Happy Saturday to everyone,
I thought I’d share a little bit of sunshine today… A dear dolly friend, named Sally, was the winner of the “Mint” dress for the Little Darlings… She has been buying dresses from me for a LONG time and sent this picture to me today… She called it “Five Stupendous Dresses from JM!” I was thrilled to see them all in one place… and thought you might like to see them too…
If you click on the picture, it will enlarge… and you can REALLY see them…
Here are a few of my pictures showing you the details of Sally’s Darling dresses! ;o)
First up is Isabelle in that “mint” dress that gave me fits on getting my pictures to show up the right color… Sally said it was “mint” just as I said! …and she even had some “mint” boots the exact color! YAY!
Next is my Janie modeling a pretty peach and white gauzy like fabric made into one of very favorite dresses…unfortunately I “think” I just lost all my pictures of this dress… except this one… I am So sad. I’ve tried everything to find them… (this is a job for Kristoffer, hopefully!)
Next up is Lian in a delicate lavender and white tiny floral smocked dress…
Isabelle gets another turn in a dress I called Golden Delicious… it’s smocked as well…
…and it’s Isabelle’s turn again in Purple Reflections… this was her Easter dress in 2014!
Sally picked some of my very favorites for her sweet Little Darlings… :o) Thank you Sally!
Well, that’s it… now it’s time for you to begin your Saturday!
See you Tuesday… (My sister’s are here…)
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, what fun! So nice to see some of your pretty dresses modeled together by other dolls, Thanks to Sally for sharing the pictures!
That purple one has always been one of my favorites; the lavender one, too, actually.
On the peach and white one, can you go back into your blog and “save” some of those pictures of her to your computer, so at least you have them? I’ve done that sometimes, with pictures I have no other way of getting. I’ll right click and choose “save as”, and then it downloads into my computer, under “downloads”. From there, I can move it to whatever picture file I want. Just a thought…
Hello, Charlotte,
I am so glad you enjoyed the picture of Jeanne’s little gown sets. They are so precious. I cannot say I have a favorite. The peach dress is made from fabric of a regency I have from Jeanne and it was luck that she had some left. I especially love the little ruffle of the fabric around the waist. “Our Jeanne” is something else.
Thanks for your suggestion to help Jeanne find her other pictures. I also suggested she go to my Pinterest board dedicated to her work that I have the privilege to own.
Have a lovely day!
Sally
5 in one place is amazing! Gorgeous!
I’m “up north” at my Dad’s again. It snowed yesterday! Nothing stayed, but still. Not what i was expecting in late April. Its going to be chilly the rest of the week. Highs only in low 40s. Im hoping that changes.
I’m like Julia — looking out at a nice gray day. Mike, who mows for me, was planning on doing so today, but it doesn’t look like a good plan.
Seeing the smocking on these dresses, I’m thinking you might cut Julie’s tunic top off short and add smocking and a fuller gathered “skirt” section to the top. If the top is long enough to be a mini-dress, it could be worn with lacy thigh-highs as a dress and with embroidered pants as a tunic. I’m thinking I’d stick with the white collar, so you might think about white pants.
Alternately, you might cut the top short and replace the “skirt” section with the “apron” effect from your swimsuit pattern for a top to be worn over bell-bottoms. I still like the floppy hat idea, possible untrimmed or trimmed with a ribbon band and a single flower.
Ooh, I like that “apron” idea, Marilyn!! It sounds cute!
Such an adorable group!! I must say the first thing I noticed were the mint boots!! That outfit with those boots is perfection. I just love the peach dress with that peach blonde hair. So complimentary. What came first the hair or the outfit? LOL. Every dress is basically the same but accessories and embellishments make them all uniquely special. Some lucky little girls. Thank you Sally and Jeannie so much for sharing.
Hello, Dorothy,
So pleased Jeanne shared this photo with all of you for you to enjoy, too.
When I dressed these girls the day before, I was thrilled to see I had bought mint boots from Stanislav and they were a perfect match. You can imagine my gleee!
Ah, the strawberry blonde Tibetan lamb wig from Joyce. Just love that hair and the ribbon she put on the doll when I bought her. So yes. I had the outfit long before Lyddie but I try to match up hair with outfits. Again, I found my gold boots from Stanislav and thought they added some punch. It’s a super special outfit to me.
