I know it’s the middle of September but some schools are just getting started on their school year. Molly doesn’t mind modeling late…and hopes you’ll still enjoy her First Day of School set… :o)
I made her cute tam from a black ribbed corduroy…
The back of her skirt was taken apart and put back together so it’s much easier to dress your doll. It looked like this before I was totally done… trying to get my straps and Velcro in the right place.
The Velcro at the waistband allowed the back of the skirt to open up part of the way so it’s easier to keep her blouse in place as you are dressing her. I also added a piece of Velcro at the ends of the straps that hooks onto a piece sewn on just below the waistband. Since reconstructing the skirt this way. I had to topstitch my Velcro on the top of my fabric…sorry, it shows, but isn’t too noticeable since it’s a plaid.
I made her book bag out of a pretty red wide wale corduroy…the two black and white ribbons are even, they just don’t look like they are. I put 6 pennies in the front flap lining to weight it… I just might have to make her a few more books to go in it… :o)
Isn’t she adorable AND scholarly looking? :o)
Well, that’s what I spent my Friday doing…what did YOU do?
I’m not sure if I’ll have time to get this listed, but I’ll try…
See you Monday,
Blessings, Jeanne
Molly’s outfit is adorable! I especially love her book bag–I remember having a red plaid book bag when I was in about 1st or 2nd grade! I felt so grown up, carrying it to school with me!
Thought you’d all like to know, we finally got some rain today (Seattle area) and the air quality has improved considerably. Ah, we can breathe again! Unfortunately, dampness makes my joints hurt, and brings on a sinus headache, so, while I’m glad to have the air clean and fresh again, rain isn’t usually my friend in other ways.
I actually spent some time in my sewing room this week. I’ve got another pair of short overalls almost done (I have Seven Little Darlings, and they all want short overalls, so that’ll be 3 down and 4 to go. Maybe they’ll be done for Next summer!
I also am on the way to finishing the two Wee Care gowns I smocked. I’ve blocked the smocking and pressed and pinned hems (sleeves and center back) on the pink one, and will block the white one and proceed with finishing it in the near future.
And, Jon has started painting the trim on our house now! The rain has put it on hold but hopefully only for a day or so.
Tomorrow is cleaning at church, and then I have a bag of wonderful tomatoes from a neighbor to process. I usually peel and chop them, and store them in 2-cup quantities in the freezer. I use them for my variation of the 4 B’s Tomato Soup recipe. I’d be happy to send it to Jeanne to share, if enough would like it! It is SO good!!
Hi Charlotte,
When did you acquire a new husband? I know it’s just a typo, but I had to laugh when I read JON instead of RON.
*Imitates Julie Andrew’s voice from The Sound of Music” Seven Little Darlings? Seven Little Darlings?? Serious fun! Of course what one wants, they all must have or at least some. Why do you think a have duplicates of some of the PC food and school supplies and even a couple of outfits?
I’m glad you got rain and hope your sinus headache clears up soon.
I’m sure my mom would like your recipe. I’ll bet I’m the odd one out, but I don’t like tomato soup, at all! I love fresh tomatoes, alone or in recipes, I like gazpacho, and I like Italian, but have never liked the classic lunch of tomato soup and grilled cheese. As a child, I always wanted vegetable soup or Chicken Noodle with that.
Just gave it another thought. Is Jon your son? You do know I was just kidding with you? Sometimes typos are very funny. I recall when someone on the doll board bought Samantha’s gazebo and when she commented about setting it up autocorrect corrected it to gazpacho.
Hi Laura, no Jon is our son’s friend, and he previously did a bunch of yard work–clearing out ivy and blackberry vines, etc.–for us. He knows how to do a lot of things, and is self-employed, so when he said he could paint our house’s exterior, I decided to take him up on it. It’s not as fast as getting a commercial “team” on it, but he’s catching little details and taking care of them as he goes along. Yesterday he even cleaned off part of the roof for us, without even being asked to do so!
And no, at 87, my husband Ron is not going to be climbing any ladders any more!! I won’t let him–I’d be terrified he would fall! (He’s fallen several times, for no reason at all, or just trying to get up a curb; ladders are “out” for him now.)
The tomato soup recipe isn’t as spicy as Campbell’s tomato soup is, and using fresh tomatoes in it makes a Huge difference! The pint of heavy cream does, too!! Ha ha….
Oh Charlotte, please do send your tomato soup recipe to Jeanne for distribution. I love tomato soup and the thought of having made-from-scratch tomato soup is over the moon.
