My Doll Club Raffle Project

For several months, I have been working on my Fashion doll club Raffle project. 

Every year, my Fashion doll club has a Raffle to support their big Christmas get together. This year they will be going to the Jefferson Hotel in downtown Richmond Virginia for a big High Tea on December 3rd. Unfortunately, that is my husband's birthday, so I will not be attending. 

Since it is very expensive, the club usually hosts a raffle of doll items or custom dolls or doll related items donated by the members in October at our really big Halloween themed meeting. Halloween is one of our 'special' get togethers with food, dress up, and a cool presentation- the Raffle! where we buy tickets to bid on what item we want. Everyone is guaranteed one item to take home. 

So last year we divided up holidays and I was one of the people who got Christmas.  I knew immediately what I wanted to do- a Christmas themed market stall with food, and Barbie and Ken in matching sweater outfits. 

My project is named Santa's Christmas Cookie Market Stall

Ken and Barbie are 'glammed' out. Ken is a Fashionista Ken and he has been 'customized' so his hair is white , coated with glitter to match the dogs, and his pants are sweater pants edged with fur. His sneakers have been glammed up with swarvorski crystals to match the doggies' collars and Barbie's shoes. 

Barbie's dress and cape are matching sweater material to match Ken's pants, her hat matches her shoes. Her cape is edged with matching fur like Ken's pants too. The dogs were painted white and flocked with glitter to match Ken's hair. 

The market stall was done in forest green and dark red. I made all of the cookie boards, the Yule log cake and the red velvet cake on the stand and the peppermint sticks and peppermints in the glass jars. 

It took me about three months off and on between my schedules of work to complete this. At first I was going to use another type of market stall and then I nixed that idea, and found these two items which I thought might be better. I was going to add a third doll, but decided to stick to two when dressing these two was an ongoing two month project. It was actually easier to finish the backdrop wall and counter, and foods than the dolls. I finished up, thankfully before September and only just recently thought up the name. Our meetings are so detailed and in depth that I have a TON of items to carry to this meeting and I usually like to have this project done way before its due date. Considering all I have to do with my Ebay store Pumpkin Hill Studios and how much I have to list each day, doing anything creative has to be literally squeezed in on free time. 

Hope you enjoy the pictures, this was a fun project to do. 
Lisa

My French Fashion doll Annabelle...

I belong to a French Fashion doll group that has its own message board 
French Fashion Doll Sewing Club and it is hosted on the IOS message boards. Many groups, like the Hitty Girls   (for those that collect Hitty Dolls) are also hosted here on the IOS boards because they find it easier than Facebook to control as not everyone does Facebook nowadays and more and more people are moving away from that brand of social media. Can't say I blame them. 

Recently, the group decided to do something called Sparrow Post, based on Tasha Tudor's Sparrow Post where the dolls will write to their dolly pen pal. The group is a group of people who collect French Fashion dolls, both antique and reproduction, and sew for them. Mostly 16 inch, 18- 21 inch - sometimes larger, and smaller ones like Mignonettes and Bluettes- there is a seperate group for those dolls. Mostly French fashion and some German ladies. Many share their latest sewing projects and the patterns that go around in the Antique Doll Collector, Doll News and at the latest workshops at the conventions. 

Annabelle, my 12 inch French Fashion doll which is a reproduction Francois Gaultier , is currently corresponding with Arlette, a French Fashion lady Barrois. 

Here is the diorama I set up for Annabelle to write her correspondence in, like a proper lady should. Her writing / or the room that will hold her desk at the Hilltop Cottage dollhouse is still under construction . 

Shown here are Marigold Finch, of Finch Express. Marigold delivers all of the correspondence amongst the dolls to and fro, and she is a very busy bird! She will take Annabelle's letters to Arlette to the other Sparrows to deliver to Sparrow post, post -haste. Dolls have a much more efficient delivery system than we humans. (Marigold is named after the Sparrow in the novel, Stuart Little) 

I hope you have enjoyed the diorama.

Now for the props and credits-
Walls- scrapbook paper on top from Michael's- bottom is spray painted with grey spray paint.
Wood stripwood stained with stain and glued onto foamcore walls. 
Windows cut out of foamcore and window panes made out of thin stripwood painted white
Curtains made out of Halloween cheesecloth available at dollar store or Michael's
Furniture- desk, chair and table- Bespaq, discontinued
Statues- purchased at local auction 
birdcage- purchased in jewelry findings at Michael's
Postal box- bank 
Bird- artisan item created by Patricia Cabrerea of Woolytales Miniatures 
Rug & poodle- dollhouse miniature item
Pugdog- Barbie scale dog 
Plants- Michael's 
teapot and teacup- Ruetters porcelain Peter Bunny rabbit purchased at Tuesday Morning
Picture- Souvenir framed picture purchased at Museum store in Williamsburg at the Visitor center bookstore 

Poppy Relaxes in the Bath...

Hi Folks. I have been awol for quite a while. I have been busy this whole month of September and just haven't had time to really do too much with my dolls even though I have been working on my doll club raffle, which is coming up next week and which I will show pics of here in a couple of days. Right now I want to leave you with pics of one of my Moods Poppy Parker dolls relaxing in her bath . This photo came about in a Flicker Tag Game challenge. 

Poppy is having a bit of bubbly in her bubble bath...
The Statues I purchased at an auction in a lot, really cheap. I have been on the lookout for statues like this as I have been , for a long time, planning to do a museum scene. They also look great in a mansion as well, set up on marble stops or blocks of wood as art pieces and focal points. I wanted to use my silver tub I had, I have two tubs. This one came from Walmart as a Christmas present filled with soaps and lotions wrapped with cellophane and I knew it would fit my dolls. I have kept it ever since. I have the other one from Michael's that looks more like a regular tub. I wanted this bath to have shades of white, black and silver in time for Halloween, but more chic. I made the nightie over the chair. The bubbles in the tub are a piece of small bubblewrap from my shipping stash. The plants are from Michael's. The walls are made of foamcore and the curtains are cheesecloth, that Halloween cheesecloth that you can buy at the dollar store. 

I will have more blog/diorama posts coming your way....Happy Fall! Lisa