Latest Forum Posts by: Bastelfan

Being together with family

Hey there, you hard-working little bees!
My little one got a new knitted hat. It wasn’t that hard at all. How do you like it?

Stay a while

I use a standard sponge batter

150 g sugar
150 g margarine
3 egg yolks (egg whites at the end)
1 packet vanilla sugar
1 packet pudding mix
200 g flour
1/2 packet baking powder
3–4 tbsp milk
3 medium apples, sliced
A little lemon juice and cinnamon

Mix all the ingredients and pour into a springform pan. Place the apple slices on the batter, drizzle a little lemon juice over them and sprinkle with cinnamon

Crumble topping:

100 g flour
75 g margarine
1 packet vanilla sugar
75 g sugar

Bake at 150–160°C until golden, about 20–30 minutes or longer depending on the oven

Good luck

I baked again, too. Since all the Amerikaner pastries have been gobbled up, we needed more. Apple cake with streusel
If anyone would like to bake it too, let me know, then I’ll post the recipe.

Here you go

Hi there,
Wow, schnatterdesign, what a lovely doll collection you have. The big dolls at the very back on the left almost look like the doll I had as a child.
The smaller ones are so chicly dressed. I still have some like that too, but unfortunately they still have to freeze. They’ll get something to wear soon.
Those little dolls with the reddish-brown and gray hair, did you glue that on, or did they come that way? It looks really interesting. You could make a grandma out of one of them. I’ll keep that idea in mind.
Thanks for showing us

Monika, I posted a picture in the handicrafts thread. I really did knit again for once. Just a simple scarf for my Krümel to start with, in knit and purl stitches. Strangely enough, it worked, and it really is faster than crocheting, could that be?

Have fun with your little dolls

Hi,

I last knitted more than 8 years ago, and I wanted to see if I still had what it takes—just knit and purl stitches—and this is what came out of it. Strangely enough, it worked out.

Yesterday I baked another batch of Amerikaner, and today we’re having the rest.
This time I used sugar instead of honey. My husband said they were crispier than the others. But they taste just as delicious.

I’ll probably bake some more tomorrow; they’re quick to make too. Then my husband can take some to work, and an apple cake with streusel is also still on the list. We’ll see.

short break

I wish you all a lovely weekend

The sun is shining here today, and I’d say it’s relatively warm for Norway. Everything is thawing. It’s starting to feel a bit like spring.

It’s not that easy to keep my hands/arm still. It’s going okay.
But... I had an idea yesterday that it might also be because of my crochet hooks. So now I’ve ordered these ergonomic ones from a...i, and even a Casy Trio knitting needle set.
After admiring all your DF projects here. Maybe that will help with the crocheter’s tennis elbow.
Someone here wrote that they take their knitting/crochet ideas to bed with them. You won’t believe it, but I was lying in bed like that yesterday too, mentally knitting a DF swatch. This magic is contagious, just like with the little dolls.
After Monika made such quick progress with it, I’m really on the verge of starting to knit again. Even if it’s just knit and purl stitches at first, no matter.
Most of the time I only have cotton yarn, which isn’t supposed to be that suitable, right? There’s still time until then.

Have fun, I’ll check back in again later

Today we’re eating the rest of the Amerikaner pastries; they really are delicious.

Oh yeah, Monika, me as a saleswoman in a toy store—that’d be it; I’d feel right at home there. I could totally “get lost” in that.

Marion, I’m itching to crochet your pretty blanket for my little doll. But I’ve taken on a bit too much crochet-wise and have to take a little forced break, even though I could actually get started right away. Oh well. There are worse things.

My question: with that dark blue granny square and those light blue rows next to it, how did you crochet them together—or did you just crochet row by row and then insert the hook into the granny square at the end and join it with a stitch?
That was a great idea of yours with the colorful blanket, and the arrangement really has something to it.

Anyway, I need to rest my right arm—I’m just reading along here.

Have a lovely evening, everyone, and a relaxing weekend!

Keep things organized

Just popping in here for a quick look,

First off, thanks, Ina , for the info. I googled it. I’ll read it more thoroughly later. But first, I still have to bake another batch of Amerikaner.

