Izannah Walker and Her Dolls ~ My Article in the September 2017 Issue of Antique Doll Collector Magazine ~ SOLD OUT
Category: Antique Izannah Walker Dolls
This category is for pictures of and information about antique dolls made by Izannah Walker.
SOLD OUT! Sneak Peek of the September Issue of Antique Doll Collector Magazine
The issue is SOLD OUT! I just received a sneak peek of the September issue of Antique Doll Collector! It is going to be a wonderful Izannah-filled issue!!! If you are not already a subscriber to the magazine, you may want to hurry up and order a subscription! See if they will let you start with the August 2017 issue so that you can read the great article Joy Harrington wrote about an amazing mid-19th century doll wardrobe in her collection, A Mid 19th Century Wardrobe for a New England Girl. While the actual wardrobe isn’t an Izannah Walker wardrobe, it is all from the same time period and you do not want to miss a chance to see it! I can’t wait to read Joy’s article “Izannah Aprons” A Closer Look in the September issue. ❤ I have it on good authority that there will be at least one additional article about Izannah Walker dolls in Antique Doll Collector during 2017. ❤ ❤ ❤
This is the link to Antique Doll Collector’s subscription page, just click here!
In Celebration of Izannah Walker’s 200th Birthday I am Curating a Very Special Public Exhibit of Izannah Walker Dolls!
Another date to mark on your calendars!!! As many of you may know, I am co-chairman for the Jenny Lind Doll Club doll show. This year is the 30th year for the show, so we wanted to do something special at this year’s show. Being fellow Izannahphiles I know you won’t be surprised by what I came up with. 🙂
The Jenny Lind Doll Club is very pleased to announce that we will have a special educational exhibit of Izannah Walker dolls at our October 29th, 2017 show. This is an almost unprecedented gathering of so many of these rare dolls at a public event. There will be at least eleven Izannah Walker dolls on display that belong to current Jenny Lind members, along with photos and memorabilia of Izannah Walker dolls owned by past members, including legendary Izannah Walker collector Maureen Popp. At this time discussions are underway with friends of the Jenny Lind doll club about the possibility of additional dolls being loaned for the exhibit, so the total number of dolls on display may be slightly higher. There is no separate admission fee to view the educational exhibit. Entrance is included in the doll show admission of $7.00.
All exhibited Izannah Walker dolls are part of private collections, they are NOT being offered for sale. This is strictly an exhibit in celebration of both our Doll Show’s 30th anniversary and Izannah Walker’s 200th birthday.
*If you will be attending the show and own an Izannah Walker doll that you would like to add to the exhibit, please contact us at jennylinddollshow@gmail.com to make arrangements. ❤
To keep up to date on all the doll show news check the show website: http://www.jennylinddollshow.wordpress.com and the show facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/jennylinddollshow/
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Busy Times! Studio News
You may have noticed that I haven’t posted much lately. Unfortunately that doesn’t mean that I have been enjoying a long lazy summer… ( just kidding – I love what I do!) As is usually the case, there is just so much going on that I simply haven’t had time to blog!
It’s funny, I was talking to Tess Rosch, publisher of Early American Life, last week and she made some comment about me being a “high energy” person. It’s not the first time someone has said similar things. I have some dear friends who firmly believe that I only manage to get so many things done because I’m on drugs. 🙂 They asked very nicely if I would please share, as they needed to finish quite a few projects of their own. LOL! I don’t actually think of myself as high energy. Instead I view myself as a very tired, stubborn woman with an extremely long to-do list… So we’ll consider this post as checking one of those items off my list.
Lots of exciting things are going on! I’m so thrilled to say that I have been chosen for the Early American Life Directory of Traditional Craftsmen in four different categories this year! Not only will you find me listed in Toys & Dolls, but also in Miniatures, Clothing & Accessories, and Holidays (in the upcoming Christmas issue). This makes 38 times that I have been juried into the Directory!
Magazines have been a big part of my summer so far. I spent several months combing through 80 years worth of books and articles, doing research for the article on Izannah Walker and her dolls that I wrote for Antique Doll Collector magazine. Look for it in their September, 2017 issue. It is the cover article!
Currently I’m in the midst of working on an article and project for the Christmas issue of Early American Life. Keep your fingers crossed and wish me luck! I need to have it finished by the end of July!!!
