Kirsten

So, I recently acquired a Kirsten Doll.

Here she is from her eBay listing.

First thing I did was put her clothes in to soak.

Then Kirsten got a bath.

I put her in a plastic bag to protect her cloth body

while I washed her face, arms, legs and hair.

Her hair is pretty dry, so I am continuing to treat 

it with the wig conditioner.

Sadly her hair is a bit brittle.

 Here she is all fresh and clean.

 At this point I went away for the weekend

and Kirsten sat on my sewing table.

By the time I got back to work on her some other things I ordered for her had arrived!

AND HERE SHE IS!!

Kirsten had an amber heart as part of her

meet accessories, but I had this little amber cross

that I think is very pretty for her.

 There is a bit more shine in her hair.
She still has some fly-away hair but overall much better.

 Here she is with her braids tied up with ribbons.

Her meet dress was soaked in Fels-Naptha all weekend.
It came out fresh and clean. Then everything was pressed.

Here is Kirsten in her school dress and shawl.

(this is the first item I ordered for her)

These are not her original boots, but I thought they were SO cute!
(this was the second item I ordered for her)

 Here are her bloomers, there were some stains on them

and now the stains are barely visible.

And last but not least...

Kirsten's Pink Gingham Birthday Dress

  This is a dress we have had in our collection for quite awhile

AG doll dress makeover

 We did not have the original apron, so I made this one.

A doll friend asked if I was going to keep Kirsten in her time 

period or add her to my modern doll household.

I have been thinking a LOT about this - a bit of a challenge - 

and I think I am going to try and see what I can come up with.

It started me looking through some things I have already 

and these items I have set aside for Kirsten's cabin

 Hurricane lamp - of course

Painted dresser 

 Blue china and blue glass fish bottle.

 I think this is Samantha's bowl and pitcher but of course

still used by homesteaders.

 A wood hope chest.

I may add some painted details.

 Rocking chair

and baskets.

STAY TUNED

Emergency blog post!

OK doll lovers.  I have a dilemma.  I have a long-standing love of the AG Kirsten doll.  I have resisted for a long time because my doll room is really getting too full.  

I think I love her because she reminds me of the Little House Girls.

There is an ebay Kirsten and I am not sure if I should give in and bid or not.

The listing ends in 8 hours!

Help me decide what to do!!

I GOT HER!!

This is her eBay photo

I'm SO excited!!

Jess's blog from Texas

Hi everyone, you'll never guess where I am typing this from!

TEXAS!

That's right, I am finally with my forever Mom.

Here I am just after I arrived.

It was strange at first being somewhere new.

But now it feels like home.

I like to sit and keep Mom company while she works.

That's right!  We are both bloggers!

 When we take a break I like to sit and look out

the window, there is this HUGE oak tree in my back yard..

I have 2 dogs now, Emma and Sukhi.

We like to snuggle on the couch, but they are blanket hogs.

 The dogs like to look out the front door, I'm not sure what for.

 Look at this cool fireplace!

I can't wait for cool weather so we can sit by the fire.

If you are wondering where Bedford, Texas is, 

it is kind of in the middle between...

Fort Worth and...

(this is the Fort Worth Stock Yards)

Dallas. 

(This is the Old Red Courthouse in Dallas)

Being in the middle of 2 big cities there is lots to do here.

I already told my Mom I want to go to the Fort Worth Zoo and...

The Dallas Aquarium.  I have heard both of these

places are amazing!

This is the Old Bedford School built in 1915

There are really no mountains in Texas like in California, but the sky

is SO big!  I can't explain it, it just looks bigger.

But Texas is a lot greener!

Texas has BIG thunderstorms and 

gets a lot more rain than California.

I miss all my friends in California, especially my friend Emma, 

but I am glad I am now a Texan.

Well, that's all for now, I gotta go and shop for some boots!

Take care Y'ALL!

Lamp Tutorial

 I recently found this single salt shaker in a thrift store.

This is a tutorial showing you how easy it is to make it into a doll lamp!

 

I use an empty - washed - applesauce cup. 

(applesauce cups are very popular in my house)

I cut off the top rim.

Then you need a piece of fabric 10" long x 3" wide.

 I hem the fabric on both edges with a single turn

about 1/4" or so.
The fabric shade needs to be wider than the cup is tall.

Hot-glue the fabric to the rim of the cup.

 THEN hot-glue this cup/shade to the top of the salt shaker.

Don't worry it won't ruin the salt shaker!

Hot-glue peels off of ceramic and glass pretty easily.

Make sure the lampshade hem is in the back!!

(guess how I know the hot-glue peels off easy)

Then just drop in a battery votive.

 VOILA!

That simple.

Here are some other lamps I have made.

The Savage Dollhouse

This is made from an antique hat pin holder.

 This lamp and the one below

are made with small glass candle holders.

And this one is made from a mini-vase

I found thrifting.

Here is one of my lamps all lit up at night.

I have found that some of these votives are brighter than others,

but most will make a definite light in a dark setting.

Happy Crafting!