First of all, thanks so much for the kind and wonderful comments on the Taste of America hayride and food fest! We really did have a great time and I know the students did. You could hear laughter all through the night. So many new experiences for them to share with their families! 36 of the Colombian students were CESL students. The Center for English as a Second Language has the students who know “some” English go through the program to enhance what they already know and help them with areas they are having difficulty. They will only be here a short time… maybe 2-3 months, I think.
Well, all I can about Stella’s new hat is… I NAILED IT! YAY!
I can’t believe how much better it looks… it’s one of those dimensional things that I’m not sure you can see, but in person, it’s a perfect fit this time! I took my pattern piece that I had reduced to 55% and made it 90%, which doesn’t seem like it would work, but it did… I’m not exactly sure how it all worked out, but it did and Stella LOVES it now! Let me show you the difference…
Here was the first hat…
It was big enough that I could pinch my fingers together at the back seam about 5/8th’s of an inch…
This is a picture of the larger one on the left and the new smaller one on the right.
Now here is her new smaller brimmed and smaller crowned hat…
When she tips her head down, the crown is almost parallel with her head… that’s what it should be…
A few more pics…
My goodness, Stella is such a pretty doll. I do love her.
Here is a picture of the back of the hat…
The new hat actually fits INSIDE the first hat…
I managed to get the snaps and some tiny buttons sewn to the back of Stella’s dress… and it’s now hemmed!
Here she is with the hat on so you can see them together…
I found some Mary Jane shoes I had started in my leather stuff… they go nicely with the dress… the hat looks like a Christmas green but it’s really kind of an olive green. The shoes pick up the colors of the dress.
I’ll get these shoes finished and then some thigh highs…
Well, not too bad for seeming like I was way behind… I’m back on track to get this finished ASAP!
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, yes, Stella’s new hat is So much better!! and her shoes are going to be a nice addition to the ensemble. Yay, Jeanne!!
Barbara, to answer you in regards to smocking: yes, it would be great if we lived closer!! (And, truly, I have only tried a little picture smocking; maybe one day I will try some again…) But you can go to the SAGA website (smocking.org) and click on “education”, and you will find a lot of resources there. Some are free to everyone (such as online tutorials); others may require membership in the Smocking Arts Guild of America. In the online tutorials, I see several by Vaune Pierce, who I’ve known for a number of years. She’s an excellent teacher (when we still had our chapter out here, she came up for a two-day smocking retreat and taught us quite a lot!), but there are some by other smocking teachers also. (And I see Vaune has a tutorial on picture smocking, so maybe after Christmas I can watch that and follow along.)
Thanks so much Charlotte. I always appreciate the benefit of your experience – and you have a lot of that. I will definitely be checking out your suggestions. My first experience with the geometric smocking came out great but the class was pretty much useless. I ended up going home and working it out for myself. Easier with geometric than picture smocking I discovered. The teacher’s shop is magnificent but she herself is one of those people who’ve done something for so long and been great at it that they can no longer relate to beginners. My music teacher was like that. She was great for voice because I was not a novice just needed an upgrade. But I was a rank beginner at piano. She was one who could sit down with a brand new piece and play it perfectly the first time so she could not relate to the fact that I basically needed to start one note a time. The whole page of notes was overwhelming. Plus, being a first soprano all my life, I was used to only reading the top line of notes and never paying much attention to what was below so playing with both hands was a problem. I can play great with one hand or the other but putting them both together is a huge challenge. But I still sit down at the piano and play some Hanon every now and then. It makes me feel somewhat “accomplished”.
That was a great adjustment, Jeanne! While the hat still has a brim, it is not an overwhelming one and fits so much better. What happens now with the bigger hat?
I think the shoes are a good match, and wonder what color thigh highs you will make for her. Maybe black? I think white or ivory would be too distracting, and a darker color would be more fall-like. Of course, trying both colors would be best, sometimes that’s the only way to see what looks right.
I’m wondering if the original hat might fit an AG, Natterer, or other 18″ doll? I’d like to see it on someone else. However, the new hat size definitely fits Stella, nicely. I like the shoes, but they don’t match the hat. Maybe in a pic without the hat, I’d like the color better as it does go with the dress. Perhaps, worn with a cute headband/ribbon the same color as the shoes or even just a big hair bow? Overall, I do love this dress. The color is so pretty.
Hard to believe that Halloween is just around the corner and Thanksgiving on the way as well. I think Jeanne’s next outfit should be for winter. So many new cute prints out there. And the activities. Ice skating, skiing, tobogganing, would all benefit from a cute outdoor outfit. Even a solid winter jacket would be cute. And what about a fancy dress for the new year? Just thinking. 🙂
Sun’s coming up. Time to get moving.
The green hat looks great. Your tweaking did it! This dress is adorable. I love the print. Stella is a pretty girl and she looks perfect for this outfit.
You’re right about Stella being a beautiful doll. I’m glad I welcomed her into the family. And she seems to wear a lot of colors well. I love the new hat and the shoes are great. I’m usually an everything must match person, but I could live with the shoes not totally matching the hat. And I think ivory thigh highs would be fine but other colors would be great too. I just bought some socks for some of my dolls and was amazed at the number of colors available in socks, tights and knee highs. I could make them but my color supply in the right fabric is pretty limited and buying more fabric would cost more than the socks because I don’t make that many.
I’ve been sewing quite a bit lately but I must admit I went holiday dress shopping on the Cottontail Doll Designs site. I love her clothes for the RRFF. But I limit myself to the lesser expensive outfits because I usually buy more than one. Her Winter/Christmas dresses are lovely.