I had this this P.S. down at the bottom originally, but Charlotte mentioned it was “headline news” and should be first…and I agreed she was right…so I moved it.
Several of you remembered we were supposed to get the results from my hubby’s biopsy Tuesday… We did get them and the suspicious red spots in his bladder were benign this time… We were so thankful to the Lord and thank those of you who prayed for us! It was the most wonderful feeling. It’s back to Cystoscopy’s every 3 months again.. but at least he still has his bladder and not a bag on his side like they said he needed!
When we last met, I showed you what I had gotten done on Felicity’s Fall Fancy dress set… the Caraco Jacket and the skirt were almost done.
The skirt was made in 2 sections… the front with the waistband attached and the back with the waistband the same. The side seams were stitched a little below where a pocket would be with the tops of the front and back waistbands meeting evenly. I sewed Velcro on the ends of the waistbands.
You slipped the skirt on the doll and held the back with your hand, then you met the front Velcro over the back velcro and matched them up…
It was o-k-a-y… but it wasn’t that great of a fit. The Velcro made it a little bulky and it wasn’t a perfect fit on my smaller waisted dolls.
So, last night when I was laying in bed, a better idea came to me and I wanted to try it out…
I took the Velcro tabs off of each end of the waistbands and sewed a sheer ribbon on the ends and then stitched it down…The back ribbons were tied in the front first…
…then the front section of the skirt was lifted up and placed on top of the ribbon tied at her belly and the ribbons on the end of the front waistband were tied in the back… (Back tied in the front, Front tied in the back…)
They could be cinched up nicely and took care of that bulky bump at the sides where the Velcro was. I tied my ribbon to the side so it wouldn’t be seen when the back of the jacket meets. The ribbon can be tucked in the waistband if you like.
It’s a much nicer and neater look at the waist and it will certainly reduce the bulk when a petticoat is added under there too…
I also took some tiny stitches in the yellow linen, just under the wasitband, to try and gather it up nicer and make it lay in prettier folds. I did a couple of rows sort of like my pleater would have done. I think it will help… it already looks better to me…
So here’s another look at the skirt…
Oh…and I did have some pretty flowers that will work nicely, I think, with Felicity’s dress. Several of you were wondering how I was going to decorate the hat… well, here’s a sneak peek… I had the perfect colors in my stash already… didn’t have to buy a thing! :o)
I think it will be pretty and colorful and that pearl necklace might just be the perfect one after all…
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Very neat solution to the problem with the skirt, Jeanne! I like it, and it should work well in several applications, I would think.
Thanks for the update on George’s “spots”…..That is a “praise”, for sure!!
Thanks Charlotte,
I think I’ll use it again when I make more Colonial things… It really does work well and is probably pretty “Colonial-ish” too!
Thanks so much!
Blessings, Jeanne
That’s a great solution to the skirt, Jeanne. And, I think, it makes the outfit more of a one-of-a-kind, which it is, and something special, not your ordinary run of the mill dress. Of course, all of yours are like that, but the way you sew each dress so that it works out just perfectly, gives you that “specialty seamstress” title! You went out of your way to make it work perfectly, which does show that you care about your work.
The flowers are so pretty for the hat! That will be one amazing outfit when it is done!
So happy to hear that George’s biopsy results were good, and yes, God IS good!
Just happened to think that this is a genius way of fitting a doll that is thicker in the waist, like the PC dolls are, or if they are slimmer! It should fit all dolls, and you should mention that in the listing.
HI Linda,
Trying to get the skirt to fit a variety of waist sizes was what got me to thinking about some way that would work. I think it really will work now for skinny and chubby waisted girls.
I think the flowers on the hat will be the icing on the cake with this dress set!
I guess I could use the pictures in my listing to show how the skirt works on any waist on any doll. (Well, any 18″ doll that is!)
Yes, God is good…ALL THE TIME! He was overcome with emotions several times today!
Blessings, Jeanne
What a great gift those results make. You do have to keep watching, but at least you know what to watch for. Nothing is creeping up, unsuspected. It did make a scary Halloween, but the results were just what we all wanted.
Felicity’s dress is wonderful, and now you have a solution to future skirt problems. I love the cheerful colors, and it seems to me that this is a nice all-season dress. Are you making a mob cap for under the hat, or would that just be a distraction? Felicity’s hair goes so well with the dress colors. As pretty as the green is with Felicity’s green eyes, a blue eyed doll would find the blue in the print equally appealing. This is one of those cases where it might be nice to photograph the outfit on several dolls with different coloring. I’ll bet dark hair and eyes will work as well.
Thank you Marilyn,
As one who knows about the “waiting game,” it sure was worth the wait… this time!!! :o)
I suppose I’ll make a mob cap for under her straw hat, but I hate to cover up so much of her red hair as it goes so beautifully with her outfit. Mob caps were usually worn with the hats, so I guess I will…but I can always take pictures of her just in the hat too… just because I make the mob cap doesn’t mean she “has” to wear it. :o)
I think I should take pictures of it like you said… on different dolls… to show how it looks with different colored hair…and skin tones… Good idea… :o)
Thanks Marilyn,
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh what wonderful news! And you left it till the end of your post. News that good should be the headline!! It is a good day indeed.
