We are experiencing “technical difficulties” in our area with the power going off and coming on and going off and coming on again… its been doing this for over 2 hours and it’s off right now…
I’m writing this post on my phone…in the dark…
I had been looking at my patterns and fabrics trying to decide on something for Samantha but every time I thought I had it figured out, the power would go out…
I was up wayyyyy too last last night (actually early morning) so I just decided to show you a picture of Samantha with a flashlight in her face and the pattern and fabric we picked…
and get to bed asap. This could go on (and off) no pun intended…all night…
I AM going to be making a special dress for each of the first six American Girl dolls to help celebrate their 35th Anniversary return…
I may get up in the morning and think this looks too Eastery or not dressy enough, but for tonight, and in the dark, it’s what I have picked…
See you when I can see….
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, my, what challenges you’ve had to deal with! I hope your power finally came back on and STAYED on!
For what it’s worth, I love the fabric (hey, it’s PURPLE!), and the ribbon looks really pretty with it, too, with the iridescence kind of picking up the bit of green from the print.
Now, whether the fabric “is” Samantha or not, it’s too early to tell, but I think she would definitely have had wide ribbons on her dress (and in her hair). Whether they would be iridescent like that, or just plain satin or velvet, I don’t know; you might have to do a bit of research on that. I think they did have at least Some iridescent fabrics/ribbons back then (at the very least, cross-dyed so as to get that effect).
Hi Charlotte,
I had a feeling you’d like this color!!! :o)
I’m planning on using this iridescent purple ribbon as it’s wired and pre-ties into the prettiest bows!
Blessings, Jeanne
Purple is good anytime of the year. Cute pattern! Good luck with your power!
Hi Sylvia,
My power did come back on very late last night so I have been able to continue sewing on Samantha’s dress…glad you like the purple…
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh poor you, Jeanne, the rain missed us and you got the brunt of it! Hope your roof is hanging in there and not leaking! No power outages here, just gloomy skies and a few raindrops now and then.
Oh, I love the pattern you picked out for Samantha! Love the color too! I was wondering if you will be doing the stitchery in the center of the dress, will it show up on the patterned material? Or maybe the center panel will be a plain white? Whatever, you will surely find a way to make things look fantastic, like you always do!
Hi Linda,
We did get the rain, but it wasn’t storming last night…don’t know what caused the power problems…
I debated about doing some silk ribbon embroidery on the front panel but since there are only shades of purple on white, and no green leaves, I decided on something else…
Hope you’ll like it…
Blessings, Jeanne
Hello Jeanne!
I really like your choice of dress. It is beautiful and you know how to create unexpected beautiful outfits with different fabrics.
What an interesting idea to make historical anniversary dresses for the dolls! I would love to see your creations.
Thank you Oksana,
I am kind of excited about making 6 historical outfits for the first American Girl dolls. I hope you’ll like every one of them…
Thank you,
Blessings, Jeanne
I am sorry you keep losing your electricity. We have it here. The purple flower material looks pretty and your Samantha looks in beautiful condition.
It is rainy here today. The laundry is getting wet out on the line. Our 2 hens are acting broody. One has been for several weeks. We no longer have the mean rooster, so I am afraid the hens are going to be very disappointed. Do you know if their food and water requirements decrease if they are broody? One doesn’t seem to be drinking or eating much. I assume they stop laying eggs, but it is hard to tell… Thanks, Jeanne.
Hi Karen
I asked my hubby about your hens…he said they will eat less food and water if they are broody…also. broody hens, who just want to sit on a bunch of eggs WILL stop laying,concentrating on “hatching their babies.” If you goal is the have hens that lay eggs every day, you’ll need to remove the eggs from under them… in a little bit of time, they will start laying eggs again…
Hope this helps Karen.
Blessings, Jeanne
Thanks, Jeanne, for asking your husband and thanks to him for his help! I wonder if they would be sad they didn’t have any babies… if they would know to miss them. Well, hope you have a great night!
Oh, my! You have been up way too late recently, and I am so sorry you have had to deal with so much rain and power outages. Jeanne, I hope power is back, that your roof has held up, that the roofers get there soon, and that you get to bed sooner. Sleep is too underrated!
As for the Kirsten hanky dresses yesterday, it’s always a treat to see the wonderful outfits you have created for her. I beamed when I saw the one I happily own. Some day I will dress my AG’s in my Kirsten outfits and take a picture. I could send it along if you like.
Yours is a beautiful Sam doll. I, too, was fortunate enough to get a beauty and am so glad Mattel has brought these wonderful girls back. I hope they can last on today’s market to bring back a renewed interest in history.
That fabric and pattern are perfect! Once again, the fabric is close to a Sam outfit of yours that I bought years ago, but the background was ecru and the flowers red. Ecru lace trim, I think the ribbon was the same lace trim, a beret and then you made a sensational purse and Rebecca made a necklace. It is definitely one of my favorite Sam ensembles and most favorite of our oldest granddaughter’s. When she was younger and visiting, she would help me change outfits on all the AG’s, and she always went to that outfit. It has been modeled so many times and brought so much pleasure to both of us.
