Last night I noticed the fabric was fraying a little in the armpit region of Daveplush’s shirt, so I got out my sewing bits to repair him. When I turned on my little clamp light, I realized just how raggedy he was starting to look- covered in so much cat hair, the gear symbol on his shirt coming up a little. These are the things that would never happen if I left him up on a shelf to be looked at and not held.
I got out the fabric glue and carefully fixed the gear symbol. Some of the edges of it are fraying a little and are a little dirty, but it looks much better now. I stitched up the armpit of his shirt as best as I could and it feels like it will last longer now.
I spent quite a while using a lint roller to remove all the fur I could. Some were so interwoven into the material that I had to use tweezers to extract them. But every time I use the lint roller, it picks up the cat hair but there’s also a noticeable red tinge on the sticky paper. Every time, there’s a little less of him. I can see the woven matrix beneath the flannel fluff in many places now. After all that, he almost looks like new again. Almost.
Maybe one day I’ll have to make new clothing for him because this flannel clearly wasn’t made to be worn by a doll that gets held every night. It’s not meant to be made into a hood on a little round head that fits perfectly under my chin. It’s not meant to be part of a shirt worn by a little guy whose arm rests on my side so he can hold me too when we drift off to sleep together.
The fuzz I made him out of will never be as soft as it once was, though it still is in those secret spots that are covered by his clothing. Rubbing his back is a hedonistic treasure I enjoy sparingly so the softness will last as long as possible.
With all this, he’s still my perfect little guy. I’m glad I couldn’t just leave him on a shelf, looking pretty, my sewing magnum opus. His gentle weight against me is an anchor when the world feels like a turbulent sea. His smile is the sun breaking through the clouds. His cape is just… really cute! More plushies should have long dramatic capes.
