No calory , crochet cherry pie

Feel like making sme o no calory cherry pie ?  Then get out your crochet hook and try this very easy pattern. This is not serious food but it is fun to make and it looks good.

I am giving the pattern for 12 th scale but you can make it bigger or smaller by using thicker or thinner thread and a matching crochet hook.

What you will need :

0,60 crochet hook

DMC fil dentelles no. 8o or another thread of the same thickness. Colors for Cherry pie : light brown, red and white . 

Needles for sewing up.

Tacky glue.

Tiny bit of stuffing.

Sc = single crochet

Ch= chain

Dc = double crochet

Bobble = 3 dc in one st worked together for cherry pie filling

St= stitch

 The Cherry pie is

made in  3 different parts : crust, filling and the cream swirl.

Pie crust for the cherry pie slice :

Bottom and lid of the pie are worked in one piece.

Row 1 : with light brown chain 2

Row 2 : work 2 sc in first chain, chain 1 and turn.

Row 3 : work 2 sc in each sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 4 : 1 sc in every sc, chain 1 and turn

Row 5 : work 2 sc in first sc, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sc, 2 sc in the last sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 6 : 1 sc in every sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 7 : Work 2 sc into the first sc, 1 sc in each sc until last sc, 2 sc in last sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 8 : 1 sc in every sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 9 : Work 2 sc in first sc, 1 sc in each sc until las sc, 2 sc in last sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 10 : 1 sc in every sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 11 : work 1 sc in every sc. using only the back loop ( the loop farthest away from you at the top of the crochet), chain 1 and turn.

Row 12 : work 1 sc in every sc, using both loops again, chain1 and turn

Row 13 : work 1 sc in every sc, using only the back loop as before, chain 1 and turn.

Row 14 : work first 2 sc together, 1 sc in every sc until last 2, work last 2 sc together. Chain 1 and turn.

Row 15 : 1 sc in each sc, chain 1 and turn.

Row 16 : as 14

Row 17: as 15

Row 18: as 14

Row 19 :as 15

Row 20 : work last 3 sc together. Do not finish off.

Finishing row of sc around the pie crust : chain 1 and work 1 sc in every st. around the pie shape. At the points work 3-4 sc in the same st to make a nice shape. Fasten off and cut thread .

To add the scalloped rim to the pie top :

Attach thread to the unused front loops of row 11 and work : * 1 sc in first loop, 2sc in next loop * repeat * to * till end.

Cherry pie filling

. I wanted it to look like berries so I used a bobble st. for this. But you could also omit the bobbles and just work sc if you do not like the berry look.

Row 1 : chain 21 in red.

Row 2 : work 1 sc in second chain from hook. 1 sc in every chain till end, chain 1 and turn.

Row 3 : work 1 sc in every sc ,chain 1 and turn

Row 4 : for the bobbles work : 1 sc in first sc, * work a bobble in next sc = work 1 dc but do not pull the yarn through the final loop, work 2 more dc like that and finish them by pulling the yarn through all 4 loops on the hook at once , 1 sc in next sc * repeat * to * till end. Fasten off and cut thread leaving a tail for sewing.

Cream swirl :

With white chain 15 .

Row 1 : 1 sc in second chain from hook and 1 sc in each chain till end.

Row 2-3 : work 1 sc in every sc using only the back loop. (= the one farthest away from you at the top of the work). This will add a rib to you work . Fasten off and cut thread.

Making up the pie :

You will find that the pie crust will fold at the two rows where you only used the back loops so you will have a bottom, side and top of crust. The filling has to be sewn to the inside of the bottom piece first. So hold right side of crust and filling against each other and whip stitch in place. Do not use the sc row around the crust so it can form a little rim on the finished pie. Then sew the filling to the top of the crust once again not using the sc row around the crust. Leave a little opening for filling the pie with some stuffing and close the opening. Weave in all lose ends.

Now to make the rim of the pie stand up nicely : thread your needle with a light brown thread. Attach to the pie at the side near the scalloped edge. Make small stitches all through the pie following the edge and finish off.

For the cream swirl :

Take your white strip of crochet and twist it around a few times till you get a nice swirl. Sew the swirl together so it keeps its shape and weave in all ends. Glue to top of pie.

There you are, place on a nice plate and admire your home made crochet cake.

If course you can make other types of pie as well. Just change the color for the filling and use different stitches to make it look a bit different. 

Mummy heads

Just a black marker, some strips from  and old hanky,
glue and two sizes of foam balls or beads ,  make :

                             MUMMy HEADS

Draw a little black mask like shape  on the bigger  foam ball using the marker.

Dip the fabric  strips into some glue ( if needed you can thin the glue with some water) , then wrap the strips around the ball . Do not cover the mask shape. Leave to dry.

