Author: paulawalton

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.

Just One Week Away…

September 18, 2013September 18, 2013 paulawalton4 Comments

Seven more days and counting until Izannah Walker’s 196^th birthday and my annual Izannah Walker Birthday Sale ❤ ❤ ❤

Stray Comments

A Very Daunting Week

September 12, 2013 paulawalton8 Comments

For a week that started out so well, this week has certainly turned into one with many highs and lows… and the worst part is that it’s only Thursday.

Sunday was a good day! I spent it with my family in Omaha, NE. This is a photo of me and my dad, who is 88-1/2!

Unfortunately our cat became very ill while I was gone. He died yesterday. Those of you who came to last years Izannah retreat will remember him walking around in his t-shirt (to keep him from chewing on his surgical stitches). — Unfortunately our cat became very ill while I was gone. He died yesterday. Those of you who came to last year’s Izannah retreat will remember him walking around in his t-shirt (to keep him from chewing on his surgical stitches).

Just as we were about to board our return flight on Monday afternoon, I received a call from my son telling me that one of the huge maple trees in front of our house had craked, split and 1/3 of the tree had fallen down. thankfully it did not fall towards the house. — Just as we were about to board our return flight on Monday afternoon, I received a call from my son telling me that one of the huge maple trees in front of our house had cracked, split and 1/3 of the tree had fallen down. thankfully it did not fall towards the house

This photo shows part of the tree lying in our field. You can get a feel for how large this tree is in comparison to our house, which has two stories and a full attic.

I am really going to miss this cat. We had him for 15 and a half years and had to hand feed him when he was a 5 week old kitten. It's day like today that make me so thankful that I can retreat to my studio and loose myself in my doll making... — I am really going to miss this cat. We had him for 15 and a half years and had to hand feed him when he was a 5 week old kitten. It’s days like today that make me so thankful that I can retreat to my studio and loose myself in my doll making…

Stray Comments

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

September 9, 2013September 9, 2013 paulawaltonLeave a comment

I thought I’d give you a peek at how I am spending my vacation.

What does a doll maker do for fun? If the doll maker is me, the answer is quilt!

My friend Jan very generously asked me and my sister if we'd like to come quilt on her fantastice and amazing long arm quilting machine. Naturally we jumped at the chance! — My friend Jan very generously asked me and my sister if we’d like to come quilt on her fantastic and amazing long arm quilting machine. Naturally we jumped at the chance!

I quilted a vintage c.1960's log cabin quilt top that I have had waiting in my attic for several years. Jan suggested a free form daisy quilting pattern, which was just perfect for the 60's :) — I quilted a vintage c.1960’s log cabin quilt top that I have had waiting in my attic for several years. Jan suggested a free form daisy quilting pattern, which was just perfect for the 60’s 🙂

This is my sister Marisa quilting a 1930's themed block exchange quilt. A group of us made and exchanged 1930's blocks a few years ago. — This is my sister Marisa quilting a 1930’s themed block exchange quilt. A group of us made and exchanged 1930’s blocks a few years ago.

Here is what our quilts looked like at the end of the day. Mine is all done and my sister's just needs to be bound! — Here is what our quilts looked like at the end of the day. Mine is all done and my sister’s just needs to be bound!

Antique Doll Furniture · Doll for Sale · Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll

Saturday in my Studio – One New Doll Finished & Available For Sale – SOLD

August 3, 2013August 3, 2013 paulawalton8 Comments

Thank you so much for stopping by to visit. This doll is now SOLD.

Early this evening I put the finishing touches on my latest reproduction Izannah Walker doll. I’ve been working pretty much non-stop on her and a few of her sisters for the past several weeks. I love this doll! I made her specifically for someone who is as enamored with the construction of Izannah Walker dolls as I am. If you have studied Izannah’s dolls closely, you will know that some of her dolls have very visible stockinette and head seams that show every stitch where they were joined together. I wanted that same look for this doll and I think that I have managed to capture all those details that show this doll’s two piece pressed cloth head construction to great advantage. She has a very sweet, serene expression and shows a moderate amount of “age” and wear. She has a bit of flaking and crackled paint, along with some worn and rubbed areas, just where little hands would have held and cuddled her.

