A BIG Saturday Surprise…. and more…

Well, it’s a BIG surprise to me…(I still can’t believe it!) and I bet I don’t have to say ONE single word about it… except… FINALLY!

Here’s the “More” part…

Poppy was curious about all those props in my sewing room up on that floating shelf… so she stacked some chairs on the table on top of some tubs and “investigated…”

I had a really busy day today and didn’t make it to your comments again, but I read them… I’m glad you enjoyed reading about Poppy and the other girls… about those “other” girls… SPECIFICALLY Sara…the Ruby Red Fashion Friends 14″ cutie… I checked on Happily Ever After’s website ( Happily Ever After Dolls ) and they have the dolls for $129.99 with FREE shipping. I emailed them and asked how long the sale would be going on, but I haven’t heard back from them yet… I’ll let you know as soon as I hear something…

I’m jumping all over the place today, but wanted to show you the skirt on Addy’s dress and something else I did…

The skirt is nice and full, just as it should be on a Civil War dress…

But does anyone notice something different on the dress? Take a closer look at the sleeves…

I put a sleeve header in the one on the left and it’s more rounded than the one on the right…

Can you see the difference?

I just gathered up some tulle and added it to the narrow seam of the sleeve… it’s just enough to push out the folds in the sleeve…

This is what it looks like now…

Better?

Now what to do about the length of the dress… it’s “almost” to the ground, but not quite… do I put a narrow hem in it and leave it as long as I can, or do I put a hem of about an inch in it and show off a pair of pantalettes underneath?

Here’s one more look at it (unhemmed).

I hope you have a nice Saturday and I’ll see you Monday!

Blessings, Jeanne

13 thoughts on “A BIG Saturday Surprise…. and more…”

  1. Charlotte Trayer

    Looks like you got some cupboards painted–yay!!

    I don’t know…I think Poppy had a little help from some of the bigger girls, stacking up all those chairs so high. Seems like it might have been a team effort!! 😉 I see she found a little bench to sit on!

    The sleeve headers do make quite a difference. Yes–much better!

    I’d be for leaving Addy’s skirt as long as possible–maybe face the hem? That way, you’d only lose 1/4″ or so in length.

    I just read the comments on yesterday’s post, and commented on a couple of things. One was about Linda D.’s question as to the size of the RRFF dolls compared to Betsy. Since I have both Bella and Betsy, I put them side by side, and Betsy comes up to about Bella’s eyebrows, and looks “finer boned” than Bella, too. I’m going to see about maybe taking Bella into the AG store and comparing her to the Wellie Wishers (although perhaps someone on this list has both and can tell us how they compare). That won’t be until next week sometime. Or I may be able to find something online comparing them. I’ll let you know.

    And to Anne, my son did that with his hair–TWICE!! Cut the front off, right down to the roots! Haha….Fortunately, his other grandpa was a barber, so I just took him down there, and Grandpa shaved Daniel’s hair off in a real short buzz cut. It was summer anyway, so made sense to go really short like that. (we often did that when he was young, as he looked good that way.) I’m not sure if any of his boys did that, though.

  2. Oh Jeanne, the cabinets!! So happy that they are finally getting done! I know what it is like to have things half finished, since when we moved to the country, my parents had the house done on the outside, but did the inside themselves, and so it was quite awhile before we had baseboards, trims and things like that completely finished. It took years!

    Oh yes, the sleeves do look better! I was going to mentione that to you the other day, but you fixed it before I could say anything! Perfect save!

    Poppy looks like she is a little tom-boy, climbing all over your props! Not a shy one at all, is she?

    Charlotte, thank you for comparing Bella and Betsy! Are their heads the same size or is one larger than the other? I ask, because Betsy has and wears Wellie clothes, and LD clothes. It does look like the arms and maybe legs are longer on the RRFD, but I wonder if Sara can wear their clothes. My Betsy has so many outfits to share, I would hate to get Sara and then find she doesn’t fit in anythng and would have no wardrobe, except that I would have to buy all all new (and expensive) one!

    My daughter is the one who decided to cut her own bangs when she was 3! Since her hair was quite curly, it really didn’t look too bad, but I was mortified at the time!!!

    1. Charlotte Trayer

      Linda, you are welcome!

      RRFF dolls’ heads are bigger than Betsy’s. I measured both Betsy and Bella, and the difference is 1-2″ (measuring around sort of like what we used to call an Indian headband or maybe sweatband type way), but it’s a little hard to tell because Bella has braids that take up some space. I’ll be getting Hanna next week so will try to remember to measure her once she’s here (if I forget, please remind me!). If you’d like, maybe I can do a comparison chart of measurements for you, perhaps Monday. Tomorrow I’ll be busy with Sunday School, church, etc., so may not get to it then.

