FREE Patterns

Whether there is a dragon that needs taming or a kingdom that needs protecting, you’ll surely want a knight, or better yet, several, to keep the lands safe. And, it’s very important to have a supply of squires, willing and eager to learn the skills necessary to become a knight. This tutorial has 3 parts:

Part 1 - Getting Started (below)
Part 2 - Crafting the Knight
Part 3 - Crafting the Squire 
 
A NOTE ABOUT MATERIALS: Since we closed our shop, I have many people ask for my current suppliers. I usually send people to A Child's Dream. Debbie has a wonderful online shop (and an actual brick and mortar, too) that has most of the crafting supplies I need for children's toys. For this project you can find wonderful 100% Wool Felt and the Rope Dolls to make your Knight and Squire. AND, if you buy materials from there (any items and any amount) through April 21, 2013, A Child's Dream will take 10% off your entire order. Simply use the coupon code WEEFOLK at check out! Awesome, right? For more info, check out my previous blog about supplies HERE.

MATERIALS NEEDED for each pair of Knights and Squires in Black/Red, Brown/Green or Gold/Blue Knights and Squires:

100% Wool Felt
Light Gray – (ash) 1 piece - 8" x 12"
Dark Gray – (shale) 1 piece - 8" x 12"
Color A – 1/2 piece - 8" x 12"
Color B – 1/2 piece - 8" x 12"
 
Floss to match felt
Lt gray
Dark gray
Color A
Color B
 
Rope Dolls
1 – large - 5.75" tall
1 – small - 4.25" tall
 
Pipe Cleaners:
1 – 3” piece
 
Additional supplies needed:
Embroidery needles
Pipe cleaner
Crafting glue (optional)
Paint (optional for gloves, boots, sleeves and socks)
Fine tip marker (optional)
PATTERN
 
READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE YOU BEGIN TO PREVENT MISUSE OF MATERIALS

IMPORTANT: When sewing pieces together, whether using a running, blanket or whip stitch, seam should only be 1/8”. If you make seams larger, the clothes will not fit. The small seam allows the clothing to lay better on the dolls. If you want to make the seams a little larger YOU MUST CUT THE PATTERN PIECES OUT A LITTLE BIGGER. You might want to experiment by making a pair of pants out of inexpensive felt and try sewing them on a doll before you cut out all your pattern pieces. 
 
TIP: When cutting out items that require 2 pieces like the squire's hood, shield and sword blades, cut them out together. Click HERE for tips on Cutting Out Felt Like a Pro. When cutting out shield lay a piece of the black, brown or gold felt on a piece of gray felt then cut out together.

Make a copy of the PATTERN, lay out all pattern pieces FIRST for proper placement and cut out felt as follows:

Light gray – knight helm, knight tabard, satchel, satchel belt, shield handle, (1) shield, (2) sword blade
Dark gray – knight shirt, knight pants, knight belt
Color A (black, brown, gold) (1) shield, (2) squire hood, squire pants
Color B (red, green, blue) squire shirt, sword handle, shield piece 

Straighten Out Rope
When you purchase rope dolls, they aren't usually bent. Take the time to position the arms and legs until they are even and balanced.

Face (optional)
Whether or not you draw a face on your knight and squire is totally a matter of choice. If you leave the face blank, children can assign the emotions they want their doll to have. However, some children may feel unsettled with faceless dolls. If that is the case, certainly draw a face on using a fine tipped permanent marker.

If you would like to paint a face on your knight and squire, do it now. In the unlikely event you "mess up", you can sand off the face and begin again. That is much harder to do if the knight or squire are dressed.

If you feel unskilled in drawing, keep it simple. Even the simplest of lines denotes a face. Probably the biggest mistake people make when adding a face is to misplace the facial features. Just follow this simple trick and you should be fine. Think of a face as a round circle. Now, draw 2 intersecting lines through the circle creating 4 equal quarters.

Most people tend to place the eyes too high on the face. Draw your eyes directly in the center, on one the horizontal line. It may seem like it is too low, but it isn't.

Then, simply use the center vertical line as a guide for distance of eyes. Although you are going for symmetry, remember this... human faces are not completely symmetric, so your dolls' faces can be off a bit, too :)

Here are some samples of simple faces:

Using a pencil, mark a horizontal and vertical line on the front of the doll's face. (Yikes... my camera settings were wrong and I didn't notice til everything was well put away. Sorry :)

Now, using your pencil, draw in facial features. You can simply erase if you are not happy with the results. When you are happy, go over the pencil marks with a fine tipped, waterproof permanent marker.

Wait until the marker is thoroughly dry, then erase all pencil marks.

When you slip on the hood or helmet, you will find the face to be in the perfect location!

Painting Boots and Gloves (optional)
Again, this is an optional step. I rather like the look of painted boots and gloves. Not only does it make it look like they are wearing the item of clothing, I also paint up the ropes an inch or two, in case the pants or sleeves do not completely cover the rope, it is less conspicuous.