Enjoy your day, Dorothy, and thank you for your comments.
Sally
How nice to see all of the Jeanne Marie ensembles on some lovely Little Darlings. I really like that hat style with Isabelle’s purple dress. Was it made of felt? I have vague memories of wearing something similar in the early 50’s. 🙂 And I really wonder where Sally found the matching mint boots? Looks like there may be some copper/orange ones too. Thanks Sally and Jeanne for sharing the photos.
Glad to hear your sisters are here. You deserve a break and some fun after all that chimney removal and vent pipe replacing. Have a great weekend.
Hello, Joy,
Thank you for your comments, and huge thanks to Jeanne Marie to do this whole blog today. I am so honored!
Yes, that bandeau is made of felt and just darling. I was horrified that I might not be able to get it to stay on when I dressed that doll due to aging, slippery skin and a very fine tie. I think I finally settled for a single tie and it held. Ugh! Slippery hand skin drives me nuts when dressing the “kids”!
As for the boots, I have bought a lot of shoes and boots from Stanislav of HouseDollBoots on Etsy. Due to enormous delays in getting things from Russia, I have stopped buying. I purchased an outfit from his wife, Nataliya of Boosinka on Etsy, February 13. It has been hung up at export since February 27 and cannot be traced again until it gets to the States. But he makes great products. So, yes, he made the mint boots and the coppery gold ones.
Have a wonderful day, Joy, and thanks again.
Sally
I wore a hat like that in the early-to-mid 50s, too, Joy!
Good morning, Jeanne Marie and everyone else,
I woke up and went to your blog first thing because you asked my permission to use the photo I sent to you yesterday in your blog for today. Wow! Thanks for the honor!
I really enjoy dressing my dolls in clothes made by one seamstress at a time to send you marvelous ladies a picture of your work grouped together, and it was your turn, especially with the addition of the mint set.
This sounds awful, but I have such a large collection of doll clothes that I use my Pinterest boards to help me remember and locate. However, I went to my “From idreamofjeannemarie “ board that has pins of almost all my lovely sets from you, and there were some extra pics of the peach and white set. My Pinterest is under my name, Sally Kriebel. Being a fossil, I couldn’t figure out a way to send them to you, so go to my board. Very sorry!
So, I will be delighted to make some responses to some comments and thank you all. Have a glorious day! ❤️
Dear Sally, your Little Darlings look so pretty in their dresses. Can you tell us about your little cuties? What are their names? Who painted them?
There are several Little Darling online clubs. Let me know if you would like information.
Hello, Dorothy.
Of course!
Shown from left to right is “Ginny” by Magalie, then 3 dolls by Joyce in the peach and the two purple sets…”Lyddie,” “Peggy “ and “Janice.” The doll in front in the green is “Emily “ by Dianna but with brown eyes.
Still waiting patiently in their underpants are 8 other cuties, 2 by Nellie, 1 by Geri, 1 by Lana, 4 by Magalie. It’s quite a crew and, of course, love ‘em all.
Do you belong to any of the LD clubs? It would be great to hear about them. Thank you!
Sally
Dear Sally, oh my goodness, you have a baker’s dozen of Little Darlings! How wonderful.
I belong to the Little Darling group on ning. We used to be on Yahoo years ago. This is a group that Dianna Effner herself started. Here is a link, in case you are interested:
https://ourlittledarlings.ning.com/
We have a lively group of members. This week we (well our Little Darlings) were discussing Earth Day. The Little Darlings are very active on the site and definitely have their own opinions, which sometimes run counter to what their Mamas think, especially when it comes to cookie consumption and chore completion (laugh).
I have three Little Darlings (two by Geri and one by Joyce). I also have four Bonekas (one Monday, two Tuesday, one Thursday).
You are very fortunate to have a Little Darling painted by Ms. Effner!
Dorothy, thanks for this information. Sound “up my alley” and will look into it soon. Sorry, I just saw this reply today, 4/27.
Have you shown pics of your cuties on this blog? Sure would to see your girls, and Bonekas are so doggone cute. Good for you!
