I just barely was able to get Nyssa’s dress set listed on Ebay. You can see it by clicking the picture at the right side bar or you can click HERE. Or you can read my post and THEN go back and see it…
I was trying really hard to get something else to show you, but I had too many things I had to help my hubby with. So the next few days I’ll show you how I did a few of those things you asked about…
~ setting/repositioning Nyssa’s eyes ~
~ making her books ~
~ making the pleats in her skirt ~
~ making pleats in different sizes ~
~ the lace behind my white trellis ~
~ a composition book printout ~
~ how to use a machine pleater attachment ~
There is nothing hard in doing ANY of those things listed… anyone can do all of them!
We had another little photo session this afternoon and here are a few new pictures of Nyssa in her dress…
Here is a picture of her thigh highs… I didn’t show them before…
…and a couple more of her sweet face…I really should sew for her more often…
I don’t know which topic I’ll start with but come back and see… :o)
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Nyssa looks adorable in her new dress! Unfortunately I don’t have a Kaye Wiggs doll, so I guess I won’t be bidding on this one. (and I really don’t Need another kind of doll to collect, either!! LOL)
Oh, I’d love to see how you make the books, and also using the machine pleater. I have a ruffler for my #1+, but haven’t tried using it yet, and I really should, just so I can say I know, right?! Maybe I’ll give it a try once our house is done being painted, and I don’t have to be keeping half an ear out if anyone needs anything!!
“The lace behind the trellis”….I had to go back and look at the pictures, as I didn’t even notice it. I guess I was too busy looking at Nyssa!!
Hi Charlotte,
Wouldn’t it be fun if we could have ALL the dolls?? :o)
I’ll cover all those things this week… stay tuned!
Blessings, Jeanne
“There is nothing hard in doing ANY of those things listed… anyone can do all of them!”
I think you may overestimate my abilities here, said the sister who cannot sew, but sure runs a mean stapler.
Oh Deb,
You are so silly…yes, you’ll be able to do all these things!!! (No stapler involved!)
Love you,
Jeanne
I looked for the space to put a Like on this Comment, Deb. You are both so talented!
Hi Susette,
Yes, Deb is VERY talented… she just created a beautiful website for her music… :o)
Thanks Susette,
Blessings, Jeanne
Yes, Deb, you and Jeanne each have your own God given talents. I loved seeing clips Jeanne shared of your wonderful abilities as a pianist.
Thank you so much, Laura!
More adorable pictures of Nyssa in her sweet new outfit. Not a bad picture among them. I have been sewing lately, actually more than I accomplish usually. It’s my way of dealing with some of the stress about the grandkids (not) returning to in-person school. What’s been neglected is some of the things I need to do around the house. I keep saying when they are back to in-person school I can do these things that take time but right now I hate to pull stuff out because I’m not sure when I can get back to it. I’m a planner and daily flexibility is not easy for me, so I’m doing what I know will calm my mind. My dolly children are more than pleased with my decision.
I love Deb’s comment. I have always sewed and I’m good at creating, but I can’t draw. My mother was very good at it and I have a sister who draws the most beautiful fairies. I told her once she should sell them so they could be digitized for embroidery designs, but she’s never done it. I’ve had people who could draw well tell me that anyone can do it. But that’s not true. Our creativity depends on how our brains are wired.
If I have your sisters right, Deb’s the musician and I can relate to that. Music is a huge part of my brain. I sing and memorize music easily and I can play the piano. Music excites me. Cindy is the interior design expert and I can’t relate to that. While I love to buy pretty things for the bedroom, etc., when I look at a room I don’t feel the tingle I do when I experience music or walk into a fabric store. You, Jeanne, are the textile creative genius and I can relate to that. In high school I had a friend who was a master at painting pictures. Her pictures of animals looked more like photographs than paintings. She was a true artiste. She tried to teach me how to paint and got nowhere. I tried to teach her how to sew and nowhere wasn’t even close. Considering the blog we are on, it’s pretty much a sure bet that most of the people here can understand what you are teaching, but I’m pretty sure my painting friend would not have a clue.
Well we are now in September. In spite of all, this year has been going fast. While I know we still have more months of hot weather here, after September we can start looking forward to things cooling off and becoming at least more comfortable. My mother used to come visit every other year for her birthday October 8th. We always had a beautiful front come through for her visit. So I know there is hope near at hand. It has been a hot summer and it shows in my electric bills. Wish I lived where I could look forward to beautiful fall weather beginning this month. Growing up in eastern PA spoiled me for living anywhere else..
