Marzipan Shepherdess Felt Ornament

Dances from different countries representing various sweets are performed for Clara's entertainment, and the the Dance of the Mirlitons represents marzipan and Denmark.  I stitched the blanket stitch around the outer edges of the skirt and bonnet to give them a bit of detail.  The cross stitch seemed a natural choice for the bodice, and since I recently learned the bullion stitch (thank you, Nonda!) it's been showing up on a lot of my ornaments.  

The powdered wig curls are a nod to the Marie Antoinette style of a lot of the ballet costumes seen in this particular dance.  It's so cute when the younger ballerinas are cast in the role of sheep - I can see why a shepherdess might need a crook! This particular shepherd's crook is a small bow I purchased in a big box store, probably intended for decorating a corsage or something.

Which brings me to one of my favorite themes - these are YOUR ornaments.  Choose whichever colors, stitches, beads, notions; whatever reflects your personality and tastes.  

With a heavy charm, you may need to rebalance the ornament by offsetting the hanging loop.  Or,  simply accept that they will hang at a slightly different angle.  Go for it!  And send pictures.  I love seeing what my fellow crafters make.

The Waltz of the Flowers

“The Waltz of the Flowers” is a song written by Tchaikovsky for the second act of the ballet.  The song starts slowly and leads into a big ending. 

What I really enjoyed about designing the flower ornaments is that there are a lot of variations that can be done with this pattern.  Wool felt has a lot of colors, whether you prefer pastel or jewel tones.  The bodice and skirts can be embroidered at whichever skill level you are.  

 I had a lot of fun painting the different heads for these dancers.  From simple to more elaborate, this is a patterns that can be tailored to any special ballerina in your life.

The Snow Queen

In the story, the Nutcracker is transformed into a handsome prince.  Grateful for how Clara has saved him, he invites her to visit his kingdom in the "Land of Sweets." On the way, they pass through the Enchanted Forest where Snow Angels greet them. The Snow King and Queen dance for them and all the Snow Maidens and Snowflakes dance and swirl around them. The Snow Queen then presents Clara and the prince with a sleigh so they can complete their journey to the wonderful "Land of Sweets."

The challenge for making the snow queen was in merging the sharp edges of ice and snow with the grace of ballet.  Her dress is longer and I used some metallic floss to give her some sparkle.  She also looks lovely in gold:

When making the body, the limbs don't need any stuffing at all.  Just a little stuffing in the middle of the body to give the waist shape is necessary.

The Russian Dancer

Dances from different countries representing various sweets are performed for Clara's entertainment. The Russian dance represents tea cakes. 

It is one of the most recognizable pieces in the Nutcracker ballet. I've been to performances where audience members have clapped along to the music.  It's based on a traditional Russian and Ukrainian folk dance called a trepak (tropak/tripak).  

It's an entertaining, energetic, fast paced dance with Cossak orgins.  Loose, billowy trousers and blouses hint at horseback riding and is typically performed by men and features prisiadka (kicking the legs from a squatting position).  

This guy has a moustache and spiky hair peeking out from beneath his hat, and the shirt is embroidered with a combination of cross stitch, bullion stitch, back stitch, and French knots.  This type of elaborate embroidery is common in Eurasian folk costumes.  Red pants are also a variation that look good on this particular ornament.  His body is two colored, and stitched together at the waist.

Don't worry about your stitches - the blouse will cover it.  Most of my ornament patterns call for short stemmed 6 inch chenille stems, but for this one a regular pipe cleaner from the store will work just fine.  The legs are pretty long, and you can trim any "fuzz" that escapes beyond the felt, if needed.  

The Sugar Plum Fairy

Act II in the ballet begins in the “Land of Sweets” with the Sugar Plum Fairy preparing to herald the arrival of Clara and the Prince. While Clara explores her wondrous new surroundings, the Prince tells the story of how Clara saved him. Clara is then crowned honorary Princess of the Land of Sweets, and a feast prepared in her honor begins.

The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy is danced by the principal ballerina, and is one of the most recognizable parts of the ballet.  Everything about the dance is delicate (choreography, music, costume) and fairy like. 

I used nylon wings from a big box store for one version of this ornament, and also made a version with felt wings:

 When stuffing the limbs, remember that you don't need to use a lot; just enough to hold the shape. I found a mini stuffing fork at Stuffing Forks - Mini (barbarawillisdesigns.com)

This is also why I prefer working with short stemmed cotton pipe cleaners. They are a lot easier to work with, particularly for the hands and feet.  With the typical nylon pipe cleaners I was spending a lot of time trimming the ends.  The fuzz kept poking out the sides, especially by the hands and feet.  The short stemmed pipe cleaners were a lot easier to work with.  You can get them at

Cotton Pipe Cleaners, Cotton Chenille Stems - A Child's Dream Come True

Mother Ginger

Mother Ginger was a challenge.  Who wears pantaloons (pantalettes?) and big wide panniers on their skirts anymore?  Apparently the fashion craze in the 18th century that gave us these dresses had one main purpose (obviously not practicality).  The width of the panniers was supposed to accentuate the feminine silhouette AND was an indicator of a woman’s economic status. So, the bigger the dress, the richer the lady.  

After a lot of trial and error, Madame Ginger began to make herself known.  The curls are a pipe cleaner, wrapped around something 1/8 inch diameter round - a knitting needle, skewer, pencil, whatever.  This was also my first foray into metallic thread (thank you, Audra!).  

Since wool felt comes almost exclusively as a solid color, the embroidery is what will provide depth, texture, and interest for this ornament series.  Decorative stitches like up and down buttonhole, bullion, and French knots can be sprinkled all over to glam up her dress. 

Coffee from Arabia and Tea from China

Dances from different countries representing various sweets are performed for Clara's entertainment.  Here we have the Arabian dance is (coffee).

A dear friend who has since passed away painted the head for the dancer from Arabia.  I was having a lot of trouble with the eyes, and she came up with the technique of painting in the whites of the eyes first, then adding the details of the pupils later.  Each character of the Nutcracker Suite is unique, and I hoped to convey that in their faces, as well as their costumes.  

A word about painting faces: try.  

I have many, many discarded 20 mm wooden beads.  My hand wasn't steady, the eyes were different sizes, the mouth turned out lopsided, etc. etc.  It's not cheating to use a pencil first - paint is permanent!  If you mess up one side, turn the bead around and try the other.  Paint over the messed up stuff with whatever color you choose for hair, or cover it up with a hat. Be brave!

If the head in a pattern is too complex for your taste, keep it simple:  

Kristen Rabideau has posted an excellent resource for painting faces titled, "A Simple Guide to Peg Doll Faces" on her website:

http://www.drawn2bcreative.com/peg-doll-faces-printable-guide-and-planner

Peg Doll Faces {Printable guide and Planner} - Drawn2BCreative