FEBRUARY

 

Well January did the usual thing of starting off slow and then racing to the finish. It's also actually been a proper winter month of cold and also wet weather.

Which is great, I do like the seasons to be their normal selves and not to be unusually warm or dry or wet whichever that season is. Cold weather is good , well not freeze people to death cold, it's needed by nature to allow it to lay dormant , to recover from it's hard work, ready to renew come spring and also so we can wear lovely woollens and clothing to keep warm and hopefully look good! ;)  

I prefer cold weather to wet weather, at least you can wrap up against the cold and it's so nice when you get back indoors if it's cold and and it feels lovely and warm. Mind you , we do not have weather like other countries, of eleven inches of snow to deal with !

So I have moved on from making large lap blankets to doll blankets !! I was peaking to Michelle and said if I only had some of this yarn I had bought in 4 ply I'd make some small granny squares for some doll bed blankets.  She said just only make the centre and that way they are small squares, not as detailed but good enough.

So I spent a couple of evenings making up a dozen squares in seven of the colours, then using half a dozen of each colour made up this oblong.

Then I edged one in the green and the second one in the blue. I originally used up some oddments of a green and blue and made up some mini squares but then being me once I started on more colours I made up a dozen of year. Which meant the odd numbered amount, made with the ends of the ball, could  not be used with the blanket above cos it would not match !! 

So I was speaking to a friend about doll blankets and beds and decided I could make the odd squares into a blanket for my friends small doll bed.

So after making up a few more squares in the peach , I sewed them together and edged it. I showed my friend the blanket and said how the peach squares were vanishing into the edging, did she wat me to change the edging colour to a deep green or blue but she said no it was lovely as it was ! So I finished that final edge and another one done.

Which meant I could finally get some knitting started !

So I have started on this wool/silk yarn jacket for the Roche dolls. Being me , I decided I could not be getting into cabling the parts shown here that are plain ( they should have cable running up them ) along with working out the rest of the pattern on this jacket, so have left them plain. Once I have made it , if it looks okay, I will maybe try cabling on the next one or amending it another way. Time will tell.

Today's headliner who is no longer here is this beautiful 68 brunette in the centre. The twins Violet and Sapphire are still here and I have to confess I would love this lass to still be here because a decent 68 brunette with no falling hair very rarely comes up these days. But that's how the cookies crumble in this house ! 

On the doll front no dolls left but one did arrive !

This sweet black baby re-root by Jackie R arrived ! She was on auction and I decided I would bid and truly did not expect to win but much to my delight I did. So now she need's a name 

I may call her Oti after the dancer from Strictly. since she arrived in her ballet outfit, so obviously likes to dance. 

Well it's February, so doll photo day is but a few days away ! So please send in those photos, so we have something to look at on these winter days.

Wishing you all a lovely healthy warm week ahead

Dee

SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY

Yep It's Sunday ! another week's shot past at a great rate ! The world is spinning ever faster I'm sure of it! 

I've been carrying on with my granny squares blankets.

So while I was making this blanket with the balls of wool that were left from making the others, being me, as I started I decided I needed more colours, so went online to gat a few extra colours in, some yellows and deeper blues and greens! Just a few balls you understand.

I have to confess I missed a ball of this photo of what then arrived ! I'd added some lilac's/purple to the order too, so what should have been just a couple of balls became this lot! Also why I was waiting for it to arrive I decided that I quite liked the colourway I was working with, so then decided to stick with the colours I already had ! !

So that meant I could have saved myself from buying the extra colours. I also started to get some cramps in my hand from my arthritis, so had to rest up a few times. So now this one is made , I'm going to step away for a while from making any more and maybe start some knitting! 

I also needed to repair a no navel's arm hook, whatever they'd used was making the arm stick out either behind or in front, so she was taken apart and a new proper hook fitted .

Another repair was to Betsy May, who arrived with really bad caving to her chest. Once I took her apart I found she had really strong loop of brown elastic, that when in and out of her neck twice, so four large brown cords filling her neck. So that had to be cut in order to get it removed and the ring taken out of her neck.

So a few moments in some boiling water and the torso was back in shape.

So now she's dry, she needs to be put back together again with some new elastic and lots of bad words, as we try to get just the right length, so she stands nicely and isn't too tight or too loose ! That's the problem of having different tensions of elastic working out the length needed.

The headline doll is another who came and went in a very short space of time. A waif NP boy with amazing eyes and a well cut hair style! 

I'd intended to not buy any dolls this side of the summer , however as is usual a couple of dolls have come along too nice to miss out on. One is a Roche doll , so alas I need to sell a few Sashas and others towards her adoption. I have a Sasha on layaway and another doll appeared on ebay and I bid and much to my delight and surprise I won her. So she'll be shown in the week

So not out of January and a new to me doll on the way, another who will appear next month and no doubt the Roche either then or in early March ! Which means I need to get on with sorting out props and other items that can go towards all this early buying! The problem with all these dolls appearing, is that the doll cabinet is running out of space, so the dolls have to stand around. I need this year to get my act together not just with all my doll items but also parts of the house and garden. 

I also need to get back sewing and using up more fabric , so lots to do , just need to get my creative side in action! 

Wishing everyone  a happy healthy doll /fun filled week ahead.

Dee