Hi everyone,
Thank you so much for all your prayers and well wishes for my mom since she fell again. It seems to be an ongoing thing that is almost impossible to fix. She is in a Memory Care unit and in Illinois there are restraint laws so she can’t be strapped or belted in the wheelchair and she can’t have both rails up on her bed. It’s some silly law (in my opinion) that someone put in place who (obviously) didn’t think it through very clearly. Anyway, the cut on her head was glued shut and her scan was fine. She was released and we got home about 1:30 Monday morning. But then I couldn’t get to sleep because I was thinking about everything… the last time I looked at the clock it was 4:40 a.m. So… as soon as I show these few pictures I am going to bed.
I saw the comments about the smallest and largest doll you have…and I thought Navi was my smallest doll I had ever sewn for, but just tonight, I remembered I made a dress for one of those tiny Chelsea dolls (I think they might be Barbie’s 5″ little sister?). Anyway, I found a few pictures of the dress I made for a lady… and thought I’d share them…
Eden was waiting patiently for me to do a little more on her dress, but I told her not to get her hopes up! I am happy to announce that I have her skirt added to the bodice and her sleeves are in now. I took a piece of the micro-check fabric and cut it on the bias to make a belt…it’s actually NOT sewn up yet… just folded over to see how it would look.
The back of the dress isn’t finished at all…
Here are the little felt die cut flowers I’m using for an accent at her waist. They are just laid on her waist right now, but I’ll add some buttons when I sew them on.
…and one more, just because I had it…
She has on some new white socks and I have 2 different pair of shoes that I can use with this dress… any preferences on the color? The light blue shoes make the tiny blue flowers stand out or she can use the burgundy shoes? My red shoes weren’t the right color red…this fabric’s red is a deep red.
I still have a ways to go on it, but the hardest and most time consuming parts are probably done.
I’d love to hear your opinions…
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
I’m glad your mom is doing somewhat better, Jeanne. Since your state has those restrictions, perhaps some kind of an alarm on the bed would be good? When Ron was first in the hospital over Christmas, they didn’t want him out of bed on his own (his pulse was so low, they were afraid he would stand up and pass out!) so they had the bed alarm turned on, and if he moved to the edge of the bed as if to get up, it would sound! Might be something to look into.
The dress is coming along beautifully! I really like the bias gingham trim and the little flowers. Wherever do you find those little flowers?! Something I need to look for, I think!
As to shoes, I rather like the burgundy ones. First of all, I just love that style of shoe for little girls. Also, the light blue ones seem to kind of “disappear” into the white socks. Of course, by the time the outfit is completely accessorized, I may have a different opinion!! LOL
Jeanne, I am relieved that this latest episode with you mother is over and she is doing OK for the time. But you, dear, need sleep! I’m sure you would agree to that one!
The dress is coming along so prettily! I really like the flowers at the waist along with the gingham waistband. Perfectly done!
As far as the shoes, well, like you said, the blue shoes do make the blue flowers of the material stand out, but like Charlotte said, they kind of disappear with the white of the socks! The style is dressier than the burgundy ones though. I do love the burgundy shoes too, but they have a more casual look to them. You could use both in the pictures!
What will she have for her hair? I can easily see a straw hat, but then who wears straw hats for Valentine’s Day? That would be Easter, and this dress could also work for that!
Dear Jeanne, I am glad your mother is doing better. It does seem that that particular law doesn’t really consider what is best for patients.
I vote for the burgundy shoes with Charlotte and Linda.
Jeanne, so glad to hear your Mother is doing better. But such a scare and that is one crazy law. I bet who ever put that into place would feel differently if it was there mother or father. So your state would rather see a patient with a fall issue get hurt and often badly rather than have some sort of restraint. Like I said before a bed alarm would work and I’m surprised they don’t have those on the beds.
The dress is coming along nicely. I love the colors and the print and the tiny check is perfect. My vote goes the blue shoes as they are more dressy as the burgundy are more casual.
Your new dress is coming along well:) the felt flowers at the waist really add a nice touch!
As for the shoes, either the light blue or even white.. the “star” is the dress.. the shoes need to be “background.” I’m sure whatever you decide will look beautiful!
I have a Chelsea .. my Meadow girls consider her “their doll:)”
Hope you are able to catch up on sleep, and so glad your mom didn’t have severe injuries. I mentioned yesterday about the hospital alarms we have on beds here, which can work if they are quickly attended to. One time, when my dad was in the hospital, the orderly said that he responded very quickly, but that dad was already out of bed and in the bathroom by the time he arrived. He always moved quickly, and they often couldn’t catch him down the halls. No falls that time fortunately. Feeling for you.
I don’t know about the shoes. The burgundy just look like school shoes and not for a beautiful party dress. I think the blue a better choice and perhaps you can turn the sock down a bit so more leg shows. or add a ruffle to the sock. Personally, I would like to see white shoes with a fancy sock. The dress is lovely and the flowers match perfectly. 🙂
Got a surprise last night. Someone new may be joining the flock.
