Flouncy Skirts

Mrs. Smith and I went thrifting last week for the first time in ages. When I found an infant/toddler sized flouncy skirt, I had a sudden inspiration!

18-month size skirt

Easy flouncy skirts for the girls! I simply cut down both side seams and wrapped each piece around a doll to see where to sew the side seam for the new skirt.

Maria and Temerity show off their new skirts

I had also found trousers with flouncy legs.

These were size 2/3 Toddler

Lorraine had been giving me very furious looks because she was being neglected. Also, after reading Nymphaea's latest post at The Doll Barn, I was feeling guilty about neglecting Casilda too. SoI decided to use these flounces to make skirts for Lorraine and Cassie. The trouser legs were nice and stretchy so they worked well for the bodices.

Lorraine is too young not to have straps on her dress

There was even enough fabric left to make one more dress, so I chose Starla, my 16" Tonner doll. I wasn't sure how long it should be so I haven't finished it yet. I tried three lengths.

Short

Long

Longest

Who wore it best?

That's all I was going to sew yesterday but then I started looking at Belinda. She didn't say anything but I knew she was hoping. So I took a little toddler dress with a picture of fireworks on it and began to cut it down for her. I didn't get very far but she knows she's next on the list.

"I was afraid I'd been forgotten."

And just so you know that Cassie hadn't totally been neglected, a couple of months ago Mrs. Smith stopped by and took over my computer, so I was forced to sit at my sewing machine. I picked up a couple of pieces of felt and was inspired to make something for Cassie.

Very mod

Now I can't wait to get back to work and look for more flouncy skirts!

Belinda

I don't remember where I first saw the Journey Girls but I was enchanted by them. Although I hoped I could find one at a thrift store, I knew it wasn't likely so I actually bought one brand-new! First Auntie Berman and I made a trip to Toys R Us to look at them. Surprisingly, I wasn't attracted to Kelsey, the red-haired one. Instead I liked Dana. I wasn't totally sure  I needed a new doll, but Auntie Berman convinced me I did and offered to advance me the money, since it wasn't yet payday. So we went back the next day. (Auntie Berman was thinking about getting Callie, the Asian girl, for herself but she was Out of Stock and apparently wasn't going to be restocked.) Dana was $32.99 and I had found a 30% off coupon, so that paid for the sales tax and then some and she was only $28.43 total.

We rushed her out to Auntie Berman's van and eagerly unpacked her. The first thing I did was remove her glasses, because dollies shouldn't have to wear glasses. Meanwhile, she (Dana) had told me that her name is really Belinda. Then we needed to dispose of her box, because I didn't want Husband-Like Person to know about her (that I'd bought her new, not that he would have said anything because he's always buying himself bicycle things, but still . . . ) The box stayed in Auntie Berman's van for quite a while, until we were able to dispose of it discreetly.

Belinda and Merry

Meanwhile, we had found a horse at Goodwill Bargain Bin! He was very battered and had obviously had a hard life, but we couldn't bear to think of him going to the glue factory so we got him. We named him Laredo. The girls all love him. It looks like he has eyebrows but actually that's where his "skin" has rubbed off.

Belinda on Laredo

New dress

Lorraine is not terribly pleased with her new sister.

In the last couple of months I have found two more horses! Both came into our store and as soon as I could (remember, I have to wait 2 days to buy things there) I bought them.

Pally, Laredo and Durango.

Pally is a palomino, of course. (Pally is an old family horse name from my father's side of the family.) Durango seemed like a good Western sort of horse name to go along with Laredo. These horses have articulated ankles, although I'm not sure why.

I suppose I'll have to get them saddles now.

The girl on Durango is my latest doll. She is a Tollytots. We got ten or twelve 18 inch dolls at our store and at first I wasn't terribly impressed with them. They were all Tollytots and Battats, most of them not very cute. Then I read on someone's blog about how they turned a girl doll into a boy doll and I briefly thought I might do that. So on our Thrifting Tuesday last week, Auntie Berman and I looked over the remaining dolls. I had second thoughts about gender reassignment at that point and decided I liked this girl a lot. Auntie Berman found a similar one (with sausage curls that need work), so we both got a doll that day. I still haven't named her and I wish she didn't look so frightened all the time, but I'm sure she'll settle in soon.