HI Barbara,
Well, maybe the kids will be “IN” school before Christmas. Let’s hope so…for your sake! :o)
Yes, Deb is the musician of the family and Cindy is the Home Expert as I think of calling her. At least here on my blog… but Deb can easily hold her own when it comes to decorating. Unlike their sister who can pretty much only sew creatively! But I try!
I can’t believe it’s September either… it seems like I just got started on my year! I suppose it’s time for Fall dresses now… as much as I’d still like to be sewing pretty summery ones.
Oh well… Fall it is!
Thanks Barbara,
Blessings, Jeanne
“Runs a mean stapler.” 😆😄😁. Deb, are you also the funny one? 😁
I’m baking up a storms at Dads. Chocolate chip cookies one day. 2 cherry pies yesterday. I think Mom would be proud.
Hi Julia,
Yes, Deb has a sense of humor that is wonderful… she’s VERY witty! I miss them both!
As much as I love Chocolate Chip cookies, I just might have to have a slice of cherry pie! I’m SURE your momma is proud of you! :o) What a good daughter you are to your daddy.
Thanks Julia,
Blessings, Jeanne
I used to do things like that for my dad, too, Julia. I would go down and spend a day (or stay overnight), and cook. I’d make things like meat loaf and casseroles and such, things that, after we had a meal of whatever, I could package up and put in his freezer for future meals. By this time, mom was in an adult home, as she had dementia, and it was just too too taxing for daddy to take care of her all the time.
Enjoy this time you have with your dad. All too soon our parents are no longer with us. I treasure the time I had with mine; at first I’d go down once a week or so, and later, and especially after he got sick (pancreatic cancer), frequency increased to about every other day, even after my aunt and uncle came and stayed with him “for the duration”. I don’t regret a single day of it!
Nyssa’s dress turned out so pretty, such a classic combination for school. I cannot believe it’s September already. What has happened to this year?
Can’t wait to see the books because I want to know just where you find what you do to copy.
Also the machine pleater attachment.
I laughed myself silly over “what has happened to this year?” Let’s see. First I was supposed to die and got better. Then the world got sick and pretty much didn’t get better. Then I started reading America in the King Years, and the world followed again with a new Black (and white) movement. Now we’re facing an election where most of us on both sides are following Michelle Obama’s advice, “Vote as if your life depended on it.” After that we have Thanksgiving, hoping that our families are safe even if we can’t visit each other, and we may still be waiting for election results. Finally we get to virtually Christmas shop if we still have jobs and money.
It’s things like Jeanne’s blog that keep me sane and I’ll bet I’m not the only one.
Oh Marilyn…what a great and hilariously true synopsis of the year…I just might have to share that with everyone…wonderfully written!!
Blessings, Jeanne
You’re definitely not the only one. If I didn’t have this blog to tune in to every day my life would definitely be less complete.
Thank you Laura,
Well, you’ll be happy to know I picked the book tutorial first…you’ll see it tomorrow!
I’ll get to the pleater attachment probably next week…as tomorrow is already Thursday…
Thanks Laura,
Blessings, Jeanne
This will be a fun week to learn all your clever ways. That is a wonderfully photographed auction. I love her sitting in that chair😍
All the accessories just make it even better. Good luck with this one!
The shoes for the new doll are tedious…but so far seem to work😊
Hi Kathie,
The question is…”how much would you have to charge for Grace’s shoes to make up for the time you spent on them?” $50 like me, on Ten Ping’s shoes???? :o) I have gotten faster, and would get even quicker if I did them on a regular basis… hope you had fun making them.
Thank you for your sweet compliments on Nyssa’s set… I enjoyed this one very much!!
Blessings, Jeanne
I’m late today, it for some reason my comment would not got through! Wish I knew what I did wrong, but here I finally am. Nyssa looks so ready to get to learning her lessons, and I would have loved to have her in my classroom! Back when I did teach, girls did dress somewhat like this, no pants or shorts allowed! And not for the teachers either!
When I found that she is 18 inches, I thought maybe AG dolls couod also wear this dress, but it does look like Nyssa is much slimmer.
Your sisters are one of a kind! Each has her own talents, including you! In my family, I was the artistic one, and another sister was more athletically inclined. Then I had two other sisters, who somewhat mirrored us older ones. I couldn’t do a cartwheel if you paid me a million dollars! Never could get the hula hoop going, ice skating was a disaster! But I could draw, paint, decorate and design very well, with little effort. That’s the way it seems to go!
hi Linda,
Glad your comment finally “took!”
