Our Generation Doll Mermaid Tail Blankets

When I was making Our Generation doll clothes last year, I found a pattern for doll-size mermaid tail blankets and knew I had to make one each for my niece's OG dolls.

I found this lovely wool, James C. Brett's Marble, and just knew it would look a bit like shimmery mermaid scales! The lighter tail is in shade MT45, and the darker tail is in MT41. Because it is double knitting wool and the pattern uses bulky, I had to adapt both the number of stitches and the number of rows. I used a 10mm hook with 2 strands of DK, and each mermaid tail took less than one ball of wool.

The back has a slight opening to help fit the doll in, and they're quite forgiving in terms of fitting other dolls and even teddies inside them! They make up quite quickly too, so I'm really pleased with them.

Bunny Rabbit Birthday Cake - Smudge

It was my Birthday last month! For me, this means a chance to bake something way too over the top to justify at any other time :) This year, I decided on a 3D rabbit... The cake is chocolate, and made using Whisk Kid's amazing recipe. The head was baked in a bowl, the body is three round layers (carved), and the feet and tail are cupcakes. Standard chocolate buttercream and fondant icing... The arms and ears were shaped using "cake truffle", that is a mix of cake crumbs and ganache, as if making cake pops (it tastes AMAZING). The tail is covered in mini marshmallows, and I attached the fondant in pieces so it looks like a stitched teddy. I used my sewing tracing wheel to get the effect! And I merged some coloured fondants to add interest to the paws and ears, using plunger cutters. The whiskers are spaghetti (!), and like Uncle Bulgaria I included a mini cake for candle celebrations, complete with a carrot - well, he is a bunny! And because every rabbit must have a name, he's called Smudge. Lessons learned? Use a fondant smoother - the body looks lumpy; sterilise cake dowels before use so they don't introduce bacteria - d'oh! But, he was very sturdy structurally, and the fondant was easier to work with when I didn't roll it too thin!! The adventures in baking continue...

Crochet Giraffe

I think anyone who has been in the blogging world of crochet over the last 18 months has seen this giraffe pattern... Well, I too fell in love with it, and knew it would be great for my nephew's 1st Birthday :)

I often try to stay away from the pink for girls and blue for boys, and focus on fun, bright colours. I was pulled towards this colour combination, a bit wary of people's opinions... But my husband pointed out that they were actually quite appropriate for a giraffe! I just had my heart set on orange and grey.

I love how the colours worked out in the end. In fact, I just love this little guy! The temptation to keep him for myself has been strong ;) I added some cream stripes randomly into the orange and gry, and I think it breaks it up and adds some character.

I also gave him a plaited tail - I thought he needed it! When referencing this pattern I couldn't find many views of the back of him, or what he looks like stood up, so I've included these shots below: