Well, I have to tell you, today has been another day of purging as I am going throughout my house weeding out, but today it was really personal… we were in my sewing room… where all my memories and sometimes I think, my identity was for years. I have to give a big hand clap to my daughter who started early this morning with me and we just now finished… it’s 11:10 p.m. and she just called it a night! I don’t know if I’m relieved that we’ve accomplished so much in such a short time, or if I’m sad, or excited, or scared… maybe all of those feelings combined. Some things I could let go of pretty easily, but other things… oh my goodness… it was very hard. I weeded out little girls patterns and balked at why I had to get rid of them… “When was the last time you opened this pattern drawer?” Rebecca asked… I couldn’t answer her… maybe 6 months ago… so clearly I’m not making little girls dresses anymore. As I looked at the patterns, it was almost like every dress I’d ever made from the patterns flashed before my eyes…and I had to pause for a minute to think if I really wanted to let that pattern go… They took up a whole file cabinet drawer… but I resisted the urge to keep them…
We covered the whole room in sections and it was nice, she did much (MUCH!) of the work while I worked to get Janie’s dress finished. She’d bring something over to me and ask me about it. As I was sewing on the snaps of Janie’s dress, she was showing me Christmas fabrics, and while I was working on Janie’s slip, she was going through my Christmas props box. I NEVER would have done this much of a clean-out if she hadn’t taken the lead. I probably would have just tried to organize what I had, kept most of it and in 3 months it would all be messy again. I can actually see a difference in the room and I’ll share more pictures later. We have piles all over the house now… mostly in the sitting room and in our bedroom…waiting for me to get pictures of things and I’ll show them to you all first…
Okay, now to show you Janie’s dress. You may have already seen it on Ebay… but if not, you can see it HERE. I just discovered tonight, how to add a second picture at the right sidebar for when I have 2 auctions running at the same time. Yay for me!
I decided to just keep her dress pretty simple and only modified her sash just a bit.
What’s new is her hat…I’ve been seeing these handmade straw hats on Ebay for the Effner dolls and I finally decided to give one a try. I love how it turned out and can’t wait to try another one. Now you’ll be SO proud of me… most of the ones on Ebay…probably 99% of the hats are decorated with beautiful paper roses, but I decided since I have so many silk flowers and little snippets of things that could be used on a hat, I would NOT BUY any paper roses but decorate my hat with what I had! I think it’s pretty cute and it’s “Janie approved!”
I was going to make an ivory tulle slip but since my tulle fabrics had been “straightened up” by Rebecca, I saw this blue lace and decided a blue slip was better than an ivory one any day of the week! Don’t you agree?
And then last, we had to decide what to put with her dress… Rebecca and I tried every teddy bear in my stash (which got a purge too…) and decided this little girl, that Janie named Sylvia, was the best one for her dress. I added a little blue around her neck to make it match better.
So that’s how my day went… purging, sewing, purging, decorating a hat, purging and I even got a shirt for my hubby and one for Rebecca altered. This is pretty bad… my hubby’s shirt had been in my alterations pile so long he didn’t even remember he had that shirt… Bad wife! Bad wife!
I’m sure he’ll forgive me… when he sees it hanging in his office… fixed! :o)
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
How sweet that little outfit is, Jeanne! It’s amazing how you can turn a simple little dress into something special! I think you added just the right touch to the waistline and that hat is just adorable! I thought at first it was one of those that your sister sent that were too small for AG dolls, but this one has a bit of a fancier edge. I love what you did to it and now Janie is all ready to go—-somewhere!
The slip is so pretty, can’t imagine why she would want it underneath!
HI Linda,
I think Janie looks pretty cute myself… and I don’t say that every time! She is such a fun little doll to dress up. I love making her things and I think she likes it too. When I was working on her dress, I wasn’t sure if I could pull it all together with the hat being the focal point, but when I got it all done and stood back and looked at it, I think I may have gotten it okay!
Thanks Linda, I’m wanting to make another hat now… they are pretty fun to make…
Blessings, Jeanne
Congrats on more cleaning out! Are you finished? Hearing your stories reminds me of the stack of AG and Barbie patterns I have. I, too, have LOTS I could get rid of that I thought I needed to keep. I think Rebecca could be kept busy all summer just by traveling around and visiting you blog readers. When we moved 8 years ago I got rid of my “people” patterns, so those three bankers boxes are long gone.
From the top of her head to the tips of her toes, Janie is looking pretty darned sweet! I hope she’s not planning on keeping this outfit because I don’t think that’s gonna happen. (That little teddy she picked out is adorably matched too.) Love it all!
Have a super sunny Friday, Jeanne. Yes, we had sun yesterday, and today too! They say we’ll even have a beautiful weekend. I’m so happy!!!
HI Cindy,
No, we aren’t finished yet… Rebecca is off cleaning the doctor’s house that she cleans and one other lady’s house. Since she’s not here, I don’t know where to start… I need her to tell me what to do next… So I took my mom antique shopping in a few towns over and then we had (ice cream) for lunch, and hit a few other places. It’s a nice sunny day out here too so we made the most of it. For Mother’s Day I told her I’d take her shopping and today was the first day we could do it.
I hope your weatherman is right and that sunshine shines all weekend for you. You are LONG overdue on it!
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh Jeanne, Janie’s dress is just so sweet and she looks adorable in it. The sash is perfect for this dress and it is so summery. At first, I didn’t realize her hat was a soft pale green. Absolutely perfect. I love how you coordinate with just the right colors. Like Cindy said, I hope Janie isn’t planning on keeping this dress.