OTHER HAPPENINGS
Third Thursdays are starting this month! If you didn’t read about them in my last news letter, stay tuned for more information in the next few days. This should be fun!!!
I also have quite a few really amazing things in the works to celebrate Izannah’s 200th birthday! More news will be also be forth coming about them soon. 🙂
SIGNING OFF FOR NOW
Clifford The Big Red Dog!
I made quite a few bloomer type shorts out of 1930’s prints to go with antique and vintage tops for Cloe’s summer wardrobe ❤
Reading our haul of newly checked out library books…
Strawberry juice, tiny pea and all. It was another successful visit to the gardens!
As I mentioned, this has not been a leisurely summer so far, but I have made time to garden, work in a few non-doll sewing projects, and be a grandma. Cloe and I have been enjoying our “library days”, when we go to story time at our local library, check out books, then spend the day together “gardening” which means checking on the peas she helped plant and eating berries as fast as she can pick them, playing and reading. ❤
I hope your summer has had some magical moments too!
A Very Snowy Day or What Little Dolls Do To Amuse Themselves When They Are Stuck Indoors…
Isabeau, Ismay and Zanna were forced to agree, for the sad truth is that the dolls only have one coat to share between them all, which was kindly loaned to them by the bears…
… later they bundled Izzybelle into the borrowed coat and let her go outside to scoop snow into their biggest bowl. Then they made snow ice cream, which they ate to their hearts content.
Thus ends the story of my dolls and their very snowy day… ❤
W is for Wednesday and Working
You can see more of Josephine and Isabeau’s doll making adventures on Facebook at Paula Walton’s A Sweet Remembrance.
Valentine’s Day at A Sweet Remembrance
The dolls and I have had a very busy day ❤ We spent a little extra time this morning baking a special Valentine treat, Chocolate Bread, an amazing combination of dark chocolate, tart cherries and coffee. While the dough was rising, and filling the house with an enticing scent, we went out to the studio where Josephine, Isabeau and Ismay kept themselves busy making valentines. ❤ ❤ ❤ click on any photo to enlarge ❤ ❤ ❤
Ismay and Isabeau cut out Valentines, weaving paper hearts into tiny paper hands, while Josephine addressed envelopes to all of their dearest friends…
Josephine has been spending her time composing advertisements for the shoppe. “Mistress Walton begs leave to inform her Friends and the Public in general that she intends opening a Pop-Up Shoppe on Monday, the 12th inst. with a new and elegant assortment of paper cuttings, stitchery, and love tokens… Mistress Walton takes this importunity of returning thanks for the great patronage she has already received from her numerous friends… ” Josephine is a devoted reader and she found great inspiration in Advertisements for January, Ackerman’s Repository, Vol. XI, 1814
Birthday messages… ❤
Making Valentines was such fun, and kept the dolls so busy that I was able to work on many other things.
Sewing on arms, legs and second skins, in Valentine colors of red and pink ❤
We hope your Valentine’s Day has been just as wonderful and eventful as ours ❤
If you would like to bake a batch of Chocolate Bread too, here is where you can find my recipe.
To see a bit more of our Valentine’s Day visit Paula Walton’s 18th Century Home Journal and my Spun Cotton Ornament Journal.
New Year’s Day ~ Thankful Reflections & Ebullient Hopes
The wheel of the world has turned once again and it is time to welcome in a new year… Even more so than Thanksgiving, New Year’s is a time that causes me to think about all the things I am thankful for and to consider all of my hopes for the upcoming year.
I AM GRATEFUL…
Everyday I realize how exceedingly fortunate I am to be able to do the things I love. I can not express how thankful I am to be the current custodian of eight of Izannah Walker’s dolls! I am constantly amazed that these dolls are mine to love and care for. It’s been a long time coming, with years upon years of searching and more hours than I can count of work to pay for them. If you had asked me 25 years ago if I would ever own even one Izannah Walker doll I would have said no, but the longing for one these amazing dolls never waned. So I continued to search for a doll I could afford and try to save money to pay for her… It’s good to hold on to your dreams, whatever they are, to continue to strive for your goals and not get discouraged! It also helps to be tenacious and downright stubborn! 🙂 Because I know that I am blessed, I try to share my Izannahs, both old and new! I have always been grateful to others who have been kind enough to show me their dolls, in person, in photographs and online, so I attempt to repay my thanks by doing the same – plus adding in bits of my imagination and the world it lives in… Come by in the months to follow and see the dolls at play ❤
THANKS TO YOU…
Thank you all for your support of my work these past 30 years! I didn’t say much about it, but 2016 was the 30th year I have been making and selling my handwork.
