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Once upon a time there was a dolly named Josephine. She was born in the 1950's in the well known & very popular Pedigree factory.
Josephine was no ordinary doll - no sitting around just looking pretty for her! She is a walking doll who would happily walk along with her Little Girl, hand in hand, while moving her head from side to side taking in the view & she has very pretty eyes indeed as they also move from side to side in a most flirtatious manner!
Some years later she was given to a new Little Girl called Tracey who looked after her carefully for many years. One day Tracey decided that it was time for Josephine to move on & asked Jayne (who is really just a Little Girl in a Big Girl's body!) if Josephine could come & live with her.
Of course Jayne was delighted to accept & so Josephine waved a fond farewell to Tracey & went home with Jayne.
However, Josephine was a little sad as over the years she had lost her clothing & longed for a new dress. Poor Josephine felt rather cold & exposed with no clothing on!
She did cheer up though when Jayne told her that she had many years design & clothing making experience as well as a large stash of pretty fabrics suitable for dolly dresses & that a new dress would take no time at all to make.
They rummaged through the fabrics - florals & checks & spots - but Josephine really couldn't decide. She whispered to Jayne that her favourite colour was blue & that she really loved puppies.
"Aha!", Jayne exclaimed, "I have just the thing for you!"
Josephine's pretty eyes sparkled "That's just what I want!"
Cath Kidston's Stanley fabric was the perfect choice.
So, out came the tape measure, pins, scissors & trusty sewing machine & with a few snip, snip, snips a new outfit started to take shape.
Firstly, of course, a new pair of panties was in order to cover her modesty....
Jayne also managed to find a supplier of vintage dolly shoes & this bright red pair look rather fetching.....
A pretty co-ordinating ribbon was found for her hair....
Josephine is feeling very happy once again!
Off she goes for a little walk to show off her new dress!
I finally had time to make something using my new sewing machine so I made this - a tartan Scottie dog swag for Christmas.
Click on the photo to enlarge as it looks quite tiny here!
Should I bring some to the Vintage & Handmade Fair?
When Miss Cottage went off to university in September she needed to take a sewing machine, so off she went with my trusty computerised Brother machine which I've had for about 10 years & does everything except make a cup of tea.
Of course this left me machine-less which is a Very Bad Thing! So, I had to find another one to use. Of course I started off looking at ones with all the bells & whistles & they certainly do a lot these days, but then I thought that I didn't really need two machines that could do all those things (and I have to admit that I don't really use all the gadgets very much anyway).
So, I scaled down my requirements, did a bit of research, tried out a machine or two in a sewing shop & settled on this lovely number - it is basically like my other machine but doesn't do as much or have as many attachments, but all the attachments will fit both machines. I am partial to Brother machines having used industrial machines made by them for years. A few of my requirements are that the machine is sturdy, doesn't jump around, is fast & will sew through all thicknesses & this one met all those needs AND it was on special offer as it is an Anniversary edition, so even better! I do like a bargain....
So, I'm very pleased with the new addition to my sewing room.....as you can see, my supervisor, Pippa, is beside herself with delight too......
On the weekend, while sorting out some stuff in the garage to make space for more stuff, I came across the box containing my stash of bear making supplies from when I used to make bears. I haven't done much bear making in recent years but after opening up the box containing lovely mohair fabric & more, my fingers were itching to stitch so last night I had a go at making a vintage style rabbit while watching TV. Normally I would have used the machine but I sewed him by hand while watching Midsomer Murders...hope that doesn't affect him too much!
