Starting Anew

After a year full of changes it seems that life is finally beginning to return to normal. I am comfortably ensconced in a place I can call Home. We have enclosed the carport as a prelude to turning it into a sewing studio so The Doll's Dressmaker can have a permanent place to ply his trade. Now all that we need is for a bag of gold to drop from the sky to facilitate the remainder of the transition. Since we have only had one ten minute rainstorm in the last six weeks I'm not holding my breath waiting for this to happen. If we can't get rain I'm sure that bags of gold are even harder to come by. But, fear not! Hope springs eternal!

Whilst we wait, here's my latest project. Her name is Kiki and she comes from an UK company called Clothkits. Mine is an earlier version than the one currently selling on their website. She was very easy to construct. I complicated the matter by embroidering her facial features, headband, and assorted floral accents beforehand. I also added button embellishments to her headband and bracelet and gave her elbow and knee joints so she could better express herself. Doesn't everyone need to express themselves from time to time? I took a trip to my local independent needlework shop, Silk Road Needle Arts, today to pick up the wool threads I am going to use to embroider her hat and kimono which you see her sitting upon in the photo. I can't tell you how happy it makes me to have something creative to share. It has been far too long.

I hope your day was as fulfilling as mine! *^_^*

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream...

... for ice cream! Peppermint ice cream in a Pooh bowl eaten with a pink plastic spoon and decorated with apple oatmeal cookies. I adore peppermint ice cream. It reminds me of my Great Aunt Doris who also adored it. She has been gone a long time now but I can still feel close to her whenever I want simply by eating peppermint ice cream. Somehow it is even more delicious because it isn't available all the time. It can only be gotten leading up to the Holidays. So it also gets me excited because I know that the Yuletide season is imminent. Imminent , you say? Why yes, it is just a scootch more than three months before that wonderful day when you love the whole world and it loves you back. Sparkling lights to illuminate the darkness, nature in your living room all bedecked with lights and ornaments and tinsel. Pretty packages with crinkly paper and bows. All kinds of good food shared with people you love. A jolly old elf, reindeer and magic. What are you wishing for this year? Is it a person, place, or thing? Do you dare to say it out loud, or are you afraid the magic will dissipate into the wind? My Christmas wish is a secret. I only whisper it to myself. Santa knows what it is. I hope he can make it come true.

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Another Lovely Week

I just finished eating supper on my back porch. It was raining gently and lots of little birds were flitting about in the trees, hiding from the raindrops. A bright scarlet cardinal landed on a branch right in plain view and I watched him shake the rain from his feathers and preen himself.

I never tire of watching nature unfold before me. So much can be learned by just observing animals going about their daily routines. This is what I like about Disney's Animal Kingdom and what I dislike about Sea World. At Disney, all the animals are free to roam about their spacious habitats and come and go as they please. They are provided the space to roam and all have a private place they can retreat to if they so desire. At Sea World the emphasis is on performance. Your interaction with the animals is mainly limited to watching them perform choreographed stunts. Yes, I know that Sea World also does animal rescue and tons of research. I'm not saying they're bad, I'm saying that I don't need the animals to perform for my entertainment. Just doing what they normally do is entertaining enough for me. Have you ever watched a family of lowland gorillas just hanging out one afternoon? Maybe you've seen a family of warthogs digging around in the dirt for some yummy grubs to eat. Of course you've seen a bunch of fruit bats munching on lunch. I'm so grateful that I have a place so close that affords me these kinds of opportunities.

I'm also grateful for the wonderful fabric store where I work. The Sewing Studio is teeming with people who nurture my creativity. Both fellow employees and customers alike. Earlier this week I waited on the mother of Alice Leverett. I met Alice several years ago at Disney's annual Teddy Bear and Doll Weekend at EPCOT. We have kept in touch ever since. She does amazing work. Please check out her website and see for yourself. Yesterday Greg Ortiz came in to buy materials to finish some dolls for an upcoming show. Greg's work is breathtaking. He is also a warm and generous human being. A couple of months ago I waited on a nice young lady named Kelledy who is an up and coming local designer. We started talking and I mentioned that I was a doll's dressmaker and she mentioned that her grandmother was the late Fawn Zeller. You can learn a little more about her here. As well as meeting these wonderful people that I can now call friends, I also work with wonderful people who have been sewing all their lives and together can answer any question you could think of about sewing, quilting, fabric and related arts. To top it all off, the owners of the store, Patty and Mark, are two of the most thoughtful, generous and hard working folks I have ever had the privilege of knowing. They too, are not only my bosses, but also my friends. They have been personally instrumental in helping me to grow as a person and have given me a stable and nurturing environment when the rest of my life seemed a shambles. I look forward to going to work every day for the first time in my life. Need one ask for anything more?

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The View from Here...

My favourite place in my new apartment is my back porch. I can sit here and watch the birds and squirrels play in the trees while the neighbor's children play down below.

In the coming months I hope to share with you a little of what it's like to live here in Central Florida and a lot of what I like to create. I have been a doll collector all my life, but since finding Blythe and Asian ball jointed dolls my collecting has taken a whole new turn. The BJD's have led my fondness for antiques to become a passion for tracking down old linens and laces to transform into new finery for the dolls. I have begun quilting in order to create bedclothes for the vintage and antique doll beds I have found. I also look for tiny teacups and saucers, butter pats and sewing paraphernalia to bring their world to life. I hope you will join me in my quest to find beauty and meaning in life through artistic creation. Welcome *^_^*