      Tonight I cut out a nightie for Bella, but did adjust the pattern first. I used the Fancy Frocks Basic Dress 2 pattern, added some length to body and sleeves. I’ll keep you posted how it fits as I get it made.

  3. A big YAHOO! on the cabinets. They are really going to pop now. Congrats!
    As a side note, the Ruby Red Fashion Friends site has the accompanying outfits for the FF girls listed with free shipping. Other sites may too. The outfits are so nice and come with extras so that you can make several different outfits from one purchase which includes shoes. I believe the outfits are $49.00.
    Also, not sure if everyone is aware, but there are other models of the Fashion Friends that are only available in Europe. They can be purchased there online and mailed. Some of them are adorable including a boy/girl couple.
    That Poppy is quite athletic. Love the pic of her in the storage facility. 🙂
    Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

  4. So happy for you getting a good start on your kitchen cabinets! I’m sure you have a clear idea of what you’re going to store in each one. It will be exciting to see the progress.
    Poppy is a bit mischievous! Funny and clever picture of her antics!! And she made it up to the top!!

    I really like Addy’s dress longer as your picture shows. But it’s a tough call though because when it’s shorter her petticoat shows, which is nice looking too. I’m no help.

    Sounds like Linda is considering another doll?
    Everyone, have a nice weekend.

  5. The cabinets are going to be beautiful. Congratulations on getting another project underway.

    The sleeves are much prettier — details make such a difference. The length of the sleeves

    is nicer too, and the ruffles work better – I guess the fuller upper sleeve creates a better balance. As for the hem, I’d keep it long but if here’s time to fold up the hem and see how it looks shorter, that would be interesting.

    This is a much better wig on Poppy — a up-close picture would be nice — you are right about the color and this style makes her look cheerful and adventurous. Or maybe her climbing abilities make her an adventurer. I wonder how she’d look in Simon’s tree.

    Laura — I forgot to say thanks for the update.

  6. How wonderful that you are finally getting your cabinets painted, clean and new for the new year.
    Poppy better be careful climbing up there with the chairs etc. in such a precarious position.
    Oh, the sleeve headers make Addy’s sleeves look fantastic now. I personally love the idea of pantalettes peeking out because Addy is supposed to be a ten year old and I love that look in Civil War old photographs.

    Yep, sound like Linda has her eye on another doll. Sara is a sweet one.

  7. The sleeves look so much better now. I rather like the length as it is, the suggestion of a facing was a pretty good one, I thought.
    Poppy was definitely adventurous, so glad the chairs didn’t fall! Russell, (my youngest) when he was about three or so, went into our shed, dragged in a chair, managed to get to the top shelf where the paint was stored. He got a can of enamel paint a proceeded to paint himself, his little friend Bianca, the shed, the driveway, even the cat! Even earlier, when he was only about 2 and a half he had a slight chest infection and the doctor had given him antibiotics. I was working at the time and when I went to pick him up from the childminder she said he had been really funny, very flushed and slept nearly all morning. I put it down the infection but planned to keep and eye on him. When I got home I went to give him a dose of his medicine (he had only started it the day before) the bottle was empty. He had liked it so much that he had dragged a chair over and climbed up to the cupboard (the highest one we had) and drunk all of the medicine!!!! Fortunately there were no lasting effects. I could fill a book with everything that child got up to! Not sure how he survived, I nearly lost him when he was 12 (doing something stupid). I love him dearly though lol

  8. Your cupboards are going to be just lovely! The kitchen will seem brighter too! Great job to do when you can’t be outside.
    The dress is awesome…the pantaloons showing would be my choice. I spotted the fuller sleeve and it is better too. You have a great eye for things to change.
    Yes, I have a Fashion Friend. She is a nice size. She seems like a big sister to the Little Darlings.
    Have fun painting!

  9. Dear Jeanne, I am writing this post with 20 women looking over my shoulder. It’s my Doll Club meeting on Zoom.

    My doll friends say:
    Addy’s dress is beautiful. We love the material. It is very well made. The color is beautiful.

    Addy will surely not want to give up this dress.

    1. HI Dorothy and all your Zooming friends.
      I know this is too late to catch any of them, but thanks for taking a peek at my blog. I hope your presentation went well and everyone enjoyed themselves. I bet you are a great teacher!
      Thanks for the compliments on Addy’s dress. Addy says thank you too! But she didn’t like the part about having to give up her dress… I told her we’d discuss that later! :o)
      Blessings, Jeanne

      1. Dorothy in PA and the World

        Dear Jeanne, the club members loved your site! I made sure to pass along the link.

        I meant to type Dorothy in PA and the World but I shortened it by mistake. I knew you would know who it was (laugh).

        Thank goodness for Zoom. I am taking some OLLI courses on Zoom. It’s fun to be back in the classroom.

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