Just a quick note:
If you wanted to send me one or two pictures of your dolls in your favorite Christmas dresses, I’m going to try and see if I can’t get that put together and ready for a slide show at the beginning of next week. Some of you have already sent in some wonderful pictures. Thanks so much… you can send your pictures to jeannewiedlocher@gmail.com
A few days ago I received a package from my Aunt Bonnie. It was filled with some “old” things she thought I might enjoy…
If you click on any picture it will enlarge.
I don’t know what Baby Garters were for, but I’m guessing they held up stockings? I didn’t look it up as I wanted to think about it for a while and see if something else came to my mind… it didn’t… so if you know, tell me… :o)
The dark red cellophane envelope had 2 old doll patterns in it… One was the kind where the markings on the pattern were made with dots…
… the other pattern was copied on pieces of other pattern paper with writing on them… I thought that was strange.
Look at these detailed instructions… whew!
She embroidered the hankie lady and said her skirt would change if you switched out the hankie under her arms…
My favorite thing was the 1927 Butterick pattern book. I thumbed through it and several dresses caught my eye… I love the shadowy look done by the illustrator… it makes the dresses seem more 3 dimensional… don’t you think?
The “new” thing I received isn’t really new, but it’s new to me… Remember when Rebecca helped her best friend move to Texas a few weeks ago? Well, they had 2 cabinets that they didn’t want anymore… they were actually extras that they hadn’t used. We didn’t really have any place to put them in our house, so my hubby was going to find some place down in the basement or in his garage…. when all of a sudden I realized they would fit very well, back in a little corner in my sewing room. I’m trying to keep my room less cluttered, but this corner is wasted space and was just big enough for these cabinets to fit.
There is my big 6′ x 4′ cabinet on the left side, and a bookshelf on the right side… The area in the corner was just dead unused space, about 2 1/2 feet by 2 1/2 feet that sometimes got cluttered up with my steamer, bags of bubble wrap, doll stands, irons, cutting mats, things I shoved out of the way when someone came over, etc. My hubby mounted the cabinets on the wall… the big one on the bottom and the short one on top.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to put in them, but it needed to be something I didn’t get into every day. I decided to put all my props in them… that way I can see everything at a glance and be reminded of what I have.
Well, that’s my old and new things to share. I made 3 batches of my Mint Cookie Bark and 2 batches of another kind of candy… then I had a zillion dishes to do… that was my day… how was yours?
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
That was a treasure trove that your aunt sent to you, Jeanne! Those baby garters, yes, I do believe they are meant to hold up stockings, but I’m really not THAT old to know!! Imagine trying to get them on a baby that wiggles a lot, or is fussy! Not my cup of tea!
The patterns are interesting too. I can’t imagine sewing with only dots to show me whatever they are meant to show, although my grandmother had them. I loved looking at those wonderful 20’s dresses!
That was a great save for those cabinets! They look wonderful in your sewing room, and that’s a great idea to put your props there. You certainly can forget what you have, and believe me, I have been there, since all my props are hidden away! I find things when looking for other things!
My day, well, while vacuuming our stairs, which are covered with carpet, my little hand vac’s belt broke, so off we went to several stores to find one. We found a set, since they come in 2’s, but when my hubby put it on, it didn’t do the job. Had to rely on suction only, and now I think we are in the market for a new hand vac. Oh, I also made your mint cookie bark, but only two batches, since I had no room in the refrigerator for more to harden. Will do two more today and some cookies too.
HI Linda,
I’m like you and can’t imagine putting those garters on a baby…a wiggling one at that! :o)
I’m like you again and can’t imagine sewing something without writing on the pattern. It’s almost as bad as switching from Windows 7 to Winodws 10! :o) again!
The cabinets look a bit crowded in my pictures, but they’re not… there is enough room to swing open the doors all the way and they don’t hit anything… It just tucks back in that corner perfectly!
I’m making my cookies tomorrow and bagging everything up. I’ll be glad to get it out of my kitchen!
