SUNDAY SWEET AND SAVOURY !

 

Well what a day today, Sunday has been ! After all these weeks of incredible heat, today, when we had guest over to lunch and to see the garden Rain !! and not just a small shower ! We had thunder, no lightening at least, then long showers interwoven with very heavy downpours! The lunch was twelve till five , the rain started at 11.30 eased off around 1.30, so we were about to sit outside under the gazebo for lunch, then started again half way through lunch, then stopped, so we could walk round the garden and they could have a look round my half tidied doll studio before it started again and we sat chatting under the gazebo while it rained then hammered it down!

It only stopped around 4 pm ! and the sun was shining warmly as the last guests departed !!!

Alas some friends could not make it due to illness but there were enough of us left to be able to have a great time chatting about the dolls etc.

Naturally being me I totally forgot to take some photos of everyone's dolls, and there were some gorgeous ones visiting.

Only Dawn's two early NP girls got a photo taken. Which was a shame as they were all lovely and beautifully dressed, especially Jane's baby, which was wearing a beautiful smocked dress.

But time flew past and it was soon all over.

Today's headliner is the lovely Claudia who nabbed this new Petrana dress and teamed it with yellow shoes, I'm trying to get her to try on some red shoes but she's resisting! 

The sales are now very slow and If I didn't need to pay for a couple of things I would not bother until the end of the summer.

On the studio tidy, sort out, it all came to a halt while we got ready for our visitors. But I will hopefully get back in there this week make some more progress.

So I hope you all have a lovely happy healthy week ahead

Dee 

IT'S THE FIFTH SO DOLL PHOTO DAY

 Yes, it's the fifth already ! Time flies when you are having fun, so they say. So lets have some fun looking at all the lovely photos sent in.

We just had to start with Holly Belle from Gregoropolis, she insisted . . . I mean resisted ,but is glowing in a new multi coloured dress with bag. I just love the colours of her dress with it's toning smock detail and it really does start the day off with a bang.

Meanwhile her sister Meghan is happy with her new dress with apron in a lovely mix of pinks. A glow of a different kind but no less effective.

Over at RoRoPo, Otto and Julchen are checking out Granny's garden flowers. Admiring the yellows singing next to the blues. " Just like your clothes Otto ! " Julchen exclaims noticing his yellow top and blue trouser " You little flower you ! " she giggles and Otto joins in " Maybe you should plant me !" Otto giggles

" Or I could take you in and give you to mum and say I picked you in the garden !" They both find this hilarious and stumble back to the house making more and more silly jokes about Otto being a plant!

From Gill we have Billie and Anoushka insisting that pink is in fact the best colour in the whole wide world and they want a new law saying that everyone , even the boys have to wear pink! Mum explains that while pink is in fact gorgeous, only some people or in their case children can pull it off ! And therefore it would not be fair to either those unfortunate children/ people nor even to the colour pink if they made it look blare !  " Oh no! We cannot have people ruining PINK! " the girls cry out together and rush off to check for anyone wearing pink and no looking right! Mum rolls her eyes 

Ada, who was just outside rocking the baby in the pram, sighs having heard her sisters words. She calls out " Mum next time you see a sister you want to come live here can you check they have an IQ higher than a pigeon ? "   Mum doesn't answer but Ada is sure she heard her muffle a laugh. . . smiling she carries on rocking the baby.

It's lucky that Elizabeth , here in the village, did not hear those girls ! Since she is wearing a beautiful BLUE dress that was a gift from a very talented Sasha friend. Although Elizabeth loves all colours including pink, she loves blue the best.

I found an old calendar that I had made in 2012 of my dolls, so I thought I would share them today since I am so late posting this post.

Only three babies back then !

Only Violet still here.

Toby being the monkey he is !!

Little Zak 

Claudia, Violet and Sapphire still with me, dresses by a lovely American lady who sold under the name of Special Delivery.

I won't say how many of these blondes are still here , but hello Liberty . . . 

Again just two of these boys still here.

Back when Hattie's Hat's with Hattitude were a Sasha Sensation !

Gorgeous George 

Winter sweaters by Gill 

Hattie who still has that scarf and hat and those shorts ! 

