New crochet doll Leena

This is my new crochet doll Leena. She`s from the new pattern collection designed for the recently published Estonian book. The pattern is now available in my webshop in English and Dutch.

Leena is one of the dolls with a long history. The first sample of her was made back in 2014. It`s 10 years ago!

The first version of the doll looked similar, but wore different clothes and had boots instead of shoes. I felt she was not ready yet to share with the world.

In 2022 I saw a part of a movie “My Brilliant Friend” based on a novel by Elena Ferrante. For some reason I didn`t like the movie, but I was so impressed by a scene of two little girls playing with a doll in the Italian slum. I was captivated by the character of Elena Greco (Lenù). An unsecure Italian girl in dirty clothes. This is where the inspiration hit me and I knew I have to turn the idea into a doll.

I crocheted her just as I remembered, wearing white socks and black shoes. A simple blouse and a dress with waist. The girl in the movie had lighter hair, but as a doll she worked better as a brunette. It was the ear-length bob that was important to me.

I´ve added a photo of the girls from the movie below. As you can see I´ve changed the colors of the clothes a bit. I couldn`t find similar shades so I had to try other colors but capture the same mood.

I tried different yarns for the dress and chose dark green tweed. My Leena doll wears woolen panties under the dress. All materials were carefully chosen to best pass on her character.

Discover the pattern of Leena doll in English and Dutch. This comprehensive pattern, complete with over 90 step-by-step photos, guides you through the entire process of crafting this sweet doll and her clothing. Additionally, it includes a detailed tutorial for creating the yarn hair.