Thank you for your purchases, both large and small! Thank you for your kind words of encouragement and your compliments. It is a scary thing to expose items you have lovingly created to the world! Thank you for making it a rewarding experience, and much less frightening.
Thank you for being the kind of customers and students who turn into friends and brighten my days!
A huge thank you to those who have entrusted their precious dolls to me for restoration!!! I have appreciated the chance to take care of your treasured dolls, and to carefully undo the worst ravages of time and past accidents. I learn so much with every doll I have the opportunity to study and observe! I know I’m slow and cautious when restoring dolls, so thank you also for your patience.
An immense armful of thanks to those few special individuals who feel the same way that I do about sharing the beauty of Izannah’s dolls, and who have graciously allowed me to make reproductions of their antique Izannah Walker dolls! I truly can not thank you enough. ❤ ❤ ❤
KNOW YOURSELF
One of the good things about being older is gaining a deeper understanding of yourself! After a lot of trial and error, I know many of the things that make me happy. I know that I am the happiest creating beautiful,intricate, time-consuming things. I do make and sell a large number of items… and I used to make even more. Yes, I can make simple, less expensive dolls, bears, clothes, pincushions, etc. etc. etc… but doing that is more like drudgery. I strive for special, amazing, perfect work. That is what makes my heart sing. I may not always reach my ideal, but that doesn’t keep me from trying again and again. I know this is not the right way for everyone, but it is for me. So know yourself! Be kind to yourself and follow the path that is uniquely yours. Don’t follow the crowd, follow your heart! ❤
HOPE FOR THE NEW YEAR
A new year traditionally brings new beginnings. My hope for 2017 is to be more creative. To try projects that I’ve been daydreaming of for years. To let that spark of creativity light all the days of this brand new year!!!
My hope for you is that you will be able to turn some of your long held daydreams into reality in 2017, and that you will be surrounded by those you love and care about! Try something new! Happy New Year to us all!!!
Happy Boxing Day!
All is calm, all is bright… We hope you had a joyful Christmas celebration! Best holiday wishes from our home to yours ❤
Merry Christmas from Josephine, Isane Hannah, Isabeau, Ismay, Eliza Jane, Zanna, Izzybelle and their papier-mache friend Comfort.
The dolls all hung their stockings from the mantle on Christmas Eve and Eliza Jane was thrilled to find that Santa left new boots in hers!
Boots!!!
Warm cozy boots for winter.
Just my size!
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
All decked out for the holidays!
Snug and cozy beside the stove…
All the dolls bring you glad tidings for the New Year…
Sweet Christmas wishes from the Izzy’s to you!
The dolls make this one of my favorite rooms…
Filled with things that make me smile…
Father Christmas stands watch beside a garlanded tree..
Ho, Ho, Ho!
The perfect sized tree…
and the stockings were hung by the chimney with care…
All the little wooden dolls have decided they need to make clothes for the new year, so they are making themselves at home amongst my sewing accoutrements…
The little wooden dolls have taken over the “attic”of the corner cupboard as their sewing room.
A stitch in time…
sweet penny woodens ❤
- To read the captions or enlarge images. simply click on any photograph.
Lost in a Daydream of Past Childhoods…
Once again the earth has turned and November has come at last, drifting in on gently falling leaves and soft, warm rays of light… More than any other month, November causes my soul to ring with echos of the past, and my thoughts meander to the people who have lived in my house and owned the things I love before me. I dwell and marvel at small girls, turned to woman, with babes of their own, who played with the dolls I cherish. I glory in the vibrant creativity of quilts, pieced by other hands and passed down through the years, to warm loved ones… Days and hours slip away and gently flow into the past, where I allow myself to linger for a few brief hours, lost in a daydream of past childhoods. ❤
The newest member of my antique Izannah Walker family.
I love the proportions of this larger doll…
❤
A doll to love and cherish…
Chainstitch embroidery encircles the neckline, armseyes, waist and hem of her dress.
19th century perfection.
The dolls are happy that Lily is still visiting us 🙂
Family photo!
❤
Chubby arms and amazing hands
Embroidery and cartridge pleating
red trimmed painted boots and polka-dot lace ❤
Izannah Walker Journal 