These four new little sisters are looking for loving homes ❤
ALL NOW SOLD THANK YOU!!! Tonight I am happy to introduce you to Sarah Alice’s little sisters! All four of the dolls were made using my own handmade mold of my original antique Izannah Walker doll, Sarah Alice. The girls are just over 18 inches tall, they have painted boots with scalloped tops, “forget me not” blue second skin body coverings, and come dressed in a chemise, pantalettes, petticoat and double pink printed antique cotton dress.
The dolls are all being sold on a “first come” basis. The first time stamped email to paula@asweetremembrance.com that asks to purchase the doll gets her. You are also very welcome to ask questions, but asking a question will not hold a doll, only a firm purchase request will.
Each doll is $1295.00, which includes free insured USPS Priority Mail shipping to any U.S. address. Shipping to other countries will be charged at the exact postage rate. I no long ship to Russia. Payment via Paypal Invoice, credit card (call with number) or check. Lay-away of up to six months is available with equal monthly payments. Dolls will ship from the studio 5-7 days after your payment is received.
I think that about covers all the boring bits, so now let’s get back to photos! ❤
Sarah Alice A – $1295.00 SOLD
Sarah Alice B – $1295.00 SOLD
Sarah Alice C – $1295.00 SOLD
Sarah Alice D – $1295.00 SOLD
*** You may click on any of the smaller images to enlarge them ***
Thank you all so very much for stopping by to meet all the new little cloth dolls ❤ We are so glad you could join us for my tenth annual Izannah Walker Birthday Celebration!!! Happy 203rd Birthday Izannah Walker! Wishing you sweet dreams ❤
Tilly J. Lamb and I are both spending our days making dolls in preparation for our annual Izannah Walker Birthday Celebration on September 25th & 26th, 2020
I haven’t sent out a newsletter in quite some time… the one overwhelming thing I most want to say is that I hope you, your families and loved ones are safe and healthy. This has been such a very sad and difficult year for our world.
I debated with myself about whether or not to write my annual Autumn Newsletter, but in the midst of such very unsettled and stressful times I find that I need a few happy, fanciful things to think about. Tiny bright spots that make life feel a bit more normal and remind me of better days. So I decided to go ahead and write, hoping that you might feel the same and be interested in a bit of studio news and upcoming events.
The dolls and I are busy making plans to celebrate Izannah Walker’s 203rd birthday on September 25th. I started writing my Izannah Walker Journal ~ Paula Walton’s Doll-Making Notes blog in January, 2009. The little Izzy’s and I have been celebrating the anniversary of Izannah Walker’s birth on my blog for ten years! Since my first birthday post on September 25th, 2010!
I’m getting a rather late start on preparations this year. I have to admit that since March I have been feeling much too antsy to make dolls… I have needed to do more physical, less detailed work. To be up and moving all the time rather than sitting… I have been throwing myself into taking care of my little remnant of an 18th century farm. My life is going through a lot of changes at the moment and one of the things I am exploring is the feasibility of farming on a very small scale, so I have been growing a few experimental crops and trying out new plants. I’m not at all sure that farming is in my future, but it has made for an interesting, busy, exhausting spring and summer. I have also been concentrating on taking care of my family and making things for them. I have made masks, masks, and more masks. Not nearly as many as some people I know, who have been donating them on a large scale, but I have still made a fair number ~ about 75 so far, with more requested and on my to do list. My concentration on family has included making toys with my granddaughter and sewing clothes for her first year of school.
Now, just finally, I am feeling as if I can return to making dolls, creating spun cotton fancies, and all the other art and handwork that I love. Apparently I am not alone in this, as I have recently been seeing comments and posts from other artists and craftspeople remarking that they too have not been able to work on their art and creations for months…
I am very, very honored to once again have been selected by Early American Life as one of their top traditional craftsmen in 2020. This marks the 41st time I have been juried into their prestigious Directory of Traditional Craftpersons. One of my dolls was featured in their August 2020 issue.
Reminder
Both the Spun Cotton Ornament Class and Izannah Walker Doll Making Class member help sites have moved to private facebook groups. If you are a member of either class and would like an invitation to the group please email me. You must be a member of facebook to use the private facebook group.
