DON’T FORGET:
Kirsten’s blue dress set ends this evening on Ebay… you can see it by clicking on the picture of Kirsten at the right.
I spent most of my day working on this farewell scrapbook I’m putting together for a dear friend from church who is leaving. She has a zillion friends and we put the word out for people to send in pictures and encouraging words to let her know how much we love her and help her when she’s homesick.
Anyway, I put together 40 pages today and tomorrow I hope get the pages embellished…and you KNOW how I love embellishing!! :o)
This was why I never made it to your comments…but I WILL read them… thanks for carrying on even when I’m busy…
After I worked as much as I could on the scrapbook, my thoughts turned to Julie…I had been thinking about what I wanted to make and even got out my 1974 HUGE countertop pattern book and looked at almost every pattern in it. I combed over my fabrics and thought a 70’s dress should probably be bright and colorful but I kept going back to this one…
I know what you’re thinking…brown????
Yes, sorry for those of you who wanted a psychedelic print…somehow this one is what I wanted…soft, sheer, tiny tufts in the fabric, and the soft cocoa brown color, I think, will look very pretty on her. I hope you can see it…
Here are a few pictures of what I have gotten done so far…
Sorry, there isn’t much variety in my pictures…
All I can hope is you’ll give me a chance to see this one finished before you make up your mind.
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, yes, Jeanne, I know you are going to have a LOT of fun embellishing that scrapbook! What a wonderful gift for your friend. I hope she’s not going so far away that you won’t be able to see her now and then.
Yup, I am thinking….brown?! LOL Of course, as you probably know by now, I am so Not a “brown person”. However, I do like the sleeves (very 70s!!) and the trim on it, so will reserve judgement on the dress until it is finished.
By the way, tonight the link to Anne’s video showed up on the blog (I know it wasn’t there last night, I even hovered my cursor over the area, so I’m not sure just What happened–another of those “ain’t technology grand?” moments, I suppose!). Anne, I looked at all the quilts, and I, too, like yours the best. It has so many more details than the others, it seems, and also looks wonderful in the more “distant” shot. Well done!
Jeanne, I sent you some pictures a week or so ago–did you get them? I never heard back. Let me know if I need to resend. Thanks.
I love that brown, Jeanne! I think it is a very pretty and delicate piece of fabric, a bit transparent and it makes the rufffles of the sleeves flow so nicely! The white lace sure makes a statement and I am going to love that style! The 70’s were a time when I was sewing up a storm, making little dresses for my daughter, and myself too! I was a stay-at-home mom and loved it!
Today should be fun for working on thw scrapbook! I have made scrapbooks for each of my 6 gtandchildren and it was a lot of fun! They love to look at their books when they come and visit. Half of the things they don’t remember, since I started out when they were born and have gone up to maybe age 6 or so. It got to be too much after awhile, but now they have some really nice scrapbooks to keep. I got a lot of embellishments from Hobby Lobby and Michael’s, plus a scrapbook store that is no longer in business. It gets expensive after awhile!!
It’s true we tend to picture Julie in bright, psychedelic colors, but I was in school in the 70’s, and I remember having dresses with that type of fabric. I think what you have chosen will be perfect.
I just read Charlotte’s comment about a video with quilts in it, and I’m off to look for that. I had all-day meetings yesterday at work, and the last thing I wanted to do last night was spend time on a computer. I watched The Voice on tv, and then went to bed early!
Julie’s dress reminds me of the Gunne Sax Granny dresses of the ’70’s. I made a GS pattern for my daughter when she graduated from Junior High School in 1974. It was solid color peach ‘squaw cloth’ with ivory Cluny lace and a faux lace up corset front.. She looked adorable! I know Julie will too when you complete her dress:)
Such a lovely scrapbook you are making…your friend will treasure it forever!
I hadn’t realized the Gunne Sax dresses were popular in the 70s. I didn’t become acquainted with them until the 1980s and bought and made several of them. I need to find the family picture where my stepdaughters and I were all wearing lookalike Gunne Sax dresses. My daughter was an infant then so she didn’t have one. By the time she could have worn a hand-me-down, they were out of style since her sisters were 7 and 9 when she was born. I still have some of the patterns. I thought the dresses might be timeless but they weren’t.
Julie’s dress is already looking oh so very pretty on her, Jeanne. No matter what you do, I know it will turn out wonderfully.
Blessings.
What a sweet idea for a farewell gift! Scrap booking is one thing I never got into. I just don’t need another “I’m gonna do…” On my list. LOL!
I absolutely love the fabric and the style of the dress so far. I’m thinking a velvet choker, picking up one of the subtle colors in the flowers would be a very 70s finishing touch. I was a teen in the 70s and my mom made me a black velvet choker with a cameo. Boy, I thought I was the “it” girl back then. Sweet memories.
Hmmm. I like the brown. I would flip the lace so the straight part is next to the ruffle seam and the scallops are farther up the sleeve. The gathers and the scallops next to each other create a visual traffic jam. There is too much action in one small area.
Embellishing scrapbook pages is always fun. Hope we see a tiny peek of what you do.
I see what you mean, Julia, about flipping the lace! Good idea!
Now this one is really to my taste! Love the demure look and lovely fabric. Hope it is floor length as long dresses were in style back then. I should know. 🙂 Not that mini’s weren’t popular too, but this one should be long. A velvet choker would rock too. And Julie’s meet sandals would be perfect with it.
We were fortunate that the wind was minimal last night so those without power should get it back on today hopefully. Now, there are horrible fires in southern CA. Lots of evacuations yesterday. Where is the rain?
