But first a few comments all in one place. Sorry, I didn’t get a chance to answer your comments today. I had a consultation for my upcoming colonoscopy (UGH!) and then came home to start working on Mae’s set.
Okay, for a few comments.
Charlotte, I hope you have a fun time at EXPO. I know you will and I bet you can’t wait to see Tonya and wear your “Twinsie” outfits together. Have fun! Also you mentioned about whether or not the straw hat was made with the right side showing or not because I said you turn it inside out when you take it off the mold. The hat is made with the right side showing. It’s just when you peel it off the mold it turns inside out but then you just pop it back to the right side. It’s kind of neat how it happens. Next time I make a hat I’ll try to take a short video and show you what I mean.
Linda, well, you said you’d enjoy decorating the hat. I could have used you today for a second opinion. I had to get my hubby involved this time. The berries in the dress aren’t pink and they aren’t totally peach so it was hard to decide what color flowers to use to decorate it with. I laid out all my peachy flowers and all my pink shades of flowers and sprigs. We looked up close at the fabric and both decided the peachy/pinkish flowers were best. I hope you can tell from the close up shots of the hat that we chose the right color.
Yes, the collar is one I designed when I was using the Disney Animator’s pattern. I wanted a collar and this was what I came up with. It’s easier to do a collar like this than one with 2 separate pieces. I did make this pattern a bit wider than the white collar I put on Mae’s black and white dress. The collar is similar to the one on Marsha Trent’s pattern on Etsy. You can see hers HERE.
Rosemary, did you make it to your Joann’s store and pick up your felt? Our store is all sold out of wool felt but they have the acrylic left.
Sissy, I had to smile just a bit at you thinking you might bid on this dress set because you liked it so much! Wait till you see the hat! This is the ultimate compliment that you would even “think” to bid on something from me since you are such a wonderful seamstress yourself!
Joy, I TRIED… really I did, to make the flowers on Mae’s hat fit on a hat band, but the shape of the hat (it’s kind of like a bell style) made it impossible to keep things on a band because the band had to be pretty narrow to go with the shape of the hat. It just wouldn’t work. My flowers would all have had to be on a thin narrow band and as you’ll see, they are pretty spread out. I’ll try that the next time and see if a different shaped hat might work doing it that way.
Dorothy L, Thank you so much for the compliments on liking Mae’s outfit from the hat to the shoes and thinking that the back of the dress looked as pretty as the front. (I actually thought the same thing too!) :o)
Barbara, I’m kind of like you in my thinking…”Well, if Joann’s is going out of business, I’m SURE I MUST NEED A FEW THINGS!” Well, my first trip to Joann’s I came home with MORE than a few things… but they were things I could use.. none of mine was fabric… sewing machine needles, snaps, interfacing, thread, stuff like that. I hope you DO find something you can’t live without! We all need a few things like that! :o)
Elizabeth, I used to be an Assistant Manager at a So-Fro Fabrics store and I’m pretty sure some weeks my whole paycheck went for fabric. I looked at the Fabric Shack and decided I better stay away from it for now… the PLAN is to declutter not add more to my room! :o)
Okay, now I better tell you what I did today…
I got Mae’s dress hemmed by hand and it looks so much better.
Then it was time to work on her hat. I am NOT kidding… I know for a fact I spent as much time trying to decide what to do as I did doing it. I looked on Pinterest at Decorated Doll Straw Hats and found some really pretty ones, but they were using laces and bigger flowers and even some netting. I only had a pile of brighter pink flowers and some that were more peachy. Like I mentioned to Joy, I tried to figure out how to make the band of flowers detachable, but just couldn’t figure it out with the flowers I had. I asked my hubby for his help… Then I heard a wee small voice saying, “I want a hat that looks like a fancy birthday cake!”
You want WHAT?
A birthday cake hat! You know…like the ones you used to wear when you were a kid!
Oh… then I had an idea of how to do it. I first separated my flowers, picks and leaves into groups of the same kind… It’s easier to decorate when you know how many you have of each thing. At least it helps me.
So I put a pink band of cluny lace around the hat and tried to get it even all the way around. I doesn’t even show now, but it’s under there. Then I just started gluing the flowers and pieces on. Some of the flowers are paper and some are silk. I couldn’t be choosy because my glue gun was heating up…
Anyway, this is how it came out. My hubby loved it and said it was really dressy… It’s all glued on so nothing can be changed… sorry if you don’t like it.
There were NO pictures in the top half of this post, but the bottom half is overflowing with pictures. I hope you enjoy them.
You would have thought that the least Mae could do was smile since she got her “Birthday Cake Hat” but she didn’t. :o(
Although she was really getting into the “modeling” thing this time. That hat made her turn this way and that!
Here are a couple more closeups of the hat.
Back to a few more poses… I still feel more comfortable with her sitting than standing.
