This week felt quite intense, if I am honest. My car decided to give up on me in the middle of nowhere. Which stole a lot of my attention and completely pulled me off track. Still, I really wanted to keep going. Stay consistent, and finish one project this week like I promised in my Last Article: This Week I was Making a Beautiful Felt Dachshund Plushie.
So yes, I did finish one project, and this time it was an alpaca, or a llama, however you prefer to call it 🙈. If you are new here, hi, I am Alena 👋. I have been crafting and sewing for as long as I can remember. Not that long ago, I committed to a weekly newsletter where I tell you what I am working on. I have stayed quite consistent for around two months now, and honestly, I am very proud of myself for that 💪.
At first, I thought this little weekly update would stay only as a newsletter. Then I realised newsletters are not evergreen content. If you are not on the list, you miss the juicy bits, and that felt a bit unfair. That is why I decided to turn these updates into articles too. So if you have only just found me, you can still go back and read the whole story from the beginning 😉.
Where the Llama Idea Came From
The idea for this llama sewing pattern came to me a long time ago after watching one of my favourite cartoons, The Emperor’s Groove. That little spark stayed in my head for ages. Then not long ago, I started digging around my old ideas again and remembered that I had wanted to create a cot mobile with a few alpacas, cactuses, and maybe mountains in the middle.
Once I started stitching, I could not really stop 🙈😂. You know how it goes. One minute you are just testing an idea. And the next minute you are fully committed and talking to the project like it pays rent. I decided to finish all the elements from the beginning to the end. Including the mountain, and I stitched that too 💪.
For this project, I worked with Soft Felt and Stuffing/Filling. The full cot mobile is still waiting for its grand moment. But the alpaca part is done, and that already made me feel a lot better after the car drama 🙈.
The Cot Mobile Plan That Is Still Waiting
I did not have time to build the cot mobile yet. And the reason is painfully boring – the car died, and I could not get to storage 🤦♀️. That means I still have not collected the Hoops, which I have already been postponing for I do not even know how many weeks 😂. It is becoming one of those tasks that starts to feel almost mythical.
I really hope that once I sort the car out, I will finally get to storage, pick up the hoops, and make the cot mobile I have been dreaming about for so long. The idea is still very much alive in my head. It is just currently being held hostage by real life, a dead car, and chaos 🙈.
That said, I am still happy I pushed this part of the project forward. Even when the week tried very hard to turn into a complete circus, I still finished the alpaca sewing pattern. I count that as a win 💪.
A Sudden Realisation About Queeny
Another thing I realised this week is that my precious Queeny is basically naked 🙈. She has only one raincoat, which is not ideal when you live in Manchester. Where it rains about 99% of the time. The problem starts when that raincoat needs washing. Because then she has absolutely nothing to wear for a quick toilet trip 🐾.
And Queeny is not one of those brave little dogs who will just power through. Oh no 😂. If it is even slightly wet outside, she acts like the world has personally offended her. She fully refuses to put her nose outside. Little capricious princess. To be fair, she does live up to the name Queeny.
So I think next week has to become a shopping week for Queeny outfits. I already know it will not be simple, because I have a French bulldog, and they do not fit standard dog clothing nicely at all. When I buy size M, the paws fit and the back length fits, but I cannot close it on the chest. When I buy size L, I can close it, but then I usually need to alter a lot because the sleeves are too long and everything else starts looking a bit questionable.
Why Next Week Will Probably Turn Into Alteration Week
That means next week will not only be about shopping 🛍️. It will also be about alterations ✂️. I already know I will need to shorten things, adjust things, and figure out how to make standard dog clothes work on a very non-standard little French bulldog body.
So that is probably the goal for my next week. I think it could actually be quite fun to show you what we buy and how I end up altering everything for Queeny. I have a strong feeling it will be one of those projects where the final result looks cute, but the process will include a fair bit of muttering and side-eye 👀.
If you would like to see that little adventure, stay with me. I feel like it has all the ingredients already – shopping, fitting drama, stubborn fabric, and Queeny judging everyone 😂.
Before I Go
I think this article is slowly coming to the end, and I really appreciate you staying with me through all my blah blah stories 😂. If you want to get acquainted with what I make, you can visit My Website. And If you want to see the patterns from last week’s project, you can have a peek at the Dachshund Sewing Pattern and the Crab Sewing Pattern 🧵.
To say thank you for being here, I also want to share a Free Sewing Pattern. I think you are going to like it, especially because I build my patterns myself and do not use AI for them. That part matters to me a lot. If you have already used my patterns, or if you end up trying this one, and you need help with something, you can join my School Community. You can ask questions there, share what you are making, and I reply there myself directly.
So for now, bye, and I will see you in my next article 👋.