In Closing Thank you all for your interest in my work for all these years. I have enjoyed getting to talk or correspond with so many of you! Knowing you has enriched my life. I hope that I have been able to add just a bit of fun, whimsy and knowledge to yours!
I’d like to leave you with this recipe for Birth-day Pudding. It is the recipe that the dolls and I baked for our first Izannah Walker Birthday Party in 2010, and what we will be making again to celebrate this year. It is very easy and quite delicious! You don’t even have to be a doll lover to enjoy it ~ lol!
Butter a deep dish, and lay in slices of bread and butter, wet with milk, and upon these sliced tart apples, sweetened and spiced. Then lay on another layer of bread and butter and apples, and continue thus till the dish is filled. Let the top layer be bread and butter, and dip it in milk, turning the buttered side down. Any other kind of fruit will answer as well. Put a plate on the top, and bake two hours, then take it off and bake another hour.
This receipt (aka recipe) is from Miss Beecher’s Domestic Receipt-Book by Catherine E. Beecher. Catherine Esther Beecher was born in 1800 in East Hampton, Long Island. She founded the Hartford Female Seminary in 1823 as well as other schools for young women in Ohio, Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin. She wrote A Treatise on Domestic Economy (1841) and Miss Beecher’s Domestic Receipt-Book (1846).
Notes:
After buttering my dishes I dusted them with sugar, before layering in the bread and butter.
I cut the crusts off my bread, as the pudding was for a special occasion, but you certainly don’t have to. I saved the crusts as a treat for the wild birds in my yard. You may also save them to make stuffings, bread crumbs, or croutons.
I chose cinnamon, mace and nutmeg as my spices.
I baked my doll sized pudding in a custard cup, which would also be nice if you want to bake yours in individual portions.
I preheated my oven to 350 degrees and baked my puddings for 15 minutes, then I reduced the oven temperature to 250 degrees and continued baking for the remaining 2 hours and 45 minutes. I removed my doll size pudding from the oven after 30 minutes of total baking time. Your baking time is going to depend a lot on the size of your dishes and the thickness of your pudding, so check your oven fairly frequently. It’s also a good idea to put a cookie sheet under your dish, because my pudding bubbled over as it was baking.
I’m so pleased to announce that I have been juried into the Early American Life Directory of Traditional Craftsmen for the 40th time! It’s an incredible honor to be included with such a prestigious group of artisans. Thank you Early American Life!
It’s been a busy summer here, so I’m a bit later than usual in mentioning the Craftsman Directory. I’m sure you all know how that goes… but today I am slowing down a bit and spending the afternoon reading in honor of Book Lovers Day. I hope you are all having a wonderful summer and enjoying a few long, lazy, laid back days filled with dolls, good books and dear friends ❤
Thank you Izannah Walker for inspiring me with your beautiful, intricate painted cloth dolls. For being an enterprising 19th century woman who was able to support herself in a male dominated world. For being the first woman to be granted a United States patent related to doll making. You have changed my life!
Emmaline took time to say farewell to some of her older relatives before packing her bags for her journey home…
I just want to take a moment to say that one of the most rewarding parts of being a doll maker is the receiving all the lovely notes from the doll’s new owners. ❤ All of them touch my heart and make the many hours I spend working on each doll worthwhile. Thank you!
I’d like to share just a bit of Emmaline’s farewell note…
“Hi Paula,
She’s gorgeous! The whole package works, I love the way all the colours complement each other. I searched long and hard before I ordered this girl, without really knowing which one, although Anna is a favourite. As this is likely to be the only one that I own made using original methods I wanted a very traditional Izannah. You have made just that.”
Last week I received some very good news. Early American Life magazine called to tell me that my work has been juried into four different categories, Toys & Dolls, Clothing, Miniatures, and Holidays, in their 2017 Directory of Traditional American Crafts! I feel extremely honored. These four new entries will mean that I have been included in their Directory 38 times. Thank you Early American Life!!!