Thank you to everyone who managed to get to this point ;) , and thank you to the lovely people sending in some wonderful photos for us all to enjoy.

Still time to be added 

Dee

SUNDAY ROAST MONDAY FRIZZLE

 

and I am not talking about meat and two veg! I'm talking about this heat wave we are having here in the UK at the moment ! We are like mice only coming out before the sun is truly up and once it starts to set ! otherwise we are trying to find the coolest spot in the house and defending it against all comers !!

They are comparing it of the summer of 76, well I remember that hot summer, when I was a child. . .cough cough. . . back then I was a mere slip of a thing so could cope but alas now I'm not , so the first to go are the ankles swelling ! 

We are having a gathering next Sunday and I can only hope the temperature drops enough that it is comfortable to be sitting outside and wandering around the garden. Plus not go totally the other way and pour with rain !!

Liberty is today's headliner wearing another of Petrana's lovely sunsuits.

The clearing out of the studio continues, along with selling off some of the props and unneeded items.

It's been very hit and miss due to the temperature, only being cool enough to get in there first thing or later in the day. But it is getting there and sales although slow are still happening. 

Which helps things not to be just sitting about waiting. But this heat, now it's Monday and still hot is a nightmare! Thank goodness it's supposed to rain tomorrow and the temperature drop by ten degrees at least.

Well It's the first of July, so I wish you all a happy healthy month ahead. Don't forget the fifth's doll photos and say cool ;)

Dee

THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA

 

HOORAH FOR THE BREEZE

 

Well what a week it has been !! Hot , hot and well hot ! Anyone would think it was summer !! I think it even made it to being a heatwave !! Well I for one am happy to wave it goodbye! Too hot to actually do anything more than that which could not be left. We reached the burning heights of over 30 degrees !

Yes yes I know that's barely warm in some parts of the world but for a Brit, who expects to be walking along the promenade, head down into driving wind and rain and ten minutes later sitting back in the car eating a bag of chips, then needing to take off the coat and cardigan an hour later as the sun returns on 26 degrees ! The last week's been a trial ! 

But in other ways it's just been busy. The new sofa arrived Friday and is lovely and PINK ! lol yes that is what I said pink ! A lovely velvety shade of deep pink. There are , although not able to see in the photos, tiny pink dots in the wallpaper behind the sofa.

Alas it will need to spend a great deal of it's time covered up , since this is the room the dogs sleep in and they will climb up for a nice comfy snooze.

So we bought a lovely bright cover to save it from the dogs.

So it's been all change around the area. We decided to remove the rug that was in this part of the room and just go with the wooden floor. But then I remembered the long slim rug I had bought years ago from the first doll studio, the one that's now the prop store, and had never taken out of it's bag ! Yes that is orange you see in both the rug and the cover but I'm working on the fact it's mixed in with so much more !! 

Then because the bureau was no longer along the wall, the mirror and clock now looked one sided ! So it was off to see what pictures were sitting around waiting for a home. Lindsey A level art exam picture worked best, so that now in place, plus Paul found two signed prints we'd never even framed and got them sorted to go on the side wall.

Finally I found two plump cushions from up in the bedroom, to use for when I sit on the sofa, as the back curves away, which means I have no support where I would need it, so the cushions work great for helping with that.

Now we just have to decide where the standard lamp will go or if it will and that's all finished.  A perfect sofa for putting your feet up and relaxing with a good book while enjoying a view of the garden.

Plus we have found a use finally for the rug and five pictures were also found places to hang, two others landed up in the kitchen and three here. Along with two plump cushions also have a better place of more use.

Now because The sofa was arriving, we had to move out the bureau and also the doll cupboard needed to be emptied and moved across the room.

The bureau was put round under the carport photos were taken and it was listed but as soon as it went live I started to regret it ! But where could it go?? Then I had an idea and tape measure in hand a place was found ! In the doll studio ! It is actually not as deep as the small cupboard we placed in there and will take everything that was placed in the small cupboard and still leaving me the desk space and shelf and small glass cupboard at the top! and I get to keep it.

