Wishing upon a bright and shining star that your new year will be filled with health, happiness and great joy!
On this New Year’s Day my hope for each and every one of you is that 2016 will bring you a year full of peace, happiness, and well-being! May your days be filled with simple pleasures and quiet beauty.
My new year’s reflections upon the waning 2015 are filled with gratitude. I am so thankful that I am able to spend my days creating dolls and other works that I love. It brings me great happiness and quiet contentment to bring to life the Izannah dreams of such wonderful group of collectors and fellow Izannahphlies.
As a few of you know, this year has been a bit of a challenge for me. My father died during the summer and I have had Lyme disease for about 5 or 6 months. I am overwhelmingly grateful for the amazing graciousness, tolerance and understanding of everyone who has had a custom ordered doll or restoration work scheduled during 2015. You have been unfailingly kind and supportive when I have fallen behind on the scheduled completion dates for your dolls. Thank you!!! I am currently feeling better than I have for months and am so looking forward to this new year and being able to get caught back up on my work load. I love all of the dolls that are currently in my studio and I look forward to sharing them with you in the upcoming weeks and months! Happy New Year to all!!!
“Good Morning!” “Time to wake up!”“Come on sleepy heads!”“What time is it?”“Hannah, why are you up so early?” “We need to go out to the garden and pick huckleberries for breakfast.”“Huckleberry pancakes???”“Oh no Hannah!” “You woke up the kittens too!”“I suppose we might as well get up…”“I think Sadie wants huckleberry pancakes too!”
and so the dolls got up and walked out to the garden…
where they picked huckleberries…
carried them back to the kitchen…
made pancakes, and enjoyed the beginning of a wonderful day!
Jack eventually came out from under the bed… captured a few stray huckleberries and gaily chased them around the kitchen floor!
Welcome to our birthday tea party in honor of Izannah Walker, an extraordinary doll maker, who was the first woman to receive a United States Patent for her doll making method!
The dolls and their guests have gathered in the front parlor, while I brew a pot of tea. This afternoon we will be serving a combination of Earl Grey, lavender and ground vanilla beans. I drink mine with a bit of sugar, Isabeau and Zanna prefer lavender honey in theirs and little Izzybelle likes her cup partially filled with warm milk and a heaping spoonful of sugar, then topped up with tea!
A large scoop of Earl Grey tea, lavender flowers and a pinch of ground vanilla beans… total bliss!“Welcome!” “We are so glad you could come!”“Have you met our dear friend Lily? She just moved from Toledo to Michigan and now she has come to pay us a visit.” ” Sharon’s doll is also visiting us. We are so happy she could stay for the party!”“Does everyone have a seat?” “I’m going to go get the tea. I’ll be right back!”“This is Sadie, one of our new kittens.” “Izzybelle, be careful! Don’t let Sadie knock you off of the piano stool!” “Don’t worry Isane, I’m holding on tight!”“Here comes Jack. He follows Sadie everywhere!”Jack very much wants to play with Billie’s doll, who is another one of our party guests.“Would you care for a Honey Tea Cake?”“No Jack, not you!” “Tea cakes aren’t good for kittens.”“Isane don’t let them get the cakes!”“That’s right Jack, go see Anna, she’ll pet you.” “Petting is much better than cake!”” Sadie, I’ll pet you too.”“Now that the kittens have settled down, would anyone like a cup of tea?”“Oh no! Lily did Jack knock your cup out of your hand?”“Don’t worry. Nothing broke and I have a clean cup right here for you.”Too much excitement! The kittens are all worn out and have gone off to take a nap…“I would really like that cup of tea now!” “And I’d like a bit of quiet, civilized conversation!” “Well I LIKE having the kittens come to tea! It makes everything so much more interesting!” “Hush Izzybelle…”“I know what we should do. Have you seen Joy Harrington’s article in Antique Doll Collector magazine? It’s all about the house she had made for her Izannah Walker dolls.” “You can tell Billie all about it when you go home to Kansas.” “I think next year we should ask for a house of our very own as a birthday present!”“Cake? “I don’t know anything about cake.” “Or falling teacups…” “You must be thinking about some other kitten.” “Yawnnnnnnnnn”
See? I told you that the girls loved Joy’s article about her doll house! If you would like to read the article too, it is in the August 2015 issue of Antique Doll Collector magazine on pages 43-48. Not only does it include wonderful pictures and descriptions of the doll house, but it also shows Joy’s fantastic collection of antique Izannah Walker dolls. It is such a treat!
The dolls, kittens and I have so enjoyed having you visit us this afternoon! We hope you will come back tomorrow and Sunday for new posts at 10:00 a.m. & 4:00 p.m. each day, as we party on!
And now, I don’t know about you, but I plan to brew another pot of tea, put my feet up and watch the dolls giggle and play on into the evening…
* Sharon’s and Billie’s dolls are custom orders, who will soon be traveling to their new homes. In the photos they are wearing borrowed finery. They will each be receiving their final dress fittings soon and will both have posts of their very own to show off their new wardrobes before they leave here.
** Lily is an antique Izannah Walker doll that is staying with me while she undergoes a bit of judicious restoration. She will also be featured in a series of upcoming posts that will chronicle her restoration adventures.
The dolls have taken over my kitchen to bake honey cakes for this afternoon’s birthday tea party. It’s time to get out the cookbook!
This is one of our favorite cookbooks. America Eats by William Woys Weaver. It is no longer in print, but if you search you may still be able to find a copy here or there…“Isabeau will you find the page with the honey cake while I get out the honey pitcher?”“Here it is, Honey Tea Cake.”
“Hannah, Isane and I will get out the ingredients, and you can measure them into the bowl.”“Alright, I can do that Isabeau” “Can you please hand me the flour?”“Zanna, do you think I should add some lavender to part of the batter?”“I think that is a wonderful idea Hannah!” “It will taste so good with the wild flower honey!”“Does this look like enough lavender?” “Or should I add just a smidgeon more?”“I love lavender! Let’s add more!!!”“Ismay, is the oven hot enough?” “I think the tea cakes are ready to bake.”“Yes it’s just the right temperature.”“These smell devine” “The first batch is ready to come out of the oven right now.”“Izzybelle, let the cake cool a bit so you don’t burn your mouth, and then you can be our official taster.”“Is it good?” “Oh yes! Everyone is going to love them. Maybe we should make more!”“Let’s hurry and get the last of these out of the oven. We still need to get the chairs set up in the parlor and change clothes before the guest start arriving…”
Please come back to join us at 4:00 p.m. Eastern time for tea. ❤
SOLD Meet Anna. She is available for sale and would be thrilled to come join your doll family.
Welcome to my annual Izannah Walker birthday party! This year the dolls and I have a fun filled three day celebration planned. We are so pleased that you could come join us for the start of the party. I will be posting throughout the day today, with additional posts at 9:00 a.m., noon, and 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. Come back tomorrow and Sunday for new posts at 10:00 a.m. & 4:00 p.m.
1 Finished Doll For Sale – Now SOLD – Thank You so much for looking!
ANNA IS NOW SOLD. I have one doll made from my Anna mold available for sale. She is a very sweet, worn and well loved doll. Just the right size at 17 inches to be a little sister to other Izannahs in your collection. She has short wispy hair framing her face and tickling the nape of her neck. This Anna is dressed in an amazing antique red print fabric that I found in Brimfield in May. The fabric had never been washed until yesterday and even after one gentle washing still retains it’s crisp sizing. All three pieces of her undergarments are trimmed in tatting. Her short black scallop topped painted boots are embellished with a red scallop outline. As a birthday special she comes with a tiny antique tintype image of a young girl. When you imagine the story of Anna’s life, perhaps this little girl will become her original owner…
Anna can be yours for $1250.00, which includes free insured shipping to any U.S. address. Actual shipping charged to other countries. As always you may place Anna, or any of my dolls on lay-away. Call me at 860-355-5709 during normal business hours, or email me anytime at paula@asweetremembrance.com if you have any questions about this doll or would like to purchase her.
Introducing Two New Reproduction Izannah Walker Dolls
I am very happy to tell you that I now have two more molds! I made these molds, just like all of my others, directly from original antique Izannah Walker dolls. This means that I can offer you ten different authentic, all cloth, historically accurate reproduction Izannah Walker dolls!
Pictured below are the four dolls that I will be working on during the next three days as part of my Izannah celebration. After all what better way is there for a doll maker to mark the birthday of her very favorite doll maker than by paying homage to her by reproducing some of her amazing dolls! If you’d like to follow along with my progress you can check in at my facebook page to see the dolls coming to life. Click here to visit A Sweet Remembrance in facebook.
