Wednesday, January 15, 2014

How to make a snowman


These directions can be used for socks from 0-12 months up to a child's sock.  I found directions on the internet for making the socks and then I changed them a bit.
The original directions call for an elastic band to hold the gathering at the bottom and the top.  I opted to use a needle and thread.  I've had elastic bands break over the years and I don't want to loose all my stuffing and have a flat snowman.   I like them roly-poly!
As I told you yesterday I bought my wee socks at Baby's r Us.  They were 99* a pair.  I probably could have done better at the dollar store, but I don't like the one in my neighbourhood.  It is always cramped and cashing out is a ...............

 Once again you only need the shank.  If you take a closer look you will notice that there is elastic around the ankle part of this sock.  That was my gathering line!  I cut the foot away and only worked with the shank portion.  I know I was wasteful, but I don't have a need for the foot section and I'm not storing it until I figure something out to do with it.
 
The shank part of this sock where it is divided are two different lengths.  I opted to use the longer length for the body.  Once I decided which side I wanted to be on the outside (the inside is softer and a tiny wee bit fluffier) I turned the sock inside out and gathered it with needle and thread.  Once I had the stitching secured I turned the sock right side out and stuffed it with poly stuffing.
Gather the top of the snowman and secure it off.  This stitching will be hidden by the hat.
Gather the snowman through the middle.....a bit more to the top than the bottom.....and secure your thread.  This will be hidden by the scarf.

I didn't have any black perle cotton thread in the house (or not that I could find) so I used a dark blue for the eyes.  I just used 6 strands of oranges embroidery floss for the nose.
Both eyes and nose were stitched the same way.
I knotted the end of the perle cotton and starting at the top pulled the needle and thread through the sock to the point I wanted the first eye.  I made a french knot and then I made a second one close to the first by running the thread inside the snowman.  Once the second eye was finished I ran the needle back up to the top and secured the thread off.  I did the same thing for the nose.
Each snowman by making a different style hat and tie the scarf a bit differently looks a bit distinctive.  I didn't add anything else.  No buttons on his tummy.  The scarf would hide them.
They need a string to hang them and they are all ready for next Christmas gift giving.
Want to see all of them?????
The middle two I didn't want to buy more socks, so I used white socks and use the foot from one and the toe from the other for the hat.  I do not use any food products for filling....no rice, no beans, etc.

Tip:  I fill my snowmen with fiberfill and with poly-pellets.  If you use the poly beads, make sure they are the white ones.
(I didn't have any socks left when I photographed this tip, so bear with my dirty white sock, please.)

This is what you fill need for filling the bodies.

a tablespoon measuring spoon, poly-pellets, your sock, a small juice glass and fiberfill






Pull your sock over the glass as I have done in the photo.












Put about 2 tablespoons of poly-pellets in the bottom of the sock. 

While the sock is still in the glass, pick up a handful of polyfill fibre and stuff that in on top of the pellets. 












Carefully pull the sock back up and over the fiberfill.  Continue to fill until



 you are satisfied with the amount of fiberfill placed inside.  I didn't have these really, really firm.  














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