It was too hot to work in the studio this week, so now the weather's cooled down, I'll be able to get back inside and carry on.

Now because I had to move the doll cabinet I realised that most of the poor boys were still in their winter woollies !! Since it was too hot to do much else, it was a perfect time to change them all into their summer clothes, although I did have to wait until it cooled again in the evening to go back into the studio to get them some shoes etc.

Robin is today's headliner. Wearing the new Ginny shorts, shirt and bucket hat set that arrived this week.

On the selling front it's been going quite well with the bike and trolley selling really quickly along with the other ruby red dolls I listed and the pram ! 

So more biggish items going to make some space and help making the studio useable again.

Now I would like to say that I've not been looking at clothes and dolls but well I have, so still

plenty of things calling me, so the selling goes on along side the clearing out.

So even with the heat, a lots been happening and moving on.

It was my youngest daughter's 40th on Friday, yes I know how is that possible with having such a young mother ! in the words of Barry Manilow, Could it be magic? . . . .

So we went for a visit on Saturday leaving very early in the morning to avoid the heat, had a lovely time with them all and also took three large boxes of toys that belonged to Clara when she was a baby and also toys that had belonged to my girls, Lego, Barbies, Ken's etc. So yet more things cleared and gone ! 

Wishing Lora and Merrick also a belated happy birthday.

Have a great week ahead with plenty of doll play and fun.

Dee

 

REFLECTION

 

SUNDAY SUNDAY

 

So another Sunday arrives, this one bright but cloudy after a day or two of very hot weather with the threat of thunderstorms that passed us by, although others were not so lucky.

The sorting, tidying, selling continues, although Gill and Tony came to lunch again this week and Tony kindly. along with Paul, put electric sockets into my doll studio, so I can finally have a light fitting !! Not only that but he also contented power up to the water pump for our small waterfall, so two long awaited jobs done with the help of the wonderful Tony.

Naturally Gill and myself stayed out the way chatting and getting lunch ready while they faffed about , ;) , and lots of doll talk was had.

The next day, Paul worked on getting the water flow correct on the stones and now it's all done and working well.

Meanwhile, I've been making decisions and finally agreed that my dropleaf oak table with the barley twist legs could be sold, which allowed me to move the big box of dvd's and my bigger box of wool that sits on top of it, from the middle of the props store to the side. Which finally allowed me to actually walk unimpeded from the door to the back wall.

More sorting of boxes /bags was done, along with some listing of items for sale. 

Today's headliner is our very own Hattie Bonham Carter Owen. It took a lot of arm twisting to get her to try on this dress for me, which I think suits her really well.

But she's having none of it and is now the photos have been taken, off searching for 'her' clothes to wear!

The new no navel boy has settled on the name Ruairi ! He had to chose the Celtic spelling , to keep me on my feet ! But at least he now does have a name.

His arrival seems to have stirred things up ! But more about that in a month or so!!!

On the selling front, things are going along slowly but are going. I decided to sell some of my Ruby red dolls and just keep a couple. So two, I'm pleased to say, have already sold and another's just been listed and I have a decision to make on which of the other two Forever Friends dolls go , then I can list that one. 

So things are changing although slowly, but since I still have enough to fill a small barn, the sorting, deciding and changing around continues but the patio table is starting to reappear from beneath the boxes and bags! 

The katkin book and bag on top contain 85 paperback books I'm selling which are too big and heavy to post, so could take some time to go. I think I'll have to move them into the old workshop to get them out the way ! I think this whole table may even be cleared by the end of this week !! 

That AG bike will be going on the market later today and hopefully won't stick around long, so more space.

Now I would like to say that I've not bought anything but I'd be lying ! Carried away by making a few sales, I did splash out on one of Petrana's sunsuits that I had in my watching and I've been chatting to Ginny but at least these are clothes that can be easily put away in the drawer and not large props that fill the space up ! 

So that's been my week, now I'm off to sort out that bike for sale and maybe move those books into the workshop, a Sasha doll lovers work is never done ! 

Have a lovely healthy happy doll filled week

Dee 

GETTING THAT SHOT !