At the moment she is dressed in pantalettes, a long chemise, a petticoat and a red and white cotton print dress. All of her clothing fabrics and second skin are antique. I do have a very good stock of antique fabrics at the moment, due to my summer shopping adventures; so if you would like to order additional clothing to go along with her I have some fantastic colors and prints for you to choose from. Dressed as is she’s priced at $1250.00. Please contact me to discuss additional wardrobe items, or if you have any questions or would like to see more photos. I may be reached at 860-355-5709 during reasonable East Coast hours or by email at paula@asweetremembrance.com. The antique child’s chair in original red paint is also available for sale. I happen to have a pair of them, they are $40 each or $75 for the pair. Both the doll and the chairs have free shipping to U.S. addresses and any item may be placed on lay-away with terms to fit your budget.

Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll

Evelyne’s Doll Part Two

July 16, 2013 paulawalton2 Comments

More photos of Evelyne’s doll now that her dress is dry 🙂 These are much better photos that those I took yesterday at sunset. I almost deleted yesterday’s photographs, but I decided to keep the first post up so that you can see what a difference better lighting makes.

Evelyne sent me a photograph of an antique Izannah Walker wearing a dress that was made in a very similar way to the indigo print dress on the left. I bought the antique indigo dress last September with the intention of using to draft a pattern. Evelyne's request for a blue check dress motivated me to finally get a pattern drawn up. — Evelyne sent me a photograph of an antique Izannah Walker wearing a dress that was made in a very similar way to the indigo print dress on the left. I bought the antique indigo dress last September with the intention of using to draft a pattern. Evelyne’s request for a blue check dress motivated me to finally get a pattern drawn up.

The top stitching shows up better on the antique dress with it's darker background. — The top stitching shows up better on the antique dress with it’s darker background.

Evelyne’s doll is finished and ready to travel. She’ll be leaving here soon on her journey to Belgium.

Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll

Evelyne’s Doll

July 15, 2013 paulawalton4 Comments

This is Evelyne’s doll. I just finished her this afternoon. I put the final few stitches in her blue homespun check dress, sewed on it’s antique glass buttons, and popped the dress into a basin of wash water. At the moment it is hanging out on my clothesline to dry.

It's so hot today that skinny dipping sounds like a wonderful idea! — It’s so hot today that skinny dipping sounds like a wonderful idea!

Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll

Savannah Packs Her Trunk

July 11, 2013 paulawalton4 Comments

Today Savannah has been busy packing her trunk. She will soon be immigrating to Canada to live with her big sister.

It's always nice to have a little help from a friend. — It’s always nice to have a little help from a friend.

Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll

In Remembrance of Maxine

July 10, 2013July 16, 2013 paulawalton3 Comments

"When this you see, Remember me..." — “When this you see, Remember me…”

In February I finished a custom reproduction Izannah Walker doll for a very fascinating lady named Maxine. Maxine had seen my ads in Antique Doll Collector magazine and called me last August to discuss the possibility of ordering one of my Izannahs. We chatted several times, and by the end of the month Maxine had decided exactly how she wanted her doll to look. Maxine chose to place the doll on lay-away and requested a February 2013 completion date. During the months while I was working on Maxine’s doll she would call me to check on my progress and also to talk about dolls. She told me many interesting stories about her collection, dolls that she had bought and sold and people she knew in the doll world.

My favorite conversation with Maxine was the one where she reminisced about a friend of hers who had been the dress maker for the dolls in Maxine’s collection. She told me about meeting the woman, becoming friends with her, and about some of the amazing dresses she had created for Maxine’s doll’s. The most inspiring part of this story is that the last doll’s dress that Maxine had commissioned from her friend had been completed just a few weeks before the women’s death at “almost 100” years of age. Maxine assured me that the last dress was just as beautiful and well made as the very first dress she had ever ordered. I’d like to think that in the future someone will be able to say the same about me.

