Re-evaluating Blog, and Little Blessings

I realized recently that I seem to have forgotten why I started this blog in the first place: To document my various projects and share my progress with anyone who cares to read about it. Unfortunately, I wasn't quite ready (no pix!) when I signed up with Blogger, so I started doing Blog Parties in the meantime, and other randomness that had nothing to do with sewing or crafts. Not that these things are bad; they're just not the main focus of this blog. I still feel badly that I didn't have pictures of “Wood Violet” in its finished state, nor of any of the other things I've made recently. I do still intend to take some, but it all depends on the weather and all. :-P

So as not to get too gloomy, I shall now focus on the little blessings God has given me this past week or so....

As a reward for all the hard work I've put in preparing for the “Big Day” at the bank—making new necklaces and earrings, figuring out a pricing list with tax, printing stuff, etc.—Mom gave me these two dolls...which she actually bought before Christmas. :-P

Introducing Raphaela and Columbine—and angel and a pincushion lady, respectively. Raphaela's head and hands are made of some kind of resin or very hard plastic, can't tell exactly what.  

Poor dear has no feet—just foam-wrapped legs—so I plan to make her some out of polymer clay (which I have a nice supply of thanks to Uncle Dave :-D). I haven't decided if I want to make her a jointed body out of clay—as I plan to do with most of my other “miniature” dolls—and alter her dress so she can change it for another, or just to leave her as-is and have her be purely decorative. I'm in the same quandary with her friend Seraphina (pictured below), who was a Christmas present from “Aunt” Patty.

As for Columbine, she's porcelain from head to waist, although you can't see it because of all that lace. And I'm not taking it off until I can make her a polymer clay chemisette (an old-fashioned dickey) and a fan, because the neckline on her bodice is decidedly indecent. :-O 

Again, it's a toss-up between leaving her as a pincushion lady or making her a jointed (lower) body so she'd be more like a real doll.

Last Saturday, Mom and I dropped by her school's yard sale, and someone (the lady who played the tone-chimes with us at the concert last month, actually) pointed out this tiny violin in a case. 

I suspect it was made by the American Girl Company for their 18” dolls. It's very well-made—almost like a real violin. Actually, if the strings and bow-hairs were proper ones, it would be a real violin! Hmmm...1/32 size? ;-) 

The case is amazingly detailed—it has real latches, a handle, and even little brass feet on the back! The little nub in the lid that the bow goes over has a tiny piece that rotates to hold the bow secure, and the whole thing is lined with red velveteen—this thing is a real violin case! 

Since I have no American Girl doll (or anything similar) to play it, I'm thinking of CAREFULLY converting it into a cello for my 8-10” dolls...once I get them made. >Whistles innocently<

And yesterday Mom and I went out to do a little shopping, and as we were out anyway, we stopped by a few thrift stores to see if they had any weights over 20 pounds for my brother. They didn't (we ended up getting a set at Wal-Mart for $19!), but they did have some binders and tabbed folders for Mom to organize her music in, plus these....

(Please excuse the funky colors in this picture; it was the only way to get the dress looking close to its true color on my computer.)

I've been wanting a purple dress for the Summer, but didn't think I could afford more fabric (plus I have material coming out my ears already!!!), but apparently God had other plans, because I found this one (christened “Lady Violet”) at St. Vinnie's, and in my size! The neckline is a wee bit low (and will be a wee bit lower once I remove those horrid shoulder-pads)—not obscene, just uncomfortable—but thankfully there's enough fabric in these—erm—interesting ties to make an insert (or I could just “unstuff” one of the shoulder-pads and use that).

Another thing I found there was this gorgeous turquoise tunic/jacket: 

 It's actually a wee bit more green than in the photo; my camera turns things blue for some reason. :-P It's a size 8P, which means it was meant for someone smaller than I am, but it fits perfectly as a top, and the color is great. And I have a weakness for embroidery. ;-) All it needs is to have the buttons and loops removed and replaced with snaps. That way I can wear a necklace with it and not have it clanking against the buttons or hanging crooked.

This skirt (found at Real Life Ministries) mayn't look like much on the hanger, but it is in fact a very full tiered skirt of navy-blue rayon. The little whitish dots are actually pewter buttons...which I'm not hip on, but they're easily removed. It will blend with all my blues pretty well, and it was a lot less brain-pickling* to buy this ready-made skirt than to try and noodle around with my 60x62” fabric that none of my patterns fit on. :-P Plus I have a weakness for “Gypsy” skirts, too. >Halo<

* Brain-pickling: Implies that the task to be done is so complicated that the brain has to work harder to figure it out, and therefore works up a sweat. And since sweat is salty, and salt is an ingredient used in pickling vegetables, it is logical to assume that a skull full of brain-sweat will eventually pickle said brain.

~Tom's Dictionary of Whacked-out Terms and Old Family Sayings

I needed some navy lace to fill in the neckline of a dress Mom bought me on my birthday, and what do you know? RLM had a bag of it, plus all this other stuff! (Not counting The Menagerie, LOL. Ack! I cut off Peanut Butter's head!!!)

Some pretty green lace and some Battenburg lace, dyed a bluish-grey. Not hip on the color, so may try some Color Remover to get it white again...or dye it some other color.

A hand-dyed doily with Battengurg lace edges and dainty embroidery....

The navy lace, which will eventually become part of my “Midnight Lace” dress (pictures to come!). There's a LOT of this stuff; Lord willing there's enough left over, I might put it on my new navy skirt!

And I don't have a picture of it, but I also found Treasures of the Snow by Patricia St. John. Mom and I were headed to the check-out, and I >happened< ;-) to glance at the book-rack—and there it was! For 50¢! Jordan lent me her copy last year, and I loved it, so I was one happy little wench to find my own copy. :-D I found Hans Brinker at the Humane Society thrift store a little while back, too. It's such a blessing to find my favorite books at the thrift store, as their prices beat the pants off Amazon (much as I love Amazon). And I'll never forget the day I found Pride and Prejudice at St. Vinnie's! :-D

It's often “little things” like these that prove to me that God cares about my interests...and about me.

And now, Gentle Readers, I must bid you adieu for now.

God bless,

~“Tom”~