I am so happy for your brave effort to continue purging. It is wonderful that Rebecca is hanging in there giving you such support and energy. What a team you two are.
You will feel so organized and on top of things when it’s completely done, if you aren’t feeling that already. When one era passes, the little girl outfits, it gives way for your new era, the doll outfits. Which we all love!!
Thanks for your sweet compliments on Janie’s dress, Paula. I do like this little set very much… and so does Janie! (yikes!)
I think I am going to like this cleaned out, purged, organized life… You should have heard my reaction when Rebecca cleaned out a drawer and I could see the wood at the bottom… It was nothing short of glorious!
Blessings, Jeanne
Such a lovely outfit. You made the hat? I would love to know how to do that. Looking forward to seeing your fabric. Not that I need more but you never know.
HI Joy,
Thanks so much for your kind words about Janie’s set… The hat information can be found at this website.. PNBdoll.com The hat is one of the forms that fit the Little Darlings… It was fun, but time consuming. It was my first one and it took me almost an hour… and that wasn’t even decorating it…
It’s always something else that catches our eye to make, isn’t it?
Blessings, Jeanne
What a great job you did in all ways…as well as Rebecca! You’ve accomplished a mammoth amount of work. What a great feeling you must have….and Janie’s dress/ensemble is another sweet and beautiful creation. I feel so fortunate to view your work. Thank you.
Take care.
HI Becky,
Thank you again for your sweet compliments on another of my doll dresses. I do appreciate that you take time to look at them and tell me what you think.
My house is starting to breathe again… it told me so!
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh my, you made a straw hat? What do you make it of? Love it on Janie.
HI Ann,
Yes, I made Janie’s hat… I gave the link to the pnbdoll company in a comment above…Joy’s, I think… It’s made from this 1/4″ hat braid that is glued around and around a hat mold. It’s quite time consuming but fun to make…
Thanks so much Ann,
Blessings, Jeanne
I think Janie’s whole outfit is just perfect. I really like the sheer ribbon sash you used and the little hat is just so sweet with the flowers around it. The little bear is a perfect match. Her name, Sylvia, happens to be my daughter’s second middle name. Glad to hear you continued effort to clean out is going well. I’m sure that you will be very pleased when it’s finished and everything is more easily found. Rebecca is quite a trooper hanging in there with you for the long haul. Now you won’t be just three yards of fabric away from being featured on “Hoarders” *LOL- just kidding*.
HI Laura,
You are so right about that hoarders comment… When you walked into my sewing room, I don’t think the average person would even think that I had too much stuff. It was just all hidden in tubs and drawers and boxes and wasn’t necessarily seen. But let me tell you, Rebecca found some things I haven’t seen in years… not much of an excuse to keep something if you didn’t even know you had it to miss! I had a whole box of fake fur fabrics, the nice kind… that I used to make little girls purses and ones for their American Girl dolls to match… chucked the whole tub!
Thanks Laura,
Blessings, Jeanne
I’d have a hard time watching my boys toss out my ‘stuff’. :-/ I admire you for your courage!!!!!
Hi Mary,
I think I was ready for a fresh start… and Rebecca is giving that to me. I could have told her NO to everything she showed me, and still have an overcrowded room, stuffed to the gills with things I didn’t necessarily like or need, but I decided I make doll clothes and that’s what I want to zero in on… I kept a few of my favorite larger floral fabrics, a few of my ladies and kids patterns, a few of my crafty things, but for the most part… they are heading somewhere else. It’s starting to feel fresh and not overwhelming in there. I think I’m going to like it. We’re talking 30 PLUS years of accumulation…
Blessings, Jeanne
I am so proud of you both. And Rebecca cleans houses when she’s not studying? No wonder she is good at clearing space. She’ll end up being head housekeeper at Biltmore or running her own restaurant chain.
Janie’s new dress is perfect for spring, and her slip is lovely. That wig worked out to be exactly right for this dress, don’t you think? Both of you did so much today that you deserve to treat yourself tomorrow.
Thanks Marilyn,
Rebecca used to clean a clinic in the evenings but when she had to quit because of a conflict with her classes last semester, one of the doctors told her she’d give her a job as she’d never seen anyone clean who was as thorough as Rebecca was. She pays her $20 an hour!
She does a good job at whatever she puts her mind to.
Today my mom and I went shopping just for fun and we had Frozen Yogurt with all kinds of toppings on it FOR OUR LUNCH! Yep, we skipped a burger and went straight to dessert! That was my treat for the day…for the week, I mean!
Thank you Marilyn,
Blessings, Jeanne
I’m so glad you kept Janie’s dress simple this time–the flower on the sash was just the right touch. Loved the hat, too–I’m going to have to look into that. (After all, I need another hobby, right?! LOL)
As to the “bad wife” thing, I have you beat! A couple of years ago I found a western shirt I had started for my husband maybe 15 YEARS ago! I finished making it up, except for buttons and buttonholes. Just pinned it together and wrapped it up for Christmas! 😉 He was so surprised, he didn’t remember I had started it (and, truth to tell, I may have started it for a surprise for him, too). Then it sat in my alterations pile until a couple of days ago, when I finally got the buttonholes marked and sewn! I still have to run in the threads and cut them, then I can sew the buttons on.
You see? I probably win the “bad wife” prize this time!!! LOL
HI Charlotte,
At first I thought Janie’s dress was going to be too plain, but after I got her hat decorated, I realized too much on the dress would have been overpowering… I think simple was better in this case.
Yes, Charlotte, I will pass the “bad wife” baton to you… You are the winner at least for now! What a funny story!
Blessings, Jeanne