Lily
I am able to offer you reproductions of Lily due to the amazing generosity of my friend Susie, who owns the real Lily. I am currently in the midst of doing restoration on the original Lily and Susie very kindly told me that she wanted me to make a mold from her while she was here. I’ll be chronicling Lily’s restoration journey here in the upcoming weeks. Lily has a very classic Izannah head and at 17 inches is the middle stair step between my Isabeau and Izzybelle.
This first Lily will be going home with her older sister and namesake ❤
A Second Lily
This Lily will be available for sale for $1250.00 when she is completed. She will come with a full four piece wardrobe which includes a chemise, pantalettes, peticoat and a dress, with painted boots.
Lily 2 will be available for sale.Lily 2Lily 2
Hannah
Hannah recently came to join my Izannah family from the collection of another of my dear friends, Edyth. ❤ I’m honored that she has entrusted me with one of her treasures.
Hannah is 18 inches tall and has such a sweet expression. Just like Lily #2, both of these Hannahs will be for sale once I have finished them. Yes, they also cost $1250.00, have painted boots and come with a full set of clothing made from antique fabrics and notions. 🙂
If you have any questions about these dolls, or would like to purchase one of them, please call me (860-355-5709 during east coast business hours) or email me (paula@asweetremembrance.com anytime). As a special birthday treat Isabeau, Zanna, Ismay, Isane, Izzybelle and the original Hannah have been busy piecing together quilt tops to go along with the Lilys and Hannahs that are purchased during this three day weekend. More about their quilting party later on… Just one more reason to keep checking back in through out the next three days 🙂
Feeling Creative?
For anyone who has the urge to try making an Izzy of their own I currently have two of my Izannah Kits ready to go.
A full instruction book + patterns comes with each head. The unpainted head/kit is $200 and the painted head/kit is $375.
Notice all of the paint texture of the original antique doll is captured in this composition head.
Furniture Tag Sale
The girls were all very enamored of the article they read in Antique Doll Collector about an Izannah Doll House. So when I asked them what they would like to include in our birthday weekend they all resoundingly said “Let’s have a tag sale of all of the doll furniture, so other Izannahs can furnish a doll house too!” Consequently all of my antique doll furniture is on sale at 10% off from 9/25 – 9/27. The sale price does include free shipping to U.S. addresses. Click here to shop the furniture sale.
Zanna is in charge of setting up the tag sale & Izzybelle is helping tie on the price tags!
That’s All For Now…
Come back to see us at 9:00 a.m. eastern time for our continuing birthday party adventures.
For the past week my dolls and I have been entertaining a most delightful house guest. She is a little doll that belongs to my dear friend Susie, and she has come to stay with us in the hopes that a New England summer will give her a clear complexion, bring roses to her cheeks, and a sparkle to her eyes.
The girls are just sure they are long lost cousins, or perhaps siblings separated at birth.. See the close family resemblance!The girls have become such fast friends that Isabeau feels like she has a new little sister. Our visitor is right in between Isabeau and Izzybelle in size, so she is the dearest confidant of them both. They have spent countless hours giggling secrets into each others ears. ❤Rain, rain, go away! Come again another day! “Whatever should we do today?” “We must think of something fun to entertain our guest!” “I know, let’s take turns reading aloud!” “I know the perfect book. Let’s read Emma! I always think of Emma during June when the strawberries are ripe. “
After the girls came up with a plan for the afternoon, they quickly scurried to find their India Rubber Shoes, so that they could run out to the garden in between rain showers and pick strawberries.
India Rubber Shoes, like these made by the Boston Rubber Shoe Company used to protect small feet during damp weather. To read more about the fascinating story of India Rubber in early New England visit this site http://www.jmisc.net/jm980331.htmOnce the girls returned from the garden with their berries, they quickly settled down in their favorite chairs. Izzybelle was very proud of all of the strawberries that she gathered!“Ismay you should take the first turn. You have such a lovely reading voice!”“Emma, chapter one, page one…”At the end of the day our small visitor gave a sigh of pleasure. “There is only one thing that keeps this from being the perfect day… I wish all of my sisters and family at home could be here with me. I know that they would have loved reading and feasting on strawberries just as much as I did. Oh how I miss them all!” “Then I know just what you should do” said Ismay. “You need to write them a letter and tell them all about our day!”
This post is especially for Susie and the doll family that lives with her. The girls and I hope that the rest of you enjoyed it too
Izannah Walker Journal 