HI everyone,
I have been busy doing some alterations for the last 2 days, so I didn’t get anything new done “dolly wise!” But I do have a few things to share…
I received another email from Karen and one of her girls, Rose, has a new picture to share…
This is what Karen sent me…
Rose spent a long time on this for me this evening and didn’t want me to look at it while she was working on it. Thought you might like to see it. The older girl is rocking the baby girl. The one on the floor is 5, I think. The mother is cross stitching (Rose is learning that at school) near a quilt.
Love, Karen
Thanks Rose! That’s very good! :o)
Back when my hubby was recuperating from his surgery, we were pretty much confined to the house, so I began working whenever I could on small projects (and some large projects.) He spent most of his time in the recliner in the living room and my sewing room is just off the living room, so I was close by if he needed me.
I had been wanting to organize my buttons so I could find what I needed quickly. I had collected LOTS of buttons for the dolls over the years and they had mostly gotten messy… reallllly messy! Here are a few compartment organizers of some of them…and these were actually pretty mild…
These were some of my micro mini buttons…
I had bought some tiny round plastic containers about 1″ tall with screw on lids and began the arduous task of finding all the buttons in each color and putting them in a container. It took hours and hours and hours… but look how pretty!
I got most of the buttons rehomed to a new container and it looks like a work of art when you open the box and see them so colorful and in
their rightful place! Then I moved onto my ribbons and satin roses… I’ll show you a better shot soon, but here is one stack I took a picture of…
Well, I’m heading to bed so I can wake up tomorrow and decide who will be the next model! My hubby asked for a haircut, but I think that’s all I have lined up for my day, so I do see some dolly sewing in my future! :o)
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Rose, what a wonderful picture you drew! You put in lots of details, and it is so much fun to look at it and see all the things you have in it!! Tell your mom thanks for sharing it with us!!
Jeanne, I think you actually have more buttons than I do, but mine probably take up more room because I have lots of “people-sized” buttons in addition to some doll-sized ones. Your new storage method works very well, and it looks so pretty!! I think either the next-to-last picture or the one above it would make a very fun jigsaw puzzle!!
Thank you, Charlotte 🙂
Rose, I just love the picture you drew! I love it when a picture tells a story, and you have quite a story there to show! What a wonderful way to show how a loving family spends their time, and the details are amazing! You certainly do need to keep drawing! Thank you for sending this in, Karen, and Jeanne for showing it!
How pretty the buttons look after you have them all arranged, Jeanne! I see that the maker of the large containers you used is Plano! What a coincedence that I also have Plano containers! They really are fishing tackle containers, right? Michael uses them for his fishing equipment, and I use them for dolls!
Who is going to be the next doll you sew for? I can’t wait!
Thank you, Linda! I think you said that very well: …how a loving family spends their time…” =)
What a wonderful picture, complete with the moon and the stars! ⭐️ ⭐️ 🌙. What a lovely scene of a happy family. What a talent for detail. Thanks for sharing it, Karen ❤️.
Every time I see pictures of the amount of sewing 🧵 supplies you have, Jeanne, I think of insurance. Weird, I know, but even one of the the stars of “This Old House” show lost his home to lightning years ago. Fortunately his daughter had gone through the entire house with a video camera because she was going off to college and wanted to have memories of home with her. They were thoroughly compensated for everything lost to the fire right down to the antiques on the top of the kitchen cabinets. I don’t think anyone could comprehend how much you have there in one room for your business. You might ask about replacement value since it is for your business. I have a replacement value rider on my policy. It’s amazingly reasonable.
The button collection is almost irreplaceable. Some of them are so hard to find today. I know when I spent several hours looking for ones shaped like leaves for a fall doll dress Riya designed. Finally found them. Wonderful job you’ve done.
Thank you, Susette! 🙂
Good work Rose and Jeanne. Can’t wait to see which doll will be selected for a new outfit.
Did the last up and back cabin run. With traffic, about 6 1/2 hours round trip so tired today.
Thank you, Joy! I hope you are able to get some much needed rest!
I love the new organization of your buttons and small trims!
I love to organize things! I find it a great relief for stress and so it doesn’t surprise me that it helped you too when dealing with your husband’s recovery.
Where did you get all the small round containers?
Thanks!
Hi Mary Sue,
The containers came from Hobby Lobby, Joann Fabrics and Walmart. I like that the lids screw on…
Thanks!
Dear Jeanne, I love how you have arranged your buttons. They are pretty AND organized.
Karen, Rose’s drawing is so nice. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Thank you, Dorothy! 🙂
Thanks for sharing her picture, Jeanne! I’m glad you liked it. 🙂
Lilly turned one yesterday; today is Lucia’s Baptism Anniversary; 4 days ago Lucia turned 7, and next Wednesday Rose turns 9. Keeping busy.
