Hi everyone… and thank you for carrying on while I have been busy this last week and more! We had a wonderful homegoing service for Sandy and I’ve never known anyone whose life touched so many people. When her 3 boys got up to share, it was the most heartfelt tribute to a mom I’ve ever heard. She raised 3 of the sweetest young men you could imagine. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room as they shared. The night of the visitation, the line went on for 3 hours and wrapped around the room. She will be dearly missed! Every day is a gift, so tell someone you love them today! :o)
Sally was kind enough to send me some pictures of her Ruby Red Fashion Friends dressed for Christmas. I’m sure you will enjoy scrutinizing her pictures… (click on them and they will enlarge!) Thank you VERY much Sally! They are so beautiful!
Maybe these will help you out for Monday since your weekend is, shall we say, “overbooked?” Bless you and all the sisters. Merry Christmas from me and the dolls here at my house!
From left to right, Eira, Sara, Stella, Jennifer, Freida all in outfits by Kukymoda (Adriana Villanueva Colio). Last is Francesca in her peach ZaZou wig and dress by Guzel of Favorite Dress.
These kids are in sets made by two of my favorite ladies, Maggie and Kate. Also shown are two of my special Santas. The one on the left with the pole and a bird house which you can’t see, is a black Santa in a robe made from a very old crazy quilt of silk. The Santa on the right is an early R. John Wright.
Top row, Natalie, Stella, and Luca.
Bottom row, Maisie, Sarah, and Nicky.
These are a few girls in Betty Atwell smocked dupioni dresses.
Left to right: Bella, Bailey, Ten Ping and Pink Kadinana.
One more…as I wandered into the guest room, the first kids just inside the door reminded me I had not sent their picture and they were worried the sisters wouldn’t get to see them.
So left to right, Kayla in Favorite Dress by Guzel, Sasha in Maggie and Kate, James in James, and Maya in idreamofjeannemarie!
Wishing you rest and peace,
Sally..
Thank you again Sally! Your girls look just lovely all dressed up! I love seeing your girls!
Tomorrow I have some pictures from Laura…
Thanks everyone,
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
What a wonderful tribute to your pastor’s wife that must have been, Jeanne! I know some people think funerals are so sad, and think they don’t want one, but they forget, the funeral isn’t “for” the one who died, it’s for the ones who are left, and what a comfort it will be for your pastor and his sons in the coming days, when they start thinking back, and recalling some of the special moments and memories shared. (I know, I felt that way about both of my parents’ funerals…)
Sally, I have so enjoyed looking at all your dolls in their Christmas finery!! In that first picture, Freida looks spectacular in that shade of lavender–I’m going to have to see what I have in my stash in that color for my own Frieda. I’m sure she’ll want something in that color, too! (I do knit, but I find it’s much faster to sew!!)
The kids in the second picture look like they are out caroling, or perhaps ready to play in the snow! I can see why you like that designer so much–the outfits are darling!
I am drooling over the dupioni dresses in the third picture. Now I have done a Lot of smocked dresses, but never think to use silk dupioni for them (and it’s not like I don’t have any in my stash–haha!!). I guess that will have to be next on my list. Nicer cotton fabrics pleat and smock so well, and I get carried away with all the cute prints I find….
And then your last picture…that idreamofjeannemarie dress certainly suits Maya! Thanks for sharing!!
We got an inch of snow this afternoon–it didn’t start until after I was home from church and we were eating our dinner, though. I hope everyone else made it home safely, too–they were doing a sack lunch and afternoon service today, but I didn’t stay because Ron announced he thought he was “dying” this morning….🙄😲🥴 and might not be here when I got home. (He is Just Fine!!)
Hi Charlotte,
I got a chuckle with Ron’s announcement. Dear man.
Yes, dig in your stashes and find some lavender for your girl, and as for the dupioni, it stands out nicely and such a fine sheen. When our 3 sons took me to Charleston in October, Betty and I had a chance to meet,and we were talking about the silk dresses. She is more into her art now, doing very fine watercolor pencil bird pictures, but she remarked about the dupioni requiring patience. Do give it a shot and have fun.
Stay upright, enjoy the snow from inside, and have a lovely day. Keep up the great work on the recovery…both you and Ron!
Thanks so much for your lovely words about some of my kids.
Thank Heaven Ron is not good at prophesying. Glad to hear he is fine.
I have some silk dupioni fat quarters in lovely colors, but I haven’t smocked in quite a while so maybe I should try something more forgiving first. Oh how I wish we lived closer. It might motivate me to do more than talk about returning to the beautiful art of smocking.
Jeanne, it sounds like the funeral was more of a celebration than a funeral, and it certainly must have given your pastor’s family a virtual warm hug and lifted their spirits. What a wonderful tribute to her in this hopeful time of the year!
