Generations Of Handcrafted Love: Doll Making

My great grandmother, Yetta Minetta, was beloved by our whole family. Her joy of sewing and hand crafting was obviously contagious, and as the story goes she loved to share her craft will all the women in the family.

If you've been following my blog, you know that I am crazy about art as well as crafting. My mother, a talented stitcher herself, taught me how to sew simple things such as pillows at a very young age. I have always wanted to further my skills in the craft, so when she recently received a new sewing machine as a gift and I immediately asked her to teach me how to use it.

I am so thrilled that she's decided to pass along this generations-old craft to me. We have many projects ahead including a family quilt, but our first one was something that I have been dieing to try my hand at - doll making. My great grandmother as well as my grandmother and several other women in our family were and are doll makers. So I knew this one would be close to my heart.

I used a simple free template to start out with, altering it to fit the idea I had for the doll. With the help and advice of my mom, I was able to finish her in 2 days. I am very pleased with how she turned out! Of course I had to name her after my great grandmother, the master stitcher herself - Miss Yetta Minetta. 

After several requests from friends and family members, I have decided to open up a little Etsy shop in order to accommodate custom orders. Hence, The Selkie Stitches Studio was born out of a passion for sharing lovingly handcrafted items with loved ones and friends who can cherish them for generations in their own family. If you have a little girl (or boy!) who you need a gift for this holiday season, feel free to order one from my shop! I will have more items up very soon! :)

Are there any sewing crafts that you've been wanting to try lately?

For all you crafters out there - Stay tuned for a more in-depth post about how I made her!

Etsy Mini Round Up: Watercolor Wall Decals, Mineral Jewelry & Must-Have Fall Fluff!

Hey Everybody! First of all let me say I'm sorry that it has been so long since I've posted. Planning our wedding has taken up an inconceivable amount of time, as those of you who have been there know.

I do plan to get back to regularly scheduled posts after the honeymoon, so probably around the middle of September! And after the wedding (only about 1 week away!! aaah!!!!) I will be doing a featured post on the event and everything that went into it! 

Today's Brainstorm focusing on independent Etsy artists and sellers features some of the coolest, most innovative items I have yet to see on planet Etsy.

1. My first find is definitely in that category. First off, I am obsessed with watercolor. The dreamy look it's capable of creating... the way the colors naturally run and pool to form gorgeous patterns on their own. I am also obsessed with wall decals and wallpaper as a means to add character to a wall without having to overwhelm the whole wall with color. The talented Richele and Sydney of anewalldecor (a-new-wall) have combined the two, creating this gorgeous wall paper that turns one of your boring white walls into a perfect canvas for this dreamy sea-green piece.  Custom sizing options available.

2. I have fallen in love lately with so many lovely natural gemstones and minerals in my quest to find nature-inspired home decor and jewelry. SaraReynoldsJewelry has created several mineral pieces that have stolen my heart.

This ring made from colorful apatite mineral gems is too gorgeous! This and many other one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces in her shop are sure to make you smile if you like unique, nature-inspired pieces. 

Agate slab coasters! Yes, yes and yes!!! Bring some natural color and character to the table.

3. Especially if you live in the South, I probably don't have to remind you how near to us that magical season between Summer and Winter is. Besides being the season of "all pumpkin everything", effortless comfy casual wardrobes and actually wanting to be outside, Autumn always makes me want to fill my living space with fluffy, comfy, gloriously puffy pillows, throw blankets and anything made of wool. 

Below I will share with you a few of the puffiest, cutest, most creative pillows I found during today's Brainstorming session. But first, STOP! Before you bag up those Bill Cosby sweaters... check out this great DIY sweater-pillow tutorial by Stone and Gable Blog! 

May the fluff be with you!

"Welcome Home" pillow with custom longitute/latitude by coverLove

Adorable burlap state pillow by ColorsOfMae

Large Fennec Fox Pillow. Hand made and hand block printed by LauraFrisk

4. I haven't had a chance yet to gush about one of my new favorite artists. Michelle Jewell, creator of Etsy shop finkelsteins makes beautiful, imaginative handmade plush toys from her studio in South Carolina. Her simple, whimsical designs always make me smile, and I have been dieing to bring one home.