My Cross Stitch Doll

Create beautiful, embroidered dolls with easy cross stitch patterns and simple sewing techniques. First, choose your doll from one of the 20 delightful patterns included, then stitch your front and back panels. Once completed, place the two pieces right sides together and sew around the outline, leaving a gap for turning. Turn it right sides out, stuff, sew up the gap and hey presto - you've made a dolly! This simple process means you can make a beautiful handmade doll with the minimum of skill or experience, creating a treasured heirloom that, if cared for, will last for generations.

The 20 doll patterns include a wide range of skin tones, hairstyles, and clothing with the option to change any of the colours to suit your own tastes. Additional patterns at the back of the book give further options for alternative heads and garments so you can customise the patterns and make your own unique dolls. Stitch them for yourself as little sewing room pals, or create them as gifts for people you love - they can't fail but charm everyone who sees them.

The smallest doll is 10.5cm wide x 21.2cm high (4¼in wide x 8½in high) and the largest is 11.6cm wide x 23.4cm high (4½in wide x 9¼in high). With full-colour charts for the cross stitch patterns, and step-by-step instructions and tips for sewing the dolls, this book will have you itching to stitch cute dolls all day long!

My Cross Stitch Doll is authored by Susan Bates, a freelance designer and illustrator who is well known for her cross stitch designs. To date, she has had 10 books published: 9 cross stitch books and one book on freestyle embroidery. She regularly works for cross stitch magazines in the UK, such as The World of Cross Stitching and Cross Stitcher. Other magazines she has designed for have included Cross Stitch Crazy, Cross Stitch Gold, Cross Stitch Card Shop, Inspirations, Discovering Needlework, Papercraft Inspirations, and The Cross Stitch Collection.

Susan also sells her designs to companies who produce cross stitch kits. For example, she has worked on a set of floral designs for Creative World of Crafts. She produces designs for the US company Craftways and has worked on a number of designs for DMC. Susan studied Fine Art and gained a degree from Bath College of Higher Education. She later trained as an art teacher, taking a PGCE in Art and Design. She loves many different types of crafts and is an avid knitter and crocheter. She also works as a freelance knitting and crochet teacher at Sew in Brighton.