Making Up Woes

[TheWoollybacksWife]

I am coming to the end of a toy making project with lots and lots of fiddly bits to sew up. It has been fun knitting all the bits, but it's time to grit my teeth and get the darning needle and scissors out.

I don't mind sewing up bigger projects like cardigans and hats. I even quite happily sewed in hundreds of loose ends when I made blankets in the summer but this is thread the needle, make two or three stitches, snip the yarn, thread the needle and start again on the next piece.

Perhaps I should have sewed up as I went along, but it seemed like a good idea to knit the majority and make it all up at the end.

I don't even know why I'm ranting about this here

What are you making? An octopus!? Get snipping...tis' awful but worth it!

Thanks for replying and the virtual kick up the arse that I need

I'm making the nativity figures from the Jean Greenhowe Christmas book. At this rate it will be Christmas 2015 before they are finished. The pattern book is yet another thing that MN inspired me to buy.

Oh I do sympathise! I have knitted several pairs of bunny bootees and have left it until today to knit and sew on the ears. They have been a bloody nightmare. I have developed a better way of knitting the ears though so that is good. What is bad is that I still have at least 3 more pairs to go. That is why I prefer to knit things like shawls and blankets.

Can you cheat a bit by feeding the needle through the body to the next join?

Thanks Flossy and DameFanny

I have been feeding through wherever possible but it's sewing all the little bits on and then embroidering the features on.

I need to either crack on or start a trend for clean shaven, featureless nativity figures

Thanks for the solidarity though

I am a terrible sewer and my projects always look better before the sewing bit. it is something i am working on though and I am now seeing it as a part of the process rather than the annoying bit at the end. I try to put as much care into the sewing as i do the making.

Any hints on how to make stuffing look less lumpy would be good though. My toy stuffing is always lopsided and out of shape...

Use small balls of toy stuffing and stuff very tight. Start with the farthest corner and stuff until you can stuff no more.

I use kapok and pull it apart loads before stuffing as tight as Oma says - seems to cut down on lumpiness