 You are now ready to begin dressing your knight and squire!  

All photos, text and patterns are copyright protected. You may not copy, reproduce or redistribute any material found on WeeFolkArt.com without written permission. Wee Folk Art retains all rights.

I've got many requests already for the supply list for the Knight and Squire and for suggestions for resources for buying supplies. I got in touch with Debbie, over at A Child's Dream, my favorite supplier out there, and told her I'd be sending my readers over to her shop. Being the awesome person she is, she is giving our readers 10% off any size order! When you go to check out simply use the code: WEEFOLK. The discount is good beginning now and running through April 21, 2013, so make sure you stock up on ANY supplies you might need.

I will be running the tutorials for the knight and squire over the next two weeks. There's lots of photo and instructions! If you want to get supplies now so you'll be ready to work on them, you will need the following items to make the pair. 

NOTE: I used the grays, shale and ash, from the natural's collection. They have a heather effect, which I think looks more like metal, but that was just personal preference. Any of the grays will work. As for the other colors, pick what you like : )

100% Wool Felt from A Child's Dream
Light Gray – (ash) 1 piece - 8" x 12"
Dark Gray – (shale) 1 piece - 8" x 12"
Color A – 1/2 piece - 8" x 12"
Color B – 1/2 piece - 8" x 12"
 
Floss to match felt
Lt gray
Dark gray
Color A
Color B
 
Rope Dolls from A Child's Dream
1 – large - 5.75" tall
1 – small - 4.25" tall
 
Pipe Cleaners:
1 – 3” piece

People often ask me what type of felt I use. For making children's toys, I highly suggest you use 100% wool felt. It holds up to serious playing. It would be sad to go through all the work to make these just to have them pill and pull apart!

So, here's the supply list if you want to be good to go when I start the tutorial this week. Remember, A Child's Dream has the wool and rope dolls, plus, she's offering us a 10% discount on any size order from now until April 21. Thanks so much Debbie! 

Just about ready to post the pattern for our Knights and Squires, BUT, how successful can a knight be without a mighty steed? With the help of The Red Knight and his Squire, I designed a horse, to be cut out of wood this weekend.

Starting next week, I will share the patterns and tutorials for making your own Knights, Squires and Steeds! Then, imagine the quests that will surely follow :) 

      For a supply list and discount coupon to A Child's Dream, click HERE.

A few weeks ago I shared a tutorial for making Peg Owls using an "adult" size, 2 3/8" x 7/8", wooden peg. Today, I am sharing a pattern for making a Large Peg Owl, perfect for wee hands, using the large wooden pegs, 3 9/16" x 1 1/8", making them large enough not to be a choke hazard. Basically, they are made the same as the smaller gnomes. The directions and patterns for those can be found HERE. Since I've shared the tutorial before, I'm not including as many photos. If you are at all confused by a step, just check out the other tutorial, and there will be more photos.

Materials:
Large Wooden Peg - 3 9/16" x 1 1/8" purchase HERE
Wool felt
Embroidery floss in coordinating colors
Crafting glue
Stuffing material
Batting - I used thin cotton batting
Pattern

READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE YOU BEGIN TO PREVENT MISUSE OF MATERIALS.

IMPORTANT: There can be significant variations in the sizes of the wooden pegs even from the same manufacture and even in the same shipment! Before cutting the body wraps out of felt, cut the pieces out of paper, and "try them on" your wooden pegs. Make adjustments to the paper pattern before cutting out your felt.

The pattern for the Owl Peg can be found HERE.

The tutorial on How to Cut Out Felt can be found HERE.

The Stitching Glossary can be found HERE.

NOTE: BECAUSE THIS TUTORIAL IS IDENTICAL TO THE PREVIOUS OWL PEGS, I DID NOT TAKE AS MANY PHOTOS. MANY STEPS IN THIS TUTORIAL ARE MISSING PHOTOS. CHECK OUT THE ORIGINAL TUTORIAL FOUND HERE WHERE ALL THE STEPS HAVE PHOTOS INCLUDED!

Directions:
Make a copy of the pattern.

Following the photo or your own imagination, cut out felt using the pattern.

Glue body wrap to the wooden peg. Match the bottom edge of the wrap with the bottom edge of the wooden peg.

Following the guidelines on the pattern, stitch appliques to owls body as follows:
-Stitch chest to body using a blanket stitch and 3 strands floss.
-Stitch beak to body using a running stitch and 2 strands floss.
-Stitch eyes to body using a blanket stitch and 3 strands floss.
-Add eye detail using a straight stitch and 6 strands of floss. If you would like, using the same piece of thread, you can tack down every other straight stitch in the center of the eye using a small stitch. This will help secure the stitches. (Please note: the pattern says "3 strands" of floss. I simply couldn't ask Michelle to make another PDF to fix it!)
-Add detail to the chest using a straight stitch and 6 strands of floss.

