What Next?

My big misadventure for this week involved my purchase of my new iron, a Chi Professional Clothing Iron with a titanium-infused ceramic soleplate.

So here's what happened. Thursday evening, we had a neighborhood association meeting, our first since coming here. It was at the senior center, so close we could walk, so we took a flashlight and walked. It was cool, and I thought I should wear my jacket, but I didn't want to take my big purse, because we were walking. I took my wallet, though, putting it into the inner pocket of my jacket. When we came back, we needed to eat, and I didn't think of the wallet in my jacket until I was at Walmart the next day, trying to check out with a big load of things...with my purse and no wallet! I had my checkbook, my passport and a copy of my expired Utah driver's license in my phone, leftover from our trip to Europe in 2015 (in case of pickpockets). I also had been planning to use a nice gift card I had for part of the purchase (the iron). I had forgotten that I had to activate it online, and didn't have any luck trying to activate it on my phone. (Don't you hate those "Captcha" puzzles?) I decided to try to pay by check for the whole lot.

I have to say, they (Walmart) tried everything they could to accommodate me, but in the end, I had to go home and get my credit card and ID. While there, I logged on to the gift card website and activated my card. Whew! When I got back to Walmart, I had to go to Customer Service to get my cart full of stuff, which had already been rung up. There was a line at Customer Service all the way back to the door. It took half an hour to get up to the front of the line. They happily took my gift card, which I used to pay for my new iron, but told me I had to put in my pin. I had forgotten about that. I was very thankful to find it in my purse with the packaging that the card came in. (A reward for being the kind of person who puts trash into her purse, rather than dropping it anywhere.) I took my purchases and headed back out again. I went home and collapsed on the couch. (The number of the check I had tried to use was 666.) I have to chalk it up to lack of sleep. Or could it be....

Billy is in transit. I didn't have too many boys' clothes among my stash of doll clothes, but I did have a couple of pairs of brand-new pants from the seconds at Silly Monkey. They were only seconds because they had accidentally been made too slim for American Girl and American Boy dolls, but they fit Gotz Happy Kidz just fine and were nicely made. I had a grey-and-white striped T-shirt, too, and some sneakers and soccer shoes, although the girls had worn the T-shirt and shoes. (I won't tell Billy if you don't.) I ordered a soccer uniform and a red T-shirt from Luvvbugg. Now I have this for Billy:

I also finished the cardigan for Billy.

It's part of a set, and I'm working on the hat now. It's Jacknitss Comfy Cardigan Set. I really like her patterns, although when I make this again, I will knit the sleeves in the round. You knit the sleeves first, then the body up to where the sleeves join the body, then you put the sleeves in and continue. The first few rows with the sleeves are a little fiddly and tight, even with the underarm sleeve seams open, but I use two circulars at that point with the front of the body and front half of the sleeves on one circular needle and the back of the body and back half of the sleeves on the other.

I will need to make Billy more clothes, or the readers of The Doll's Storybook will notice that he's always wearing the same clothes. I found this pattern during my ill-fated trip to Walmart. It has just about everything I need for Billy, plus a dress and a skating costume I think Billy would not want to wear. It even has slippers and a backpack. The doll on the envelope is a little slimmer than American Girl dolls and maybe slightly more pudgy than the Gotz Happy Kidz, but I think I can get it to work.

The story for last week was about planting bulbs. Here's a photo "teaser." The link is below, or you can go to thedollsstorybook.blogspot.com and read them all. The latest is always the first one to come up.

This week's story is about Charlotte's birthday, which was Saturday. It was a lot of work to set up, but I was happy with the result. It comes out on Friday.

The Wisconsin grands got all the dolls together for a photo of the day before the first day of pre-school. They are mostly familiar faces and familiar outfits, too. Their dad sent me the photo by text. 

I did make some progress in my fiber studio. The closet is better organized than it was, but not very pretty, and I managed to get all my fiber-related books put away in this bookcase.

That pile of white pieces to the right of the bookcase is my sewing table from Connecting Threads. It's the Arrow Mod Squad Sewing Cabinet. It isn't put together yet. This week sort of got away from us, with several non-life-threatening health problems sending us on the search for a new doctor, whom we found and will see today. I'm hoping to get the loom put together this week.

In poodle news, Dusty has learned to let me have the ball back after he has fetched it. Usually he just tries to get me to get it from him. Now I can still wear him out when I can't get out for a walk. I do wish he would learn to use the dog door. Rocky has demonstrated repeatedly, but Dusty just wants us to open the human door and let him in or out.

We're still waiting for a plumber to hook up our washer and dryer. We're still missing 2,500 lbs of household goods. I could give you a list of items we have part of but can't use alone. Billy will probably arrive before our stuff.