Glue two tiny foam balls or beads to the black area and draw eye balls on them. Add  a tiiny piece of fabric between the eyes to suggest a wrapped nose.  Do not try to work really tidy, a look that is a bit messy , is much more spooky.

There they are , you are all done.  I got a bit carried away and tried the same technique on a flower pot and a basket and I think they turned out pretty  well.

A whole year of outfits for Eric

This year a little procelain baby boy called Eric has helped me model  my patterns.

The patterns were done for American Miniaturist  magazine and have been published allover 2014 

The patterns are all done in crochet and would fit a standard porcelain baby. But each pattern comes with tips to adapt the pattern to both bigger and smaller babies. 

 This is Eric in spring. His outft plus the seed pod and flowers are all done in crochet.

I adapted the pattern to fit a little rubber baby and placed the whole ensemble in plastic bauble .

Eric's winter outfit was the first in the series.  I think he looks really snug.

This Christmas version is part of the same article in AM. He is wearing the white suit but with a fabric hat  . The sleeping bag in the shape of a christmas stocking is fabric too.

For summer Eric got a 4th of July outfit to celebrate in style.

The pattern has the bunting, top hat and beanie.

And then ofcourse there was autumn. We had a real Indian Summer and  Eric loved it.
I love this outfit especially the tiny shoes.

Eric showing off a blanket and cap I made .

The easiest little dollies ever

To make the easiest ever little dolls  all you need is some clothspins. I used mini ones but  the fun  part here is that you can make bigger dolls by just using bigger clothes pins



. You take them apart and glue the wood pieces  together back to back. And there is your basic doll shape.

Cut a pice of fabric that is big enough to wrap around the body. Tip : non fray is best ! A smaller piece to use for the collar and two small scraps for the sleeves/arms.

Then it is just a matter of wrapping and glueing with Tacky Glue. The sleeves are rolled up and glued to her sides. 

  If you have some thin stretchy fabric you can also make a  dress by gathering the top of the dress before you glue the dress to the doll. This gives some more shape to the dress. Sleeves can be done in the same way as for the first dress. The doll in pink wears a dress like this.

Add hair and a little face  and shoes if you like.

There is a second and even easier way to dress your little dollies.

 Look for paper dresses on the tnet, like the ones you use for card making or dressing paper dolls. 

Print them to the right size and all you have to do is cut them out and glue them to your dolls.

If you print on stiff paper and at a piece of Velcro to the doll and the clothes you can even have your very own mini dress up doll to play with.

Spooktacular mini wreath

I made this Spooktacular mini wreath for halloween. The basic materials are an old wicker wreath, a hatbox that fits behind the wreath,  a cheap plastic building with a flat back , some christmas trees and various halloween decorations.

 What I started with: this plastic house inspired  the whole project .  I found the house at a fleamarket . I am sure you will be able to find something different but suitable.

 I added some paint. to make it look a bit better . Some orange glass paint on the window panes added a nice effect.

This is the wreath : an old damaged one from the garden, painted a dark grey.

 The house got placed inside the hatbox to add depth.  Cut out silhouettes of trees help to create the right look. The house is standing on a piece of craft foam. I used a knife to create a stone effect and some steps. Painted the whole thing in different shades of grey.

 Nearly finished :  To add more depth I added some christmas trees that had turned black over the years ( do not ask me why ) . I spread a little grey paint over them to make them look more spooky. On the right there is  a tree made out of wire and flower tape. Also painted in shades of grey. Then I added some moss and lichen and  halloween decorations. And there you go.

Ps I made a hole in the top of a box and put in a tea light candle. The flame is pointing downwards through the hole  ( you can see it in the photo above) . It is hidden by the paper moon shape and the battery case is hidden by the wreath. You can reach the switch to turn it on and off.

Decorations close up.

For full instructions and list of all materials used  please check :

 Dollhouse Miniatures magazine, issue  41

The article about this project got published in this magazine.

A few pics from the Miniverse

Here are some pics from the Miniverse just to give you some idea of my work.

 Crochet seed pod and baby outfit. My pattern

 Crochet cat  My pattern

 

 No clay foods Including ; bread, salads, canned goodies, Sri lankan breakfast and cakes

 Knitted baby gown and bonnet. My Pattern.

First post

My first post today and I think it would be fun to tell something about my Miniverse. I love making miniatures and  I love writing about how to make them. Over the years I have been a regular contributor  to several magazines : American Miniaturist, Dollhouse World en Dollshouse Miniatures. I did write patterns and I did teach workshops too.  I love to do miniature knitting and crochet but I also love trying out many other  different techniques.  One that I am really fond of is doing food without using clay.  I share my Miniverse with a very sweet and helpful cat who is always ready to join me in making minis. 

 Some friends suggested sharing my mini world in a blog . So there we are.