Thanks Linda,
Blessings, Jeanne
The pattern 1660 is exactly like the dress I just made for Riya when she described what she wanted. I’m afraid I remember the patterns with only the holes in them. Guess you have to be 76 to remember that!
The cabinets are wonderful. I’ve done that too, thinking of what to do with something and there was the perfect spot for it. The accessories look wonderful in the cabinets. They must be fairly large to hold all those things as they aren’t like the tiny dollhouse furniture. Great find as I’m pretty sure they would be expensive.
Oh Susette,
Just because you remember pattern pieces with holes in them doesn’t make you old… You CERTAINLY don’t seem 76, and that’s just a number anyway… I think Riya and Krish keep you young!
The cabinets are 60″ tall, but George has them setting on a milk crate right now… they are screwed the wall, but he put that milk crate under them for support….He didn’t know how heavy of stuff I was going to put in them…
Thanks Susette,
Blessings, Jeanne
What treasures you received from your aunt. Very interesting patterns and the outfits the ladies are wearing are so chic !
Oh those cabinets are perfect in the corner. And it’s nice you can see through the glass to grab exactly what you want as a prop.
Sounds like you’re busy in the kitchen. You are well prepared though. Love your cookie bark and hope to make it too.
Hi Paula,
It’s always fun to get something in the mail… old or new… and I LOVE that pattern pamphlet… it’s fun to read how they even described things in it…
I DO like the glass in the cabinets and if they had been bigger I would loved to have had them to put my dolls in to keep the dust off of them… If I ever find anything bigger than them with the glass fronts, I just might have to give them a try… I really like the looks of the glass panes…
I was busy yesterday in the kitchen and will be again tomorrow with cookie baking. Then I can get all these treats bagged up and ready for the party and other people…
Thanks Paula,
Blessings, Jeanne
Love love love your cabinets. I would so like something like that for my props which reside in the dreaded plastic bins. So hard to find anything there.
What a neat surprise from your auntie.
I can picture those garters holding up some very itchy socks. I’m sure you are way too young to remember the adult kind which held up nylon stockings. I was never so thankful as when pantyhose were invented. 🙂
As to the wonderful patterns, I’m sure the thrifty person that was the owner, traced the original thin tissue pattern on to an old unused portion of pattern paper to make it easier to use.
Thanks for sharing all of the neat things. Just my kind fun items.
HI Joy,
I’m glad you liked my cabinets… I do too…it’s fun to just look at my things through the glass….it’s almost like a storefront! :o)
Oh, but I do remember garter belts Joy! I wore them when I was in high school I guess, or maybe it was grade school? I can’t remember too much about them… except they sometimes dug into the back of your thigh when you sat down for any length of time…
As neat as the patterns are, I’ll take MY paper patterns any old day… I guess it’s just what you get used to…
Thanks so much Joy, ( I was in Hobby Lobby today and every time I saw the word JOY, I thought of you!) :o)
Blessings, Jeanne
Thank you for showing the storage you have. I am going to show it to my husband so he can see that I am “not the only one”!!!! It looks great. The older things you shared are so fun to see.
HI Kathleen,
I hope your hubby appreciates my pictures of the cabinets… tell him, “we seamstresses just need lots of places to put our stuff!” :o)
I’m trying to get my sewing room in order… I realized I never did a final showing of it after I got those new dressers with all the drawers!
Thanks Kathleen,
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne, what a lovely gift from Aunt Bonnie! I think it was Sears, or one of the other long ago catalog folks, who coined the phrase “elephants in the mail.” It means that you received a wonderful, unexpected surprise in your mailbox. Well you certainly did.
I love the storage idea for props. It keeps them all visible. Alas, my props, so far, are all theater props, which are big and clunky and have to reside in the basement of a building downtown. One day we will have our own space (smile).
Thanks for giving us a little peek at your work room. I enjoyed seeing the photos and drawings on the wall.
HI Dorothy,
I certainly did receive that elephant in the mail… and I enjoyed it so much! So glad you did too!
