Dinosaur

This is the chap I made for K for Christmas. It was all done in a bit of a rush, with some very shoddy workmanship, so please don't look too carefully. K seems happy enough with it anyway, though it is nowhere near as popular as The Maisy Doll.

I made a few alterations to the original pattern (and when I say 'alterations' I generally mean 'shortcuts'). When I opened up the pattern I realized that this creature was huge so I reduced it by two thirds. Of course it wasn't until later that I discovered that this meant that much of the sewing became a lot more fiddly... I also just used single pieces of felt, unfinished, for the claws, instead of two pieces sewn together and turned for each of the 12 claws. That would just have been ridiculous.


I'm not sure how this pattern ended up in my sewing basket. I suspect that it was either pilfered from my mum or, like so many things in this house, was given to me by a friend who was leaving Japan. If you recognise it, let me know! I noticed that it is dated 1986, which makes it practically vintage now I suppose. The best thing about it was an advert on it for McCall's Patterns ('Sewing's Fashion Magazine'). I tried to take a photo of it but it didn't come out well, so here's the highlight for you:

You'll find ... top celebrities including Linda Evans, Joan Collins,

Diahann Carroll, Brooke Shields, Shari Belafonte-Harper, Mariette Hartley and more!

Yeah for the cast of Dynasty! I wonder if the magazine featured shoulder pads in every garment...