Here is a glimpse of my work in the Clothing catagory ❤
C. Reproduction 1850 – 1860’s child’s dress, based on an example from my collection. The original dress was for a boy, I drafted a pattern from the original for the bodice and sleeves, because I wanted this dress to be for a girl I added a fuller cartridge pleated skirt and used velvet ribbon for the trim rather than wool tape. The dress was sewn both by hand and by machine. The bodice and sleeves are completely lined with cotton muslin, like the original. The back of the bodice fastens with three antique glass buttons. The dress measures 21 inches in length and is the equivalent of a modern toddler size 2.
C. Reproduction 1850 – 1860’s child’s dress, based on an example from my collection. The original dress was for a boy, I drafted a pattern from the original for the bodice and sleeves, because I wanted this dress to be for a girl I added a fuller cartridge pleated skirt and used velvet ribbon for the trim rather than wool tape. The dress was sewn both by hand and by machine. The bodice and sleeves are completely lined with cotton muslin, like the original. The back of the bodice fastens with three antique glass buttons. The dress measures 21 inches in length and is the equivalent of a modern toddler size 2.
C. Reproduction 1850 – 1860’s child’s dress, based on an example from my collection. The original dress was for a boy, I drafted a pattern from the original for the bodice and sleeves, because I wanted this dress to be for a girl I added a fuller cartridge pleated skirt and used velvet ribbon for the trim rather than wool tape. The dress was sewn both by hand and by machine. The bodice and sleeves are completely lined with cotton muslin, like the original. The back of the bodice fastens with three antique glass buttons. The dress measures 21 inches in length and is the equivalent of a modern toddler size 2.
C. Reproduction 1850 – 1860’s child’s dress, based on an example from my collection. The original dress was for a boy, I drafted a pattern from the original for the bodice and sleeves, because I wanted this dress to be for a girl I added a fuller cartridge pleated skirt and used velvet ribbon for the trim rather than wool tape. The dress was sewn both by hand and by machine. The bodice and sleeves are completely lined with cotton muslin, like the original. The back of the bodice fastens with three antique glass buttons. The dress measures 21 inches in length and is the equivalent of a modern toddler size 2. The antique boy’s dress is to the left.
C. Reproduction 1850 – 1860’s child’s dress, based on an example from my collection. The original dress was for a boy, I drafted a pattern from the original for the bodice and sleeves, because I wanted this dress to be for a girl I added a fuller cartridge pleated skirt and used velvet ribbon for the trim rather than wool tape. The dress was sewn both by hand and by machine. The bodice and sleeves are completely lined with cotton muslin, like the original. The back of the bodice fastens with three antique glass buttons. The dress measures 21 inches in length and is the equivalent of a modern toddler size 2.
A. Reproduction 1840 – 1850’s child’s dress based on a dress from my personal collection. 23 inches long, equivalent to a modern size 3 toddler. I did choose to sew the narrow band of contrasting fabric trim with a sewing machine (so that it would stand up to more wear and repeated washings) rather than by hand like the original, but which is consistent with other examples of similar dresses in my collection from the same period. The remainder of the dress is sewn in a combination of hand and machine sewing, with a completely hand sewn cartridge pleated waist. Ties at the neck with 1/8th inch wide cotton tape drawstring, closes at waist with an antique button. It is made from a reproduction cotton print fabric. The matching doll’s dress is 11.5 inches long and fits a doll that is 18 – 19 inches tall.
A. Reproduction 1840 – 1850’s child’s dress based on a dress from my personal collection. 23 inches long, equivalent to a modern size 3 toddler. I did choose to sew the narrow band of contrasting fabric trim with a sewing machine (so that it would stand up to more wear and repeated washings) rather than by hand like the original, but which is consistent with other examples of similar dresses in my collection from the same period. The remainder of the dress is sewn in a combination of hand and machine sewing, with a completely hand sewn cartridge pleated waist. Ties at the neck with 1/8th inch wide cotton tape drawstring, closes at waist with an antique button. It is made from a reproduction cotton print fabric. The matching doll’s dress is 11.5 inches long and fits a doll that is 18 – 19 inches tall.
