Saturday, November 14, 2015

Softie Sweaters!

It's Softie Sweater Day for me on the Papertrey Ink Countdown. You saw how I used the Softie Sweaters to make ornaments back on Day 2. We've got the softies wearing them today and looking quite cozy if you ask me. Along with all that fun, I've got a few tricks along the way to share with you. 

Softie Sweater Dies to Keep Softies Warm this Winter

I made two softies this month, we've got a hippo and a kitty with patches. Both were made with specific little kids in mind. Makes it so meaningful when I'm stitching away. 


I've put together a video for you on how the sweaters come together. Just click to learn more.

Softie Hippo Wearing a Fashion Sweater for a Holiday Party, Stitching Dies by Papertrey Ink

Here's Snowflake the Hippo. She's for my Eliza. One of my favorite holiday songs is "I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas". All last Christmas, Eliza would sing along to it. And we teased her horribly about getting an actual hippo from Santa. After all, she was saying the words, right? I did end up getting her a plush hippo last year wearing a tutu to fulfill her "wish". Figured it might be fun to make a softie one as well.

Miss Snowflake is made out of the new Soft Blush felt, of course. All hippos should be pink. I used Heat-N-Bond to treat pink polka dot fabric for die cutting on her inner ears and snout. Because she is a girl hippo, big girly eyelashes were a must. As for her teeth, I used the Rounded Label Dies. Just one cut which I trimmed in half did the trick and it is sewn in between the snout and the face.

Papertrey Ink's Beaded Holiday Stitch Kit Motif Die Adds Holiday Sparkle to a Softie Sweater 

Her sweet sweater is out of Simply Chartreuse felt and beaded with a motif from the Beaded Holiday Stitch Kit. I added a lot more bugles and beads than the original design. It's all up for interpretation. Once her sweater was sewn on (side note: these are not removable, you literally sew them up with the softie inside), I turned up the cuffs and hot glued some dot trim. I think if you use a wider laced trim here, you could create the look of a "skirt" very easily. 

Hippo Softie Using Stitching Dies and Felt From Papertrey Ink

I added a little holiday touch to her ear using leaves from the Seasonal Stitches: Holiday Wreath die. A sequin and bead carry over the theme from her sweater. A girl has to coordinate after all, even if she is a hippo. 

Monogrammed Softie Sweater Using Stitching Dies and Felt From Papertrey Ink

Next up, a patched cat softie. Hank didn't receive a handmade softie back when I was working on making samples for the Design-A-Softie Stitch Kit. And I've been hearing about it ever since. He had requested that I make one that looked like our cat Hamweenie. Now that's a bit of a tall order, considering Hamweenie is black and white. We call her a "cow-kitty" because she looks just like a Holstein. And the personality to match, I might add. Trust your own kid to lay down a big challenge like that. I don't think anybody else would have the audacity. 

It ended up being easy enough to do. Once I had a white cat all sewn up, but before I added the sweater, I hand cut black patches out of iron-on transfer material from Silhouette America. Then I just ironed them on, even over the stitching in some places. Worked like a charm. And thus, here you go, Hamweenie in softie form. 

The sweater on this cat is the one I demo in the video. I stitched on a monogram using the Sew Stylish Alphabet 1 and 2. Does the "H" stand for Hank or Hamweenie? You decide. 

If you are new to this blog and Papertrey Ink and wondering what I'm talking about with these softies, let me provide you a little more info. I introduced the Design-A-Softie Quick Stitch Kit in May. My original blog post is here and Nicole's, providing even more info, can be found here. The kit did sell out, but the majority of the dies are now available in the Papertrey Ink store. Here's a list of what is available:


Seasonal Stitches Holiday Wreath Stitching Die for Papertrey Ink

Yesterday was video day at my house and I thought it was needed to make a quick video on some tricks putting together the Seasonal Stitches: Holiday Wreath Die. I made this ornament in the video. The main body of the ornament was created using the Stitched Circles and the Limitless Layers 2.5" Circle Dies. Too add some variety, I added beads as berries. You can do this with any color theme you want. And I've even seen little flower sequins here and there, which could expand the seasons this die would be suitable for. 


To learn more about the Seasonal Stitches: Holiday Wreath, just click play. 


And lastly, I put together a very quick video on how to put together the Softie Hanger Die so you can turn your Softie Sweaters into ornaments. Click play below to learn more.


Thanks for joining me this week. I hope you are inspired to get crafty. All my new dies will be able on November 15th at 10 PM EST at www.papertreyink.com.  

For more inspiration on the November Countdown, click on over to Nichole's blog


















11 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness, Erin! Such adorable little critters! They are so cute dressed in their warm little sweaters. Thank you for creating all of these wonderful stitching dies. Makes creating and gift giving a breeze! :)

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  2. I adore the sweaters and the clothes hangers (no wire hangers, sorry had to go there lol). Hamweenie is fabulous, you certainly rise to those challenges : D. And that wreath is so sweet. Do you think they would fit in a dome as well?

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  3. Oh, Erin, you're killing me with your Hamweenie! It's so adorable, a treasure for sure! The only thing you're missing is a photo of Hamweenie with his stuffed-self. 😄 Thanks for the fun products and endless supply of inspiration!

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  4. Hamweenie? Best cat name ever. And all I want for Christmas are the entire softie die collection. Well done!

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  5. Hamweenie and (pink) Snowflake! Her little pom pom edgings are so sweet. P.S. They make a cute couple :)

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  6. Oh dear. Erin, I just love your stitch dies. I cannot wait to add these to my collection!

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  7. Oh my more stitching dies - yay!! I love to be able to personalize my projects and you make it so easy!!

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  8. This is just too cute. Love your animal sweater models.

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  9. Hi Erin,

    I can't wait till tomorrow........that's all I'm saying!!!!

    Cariños,
    María Alba

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  10. hi Erin. A quick stitching question: when you're stitching smaller detail items, do you pick apart your floss to one or two strands instead of using the intact thread? I use the whole thread and think my stitches look too thick. Thanks! Love this entire line. You've turned me into a sewer!

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    1. I definitely split the floss on the smaller designs. I use 2 out of the 6 strands. So glad you are having fun!

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