 

Sometimes getting the shot you want involves many attempts ! I wanted the girls to have the beautiful large purple Alliums , given to me by Gill and Tony when they came for lunch, to appear behind them in the shot.

The alliums are very tall, so I used the little two drawer chest to stand them on. 

These are before any cutting and carving of the photo, so in all their glory !

b

So tried without the drawers to stand on and the alliums are way too high.

Next up I tried it with just the actual drawers, turned upside down and stacked on each other.

Much better the flowers were now around the dolls heads.

Much better position.

A little cutting and carving and the final photo is achieved.

b

A bit more tweaking and another photo, this time the close up. 

A SUNDAY IN JUNE

 

Sunday so soon ! and not only that the first one this month ! So far the weather for June has been choppy , one minute nice warm sunshine and then clouds and also some decent rain ! Good for the garden at least !

Not so helpful when it comes with a cooler breeze.

We had friends over to lunch in the week so a nice relaxing day and plans were made to put an electricity connection over to my studio, so that's hopefully happening this coming week ! I could finally have a light fitting after about five years ? 

I am continuing to be busy sorting out the doll studio and the props store.

re ! Posh old names I know but that's what they are and doll cabin doesn't have the same ring to it ! ;)

However one of the things I decided this week was that the dolls house was in the way ! I did not want to put it back on the chest of drawers again and lose the bedroom setup. So after having a sort out down in the props store, I found enough space for it to move down there while I sell it.

It is a shame to have to sell but it needs to be in the house where it can be seen but there is no room inside, so it's on the market hoping for a new home where someone will love it and enjoying setting up the rooms etc.

I also decided that my Maileg castle could go ! I can tell you know if that castle had been Sasha sized It would be staying but since it's mouse sized it's on it's way.

That reminds me that a good few years back I did have plans for Paul to build me a castle tower for the Sasha's in the garden but there was no easy place to put it where it would look okay, so that plan withered away. Plus now we have the folly, which can double up as the Sasha/ Gregor castle ...

Today's headliner is Ashley, wearing a new Ginny belted dress.  I have to say these dresses of Ginny's look great on the no navel's and I am hoping she'll be adding some new fabric's to the line.

Now I have been selling lots of bits and pieces. A few of the props have gone, a white 50's chest of drawers, some more shoes, a new Sindy doll, some other soft toys and one castle hall and the kitchen tower ! So half the castle's already been bought and is boxed up ready and waiting for collection.

I also finally found the Gotz Angela's original outfit, in a shopping bag in the cupboard in the props store ! No idea why it was there but must have been one of my quick tidy ups but because the back went all the down into there it was a pure fluke I found it ! So I asked the lady who bought her ,if she wanted to buy it, she did not, so I sold it on ebay today.

However I do have to confess I also bought a chest of drawers !

This was the chest of drawers I sold and 

I mean look at that bow front and mahogany finish ! and the perfect size for the dolls, even though I intended it to be used for storing small items, it will make a good background piece.

I also sold a Sasha, the brunette short haired girl, I did try to resist but it was a case of if I sold her I could use the money on another Sasha I really wanted to buy , having been watching her a while. So alas she had to go. If I'd thought about selling the castle earlier, she may have got to stay ! 

So things are definitely moving both in the studio and the props store, I may even be able to get into both places without having to move things out the way soon ! 

On that note I will wish you all a happy healthy fun filled , doll filled week ahead.

Dee

READY FOR THAT HOLIDAY

 

Valentine is feeling full of the holiday spirit ! 

He nabbed the new set of boys togs by Ginny of A Passion for Sasha that arrived a couple of days back. 

Grabbed one of the summer backpacks , slipped on some Rosie Bloom sandals and he is ready to Rock n Roll . . .

"Are you off camping? " Mum asks with a smile

" Mother ! " exclaims Valentine , giving her his most superior stare " One does not go camping dressed thus! One goes to the Cote d'Azur and sleeps on a yacht , don't ya know "

"Well good luck doing that " laughs mum 

" One can but dream " sighed Valentine " meanwhile I will go for a promenade around this glorious garden of ours. Toodle Pip old thing  "