I know how hard it is to time things just right so you get your pictures and doll outfits done by a certain time or holiday. I wasn’t the best example of getting things made for Easter this year myself… and someone else was a little behind, but does that matter to us? NO, it does not! Dolls dressed up in pretty things are just what we like, right? So may I present Barbara’s dolls dressed up for their Easter Tea Party and what a wonderful job of getting them all to cooperate with the taking of the pictures. I know it was no easy feat!
I’ll let Barbara do the explaining of her pictures… and if you click on her pictures they will enlarge! :o)
Well, here it is. My chance to introduce all my sweet girls to the sofa sisters. I was hoping to pose them a little more but after knocking over the lemonade display a few times, them falling on each other and there being tears and messed up hair and clothing, I gave up on the candid shots and settled for more formal shots. My backdrop was spring and the house looks like it’s summer so I added a flower bed to hopefully pull it together – and to cover up the printing on the front of the Scenes and Settings book. Beats me why anyone thought it was a good idea to put that on the front in such large letters. Samantha is peeking over the flowers at the festivities but I don’t have a Samantha so she couldn’t come to the party. If I do this again I will look for some way to make the trees on the book look like spring so I’d have a better transition between the two. The things we think of after we take it all down.
First picture: The setting for the Easter Tea Party before the guests arrived. I wanted everyone to see this wonderful “grass” I found without anyone standing on it.
Second picture: My Little Darlings Claire, Fallon and Greer Adele in their lookalike but different dresses. Their dresses were made using fat quarters from the same series which included those for Taylor Jane and Betsy’s dresses.
Third picture: My Ruby Red Fashion Friends Stella, Sara, Bella and Hanna; my Paola Reina Cleo Patrice in the back; my Boneka’s Mary-Ellen and Charlotte (who wouldn’t leave her hairbow alone and ended up messing her hair) wearing their I Dream of Jeanne Marie frocks; and MA Lissy (seated).
Fourth picture: My Hearts4Hearts girls: Rahel, Lauryce, Lilian, Nahji and Dell. Meadow Lolla wearing her lovely outfit created by I Dream of Jeanne Marie; Les Cheries Chloe (wearing one of my favorite dresses) behind the Heartstring girls (Jacquie, Eden Grace and Eva) and Tiny Betsy. The dresses on my Heartstring dolls and Tiny Betsy were done by Jo Flitton of Jo’s Doll Shoppe.
Fifth picture: Maru Mini Pal Savannah, Wellie Wisher Camille, and Taylor Jane Tonner and Betsy McCall wearing their lookalike dresses in colors of their own choosing. In the front Ginny (similar to one I had in the 1950s), Sophie and Shirley Temple. Ginny and Shirley are wearing dresses from Ginny Doll Creations.
Sixth picture: These are my lovely young ladies who cannot stand on their own: MA Natalie, AGAT Sam, MA Gracie and my two rescue dolls Brenna and Emma.
All the dresses not credited to others were made by me under my dba Concoction Creations. I chose that name when I started making things for the church annual festival because I wanted the freedom to make whatever I chose. It suits me. I can’t take credit for the designs of the dresses just the choice of fabric and embellishments. After I was finished and put everything away I found I had left out Blythe. She’s not happy about that because she got a new dress but I told her sometime in the future I will feature her. But I need to make her a longer dress. Her dad says she’s not leaving the house in “that” dress. I told him she couldn’t help it if she has long legs. He wasn’t buying it.
Enjoy!
Barbara
Thank you for sharing your pictures with us, Barbara! You have quite a group of girls and they look so pretty all dressed up! I hope you left them up for a little while so YOU could enjoy them a bit longer! :o)
Well, now, wasn’t that fun?
See you tomorrow!
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, what Wonderful pictures, Barbara! I enjoyed reading the descriptions, too, and had to chuckle at a couple of them!!
That “grass” is just perfect for your pictures! And, believe it or not, I really did have to look to find Samantha’s picture! Fortunately, it’s pretty small. I suppose you could cover it up somehow–a small gray sticky note to match the sidewalk? It could be removed and wouldn’t damage the book.
Charlotte probably found (as I do) that a headband isn’t comfortable for her, and that’s why she kept playing with her bow, and ended up messing up her hair!! Little girls do get funny ideas about those things, you know!! LOL
I just laughed out loud about Blythe, and her dad telling her she’s not leaving the house in a dress That short!! It seems I heard something like that from My folks, once upon a time, long, long ago!!
One question: what pattern did you use for Hanna’s dress? I just love that style. It’s beautiful!! Thank you.
Thanks for the suggestion on covering Samantha’s picture. I wracked my brain trying to come up with and idea that wouldn’t hurt the book but couldn’t think of one. I will definitely use your suggestion when I use the book again.