The brown material you chose for Julie looks really good on her and it is a beautiful print. The sheer material falls so nicely. The sleeves bring me back to that era. Oh, the memories of the style back then when it comes to Julie’s clothes.
You certainly have been busy between the scrapbook, (what a thoughtful gift) and Kristopher’s birthday. Hope he had a nice day celebrating.
* Laura, yes I did read your comment to me. Thank you! I remember the question – you used the letters PC and now that I thinking about it, you must have been referring to Pleasant Company. I thought there was some special new group for American Girl collectors I hadn’t heard of. Also, may I ask what your dolls names are? It is a big thing to me in naming a doll as well as coming up with a background and where I want the doll to be from. It’s like writing a book giving a doll character!
Hi Paula, Oh, PC. Yes, I did mean Pleasant Company. I tend to differentiate between the PC and AG girls, depending on what version I have. My Felicity and Samantha are PC.
Caroline is the Classic version as opposed to the BeForever, and yes, there is a difference. I consulted with Jeanne when she was looking for a Caroline, so your new Caroline is a Classic version as well.
l’ll be happy to share my doll’s names, but I want to share their names when I share photos. I have been wanting to for years. I have finally gotten a new phone and provided I can send pictures easily I’m going to share them very soon. Normally, I’m not tech challenged, but I haven’t had the need of a cell phone for a few years, expense and all, and now things don’t seem to work as they once did.
I’ll get to it ASAP. Nothing fancy, mind you, probably just the dolls.
What a wonderful idea for a going-away scrap book. They are always so appreciated. Will we get to see the embellishments?
I saw Anne’s quilt newsletter and it was very nice and enjoyable to read. I still like her quilt “Peace in the Country” the best. It really appeals to me.
I love the start of Julie’s dress. I always loved that type of sleeve and made several dresses and tops of that style. I remember having a piece of fabric similar to the one you are using for Julie’s dress. My mother made an Easter dress for my sister out of it. It was very flowing and lovely.
Looks like the whole of California could use some prayers. I won’t even ask what next. Hopefully everyone will get their power back on soon. I can’t imagine having my power cut off intermittently. Must be very frustrating.
A bit like in our earthquakes. Power and water were cut off regularly if we had a big aftershock till the earth stopped moving long enough for them to change all the pipes and power lines for more up to date, earthquake proof ones. It will take more years than I have left for them to finish the whole city so just as well the earth has pretty well stopped moving though mother nature can’t resist giving us a reminder now and then lol.
Embellishing that keepsake scrapbook will be a lot of fun. I remember when embellished photo albums were all the rage. I didn’t mind putting a photo with corners on the page and stickers around it, but I never could get to the point I wanted to crop out part of the photo.
I did buy a lot of Mrs. Grossman’s stickers because at the camera/film store you could buy as little as one section off of the roll.
I actually love the brown, much like I loved the beige. It’s the fact that it isn’t the typical color seamstresses choose for doll clothes. I agree with Shara that it reminds me of the Gunne Sax dresses of the 1970’s- 1980’s. I love the sleeves with the lace and the subtle rose print. Yes, as Joy said, this one should be long like the maxi dresses of the day. A velvet choker necklace and sandals. I’m sure you must have some brown sandals in your stash of shoes..
Earth tones — a lot of 70s clothes were in earth tones, and here in Boulder, often worn with hiking boots because the boots had to be broken in before they were used for hiking, so they were worn with everything. Sandals were also common and would be a better choice to show off this pretty dress. Nanea’s darker sandals might work well with the dress color.
I think you have this one just right. The ribbon choker is a good idea, or anything that looks like macrame. Jewelry in the 70’s didn’t usually sparkle.
I agree that the dress should be maxi-length. i loved being able to wear long dresses, though my favorite dress story is about a white dress with tiny brown flowers, a scoop neck trimmed with lace, and long full sleeves. I was running late for my Late Victorians class where we were reading Jude the Obscure, and I didn’t have time to put my almost knee length hair up. I walked in and my classmates appeared to mistake me for Sue, the heroine of the novel. The problem was that she had just committed suicide. It’s very odd, being treated carefully as if you had recently died.
Love the fabric and what you have started looks exactly right to me. I had a girl’s pattern just like that style until recently, I think I got rid of it when I had a cleanout but that wasn’t too long ago. I guess I was going to make it for my daughter but by then she preferred pants and shorts! I left UK in 1971 and was in Singapore for the next 2 and a half years where we all wore short dresses! far too hot for long sleeved maxi’s. I remember someone I worked with (before I left the country) coming into work dressed up for the wedding she was going to and she was wearing a maxi dress. I think that was the first time I had seen the style. My memory is a bit hazy but I don’t think it was unlike the one you have started for Julie.
Well done for making a scrapbook for your friend. Sam would still like to make one for her children but struggles with time and space to work. I made one for two of my grandchildren for their first year (Jack had to wait for his 5th birthday for his lol). Darren and Deborah lost their house in our first big earthquake then the rental they moved into was badly damaged in the big one in Feb. They managed to find another rental where they lived for 4 years then finally had their insurance settled (only took 5 years!) and were able to buy another house. Amongst all that moving Livvie’s album disappeared, and most of the photos were originals, I didn’t have copies and probably couldn’t find the negatives, and some came from other people. They were all devastated and thought it must have been in a box that was taken to the tip without being checked properly. Anyway earlier this year they said they had found it. I was so pleased.
*Laura – can’t wait to see your dolls!! I’ve enjoyed the knowledge you share with us all about the differences of PC and AG.