"I once had a pretty doll, dears....The prettiest doll in the world."
Charles Kingsley
You would think with 4 daughters that I would have at least one lover of dolls, but that is not the case. Over the years I have purchased some lovely dolls for them, only to have them sit like lonely wallflowers in a toy chest.
A number of years ago, I just gave up and decided that since it truly was me who was the doll lover in the family that I would just buy them for me :)
Last month I stumbled upon Jenny's page via the LIttle Cotton Rabbit page and instantly fell in love with her Garden Warrior dolls. When she posted the Lady Beetle, I was smitten......I LOVED her so much that I made her mine.
Jenny sent me the drawing that inspired the doll as well and it is beautiful. The drawing itself is definitely frame worthy. She is an incredibly talented artist.
I also purchased her Garden Warrior pattern so that I can give one a try, if I can ever find a few spare hours to sit behind my sewing machine again. How does life manage to get so busy?
Don't you just love the detail? I know I do for sure! I'm thinking that my garden warrior will be a Queen Bee...no surprise there...(grin)
...and then there is "Sweet Annie" or creepy Annie as Hannah and Courtney like to refer to her as...LOL. I love to watch the expressions on their friends faces when they walk into the living room and see her perched on my Norm Hall spinning chair....priceless!
The other day Courtney put her phone with some creepy music playing under her dress........I tell you it was rich....haha!
I keep telling them, she is not creepy, she is "sweet Annie", but every time I hear the girls comment on the creepiness it makes me secretly chuckle.....I like that Annie is a wee bit creepy...
Hmmm...I wonder what that says about me...LOL
They are delightful! For many years, I was a dollmaker...created my own patterns and made one of a kind dolls, which I sold all over the country. They were such fun. I used mostly vintage textiles to create them. The best part of making them was seeing the delight that their new owners had when they knew they had to take one home. Dolls are amazing and wonderful and it is always so cool to see different designers.
Posted by: Lynne | Monday, January 26, 2009 at 03:20 PM
Hey there! I think you stopped by my blog earlier...which led me to yours...and I I scrolled through your posts I thought...you might like a workshop I am offering on Cloth and Clay Dolls. http://clothclaydolls.ning.com/
I do not usually "solicit" business...forgive me if you think I am rude.
Take care,
Jane
Posted by: Jane | Sunday, January 18, 2009 at 07:57 PM
Those are wonderful!
Posted by: tiennie | Sunday, January 11, 2009 at 08:42 PM
Oh Kim,
I wanted my daughter to love dolls too.
There is one that i gave her that plays music that she loves.
But like yourself,i see that I am the true Doll Lover.
Posted by: Mary E.Dadds | Saturday, January 10, 2009 at 07:30 PM
I LOVE the new doll -- so precious. My daughter was never into dolls either.
Posted by: Kathy | Saturday, January 10, 2009 at 02:00 PM
I have one of Jen's Garden Warriors also - they are truly a work of art!!
Posted by: Lesley | Saturday, January 10, 2009 at 08:50 AM
Lovely!
I am particularly enamored with The Lady Beetle! So sweet!
Wonderful post!
Posted by: Leah | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 11:37 PM
Hi Woolen Rabbit!
How nice to stop by and read lovely things about my little doll! Like I said I was hesitant to sell her in the first place because I loved her so much...but you love just as much so I'm happy she found a loving home.
I'll try and list some more Garden Warriors as soon as I can. Just keep popping back. I try to update the blog regularly so there should at least be something new to read while you wait for the Warriors to hit the store!
Cheers
Jen
Posted by: frazzy dazzles | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 09:27 PM
Love the lady beetle. Annie is slightly strange but I think it's the eyes that give the creepy look. Love the music under the skirt that's a great idea to try here...
Posted by: GailR | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 08:38 PM
I love the Lady Beetle and Sweet Annie............I know what you mean about dolls. I used to give them as gifts and never got one for me. That's all changed now.
Posted by: Cindy D | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 03:01 PM
Love both dolls, though I have to agree that Annie is more than a little creepy...
I'm a dollmaker, and had two daughters who were both seriously uninterested in dolls. *sigh*
Posted by: gayle | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 11:45 AM
Love your Lady Beetle warrior. The Bee one will be awesome.
For those unable to find her Etsy shop- click Jenny's link to her blog Frazzy Dazzles (the first one above) and then to her Etsy link in her side bar. If you then go to items sold you'll see the 3 Warriors there.
Posted by: Manise | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 11:23 AM
Kim- Most folk art is decidedly not "cute" but primitive.
It's all a question of taste. Have you seen my son's turd doll?
Posted by: Lorraine | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 10:54 AM
The lady beetle doll is absolutely adorable. I think she'd make me smile every time I looked at her.
But I agree with the girls. Annie's creepy.
Posted by: Cheryl S. | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 09:59 AM
I love your new friends! I went immediately to the site (left yours and came back!), but I didn't see where the patterns were. I'll find them. Cute, cute.
Posted by: Debbie | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 09:53 AM
Fun post! I like your new doll - she's so whimsical. And I can totally see a bee doll.
I like the creepy music under the dress. I can just hear everyone laughing about it!
Posted by: Beth | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 09:14 AM
Annie reminds me of Coraline by Neil Gaiman. No wonder your daughters think she is creepy.
Posted by: Rachel | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 08:24 AM
Your post made me think of my grandmother and how she made a lovely Raggedy Ann and Andy for me when I was about 7.
Several years ago Andy's black cloth foot was disintegrating so I carefully ripped his foot off and used it to make a new foot pattern and replaced his feet. I also unstuffed both dolls, washed them and restuffed them with modern fiber-fill. I'm so glad I did that.
I have one daughter and she was never interested in playing with dolls either.
Posted by: sue | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 08:16 AM
Oh yes I like sweet Annie, too! She's a little well, maybe not creepy, but messy. At one time I collected lady bugs and the Garden Warrior would have been so tempting!
Posted by: margene | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 07:36 AM
I'm glad you found Jenny and her dolls...it sounds like you are a match made in heaven! :)
Posted by: Ruinwen | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 07:27 AM
Your dolls are great but I think Annie looks kind of creepy, too.
Posted by: Carole | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 07:19 AM
I have had three girls who like dolls sometimes but not true lovers of dolls. I like sweet Annie, and I guess the fact she might just be a bit creepy says that no-one can be sweet all the time.
Posted by: alison | Thursday, January 08, 2009 at 03:30 AM
Hi Woolen Rabbit,
Your link to Jenny did not work and I just need to find more. Thank you for showing your dolls to us. I love Sweet Annie. She is my kind of doll. My daughter wasn't a doll girl either so I know what you mean.
Sincerely, Lady Euphoria
Posted by: Lady Euphoria | Wednesday, January 07, 2009 at 10:09 PM