The Fashion Doll's Day Dress

I finished the Gail Wilson Fashion Doll's day dress about a week and a half ago, but haven't been able to post any blog updates due to laptop issues.  Now that I have a new laptop, uploading pictures is going much smoother, so hopefully, I will be able to post a little more often!  The underskirt and blouse are actually a dress, and the overdress is like a jumper that goes over it.  There are buttons down the back of both, with thread loops to close it.  I really like how this outfit turned out.  It was tricky to make, but very much worth the effort!

The Hat Box

The Fashion Doll class included making a box for the hat. I worked on it today. Gail Wilson provided printies for lining the box, but I used some scrapbook paper I had to line the bottom and the lid, and just used the "newsprint" for the sides. Making it took most of the afternoon, but it was fun to do, and I'm pleased with the results! Now Louisa, my Fashion Doll, will have a place to store her hat when she isn't wearing it!

Gail Wilson Fashion Doll Silk Hat

I had a lot of mixed feelings about this hat. It makes Louisa look so stuffy - prim and proper and all about showing off. But making this wasn't all that hard, and I was able to get it done in a day. I made a few mistakes, but I think that only I will notice those!I like the fabric and the decorations, so I guess she will wear it with her walking dress. So, here's some pics of Louisa in her 2 piece walking dress and silk hat.

Fashion Doll: Two Piece Walking Dress

At last, the two piece walking dress is complete. This part of the class took me almost a month to complete, pausing for other projects and only working for short bits of time. I am glad to have it done and am looking forward to completing the rest of the class.

Two more

I couldn't help myself. I made two more pocketbooks for Mom's birthday. Since her birthday is August 1st, I made one in lighter colors for the end of summer, and the other in darker fall colors. She can carry those colors much better than I can, so it was fun to make something in colors I don't normally choose for myself. I love the dark wooden handles on the darker one - they are larger and smoother than mine - perfect for shoulder comfort!

Pocketbooks!

One of my favorite subscriptions is the one I have to American Patchwork & Quilting. The August issue has an article called "Towels with a Twist" that show how to use dish towels to make handbags. When I first saw the article, I thought "Oh, how cool! Someday I might have to try that out."

As luck would have it, I saw some towls that I really liked two days before leaving for Nationals. I got the great idea that in addition to shopping, laundry, packing and other last minute preparations, I'd make a few pocketbooks - one for me, one for Melanie, and 3 more (gifts for her individuals coach, her big sister on the team and another friend). It was so easy, I really did get them done in one day and still manage to get all the travel preparations done! And it was really fun and not the least bit stressfu! It was really nice to get a sewing fix before going away for a week.

I really like mine, although I wish I'd found a bit larger handles so that it would slip on my shoulder a little less tightly. There are 4 roomy pockets on the outside. One pocket holds my sunglass case, another pens, calculator and my epipen, another a nail file, comb and chapstick, and another is available for my cell phone. That leaves the interior for little notebooks, wallet, calendar, checkbook and other necessities. Very roomy! Mine is on the left (fully loaded) and M.'s is on the right.

Special Things

One of my doll groups was talking about childhood memories of special birthday gifts that were dolls. It reminded me of this lovely glass "doll" figurine that was given to me by my great grandmother when I was a little girl. I love how her blue glass sparkles and reflects other colors. I don't recall how old I was when I got her, but I do have some wonderful memories of visiting my grandparents in Cumberland, MD. Grandma K. lived with them and she was very good at making things with her hands. I have an afghan of knitted squares in some very interesting colors that I keep in my hope chest that I will never part with, even if it matches nothing, I know it was made by someone very special. Some days, I really miss all of my grandparents that have gone to heaven ahead of me (only one dear grandmother is still with us). I love to tell my children stories about them: what I did with them when I was little, or what habits I have that I learned from them.