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I can’t believe June is already half over. I’ve been focused on the creation process and absent from here, unfortunately. 
I had planned to switch gears a little, but I realized the traditional flower petal skirt pattern was missing from the market, (someone else had a pattern when I first started creating patterns), and as my name suggests, it was really my duty to create one to replace it.😆 I hope it will be well recieved 😃
If you haven’t taken advantage of the search engine to look for patterns specific to your doll, please do! And share any feedback you have on your experience with me. I never know if we’ve covered the tagging as well as we intend to.
Well, I’ve got blossom hats to test.
Have a great week!

The shop is open! I’ll continue to add more this week, but all of the patterns that have been available on Etsy are in the shop. We have a discount if you buy 4 or more patterns, which is exciting, IMO because you get to choose which four.
I’m trying to make some headway on those clothes I need, today and tomorrow. And then it’s back to work on the mini patterns. Yesterday I digitized some pieces that now need to be tested, so there will be a few more patterns in the shop soon!
Have a great holiday!

It’s so close I can taste it.😂  But, we ARE in the home stretch on the shopping cart integration.Boy, was there a lot that needed to be addressed! We need to comb through it one more time, making sure everything is working. Then it will be LIVE!
I’ve been making more custom dolls, which has been fun! And I hope to get some more doll designs done. I also want to get back on track with the blog. 😏 And I’m doing better about taking a day for my own projects, which is a good thing because I need new clothes. 🤣  
The auction to support Ukraine went pretty good. I was able to donate $300. I’d like to do it again, but we’re going to need to get our personal income in better shape first.
My Kestner is getting a little more attention and I’m designing her a new body, similar to the previous design, but with paper clay feet and hands. With the biggest change to the body being her hips, knees and elbows. I’ll be using cotton fabric instead of leather as well.
Have a great week!

I don’t believe in bad luck or the ill luck of the number 13. As a matter of fact, 13 is quite auspicious. But today my bank account was fraudulently used and emptied. Good thing I didn’t have a lot of money in there. Etsy interface for uploading digital files and certain pictures, isn’t working. So changes I wanted to make, couldn’t be made. I guess I’ll go sew. Oh, and I spent the morning taking tests for autism. Yeah, I’m on the spectrum, not really surprised. But knowing may change how I approach life, and that could be good. All in all, events that could be interpreted as a series of bad luck, aren’t really. If you’re looking for bad luck, you’ll find it, but the reverse is also true.
Have a good one! Whatever that “one” is…

Well, the world turned upside down and I was in a daze for at least a week, maybe longer. Then I tried to come up with little ways that I could support the people of Ukraine. I purchased digital files in the beginning, but my sales fell off, so my funds were non-existant and I needed to come up with another idea. So my daughter and I began making and embellishing dresses. Then I made a very special Faerie Child.
But before I was able to finish that project and put it up for auction, my husband had to be hosipitalized with a nasty infection. He’s still in the hospital and has been since the end of March.
Needless to say, I needed to get my sales back up and wouldn’t you know it, another complication. Sellers of Etsy organised a strike Because of the following: TWO years in a row of record profits wasn’t enough for Corporate Etsy – they chose to gouge all of us for a 30% larger cut of every sale we make! And instituted anti-creator policies. So, I’m on strike. Find out why at 👉 etsystrike.org/petition 👈 and please boycott Etsy April 11-18 in solidarity with artisans and vintage sellers!
Having other venues to sell through has become more important, so when Cassie approached me about participating with the PNWBJD Conference, I jumped at the chance. This week, while finishing up the Ukrainian projects, I designed another pattern to be given away in the goodie bags.
I’ll also be able to sell it, but I’m waiting to list it until after the con. I’d like to do another pattern as well, but it may not be possible, as I have an order for two outfits to get done this week. 
Let’s hope for an end to this war and the rebuilding to begin.
Peace!
 
 

Well, the sheath dress is in the free patterns and I’ve finished up and filed everyone’s taxes. I only have one more tiny Tyko pattern to finish. There will be more at a later date, because I just discovered a bjd that will probably be able to wear them, lol. 
I had a few new arrivals this month. Two By Charles’ Creature Cabinet and a few by Takara Tomy. Still have others in transit. Doll collecting can be manic, lol! Doll designing, only slightly less so. I have dolls I want to create patterns for, just haven’t taken the time. But their designs are floating around in my head, lol. 
I have a plan for the next free pattern and I’ve ordered supplies. I’m actually looking forward to that. 
Dress design is happening in my head and I think I want to change the RealPuki Mori dress at the same time. I can see now, how to simplify it a little. It would also elliminate some bulk, which it always good. 
I should get back to that Tyco pattern. 
Have a fantastic week!!

