A Pink Outfit for a Kelly Doll

I just have to show again a closeup of this pink outfit I made for a Kelly Doll. I just think she is soo cute!
Here she is with her friends ready for a fun trip to the beach!
I found these dolls at a second-hand market and cleaned them up. I used crochet cotton I bought second hand from thrift shops to make their clothes.
This is my post for this week’s Pink Saturday hosted @ How Sweet the Sound.
Be sure to check out other pretty pinks @ Pink Saturday!
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Large Green Doily

I spent a beautiful sunny Sunday morning working on this, sitting outside in our courtyard when the sun finally decided to show itself, so I took the opportunity to work on my vitamin D deficiency!

This was meant to be a jug cover, but because I couldn’t use the recommended .75mm hook as it was just too small for me, using the 1.5mm meant the spaces in the doily were too big to make a jug cover. I used a variated green thread, which was amongst one of my op shop finds, and it makes a nice colour I think. Besides the Sunday morning, I also spent some of the Saturday and the Sunday evening to finish this off.

I used a pattern called ‘Chrysanthemum’ on page 52 in the book called “Crochet Covers for Jugs and Bowls” by B.R. Bolin, which I borrowed from my local library. I have taken so long in getting around to doing this green one, I extended my loan by a month, but I had to return the book the other day.

To be honest, I’m really not that into doilies. I certainly wouldn’t find use for many, just to protect a couple of furniture surfaces is all. But the reason I’m doing this is for practice. I think jug covers, on the other hand, are something much more practical, and environmentally healthy too, much more so than insect sprays and repellents. But my skill is just not fine enough to be able to make something that will keep insects out of a cup or bowl, so I have more work to do.

I didn’t want to iron this thread, as it feels like it has synthetic in it, so I just washed it in cold water with a little ‘Earth Choice’ dish liquid, then pat dry with a towel. I had a go at blocking as described @ Kitty and Me Designs. I guessed I’m supposed to stretch it out a little, the edges look better when I did that. All I used was a thick piece of recycled packing cardboard and some pins. I did find the centre, but it ended up a little off centre.  I started at the centre as recommended, working my way out to the edges. I let it air dry naturally, and I didn’t starch it because I just want to see how this would go. Another good blog post I found about this was @ Suzann’s Textilefusion. It definitely looks better after the blocking!

Now this one is finished, I’m thinking to try a different pattern which has smaller spaces in the centre, or perhaps I’m ready to try that smaller hook!

Tiny Pink Treasures

When I went to the Salvo’s store a couple of weeks a go with David, I picked up a couple of special pink treasures! This is my Pink Saturday post for this week, which is hosted by How Sweet the Sound!I had already looked on ebay for some miniature doll’s tea sets and found they were a bit overpriced for my very modest doll collection. I remember when I was little, I was given a couple of tiny doll’s tea sets. I’m really sad I haven’t been able to keep any of them. I did treasure them for a little while, but as a child I lost them or they broke. Then I saw this set for just $1! This tiny tea set is part of my Barbie’s Pink Tea Party setting.
Also at Salvos, David spotted this small bag of cheap crochet cotton. Well spotted, David! Most of you will know how expensive new crochet cotton can be, but I picked this up for a total of $2. I’m really keen on that unused ball of pink, it’s the perfect shade for something special! And it hasn’t even been used, what a bargain find! I’ve already made my first small pink doily with it, which I use as a doll’s coffee tablecloth.
Using the pink cotton, I also made these special tiny pink scuffs for the flat footed Barbie I gave my niece. They were very easy, I just pierced some black plastic vinyl with a large sewing needle, then used those holes to crochet tiny straps to form the top part of the shoe. Easy Peasy!
Thanks for stopping by for my Pink Saturday post this week, be sure to check out the other great pinks at How Sweet the Sound!
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My selected highlights from this week’s party

• the most gorgeous pink shoes I’ve ever seen, complimented by a well placed tattoo @ Do The Shoes Match My Purse?
• beautiful pinks, included a doll in knitted pink and pink crochet edging @ Miss Bee’s Haven
• a special wedding blog party to look forward to @ Angelic Accents
• Pinkalicious flowers @ Simply Susan!