Be sure to vote, if you haven't already!

What's on my needles: The hat for Billy, part of the Comfy Cardigan Set.

What's on my Sparrow 15: Still sitting in my future sewing room.

What's in my hoop: Still the Spring Flowers quilt, no progress this week.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: Planting bulbs. This week's story will be about Charlotte's birthday. I'm scheduling for the next week now. 

What's on my iPad/iPhone: The Ladies of Ivy Cottage by Julie Klassen. I've made some progress with the story.

What's in my wine glass: A really nice wine, Charles Shaw 2017 California Cabernet Sauvignon made with organic grapes. Very nice value, and better for the environment.

What's my tip of the week: When you buy produce with stickers on the individual pieces of fruit and vegetables, take the stickers off as soon as you get back to your kitchen, unless you are going to peel them. After sitting in the refrigerator, they become soft and the paper melts, making it difficult to remove.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Warm Fuzzies While Doing for Others

Buddy's sweater vest is done, and Dude's is on the needles.

I adapted a doll sweater pattern I like, the same one I used for Hannah's Fair Isle Cardigan. You can find information on the pattern and how I adapted it on the project page for Buddy's sweater vest.

Both sets of dress pants and shirts are finished, and the boys got to show them off in a "skit" they put together for cancer-awareness month (not just for breast cancer, but others as well). We took part in a knit-along on Ravelry in the Götz Doll Lover's forum on Ravelry called "Think Pink 2016," where we had to post something specific each day, always in pink or with pink on it somewhere.

Dolly produced and directed a scene where Dude and Hannah played the parents of a child who needed surgery for cancer. (I chose Wilms' tumor, because the treatment involves surgery, and it occurs in children.) Buddy played the child's pediatrician, and Gabi was the surgeon. It gave me a chance to try on the doctor's coat, stethoscope and scrubs I bought for Daphne Jr. for Christmas. The medical outfits came from Home Sew. Hannah's purse also came from there and made an appearance in an earlier post in the knit-along. All the shoes in the photo came from The Doll Clothes Store.

Some participants decided to work entirely from stash and donate what they would have spent to cancer research. I decided to do that, too, since I have so much stash. The boys' pants were made using the Boot Cut Jeans pattern from Pixie Faire. The shirts are based on the "Cowgirl Shirt" from Best Doll Clothes Book. I just left off the yoke overlays on the front and back. The bow ties are improvised from red ribbon and fasten in the back with a tiny piece of Velcro.

In the Frog Prince group on Ravelry, we decided that it looked like a scene from General Hospital, and Buddy and Dude were identical twins separated at birth who somehow both ended up in the same hospital, both concerned about the same child.

This was the week of the "Overall Ball" for our local Habitat for Humanity. We had our photos taken holding some tiny tools (I have a spanner, DH has a hammer), and the photo was superimposed on a photo of some Park City houses in the old part of town.

Of course, the main reason we were there was to help promote the silent auction of Lauren and Zoey, who joined in because we ended up with so many clothes. Here's how Lauren looked displayed with the suitcase and clothes. I had a slideshow of photos of the clothes that were included playing on my iPad set up on an easel next to the display.

Zoey had just as many clothes as Lauren. A couple of Ravelry friends sent me extra outfits, which helped up the price.

Together they brought in about $350 for Habitat for Humanity. The dolls, suitcases and shoes were donated as well as the handmade clothes, so all the money goes to Habitat.

Lauren took a selfie with Zoey when they said goodbye at my house before the party. We're thinking about doing this again next year, but with one of the dolls being a boy. (Lauren and Zoey are Creatology dolls from Michael's)

This week also brought our absentee ballots. Our county decided to go to all mail-in ballots this year. We always get a mail-in ballot, but usually have the option of going to the polls to exchange it for a regular ballot. We consider voting an obligation, so we never miss it.

Our canine warm fuzzies are back to normal, unsupervised play and long walks. Dusty is completely recovered from his "reconstructive surgery" (not performed by Gabi) two weeks ago, and Rocky is now at five weeks after having his hip returned to its socket with no further injury.

One final mention of donating to charity: If anyone needs magazine subscriptions, candy or nuts, Daphne is selling them in her online store to raise money for Girl Scouts. (She's a Daisy.) One caution, though. The candy and nuts are expensive to ship.

What's on my needles: Dude's sweater vest. The “So-not-my-palette Cardigan” second sleeve is still on hold. 

What's on my Featherweight: Doll Jacket.

What's on my wheel: Still put away for now.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Still listening to music for Park City Singers. On my Kindle app, I've finished reading Corinna: A Sweet and Clean Historical Romance by Lauren Royal. It was good. I'm still picking out something new to read.