Sally, your RRFF dolls are just so beautifully dressed! That is the exact reason I don’t have any, their dresses are just so exquisite and out of reach for me! I especially love the red and green sweater sets in the second picture! I just love those cute hats and scarves that go with each outfit!
I am not sure if you are changing wigs on the dolls, but I thought Stella had red hair. In the first picture, she has blonde, and you say Sara is second in the picture, but that doll has short hair! What is going on there? I especially love the gray knit dress on the left and Freida’s pretty flouncy pink dress! I can see why those designers are are your favorites!
The silk smocked dresses in the second to last picture are to die for! So pretty and feminine!
That last picture has a dress made by Jeanne? I don’t recall that one at all, but it is a very sweet dress!
Thank you so much for sending these lovely pictures to her for us to drool over!
Charlotte, Ron sure can use “drama” to wrap you around his little finger!
Hello, Linda,
Hope all is well out in St. Louis!
Thank you for your sweet words; the kids are taking a bow and grinning.
Those kids DO look like they are caroling in those fun, lovely duds.
Stella does have red hair, but that Stella is the Holiday Stella from a few years back and was blonde. That same holiday season, they did Sara in the very dark, long, curly wig. And my Sara By the Sea IS wearing a short wig. Wigs are wonderful things.
I am expecting the two current holiday girls today. First, they are going to swap outfits. Second, the dark skinned girl is getting a new ZaZou shoulder length Afro wig.
And more dolls coming, of course….😬
Again, my thanks, Linda, and have fun today.
Absolutely floored by all the beautiful outfits on your sweet dolls, Sally! Thank you for sharing.
We went back to Crystal River, FL once again, this time for a party, not a funeral. We had to leave the omelet party early to get home to sing in the Christmas Cantata at our church. We were amazed at the crowd! Our old church is not very large and some even stood in the back the whole time. Afterwards, everyone went to the parish house for refreshments, it is new and large. They still filled all the tables and chairs and some had to stand!
It was a very special time for us, seeing dear friends in FL, and their kids, grown now. One young lady I taught when she was in Collage brought her daughter who is out of college! Where does the time go! I taught a night class on hands-on-science to prospective teachers, and my former student loves teaching that still! She is even working once a week with after school kids, just as I am!
I baked cookies all week before leaving and will be packing them up for gifts today.
Hi, Sissy,
Thanks so much; I am so eternally grateful for so many women who have talent like you and so many sofa sisters, that make these clothes to sell.
That Cantata sounds like a heartwarming, spiritual event. You are so blessed.
Happy cookie packing up, Sissy!
What a treat, Sally! Seeing all your lovely girls and guys. They are all beautifully dressed. I love the group who are in their winter outfits! The skirts, sweaters and hats – all festive looking. In the third picture, the girl in the far right next to your Santa is absolutely beautiful – her face is angelic and her dress is very pretty. The bodice is unique.
Thank you for sharing all your wonderful pictures!
Sally, glad you enjoyed your trip to Florida! Sounds like you had a nice time.
Charlotte, glad Ron is alright. Hope he is feeling better.
Jeanne, sounds like your friend was a very special person to many people. It’s a tribute to her memory.
Hello, Paula,
Thanks so much for your kind words, and I am happy some of the kids got a chance to show off a bit, thanks to Jeanne.
The doll you spoke of in the third picture is a Ruby Red Girl of the Orient. Those dolls are really lovely, I think.
Paula, thanks again and enjoy your day.
Just returned from the dentist. Clean teeth for the new year! 🙂
How delightful to see these great photos of the girls. Sally, they are wonderful. 🙂 I can’t believe the lovely outfits from Maggie & Kate. Spectacular. However, the outfits by KukyModa and Guzel are delightful too. Betty Atwell’s silk creations are quite amazing as well. And can’t forget Jeanne Marie’s lovely dress worn by Maya in the last photo. The dollies around here are drooling with envy! Such fun to see these great photos. Thanks Sally, and Jeanne for sharing. 🙂
Joy, congratulations for having clean teeth for the new year. However, dentist visits aren’t so very fun, especially when you get to be too old to be given a cheap plastic “prize” for being such a good patient. The good old days.
Thanks for your kind remarks. Hope your day looked up after leaving the dentist office. 🤗
Hi Sally, how wonderful that trip to Charleston must have been. I have relatives in SC and we went there during a trip a number of years ago.
What an absolute delight to see all you beautiful girls in their incredible outfits. My one RRFF will probably never change clothes unless I attempt sewing something on that small a scale. I really like Eira’s gray dress as it reminds me of an angora sweater I had in high school and wish I still did. Those darling mohair sweater dresses and sweater sets keep them toasty and would certainly be needed here, it’s frigid.
Those smocked dupioni dresses are absolutely breathtaking with the . I remember that lovely dress of Jeanne’s either last Christmas or the one before. Whenever she got bitten by the “Ruby” bug. Everyone is just perfectly dressed in coordinating shoes. Seems Maya and James have a case of puppy love going on. Sweet!
