Some of you have asked to hear more about the rag doll I made for Eleanor’s birthday (I have mentioned it before in this post). It seems like rag dolls are extremely popular at the moment, and several smaller companies and crafters make adorable versions, which would have been an easier solution. But since I’ve always wanted to make a personal present from me to my daughter and I actually love to sew, I decided to do a DIY rag doll instead.

The doll is made of a white organic cotton fabric and dyed in black tea to give it just the right skin tone. I chose to stuff it with a locally produced wool stuffing. The face is inspired by some of Eleanor’s drawings and the hair is made of wool (another option could have been yarn, which I might go for next time).

The wardrobe and the accessories I really enjoyed designing and making. All outfits are inspired by some of my favorite designers, and made from old clothes of Eleanor’s and mine. I wanted the doll to be a kind of secret friend to Eleanor, someone, who she can pretend will help her out of troubles and comfort her, when she’s upset. So I decided to make the rag doll (who Eleanor later named Super Ella) into a secret super hero doll with a super hero bunny rabbit sidekick and Eleanor loves that she isn’t just another ordinary doll.

I have made a lot of mistakes along the way, and have a small list of things I’ll do differently for my next doll projects. But even though she isn’t perfect, I still love this one. She’s the first doll I’ve ever made, and everything i made with Eleanor in my mind. Since I really loved making this one, and my younger daughter has ordered one “with pink hair” I’ve already started making the next few dolls. And hopefully we know of another few little girls out there, who would like their own little secret super hero friend cause I don’t think I can stop after just making two.

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Nogle af jer har bedt om at se mere til den håndlavede dukke, som Eleanor fik i fødselsdagsgave (jeg har før omtalt den her). DIY rag dolls eller kludedukker, som man vel kalder dem i Danmark, er meget populære i USA for øjeblikket, og der er flere mindre firmaer og kreative damer, der laver nogle virkeligt skønne versioner. Man da jeg længe har haft lyst til at lave en personlig gave til Eleanor, og jeg faktisk elsker at sy, besluttede jeg mig for at DIY.

Dukken (som Eleanor senere har døbt Super Ella) er lavet ud af en kraftig organisk hvid bomuld, og er farvet i sort the for at få en fin og levende hud tone. Hun er fyldt ud med organisk uld, og ansigtet er inspireret af nogle af Eleanors tegninger af piger.

Noget af det sjovest var at lave Super Ellas garderobe og accessories. Tøjet er syet ud af gammelt aflagt tøj af Eleanors og mit, og Eleanor har moret sig meget over at kunne genkende stof fra gamle bukser og kjoler. Jeg har hele tiden haft en idé om, at dukke skulle være en slag hemmelig ven for Eleanor. Én, som kan give lidt imaginært hjælp og trøst når man har brug for det. Derfor besluttede jeg mig for,  at lave hende til en hemmelig super hero dukke og give hende en hemmelig super hero kanin som sit side kick, hvilket har vist sig at være en meget populær idé hos begge børn.

Jeg har lavet en masse fejl undervejs og har en hel liste af ting, som jeg gerne vil gøre anderledes i mit næste dukkeprojekt. Jeg nød virkelig at lave Super Ella, og lillesøster har heldigvis bestilt en “med pink hår”, så der er allerede gang i et par nye dukker. Og så håber vi bare, at vi kender et par små piger derude et sted, der også godt kunne tænke sig at modtage sin helt egen hemmelige super hero ven.