Happy Tot Composition doll

Happy 2012 Everyone!
I thought I would start out the new year on my blog showing some "New" transformations on some dolls I have been restoring. I have been working on many new projects which I will be showing this year both with dolls and other items. 

I thought I would start off with this little Happy Tot doll that I purchased a couple of years ago.

She was a terrible mess. Someone had tried to restore her and oh how sad she looked with her terrible paint job. I knew this doll would be adorable once she had a little spiffing up.

 Happy Tot was made by American Character Doll Co. from New York city in the 1920's.

She has a composition head/breastplate, arms and legs. Her body is cloth and her eyes tin.

As you can see from the photos she was in desperate need for a transformation. Cracked, lifted paint along with discoloration, holes and dirt.

One thing wonderful about her was that she came with her original tagged dress and slip. After a little mending and cleaning it looks much better.

  Here she is after getting a total repaint and clean new clothes. I later changed her bonnet with one that looked much better but at the time I just wanted to see how she looked with a cute little pink bonnet on.

Happy Tot and her friend!

Here she is with her new bonnet. I made the little rosettes and added new silk ribbon  for the ties.
Don't you think she looks "Much Happier Now"? 
I adore this little doll...she has always been one of my favorites from that time period. These dolls typcially held little rubber tipped bottles but I don't have one at the moment so she holds a tiny little bouquet of sweet flowers for a sweet little girl!   ;-)

MADAME ALEXANDER 1920'S MY BETTY COMPOSITION DOLL 24'

This is a darling doll that I purchased at a local antique shop. She is marked "Fiberoid" on her back and I believe she is a Madame Alexander 1920's My Betty Composition doll.

She was in pretty good condition really only needing a new wig, clothes from her era and a good cleaning.  Her clothes were not appropriate for her so she would get a new dress ang wig.

Her hair is wild and thin. Time for a new hairdo!

I was hoping to find a dress with original tags but as I have stated before, dresses like that can be hard to come by. Until then I did find a dress that looks cute on her and from the time period.

Here she is with her new dress and bonnet on.  She also got a new slip and panties.

What a difference a new human hair wig made on this sweet little doll.

Very fun little doll to make over.

Snippets from the Sewing Room

Last year I decided to make a small bedroom into a sewing room. Originally, I had my sewing room combined with my studio for sculpting and other projects. I thought it would be nice to separate them and give me a little more room for my studio. I am sure most of you know....you can never have too much room for creating. So I thought it would be fun to show little snippets here and there of projects in the works and some of my favorite things I have collected over the years.  So I will start with this one little corner of my room!

I started my room off with a color scheme in mind.  I found some fresh pink and bright lime green fabric that I fell in love with.  Sweet wild roses on a white background  was the basis for the pops of color here and there around the room.  These 3 little shelves were found cheaply at the thrift store. I painted them a pink to match my curtains and lined them up on the wall. They hold some of my favorite things. Above them is a beautiful cross stich picture stitched on fabric by an artist named Paula Vaughn. She is a cross stitch designer and watercolor artist. For many years now she has created some of the most beautiful victorian and country designs that I have ever seen. I have stitched many of her designs myself. This is one of my favorites and as luck would have it I stumbled across this piece in a antique store and got it for a song. The colors were perfect and someone did a great deal of work on this beautiful piece of stitchery. I am always sick when I see such beautiful needlework so under valued in the stores. Hours and hours went into this piece and I am happy to have rescued it. Now it will be proudly displayed amongst my most treasured items.

 As I share different photos here and there her designs will show up often as I have been a huge fan of her work for years!

Here is a closeup of the picture. Her designs remind me of a gentler time.

I just love her soft use of color.