Now, with wrong sides together stitch the front of the owl's body to the back using a blanket stitch and 3 strands of floss.

Add the feather detail to the wing using a stem stitch and 3 strands of floss.

With wrong sides together, stitch a wing front to a wing back using a blanket stitch and 3 strands of floss. Only stitch the sides and bottom of the wing, DO NOT stitch the top of the wing above the "attach line". Refer to pattern. IMPORTANT: Do not cut thread!

Position a wing on the side of the owl. Use photos and patterns for positioning. Pin in place.

Using the same thread, continue blanket stitching the top of the wing, but now you will also be sewing it directly to the owl's body. Do the other wing in the same manner.

You are now done with the owl's body.

To attach the body to the peg, begin my cutting a strip of batting 1" wide. I used a thin cotton batting.

Depending on the thickness of your batting, wrap the batting strip around the peg to get the width you want. With my thin batting, I wrapped the peg twice. Cut off additional batting. Note: Use enough batting so when you slide the owl body over the peg, the owls chest is firmly stuffed. Before you glue the batting to the peg, "try the body on", by carefully sliding it over the batting, to make sure you are happy with the fit.

Place glue on the peg where the batting will go. Glue the batting to the peg. Note: If you are wrapping the peg twice, start wrapping the batting around the peg, then place more glue on the batting that is wrapped around the peg, and finish wrapping the peg. Press together and allow to dry completely before going on to the next step.

Using a small amount of stuffing, stuff the ears of the owl and place a little at the top of the head. When you place the body over the peg, you want the top of the owl's head to almost sit directly on the top of the peg. Do not over stuff!

Place glue on the batting and the top of the wooden peg and carefully slide the peg into the owl being careful not to get glue on the outside of the owl's body. Note: Position the peg so the seam of the body wrap is at the back of the owl.

Before glue dries, fuss with the owl's positioning, making sure the body is centered. Hold the owl's body against the peg until the glue begins to set. This should only tack a couple of minutes.

Allow to dry completely. Now, make a friend or two for your new owls and introduce them to your gnomes, fairies, and other woodland animals :)

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All photos, text and patterns are copyright protected. You may not copy, reproduce or redistribute any material found on WeeFolkArt.com without written permission. Wee Folk Art retains all rights.

Statement: My floors are covered in mud. Period. End of story. As the near spring thaw begins to turn portions of our yard into a gooey brown viscous substance, my dogs joyously, nay, exuberantly, prance, dance and generally wallow in the stuff! Don't want this to be common knowledge, BUT, I've even tried dog boots. I think they ate them. Seriously. Or... they are buried somewhere in the yard, and I can just hear them snickering and nudging one another as they bound over the recent boot graves, proud of their clandestine tribulations.

So, no more dog boots. I've resigned myself to believing the mud on my floors is just another way of bringing the great outdoors inside. My floors will again be clean in the summer, but for now, I try not to begrudge them their joyous romps, and keep a mop handy, along with a good sense of humor.

Truth be told, although I'm willing to cut my dogs some slack when it comes to muddy paws, I don't have the same tolerance for humans. We can wipe our feet at the door, AND, wear awesome boots when we are outside. Rain boots have come a long way since I was a little girl. I remember these awful black buckled boots my brothers use to don, and as for me, my rain boots were always a solid colors and blah. Today, Holy Shmolies! There are so many awesomely cute rain boots out there, it rather saddens me when it is time to turn them in for sandals. (Mind you, I love my sandals, too!)  

Today, I am sharing an applique block for what I think are some awesomely cute rain boots. I can just imagine little feet, or big feet as the case may be, stomping in puddles and leaving footprints in mud. As always, this applique was designed to fit a 6" block, but can be enlarged or reduced to meet your needs. Whether you are getting ready for spring or anticipating fall rains, hope you find yourself in a pair of playful rain boots, stomping in standing pools of water and negotiating tempting mud puddles!

The pattern for the Rain Boots Applique Block can be found HERE.

The tutorial on How to Enlarge and Reduce can be found HERE.

The tutorial on How to Cut Out Felt can be found HERE.

The Stitching Glossary can be found HERE.
 

DIRECTIONS - Refer to pattern and photo for applique placements and cutting instructions.

Make a copy of the pattern.

Cut out felt. Transfer any embroidery markings.

Using a blanket stitch, sew boot to block using 3 strands floss.

Using a lazy daisy stitch, embroider flowers using 6 strands of floss. (Do not add flower centers yet.)

Using a running stitch, sew back handle to boot using 2 strands floss.

Using a blanket stitch, sew boot lining to boot using 3 strands floss.

Using a running stitch, sew front handle to boot using 2 strands floss.

Using a blanket stitch, attach cuff and sole to boot using 3 strands floss.

Using a French knot, embroider center of flowers using 6 strands floss.