My name is Paula Walton. I’m a working craftsperson. I’ve been self-employed since 1986, when I started selling the items that I make under the name A Sweet Remembrance. Among other things, I am a doll maker, a dressmaker that specializes in reproduction women’s and children’s clothing, maker of spun cotton ornaments and holiday figures, and a freelance designer. Upon occasion I write magazine articles and am a Craftsperson in Residence. I teach and do demonstrations quite frequently, plus I was previously the director and curator of a small museum in Connecticut.
SOLD – For use with my Izannah Walker Doll Making Kits. The painted heads are an option that is available with the kits, if you don’t feel confident enough to paint the head yourself. Patterns and instructions are included in the kit, along with the composition head. If you have already purchased one of my kits or are a member of my Izannah Walker doll making class, you may purchase the head separately to use with the patterns and instructions that you already own….
HEAD #1 SOLD
SOLD This little girl was a very happy accident. When her head came out of the mold her face tilted forward. At first I was horrified because she had almost no neck!!! After I got over the shock, I noticed how sweet and baby like this made her face look. ❤
I am excessively fond of the way this head turned out! I debated long and hard about whether or not I should paint her and if I did, if I should offer her for sale, since technically she is not a perfect reproduction of the original Izannah Walker doll I made her mold from. I’m extremely glad that I decided that a little variety is sometimes a very good thing.
To enhance the baby like look of her face, I chose a rather uncommon Izannah hair style for her. The Carmel Doll Shop once had a magnificent antique Izannah Walker doll with hair painted similarly. If you frequent their website, you may remember her. She was dressed in an amazing off white dress with a great deal of white braid work trim and she wore a necklace of white beads. This hair style has very short wispy center parted bangs, with little fringes of hair at the temples brushed towards the face and six ringlets at the back of the head. Six is a very unusual number of long curls for an Izannah Walker doll, it is much more common to see five or seven. The large Izannah that I reproduce has nine.
SOLD – THANK YOU FOR LOOKING If you are interested in purchasing this head please email me at paula@asweetremembrance.com or call me at 860-355-5709 during east coast business hours. The head sells for $375.00 with the full kit or $340.00 if you already own one of my Izannah kits or classes.
Here are three painted composition heads (all for use with my Izannah Walker Doll Making Kit). Notice the difference between the two in the back, compared o the younger more baby like features of head #1, in the foreground.Another photograph showing the difference between the two in the back, compared to the younger more baby like features of head #1, in the foreground.
I currently have this head available for sale on eBay. She is painted like Isane, my antique Izannah Walker doll that I made the mold from for this head. SOLD
I’d like to introduce you all to Melissa’s doll. She is a wonderful example of one of my custom ordered reproduction Izannah Walker dolls. Melissa requested a doll with a very thin neck and downward tilted head, that had an appearance reminiscent of one of her favorite antique Izannah Walker dolls (a doll that was previously part of the Popp collection and later owned by R. John Wright). She asked me to give her doll a pale complexion, but one without the grey tint that many antique Izannahs have. Melissa also wanted a paint surface that showed some moderate wear and age, but preferred her doll to have a “perfect” nose. She chose the antique blue paisley print dress fabric from my fabric swatch book and found a photograph of a dress she loved in a museum collection for me to use as a reference.
Because the dress Melissa wanted for her doll was of a slightly earlier style than those worn by most Izannah Walker dolls, the two of us created our own imagined history for the doll and her dress. We decided that the grandmother, of the little girl who first owned this doll, sewed a dress for the doll just like the dresses that she had made for her own daughter. As I sewed on this dress I daydreamed of a grandmother taking apart a worn out dress that she has made many years before, when her daughter was a young girl. She set aside all of the best pieces of fabric, then carefully cut them out in a miniature version of the original dress. Then as she sat sewing all the pieces together, she told her granddaughter stories of how much the little girl’s mother had loved the dress and the things she did when she was a child.
I’d like to thank Melissa for sharing her vision of her dream Izannah with me, and giving me the opportunity to bring it to life. I also have to thank her for having the patience of at least two saints, and not minding how long it took me to make this doll! ❤
My friend Edyth O’Neil, a long time doll collector, antique dealer, artist, and rug hooker extraordinaire, has a new doll blog, Dolls for My Red Cape. She currently has some wonderful posts up about her collection of early papier-mache dolls, antique quilts, and fabulous mid-19th century doll and baby clothing. I hope you will enjoy reading about Edyth’s dolls as much as I do!
There is no better way to spend an afternoon than playing dolls with your friends! This is a photo of Edyth and Peggy along with my dolls and Peggy’s after just such an afternoon. ❤
Just a little something pretty to dream about as winter storms bring mountains of snowflakes swirling down. Photos of a beautiful antique Moravian cloth doll to muse over next to a roaring fire…
This doll is part of the New Milford Historical Society Museum collection.
Ismay and Zanna are counting how many hours are left until my Special Christmas Sale ends…. “If the sale ends at midnight on New Year’s Eve and it’s after 5:00 now…” “How many hours is that Zanna?”
If your New Year’s resolution is to learn something new, and you were thinking of ordering one of my classes by mail, my new Izannah Doll Kit, or my Izannah doll clothes pattern they are only on sale for the next 53 hours, until midnight December 31st, 2014. To make my new kits extra special for the Christmas sale, your Kit order will include one tiny cut and stitch Isane panel so that you can make your doll a little Izzy of her own. Plus, you receive a coupon for 10 percent off any of my classes by mail or a finished reproduction Izannah Walker doll, through June 30, 2015. Visit my website A Sweet Remembrance to shop the sale.
