Behind the Scenes: Katie and Kira Kangaroo Machine Embroidery Design

The journey wasn’t just about perfecting their bodies. The head is always the trickiest part of any plushie design. Capturing the perfect expression and making sure the features align with my vision is painstaking work. And, because I don’t use a traditional sewing machine for these designs, it adds a layer of difficulty to the engineering process. Throughout the development of Katie and Kira, my embroidery machine decided to give me a few headaches, slowing down progress when I needed it most.

I often lay in bed at night waiting to fall asleep thinking of what I need to try different. One of the first body renditions came from this inspiration I had of a JellyCat plushie and how I could create a similar look. I know now why it didn’t work, but I learn so much from each failure. This is why I keep test bodies. An idea might not work out now, but who knows what I might learn in the future and try this again.

Thankfully, I was able to get Kira’s body right on one try. While it does happen from time to time, I still always do a test run with fabrics that I have an abundance of or a fabric I don’t particular care for. So, go ahead and buy ugly fabrics, friends, because you never know when you need to do a rough run and you’ll want to save your purdy fabrics for the final stitch out.

Thanks to my local brother dealer, whom I have a long relationship with, a technician came to my home and in one hour he had my machine back up and running smoothly. Unfortunately, I had already finished all the sewing for the entire release including Kallie Koala. This is because I always worry the technician might accidentally break something and then I’d really be in hot water. So I kept pushing through and planned to have him over AFTER my sewing was done. He was in admiration of all the adorable in the hoop designs and impressed at what we can make with our machines. He particularly loved Juno the most. She sat on a table near by and he quickly spotted her, asking me a million questions. He is going to tell his dad, who owns the shop, about our projects and try to start up some classes. He said that they often run out of inspiration and customers usually aren’t too excited about monograms, appliques, and embroidery machine designs to the point they would attend a class.

Each aspect of creating these plushies required careful consideration, from the hoop sizes and doll joint fit to creating a version for those who don’t prefer doll joints. Every plushie design goes through rigorous testing, and Katie and Kira were no different. After all the adjustments, revisions, and tests, I still had to make sure that the final files were converted into 10 different machine formats and organized into folders—this alone took 2-3 days.

Designing heads are the hardest part of any machine embroidery design that is made in the hoop. As you can see, I had no shortage of test heads that I pushed through to get to a winner. But those eyes sure are worth it. I love her face and especially her ears. I always pin ears onto my test heads so that I don’t waste valuable time on something this isn’t going to pan out for me or for you.

It’s very satisfying as I near the finish line of every new release. Before this release, I shared creation videos along my journey to get feedback from our customers. After all, these designs are FOR YOU!

There’s always a lingering sense of uncertainty on release day, but that’s the gamble in this creative process. Some designs are hits, others not as much. However, all the sleepless nights, countless revisions, and hardships are worth it when I finally share my work with you. Every step of the process is to ensure that our customers have a trouble-free embroidery experience when making these plushies at home.

In the meantime, across from me working on our upcoming Juno Doll sister website, my hubby and kiddos work hard day and night filling custom made bags with our special doll joints. They kept me company as I stitched away on Kira and Katie. We had lots of good laughs and deep discussions. Family time is precious and since so much of my time is in the creation studio, I miss them all. Having them near by helps me to reconnect with those I love most in this world. We all worked very hard at designing the packaging for Juno Doll supplies. We are excited for the fall release! What do you think?

Katie and Kira Kangaroo wouldn’t have been possible a few years ago. The techniques I learned while creating Parker the Polar Bear unlocked the potential to tackle these designs, and now I’m excited to say that what I learned from creating Kira and Katie will pave the way for something even more special this holiday season. Stay tuned!