What's in my wine glass: Corbet Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon. Always a nice choice.

What's my tip of the week: When making tiny items, such as doll clothes, it's usually easier to completely line them, rather than make tiny facings.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.

All Dolled Up

It’s always busy with a puppy in the house. However, I did get a little knitting done and some Christmas shopping.

I ordered two boy dolls for our older grandsons, both four years old. The dolls came from My Sibling and My Pal Dolls. They are identical. I’ll be dressing them both. I’m calling them Buddy and Dude for now.

It’s an interesting company. They have a sheltered workshop setting to employ disabled people and to help them get work experience.

Here’s a look at the boy doll alongside Dolly. (Buddy was happy to strip to the altogether, but Dolly insisted on keeping her panties on.)

Here's what Buddy had to take off, besides the hoodie:

Dolly (a Madame Alexander doll) is a little better quality for less money, but I like supporting the work the My Sibling company does, and their boy dolls look like boys, not like girls with short hair. They are similar in size. Dolly has a slightly larger chest (like another Dolly we know) but narrower shoulders than Buddy. Dolly has longer legs and a shorter torso. Knitting patterns should be interchangeable, but some alterations may be needed for sewn garments. Like real kids.

Of course, Daphne should have a new doll for Christmas, so I’ve ordered her a Götz Hannah doll, and it should be here in the next couple of days. This is the one I ordered, the Hannah Loves Hairstyling.

She's coming from the European Union. I hope her passport and visa are in order. Last I heard, she had landed in San Francisco. I'm sure they're taking good care of her.

Speaking of dolls (we were, weren’t we?), one of my Ravelry friends from Canada made six outfits for Lauren the Habitat for Humanity doll and included some high-top sneakers. Here they are, modeled by Lauren by Creatology, sold at Michael's:

I handed Lauren and her wardrobe—now quite extensive—over to the person who “commissioned” me to make the outfits. She will be part of the silent auction for the Park City Habitat for Humanity’s Overall Ball in October. Dolly and Gabi have talked with her on the phone, and she is fine and looking forward to her permanent home.

Vintage Stitchers met at Marilyn’s on Saturday. We had a nice variety of stitching projects to look at. Julie had just received these great cross-stitch pieces back from the framer.

Janet has finished her Washington Park Shawl. This is the one I made last year. She found it challenging,  especially the lace border, but she did great!

Diane is working on this scarf, the Candleglow Scarf. She’s using Knit Picks Chroma fingering in “Vermont.”

As for quilting, we had a nice assortment to look at. Carol is planning on appliquéing yo-yos on this yellow-and-gray quilt.

Barbara has finished this dragon fused-appliqué quilt top.

She also finished two redwork quilt tops

Marilyn is getting a whole new kitchen because of a cracked sink and a fire on the stove...long story…and just because. Before we left, she had us add to her “artwork” on her old cabinets.

I can’t leave you without some puppy cuteness. We have started hiking/walking with Dusty, now that he should be fully immunized. Here is how he responds to “come.” (You can see Rocky is responding, but he isn't as fast.)

…and just to show, he may still have “accidents” on the kitchen floor (getting fewer all the time), he is reliable on the couch.

What's on my needles: The “So-not-my-palette Cardigan” still working on the first sleeve.

What's on my Featherweight: Getting ready to make doll clothes for two boys and a girl. The girl should arrive this week.

What's on my wheel: It’s hard to spin with a puppy underfoot….

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Listening to Ashes of Roses, from Tales of the Latter Kingdoms by Christine Pope from Audible. Not my favorite, but an interesting story nonetheless. Not sure I’ll listen to more by this author. It might be mostly the narrator, very stilted and overly dramatic, but I’m trying to pretend it’s an interpreter for a language in a kingdom far away. On the Kindle app I’m reading Ella: An Everland Ever After Tale. It was a little confusing at first listening to one Cinderella story and reading another at the same time, but they are different enough that I soon sorted them out. I like Ella fairly well. I really like that the “prince charming” character is a disabled person, an amputee. You don’t see that every day.

What's in my wine glass: Frontera Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot by Concha y Toro, vintage 2015 (can’t let it get stale). The big bottle.

What's my tip of the week: In knitting lace, lifelines are your friends. Diane has had trouble with having to rip out and pick up stitches on her Candleglow Scarf. Janet knew from her experience with the Washington Park Shawl that lifelines can be useful when knitting lace, so we had a discussion about lifelines. I know of two ways to make them:

1. When you come to a row/round you think would be a good start-over place, you run a yarn needle with some contrast (preferably non-sticky) yarn through all the stitches on the needle. Leave some ends hanging out both ends or tie the ends together if working in the round.
2. If you’re knitting with interchangeable needles that have a hole for the little key that allows you to tighten the needle tip to the cable, you can thread a heavy thread (button thread or even dental floss works well) through that hole, leaving a long enough tail to extend the length of your knitting. Knit the row, and then untie the end and leave some ends hanging out both ends or tie the ends together if working in the round.

If you find you've made a mistake and have to rip out, you can rip to the lifeline, pick up the stitches and you're off and running. (It's a good idea to make a note in your pattern indicating where you're placed a lifeline.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Sweat Shop

Poor dolly is nekkid. All her clothes have gone to her as-yet-unnamed counterpart in Wisconsin. She looked good in the outfits before she got stripped down, though.

The Aran pullover I had so much trouble with came out nicely in the end. It’s the”Fisherman Knit Sweater” from Best Doll Clothes Book by Joan Hinds and Jean Becker. It’s a good pattern, but the authors refer you to other sweaters in the book for shaping, but not until after they tell you how to make the pattern. If you want to make this sweater, I recommend reading my notes on the Ravelry page for the project to avoid the pitfalls I encountered. The yarn is Knit Picks Stroll Sport in “Bare.”

The skirt came from McCalls Crafts 2506, only I put elastic in the waist instead of cord.

Dolly is ready for hiking in her hiking outfit. The shirt came from the pattern and the shorts from the book (see links above).

For the hat, I used the pillbox hat brim for the sides of the hat and the hat top from the pattern McCalls 2506. I used the witch hat brim from the doll clothes book, only I made the witch hat brim 1” shorter all around. I made two hat tops; put one inside-out inside the other and sewed them to the brim, which was two brims sewed right-sides together, turned right-side out and top stitched with concentric circles 1/4" apart.

Dolly's slippers came from this Ravelry pattern. I used Swish Worsted in “Lotus” and added a pom-pom to the top front of each slipper.

I improvised Dolly's mittens from this pattern, but knit it in the round with slightly thicker yarn, in this case, Swish Worsted in Hollyberry.

They’re really thick, but the package was going out Saturday, and the thicker yarn went fast. This was important, because I finished them about 9:00 PM Friday night, then still had to wrap all the packages going in the box to DD and her family. The mittens have a double-stranded crochet chain cord connecting them, which will go through the coat’s sleeves, so the doll doesn’t lose one in the snow.

Except for the boots, Dolly’s rain outfit was purchased online from The Doll Clothes Store in Silverton, Oregon. The boots came with Dolly. She nearly cried when she parted with them. I’ll have to make it up to her.

I packaged up the outfits in separate zipper bags, so it would be clear which things go together, in case that’s important. Here’s what it all looked like ready to ship. (That boxed outfit in the back was a freebie that came with Dolly. The second doll didn't come with it, so I sent that along, too.)

Poor Dolly really needs some clothes. I enjoy looking at her, so I will have to get on it when I have time. 

Vintage stitchers had their annual potluck holiday party/meeting on Thursday. Included in our show-and-tell was Julie’s album, which she had made as part of a class at Davidene’s in working with felt and embroidery. The album contains all her resource info.

Julie had finished the kitty she was making for her granddaughter, who picked out the colors for the cat and the dress.

Diane’s showed us this quilt top. She is going to put on a border, and she collected suggestions on how to deal with it.

Barbara was making floor pillows for her grandkids. You use a twin sheet folded lengthwise into a tube overlapping in back. Then you turn it right-side out and sew compartments to hold bed pillows.

Our first performance of the Park City Singers holiday concert was held Sunday evening. As always, it was fun. We still have one more performance to go this week. After that I can concentrate on the music for Christmas Eve.

Our annual holiday letter is in the mail. Whew!

Finally, we got more snow. I hope we can get out with the pups and do some snowshoeing soon. Everyone stay warm!

What's on my needles:  Only the Trickle Socks now.

What's on my Featherweight: Finished with doll clothes for now. Still sewing on the binding for my Crystal Stars and waiting on the last two blocks of the Kaleidoscope Quilt. After I clean up my fiber studio. It looks as if a tornado went through there. (I was the tornado.)

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Listening to Christmas and holiday music. Still reading The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer on the Nook app.

What's in my wine glass: Nathanson Creek Cabernet Sauvignon, with the frog on the label...of course. Based on my past, I see lots of frogging in my future.

What's my tip of the week: Precise cutting is so important when you’re quilting. If your fabric is about at dark as your cutting board, especially if it's the same color, it will be easier to see the edges for cutting if you turn it to the wrong side, which is usually lighter. Of course, this wouldn't work for homespun or batik, but it does for most other fabrics.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.