Monika , you misread that part about the 5.0-meter length :-). Ina had first test-crocheted a different pattern, and that would have made the blanket that long. Now it’s 1.80 m

. Have fun—I’m off to bake now, and then I’ll have to take a forced break :-(

Motivation

Hello at this late hour,

you’ve conjured up such amazing things again. Knitting isn’t really my thing, but when I marvel at your DF projects like this, I’m blown away.

ines, your crocheted egg cups look so pretty.

Ina, your temperature blanket has such a great color gradient—I already love it. I’m curious to see what it’ll look like when it’s finished.
My arm’s doing okay, but lately it’s been giving me trouble when I crochet. Maybe I’m holding my arm too high, or the blood isn’t circulating properly—I’m not sure. I’ve never had tendonitis before, not even from typing on a typewriter or computer. No idea. But I just can’t keep my hands still. I take more breaks and admire your creations, then my fingers start itching again, and… before you know it, you’re caught in a vicious cycle :-)

Monika, it’s amazing how you manage to do it all. That DF pouch is great. Oh man, I want to be able to do that too, but patience isn’t my strong suit.
Actually, I don’t really like sewing by hand either, but that was just a small section of the doll’s jacket—it’s doable, and you’re done in no time.

Marion, I’ve already admired your doll’s baby blanket in the other thread. I find the arrangement of the motifs and the simple pattern so interesting. Very colorful. I like it.

Have a nice evening!

Dear doll moms,

Marion, I absolutely love your blanket. Are the appliqués sewn on or crocheted in as you went?
It looks so colorful. I need a blanket like that for Krümel, too. I really like it. I’ve got plenty of little leftover yarn lying around anyway.
Monika, my Krümel still says “ow” and even gives a little “kiss.” It’s really funny. Yeah, my husband always has to laugh when she says “Daddy.”

Have fun with your babies!

Have a nice afternoon, 
There’s a lot going on here, and plenty to admire, but more on that later.

I just wanted to show you the new jacket for Kruemel. I think she looks really cute in it.
It even has a zipper instead of buttons. I still had that zipper lying around. I can’t even remember the last time I sewed in a zipper.

So I need to get the coffee table ready first. See you later 

Yes, unfortunately the fun didn’t last long. After two hours, he had simply vanished—he was no longer there, melted away. Such a shame. It was so much fun.

A spur-of-the-moment idea after shoveling snow. When kids play, they stay healthy.
Since it’s thawing a bit, the snow was just right—otherwise, it’s just powder snow. It may not look perfect, but you can still tell what it is—yay!

Perseverance

Monika, yes, I saw that too, that your little star only has one touch point on its body. So Krümel probably makes more sounds.
You can even hear a cough, laughing, snoring, a kind of peeing sound. It’s just so much fun. When she snores like that, I just can’t stop laughing; it always looks so cute.
Just like you, after undressing Krümel to adjust the crochet piece, I dressed her again right away so she wouldn’t get cold. Somehow I just can’t leave Krümel sitting there half-naked like that.
I always have to laugh when all “three” of us are sitting on the couch drinking coffee. Krümel in the middle. She gets her bottle then too.  My husband thinks it’s funny too. It’s lovely when there are such understanding men as our two.

I’m still happy. Well Monika, doesn’t your little star need a playmate too? Lots of fun guaranteed, I can only confirm that :-)    :-)     :-)

Warm evening greetings

Calling family and friends

Crochet break,

ines66, my arm’s doing okay so far, but whenever I bend it and want to crochet, some muscles start to ache—no idea why. It’s not from shoveling snow; that actually went fine. So I’m just taking a little forced break, drinking my tea, and reading along here. I can manage a little writing.

a-mano, those knitted little pouches look really great—I wish I could do that too, but I’m still a long way off. I’d buy them from you in a heartbeat. I like them, and these colors too—awesome

Wollbaerli, it’s a shame about your crochet/knitting break, but English seems to be important to you right now. You’ve got this.

So everyone, keep working away diligently—see you later…… coffee

Yeah, it’s me again. I had to rip it out again because the sleeve section of the doll’s sweater or jacket was too big. I hadn’t counted the 4 corner stitches. It looks much better now—I tried it on.
And since the pile of unraveled yarn looks so funny, here’s a picture.


