking & sewing time), I was really pleased to find out that I got 82% in the end of semester neurological exam. I'm so happy and glad that I put the time into doing the study. But now we have a four week break so I am planning to get stuck into my sewing. I have a few dotee doll swaps that I have to get done. I am also working a quilt design using the amy butler fabrics I bought off etsy a while back.

Even though I had to study, I managed to get away and go to a crop for Jen's Birthday. I decided to digi scrap as it was easier to just pack up my laptop, external harddrive and graphics tablet instead of trying to decide what to take from my scrapping stash. We had been at an eisteddford the previous weekend and I was able to take some beautiful photos of my daughter that I used to scrap.




I also used a photo of Lockyer when we first got him.... he's a fair bit bigger now.


I'm still tired from the weekend. A few of us from work flew down and back to Sydney for a neuro conference on Saturday. It was really good and I learnt a great deal but doing it all in one day made it an 18hr day with a 3am start so I was completely exhausted. Luckily I didn't have to work Sunday.... I don't think I would have been able to.

That's all from me for now, Kiara has a dress up day at school so I need to go and get her pirate costume all sorted out.

Take Care,
Terri

I can't believe that it has been a whole month since I posted here. Time has just flown by. I've been so busy with work and uni that I have had no time to be creative at all. My boss is away for 7 weeks and Matt & I are job sharing the managers role and I'm still doing the hospital bed manager's job as well. We've been at it for 3 weeks so far and it has been the longest and most difficult three weeks ever. I have acted in the manager's role for extended periods before but this time it has been so hard. We have some newish staff that are just not coming up to speed and what they think they can get away with had been very frustrating and perplexing at times. Unfortunately we've had to start disciplinary action with one and performance managing three others....not nice but has to be done and just takes it out of you emotionally as well.

Uni is starting to come to a head. We've got just under 3 weeks until our final 3hr exam for this semester. I haven't done a 3 hr exam for about 15 yrs so am getting a bit stressed about it all. I have just finished a 4500 word take home exam and need to list the 47 references I've used before I email it to the lecturer this week...then I need to knuckle done and study hard. I received 2 of my marks back this week. I got 75% for my case study and 74% for the critical literature review...I'm really happy with these marks.... but I am soooo looking forwrad to a few weeks off before next semester.

Since I've been so busy I haven't had anytime to be creative (which is killing me). I find myself daydreaming about beads and buttons, designs and redoing my craft room (yet again!!!). So since I haven't made anything I've had to be content with buying some stuff for when I get the time. I've bought some beautiful fabrics of etsy and found a site in the USA that sells this gorgeous tiny buttons (had a bit of a spend up there). As I'm not using my computer I haven't got the photos to post here but will try sometime this week. I so wanted to only do posts with photos but just can't do that tonight.

Mark is still on crutches..........which he is finding really frustrating and I severely strained the major muscle attached to my hip a few weeks ago while dancing at a friends wedding so have been having trouble walking (we look like such a great couple at the moment). Lockyer our new labrador is getting bigger everyday and has managed to eat his dog beds, the other dogs bed, the cord of Brady's air hockey table and the mat out the backdoor. He's tried to steal a few dotee dolls out of my basket but I've been able to save them in the nick of time. He is still cute, just destructive. We start puppy school on Tuesday so we'll see how he goes learning to behave.

Until next time,

Terri xx