I get terrible headaches when we have a Blue Norther on the way to Texas. The change in atmospheric pressure sends me for the migraine medicine. Once they’re thru I’m much better and really enjoy the cold temperatures. Yes, it does get cold in Texas. Really surprised me my first year in Texas.
Jeanne, I can’t imagine what little girl wouodn”t like to get and wear an outfit like this on the first day of school! She would be going straight to the top of the class in that! The sweet blouse, the crisply pleated skirt, the perky tam and darling bookbag, what a delight to see! The little tam is just so cute! i remember having one, and could never get it to stay on my head! We had to “bobbypin” it! That is just like what PC put on Molly for her meet outfit!
I love the bookbag too! Yes, I had several of those, and it was such fun to “fix” them up and put all our new school supplies in them before the big day! Love the flowered ribbon, it gives it a personal touch! You couldn’t find anything in the stores like that, for sure!
Molly is just adorable in that outfit, and you can’t mistake the fact that she is heading off to school! Who wouoldn’t want to have a little girl like that in class, or better yet, who wouldn”t want to be one?
Molly is adorable! The 2 corduroys added such nice texture. I love the trim on the book bag. I believe I have the same or at least very similar. So pretty!
In the dinner party picture, I am on the far left with short hair, the long haired blond is my nephew, then his dad (Sister’s husband. We lost her 5 years ago.) in the red shirt. My dad is in the middle and then a couple that became very close friends to my parents through my dad’s job. They have been a godsend and treated my parents like family and continue to look after my dad.
Love Molly in the whenever it might begin school outfit. I really like the black tam which would look lovely with many different outfits. Like a sweater and black pants with flats for a more casual look. The little bookbag with the ribbon accents that match her tie is perfect. I’m sure Molly will do well in school this year.
Made it to Sacramento in record time yesterday. Picked up our parcel and turned around and drove two hours home. Managed to participate in the Virtual Modern Doll Convention too. New Meadow Dumpling heading our way soon. 🙂
So, what’s next Jeanne? Have a nice weekend.
Dear Joy, I was at Modern Doll too! I must have passed you in the hallway (smile). I loved hearing Magalie Dawson talking about the Little Darling dolls.
Yes, she was wonderful. In fact, I really enjoyed everything. Including the sales room. 🙂
I totally missed the Convention this time and would have loved to hear Magalie. Now that the grandkids are back in school, I will have more time to really look at my e-mail. I’m sure I got notice of this and just figured I’d get it later and then forgot.
Dear Jeanne, I love Molly’s outfit. I really like the Velcro closing. Having Velcro makes it so much easier to dress the dolls. Another benefit is that if the outfit if for a slightly different sized 18-inch doll, the Velcro allows for adjustment.
Like Joy, I attended the Modern Doll Collectors Convention. I had so much fun! I don’t have Facebook so I couldn’t get into the salesroom, which is actually a blessing (smile) but I did attend the programs. I opted for the Visitor’s Pass which cost $10.
Modern Doll announced that it is doing something again in December. UFDC is also planning a December event. Both will be virtual. I am so happy for these dolly diversions.
Also, I have been watching mini videos on YouTube from the Jane Austen movie Sanditon. It was in theaters early this year before the shut-in. Andrew Davies, the producer, envisioned the movie in two parts. He filmed and released Part 1. Now it seems that the funders do not want to invest in Part 2. There is this big movement online to Save Sanditon.
It is a very sweet story. Most folks who like Jane Austen would like it. Some folks do not like it because it was made from an unfinished novel of Austen’s. I really like it and I hope that there will be a Part 2.
I’ve got to admit I love the convenience of Velcro and use it whenever I can. Lately, though, I’ve been sewing using Vaniline patterns and most of her clothing closes in the front where any Velcro (tried them all) messes with the lines of the blouse, skirt, etc.
Sorry I couldn’t meet you at the Convention. Hopefully next time.
Wow, as usual, your attention to detail is so professional. I am so impressed with how you matched the plaid. I look at pictures of plaid outfits made by other sewers on eBay, and wonder why they would even bother posting. It should be a requirement for them to learn from you before they destroy a beautiful piece of fabric.
Molly’S “Wishing for School” outfit is very cute and absolutely perfect from head to toe. I love your choice of corduroy for her beret and bookbag. The crisp white blouse and plaid skirt are an iconic first day of school look. I love the flowered trim you used on her bookbag. it reminds me a little of the trim on Kirsten winter skirt and hair ribbon. I’ll have to drag out my set and see if the ribbons are the same. I have a few yards from probably a decade ago from JoAnn’s that look identical, but the background is royal blue.
