fashions Beauty appointment

How long has it been since I rolled my hair up on rollers, I can't even remember, but I rounded up the necessaries to glamorize Miss Fashion. Her hair was nice when I got it. It is human hair, long, silky and jet black. I entertained the idea of cutting it shorter on top to get the short curls I wanted, but chickened out. We brought Missy in and damped her hair, every so slight and separated it in sections and then got out the gel. You just give her a dab on each strand of hair, and spread down  to cover hair to the end. I then rolled up each strand and let dry. I did let the hair set overnight, and the next morning I unwound the rollers and was amazed at how tight the curls were. They do relax a little if you pull a brush through them. You do have to be careful to be gentle and hold on to the tops of the strands while working with them. One day, maybe the next time I make a doll like this, I will be brave and make my wig. I think you really have to make the wig the way you want it, having it short and long in the right places. I'm always preaching to others about being brave. I say ( go ahead and try it ) but, sometimes it takes a situation where you have no choice, but to make something you want, as you can't buy it. Well, Miss Fashion is gone to her new home with strict instructions on how to take care of her and her clothes. That dress she has is delicate and I only have so much more of that old fabric, should she have a nasty accident and get a tear. My friend is a lovely,

 good natured girl and listened to my lecture with a smile, and twinkle in her eyes. making dolls is so rewarding and totally fun.

Woodrow

 I have now finished Woodrow, the smaller of the two Izannah style dolls. I named him after my daddy's brother Woodrow, who we saw during my growing up, but never really had a lot to do with them. They were always so sweet and friendly and lived in the same close area as Uncle Dewey. We would go to stay with Uncle Dewey, but just stop by to see Woodrow's family. Woodrow had a fine brick house on acres and acres of land, cattle, and seemingly everything to me as a little girl, whereas Uncle Dewey lived in a white clapboard house with no electricity and well water, but we loved to go there. anyway, little Woodrow is all done, except for his shoes. This head was originally sculpted for a white Izannah doll who will have forehead curls and side curls too. I like his fancy little white outfit, it is very similar to Henry's suit, but there are differences. I also included a photo of Norma's pin keep doll. she liked the last one I made, so I have made her one as well. To show size, I have made a few more pictures of Henry and the two boys sitting together. I am winding down on these dolls and have new dolls lined up to be made. but before I say I'm completely finished with this group and ready to get fired up on the next bunch, the Fashion is scheduled for a trip to Martha's Ooh La La Beauty parlar for her hair styling. Armed with foam rollers of different sizes, comb, and hair setting gel, and of course more ribbons, she will be getting a stylish French up-do. ( I hope ). Amid all the un certainty with the government, and it making us nervous, I am trying to concentrate on getting all the chores done I can and of course, working on the dolls a lot. As I am sure it is the same for all doll makers, loosing yourself in working on these sweet little people helps relieve stress and gives you a positive attitude toward the future. No one knows what will happen in the future, but you know you can still create and make beautiful dolls, and if you can do that, you can do most anything.

French Beauty

My French beauty is now completed, except for her necklace of English cut antique cobalt blue glass beads, which I found out will take into November to get here, so I decided she shouldn't have to wait that long to show off her pretty dress, hat, shoes, and corsage. When it was first brought up to make a doll like this, I didn't realize all the differences it would be than the normal Izannah's that I make, but I found out, there is a huge difference, both in head shape, body shape, hair, and probably most of all,  the clothes she needed. Thinking about the French fashion we see all the time in the doll world, there are many roads I could have gone down in terms of style of dress, but I saw a teen fashion outfit, yes, like many others, I didn't know there were antique french teen fashion dolls, but there are. I chose to make an outfit like one of these. the dress is evening wear, or party clothes. Everyday dresses, and walking suits can be made for her as well. You ask me,  Have you ever made shoes and hats and corsages before now, I answer you,  with a big NO. HaHa  It's a wonder my poor little brain didn't explode, or implode thinking about how to make all this. I tell you all, I have a new respect for the dress makers in the antique doll world. So many things you can do, so many twist and turns of fabric and ribbons, and they put so much style and beauty into their designs. Ask me about her bustle. That bustle is for me , my first piece of clothes that took real designing to make it work. the problem isn't the bustle, but putting on the bustle, where it and the stand don't fight one another. I am super glad I have finished her. I did consider rolling and restyling her hair, but I thought I would leave that fun to someone else. As usual when we finish a doll,  I feel I have done all I can for her, given her my utmost in time and limited ability to make her beautiful, and lovely clothes to go out into the world.

Home - Where we spend our time.

I thought it might be interesting to post a few pictures of the house and us, as little of us as possible. Haha  My sister came for a visit and now that things are somewhat cleaned up it was a good time to make a few pictures, before things start to scatter. Some of the pictures aren't that good, but you can see the main things. We have been here a long time and  generally this is where we have the family Christmas,

 and so forth.  In a nut shell it's home and I hope you enjoy your visit.