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I
was pleased with the painting on this doll. The eyelashes are fairly
even and the eyebrows by sheer serendipity came out a very nice
colour and shiny; thus the doll has the right "look" (to
me anyway). I think FG's can be quite difficult.
The
dress was inspired by the dress shown in French
Dolls in Colour by Patricia R Smith [Plate
77, Page 58].
I wanted to make the dress in exactly the same colours as the photograph
- I have a few dupion silks in various shades of blue/grey. However
two things changed my mind: firstly and most importantly, the blue/grey
did not suit the doll's colouring and amazingly (I am not fond of
pink), this silk looked right on her; secondly my liking for the
photograph in the book stems from the combination of the blue/grey
colour and a sort of brick red, which is in fact not part of the
outfit but an award ribbon! One day I shall make a dress with that
colour combination.....
I
used the same Joan Nerini pattern used for the PD as a basis for
the dress, but made it up quite differently. The bodice is cream
dupion silk, and the sleeves and skirt sections are in pink. The
sleeves are cut using the "sleeve lining" pieces of the
pattern as I did not want such a puffed effect. For the skirt I
pleated the pink fabric (about 3 times the bodice width) using my
then latest acquisition from the Dolls House
Draper. The pleater is a rubber form which pleats (somewhat
labour intensively for the user) to a sort if corrugated effect
rather than flat pleats; I caught up the hem in a simple way by
hand which made the fabric flare a little. I attached the skirt
to the bodice and then inserted the V-shaped inset at the front
covered in lace. I then covered the bodice with lace, extending
slightly below the waistline. To trim the dress I bought the smallest
pearl buttons I could find and covered them with the silk, copying
the buttons on the original. I have to admit that quite a lot of
Allene's Tacky Glue ("accept no substitutes") was
used in all this process.
The
hat was taken from a poke bonnet pattern in Costume
Cameos No.3 by Hazel Ulseth and Helen Shannon which was
for a 13 inch doll but proved to be much too big. I stiffened it
with a "horsehair" iron-on interfacing (used in making
men's suits). It is lined with layers of pleated cream dupion and
lace. The ribbon is in a flat double bow across the crown of the
hat, and ties under the chin to one side; this is very stiff satin
ribbon but it is vintage and looks OK I think, (better than the
photo shows). The doll's wig is made from permed processed rope
mohair in dark brown, applied on a shaped milliner's buckram base.
Socks
are hand-knitted in silk cordonnet obtainable from the Gildebrief
online shop (I think Little Trimmings
also keeps a stock); the socks are knitted to a Joan Nerini pattern
leaflet. The shoes are in brown gloving leather from a pattern in
the workbooks by Lyn Alexander
with cream silk rosettes and beads. The underwear is made of muslin
(looseweave thin cotton), with petticoat and knickers decoratively
pin-tucked and edged with lace.
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