On Friday afternoon I received a call from Maxine’s daughter. She told me that Maxine had passed away, very softly and gently on Wednesday and that she was calling to tell me how much her mother had loved the doll I made for her. I was overwhelmed that this woman would take the time, in the midst of her grief, to call and thank me for providing her mother with such pleasure. It was an extraordinary kindness and a very singular experience…

Antique Doll Furniture · Antique Izannah Walker Dolls · Doll Clothing

Stepping Through Time ~ A Closer Look at Izannah Walker’s Painted Boots

June 26, 2013June 26, 2013 paulawaltonLeave a comment

My antique Izannah Walker holding an antique child's lace up boot. — My antique Izannah Walker doll holding an antique child’s lace-up boot.

I often buy antique items to use as research materials. I find that having an original item to study is so much better than having to rely on photographs, paintings and sketches. Last weekend I found a single black lace-up child’s boot in a style that will immediately be recognizable to anyone who is familiar with Izannah Walker’s dolls. Izannah painted very accurate representations of common children’s footwear that was worn in her time. The black lace-up boot shown here dates from the 1840-1850’s, although I am sure that this style of shoe was passed down to younger children and continued to be worn into the 1860’s.

Here you can see the painted version on the doll and the real life child's boot side by side. The ankles on this Izannah Walker doll have given way over time, with the painted fabric splitting near the ankle seam, where the leg is weaker. I have conserved the legs by affixing thin bands of leather to the ankles, using rubber cement. This holds the legs and feet together, but is a repair that can be removed without causing damage to the original antique surfaces beneath. — Here you can see the painted version on the doll and the real life child’s boot side by side. The ankles on this Izannah Walker doll have given way over time, with the painted fabric splitting near the ankle seam, where the leg is weaker. I have conserved the legs by affixing thin bands of leather to the ankles, using rubber cement. This holds the legs and feet together, but is a repair that can be removed without causing damage to the original antique surfaces beneath.

A close-up of the painted boots on an original Izannah Walker doll. Compare them with the child's boot in the following photo. — A close-up of the painted boots on an original Izannah Walker doll. Compare them with the child’s boot in the following photo.

c. 1840-1850's child's black lace-up leather boot. — c. 1840-1850’s child’s black lace-up leather boot.

A side view of Izannah's painted boots. Notice how the top of the boots are higher at the front of the leg and lower in the back. — A side view of Izannah’s painted boots. Notice how the top of the boots are higher at the front of the leg and lower in the back.

Compare this side view to Izannah's painted version. Notice how closely they match. — Compare this side view to Izannah’s painted version. Notice how closely they match.

Note the characteristic shaped sole on the bottom of the boot.

Here you can see the sole of the boots that are echoed in Izannah's painted cloth version. — Here you can see the sole of the boots that are echoed in Izannah’s painted cloth version.

This photo shows the bottom of the boot sole. Youcan tell that these boots were worn by a child that had not yet learned to walk. — This photo shows the bottom of the boot sole. You can tell that these boots were worn by a child that had not yet learned to walk.

Another style of boots that Izannah Walker painted on her dolls were scallop top, side button boots like these, shown in a c.1870-1880's portrait. — Another style of boots that Izannah Walker painted on her dolls were scallop top, side button boots like these, shown in a c.1870-1880’s portrait that I own.

Izannah’s dolls kept up with current fashions, and when scallop top, side button boots became part of children’s attire, she painted this later style of footwear on some of her dolls. When considering the age of an Izannah Walker doll, you can take the style of their painted boots into account. I would not consider this to be a fool proof method of dating the dolls, because young children’s styles often lag behind those of older children and adults, Izannah’s dolls have a tendency to retain the look of the 1840’s – 1850’s no matter when they were made, and then there is the issue of the rarer bare footed dolls… However when looked upon as a supporting bit of evidence along with the rest of the doll’s history and clues to be found in her construction and clothing, painted boot styles can be quite helpful.

Another type of painted boots that can be found on Izannah Walker dolls are the tall black leather boots with red tops that she used on her rare boy dolls. I don’t own an example of those boots to show you, but if you follow this link to the Wisconsin Historical Society Children’s Shoe Collection you will be able to see the boy’s boots, as well as additional dated examples of lace-up and scallop boots.