I finally got brave enough to let her stand…
I really need to find Mae a new thicker wig that has more curl to it. I had to use a dryer sheet on it for these pictures. It’s just a flyaway mess. It’s like American Girl Caroline’s wig… super fine! I’d like to find a wig with some curls around her face. I didn’t want to put her in pig tails or braids for this dressy hat.
Out of all my buttons I don’t have anything close to the color of the berries in her dress, so I was thinking of making her a necklace out of these glass bell flowers. I just have them on a gold ring to hold them together and in place, but I would probably string them together and let them set just below her collar split. Probably made with gold or pearl beads. Just a thought…
Well, I better get to bed. I have to get up early again tomorrow!
Blessings, Jeanne
Thank you, Jeanne. I’m almost all packed; just the few last-minute things like meds and such, and of course I have to pack up my computer, too! I plan to leave shortly after lunch tomorrow (Wed.–I’m still up so it’s still Tues.!!); check-in time at the hotel is 3, and I’d like to be there a shade before that. I have a hunch Tonya will be waiting for me in the lobby, because she asked what time I’d be there! We will both cry, I imagine–me, because of losing Ron, and her, because her husband recently had a potentially deadly heart attack–but he was in the one ER and given the proper meds and sent to the bigger ER before it really took hold! He is doing quite well now, I understand, although not happy with the dietary restrictions!
In yesterday’s comments, Barbara asked about the ease of accessing Expo. It’s held at the Fairgrounds, which is quite a large place, and there are two big parking lots closeby. There is still a fair bit of walking, due to the size of the site, but last year I bought myself a rolling walker, and I was amazed at how much easier it was for me to walk with it rather than just my cane. Plus, it has a seat, so I can sit any time I want, and a pouch under the seat for small items.
Our hotel is just up the hill (less than a mile) from the fairgrounds, so, yes, pretty easy to access. We used to stay in Fife (just north of Tacoma) and it was about 10-15 min. to the fairgrounds from there, but Fife’s crime rate is escalating, and we decided that might not be such a good option any more. So, a more expensive hotel, but a safer location.
The actual drive from my house to Puyallup is about an hour, give or take, depending on traffic. My first year (1996), I just drove down for the day, twice, and found it is just too tiring for me to drive an hour, walk for 7 hours, and drive another hour! So I’ve stayed in a motel or hotel ever since.
Mae’s hat turned out just beautifully! I love all the flowers, and I think there’s enough variety in the pinks that it will go with other dresses that have pinks and greens, too.
As to the necklace, I’m wondering if maybe just the deepest pink flower on a chain or a necklace of beads might work best, rather than all three flowers. I’m not sure….I think I’d have to see it both ways to decide which was better.
I plan to read the blog while I’m down at Expo, and hopefully will have time to comment, too. And I’ll take plenty of pictures, and after I get home, I’ll send some to Jeanne so she can share when she needs something at some point! Thanks everyone for the well wishes!
If you are interested, this is a link to the map of the fairgrounds where Expo is being held: https://sewexpo.com/documents/2025/02/2025-fairgrounds-map.png/ The buildings shown in teal are where Expo is held. To give you a concept of size, in the Showplex (left building), the letters B, C, D, etc. are each a classroom. The smaller ones hold about 50, the larger ones more like 75+ (at a guess).
I will park in the blue lot and come thru that gate.
Oh, Charlotte, the more you tell about the Expo, the more I wish I could come. I am SO looking forward to your photos.
Yes, I am excited too. Charlotte, enjoy the expo. I am thrilled that you are going and very excited to hear details of such an adventure.
I’m so glad I asked the question Charlotte because you mentioned something I hadn’t thought about. When David had his heart surgery we bought him one of those I think they’re called Rollators. My mother used one and I thought it was great that it also had a seat. I never even thought of using that to attend a function. Sometimes when there is an event in downtown Houston or Reliant Center (where the Texans play) they have satellite lots with buses that take you from the lot to the door, but I don’t think for the Quilt Convention because it would not draw as many people as some of the sporting events. I too wish I could attend with you but look forward to living vicariously through your pictures.
Jeanne, that “Birthday Cake Hat” looks good enough to eat! So frilly and feminine, and suits Mae to a “T”! The flowers match perfectly with the pinks of the berries on the dress.
So, that Marsha Trent pattern you referred to us on Etsy, shows us a Mae with short blonde, curly, hair, and that’s just what Mae needs! That is adorable, and I know, you probably can’t make pig tails with it, but if you ever do get her another wig, that should be the one!
I’m not completely sure about that necklace. I think only one of the pink flowers on a chain would be best. I’m sure others will have a say on what they think too.
Overall, this will really be a cute set! It’s enough green for any little Irish lassie to wear, or any little girl, for that matter! I’m getting my dolls ready for St. Patrick’s day now, plus decorating my house!
