this voodoo doll was a special project i undertook for a couple of friends of mine. i inevitably ended up making two of them. my best friend brandi is just awesome and hence it was high past time for me to put together a custom made gift set just for her. then another friend of mine had a birthday that fell on halloween…and knowing that i’m a happening pagan, she had been asking for a voodoo dollie for a loooong time (ex boyfriend issues) and i had just been putting off the project and putting off the project since i’m the kinda girl that has about 10 hobbies to keep up with. not to mention, i believe that a voodoo dollie has about as much potential as a handgun and hence –when someone actually requests that one be made for them– it should only be given to them after a significant waiting period and criminal background check.

it was a short matter of time before i was cooking up a pattern, looking at other sites for inspirata and going through the trial and error that comes with attempting to sew up what is essentially a cloth dollie. you’d think something like a cloth doll would be uber-easy….but i must have gotten it fucking wrong like a million times…since i hadn’t sewn a cloth doll in years. either the legs didn’t come long enough or the arms didn’t come out wide enough…or the head was too small and threw the proportions all off kilter. it was a fight well fought but i eventually emerged the victor with this precious blue voodoo dollie i like to call her the “sugar plum blue voodoo pixxie”. the fabrics used are a mix of silky brocade, simple cotton, polyester (the paisley fabric) and soft felt. i was tempted to make her entirely out of the brocade fabric but decided against it due to the fray-happy nature of brocade and i really didn’t feel like slathering every edge of her in FrayBlock solution…then waiting for it to dry etc. the polyester was much easier to handle and seems much more stable too. she has little button eyes, a little front pocket for slipping your wish-paper into –close to her heart (she actually has a little plastic heart inside)– and she also has a pocket opening under her felt hairline for slipping little wish-papers right into her head. her insides are just general poly-fill stuffing that was lovingly rubbed with lavender oils…so she gives off a sweet aroma. to top it all off i eventually knitted a little striped hat to cover her sweet head.

now when i’m asked i often say my goal was to make a voodoo dollie so damn cute that the recipient actually wouldn’t have the heart to poke a push pin into her under reasons of causing harm to others. i also let the recipients know that such actions have cosmic/karmic repercussions and implications….what goes around comes around is the rule and if you cause harm to someone whom actually hasn’t maliciously harmed you first than you just better set your clock since its only a matter of time before you get the cosmic kick in the ass. however i also let them know this important fact that people often overlook: a voodoo dollie doesn’t have to be used for ill will. you can also use it as a device for wishing for good things for someone…

at some point i do intend to release a voodoo pixxie gift set, so keep an eye open for that. such a gift set would entail sewing a little matching tote bag, making some homemade soaps & mixing up some bath salts and such in various divine aromas etc. of course, when such a thing becomes available i’ll post it here first.