If it’s not my favorite, it certainly is one of my top ten! I really like this Regency ensemble… it’s simple, yet very elegant at the same time. Who knew it was “Jane Austen July?” I didn’t realize it, but I guess this might be perfect timing! :o) (Thanks Dorothy!)
I knew American Girl Caroline had a spencer and bonnet, but I made myself not look at it to see what I came up with. Well, Linda sent me pictures of her Felicity wearing Caroline’s set and it does look like mine… sort of. Her bonnet is felt, Linda said, and the dress is Josefina’s. But you get the idea… Felicity looks pretty sweet in it, doesn’t she? Thanks Linda!
Before I show my pictures of Elizabeth, I wanted to show you what my hubby collected yesterday! He was beaming from ear to ear!
I have LOTS of pictures to show you…we had quite the photo shoot and all the pictures were just so pretty, I hated to cut any out! Elizabeth seconded that! I took some with the flash and some without… but they all had my Ott light shining on her. I’d be interested to see which pictures you like the best…
Oh yes, and these aren’t the final pics, because Rebecca is going to make a pretty necklace to go with this set! Yippee!
So, here are 18 pictures to keep you busy for a few minutes! I hope you enjoy them as much as we did taking them.
A little bit about how I embellished the bonnet… I first glued a strip of the dark red grosgrain ribbon to the inside of the bonnet where I joined the 2 sections of the hat together to keep the dolls hair from catching on the rough edges of the straw. It was too wide, and too stiff to use as the tie under her chin so I used a black rayon ribbon to pick up the color in the dress and buttons. The ribbon worked fine on the top of the hat and I glued a strip across the hat to give it some definition and then began adding flowers… some silk and some paper. The greenery is some wispy leaves I like to use.
Well, that’s all the eye candy for today. My hubby has a follow up appointment for his knee so I’ll be out most of the day. I’ll try to check in if I can…
Oh…and my sisters and their hubby’s are coming Saturday for a few days! Another Yippee! :o)
Thanks everyone,
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Very beautiful! I love the whole outfit! A small decoration on the bonnet, but very spectacular view. It’s charming!
Oh, that bonnet is so sweet, Jeanne! I love the way you decorated it on both sides! Just perfect! I also like the way you tied the bow on the side, better to see the pretty necklace that’s coming! Elizabeth looks so charming in every picture!
It just seemed strange when I first saw what you were making, and I thought maybe I had seen that before …..somewhere! While going through my pictures, I happened to see the ones I took and sent to you. Bingo, that was it! This was taken back in 2014. so a little while back. I thought it would be fun to send them to you to see how we must think alike!!
Wow, those tomatoes are making my mouth water already! Fantastic job, George!
Oh dear, where IS Charlotte?
First of all, I want to say I am a little envious of all those yummy tomatoes George has harvested! They look Soooo good!!
Also, thanks to Linda for sending pictures to share of your Felicity in Caroline’s Regency outfit; I remembered seeing it in the catalog, but had kind of forgotten about it because I’d never gotten “into” that era. It’s beautiful, though, and I can definitely see the appeal.
Jeanne, I have caught up on reading about the making of the Spencer jacket (which I love!) and the bonnet; that did indeed turn into a gorgeous outfit!! I always enjoy reading how you deal with certain issues (such as the straw of the hat catching in the hair).
Then I want to thank all of you for your lovely comments and concern.
Yes, I’ve been sick. As in 36-hours-of-severe-abdominal-cramps-and-the-big-“D” sick. Finally Wed. morning my husband took me to ER and, after almost 9 hours, an IV with some pain and nausea meds, and a blood draw, they decided to admit me, as the cramps were so severe (however, the “big d” had stopped, I think the instant I walked in that door!). Ron went home with a little list of some things I needed, about an hour before I was taken to my room (we’d been waiting for a couple of hours for it to be available by then). When I called him later, he was simply wiped out, so I told him to wait until morning to bring those things up, but to be sure to bring his walker, too, because they were only allowing visitors in/out thru one door, which was about as far from the elevator to my floor as you could get!
By the time I got up to my room, I felt weak and shaky, and I was sweating profusely. The nurse checked my blood sugar–it was 40. Yes, forty. No wonder! (normal could be considered between 70 and 120, I think) The nurse got some glucose going straight into my vein, and then mixed protein powder into apple juice and had me drink that. Before long, I was feeling quite a lot better. Well, it was no surprise–I hadn’t eaten more than 2 saltines and a little ginger ale, plus part of a piece of toast, which I lost about an hour later, in the previous 48 hours!