Hanna’s dress is one of my favorites. She had just joined the family when I realized I needed to make her an Easter dress. She said she wanted something classy not frilly. She loved the pattern and the fabric. I love the fabric but I don’t think I have enough to make me anything. The pattern is Criss-Cross Dress, Blouse and Leggings from Kathy Anne Designs. I got it from Etsy. Sara’s dress is also a Kathy Anne Designs and I have made many other things using her patterns. I love them.
Thank you! I’ve made myself a note!
I was so excited you liked Hanna’s dress and anxious to answer your question I forgot to thank you for your sweet comments. This wouldn’t be as much fun to do if I had no one to share it with.
Jeanne and Barbara, this was a feast for the eyes! This doesn’t have to be a one day Easter tea party! It is, after all, a Spring tea party, and it’s Spring! I love the pretty setting, your grass is beautiful, Barbara! It looks like the dolls can stand on it very well. The colors are just perfect, all the pretty, greens, blues, yellows, pinks, etc. perfect for Spring!
Did you say you put that all away already? What? That must have been a job to get everyone dressed and set up! You should leave that up for a few weeks at least Barbara!
I never realized you had so many pretty and various dolls!
Thanks so much for sending this to Jeanne, and to Jeanne for showing it! It made my day brighter, as we have been told we are expecitng a small amount of snow tomorrow and freeze warnings! Yikes!
Thanks for your wonderful comments. It would have been more timely if I’d bought this grass first, but I like the Spring Tea Party theme too. Some dolls stand better than others and the grass worked well for them, but those who don’t stand as well kept knocking the others over. Yes I took it down right after I took the pictures. It was on my kitchen table and it visually took over my kitchen. Maybe I’ll do it again some day and put it on my dining room table where it’s not so much under foot. The girls are all still dressed until the end of April. Then they will change to some other spring dresses they have.
Well wasn’t that a fun way to start the week Barbara ! Lovely job dressing and photographing those cuties! It takes such a long time to “get everyone ready” for pictures. I appreciate all the time it took and seeing your family is such fun! It looks like a class picture…so many different nationalities and body types…just like a real school or birthday party.
Hope you get time to spend in your sewing room Jeanne! Maybe you will have a normal week? Not sure what happened to Spring around here but we are supposed to get the *S * word around here tonight🥴
It did take me four days to dress the young ladies. It’s not something that works well for my aching back. Putting up the display didn’t take as long as I thought it would. Sometimes I don’t do things because I overwhelm myself with the thought of it. Telling everyone it was going to happen was the incentive I needed to get it done. The girls are definitely a diverse bunch. It’s so great that everyone is represented in the dolly world. I have a few more of the H4H girls I don’t have and the same with the Wellies. They are all so wonderful I want them all.
First off, I enjoyed hearing many talking about possible snow and frost. What? It was a record breaking 90 here yesterday. Needless to say, the spring blooming plants were not happy even with the dash of water I was able to give them.
I absolutely loved seeing all of Barbara’s photos. What a wonderful collection even without the addition of poor Blythe. 🙂 I’m so glad that you showed a before photo of the setting. So many fun ideas. No one would ever know there was writing on the cover with the clever way you transformed it. The spring/Easter party was a noteworthy event with only those with invitations allowed as reported in the CA News Gazette. A huge crowd enjoyed an afternoon of greeting old friends and meeting new as well as a scrumptious assortment of desserts for all. The gathering was highlighted by a wonderful variety of spring attire in the most lovely pastel rainbow colors available. Many of the ensembles were purchased from the much admired local shops, Miss Barbara’s Boutique or Jeanne’s Ensembles. The highlight of the afternoon was greeting old Miss Ginny, a most respected member of local society. Miss Barbara, I love all of the wonderful dresses and how the whole scene worked so well. That grass is genius.
We made the society pages!! Great write-up! I’m sure everyone is over the moon seeing it in print and pictures too! I do love the grass. An Easter Egg hunt next year? I hope the same columnist gives us a shout out. She’s great!
Joy, that was a clever write up of Barbara’s girls in the Society page! Loved it!
Dear Joy, I love your “reporting.” I hope there will be more at future events!
What wonderful pictures of your dolls at their tea party, Barbara. The girls look lovely in their Easter dresses. So colorful! And what an assortment of lovely dolls! You even have a celebrity amongst the girls – Shirley Temple!
Your scenery is fabulous. All the tea party dishes, perfect, love the lemonade picture, glasses and straws! I wonder if that set is an AMG item?
Putting your scene together with the grass and decorating your chairs was a lot of work but it looks so festive. I really enjoyed looking at all the different girls’ pretty dresses, as well all the tea party pieces. You did a fabulous job !
I can imagine how trying it was to get the girls to stand up without falling over too, but the effort was worth it.
Thank you for inviting us to your girls’ tea party!
Shirley was delighted to be invited. She was treated like a normal person and loved it. I must confess the chairs and table were a set I bought years ago. I can’t take the credit for embellishing them. The table is decorated with flowers too but I had to cover them up with food. Very glad you could attend.
