2011 Sleep Goblin Ornament

I have been quietly re-opening my Etsy shop for business over the last few weeks.  You might have noticed some activity on the store's Facebook page if you follow that.  I also started a Google+ page, just to cover all my bases.  So if any of you want some custom stuff made by Christmas, now is a great time to let me know so it can be done in time!

But the more important thing I have to tell you is that the 2011 ornament is done!  Well, designed.  I still need to "mass produce" them.  They're themed after the carol 12 Days of Christmas, specifically a partridge in a pear tree.  It took a long time to figure this one out.  I had originally planned on doing it last year, but it just didn't come together.  This year I had a brilliant idea for layered paintings, but I couldn't figure out how to incorporate the partridge in a way that made me happy.  I still love the layer idea, but it will have to wait for something else.

A pear tree painting inside an ornament.

After debating between sculpted paper, cross stitch, and felt, I finally settled on felt.  I had to figure out how make a 3d bird plush, which I'd never done before.  Normally I just sew two flat pieces together and put some stuffing inside.  I did some research and found out the partridge referred to was most likely a red-legged partridge, so I tried to make it look like that.  They have a lot of color changes in their feathers, so it's not perfect, but I'm cool with it.  Then I threw in some real twigs with some felt leaves and pears, and done!

If you like it, you can pre-order it for $10 through the end of November, and then the prices go up to more accurately reflect the time and effort put into them.  Also, if you're missing any previous year's designs, I found a bunch of half finished things that I'm going to try to finish up and put in the shop so I can be rid of them.  Keep an eye out for those as well!

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