Seven more days and counting until Izannah Walker’s 196th birthday and my annual Izannah Walker Birthday Sale ❤ ❤ ❤
Category: Izannah Reproduction Doll Class
Just a little braging about one of my students…
Vicki Leeke sent me these photos of dolls that she was working during my Izannah retreat last September. You may remember Vicki from one of my previous posts about her lovely leather flowers and leaves and the amazingly thoughtful Izannah pins she made for everyone who attended the retreat.
Vicki made “Charlotte” using a head and body parts that she had me pre-make for her prior to the start of the retreat. Vicki did all of the hand sewing to put Charlotte’s pieces together, painted her, and made all of her clothing. If I remember correctly, Charlotte’s dress is made from vintage fabric that Vicki came across at home in Australia… I can’t remember if she told me that she dyed the fabric or not… either way it is a luscious shade of rose.
Mr. Pospisel started out as a head that Vicki made just so that she could experiment with one of my plaster molds. She kept working on him so that she could practice hand sewing the two halves of the pressed cloth head together. After she got that far she was hooked! Before long “Mr. Pospisel” had acquired a name from an anecdote told to us by Peggy Flavin during the class, and his life history soon followed. Vicki took him back to Australia, where she finished bringing him to life. He is wearing the most wonderful suit, that really shows off Vicki’s proficiency when sewing with wool. Making all of her wonderful felt dolls has obviously paid off 🙂
Vicki is planning to enter them in a doll show in Sydney in November. Keep your fingers crossed that they win an armful of awards!
Click here to read about Vicki’s leather work and Izannah pins.
Click here to read more about the retreat.
If you can’t tell, all of my students make me feel just like a proud mom! This is the virtual equivalent of pulling a fistful of photographs out of my wallet to show you 🙂
Valentine’s Day Tea Party XOXO
Thank you for coming! We hope you had fun.
– Newly made Izannah Walker reproduction dolls may be custom ordered, please see my website Paula Walton’s A Sweet Remembrance for details.
– The recipe for Mace Shortbread cookies is available by clicking here.
– Violet tea may be purchased from Simpson and Vail.
– Directions for the two love tokens shown, plus one more are posted on my Izannah Walker Class Member Site. If you would like to buy or read more about the class click here.
– True Blue is busy making a Valentine for Kathy.
– Savannah is slaving away on a very special heartfelt letter to Charlotte.
– Ruthie is on her way back home to Brooklyn after visiting for a “spa day” to have the damage caused by the post office repaired. She says that she is ever so much better now and that she feels beautiful again. Plus she loves her new warm flannel petticoat and can’t wait to show it off to Paula C.!
– I’m getting ready to go on a double date with my husband and our very dearest friends Joy and John…
Thank you for stopping by Valentine!
XOXO Hugs and Kisses,
Paula
Letters from Martha – Her Thoughts About My Izannah Walker Doll Making Class
For the past few days I’ve been exchanging notes with Martha Bishop, a dedicated and prolific doll maker who is a member of my Izannah Walker Doll Making Class. We started out talking about one of Martha’s dolls Taloulah, then as is often the case, our conversation moved on to other topics. Martha’s correspondence warmed my heart and has given me a little glow that I’ve been carrying around with me ever since. People like Martha are why I love teaching! With her permission, here are some excerpts from her emails:
... “I wanted to tell you that a lot of people have been trying to figure out how to make doll heads using molds. I’ve told them many times that I came to you to teach me how to do this, and it was one of the most important things I could have done for myself. After taking your class I was able to do what I wanted, without still floundering around with unanswered questions. I have directed them to you and encouraged them to take your classes. I don’t know if anyone takes my advice, but it is what so many people need to do. People are stubborn and waste time and money trying to figure out how to do things themselves without the benefit of a knowledgeable teacher. Just wanted you to know that.
“I saw your article in Prims with your three Izannah dolls. They did a good job, but then the dolls were beautiful. It was very nice. I am looking forward to the Alabama Baby class. I have read it and intend to get started before too long. These dolls appeal to me in a big way too, especially the black ones. I’m sure I will have lots of questions when I start.
… “I think you should put my comment on your sites, wherever you want. I am glad to let people know that there is help for them, and this class you teach is the best and only place I know of to get the training to make an authentic Izannah Walker doll, made the way Izannah made them. I’ve told people that it’s not just about making a molded head, it’s a comprehensive course that includes so much more about making the dolls, that they would need just as much as mold making . Please use this where ever you want to. I am glad to help. It’s all true.
P.S. the cost of the course is nothing compared to all (they) will benefit from it in every way.
Love, Martha”
Thank you Martha, your words are good for my soul!
