Goodbye Chores, Hello Plushie!

Yesterday began as any ordinary day usually does. Some days I have a mental list of things to be done, errands to run, hopes to accomplish. And some days, like yesterday, I have a written list just waiting for the check marks indicating finished tasks. A small reward, but a treat none the less. Yesterday's list included a crafty task: make a plushie (or feltie as Simon Says Stamp calls them). As I began all the other tasks, saving the fun one for last, I began to think about sitting on the deck in the afternoon sun stitching up my plushie. Oh what a treat that would be! After all, I reasoned (I can be very good at reasoning when it's to my advantage!), our spring days of perfection are so very numbered here in the midwest before summer's heat sends us scurrying indoors and chores, well, chores can be done this evening. So I selected my colors from some Taylored Expressions and Papertrey Ink felt, die cut the Simon Says Stamp Plush Springtime Bunny and accessories, gathered all my supplies in a very small basket and headed out to the deck. 

It was the perfect day for such a project, sitting on the deck stairs dressed in t-shirt sleeves with a spring breeze and dappled sunlight dancing through the not quite leafed out old Maple tree. It has been quite a few years since I have enjoyed hand sewing (cross stitch was once my passion until card making came along) and I had forgotten how I once loved sitting with needle and thread in hand, enchanted as colors played and designs emerged on the canvas before me. This little plush bunny brought the same delight as I added her features, embellished, and saw her come to life. She did indeed bring giddy smiles over the evening as I picked her up from time to time, petting her, thinking about the leisurely time spent outdoors this afternoon.

I decided to make her a lop eared bunny instead of the ones found in nature with their ears straight up like the photo on the SSS die indicates. I added a small pleat at the top of the ear to give it a bit of dimension, and if anyone wants a peak, the inside is lined in pink.

I began by stitching the outline on the ears in a running stitch, but then realized it didn't look as nice as I had hoped on the back side. When I stitched the bodies together, I stitched every other stitch using three strands of embroidery floss and then went back around stitching the skipped stitches. I used a very small amount of fiberfill as stuffing and some Recollections adhesive pearls for the eye and the flower centers. Her whiskers were made from four strands of the same embroidery floss used to stitch her body, and then slightly coated with a tiny amount of Tacky Glue to give them a bit of stiffness. The rolled roses and leaves are included with the die as well as a couple of buttons and a daisy flower. I sprinkled in a few french knots and added a bit of stitching to the leaves for more dimension. Her tail is the rose die before it is rolled to make the flower.

Simon Says Stamp is having a Plush Contest on Instagram and I'm submitting this little lop eared bunny. If you have an IG account, you can follow me by clicking the small camera icon above on the right side bar menu or search for abbeys_attic on IG. You may also view the other contest entries by searching for #sssplushcontest. 

I hope each of you is taking time out to enjoy the beauty of spring. And, if you're anything like me, those yesterday's chores are still waiting for today! Oh, but there's no way to recapture a day like I enjoyed, so I'll take them as they come, and look out plushie, there just may be a buddy in your very near future on another tempting spring day!

A blessed spring to you,