Thanks again,
Sally
Wow, Sally, I thought *I* had a lot with 7 LDs!! I guess you win this one! LOL
Gee, Charlotte,
7 IS a lot and good for you! Remember: I had 7 once upon a time…😁🥰 Looking forward to more chats and seeing pics of everyone’s Dolly kids.
Sally thank you for sending Jeanne those pics of your LD’s! We don’t often get to see them together in Jeanne’s dresses and what a fantastic grouping! You did choose some darling ones and I can’t believe you actually had shoes the right color!
We had a fun day yesterday celebrating our 55 th Anniversary. Kids and grands had those huge letters put in the yard telling the world it was our Anniversary… very fun surprise
55 Wow! Congratulations! Sounds like you had a wonderful time yesterday.
Hi, Kathy,
Thank you for your note here. Jeanne does such beautiful work, doesn’t she?
Wow! Congratulations on 55 years! Did you do something rather fun, I hope? My hubby and will be 52 years the last day of May. A long time and not a long ti, right?
As for doll shoes, my dolls might be acccused of being “Litle Imeldas”! Yikes!
So glad you got a kick out of the picture. Enjoy your day, Kathy.
Sally
Kathie, I apologize for misspelling your name.
Sally
Dear Kathie, congratulations! What a wonderful milestone.
Congratulations, Kathie, on 55 years of marriage! Our 47th is coming up next month, so we’re right behind you!
Dear Jeanne, I am so happy that your sisters are visiting! I can’t wait to hear about the fun you three will have. I am sure there will be much laughter involved.
Thanks for sharing Sally’s dresses. What adorable Little Darlings she has.
So fun to see a few of your Little darling dresses modeled by Sally’s Sweet dolls.
That peach one is lovely and the purple one is definitely a favorite. The little hat is precious.
I really like the smocking as well. Smocking seems so perfect on little girl clothes
The mint set is lovely and how fortunate to have matching boots.
Have a wonderful time with your sisters, Jeanne. I’m sure there will be laughter, eating, and probably a painting/decorating project.
Hi, Laura,
You’re right; it has been quite a long time since Jeanne did these smocked sets. I agree; little girls and smocked dresses go hand-in-hand.
So happy to hear that my little gals brought smiles to faces other than my own today!
Sally
Wow, Sally, lucky you! What a darling group of little dollies you have! They look like a row of spring flowers and remind me of the nursery rhyme that ends with ” and pretty maids all in a row!” I believe it was Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary”! You certainly did pick some good ones that Jeanne made, but then what amI talking about? ALL of Jeanne’s dresses are wonderful! Each doll has I the perfect dress for her on! How do you store all these treasures? My dresses for Betsy McCall are in a drawer, but she is getting too many and it takes forever to find what I want, not to mention the drawer gets mussed up just looking for something!
Thank you for sending the pictures of your dolls to Jeanne, and to Jeanne for showing us!
Have fun with your sisters in town, Jeanne!
Hi, Linda,
Your note made me grin, and indeed, I am one lucky duck to have such a lovely bunch of Little Darlings. I sort of think I may have almost as many as dear Tomi Jane used to have before selling them. Great fun and joy.
Betsy McCall. Good for you. I still have mine from the 50’s but her head is a bit loose.
Storage is interesting and complicated. I have a huge collection of AG dolls (30+), a small collection of Patsy from Tonner, several Ellowyne dolls, 6 Kish Chrysalis gals, several Kidz ‘nKatz, 3 AGFAT, 13 LD girls and, thanks to seeing Jeanne’s blog one day, a bunch of RRFFs and all of these have lots and lots of clothes. So what do I do?
When a new outfit arrives, I find an appropriate size ziploc bag for it and write all the components of the set on the front. I be sure to keep a little tissue inside each bodice, in hats, and, of course, if a little note and/or receipt, they go in the bag as well.
Then I have bins to put these in. My AG clothes are stored in bins dedicated to eras. Some bins are dedicated to seasons, some to specific seamstresses. The bureau in the guest room is dedicated to LD sets. The guest room closet? Filled with labeled bins. Under those beds and our bed are more bins. The front garage stores all the holiday bins and the big hats that go with so many AG clothes. I also keep track of my collection through my Pinterest boards.