Thanks, Monika. For now, I’m going to crochet the dark brown part onto the tunic as far as I can get, then we’ll see.

See you later
—I still have to shovel snow.

Hi everyone,

the tunic is coming along slowly. I’ve now joined the two tops together, but here’s my question: which yarn color should I use next? I’ve already had to improvise a bit with the colors. Either the rest of the top in red/black, or the rest in dark brown with glitter—if you can even tell that much.

That little thing there is my swatch for my little one—a sweater or jacket, I’m not sure yet.

Hi everyone,

you’ve all been so busy again.

Monika, your diaper cover is so cute. It looks great. I’m sure it could also be adapted into a little pair of panties.

I’m currently crocheting the first top-down raglan sweater for Krümel. It’s still in the trial phase.
For my tunic, I still need to crochet the two upper parts together, and then we’ll see how everything works out with my leftover yarn cakes. I don’t have many color options left (yarn diet).

Now I need a crochet break for a while; somehow my right elbow hurts. Besides, I’m about to prepare dinner: vegetable stir-fry.

See you later for now

best wishes

Mmm, those look delicious, and half with glaze and half without. I haven’t tried it that way yet. Thanks for sharing

Oh Ines, those look totally delicious and crispy.
Now I’m craving apple turnovers again. But I can’t bake right now—I’m out of flour.
Enjoy!

Trust

Respect

Dear BineHummelbunt,

Even your nickname alone sounds so cute.
I’d also like to send you my very best birthday wishes. Stay healthy. Have a wonderful day.

Warm regards

Unfortunately, all the American cookies are gone, so I had to make more. They’ll be fresh on the coffee table later.
This time I brushed the right side. Delicious

Mmm, Petra, those look delicious. They make you want to take a bite right away. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe with us.

Oops, sent that too quickly.

I enlarged the picture a bit—if I’m seeing it right, the face is embroidered, isn’t it? With the embroidery machine? That’s of course great for that.

I just took a moment to admire her in the gallery. She’s dressed so elegantly, and let’s not forget those sparkling eyes. It was definitely worth the effort.

Getting to be a doll mom :-)

Have a lovely afternoon,

just wanted to pop in briefly. You’ve created such pretty little projects again. I always love these too, and they’re quick to make in between other things.

ines, your star-shaped egg cups with the beads look so pretty. I’m imagining them right now on the Easter breakfast table in every color imaginable.

Ina, I like your Filzies with the colorful curls. I’m just picturing what my Filzies might look like. The Filzies in neon pink or green, with that high knit cuff—the cuff turned up—and those colorful curly locks along the bottom edge of the cuff; that would definitely look awesome. If you can picture what I mean. I could really use those right now, because it’s damn c... cold here—-12 degrees—and I’ve been freezing all day, even though the sun is shining beautifully outside.

We already have our craft projects all mapped out in our minds before we’ve even crocheted a single stitch. Imagination and creativity must be in our genes.

Have fun crafting—but first, it’s time for a coffee break, along with those delicious Amerikaner pastries (recipe by Monika).
See you later,

Andrea

Maintaining relationships

Work

Oh yes Monika, that would be lovely. A doll-mom coffee get-together, with fruit flan, your pretzels or Amerikaner cookies, and looooots of yarn. And then you teach me top-down raglan knitting with your trio thingy, I can’t think of the name right now. I can’t manage a set of double-pointed needles at all.

Let’s keep that in mind for a knit-and-crochet meetup (knitting crocheting) in Germany. Maybe Ina will come too, bringing the building plan for the doll bed, and everyone else with their babies.
Monika, now you’ve really set something in motion. I can already imagine it being very funny. Lovely.
We have a goal in sight again :-)

Yeah, of course—the smooth side needs to be coated. Thanks, Monika—I’ll keep that in mind for next time. That just goes to show how long it’s been since I’ve had any.
Coffee’s coming up.

See you later

Traveling to your home country

So I’m back, hello first of all,

Oh Monika, I’m not completely innocent though *hehe*

And she does suckle after all, looks cute


thanks for the link to the little duckling. I thought I’d crochet it with thin yarn and a 1.75 mm hook, but that ended up being way too tiny; she’s holding it unfinished in her hand.

Wishing you all a wonderful day, 
And the sun is shining. That made baking even more fun.