Thank you for battling the forces and getting this blog out despite the adversity. What a trooper you are. And a great job! 👏👏👏
Hi Sally,
Our power did come back on late last night…
I did get a good night’s sleep…and woke up to a rainy day just perfect for staying in my sewing
room and getting some things done.
I would be thrilled to see your dolls in some Kirsten outfits…I know everyone else would too!
I remember that red and ecru dress for your doll. I just saw a picture of that red purse I made a few days ago when I was looking for something else.
I might have to show it on here so others can see it…seems that I listed it on Etsy…but not positive…
Thanks Sally,
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, spooky story titles. Samantha and the Midnight Mission. Samantha’s Vision in the Darkness. Samantha and Jeanne Choose a New Dress by Flashlight. 🙂
Hope your power company has everything fixed today. Not good for appliances/computers at all.
Looks like everyone is really up for some retro outfits for the AG group. Should be lots of fun. Around here, still working on that crazy dress for the sewalong. I finally dug in a box and found some light blue rick rack that works. Tons more to do though. And another cute Ruby Red Fashion Friends girl is headed this way. Just couldn’t resist as her name is Joy! She’s the 4th of July girl. 🙂
How do you find out about these dolls? I can’t find Joy anywhere. And did you say you used to be a teacher? If so was it in the field of Language Arts?
See below.
Hi, Barbara,
I don’t see Joy’s reply to your question about where to find out about new limited editions, but if you are on FB or, I suppose Instagram which I am not, you can like/follow RubyRedFashionFriends-Global and also Happily Ever After’s “Ruby Red Fashion Friends Page.”
If you plug in RRFF on your search on FB, you get options. I am doing both of the above, and it is Happily Ever After Dolls and Toys that is promoting the new one Joy was talking about, Liberty Joy, wearing a ruffly red, white and blue flag themed dress, long blond, very curly hair and white cowgirl boots with red stitching. Blue eyes.
I hope this helps you find her, and once you like the doll shop and the Global site, lots of RRFF fun and info.
Good luck! Let me know how you make out. Meanwhile. Google Happily Ever After Dolls and Toys to get on their website to see her.
😉
Thanks for this info, Sally! I just looked at the page, and saw the new special edition. Hm…not sure I love her hair, although it might look better if it was combed out a bit. I do love Liberty Joy’s outfit, though!!
And here, I’d just been thinking maybe I needed Maya. Now I need to rethink this!! LOL
Hi, Charlotte!
So happy this helped you and hope Barbara saw this as well. I think this Gal is pretty sweet and also like the outfit. I put a down payment on one.
As for Maya, how much love her. I have both the short and long haired ones and what a darling pair. Good luck! Fun craziness! 😄🎈
I’ve been trying to finish up an outfit for the sewalong so haven’t been back to the group. I’ll put something in tomorrow’s post about how to find the latest RRFF dolls.
I am a retired teacher, but not in language arts. I was a public school elementary teacher. I taught 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th grades over the years with my favorite 3rd. 🙂
Hi Joy,
Love the titles for my spooky Samantha dress! I hope it’s anything but scary when I’m done with it…I did get a pretty good start on it today… Sam looks pretty sweet in this fabric…
Congrats on getting the new Joy doll… “I think they named her after you!” Remember that “Jeanne” doll Marilyn showed us made out of felt…by Maggie Iacano? She was a bit too high for my budget…I think $1300! Glad you got “your” girl.
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne, Happy Memorial Day Belated to you. Thank you so much for telling me I won the slip giveaway. I too have dealt with Power Outages here in Colorado Springs as well. It must be the terrible Thunder Storms we have been having lately. I celebrated my Identical Twins 1st birthday this weekend and my Daughter in law got them both chocolate smash cakes, tiny ones of course. It was so funny. I can’t stop thinking about it. It was Bath time after that go get all cleaned up. Babies are so precious. I am so glad you are working on a Samantha doll Victorian pattern from Primrose Lane. I love their patterns. I am so excited to see what you are designing this time. I hope everyone had a relaxing, prayerful 3 day weekend.
Hi Elaine,
Congratulations again on winning the slip. And thanks for sending me your address…I’ll
get it out tomorrow…
So you have identical twins? They must keep you SUPER busy! I can’t imagine!!!
I hope you’ll like the way I made the dress up..
I changed a few details…
Thanks Elaine!
Blessings, Jeanne
You certainly are dedicated to producing something for us sofa sisters to read every morning and we thank you for it. Hopefully your electricity is back on track now. I had enough of that back in February to have empathy on that one. My goodness your nights are short. Hopefully that will change soon so you can get more sleep.
I really do love the pattern for Samantha’s new dress. And I can see it in that fabric and it’s beautiful. Samantha has always been one of my favorites. Maybe it’s because I love the style of clothing during that time. My grandmother was born in 1896 so she would have been 8 in 1904. It’s fun to see the kind of clothes she would have worn as a little girl.