Your buttons are beautifully organized. 🙂
Happy belated birthday to Lilly, Lucia and to Rose in advance. I imagine you are keeping very busy. I can’t believe it’s already a year since you were telling of your experience the day Lilly was born.
Thanks so much, Barbara! Thanks for remembering 🙂
My goodness, Karen, what a busy time you have coming up for celebrations! Happy Birthday, and Happy Anniversary to all 4 girls! Maybe a cake is in the future to make?
Thanks a lot, Linda! Someone donated a bunch of ice cream cakes to the Sisters at school, and they gave some to us. They are coming in handy.
Rose is so amazing…the detail she adds to her picture story is fantastic.
Thanks, Kathy!
Wow! Rose really does have a penchant for detail. What a wonderful drawing and it tells such a wonderful story. Thanks Rose, Karen and Jeanne for sharing.
I use those type boxes to store my doll shoes. I have so many shoes for my RRFF that I’m going to have to buy another box. When they first came out it was hard to find shoes for them but they seem to be everywhere these days. I have some of those round containers and use them for a lot of things like beads, sequins, rhinestones, etc.
You did a great job organizing all your buttons and you do have a lot of them.
Thank you, Barbara!
What a beautiful drawing, Rose. You have some many details and I agree that you can see a whole story in your picture. Thank you for sharing it.
Hi Karen, Happy Birthday to your girls, Lilly, Lucia, and Rose. 🎂🍨🍰🍬🍭🎂 I also can’t believe it’s already been a year since you were telling us of Lilly’s birth.
Your buttons look so pretty all organized, Jeanne. Now you can find what you need quickly. Looking forward to who is next.
Thanks a lot, Laura!
Sorting makes me feel organized even if it isn’t quite as picture perfect as yours Jeanne👏
The puzzle idea is great Charlotte☺️
Karen I love Rose’s picture It is so detailed. My second son had a mild cleft palate and one side effect was deafness. Since he was so young we didn’t realise until a doctor asked us if he was deaf. We checked it out and sure enough he was. (It was easily fixed, he needed his adenoids out). During that time his art work was wonderfully detailed. He would have been 5 and drew an amazing map of the journey from our house to the school on the bus route. Unfortunately I don’t have it as it was a school project and the teacher kept it. Once he could hear again he lost interest in art. Now he is all business. I wonder if he will take it back up when he finishes work?
Jeanne, I had buttons of my own, inherited my Mum’s and a lady at church had a biscuit tin full of shirt buttons. Sam found these wonderful boxes, they are like a suitcase and inside are other boxes about 5×4 inches and about 1 inch high, about 16 in each large box I think. She sorted all the buttons into colours and sometimes broke them down further. She filled two of the big boxes, so that was 32 small boxes. I should take a photo, I’m not very clear at explaining things. My buttons aren’t as small as yours, if I need dolly buttons I have to buy them as I go, so the smaller containers wouldn’t work for me but they are wonderful for you. Great job, I know from watching Sam what a big job it is. I certainly won’t use all these in my life time lol. It doesn’t help that I hate sewing on buttons!
I would love to see your buttons and boxes. Jeanne’s are great too. Seeing the organization on yours might give me the shove I need to get going on those buttons residing here. 🙂 Funny you don’t like sewing buttons, because I absolutely do not like sewing snaps. I call my problem, snapaphobia. 🙂
Joy and Anne, I don’t like sewing on buttons OR snaps , so I feel your pain!
Joy, I too suffer from snapaphobia. It seems I can never hang on to them and they fall and go down in the sides of my chair. Then I have to get another set and try again. I understand there is really no cure for it. Jeanne has tried to help and she makes it look so easy but I guess I’m just destined to have a chronic case.
Thank you, Anne! Wow, I am glad you were able to figure out how to help him! My husband likes doing art, but on a practical level, he has to put a lot of time into his handyman business. I guess in a way he does use art in creating things of beauty for people in their houses.
I like the jigsaw idea. Organization takes time, but you proved it’s worth it.
Did reorganizing the dolls in their new case inspire all of this activity? That is a beautiful birthday present. I think each doll needs her own period-appropriate underwear — probably all of it white so everything matches.
Susette’s idea about insurance is something to consider. Your sewing room and supplies are probably covered by homeowner’s insurance, but it’s worth being sure since your machines, furniture, and supplies would be expensive and difficult to replace. When I became a friend’s executor, I looked out over the land and silently thanked her for letting her house and land be in my care for a little while. Then I thought, “What’s my first step?” The land was natural, full of cactus, big rocks, wildlife, eagles’ nests, and a big cliff. Friends of the family were showing up with small children. My first thought was to protect the estate with insurance. We never needed to file a claim, but I felt safer.