Oops! I forgot to tell you the Lemonade set-up was either AG or another of the 18″ doll items.
Thank you Barbara!
So much eye candy!! Everyone looks lovely. Very hard to choose favorites. I especially liked Bella’s green dress with the yellow petticoat peaking out and her yellow shoes and accents. Rahel and Nahji’s similar dresses are perfect for them, and I believe it’s Emma in the flowered sundress with pink polka dot ruffle and a hint of lavender, such pretty fabric Thank you so much for sharing. All the ensembles are stunners.
Bella’s dress is the Versatility Dress from Forever 18 Inches. I got it from Pixie Faire. It has three views but I love the one on Bella best because it has such a full skirt. I have some silk dupioni fat quarters that I think I’m going to use to make Christmas dresses using this pattern. Rahel and Nahji’s dresses are from the pattern Time to Celebrate from Little Miss Muffet. I got it from Pixie Faire. Yes, it is Emma in the flowered sundress. It’s an A Girl for All time pattern from Pixie Faire that I adjusted to fit. I’m going to make this dress for my AGAT Sam for her next dress.
What a wonderful collection of dolls and clothes for them! Your scenes are really nice as is the photography. The grass is really great as even the small dolls can stand on it. Thanks for taking and sending the pictures of the dolls we’ve heard about for quite some time. It must take a lot, lot of time and attention to be able to dress so many dolls and take the pictures. Thanks again.
Thanks so much for your nice comments on the Tea Party. It’s definitely been months in the making – at least in my head. I must confess I do wish the girls could dress themselves. I remember that being a high point when raising my kids.
What sweet pictures! Pretty maids all in a row. The dresses are so pretty in all the spring colors. When I was a little girl, I always got a new dressy dress in colors like these and a pair of new white “church” shoes. Sometimes I also got a pair of white sandals, and one year around 1969 or 1970, I got bright yellow sandals instead of the usual white ones. I was quite impressed with them!
I’m sorry Blythe didn’t make it to the party. I hope she wasn’t too disappointed. The tea party looks fun with all the little cakes and the tiny tea set. The lemonade set is so cute, I am going to try and find one online. Thanks for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed the pictures. I love yellow sandals. My sisters and I always got new Easter outfits every year and usually white shoes. But I remember when I got to my teen years white was out before Memorial Day so then it was either navy, black, red or bone. Blythe got over her disappointment at missing the Tea Party after I bribed her with a new (longer) dress and maybe a new pair of shoes. I think I found my Lemonade set on Amazon.
It is fun to see all the dolls in their dresses and learn new names. What a beautiful background for them to enjoy! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Thanks, Karen. My background is a fabric panel. I can’t wait to use the one I got for Fall.
Dear Barbara, Well, first of all, I have Samantha and she would have been beyond delighted to attend your Easter/spring party. She would be a bit big for the seating though.
What a lovely collection of dolls you have. I didn’t realize you had so many or different kinds as well. How fun it must have been to get them all dressed up in their beautiful dresses. Your grass is fantastic. It looks so incredibly real. The flowers decorating the chairs are very sweet and I like your tiny fairy garden gazebo. Thanks again for sharing all your girls.
We would have loved to have had Samantha in person. She is one of my favorites – and I love her house. Yes, unfortunately my table and seating are more for the much smaller girls but if Samantha drops by at Christmas we have both a very nice Samantha-sized chair and sofa.
Dear Jeanne, thank you for sharing these lovely photos!
Dear Barbara, your girls are adorable. I think that the rescue/adopted girls are just as lovely as the others.
I have one of the Scenes and Sets (Addy’s) and I know what you mean about the writing.
I had never thought of covering things up the way you did. What a wonderful idea!
Now when you come back to PA to visit, we can take tea for sure (smile).
I actually started my collection with the rescue dolls. One I found at an antique shop in Ellsworth, KS, and the other in a resale shop near here. I was totally appalled at their lack of care and the way they were dressed. They definitely needed some TLC and a forever home. The first thing I did when I got them home was make them new clothes, of course. They were very pleased. They are a little hard to fit sometimes because their arms and legs are stiff but we manage. They actually have new wigs because theirs had dry rot, but I think Brenna needs something with less hair. She wanted long hair but I think it gets away from her.
Should I bring my tea set?
What a lovely post, it was fantastic to see all the different dolls, Barbara, what a lot you have. I love everything about the setting you were so patient and clever. The grass was great. I saw some grass mat in a local shop a while ago and contemplated buying it. I think it might be longer leaves than yours (yours looked great.) I always love seeing other peoples dolls Thanks Jeanne
Thanks, Anne. It is fun “meeting” all the members of the families of other doll mommies. Now I can just settle on a few at a time. The grass was a real find. You never know until it shows up. It has kind of a rubber backing which was great because it didn’t move when I moved things around on it. I needed to cut it so I decided where to do it, flipped it over and used a box cutter. It has kind of a grid so I could get the cut straight.