Gosh. Sounds like I am one sick lady!!! Probably so, but still playing with my dolls and having a ball. Such a kick changing their clothes to enjoy all the details and workmanship in all of these. However, I really have to slow down and get more serious about culling all of this. My kids don’t deserve this.
Well, I have had a great time “talking shop” today with several of you. I have never lived near anyone who “gets” this love of dolls and doll clothes! Thank you!
Sally
Gee, now I don’t feel so bad. Glad someone else has a lot of dolls too. 🙂 I think I have most of the ones you have with the exception of Kidz n Katz. What, no Ginny’s, Meadow Dolls, Linda Macario, Natterer, Kaye Wiggs, or Rose BBFlocklings? Just had to throw those in. And not sick at all! Love your storage ideas and Pinterest use too. So glad to see your LD’s today. Thanks for sharing the photo. 🙂
Oh, Joy,
You make my heart sing! We’re both a little “dotty” for dolls. No, I don’t have those dolls you mentioned, but I have so many doll artist dolls out in storage. My NH home had lots of room in the rooms to make little displays that were such a hoot. We really downsized coming out here, and unfortunately, those dolls have no space in here. I have a pretty extensive collection of earlier R. John Wright dolls I truly adore taking up the rest of my shelf space.
Thanks for you note. This has been such fun, I will make this blog a habit but I promise, promise, promise not to “talk” so much. Maybe I have helped Jeanne out a bit today while she enjoys her sisters. Wish I had one!
All my best,
Sally
Check out the Meadow Dolls Facebook page. You will be amazed at the wonderful dolls there. 🙂
No sisters here either. 🙁
Hi, Joy,
I did check out your Meadow dolls and they sure are very winsome. I am truly running out of space to think of adding any other kind of doll. Since seeing Jeanne’ first RRFF, I fell in love with those and plan to add a few more. Luca will be coming. However, these dolls are more going to be to look at and smile. They are not going to get a kazillion outfits and they’ve already been “informed!”
Thank you, Joy!
Sally
When I checked the blog this morning a huge smile crossed my face. What an adorable picture and all dressed up in I Dream of Jeanne Marie elegance. The smocked dresses must have been before I joined the blog. I’d love to see you do another one. I smocked a dress for my granddaughter when she was small and haven’t done anything since. I have several doll patterns that include smocking. Guess I need to get to it. I did enjoy it.
I saw the mint boots right off and thought they looked like Stanislav’s work. I know his work from drooling over the shoes and boots I can’t afford. But I have bought several things from Boosinka. I have noticed that it is taking longer to get things from Russia these days. Anyone know why? Is it COVID related? I don’t remember having much trouble before. I’ve ordered a lot from the Ukraine for my Paola Reina and don’t remember much of a problem.
Thanks Jeanne for sharing Sally’s pictures of your wonderful creations on Sally’s dolls.
Hi, Barbara,
I am so delighted Jeanne wanted to post my photo which I wanted to mainly give her joy and show my appreciation of her work and kindness over the years.
As I said to Laura, I bought the smocked dresses several years ago and I haven’t seen Jeanne do it for quite awhile . Needless to say, she did a fabulous job and as you say, so perfect for little girls. I tip my hat to you for doing a dress for your granddaughter and hope it has been kept for another generation.
Getting things from Russia started “going downhill “ when Covid started. Before it, it took 3-4 weeks to get orders from Stanislav and Nataliya. Hers came faster than his. As businesses shut down and materials for any business became harder to get and slower in coming, everything slowed down, including airports, shipping yards, etc. Nataliya said my latest order was to be shipped air, but it sure looks like it is bogged in a shipping yard in some container waiting to fill up before going to NYC. I feel very badly for all the craft people in Russia that are making such beautiful, high quality products. We are all hoping that the world sees an end in sight of this horrible virus so we can all carry on.
Sally
I love The Little Darling dolls, how nice to have so many and dressed to a tea. The dresses are a beautiful design and I noticed that all the hats are different. This is such a great way for all of us to start our day. A cup of coffee and I Dream of Jeanne Marie! Perfect ! We all thank you
for little doll delight in the morning!
