The Magical Scrapbox

Patch Podgy by Natasha Morgan

Every maker I know has a box. Maybe a drawer or trunk or sack, bag or pile. But all contain the same things. The things we just can't bare to throw away.

For me my box is full of all those little fabric scraps that I just couldn't part with. All the pretty little pieces I kept thinking must come in useful one day; tiny little bits and bigger just enough for something pieces. They all sat in my box and threatened to explode every time I went into my cupboard to get something.

Mag Podgy by Natasha Morgan

I tried miniature quilts (which I like but witch go better with a doll to me), and applique and patchwork. I even considered making myself some strange unusual cushions for my sofa. But then I had an idea to make just another type of doll.

Why was I trying to change from something that I loved to try and use my treasures. Why wasn't I just adapting and trying something new in the way of a doll. Then I saw a cute fat doll type frog like door stop in a gift shop window and thought how cute would it look covered in mix and matched patchwork.

Flo Podgy by Natasha Morgan

I pulled out my sewing machine and made up some shaped I could stuff to try out what would work best for me. I chose ball and pumpkin shapes as they felt so nice to hold. I sewed two different sized ones together to make a head and covered the face area with a soft pink doll skin jersey I had tucked away. After covering the back of the head and body with my patchwork I added some chain stitch embroidery and zig-zag stitches in strong white vintage thread.

My first Podgy Doll looked so cute and friendly. He wasn't perfect but Pud looked back at me and made me smile.
I made another with rabbit ears and a lace ruff as a gift for a friends birthday, and Bun Bun made me smile too. So now I have these three little critters all smiling and looking for new homes where they can make others smile too. I hope you like them. xxx

Pud - A Podgy Soft Rag Patchwork Doll

I've tried a few different things to try and use all the lovely little pieces of left over fabric I get from all of my sewing projects. But none of them ever seemed quite right.
I tried bags and purses, but they looked clunky and messy. Applique and quilting I enjoyed doing, but I kept finding myself going into my stash of larger pieces of fabric to get what I needed. And all that did was add to my scrap box, not lessen it. Things never seemed to satisfy me or work out as I wanted until I saw a large pretty doorstop in the window of a local gift shop.

The doorstop was a large fabric oval frog with big button eyes. And as I looked at it I thought wouldn't that look cute in patchwork. Bit of a light bulb thing I admit. Very cheesy indeed, but that's how things go sometimes, even in the real world.

I sewed two ball shapes from sheeting, one a little smaller than the other, and sewed them together. Then I tipped out my scrap box all over the floor and set to work hand-sewing lots of different patches all over my shape to make my first fat Podgy doll. After covering the face area with soft pink jersey and adding a little smiling mouth and big button eyes I was very pleased with my Pud. And after adding some embroidery and messy yellow tuft of hair he looked back at me and made me smile :)

Next I'm trying a Podgy with floppy bunny ears for my friend Becky, and then some smaller versions to see how they look smaller. And of course now that Georgiana is done and waiting for some good light so I can take her photos I can get back to the embroidery for Guinevere.
I hope you like my little Pud. He's listed in my shop right now and is available to come and make you smile too. xxx