Petite Blythe Muchacha Zukin....

Petite Blythe Muchacha Zukin...., originally uploaded by confections.

My latest Petite Blythe, Muchacha Zukin; here she is surrounded by new fabrics from my stash. I especially love her bonnet, embellished with little felt flowers ♥

Prima Dolly Aubrena & Mademoiselle Rosebud

Prima Dolly Aubrena & Mademoiselle Rosebud, originally uploaded by confections.

Clementine Louisa has a new sister, Mademoiselle Rosebud, as I mentioned last week. Here they are in all of their sisterly glory. I finished knitting a little shrug for them--just have to sew two small seams and it will be ready to wear.

The girls joined us for tea at a good friend's home on Sunday afternoon. Another sister (ADG Lounging Lovely) will arrive to make it a trio any day now....

Art imitates life, as my second sister is due to arrive for a week-long visit near the end of the month. What fun we are going to have!

My Funny Valentine: Blythe Prima Dolly Aubrena

My Funny Valentine: Blythe Prima Dolly Aubrena, originally uploaded by confections.

My brand-new Blythe Prima Dolly Aubrena arrived on Tuesday. She is my first Neo Blythe by Takara Tomy; I have two Petite Blythes: Miss Sally Rice and Lily Wild.

I've been having lots of fun dressing her up and thinking about new outfits that I can sew and knit and crochet for her.

Evidence of My Current Blythe Obsession

Blythe Poster, originally uploaded by confections.

I don't even have my new Blythe dolls in my possession yet--they're winging their way as I write--but I have met my friend's new Blythe named Daisy and photographed her (see previous post).

I took one of the photos and made an Obamicon poster with it. It's not a "Wanted" poster, but then again, maybe it is....

On Lake Temagami, Ontario, Canada, circa 1956

On Lake Temagami, Ontario, Canada, circa 1956, originally uploaded by confections.

Another in the Canadian vacation series. I am seated on the bench with my mother and my Indian doll; my towheaded brother is looking away from the camera, and my oldest brother (on the left) is sporting a very spiffy fair-isle sweater. I only have vague memories of these Canadian vacations, but it is lovely to have the photos.

Lovely Items by Marie of KittyKatDance

Here is a sampling of some of the exquisite items made by my friend Marie of KittyKatDance. My sister and I visited her booth at a local fair over the weekend and found some lovely treasures!

Miniature Tea Set

Miniature Tea Set (Two), originally uploaded by confections.

The other day we went to tea to celebrate a friend's birthday and to wish her Bon Voyage! She's moving away to New Hampshire from California--our tea was bittersweet--but we know she'll be coming back to visit soon.

Her dear friend's daughter brought along her favorite cloth doll, Kaley, and her miniature handpainted pink tea set. What a delightful addition to our table! The whole day was magical. We cried and laughed, exchanged gifts and cards, and vowed to meet again in a few months.

To Life and Our Next Tea Party! Cheers!

She's a little like the Velveteen Rabbit

She's a little like the Velveteen Rabbit, originally uploaded by confections.

You may remember the tale of my thrift store find of an Effanbee doll from a few months back. I posted about her in a thread on the Etsy forums, where fellow Etsian Mosey had started a contest for the best thrift store treasure. I named my doll Helene Elyse after my Mother and one of her favorite models and actresses, Elyse Knox, from the late 1930's and early 1940's. I was thrilled to win the contest; Mosey was so sweet to send me the lovely handmade linen clutch pictured below as a contest prize. Thanks, Mosey!

Vintage Effanbee Doll Collage (New Dress)

Vintage Effanbee Doll Collage (New Dress), originally uploaded by confections.

My vintage Effanbee doll (which I introduced in my April 19th blog entry) has been duly newly clad in a calico dress. She doesn't look nearly as forlorn as she did a few short weeks ago. Clothes make the doll!

I raided my stash of quilting calicoes to find the appropriate complement to my circa World War I era doll. I believe she is a prototype of the "Baby Dainty" Doll produced by Effanbee at that time. I found a reproduction Simplicity doll pattern for the bodice piece and gathered a rather long skirt to it, accented with a deep tuck. It's been donkey's years (oh, I miss Princess Diana!) since I have made any doll clothes.

My first major foray into sewing as a grade-schooler was cranking out Barbie doll clothes on my mother's vintage Singer treadle sewing machine. Barbie doll clothes are on such a tiny scale, they are quite tedious to sew, I think. Baby Dainty is about 14 inches tall and her chest is 10 inches in circumference, so sewing her dress was a breeze by comparison. She was all dressed up and I had promised to take her to a tea party, so off we went to meet up with my girlfriends and sister at Tea-Upon-Chatsworth for a delightful high tea and furrawn (per Anais Nin: soulful conversation that is deeply intimate).

My girlfriends each brought along a doll and a picture from their childhood. I shared one of me with my Ginny doll from the mid-1950's (shown below). Ah, sweet bird of youth!

Vintage Effanbee Doll 3/4 View

Vintage Effanbee Doll 3/4 View, originally uploaded by confections.

My 5-year-old niece and I found this forlorn-looking vintage Effanbee doll last month at the Salvation Army Thrift Store. We had been to tea earlier in the day, and Grace had brought her American Girl doll, Elizabeth, along to the festivities. When we entered the thrift shop, she made a beeline to a group of dolls which included this well-loved charmer.

I did a little research about the doll and it seems she was made circa 1913 to 1917. She's a nonogenarian! I love the little strand of beads around her neck. Someone loved her and decked her out in her time. I'm going to make her a little calico dress soon and take her along to the next tea party. I'm sure she's been the guest of honor at many such gatherings in the past.