This afternoon they decided I probably had a viral gastrointestinal infection, and since I wasn’t “doing” anything now, I could go home. Well, duh, there’s no bulk in clear liquids and IVs! So when I got home and started eating “soft” foods, of course “d” returned; I took an immodium, and that seems to have done the trick.
However, I also fell again (long story) and bumped the back of my head. This time I put ice on the bump and lay down. It’s going to be interesting to shampoo and set my hair Sat. night!
One fun thing–for our granddaughter Lily’s 13th birthday I got her, among other things, a stamped dresser scarf to embroider plus things to go with it–the appropriate floss, a hoop, etc. Her mom told me tonight, she wished she’d video’d Lily opening the box, because she kept saying, kind of to herself, “I hope there are needles! I hope there are needles!” Yes, there were!! I think I have me a sewer/stitcher!!
Thanks again, everyone–you all are the best!
I meant to say, Ron never got up to “visit” me in the hospital–instead, I called him and told him I was going to come home, and to just call me from the car when he got there, and the nurse would bring me down (she offered) so that’s what we did!
Dear Charlotte,
you poor dear, a gastrointestinal infection is no fun. I pray you are on the mend now. I also hope that you aren’t seriously injured from your fall. Hopefully, you’re able to eat more solid foods now. I know the BRAT diet helps (Bananas, white Rice, Applesauce, and Toast)
That sounds little a wonderful gift for your granddaughter. I made my grandmother a stamped dresser scarf for her birthday when I was eight. It was a sideways view of a girl in a sunbonnet and full dress with flowers at her feet. It was the 1970’s after all, and Hollie Hobbie and pioneer/prairie was in. It also sparked a love of crochet, counted cross-stitch and other handcrafts. I just need to get more proficient with sewing more difficult items.
Thanks Laura!
I always loved those designs with the girls with big skirts, but never made one. Your grandma must have treasured the dresser scarf you made for her!
How blessed you are to have a sewer/stitcher for a granddaughter. My granddaughter so far does not have much interest in that but she is only eight. She has an Elsa fashion thing (hard to describe) that you lift up the outline and Elsa is raised on the lower portion. You put fabric over the parts of her and you can create different fashions – top, skirt and ribbon for the waist. I was so excited when I saw it. I thought too cool a granddaughter after my own heart. So I told her I had a whole basket of scraps she could look at and I would cut them to the size she needed and press them for her. When she came the last time I pulled out the basket. In five minutes she picked four pieces handed them to me and took off for other things. I cut and pressed and gave them to her. She stuffed them in her bag and went back to her ipad. But I haven’t lost hope. I’ll keep trying.
The Elsa thing you described sounds a little like the dress I wore in my kindergarten photo. It was a calico dress, royal blue with dark blue, yellow, and red flowers and puffed eyelet edged sleeves. It had a white eyelet edged apron and in the center was a pointed doll with blonde braids. Her dress was the same calico and unzipped to reveal a white slip the had “I love you” in a red heart. I have a Polly Flinders, but I don’t think that dress was.
I hope your granddaughter becomes interested someday. I think it’s more difficult today because kids are “glued” to their phones and computers.I’m very grateful computers didn’t even enter my life until I was 22( the payroll/bookkeeper job I had then ran with software).
Dear Charlotte, oh my goodness! I am sending you a personal message.
How fun to see Linda’s Felicity wearing Caroline’s Spencer and bonnet. How do we keep all of the dolls and their outfits straight? 🙂 The display scene is lovely too by the way.
And then there is Jeanne’s new Regency on Elizabeth, the doll that can wear anything! Love how the outfit turned out and the hat especially. The black accent chin ribbon is a wonderful touch. I think she’ll be taking a book into the garden where she will sit on a blanket while reading away the afternoon. Or maybe she’ll just stand propped up against a tree with her book of choice. 🙂
So happy to hear from Charlotte, but being so sick like that is not fun at all. Glad she has returned home and hopefully, the bug is gone. And please no more falls. Sounds like the birthday gift for grand was a big hit. Great idea. I think my seven year old grand could do a simple version of that. I’ll have to look around. Thanks for the idea.
George’s tomatoes are beautiful! Makes me really hungry for a BLT. Elizabeth’s new Regency outfit is definitely a winner and will probably sell almost as soon as posted. The hat is really lovely. Elizabeth is truly a beautiful doll. I don’t know what it is about her, but if I were to buy an AG doll I think it would be Elizabeth. I think I know now why all my dolls are living in the current era. I just stick hair embellishments in their hair and they’re good to go.
