Sock monkeys!

chatty123

thanks pennib they haven't allowed them at our hospital ever since all this mrsa bug....years. so good excuse to make a monkey

last time i did this for my aunt i ended up with tons of orders.........always thinking....lol

Kaleidoscope27

That's lovely chatty! She'll love it! And it'll last much longer than a bunch of flowers anyway

pennib

that's a shame, they stil let you have flowers up here. Wouldnt have thought that flowers would carry that bug, better safe than sorry I guess.
I like your way of thinking.....hmmm pity don't know anybody going into hospital (is that a good or bad thing haha)

chasingsunshine_2

I've just finished my first monkey!!! Its not as good as the ones you've all put on here but I'm quite pleased with it. Made it for my sister- have to do another for my other sister (they're for Christmas)

I'll post a pic later on. It'll probably make you laugh though haha

pennib

chasingsunshine; We never laugh at sock monkey's they are all adorable that what makes them unique and if they are a bit quirky that adds to their character.
Sure you're family will love them to bits.

nuttybabe

Hi

I have finally got round to trying to make some sort of pattern for the sock dinosaur. It isnt very good though. If anyone wants a peak, it is on my blog.

ps. chatty, she is lovely and I am sure will be appreciated alot more than flowers.

chatty123

Yes thank you she was and certainly got all the ward talking

already received some orders.... so this week is a monkey making week.

chasingsunshine_2

Eeeek my photo is big but dont know how to make it smaller...
Okay so here is my first ever sock monkey heehe! Had to do her by hand as sewing machine isnt working. she's a bit lumpy so i'm going to have to try to smooth that out and hopefully the next 2 will work out a bit better.
I'm pleased with it really though Thanks for all the tips!

kisto

chasingsunshine wrote: »

Eeeek my photo is big but dont know how to make it smaller...
Okay so here is my first ever sock monkey heehe! Had to do her by hand as sewing machine isnt working. she's a bit lumpy so i'm going to have to try to smooth that out and hopefully the next 2 will work out a bit better.
I'm pleased with it really though Thanks for all the tips!

Well done, you have done a cracking job (especially sewing by hand), she's really very cute! How long did it take you to do by hand? Using a machine (and having had lots of practice) mine take about 2 hours to make. I can imagine it's a lot slower by hand!


I've had a couple of custom orders so thought I'd share them on here.

The first was for a "fairy" sock monkey.
It took me ages to decide how to do the wings. Originally I was scouring the charity shops, searching for an old barbie doll with wings, but I realised that I was unlikely to find one. Then I trawled ebay to see if it was possible to buy wings. There were quite a few gorgeous sets of wings on there but they were too expensive (and probably way to OTT for a sock monkey)!
At this point I realised I'd have to make them, but I wasn't sure how. I began by looking for some stiff material, thinking I would just cut out the shape of the wings and that would be it. I couldn't find a material I was happy with so I eventually came up with a solution using my own stock of fabric.



I made the wand by covering a kebab skewer with curling ribbon, then made a felt star to top it off. I added some little silver beads to give it some sparkle! The wand is attached to the sock monkeys hand using velcro.


The wings are made using some plain pink cotton which I stuffed. I then added a layer of white organza sewed along the centre so that it is loose and "flaps"! I also added the same little silver beads to add some sparkle! They are attached using velcro so are removable too. The tutu is just a girls hair band.

My other custom order was for a "Karate" sock monkey (with an orange belt) as a birthday pressie for my neighbours daughter (it's her birthday tomorrow)!

I made up the pattern for the karate suit as I went along!
I'd already discovered how to make trousers for a previous sock monkey request - except for that one I'd used a white sock. You just use a similar principal to making the main body of a sock monkey, except you don't round off or sew up the feet, then chop off the surplus top toe part of the sock (just above the heal) and add a waistline hem. It doesn't really need elastic either.
So I applied this same principal to a rectangle of fabric. The first pair of trousers I made were not loose enough on the legs, so I scrapped them and started again!

For the jacket I based the pattern on a t-shirt I had on a teddy. I just increased the length of the sleeves and the back. I had to use a bit of guesswork to create the front jacket parts, but fortunately I guessed right!

The orange belt is actually some orange webbing.

chasingsunshine_2

Wow kisto they are fantastic!!! Well done!

My monkey took me about 7 hours all together. think I need a bit more practice heehee