If you are a fan of Prims magazine, you may be familiar with Martha’s work. Her Jack & Jill were featured in the Autumn 2012 issue. To see and read about Martha’s dolls visit her blog www.martha-maboriginals.blogspot.com and her selling site www.maboriginals.com . Make sure to read Taloulah’s story!
Photos to Share of Mary’s Antique Izannah Walker Doll
If you are a member of my Izannah Walker class, be sure to drop into the class member site to see all the photos that Mary has shared of Anna, her tiny Izannah Walker doll.
Make History in 2013!
It’s here! The first day of a brand new year. With a pristine calendar, ready to be filled with a bounty of creative possibilities. I love this time of year, when I’m rested and recharged from spending time with family and friends over the holidays and it feels like I have a bit more time to dream, plan, and work on new projects.
I’d like to share my surge of creative spirit, so that you can make 2013 the year that you learn to make history! All three of my classes by mail, Reproduction Izannah Walker Doll Making, Reproduction Alabama Babies, and Spun Cotton Ornaments are 13% off during the month of January. The classes may be purchased by visiting my website, Paula Walton’s A Sweet Remembrance.
If you have any questions, prior to ordering, please feel free to ask – paula@asweetremembrance.com – or 860-355-5709 .
The Way it Was… My 2012 Izannah Retreat Part 2
Mary, Susie, Vicki, me, and Charlotte.
Wondering about the second part of my recent Izannah retreat? This is the condensed version of days 4-6.
Would I do it again? In a heartbeat, if I could talk all of these wonderful ladies into coming back! Seriously, I can not tell you how much I enjoyed getting to know everyone and learning how very much we are alike. Six days was not enough time! We could have used twice as long for doll making, talking, sharing, making up amusing stories about our dolls and celebrating the wonderful legacy of Izannah Walker and her dolls.
The retreat was a lot of work, which took the help of my entire family, months of preparation, and two carpenters to pull off. I’m not sure if I will be having another one, but if I do and you think you would be interested in coming to New Milford, CT to attend, send me an email at Paula@asweetremembrance.com. I’ll put you on my mailing list and send you advance notice of any future retreats and classes.
A Look Back at Part 1 of My 2012 Izannah Walker Doll Making Retreat
“It’s taken two and a half weeks for me to recover and get caught up enough to write this post 🙂 ”
I managed to write the previous sentence last Saturday… now here it is almost a week later and I still haven’t found time to get retreat photos posted. So I am going to stop everything else for a few minutes and concentrate on finishing this post!
Favorite Moments:
This is just the tiniest glimpse at the fun, laughter, sharing, learning and friendship that we experienced during the first half of the retreat. It was a wonderful experience having all four of these incredible ladies, who were willing to journey to my small corner of New England, come make dolls with me! I simply can not express how much I truly enjoyed getting to know them and sharing our mutual love of Izannah Walker’s dolls. The only two difficult obstacles we faced were actually being disciplined enough to work – since it was all too tempting to just have fun and play dolls – and the rain!
Last Three Days of My Annual Izannah Walker Birthday Sale
If you are a long time reader of this blog, you will probably recall that for the past few years I have been having an Birthday Sale to celebrate Izannah Walker’s birth on September 25, 1817.
Any new orders for custom made Izannah Walker dolls, custom made Izannah Walker doll clothing, Izannah Walker doll clothes patterns, or my Izannah Walker Doll Making Class by Mail are 10% off from 9/19/12 – 10/7/12. So if you have been contemplating buying my class, or commissioning a special doll, now is the time! The sale goes through midnight eastern time Sunday night.
Izannah Walker Birthday Sale!
For the past couple of years, I have declared Izannah Walker’s birthday one of my own personal holidays and celebrated by having a sale on all things Izannah. September 25th marks the 195th anniversary of Izannah’s birth in 1817.
Because of my upcoming Izannah Doll Making Retreat, I am starting the sale a little bit sooner and running it a smidge longer too. That way if you have questions you’d like to ask prior to ordering items, there is plenty of time for me to answer before and after the retreat.
Any new orders for custom made Izannah Walker dolls, custom made Izannah Walker doll clothing, Izannah Walker doll clothes patterns, or my Izannah Walker Doll Making Class by Mail are 10% off from 9/19/12 – 10/7/12. THIS DOLL HAS BEEN SOLD. I also have one very sweet Izannah Walker reproduction doll that is finished who is included in this sale. 
Orders for the finished doll, patterns and the class by mail will be probably be shipped out after October 3rd, when the retreat is over. Right now, I am working on three custom made dolls, so any new custom orders will be added to my calendar after these current commissions. I do ask for a 25% deposit when you place a custom order, or you may set up lay-away payments of varying lengths.
You may place orders through my website A Sweet Remembrance and call or email me to order custom made dolls and doll clothing.
Paula
paula@asweetremembrance.com 860-355-5709
Izannah Walker Journal 