Sewing The Child

I couldn't wait for official merchandise to have my hands on a snuggely little replica of The Child.  It was suggested I make more to sell, but first of all the fabric I used was scraps, and then the store was sold out of that green color. And then there were rumors that The Mouse was shutting down creatives selling patterns. No thank you.  But I will share how I made mine, FOR FREE, because who doesn't love a fully pose-able, dress-able little doll? (Which the first, rushed licensed offering is not)  I also felt inspired and wanted the challenge as I spent a few years making sock monkeys and I enjoy making stuffed animals.  I admit that the sculpted vinyl head is definitely cuter the I can do with fabric, but I still love how my little guy turned out

First you will need to go to Etsy and buy this pattern.  While I recommend paying for the tutorial booklet, you can get just the pattern for $5.  I think I would have been a bit lost without the tutorial. Its a PDF and very easy to download and print instantly.  If you want a larger doll, well . . .  you're on your own. This doll is definitely smaller then the puppet in the movie.  This doll has arm and leg joints, as well as knee joints and a moveable head!

I used less then a 1/4 yard of lime green minky fabric and a soft pastel green in the ears.  Minky is like a cross between velvet and fur. It has a longer, furrier pile then velvet, but is shorter then actual fur.  It does not fray and is very popular for children's plush toys and baby blankets.  I happened to have lots of scraps around the house from other projects.  I painted my knee joint beads as close as I could to the fabric color, I put them on bamboo skewers to easily paint them and then seal them.

I wish I could say what size safety eyes I used, but I ordered a multi-size kit off Amazon and choose the size I liked best and I am unsure of the diameter, they are dark brown eyes.  I also stitched on bits of scrap fabric as a nose, mouth, and to create shaping around the eyes, and eventually filled the mouth in with peach colored felt.  With trial and error I cut out the ear shapes to a size I like and I did not need to fill them with interfacing for them to hold themselves up with some stiffness. Minky is very forgiving because it is furry and hides stitches well, I basted most everything in place.  I brushed some cosmetic blush on the ears and cheeks to pink them up.  I also used a very small brush to brush dark green matte eye shadow into the facial crevices to create more depth.  I attempted to stitch the fabric into facial ridges on the forehead, but its is very hard to see in Photos.

Lastly I freehand crocheted a little robe, which I hope to recreate again and add to this blog with more details for the pattern.  After all, this little guy might want to change clothes once in a while.