Also don’t forget …
!!!CONTEST!!!
I’ve thought up lots of ways to use my new printed fabric doll panels, but I bet you can dream up even more great ideas of your own! Just for fun, I’m having a contest to see who can design and make the best project using my printed doll panels. The rules are simple. Buy a doll panel, make it into something wonderful, take a photo and email it to me – paula@asweetremembrance.com – before January 31st, 2015. I’ll post all of the photos on my blog, then invite readers to vote for their favorite. The winner will receive one panel each of my complete collection of tiny cut out and stitch fabric dolls, which is a prize worth $100. Good Luck!!!
The girls spent this morning helping out around my office. We are busy getting all of the classes people have ordered during my Christmas Sale made and ready to ship.
Isane and Isabeau are manning the phone and answering questions… “Yes, we do ship your classes for free if you live in the U.S.”
“Zanna, when I count to three, we both jump on the hole punch at the same time.” “One, two…”
“Izzybelle, make sure you have the holes lined up with the rings.” “I will Ismay. Do you think someone in the class will make a doll that looks like me?”
“Let’s take a break.” “We really got a lot done this morning.” “I’m sure we were a big help!”
“Wasn’t it nice of Mary, Anna and Pauline to bake us a Christmas treat?” “Anna and Pauline are such good cooks.”
One of the best parts of doll making is getting the chance to plan and make dolls for wonderful people. These dolls were ordered as special Christmas presents from loving husbands… ❤ ❤ ❤
Merry Christmas Susie!
Surprise!!! Two sweet sisters under the tree…
Joyeux Noel Suzanne!
Suzanne’s doll has a wardrobe of four dresses, so that she can dress for any occasion! Not shown are her warm winter wool petticoat and summer sunbonnet.
I finished her last dress late at night, so she posed under my Christmas lights. Bright and early the next morning she was off on her journey to her brand new home just in time for Christmas!
❤ One of the things I found quite touching is that both of these dolls had dresses ordered from two of the same fabrics. That just seemed meant to be, as they were both presents from husbands to their very sweet wives.
* you may click on any of the smaller size photos to enlarge.
Zanna and Izzybelle are busy preparing for Christmas. After they finish decorating here they would love to come decorate your house!
I have two very special dolls available for sale now, just in time for Christmas. Zanna and Izzybelle would love to bring the look and feel of an antique New England Christmas to your house. Both of the girls have very “old” paint finishes that are perfect for anyone who loves early primitive antiques ❤
Zanna has a wonderful paint surface that makes her look as if she has been treasured and loved for 175 years.You just know that little Izzybelle must have had a life filled with the most amazing adventures…
Izzybelle SOLD Thank you for looking. Izzybelle and I wish you a very Merry Christmas!
Now SOLD. I absolutely adore Izzybelle! I love her so much that I was tempted to keep her for myself 🙂 She has such a sweet thoughtful expression.
Izzybelle is 14 inches tall and has a body covering of antique blue glazed cotton. She has underclothing and a flutter sleeve dress made from antique fabric. You can scroll down the page to see many more photos of Izzybelle in my blog posts from the UFDC convention and Izannah’s 197th birthday party. Izzybelle is priced at $1250.00 with free shipping to U.S. addresses. She isn’t up on my webiste yet, but will be soon. In the meantime you may email or call me if you are interested in buying her. paula@asweetremembrance.com 860-355-5709.
Izzybelle is cutting out more paper dolls to hang on the Christmas tree.
Zanna
Zanna is making tiny doll clothes as a Christmas present for one of her sisters. She is working very hard to get them finished in time for the 25th!
Zanna is 17-1/2 inches tall. She has black painted boots with scallop tops and a second skin made from antique brown glazed cotton. All of the fabrics and laces used in making her clothing are antique. Zanna may be adopted for $1250.00 and ships free of charge to any United States address. You can purchase her directly from my website by clicking here. Or if you prefer, you may email or call me. paula@asweetremembrance.com 860-355-5709
Zanna thinks that Miss Liberty would be the perfect ornament for the doll’s Christmas tree!
Zanna has decided to hang Miss Liberty, a red, white and blue spun cotton ornament on the top of the Christmas tree. I haven’t had time to make too many spun cotton ornaments this year. I’ve just shipped out the last of the pre-ordered ornaments and have one Miss Liberty left for sale in time for Christmas. Just like Izzybelle, she isn’t posted for sale on my website yet. Miss Liberty is $65.00 with free U.S. shipping. Email or call if you would like to add her to your ornament collection. paula@asweetremembrance.com 860-355-5709
Printed Face Rag Doll
This is a prototype doll that I made for students in my Izannah Walker doll making class. I made alternate heads that worked with the class patterns.
This 18 inch doll has a printed cloth face and is my version of a Sunbonnet Sue. She has a soft aged muslin body that is filled with cotton stuffing. Her dress is made from an antique blue paisley fabric and has a vintage navy velvet ribbon sash. Her bonnet is made from an antique hand crochet doiley. She is $89.00 and includes free shipping to U.S.addresses.
I also sell just the printed face for $8.00, if you’d like to use one to make a doll of your own. Click here
* The quilt behind the girls is an amazing antique silk tumbling blocks quilt. If you are intrigued with the red, white and blue wool ball Izzybelle is lounging against, I do have a few in stock on my website. Whimsical Victorian Puzzle Balls 17-inch circumference – $45.00, 20-inch circumference – $55.00.
Lay-away is available on every item I sell. Please call or email me with any questions you may have about my dolls and ornaments, to purchase an item, or to set up a lay-away plan. paula@asweetremembrance.com 860-355-5709.
Izannah Walker Journal 