Here are my mini Amerikaner. Fresh from the oven. The first ones are a bit smaller because I wanted to see how they would "rise" first.
I used regular flour, and icing made with powdered sugar, water, and lemon juice.
I've already tried one; they're delicious. We'll have the rest later with coffee when my husband gets home from work.

Closeness to your loved ones

good evening, dear doll mommies,

it’s so nice when doll mommies can chat with each other. So I’m not alone with this fondness after all.
The group photo of everyone together looks so sweet, thank you Wollefaden.
It really warms your heart. If this forum didn’t exist, I probably never would have gotten myself a baby doll. So at least a wish for a child from days gone by has now come true. A floppy little doll, soft, and she makes sounds..., like a real one,  simply lovely.
And because I don’t have any “real” grandchildren, Krümel is now our pride and joy, and you can crochet/knit for her to your heart’s content.
I think exactly the same as Monika. You simply live out your “inner child,” which you’ve kept all these years. In the current times, when grandchildren and grandparents can’t see each other, it’s a little comfort, but it feels good to bring yourself some joy now and then, and to be able to share it too. So you’re not quite so alone.
So my Susi now has a little sibling, so to speak, although Susi is already 49 years old, and I was given her when I was 8. Once she’s appropriately dressed, I’ll introduce her to you.
Thank you Ina for your selection of little beds. I like the top one very much. My husband is very handy. I already brought it up with him, and he laughed. Later. First he has to finish building his modules for his model railway layout (laying tracks, soldering cables). It’s never boring at our place. Maybe I’ll try Monika’s cheap version with the cardboard box sometime. All in good time.

I feel really good in this doll thread.

have lots of fun, Krümel has to go to bed now - on the couch

Contact with family

Ina, your baby looks really cute too, and has such an adorable face.
I’m just imagining a group photo of our babies together. It would definitely look funny.
My Krümel doesn’t have a sleeping bag or a little bed yet, though. I could imagine that, then you could sew or crochet cute bedding.
Monika, I spotted the duckling for your Sternchen right away too. It’s so cute. Did my Krümel bring along his little teddy right away. Is the duckling pattern still here?
ursulapetra’s picture was removed, so now I don’t know which doll it was. I tend to like them small and cute.
Monika, my dollie doesn’t suck her thumb, she can’t get her arm around that far.
So we don’t need to break her of that habit *grin*

Our “triplets” are already the perfect cuddle-and-love size
I talk to her every day. Crazy. But healthy *laugh*

best wishes to all doll mommies

So much has happened here again.

Arni, those coasters for your coworker look really fun. Thumbs up—great

job! I used to do a lot of crafts with my kids, too. You can find so much online these days. But back then, it wasn’t like that yet—we had lots of craft books. Now you can also print out coloring pages and color them in. Or make a memory game (by gluing simple symbols onto cardboard), or make little school cones, or fold paper airplanes out of origami paper...
I still enjoy crafting today. But there aren’t any occasions to use up my leftover materials.

Monika, those egg cozies look so cute. They look so tiny, but they fit. It’s a nice change from those figures.
As for my tablecloth, I still have quite a bit of crocheting to do. So far, it’s only about half the intended length. I still have some leftover yarn cakes, but the colors don’t really match—oh well. I’m going to crochet up everything I have now. (Yarn diet)

Ina, that made me laugh—about black being slimming. Actually, the black was supposed to come at the end of the lower part, but I didn’t quite have enough yarn for the top part, so I had to start the second skein. And the yarn from the center started out bright red, which somehow didn’t really go with the dark purple. Oh well. I don’t even know yet what the whole thing will look like in the end. Let’s wait and see.

Okay, then I’m going to crochet a few more rows on my tunic. I had a little project in between. Every now and then I have to switch from a thin crochet hook to a thicker one.

Have a nice evening,

Andrea

Have a nice afternoon, 

I’m only making slow progress on my tunic. In my eagerness, I crocheted the wrong sides together and first had to rip it out. 
At one point, I couldn’t continue for a short while, but thanks to the quick help, that wasn’t a problem. 
Then I also have a C2C project in the works that is supposed to become a tablecloth. How far I get with it depends on my leftover yarn. We’ll see.

Hi Silke, I sent you a private message