Barbie’s Pink Tea Party

The pink dress I made especially for today’s Pink Tea Party could very well be the most beautiful thing I’ve made so far! I think my Barbie is very pleased to have something so nice to wear to the party today, which is to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of Pink  Saturday and is hosted at How Sweet the Sound.

The vintage doll’s cane furniture is the first thing I’ve ever bought from Ebay about two weeks ago. I remember when I was a little girl some of my friends had these but I didn’t, and when I saw them on Ebay I just had to grab it! There was also a four piece lounge set for sale with normal chairs instead of the peacock chairs, but because it was my very first ebay purchase, someone else bid at the very last minute so I lost! I didn’t make the same mistake on the peacock chairs though, and got them for $16 including postage. Probably a little on the expensive side for my modest doll collection as I’m not too serious about it, but I do believe the seller when they said this cane set is about 40 years old! I think it’s a very special thing.

Using a 2.5mm hook and a small ball of baby pink yarn, I started the doll’s dress on Monday afternoon and finished midday Tuesday, so it took less than one day. This is not the first dress I’ve made like this, although I think it’s an improvement on the orignal because it crosses over at the back so you can’t see her knickers – if she is wearing any! The Barbie dresses I make are inspired by a dress I’ve kept and treasured from my childhood which my mother tells me was made by my Nanna Pam. You can’t tell when she is sitting down, but you can pinch the skirt to make pleats appear. I am so tickled pink I could manage to make something as pretty as this!

In an attempt to preserve the doll’s hair as long as possible, I try and keep it tied up in a little snood. Anyone who has collected dolls knows how synthetic hair can ruin over time. But the pretty pink dress needed it’s own hat, so I decided to give making a bonnet a go! I looked on google for images of crochet doll bonnets, but there were not many that I could see. I remember a knitted bonnet I wore as a young child which folded neatly into a square, so I made one up kind of like that. I didn’t follow a pattern at all, and used the same stitches as in the skirt of the pink dress.

The tiny coffee table needed a pink doily, don’t you think? This is my first completed proper doily and it took me between 2 to 4 hours I think, finishing it last Thursday morning. I used a pattern in a book I borrowed from my local library on Monday called “101 Easy Scrap Crochet Projects“. The pattern for this doily is on page 40-41.

This doll’s setting would not be complete without a tiny doll’s teaset but when I looked on ebay for those I decided they were too expensive. But when David took me to the Salvo’s store last Saturday I saw this set for just $1! That was more like it I thought, but didn’t notice until I got to the counter that the teapot has been broken and glued back together. Oh well, I don’t think Barbie minds! And the tiny teddies don’t drink tea anyway. The cheeky things have hidden a big bottle of liquor to sip during today’s party, those Party Animals!!! A good thing too, because there is only one teacup!

I hope you enjoyed reading about my special pink tea party!
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For more pinkness check out today’s special anniversary of Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound.

Highlights from this week’s party

• a truly magical and artistic tribute to Beverly’s Pink Universe @ Heart of a Wizardess
• gorgeous pinks like pink shoes and pink chandeliers @ Enchanted Revelries
• images of a tiny tiny vintage doll with crochet dress, hat and knickers @ Connie Eyberg Originals

Women's Creative Centre, Greenslopes and Lifeline Store, Mt Gravatt

Last Wednesday I managed to get myself along to a craft workshop organised by the Women’s Creative Centre in Greenslopes. I post every Wednesday to help motivate me to write about getting out of the house. Included are some photos of things I bought when David took me to the Lifeline shop at Mt Gravatt the previous Sunday, like this cute little garden charm we now have sitting on our garden outdoor table.

