Building Heads and Houses

I have finally gotten around to exploring the embroidery capabilities of my Janome MemoryCraft 9900. I bought it to do monogramming on items in my Etsy shop because I had requests for them and it has been great for that. Not as many customers request them as I thought, however.

So now I started looking for things to embellish with thread, but I find that I dislike most of the available machine embroidery designs.  They are either overly fussy old-lady designs or for babies.

I decided to start with the babies...my grandchildren. They really aren't babies anymore but young enough.  I have been wanting terry cloth bathrobes for them, however working with terry cloth is a nightmare.  I found some really nice ones online and made them special with embroidery.

                                Thats a shark and a "certain kitty" on the front

                                                          Personalized on the back
That "certain kitty" is trademarked and really should not have been so easily available to me, but at least I am not selling the item as did the seller of the design.  I know. I'm aiding and abetting a wrong-doer. But what we won't do for grandchildren!

Like this:

This is the head of Freddy FazBear made from the instructions from a youtube video I was sent that says anybody can do this with "passion and patience". The instructions and my p and p ran out  when it came to the lower jaw.

The body was done as a dress-big felt dress made from only two pieces sewn together. I was given a very short time frame to whip this up.

In fact, I never got pictures of the grand-daughter's witch outfit and have not had any sent to me.

Hint, hint to son.



And then, as per my title, there are the houses.

I built six of them in a few days.  They are adorable little cottages from a design set that I won at an AnitaDoodDesign workshop this past summer.  As I said, I find most of these designs "old lady". I AM an old lady, but I still don't FEEL like one.
These,however, are a lot of fun because I can choose from 15 different ones and change them up in all kinds of ways with the fabric appliqué and thread colors.

Speaking of threads...I really have to get them organized. At top are my regular sewing threads all arranged nicely by color. The embroidery threads are a muddled mess in a small drawer next to my machine and overnight they can unwind and tangle themselves all up in a mess. Only bobbins are worse.

What have you been doing and how to you keep order among the thread?

And a last minute addition. The picture of a haughty little witch arrived after posting.  I made the garment but that fabulous lace witch hat was from the home "accessory wall". Project Runway followers know what that is. The scarf is a swath of glitter spider tulle.

I think she has the look of a 40's movie star. And to think that I wanted to have her face painted GREEN!!!