Ladybugs and Post-Apocalyptic Skills

The Ladybug wears no disguises.
She is just what she advertises.
A speckled spectacle of spring,
A fashion statement on the wing....
A miniature orange kite.
A tiny dot-to-dot delight. -- J. Patrick Lewis

I stumbled upon that little verse earlier this week. Such a fortunate happenstance for my latest finished object: Laura Beth by Mia Zamora, a little girl in a ladybug costume... which, now that I think of it, is kind of ironic, given the lines in that verse.

I don't normally enjoy making toys, but I have to admit that this thing is stinkin' cute. As soon as the I got the hood onto her, I exclaimed, "Holy crap, this is so cute!"

Antennae on and wings attached, she got even cuter.

And maybe she's not so cute with her bodyless friends...

Anyway, she's going to be delivered to a friend I'm seeing today, who is getting it in exchange for a donation she made to my MS Bike event a couple of weeks ago. I meant to get them all done at once, but my schedule just wasn't allowing me to do that this time. With one finished, I feel like the other two should be a smoother ride, now that I've worked out how to sew the bits together. It's been a good learning experience, filled with lots of firsts:

• First time embroidering hair
• First time stitching a mouth
• First time using craft eyes

I kinda feel like I added a few badges to my scout belt. Perhaps they are not exactly what you would call survival skills, but it feels pretty good to know how to do them. In a post-apocalyptic world, I'll be the one adding craft eyes to stuff. You laugh, but I'll be in demand, you'll see.

Wow, ladybugs and post-apocalyptic skills. Can you tell I've had a long week? Sheesh.