Hi Barbara
My power did come back on very late last night…and I spent a big part of today sewing on Samantha’s dress. She likes it….so far!
I like the 1900 styles too…so pretty and feminine…
Thanks Barbara,
Blessings, Jeanne
I love it — roof fixers, kitchen remodelers, doll dress maker, furniture refinishers, cook, international blogger, and chicken-advisor — you and George do it all.
I think the dress fabric is lovely and will be very nice on Samantha — I think purple and white works very well for her. It might be nice to have a big summer hat with flowers and bows to go with it. We have a picture of a great-aunt in one of those huge hats with enough feathers for a medium sized bird. Maybe lacy thigh highs and possibly lace trimmed underclothes. I’m looking forward to the entire series.
Hi Marilyn,
I’m glad everyone liked the lavender fabric because I got up this morning and cut out Samantha’s new dress. I got quite a bit done on it, and hope everyone likes my version of it…
I’ll have to possibly figure out a hat… :o)
Thanks Marilyn,
Blessings, Jeanne
I love the pattern and the fabric! And I suspect I will be in trouble when you get to Kirsten, lol. I am so dirndl crazy now that I have her. 🙂
Hi Melody
I’m glad you AND Linda are both enjoying your new Kristen dolls so much! Dolls ARE fun… aren’t they?
Thanks Melody
Blessings, Jeanne
Samantha is a pretty AG for sure and she should look lovely in that print and the dropped waist pattern is an all time favorite. The pleats down the front are nice too and flatter the American Girl body shape.
Joy where do you come up with all the titles?…..made me smile!
Going out to pick roses…they are really blooming their heads off!
Hi Kathie,
I like Victorian drop waisted dresses too!! I was looking at some pictures today and they were all beautiful… I was going to pleat the front but changed my mind at the last minute…
I hope your roses keep blooming and bringing you happiness!
Blessings, Jeanne
Our power went off and on a couple of times yesterday and our internet was knocked out for a while.
The pattern for Samantha is very pretty and I’m glad your going to make something for each of the six original PC girls.
Samantha is a special one here. I’m definitely looking forward to this one
Hi Laura
I’m feeling a bit of pressure to get Samantha’s dress just right! Hope you like it…
Thanks Laura
Blessings, Jeanne
Is anyone else having trouble getting the blog by email? I’ve been finding a previous one and scrolling down past Comments to click on the new one. It’s happening since changing my name field.
I love that style for dresses. When I sew I find it difficult not to use that pattern for all that I sew. Silly! Great idea to honor the original doll collection!
Hi Susette
I’m not sure what is happening with your blog posts not coming each day…some ladies have tried unsubscribing and then re-subscribing… and it worked…
I can sign you up myself but you have no power to unsubscrib if you ever wanted to…
Glad you like the drop waists too…I think they look comfy as well as pretty.
Thanks Susette,
Blessings, Jeanne
I love the historical aspect of the AG dolls. I wish they would do that with the OG dolls. I love the dress you have chosen and the fabric, I am looking forward to seeing all the different outfits you are going to create for the historical dolls, with their stories. I really hope your roof held up, I had mine done about 3 years ago and was very glad after all the rain at the weekend. I think I might have sprung a few leaks if I hadn’t had it done.
The weather here was gorgeous yesterday and is supposed to be the same today, very cold of course, it is winter, but lots of sunshine and it is helping to dry up all the water here. A major bridge was damaged about 60kms south from here and for a while the lower part of the South Island was completely cut off from the rest of the country, guess what, no toilet paper to be had in the shops! There are still places in the High country that are reliant on a neighbour’s helicopter to get in or out but in town the emergency is mostly over. As far as I know only one Christchurch suburb lost power but most of our water and power systems were fixed and upgraded after the earthquakes.
And talking of earthquakes, we had another shake yesterday afternoon, apparently only just under 4 but felt bigger than that. Logically I know that we will have aftershocks for many years and that they will gradually get smaller and smaller but emotionally I always feel that it will be all starting again and I stay on edge for a while.
Take care everyone
Hi Anne
So far our roof is holding…and hopefully next week it will be replaced. We have too much rain coming this week for it to be scheduled…
I’ve been thinking ahead of the outfits for each of the girls and hope to make them all really special…
You live with earthquakes like Joy lives with fires…I can’t imagine that feeling all the time.
I hope you stay safe…
Thanks Anne
Blessings, Jeanne
A wonderful idea to make dresses for the 35th anniversary of American Girl. Cool fun in historical costumes. My dolls watch attentively and then demand similar ones. Good luck. Greetings.
Thank you Alina,
How fun to think that your dolls are watching me from Poland as I make more dresses for all the dolls celebrating 35 years of being around..
Hope they will like everything I come up with…
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne, I love that you are making special dresses for the re-released dolls. What a great way to honor them.
I am glad to hear that you did get some sleep last night.
Thank you Dorothy,
I hope each doll thinks her dress is as special as the one before it…
I did get some sleep last night and I plan to tonight!!
Blessings, Jeanne