Category Archives: drawing

April 7, 2026 · 5:32 pm

Day 43 of #100daysofspoolknittersandlittlelooms- I just fixed the face of a Well Well Well Doll

I was not happy with the original face of this Well Well Well Doll –

I like the big oval, but the first version of the face felt lost in it.

I did quite a few drawings to find one that felt right for the doll and settled on this one.

Now, I am content with this version of the doll because the features of the face stand out from the background embellishments and the expression reads clearly.

When you’re making a doll, it’s a really good idea to audition lots of different elements.

Sometimes, it can take time to figure out precisely what isn’t working.

Ask yourself a lot of questions- Is the shape a problem? Is the placement of the features an issue? What does the expression communicate and are you okay with that? Are the colors right? Is there enough contrast or not enough? Is something missing that needs to be added? Is there something that is extraneous and needs to be removed? Feel free to change what doesn’t make your heart sing.

Need help with drawing faces? I made a video to help with that:

The pattern for the Well Well Well Dolls is available in my etsy shop:

https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/4473549156/pdf-pattern-for-spool-knitted-well-well

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Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, drawing, Simple Little Things That Make Me Happy, spool knitter & spoolknitter & spool knitting & spool knitting, the 100 day project, tutorial & how to

Tagged as #100daysofspoolknittersandlittlelooms, #dollmaker, #dollmakingasahealingart, #dollmakinghintsandtips, #dollmakinghowto, #handmadedoll, #handmadedolls, #hintsandtipsfordollmaking, #spoolknitteddolls, #spoolknitter, #spoolknitters, #spoolknittingdolls, #the100dayproject, #the100dayproject2026, #wellwellwellspoolknitteddolls, @noreen.cronefindlay, doll making, Noreen Crone-Findlay, yarn craft, Yarn Crafts

March 25, 2026 · 10:11 am

Day 32 of #100daysofspoolknittersandlittlelooms- So much inspiration-designing-designing

The ideas flood in, but it takes time to work my way through them all… and some of them are Happy Dancing Lttle Winged Beings that make my heart sing and some of them scuttle away like Nasty Elusive Nopetapusses scritching and scratching and scowling all the way to the dark nether regions.

Ah, yes, the creative process!

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Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, drawing, personal stuff, Simple Little Things That Make Me Happy, spool knitter & spoolknitter & spool knitting & spool knitting, the 100 day project

Tagged as #100daysofspoolknittersandlittlelooms, #designprocess, #spoolknitter, #spoolknitter #spoolknitters #littlelooms #spoollknitting #woodworking #the100dayproject2026 #the100dayproject #100daysofspoolknittersandlittlelooms @noreen.cronefindlay @distinctivewoodworking, #spoolknitting, #the100dayproject, #the100dayproject2026, #tottietalkscrafts #designprocess, #yarn, #yarncrafts, @noreen.cronefindlay

March 16, 2026 · 5:28 pm

Day 23 of #100daysofspoolknittersandlittlelooms- A video tutorial for making a tiny upcycled sketchbook and easy ways of drawing simple faces in it

I made a video tutorial that shows how to make an upcycled tiny sketch book and then how to draw simple faces in it as an ongoing daily practice.

That’s because I am going to be releasing a new pattern tomorrow for wonderful spool knitted dolls and I want people to be able to draw unique, one of a kind faces for their dolls.

I have found that using tiny upcycled sketchbooks to practice drawing faces is a lot like practising a musical instrument.

Daily drawing is the way to build creative stepping stones.

A little bit at a time, all the time.

Large gorgeous sketchbooks with expensive paper can be really hard to work with, but tiny ones that fit in a pocket and are humble paper make for carefree drawing.

And that’s what you want for these new dolls.

Day 13 of #100daysofspoolknittersandlittlelooms- Our Lady of the Starry Night with Dragonfly Spool knitter

I have a stack of sketchbooks that are designated as my ‘evening sketchbooks’.

Every night at bedtime, I do some quick sketches in the current sketchbook, and make design notes about things that are not working (which will often trigger the answer to the design question) as well as notes about what was delightful and worked well and also what I need to do the next day.

A couple of evenings ago, I did a quick sketch that I really liked. So, the next morning, I chose one of the small spool knitters that my brother Jonathan (@distinctivewoodworking) and his son, Kieran, had turned for me on the lathe. I drew, burned and painted her on the spool knitter.