Molly deserves an A+ , correction you deserve the A+, Jeanne for a lovely outfit.
I certainly agree with Debi about matching plaids. AG generally makes a complete hash of it, ruining otherwise cute outfits.
I’m also agreeing with everyone else on the corduroy making a nice contrast in texture and on the pretty trim for the bookbag.
I’d have to see a Molly slide show for verification, but this may well be my all-time favorite Molly outfit. As always, I wish you had a duplicate for Molly to keep.
Red ribbons for her braids? I also like the new socks.
Adorable is a total understatement. This outfit is the absolute best. I love the bookbag and the other accessories. It all brings back fond memories for me. When I was little my mother loved dressing me in plaid skirts with tams – and braids in my hair.
I’m a stickler for matching plaids, stripes, etc., but most don’t seem to notice. I remember a friend of mine being so proud of the adorable red plaid skirts she bought one year for her twin daughters to start school. They were sweet little skirts until the girls turned sideways. I had to keep from gasping. The plaids were not even close. But she’s also the same woman who occasionally sewed for her daughters. The clothes she made were cute as could be but you didn’t want to stand behind them if they had zippers down the back. The two sides of the zipper would be so “off” at the waist that I was tempted one time to ask if I could take them home and fix it. But I kept my opinions to myself. I tried to think of a tactful way to bring this up, but there wasn’t one really and, as my husband always says, you can’t tell it on a galloping goose, and those two were never still.
I’m sure Molly will not be keeping her back-to-school ensemble for very long. It’s way to cute to not be snatched up right away.
The outfit is just lovely. Poor Molly, she will be back to her knickers before she knows it lol.
How amazing that you have the book I was lent. The downside to the book is that you do have to have some dressmaking knowledge because she doesn’t give you step by step instructions.
I was thinking about going back to the thrift shop to look for some more ‘fabric’ for another outfit, not necessarily the same outfit as the one you have seen, then I remembered that about three years ago my friend (who has since passed away) gave me a whole roll of a salmony pink slubbed polyester silk. She was volunteering in a charity shop regularly and this roll of fabric was brought in by someone who was in charge of a choir. They had bought this fabric to make matching blouses for the choir then changed their minds and this fabric was surplus to their requirements. Nancy knew it would be quite difficult to sell in the shop and that I (at the time) was making fabric flowers, particularly roses and she gave it to me. I would have to make a lot of flowers to even make a dent in the amount of fabric on the roll but I have realised that it will work beautifully for some of the outfits in the book. However that will have to wait for a while. I entered two other items in the exhibition and one is a quilt that is still in pieces and the other is for the challenge piece that I haven’t started. I have 2 weeks!
Barbara, I have always been hopeless at putting in zippers neatly, they always went off at the waist. I don’t think my daughter cared much though.
One of the dolls Sam bought from Trade Me was new and still in the box. The clothes were really quite ugly and barely fitted, a child would have popped the buttons. Barbie clothes are the same, badly made with stitching showing and no attempt very often to even match the thread let alone stripes or plaids!
Your blog is getting very popular Jeanne. It takes me a while to read through all the comments and I don’t comment on them all.
Apparently our fire season is starting early according to the news last night. There is still snow on the ground down south but firefighters are having to watch because the ground is so dry underneath and the fire is burning away underground. Every now and again it starts burning above ground again in spite of the snow. Nothing like your fires of course, but might be a real problem if they can’t get the underground fires controlled before summer.
I’d better start moving it is church this morning and I have to take the dog out first. At least the weather is great, still a little cool though but I have abandoned my sweaters and cardigans for t shirts and cardigans so that is progress.
It’s fun to hear Anne getting ready for summer as we get out our warmer clothes.
I wrote earlier but your computer was certain I was repeating a message. I approved the use of corduroy in the beret and bookbag, joining the chorus of approval. I’d have to see a slideshow, but this may be the best Molly outfit ever.
HI everyone,
Wow…2 days in a row and I’ve been very busy, so no comments… I had a meeting with Jean and Bithar this evening about a trip back to Haiti for them…
I did get Molly’s school set listed on Ebay this afternoon… barely made it before I had that meeting…
I’m thinking of who might be next… hmmm…
I guess I’ll see who raises their hand first!
See you all Monday,
Blessings, Jeanne