Looking forward to your pictures, Charlotte! Have fun!
Linda, I am looking forward to your photos when you dress your cuties for St. Patrick’s Day. I had a huge commission for SP Day outfits last year so will send those photos to Jeanne. They won’t be posed as nicely as yours, however.
Oh, Jeanne, the hat is so Birthday Cake, good enough to eat, Love it! I also love the little flowers, I have bought those myself and used them for buttons on my Asian out fits. I do agree, though that one is enough with added beads, the fabric is so busy.
I will soon send St. P. outfits photos to you in case you need them during the time up to the 17th.
Jeanne, the outfit is so sweet, really, Mae is a very good model. I do love her hair this way. This dress is so pretty. Every thing goes together so well, those flowers must be so tiny, and they are perfect. Mae has the most adorable face.
I hope everyone is having a good week. I am doing more grown up things, preparing papers for the accountant for daddy’s trust, just making more boxes. some how I feel like I have a lot of boxes unassembled, but I will try to focus on packing today. Oh and also still trying to arrange the inspector for the new house “Pre drywall” I am trying my best to stay organized and label everything. I have three rolls of packing tape around this house and sometimes I can not find any of them.
With the heavily flowered hat, which is adorable, the dress appears to be taking second fiddle. So, I think the dress needs to have some of the peachy flower color added. Perhaps, a sash or one of the little bell flowers on a chain as Linda mentioned. I wouldn’t use all three, but maybe the darkest pink. Perhaps a thin ribbon tied in a bow with the bell flower at the middle of the collar? Or a completely different necklace. I think I would like to see some blue flowers added in somewhere with the peachy hat flowers so the hat would tie in with the dress fabric. This lovely hat would look wonderful for summer too with a white eyelet dress or even a solid pink one. That hat is so pretty.
Looks like we have a sunny day ahead. Yay 🙂
This outfit is perfection!! I love everything. To think it all started with the shoes. The shape of the hat is so much fun, could easily be a 20’s cloche. The flowers and large bow in the back are the perfect choice of size and colors. For the neckline I’d like to see maybe a gold chain with a pendant having a small ring bail with a dangling little pearl and a flower bead or two. We all know you’ll choose what looks best for a little girl. As i said, to me I think this outfit is perfection.
Have a great day all.
I do love Mae’s hairdo with or without the hat, but then she looks good in any hairdo I just happen to like this one with this outfit. And I think I understand why Mae is not smiling. She knows that flashing her brilliant smile, which I’m sure is there somewhere, would compete with the amazing outfit and she is so sweet to not want to do that. I love the hat. It looks perfect to me. I think one flower on a necklace by itself, however you do it, would be enough since the fabric is so full of detail by itself.
Looking forward to all the St. Patrick’s Day pictures from my Sofa Sisters. My dolly girls don’t have much in the way of St. Patrick’s Day attire and some I sent a few years ago. I’ll have to take another look.
The hat is lovely definitely a ‘birthday cake’ hat! I love it. Mae’s hair looks the same as a lot of little girls with platinum blond hair, wispy and flyaway lol.
Have a great time Charlotte. We have a Quilt Expo coming up in May, just before I go but nowhere near as big as your expo. I plan to go to the Festival of Quilts at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham (UK not the Alabama one) when I go to UK and I found out last Thursday that one of my quilt friends at Guild will also be there. Hopefully we will be able to catch up. It is the biggest quilt exhibition in the world, but not the most prestigious. If you want to enter a quilt you can, it isn’t juried so a huge range of work and not all quilts. I’ll only be able to go for one of the days. It is a pig of a place to get to from where I will be staying without a car and although I still drive here, I wouldn’t feel safe in a different car and in so much traffic compared to here. last time my sister and her husband dropped me off at NEC and then went off to explore some gardens they hadn’t seen before then came back and picked me up. The first time I went to it the quilt shop near my brother’s organised a coach trip which was great but they didn’t do it last time. If the shop is still there I will ask again but not hopeful.
Have a great day everyone
How fun that you may be able to meet up with a friend from home while on your trip. And hope you are able to hit up a few fabric shops too. 🙂
Running very late do to a dental cleaning this morning- no cavities and then grocery shopping and putting away.
Mae’s hat is very sweet. Birthday cake hat is definitely the word for it. Since others have already done so on many aspects, I won’t weigh in also.
I’m really looking forward to see the St. Patrick’s Day outfits/scenes. With a fair amount of Irish my dolls need St’ Patrick’s (as well as Scottish, Welsh, English, and German cultural outfits), but it has yet to happen. I do have Nellie Irish dancing shoes. My kitties have their St. Patrick’s Day toys out so that the most important thing and I do have some decorations up.
When I see your family composition, it reminds me of mine. I too have Welsh, Scottish, English, and German, as well as Danish, French, and Finnish. Such a mutt here. 🙂