Pincushion rings.

How a pincushion ring is worn.

An assortment of pincushion rings.

Hi Everyone,
Here is a couple of pics of the pincushion rings we made at my last local CWA meeting. The materials are very cheap and include the lid of a P.E.T. soft drink ( ie soda pop like Coke or whatever) bottle,  a short length of hat elastic, a small circle of scrap fabric, a little bit of polyester stuffing, a little bit of braid or lace, a sewing needle, some sewing thread to match the fabric circle and some Tacky glue, and a toothpick to apply glue. Do I need to include full intructions here? I would think they could be made by looking at the photos.


I will give you a hint: stitch a tacking stitch around the edge of the circle to help gather "the cushion" in nicely before you add the stuffing. You can always adjust it by pulling on the tacking thread to tighten.


Oh, another tip: make two holes through the bottom of the plastic bottle lid with a hot metal skewer. This can be done easily if you have gas cooking top ie just stick the end of the metal skewer into the gas flame til it heats then make the two holes in the plastic lid with it.


Estimate the length of the hat elastic you'll need by wrapping a length around your finger plus allow extra for the knots. 


**** Don't forget to apply glue to the underside of the lid so that the fabric and stuffing will stay put and also glue the braid/lace onto the outside of the lid to finish.


Feel free to ask questions if you don't follow.


All the Best and Happy Crafting!!
CateW :0)

TRAUMA DOLLS FOR KIDS IN HOSPITAL.

Hi All!
Just wanted to let you know of a very worthwhile charity crafting exercise; making and donating Trauma Dolls for kids in hospitals.

I had my friends stuffing trauma dolls at my last social craft group meeting on Wednesday. One member had sewn some up out of the pre-washed calico you use for these dolls, and we were all turning them inside out and stuffing them ready for my mother to stitch closed. No face, hair, clothing or whatever is put on these dolls. They are perfectly plain calico dolls ready for doctors and children to draw on etc to help explain to each other what will happen, where the pain is etc, whilst the child is in hospital. Each child gets to keep and decorate the doll as she/he sees fit. I imagine any hospital that has child patients would find them a useful tool and soothing to the kids too. They are approximately 39cm tall (15 inches tall). Please see below attached scanned image of one, (the legs, arms and head are a bit cut off in this photo but you can still see the general shape of it).

When sewing the doll up remember to leave about a 6cm (a bit over 2 inches long) opening on the outside of one of the legs so you can fill the doll with stuffing, then hand stitch the opening close.

All the Best and Happy Crafting!!
CateW :0)