The cabinets will work well and it freed up another cabinet that I can put to much better use… The props are much easier to see and reach… that’ll be nice when I need something! :o)
Like I told Kathleen, I’m trying to get my sewing room all cleaned up so I can do a final reveal from when I redid it… It used to be a disaster.. but now it’s pretty nice! Pretty soon I hope to have it all cleaned up…
Thanks Dorothy,
Blessings, Jeanne
Absolutely love your new cabinets and what a perfect use for them. I see some props I’ve never seen you use. I have an antique barrister bookcase that I use for books. I’m always checking the antique store and any yard sales I happen to drive by as now I would LOVE another one for, you guessed it, my doll accessories and other display items, dust free.
What fun things your aunt sent to you. Baby garters, hmmm I assume they were to hold up baby socks and you pin the pins to the diaper, seems like a lot of fuss when you need to change your baby. The pattern are very interesting as well. Cookie baking is the plan for the weekend.
My day? Errands and a little fun window shopping Christmas items.
HI Laura,
Well, twice I’ve lost my comments to you…so once again I’m trying…
It seems we both LOVE Barrister book cases. I think they’d make lovely ways to display dolly things… I hope you find one more to match the one you already have.
My cabinets aren’t quite Barrister book cases, but they certainly work well at letting me see all my props nicely! I love them and it almost seems like I’m looking in at a store front.
I’ll be finishing up my cookies tomorrow… for my favor bags. I’ll be glad to get everything packed up and off my countertops…
I Hope you had fun Christmas shopping… (even window shopping is fun!)
Blessings, Jeanne
The cabinets are just wonderful and you have exactly the right space and the right contents for them. What good fortune.
The patterns are splendid — so elegant and I love the different shoes. The children’s fashions could inspire a couple of I Dream of Jeanne Marie fashions, but you definitely need a little girl doll for the smock-like ones. My friend Ricky had worn similar ones as a child and still had a couple. I wonder where they went. At least they look comfortable for children’s wear, though the wool thing do look itchy.
Samantha had garters attached to her camisole — I suppose the baby garters were more like that. In England before WWI, I have heard that either you had household help or you were household help. I don’t know if that was true, but by the time women finished dressing their children, managing food and housekeeping would have been a huge chore. I have heard also that Elizabeth Cady Stanton liked the new bloomer outfits but gave them up because defending them was so time consuming. She said that trying to carry things (including children) up and down stairs in petticoats and later hoop skirts was difficult, not to mention dangerous. The clothes are so pretty, but not easy to manage if you needed to do housework in them.
Hi Marilyn,
Last but not forgotten! I’ve had a busy day and am just now getting to the rest of my comments…
I’m glad you like the cabinets… They really look nice in person…it’s sort of hard to tell in my pictures how they really are, but they are nice! I like seeing my stuff through the glass panes!
I liked the pattern 1702 for the little girls.. it’s pants but I really think it’s adorable…
I can’t even imagine how the women in the early years got ANYTHING done… I have modern day conveniences and can’t seem to get that much done… I don’t have kids to dress in all those elaborate outfits, clothes to wash by hand, cloth diapers, etc…I bet they were exhausted when they went to bed at night! I’d never heard that… you either HAD household help, or you WERE household help… that’s probably truer than we know!
Thanks Marilyn,
Blessings, Jeanne
In the “olden days”, we babies wore long stockings and I’m quite sure mom must have attached them to my diapers somehow–either safety pins or the above baby garters. Actually, I think by the time I was born (1946), those long stockings were sort of going out of fashion, but it very well could be that I did wear them.
I know that baby undershirts used to have “tabs” inside, hanging inside–those were pinned to the diaper at the same time you pinned the diaper closed. I know this because I saw it done and because I still have two of my own baby undershirts (which I used on my dolls) to prove it!!
The right-hand pattern looks very much like one mom used to make clothes for one of my dolls. I suppose whoever copied the pattern pieces may have been afraid she might tear the tissue, or perhaps was sharing her pattern with a friend? You can see that she drew in the little dots and notches that, in the original, would have been punched out.
All in all, you made quite a haul of goodies!! Love the new storage, too!
I don’t know if you’ll see this or not, as I’m so late posting, but had to comment, anyway!