Ariel the Mermaid

Ariel was finally finished.  Tonight, Ellie and I handed her over to Irving Baby for the exhibition Knitting Nancy Dives In which is part of the Fringe Festival.  When we arrived Irving Baby, there were quite many underwater creatures floating around.  Ellie was very excited to see them.  Her favourites were an orange fish and the little ribbon squid.

Thinking back, it took me a long time to decide whether join this exhibition as I rarely make dolls and I didn't know if I could finish anything in the summer holiday.  Apart from spending time with Mum and Ellie this summer, I have been busy with thinking about how the mermaid should look like and finishing the mermaid doll . It's great that my order of
Toys to knit arrived quite early. I don't need to go around searching for patterns.  I wanted to create something instead of following a pattern for this exhibition.  I knitted the base doll based on the book and made up the tail myself.  So, Ariel can be a mermaid and a human at any time.  Ariel was made of 100% cotton yarn and 100% merino wool.  The tail was made with both acrylic and merino wool only because I couldn't find the right colour.  Otherwise, it would have been totally made of natural material.  I loved the trims on her tail and the shell bras. The sequins made it super special.  When the exhibition is over, I can make more clothes for her.  Ellie kept asking not to hand over Ariel.  Well, she was made for it.  She wanted to be "seen" for a little while.  :)  If you happened to have knitted a doll from this book and would like a pattern for the shell bra or the tail, feel free to email me as  I haven't tidied up my notes  yet.

With a little magic, Ariel got her legs and could taste the life of human on earth.  I think she will need a ballroom gown when she is back from her adventure.

The exhibition will be held at Irving Baby between 18 February and 13 March 2011.  Feel free to drop by and go underwater.