Oh Sally, I just had time to enlarge and scrutinize the outfits even more carefully and Freida’s dress has tiny kitties on it. AWWWW!!!!
Hello, Laura,
So pleased you enjoyed the kids in their duds. They certainly dress better than I do. Angora sweaters were quite the thing a long time ago, and I fell in love with what Adriana was making. Very European looking sets.
And….you found the kitties!!! 😁
Thanks so much, Laura.
The Memorial Service for your pastor’s wife sound like a beautiful experience for all, especially him and his wonderful sons. I know when my mother passed away her Memorial Service was lovely and a true blessing. I was totally amazed at how many people other than family came. I had not realized how many lives she had touched.
I’m dreaming of a white Christmas. Could be more than a dream this year. Back in 2004 (can’t believe it was that long ago) the kids in some places in South Texas awoke on Christmas Day to a foot of snow on the ground. The town south of us had some snow but we had none then. The weather pattern is similar now but the snow is possible for Houston and north this time. There is a wintry mix on tap for Christmas Eve possibly turning to snow. In truth I’m not happy about the timing of this because we have church Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at Sean’s. We missed church last Christmas Eve because David was recovering from his knee surgery, so we are happy to be able to participate this year.
David and I have returned to the church choir, and he made it up and down the stairs to the loft twice yesterday and did fine. I was ecstatic when he said he wanted to return. We met in choir 43 years ago and it’s always been our ministry. I was planning to return after vacation but had a case of laryngitis that would just not completely go away. I could not predict my singing range du jour, that is if I opened my mouth to sing and anything came out at all. I was afraid to push it too much and end up on voice rest and not be able to sing in the Chorale concert so I did not sing as much as I usually do. I did well yesterday but noticed my voice tired more easily. But I do feel confident I can work a little harder and get back to where I was. David and I will just sing at one service Christmas Eve but we will be rehearsing and singing from 3 p.m. until about 7 p.m. and that’s more workout than my voice has seen in awhile. During the past several months David was saying he wasn’t sure he was going to go back so I was glad when he made the choice. I was more than pleased when I heard him say after church Sunday that it was sure good to get back to the choir.
Sally, I love, love, love all your dolly children and their beautiful outfits. You do seem to find wonderful places to purchase their wearing apparel. I bought the prettiest dress for my Naomi Ruth (Freida) from Cottontail. The outfit has a music theme and is gold and black. I deemed Naomi Ruth the owner since she had no clothes other than what she came in. She is pleased. She says she wants to wear it for her piano recital where she will be playing the baby grand for the first time. I thought it was quite appropriate.
I told my girls they cannot change their hair color or style because I’m afraid I would not know who was who if they did. That’s why I don’t usually change their names. Too much to remember. I’m a little more flexible with the hair styles on my Little Darlings because I can tell them apart, but they have to keep the same hair color.
Your post about not being able to remember the dollies hit home for me. Just this morning, I looked down and saw one I had in a blond wig. For the life of me, I can’t remember just who it might be. Yikes, I just looked at her again and remembered that I had changed her wig because I could not keep it on her head. It’s Estelle. 🙂 One down, many more to remember. 🙂
I keep their clothes in plastic containers with the names labeled on the container so I know whose clothes are inside. If I can’t remember a name I just go down the names on the containers and eventually one will ring a bell.
Hi, Barbara,
While a white Christmas is lovely, and it can and does often create havoc for travelers, even just going to church or to a friend’s house. Hearing that you and David are back in the choir warmed my heart, especially since that is how you two met. What a remarkable story and that you have both returned. That is a LOT of practice and wear on your voice before performance; be careful. And have a lot of joy.
Glad you liked the girls and boys in their attire. And your Naomi Ruth is going to be making quite a fashion statement at her recital! She must be beaming!
There are times I can’t remember who is who. They are very forgiving, thank goodness, and also enjoying ‘flipping their wigs’. That is a good thing because sometimes, sometimes, a different style or color makes dramatic changes. It’s fun for me.
Looking forward to seeing your girl at the recital. What does she play?
Take care, Barbara. So glad David’s knees are smiling.
Naomi Ruth plays the piano quite well. Others play instruments like the flute and clarinet and I think there is also a violinist. And they all sing. I really need to create a stage so they can exhibit their talents more often.
Dear Jeanne,
What an extraordinary tribute to the pastor’s wife and, I am hopeful, a comfort for the entire family. She must have been a most remarkable woman.
Jeanne, I hope you have had a chance to catch your breath today. Thanks for sharing the pictures: all those kids are waving to “Auntie Jeanne” and wishing you a blessed Christmas.
Peace,
Sally
Thank you Sally for encouraging the Christmas spirit! On one hand I love seeing all these unique outfits, on the other I love all of your unique RRFF. What an amazing collection you have assembled! Stay warm and have a merry little Christmas.