A. Reproduction 1840 – 1850’s child’s dress based on a dress from my personal collection. 23 inches long, equivalent to a modern size 3 toddler. I did choose to sew the narrow band of contrasting fabric trim with a sewing machine (so that it would stand up to more wear and repeated washings) rather than by hand like the original, but which is consistent with other examples of similar dresses in my collection from the same period. The remainder of the dress is sewn in a combination of hand and machine sewing, with a completely hand sewn cartridge pleated waist. Ties at the neck with 1/8th inch wide cotton tape drawstring, closes at waist with an antique button. It is made from a reproduction cotton print fabric. The matching doll’s dress is 11.5 inches long and fits a doll that is 18 – 19 inches tall.
A. Reproduction 1840 – 1850’s child’s dress based on a dress from my personal collection. 23 inches long, equivalent to a modern size 3 toddler. I did choose to sew the narrow band of contrasting fabric trim with a sewing machine (so that it would stand up to more wear and repeated washings) rather than by hand like the original, but which is consistent with other examples of similar dresses in my collection from the same period. The remainder of the dress is sewn in a combination of hand and machine sewing, with a completely hand sewn cartridge pleated waist. Ties at the neck with 1/8th inch wide cotton tape drawstring, closes at waist with an antique button. It is made from a reproduction cotton print fabric. The matching doll’s dress is 11.5 inches long and fits a doll that is 18 – 19 inches tall.
A. Reproduction 1840 – 1850’s child’s dress based on a dress from my personal collection. 23 inches long, equivalent to a modern size 3 toddler. I did choose to sew the narrow band of contrasting fabric trim with a sewing machine (so that it would stand up to more wear and repeated washings) rather than by hand like the original, but which is consistent with other examples of similar dresses in my collection from the same period. The remainder of the dress is sewn in a combination of hand and machine sewing, with a completely hand sewn cartridge pleated waist. Ties at the neck with 1/8th inch wide cotton tape drawstring, closes at waist with an antique button. It is made from a reproduction cotton print fabric. The matching doll’s dress is 11.5 inches long and fits a doll that is 18 – 19 inches tall.
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…
I am thankful for the opportunity to study, care for and love the Izannah Walker dolls in my collection. They may not be pristine, perfect examples of Izannah’s work, but each mark of wear and evidence of love holds a special place in my heart.
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 ❤
To my immense surprise and delight, 2016 brought two new Izannah Walker dolls into my little doll family!
I have named Josephine (on the left) and Eliza Jane (on the right) after two of my great-grandmothers. One of the things I am most looking forward to in 2017 is making reproductions of both of these dolls. The chance to focus on each doll intensely, learn her similarities and differences, and simply enjoy being in their presence for the many hours it takes to make a new reproduction doll for the first time is a treat to look forward to!
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.
Emmaline after restoration.
A 2nd after restoration photo. The change in color is very subtle. These photos were taken before the doll was seen by her owner. After the owner had a chance to see the replaced arm and replaced antique linen upper arm covering, we decided to “age” the fabric and arm more.
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. ❤ ❤ ❤
Lily after I finished her restoration. What a beautiful Izannah Walker doll!
The Lilys! Sisters, best friends and bosom companions through thick and thin
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! ❤
Cartridge pleated baby dress.
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!!!
Many thanks to all of you for your thoughtful notes and expressions of sympathy. I truly appreciate all of your kind words more than I can possibly say.
REMEMBRANCE IS THE SWEETEST FLOWER THAT IN THE GARDEN GROWS…
Laughter and tears are the lights and darks that make up the patchwork quilt of my life. These past few weeks have been filled with sunshine and shadows, but most of all love. Thank you for your friendship. Plus a huge additional thank you to all of you whose dolls I am working on, your kind understanding has taken a tremendous weight off of my shoulders.
BACK AT WORK
While I am not totally back up to my regular pace yet, I am back at work. So please feel free to call or email me with any questions about your doll orders and classes. New things have been continuing to happen in my studio. Yesterday Hannah joined my Izannah Walker doll family. I already have molds of her in progress, so in the not too distant future I will be making reproductions of her, which will bring the number of original antique Izannah Walker dolls that I can reproduce for you up to ten.
Thank you Izannah Walker for inspiring me with your beautiful, intricate painted cloth dolls. For being an enterprising 19th century woman who was able to support herself in a male dominated world. For being the first woman to be granted a United States patent related to doll making. You have changed my life!
Izannah Walker Journal 