Thanks Linda for the lovely picture of your AG doll in her Regency finery. I am so unknowledgeable about the AG dolls. I have no clue which I’m looking at or what era they are in past Samantha, Molly and Kit. I guess I paid more attention when my daughter was young, even though dolls were not her thing and she never asked for an AG doll.
I was hoping Charlotte would tell us about some lovely road trip she and Ron took. I was sorry to hear of all she’s been through. Those intestinal bugs can be really difficult to deal with, especially when they’re viral. So easy to become dehydrated if not careful. I’ve lost a few pounds at times when I had that but I definitely wouldn’t suggest it as a method of weight loss. It’s good she went to the hospital to make sure it wasn’t anything more serious. Hurry and get well Charlotte!
I just got a phone call from my daughter-in-law cancelling my grandson’s birthday party tomorrow. Evidently we’re supposed to be getting some of Hurricane Hanna. I stopped watching the news at night because I couldn’t take any more of the gloom and doom before I went to bed, and I forget to check the weather. It’s usually hot and humid with temps in the high 90s and no rain. What’s to check. But occasionally we have a surprise but it’s usually more in late August or September. Evidently we won’t get the direct hit but will be on the wet side with a lot of rain (which we desperately need) and some wind. It will start later today. Glad we won’t get the brunt of it. I have a lot of trees I worry about.
David is doing better with his shingles but that’s just a comparison to previously. Every now and then he gets a lot of pain around his eye. He still has some swelling but it is going down, slowly. His face is nearly clear now so he looks almost normal. He says he doesn’t feel all that normal at times. He said when he washed his hair the other day it was like having bees in his hair. But he is up and going each day and it does make the time pass faster for him.
Jeanne, Caroline is very lovely in her gorgeous gown and beautiful bonnet. You’ve adorned everything so carefully, it’s such a pleasure to view your work.
George’s tomatoes look like you’ve a beautiful bounty there. Ours are not quite getting red yet…but, shortly. You’re just a bit ahead of us.
Blessings.
Hi Jeanne, I glad you enjoyed the singing kitty and I did intend to share that one, but missed this other one that should have come before my comments. That’s why it probably didn’t make sense
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-sussex-48757020/the-brighton-tailor-whose-identity-became-his-business How I wish all the fancy clothes would come back. I still remember the day I was headed into the library years ago. I was probably in my mid 20’s early 30’s and a gentleman in his early 30’s- ran up and held the door open for me. As he did, he gave a slight bow and tipped his imaginary hat, and said “Pleasant afternoon, miss”.
I was so impressed. I know I responded with “Indeed it is, sir”. It really just takes certain gestures to transport you to another time.
I stand corrected, Linda, Felicity does look sweet in that outfit. The shade of coral is very pretty on her.
Jealous! Wow, what a tomato harvest. My silly tomatoes are still in flower or in the very early stages of little green fruit. It will be a little while yet
Very pretty bonnet with flowers that highlight the colors of the dress and spencer. the whole thing looks perfectly pulled together. Please do show it on Caroline. I’m glancing back and forth between the computer and my Caroline to visualize it.
This outfit brings out Elizabeth’s blue eyes. How would t look on a dark hired doll? On Addy?
Hmmm now Dorothy’s missing. I keep coming back to see if she commented. She hasn’t been here since day 1 of Elizabeth’s dress and I don’t see that she was going anywhere. I wanted to tell her the “Crafting with Jane Austen is fun. I found it on You Tube as she said it would be and have seen part of it
I sure hope she’s okay and will check in tomorrow Are you lost in Austinland, Dorothy???
Dear Laura, hello. It is nice to be missed. I have been “attending” the United Federation of Doll Club Convention for the last three days. It began at 12 noon (Eastern time) and ended around 6 pm. Of course, when it was over, I had to talk with my local doll club friends about all of the wonderful seminars. These talks went way into the night. I am in total doll bliss.
The seminars are archived on Facebook for folks who want to see them.
Next week, I will be “attending” the Virtual Doll Convention. I can’t wait to have another week of doll adventures.
I am so happy that you liked “Crafting With Jane Austen.” I did not get a chance to watch it but I know it is archived on YouTube so I will watch it tomorrow.
Dear Jeanne, I love this dress. You have styled it wonderfully.