I’m still struggling to acknowledge that it’s February and it will be over all too soon.
Still plugging away on the mini patterns, but I think I want to put together the free sheath dress pattern before any more time passes. We now have a “Free patterns” tab on here, where you’ll be able to find them all in one place, and I’d like to have it on there.
Taxes will need to be finished up soon, as I think all the forms arrived this week. Yay
My son put in the time to order me a pair of prescription reading glasses so that I can use his computer without doing stressful stuff to see the screen. My photo editing software isn’t working right anymore, so I need to use his until I can upgrade or something. And yes, that’s where all the main listing images and pattern pieces are created. It’s a huge part of my neccessary business equipment. Speaking of which, it’s time to get back to that.
Have a wonderful week! 

We had a day of cleansing and candle burning. There were some cookies baked and consumed and some alfalfa sprouts made it into the meal. I’d eat them more if I didn’t space out on the sprouting. But anyway, it was a good day.
I’ve managed to get some more patterns published for the extra tiny crowd. I have a few more I want to do before I switch to another size. It’s kind of funny how I get really into one size for awhile. My guess is there’s a familiarity established with the first pattern and I just want to continue creating there because the hard part is done.😄 Anyway, I have some dresses that will be a little more complicated, that I want to do in several sizes. So, it might turn out to be a series of the same dress in all the sizes. I don’t know if I can stay with that long term though, lol. I also have another free tutorial to finish and it involves dresses, as well.
I also want to dedicate more time to my faerie house and iron-on designs. And today, it was suggested that I do a printable record album collection. I really like that idea too. It’s time to reassess that scheduling thing😂
Have a great week!

My new year felt like a slug attempting to climb it’s way out of a honey pot, not impossible, but certainly slow and difficult. To be fair, the issues began in December with the cold snap,( I just thought I was eating too much sugar and suffering brain fog from that). What I didn’t know and have since learned, is that black mold likes to grow in below freezing temperatures. We had a week or so of temps below freezing, unusual for our climate, and I developed more severe breathing problems at that time. I have chronic issues with my sinuses and lungs, but this hit levels where I didn’t have enough air to speak properly. I’m not fond of this state of being. So, it got my attention and I started trying to figure out when and where it was worse and vise versa. Cold outdoor air equaled worse, as did my bedroom. Standing or sitting about three feet from the wood stove, but no more than 5 feet away, equaled better. Needless to say, I began sleeping right next to the stove, and well, doing everything else there.
Once my breathing improved significantly, I started to investigate the possible issues, where in I discovered mold on my bedroom window. I keep a close eye on my windows because they’ve always presented a potential mold area. It’s part of living in a moist environ. Anyway, apparently when the temps dropped, the mold took off. Once found, the area was cleaned and we discoveded that the east window was moldy where it couldn’t be cleaned and probably had been for even longer, (I always got sick during wind storms). Window replacement proceedure was initiated. This all occured duing the month of January, from the very first of the month.
I have been sleeping by the woodstove all this time, with exception of a few nights where I thought it might be safe to return to my room. It wasn’t. Now, what surprises me is that during this month, I think I’ve been more productive rather than less. And I think that’s pretty awesome. Because sleeping on a cot is not all that restful and being awoken with the earliest riser getting ready for work after being kept up by the night owl in the family and needing to maintain a warmer environment by feeding the fire at 3 AM, all add up to much less sleep for little ol’ me. I’m really proud of myself for staying on task with my business in spite of the hardships.
I painted around the window today and then moved the bed back. I’ve been doing the work on finishing the interior of the window, which I had to get creative with as the windows have never been trimmed and the wall board around them needed to be repaired and sealed, (the house was built in the 1970’s or ’80’s I think). I had to leave the room to let each stage cure for hours, so it wouldn’t cause me other health issues. This because I tried sleeping in the room right after the window was installed and the following day was the loopiest day ever. Strangely enough, my husband has been in the room this whole time without any evident health issues. All I can do is shrug, he wouldn’t have done well camping out, in what is essentially the kitchen, so it’s just as well.
I hope to be able to sleep in the room tonight, but if not, tomorrow. Here’s hoping for some proper sleep and continued produtivity.
Have a great week!
PS: Also, on a side note, I had to deal with my Facebook account being compromised this month as well. When it rains…   
 
 

We’re half way through January and it’s been a roller coaster, but more about that later. I just finished updating one of my first patterns for making 1/12th scale t-shirts. It’s a really simple design, great for beginners, and I’m offering it for free here: Simple_T-shirt_1:12th.pdf
     
 