Oh gosh…your poor Mom. It’s one thing after another. I’m sure she is as frustrated as you are. It does throw your life upside down ..those calls always are a scare. Hope you got some good sleep and she recovers from this latest bump in the road.
This latest dress could be a real favorite. Love ,love the tiny check trim at the waist. I’m thinking white shoes would be nice too…then I saw Joy had that thought as well.
Take care😉
I am so glad your mother didn’t suffer any serious injuries from her fall. What a crazy law! I’d love to know the reasoning behind that one. Seems to be another one of those “good” ideas with unanticipated consequences – rather short sighted it seems. Thinking down the road before creating a new law would seem to be a good idea. Just saying.
I love this sweet little dress, and it would be so perfect for any upcoming event. Most of my thoughts about the shoes have already been stated, but just to put in my two cents. I love the blue shoes. My Gracie has them. They have always been some of my favorites. I also love the t-strap shoes and several of my dolly girls have them as school shoes. I tend to like the blue style better with the dress and I have no problem with them disappearing since I always tend to put white or pastel shoes with spring dresses anyway. So I guess I’m voting for the blue shoes.
Joy, another member of the flock. Please tell us who it is. Inquiring minds really want to know. Send pictures. I’m still hoping to hear from Magalie since I think her website said she was ahead of schedule, so I have to behave myself for awhile. Besides, I’m really running out of room. I did some reorganizing on my dolly shelves but it didn’t help much. I think I need stands with smaller bases.
Jeanne, you asked if I had any pictures of the dollhouse(s) my dad made. Sadly I don’t. Most of the pictures I inherited are back-to-school, Easter and some snow pictures – and thankfully my Confirmation pictures with my beloved grandparents. My parents didn’t take many pictures even at Christmas that I can remember and some of the pictures from my childhood were destroyed when the storage room of an apartment my mother lived in caught fire. What wasn’t burned was severely smoke damaged and she threw them out. When my mother passed away and my sisters gave me the pictures that were left to look through, I was glad to find several I remembered but I definitely found a lot missing.
I’m happy your mom didn’t have any serious injuries from her fall! Oh my gosh, your state doesn’t allow both bed rails to be raised? There is always a chance of rolling out of bed. My dad fell out of bed a couple of times, and we started using bed rails on both sides of his bed. He was at home though, so I don’t know if Texas has the same laws or not.
Eden’s dress is coming along nicely. I like the flowers at the waist. I do’t really have a preference on the shoes. I think they both coordinate nicely.
I’m happy to know your mom wasn’t badly injured by the fall. I guess the rules are to prevent confinement, but Charlotte’s idea of an alarm is good. Hospitals beds are narrow anyway. Is there a way to place a bumper on the sides? My daughter had rails as a toddler/preschooler with bumpers attached to them. She was a restless sleeper and I was afraid she would fall out, even hitting the carpet would hurt.
Eden’s dress is looking so sweet. I love the blue shoes with it. I guess I like a contrasting color that picks up a smaller detail in the dress. I think the t-straps are a cuter style/ more appropriate for the era, but the color doesn’t match as well, so the blue are my choice.
Joy, be sure to share your latest cutie when she or he comes.
Glad your Mom got through another fall without a bad injury, but she can’t keep doing this, sigh. Maybe push her bed against a wall and just raise the outside bed rail? Plus getting a bed alarm, the rail might slow her down enough for someone to get to her and help? I hope you find a solution to this that is good for you both.
Your dress is looking great! Does Illinois still follow the ‘no white after Memorial Day until Labor day? Otherwise, guess I’d choose the burgundy ones.
I missed the post yesterday, but wanted to add my doll sizes, too. Mine go from a large Himstedt “Sina” at 37 or 39 inches, to the smallest like Charlotte’s little German baby who isn’t even wearing a diaper (bad me!). The smallest I play with is Amelia and her friend Puki Puki Ante at about 4 or 5 inches tall. I decided I didn’t want to sew for them as it’s such tiny and fiddly work! So the next smallest is 6 inch Navi Meadow and Puki Ante Fairyland who are much more manageable! I also have two of the mini AG. I guess most of who I sew for are the resin MSD-slim mini size of 16 or 17 inches. About Ellowyne size. I have a few Ell’s, too. My favorites to sew for are the 10 inch and 14 inch kids! For Karen, I would usually sew for the newest doll to my family first, then pick a pattern and fabric I wanted to sew and whoever that doll was, was next. I also collect patterns, of course. I buy more now than I sew. : )
I’d like to include a sewing tip for the new or beginner seamstresses out there, and that is how to set doll sleeves in easily, no matter the size. You’ll need to work with the fabric when it’s flat, so after the back and neck are stitched, don’t sew up the side seams or sleeve seams yet. Gather your sleeve at the top and pin it into to armhole, all while the fabric is kept flat. Then sewing it up is easy. After getting the sleeve sewn in then you can stitch up the side seam and lower sleeve seam all in one motion. Do the other side the same and then you can add the skirt to the waist. Hope this is clear. It looks so professional to have sleeves sewn in and sewing them with the fabric flat is the easy answer!
Love and Hugs, Ali C.
The burgundy shoes get my vote!