It was a challenge to even find out about this craft group in the first place, as I’ve been looking on the internet for a while and hadn’t found anything local. I only happened to be told about this group when I asked at the Kingston Butter Factory craft shop if they held lessons. After searching the net for “Creative Women’s Centre” I found one short page as part of some listing site which had precious little information, just an email address. So I wrote to the email address and got sent a document that I couldn’t read because I didn’t have the software. Luckily, David helped me download it so I could read a little more. Last Saturday David drove me out to Greenslopes to see the place, as I wasn’t going to go by myself without ‘casing the joint’ first! I plucked up the courage to speak to two ladies in the shop about going along to a lesson.

The lessons, or workshop which cost only $4.50, is not held at the craft shop but in another room in the shopping centre. It was nervous for me to walk into a strange room with strange people, its a pity they kept the window blinds closed. One lady went to close the blinds because she ‘didn’t want people looking at us’. I think that’s a shame because it makes it harder for new people. I’m really glad I went to the craft group, and it went for two hours which was just the right length of time. I fit right in with my wonderfully perfect cane sewing basket which I got second-hand for an amazing $3 from the Lifeline shop last Sunday.

I learnt a new way of starting and ending my crochet work, which is great. I also talked with the instructor about tension and how to better judge which wool and hooks I should be using for certain projects. I had a go at an Irish Rose and I got a copy of the pattern, which is great. I also talked about the bolero I want to make, ending up changing my mind about which wool to use. There was a lot of inspiration for me to get going on several projects, I just don’t know which to start next! I’ll be going along again today, taking my patterns and cottons to ask about making doilies and to try and use up my pile of wool … which doesn’t seem to be shrinking yet!

Perhaps I should stop buying new wool??? lol!

Red Hearts of Love

All these photos were taken last Sunday morning. When I saw them in my pictures folder together I realised they were all red so that gave me an idea for a post to join in with Ruby Tuesday hosted by Mary at Work of the Poet!

After a couple of hours of me checking the Pink Saturday blogs and he playing a computer game, we got peckish for some breakfast. We were in the mood for our favourite lovey dovey breakfast, sausages and tomato with love heart eggs and mushrooms!

On Saturday, David took me to a Salvo’s store (Salvation Army charity shop). We hadn’t been there before and there were lots of bargain treasures to be found, some of which I decided I coudn’t bring home. One thing I did grab was this very good toy for developing fine motor and hand-eye coordination in very young children. It’s pretty solid, not flimsy, so I grabbed it for $3. In the background you can see a red love-heart bag. I can’t remember where I got it from but I keep some Barbie things in it, it’s so cute. Also in the background you can see my tiny teddies where they live now, sitting on one of the vintage doll’s chairs to keep Barbie company. The doily you can see I believe was made by my great-grandmother, which I hope to try copying one day.

Another bargain treasure we found at the Salvo’s store on Saturday were this pair of lovey dovey coffee mugs. We’ve decided to collect coffee mugs with love hearts on them, as well as other things with love hearts because we are sooo lovey dovey! /awwww… lol! These are probably not so great because the shape means that one is smaller than the other. I don’t like the idea that to be in love one person must be smaller.

Our first love heart coffee mugs we bought were these very cheap ones we saw at the supermarket a couple of years ago. We got four, one broke and has been thrown away. That’s a shame, I really must remember to keep broken crockery for my mosaic projects I hope to do one day. Two of the remaining three mugs have broken handles, so one is now used as my pens holder by my pc. That’s why I’m afraid to use the 3rd mug for drinking as I have a terrible vision of someone spilling hot coffee over them when the silly handle breaks! But they are just too cute to throw away, they are too lovey dovey! When a coffee handle breaks, it can still be recycled into something useful.

I also took a photo of this very cute red chocolate tin. It cost me $5 full of chocolates from Coles online last Valentine’s Day. I havent’ decided what it will be used for yet, but I’m sure it will turn out to be nice. It’s sitting on top of the table my great-grandfather made, which I will do a post about one day.

I didn’t realise how many red love hearts I have about my house!
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Be sure to check out other Ruby Reds at Ruby Tuesday!

Highlights from this week’s party

• wonderful Flame Tree image and poetry at Rinkly Rhymes
• on friendships at Anne-Marie with a dash
• a beautiful close-up flower photograph at Little Bang Theory
• “I blog therefore I am” at Joysweb