Thanks Jeanne
Hi, Sylvia.
You’re in NH? My hubby grew up in MA, I in VT, and we lived all our working life in NH…around Nashua and then up in the lake region! We came here to CO full time almost 8 years ago to a neat little town where I can walk everywhere. Where are you?
Glad you enjoyed the picture and so neat of Jeanne to offer to put it on her blog. And “talking” to you ladies about dolls today has been such fun, I need to tap in on a regular basis. My friends are “sympathetic “ and indulge me to view my dolls when I change the outfits, but I know they are being “kind”, which I appreciate.
Hope you have had a super day in NH!
Sally
Hi Sally, We are in Goffstown. My son is the surveyor for the City of Nashua. This is a small world we live in. Thanks for touching base with me. I love dolls and have done a lot of sewing for the American Girls. I was a only child and dolls were my playmates. I had 3 girls but they have never loved dolls like I did.
We have had a beautiful day today but you know New England, never know about tomorrow.
Take Care, Sylvia
Hello, Sylvia,
Good grief. Small world indeed! And you are so fortunate you can sew for your dolls. I have sewn some clothes for myself in the far past and a Halloween costume for our oldest son, but I never enjoyed or was happy with how anything turned out. I replaced my sewing machine with a bit of an upgrade, but I can never get the tension right and I go crazy. Zero fun. I sure could have saved a ton of money if I could do this myself, but it has been a great adventure. I have “met” so many talented women and a man, Stanislav, that along with the grand outfits and conversations, have made it money well spent. I realize I am in a most fortunate position, and my husband is a “reluctant” saint.
You had three girls and I had three boys. Then came two grandsons, and finally two granddaughters. One of the best days of my life was taking my oldest granddaughter to the Boston AG store for a day to shop until we dropped, having lunch, getting an older doll a new hairdo, buying a new doll and fun stuff. It was the best blowout ever. And so gratifying that she enjoyed dolls for several years; I would catch her younger sister who professed to not like dolls, often playing with them. Ha! Busted, Addie!
Looking forward to becoming a quieter person on this blog. Of course Jeanne would attract such nice women! Thanks, Sylvia, for your reply.
All my best,
Sally
Wow! What a wonderful collection, both of dolls, dresses and animals. I’m so glad you and Jeanne shared them with us. I agree with everything written so far and hope you’ll send more pictures from time to time. My favorite of the LD dolls is Isabelle. It’s great to know there are people who have such enormous collection ps so I don’t feel quite as guilty with mine, much, much smaller though it is.
Your storage problems sound well solved. I can’t imagine! Mine are such a mess at this moment. You’ve given me inspiration to get with it since you have such a huge collection and manage to do it. I’ll look up your Pinterest feed. I’ve never looked someone up before. This’ll be fun. I love seeing Jeanne’s creations on the dolls, and they all seem to fit the personalities of the dolls who are wearing them. Thank you so much for sharing on the blog today!
Hello, Susette!
Thank you for your kind words and lovely note. I agree, Isabelle has such a sweet expression. Good choice for a favorite! Also glad that my excesses made you feel less guilty about what you have. The bottom line is to enjoy all of this, to be glad dolls are a joy in our lives. Hooray!
I appreciate your encouragement to submit more pics and shall do so in the future, and I look forward to further chats through our friend Jeanne. Have fun on the Pinterest boards and thanks for looking.
Sincerely,
Sally
Hi Sally
My sisters just left to go to my cousins trailer where they are staying! We put in a full day of shopping, eating and visiting and just having a really great time.
I just read through the comments and enjoyed it so much…thanks for answering everyone’s questions and comments. It was such fun learning about your doll collection and what you’ve added lately!!
You had lots of great ideas for doll storage and thanks for sharing your Pinterest boards and ideas with us…
Seriously join in whenever you can Sally…this was fun…but you did all the work today…
Have a great Sunday tomorrow!
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne,
I almost had as much fun today doing this as you did with your sisters. It was a real pleasure and I am so glad you girls had a grand frolic!
May your fun continue tomorrow, Jeanne. Good for you gals!
A hug,
Sally