Sunday 13 November 2011

Little Folk

There is lots of folklore regarding the 'little folk', and they have many names - elves, fairies, sprites, imps, brownies and hobgoblins. They are often described as being mischievous creatures, although sometimes they like to help humans, even doing chores around the house for them. Dobby the house elf, from Harry Potter, seems to be inspired by these stories, as they often state that the creatures become insulted if given clothes and will then leave. In fact, in Sussex (where I live) there is folklore regarding 'Dobbs' or 'Master Dobbs', a house fairy who would help with the housework.

Dobby

As I mentioned in a previous post I made a toy Dobby for my son. I have been working on the pattern, and with a few variations, have made several other creatures.





Fire Imp

Fire Imps are attracted to bonfires and campfires, and are very partial to snacks cooked on them such as sausages. If you have an open fire in your house they may sneak in and sleep by the embers at night. He is made with mohair brushed to make hair and has fingers and toes.





Brownie

This Brownie is a happy little fellow who likes eating cakes and dancing, a bit like a Hobbit or Halfling. He is has curly hair and a separate waistcoat and scarf.




Autumn Tree Sprite
This little nature Sprite lives in the trees and likes to stay hidden. His colouring helps him to stay secret when the trees are losing their leaves, then he finds a nice big pile of of them and hibernates through the winter. He has hair made from eyelash yarn and a scarf to keep him warm.





Forest Fairy

This little forest-dwelling fairy is well camouflaged among the trees with her pale green skin and mossy hair. She has antlers and wears a dress made of leaves. Her long hair is made of lots of different yarns.
  
The pattern is now available in my Etsy shop, and contains all the information to make the different Little Folk described above, with details on how to make the different kinds of hair and their clothing. All the variations can then be used to design your own creature made the way you want.

12 comments:

  1. I love ALL of them! The Fairy, Elf, Brownie,Sprite and imp! Especially with the stories you included! As soon as I get some pattern money, you can be sure that i will be at Etsy to buy some of the patterns!

    Thank you for sharing such lovely work and stories with all of us!

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  2. These are super adorable, and I love the stories they come with !

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  3. So cute! They'd make lovely gifts. :)

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  4. Beautiful company! Forest Fairy is my favourite :)

    Hugs,
    Tatyana

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  5. Thank you everyone, I'm so glad you like them!

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  6. Your creatures are absolutely wonderful!! I would totally love to be able to make them but I wouldn't have a clue how to even start! Do you sell any of them or make them on comission- I have a one and a three year old but I admit now that they would be for me and not them! Hehe.
    I live in West Sussex too- please please please can you start up a group teaching people how to make them- I would be there straight away. Do your children play with them? What lucky kids having such an amazingly talented, inspirational mummy!
    All best wishes
    Katie Webb (my email- clarkksa@hotmail.com)

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  7. Thank you Katie! I'm not really selling my creatures at the moment, and I'm just too busy designing patterns to work on commissions. I would like to teach people how to make amigurumi, but I don't really have any plans right now. What I might try to do is put videos and photos online to give extra help with making amigurumis.

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  8. These are gorgeous. The "brownie" pattern was a success for my sister's birthday and now I have a request for you. Please, please, please design an actual hobbit pattern! That's all I'll be thinking of for the next two years and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a pattern that will keep me busy in my favorite fandom.

    That aside, your patterns are always adorable and I have such fun making them!

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  9. me encantan tus muñecos!
    son preciosos, enorabuena!
    te sigo desde ya ;)
    saludos desde España

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  10. Carissa, thank you! I think of the brownie as being very much the same as a hobbit, I'm sure you could alter the clothes as necessary to make the type of hobbit you want.

    I have also recently made myself a smaller Frodo, and I may well develop the pattern for him (see this post for photos:http://lucyravenscar.blogspot.com/2012/03/flappy-owls-and-lots-of-other-stuff-ive.html)

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