Nyssa is pretty slim so no chance of sharing clothes with the AG dolls… her feet are long and skinny too…
Speaking of hula hoops, I was thinking of getting one….anyone have any tips on buying one?
I’m glad everyone has their own special talents… :o)
Thanks Linda,
Blessings, Jeanne
Linda had a great idea. What about duplicating this pattern for an AG?You can demonstrate the pleaters, then use the pleated fabric in your next outfits. Didn’t someone want to see the Vote skirt with pleats instead of gathers?
HI Marilyn,
I’ll have to see about making this for an AG doll… and demonstrate the pleats too…
Thanks for the suggestion…
Yes, it was Anne, who wanted to see it with pleats…
Blessings, Jeanne
I find creativity really interesting. Whilst it seems to run in families it is usually different. All three of you, Cindy, Deb and yourself are creative in quite different ways. However, don’t put yourself down so much, your photography is wonderful you seem to know exactly what will work as an accessory and I love the way you stage the dolls for their photos. I feel sure you have a lot more abilities creatively than “just” sewing. I’m the odd one out in my family, like you Jeanne. My sister claims she doesn’t have a creative bone in her body but she is a wonderful gardener, my older brother is the artist my younger brother a musician. I’m a dabbler, I try anything till I either learn how to do it or find out I can’t then often move on to the next thing that interests me. Sewing and cake decorating lasted longer than anything else I loved making the flowers and modelling best but I also taught myself to crochet, Mum was left handed, unlike me, so couldn’t teach me but she did teach me to knit, she did that right handed. I have also made fabric flowers and I have tried almost anything with a needle but couldn’t design anything if my life depended on it! Always need a pattern or picture to follow though I do often change it. My daughter is really creative in that she thinks outside the square. She makes cards (which are wonderful), designs board games for the children, paints, loves making little accessories for Ashley’s Littlest Pet Shops and now wants to get into making accessories for the AG dolls. Ashley loves all kinds of painting, Caitlin is the one into music and Jonathan loves wood (and Lego even though he is 18). None of my other children or grandchildren seem to have inherited the creative gene at all.
I think it comes from my maternal grandfather who was a painter and a very clever inventor. Had he been born today I think he would have been a very successful engineer who painted on the side but when he was growing up the lower working class knew their place and going to university wasn’t it! He was working on a farm and actually designed a bailer that would save farmers time and money and he took his design to a local engineering firm. They told him it wasn’t workable but kept the design and brought the bailer out under their own name. Grandad couldn’t prove anything of course, even if he knew about patents he wouldn’t have been able to afford to get one.
I’m looking forward to seeing your ‘lessons’ especially the pleater for the machine. I’m a sucker for gadgets but that is one I don’t have so just might have to invest in one. I have got stuff that is still in its package and never been used that I have bought at exhibitions and conferences then never used!
Good luck with the auction
Hi Anne,
It sounds like a whole lot of creativity going on in your household! It’s always fun when one person can do this and another person do that..
I’ll try and show 3 different pleaters…then everyone can decide which one might work best for them..
Thanks Anne,
Blessings, Jeanne
First I need to pick my jaw off the desk! The dress is simply gorgeous and as has been commented the pleats. Oh my, those perfect knife pleats. I think you should state teaching sewing on YouTube but just for your followers. I have to go through my box and see if my grandmother’s pleating attachment will fit on my sewing machine. I have always pleated by hand as that is how I was taught in Tailoring class but this is so much easier. Everything about her outfit is perfection. Strange she looks so much talker than an AG doll…I was thinking maybe 24″. I love the addition of the books and now want to make them for props. I was wondering though about copyright infringement as I’ve been told they track your IP. I think maybe if they are only for person use and not sale but just curious.
These post are so entertaining and funny. I dabble in everything as I will give anything new a try. If I fail I just walk away, come back and put whatever away and one day give it another try. The only thing I ever walked away from doing is knitting. I am left handed and spent years trying to learn or have someone teach me. I did the same with crocheting only to find out that I did that right handed. I can pretty much do anything using either hand but mostly left handed. My aunt was the most amazing seamstress and never used a pattern but my mother, her sister couldn’t heam a pair of pants.
Julia, my brother tells me I’m funny. But then, looks aren’t everything. 😉