The engineering you did on the dress is very clever. I will have to remember the post so I can refer back to it should a need arise.
The flowers for the hat are perfect! I can’t imagine them being any better.
Have a great day!!
Take care.
HI Charlotte,
I don’t know if you noticed it or not, but because of you, I did move the “good news” to the top of my blog! Thanks for the suggestion… :o)
I can’t wait to get this set all pulled together and see what it all looks like…
Thanks Charlotte,
Blessings, Jeanne
Wonderful new about George! I will continue to keep you all in my prayers. 😀 What a neat idea for Felicity’s skirt. 😀
Thank you Christine,
We appreciate your prayers and so glad you like the idea of the skirt insides! :o)
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne;
So glad to hear the positive results for George and you.
Leave it to you to come up with an innovative way to solve the problem – genius! Felicity’s outfit is going to be beautiful.
Prayers and good thoughts still coming your way
Thank you Leigh…
It was nice to solve the skirt problem pretty easily like this… it wasn’t very hard to do and I think I’ll do all my Colonial skirts this way.. maybe even my Civil War ones too! It really does cinch them up nicely and would work on any dolls waist… :o)
Thanks again,
Blessings, Jeanne
Marvelous news on all fronts (and backs) today, Jeanne. Earlier ladies have accessed the sewing situation so well-genius, clever, well-done….and George’s results-truly gratifying with an overwhelming thanks to the One who sees all.
Blessings.
Oh Becky,
You are SO clever today with your wording…I loved that! It’s been 2 emotional days for both of us..lots of hugs and hand holding from us! :o)
Thank you so much Becky,
Blessings, Jeanne
Love how you worked out the skirt fastening. Probably much like the original time period. And the flowers match the fabric so perfectly. Can’t wait to see the hat.
And with the good news, on to turkey day! Should be a very joyous occasion at your place.
Hi Joy,
We don’t have to wait on Turkey day for lots of joy around here…we’ve started celebrating early! :o)
Glad you liked the skirt redo…it certainly works well now…
I’m excited to see the hat decorate too!
Thank you, Joy,
Blessings, Jeanne
What wonderful news! Now on to the kitchen with a clear field. That’s a nice solution to the skirt and is in keeping with the era. I wonder if for other fastenings the new, flatter Velcro would work well? The hat is so pretty, maybe a mobcap would be too fussy. I’m sure it will all come together beautifully.
Hi Susette,
Yes, it was the most wonderful news we’ve had in a long time!!!…and yes, you’re right…hello kitchen…here we come!
I did have the flat Velcro, but with the layers of the waistband and then 2 layers of Velcro, it just was too thick.
I was thinking maybe just make a lacy cap or even having a lace ruffled lining on the underside of the hat…
I guess we’ll see as I get further along….
Thanks Susette,
Blessings, Jeanne
I will reiterate how wonderful George’s new is. God certainly holds him (and each of us) in His hand. How good He is!!
What a perfect solution to Felicity’s skirt and yes, now it will fit all dolls. My PC 1991 Felicity is slightly chubbier than the AG girls, but by comparison my PC Samantha is a chunk. She eats way too many petit fours I suppose. The German dolls seem to have varying degrees of stuffing.
So nice that you have the perfect flowers in your collection for Felicity’s hat. They will look so pretty. The whole color scheme of this gown complements Felicity’s coloring so well. Perhaps for a story line Felicity could be going to a tea and you could use one of your tea sets. She would be drinking an herbal tea, of course because as a Patriot as would “take no tea”. BTW, have you watched TURN; Washington’s Spies? It’s a fascinating series since there aren’t many Revolutionary War ones. I’m waiting for the fourth season to come out and the library to buy it.
Hi Laura,
The Lord has certainly been very good to us through all this…we are so thankful!
I have quite a few different sizes of waists on my dolls too. This skirt should solve thst problem.
I was hoping to have a few colors in my flowers that would work, but I never dreamed I’d have them all…especially that different color of blue. I think the hat will be very pretty.
Thanks for the storyline… :o)
Blessings, Jeanne
First of all, thanks for the update on George. Good news is always welcome and you have both been through a lot with his bladder cancer. I’m believing God has healed him, and the worst is over!
I like the way you adapted the fit on Felicity’s skirt and think it is a good solution as the waist sizes can vary quite a bit between the older dolls and the new ones. Also, this solution seems more fitting to the period of the skirt. The flowers you chose for the hat will look great!
Hi Carolyn,
It certainly would be nice for this bladder nightmare to be over!!! I’ll amen that!!
I’m glad everyone seemed to like my ideas for making Felicity’s skirt fit better. I was very pleased with the results too.
Thank you Carolyn,
Blessings, Jeanne
Awesome news Jeanne! I’m so happy you posted it again, I guess I missed your post script. I was actually thinking about you and George yesterday wondering if you had gotten news. So AMEN and PRAISE GOD!!!
Hugs
Ingrid
Almost forgot… The Outfit is looking good. Love the ties looks very authentic.
Thank you so much for your prayers, Ingrid! We really appreciated them!
…and glad you liked the skirt’s waistband solution…
Blessings, Jeanne