It seems we need to replace our outdoor water spigot or yard hydrant. One of those free standing spigots that is supposed to be frost free, but the valve has probably been broken for years. Anyway, I’m not fond of loosing my water supply to redneck repairs, so we’ll be replacing it. In the mean time, we still don’t have water to the house because the hydrant was the first stop on the supply run from the well. (Heavy sigh) I also discovered mold on my bedroom windows, which explains the extra winter wheezing. Needless to say, I haven’t gotten much done this week.
In spite of the situation, I’m still working on my Kestner’s body. I’ve gotten about one short seam done each day. LOL The leather I’m using has got to be the most difficult I’ve ever used for hand stitching. It’s just too squishy. If I had the right needles for my treadle machine, it might not have been bad to work with. It needs the seams to be glued in place and then stitched. I didn’t leave enough seam allowance for glueing though, because my sewing machine wasn’t going to do the job. I really didn’t expect hand stitching to be as difficult as it’s been, but I’ve gotten the separate pieces put together, feet, torso, and bottom, and now I’m assembling those to each other. Hopefully, the body will be done before the year ends.
Have a blessed week! 
 

I hope everyone is enjoying or has had a wonderful holiday season. We’re on the 3rd day of Yule and I have to admit we don’t do much to mark the passage of time. We had a wonderful feast, a gift exchange and family crafting with story time leading up to Solstice, but nothing much since. I kind of feel like we might have it backwards, or we need to continue the story reading or something. We’ve all had too much sugar and are ready to leave that behind, though. LOL I am taking a break from Etsy shop stuff for a couple of days, trying to do my own projects, but maybe I should just do nothing. LOL
Whatever it is that you are entering in to the longer, yet colder days with, I hope you are happy and healthy. For those in the southern hemisphere, I may be a little jealous right now,LOL, but I wish you the same.

Before my best friend from childhood died back in 2007, he would ask me when we were going to write that “Great American Novel”? Well, I’m making a start on something I think he’d have liked, don’t know how great it will be, either, but the effort is being made. LOL 
I’m putting some time in on my personal dollies, my knitting and crochet. It’s funny how many different projects can pass through my hands in a day. And I’m still making progress on new iron-on designs and sewing patterns. I made a pattern sale this week to an individual who’s sewing skills have really impressed me. I’d love to buy one of her Blythe outfits, but I’m nervous about ruining them removing the potential fragrance that is present way to frequently for me. Needless to say, it gave me a thrill to sell her a couple of patterns. I’m really flattered.😊 
Yule is just around the corner and we’re as ready as we’re ever going to be. I hope everyone is enjoying time spent with family and friends and that you’re staying safe as the weather turns wintery.
Blessed Be!

Hello! So you want to add some cute fox ears to your little one’s hat or Hood. First you’ll need a Hat or Hood, you can use my pattern found here: Woodland Hood on Etsy or a hat you already have. Next, you’ll need to download the instuctions that include the pattern for the ears. And then gather up your supplies, wool felt, thread, scissors and sewing needle.
Pattern file found here: Fox_Ears.pdf
And you’re all set to go!
I didn’t show a blanket stitch around the edge of the ears, but you can definitely add one.  Happy sewing!!

Well, I’ve decided to try and work in more digital product for the store. Spent most of last week creating images to be used as iron-ons for doll clothes. Josephine will be using them on doll clothes some time this week, these will also be available for purchase. And there are a lot of other products that can be created for download. More on that as I make my way through it.
I have a back log of dolls ready to be airbrushed, (Urple is among them and she’s going to need a new name). Really shouldn’t let them pile up. LOL  And I’ve put the dolls waiting to be dyed aside for now, but almost everyone is prepped, (I have a petite still to do). 
Arthur is revamping the website here, most of the changes can’t be seen, but a few can. But the most exciting part is that he’s developing a web store and building the templates so that he can build websites and stores for others as well. I can’t wait to be able to offer more than I currently can on Etsy. Cloud and Josephine will have products as well, that means witchy stuff and pottery. How cool is that?
Have a great week!

When making doll faces, you’re encouraged to aim for perfect symmetry. While that’s a nice goal or maybe even an over simplification for teaching purposes, I think it’s a little harmful to our psyche. No human being is symmetrical, so why do we expect to create perfectly symetrical faces? It sets us up to berate ourselves because it’s near impossible to accomplish and to feel less than, when we see it looking back at us from the mirror. So I will not be attempting perfect symmetry in my dolls. Balanced, appealing, yes! I hope this resonates with you too.
I spent the work day sculpting yesterday. Worked on seven different dolls and at the end of it there was probably one that looked significantly different. 🙂 Some days are like that. A lot of time spent and not a lot to show for it. I was really pleased with how long I actually stayed at it, which isn’t easy for me. I have a lot I want to do and a lot of new stuff I want to learn. It’s a real challenge to fit everything in and not get bored with something because there’s been no progress with it.
I hope to do another pattern this week, hopefully without derailing the sculpting. But whatever happens, I want to enjoy the process!
Have a delightful week!