Happy 196th Birthday Izannah! My Celebration SALE Starts Now!!! (this year’s sale is over ~ thank you !)

September 25, 2013October 5, 2013 paulawalton1 Comment

Today marks the 196th anniversary of Izannah Walker’s birth. She was born in Bristol, Rhode Island on the 25^th day of September in 1817. You may read more details about Izannah’s life in this post. I wish I could invite you all over to my house for cake and silly party games, but since I can’t, I’m doing the next best thing and having a SALE to celebrate the occasion and to say thank you for being such wonderful customers, students and friends. It is such a great pleasure to know other people who love Izannah’s dolls as much as I do!

From 9/25/13 – 9/29/13 all of my reproduction Izannah Walker dolls, additional custom made dresses and accessories for your Izzy, Izannah Walker doll clothes patterns and Izannah Walker Doll Making Classes are 10% off. This sale applies only to items ordered from September 25th through September 29th, 2013, the discount is not available on prior orders. As always, all items may be placed on lay-away with terms to fit your budget and shipping is free to any United States address. I generally just have two sales per year, my Izannah Walker Birthday Sale and my Christmas Sale 🙂 So don’t let this one pass you by.

Three Finished Dolls Available

I have three very special dolls available for this years Birthday Sale. One of them is created from a brand new mold that I made from my friend Mary’s Izannah Walker doll, Anna. Thank you Mary!!! Anna is 17 inches tall, so she is a smaller size than my other dolls and has the look of a younger, chubbier child. All three of these dolls have very aged appearances, befitting young ladies that were made early in Izannah’s doll making career. They each come with two elaborate dresses, full of wonderful little details to delight the heart of any dress maker, a chemise, pantalettes, petticoat and necklace.

Isabeau #1 SOLD – Thank you so much for stopping by to look at her! Please contact me if you would like to order a custom made doll similar to this one.

SOLD Isabeau #1 comes with a necklace made from hand strung pale pink bone beads.

Her dress made from antique pink and black print fabric is adorned with rows ans rows of black velvet ribbon. — SOLD Her dress, made from antique pink and black print fabric is adorned with rows and rows of black velvet ribbon.

SOLD Isabeau #1 wearing her winter white antique wool dress. I made this dress from an antique unfinished, so never worn, wool baby’s petticoat.

A surprise sentiment hides inside the waist band of her dress. — A surprise sentiment hides inside the waist band of her dress, which fastens with hand carved bone buttons.

Details of the antique trims used on the sleeves of Isabeau's embroidered wool dress. — Details showing the antique trims used on the sleeves of Isabeau’s embroidered wool dress.

Isabeau #2 – SOLD Thank you!

SOLD Isabeau #2 shows off her hand strung real coral beads.

Isabeau #2 is wearing a dress that I made for her from a mid-1800's brown "coral" pattern print fabric. The dress has full gathered sleeves, two growth tucks in the skirt and a deep 3 inch hem. — SOLD Isabeau #2 is wearing a dress that I made for her from a mid-1800’s brown “coral” pattern print fabric. The dress has full gathered sleeves, two growth tucks in the skirt and a deep 3 inch hem.

Isabeau #2 in her black party frock. The dress fabric dates to the late 1800's. Rows of antique black velvet ribbon encircle the sleeves, waist and hem of the dress. — SOLD Isabeau #2 in her black party frock. The dress fabric dates to the late 1800’s. Rows of antique black velvet ribbon encircle the sleeves, waist and hem of the dress.

Anna #2 – NOW SOLD THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LOOKING. Even though this one is sold you may order a custom made Anna style doll, and if you love these dresses I have enough fabric to make another set just like them.

SOLD Anna#2 wears a tiny golden thimble on a chain around her neck.

SOLD Anna #2 is shown here wearing her dress made from a very early c. 1830-1840 cotton gauze paisley print. The green, red, brown and ivory fabric is perfect for late fall and the upcoming Christmas season. The sleeves and skirt of the dress have graduated growth tucks.

Anna's black dress is made from another very early cotton print fabric. The neckline of the dress is trimmed with antique ivory cotton ribbon, plus a row of antique silk velvet ribbon. Her chemise is trimmed in tiny waved braid (aka rick rack in modern terms). — SOLD Anna’s black dress is made from another very early cotton print fabric. The neckline of the dress is trimmed with antique ivory cotton ribbon, plus a row of antique silk velvet ribbon. Her chemise is trimmed in tiny waved braid (aka rick rack in modern terms).

Isabeau #2 & Anna #2 show off a little Black Magic for All Hallows Eve. Black dresses are one of my favorites year around because they are a neutral accent in any room and the dark color will draw your eye to the doll and make her painted features "pop" and glow. — Isabeau #2 & SOLD Anna #2 show off a little Black Magic for All Hallows Eve. Black dresses are one of my favorites year around because they are a neutral accent in any room and the dark color will draw your eye to the doll and make her painted features “pop” and glow.

Are you wondering where Anna #1 is? In the very near future she is going to be living with Mary, her older sister Anna and all of her Walker cousins in Vermont. Members of my Izannah Walker Doll Making Class may read about my adventures in making Anna #1 in a continuing series of posts on the class member site.

To see photos of the original Miss Anna, follow these links:

Photos to Share of Mary’s Antique Izannah Walker Doll

A Visit with Anna

I am a much better doll maker than I am a photographer. All of the girls look so much nicer in person. If you would like to see more photos of any of the dolls before placing an order, just ask. To purchase any of these dolls please visit my website ASweetRemembrance.com or alternately you may email paula@asweetremembrance.com or call 860-355-5709.

Time worn, well loved dolls are the ones that kindle the fiercest love in my heart, but I know that some of you dearly love newer, more pristine dolls. Don’t despair, I would be happy to make you the Izannah Walker doll that inhabits your dreams and has captured a place in your heart. Call or email me to place a custom order, 860-355-5709 ( 9:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time) or paula@asweetremembrance.com. I do have a bit of a waiting list for custom work, so the sooner you order the better.

Click here for a quick guide about my three different styles of dolls.

Custom Made Dresses and Accessories For Your Doll

Email (paula@asweetremembrance.com) or call me (860-355-5709) about prices and available fabrics for custom made doll clothing and accessories. Simple dresses made from antique fabric start at $200 apiece. More elaborate dresses with a greater number of tucks, fuller skirts, rows of ribbon or lace trim, embroidery or more costly antique fabrics run from $250 -$275 and may go upwards. Handmade leather shoes are $75. Any custom order is 10% off during the sale. Scroll up to see the new style of dress that I made for Anna #2. The fully lined dress has a slim cut bodice and sleeves, with a cartridge pleated skirt and velvet ribbon trim. The cost of an identical dress is $295, if the dress must be fully lined, or $275 for one with a lined bodice.

Patterns and Classes

If you would like to order a pattern for a full set of clothes to fit one of my 18- 1/2 inch Izannah Walker dolls click on this link.

I don’t have a pattern available yet for smaller size clothing to fit Anna.

To read more about my Izannah Walker Doll Making Class by Mail follow this link to my website, where you may also order the class. The class comes with unlimited support, plus a class member only discussion site that features extra bonus material and patterns, including five different flat faced heads that work with the rest of your Izannah class patterns so that you can create a variety of different cloth dolls as friends for your Izzys! Sophie and Mae, two of my dolls that I made using the flat faced patterns will be featured in the Spring 2014 issue of Prims magazine.

Time For A Party

After trying on all their new clothes and posing for their photo shoot, the girls and I spent some time in the kitchen baking Izannah a birthday cake. We all agreed that it was the perfect treat to celebrate the birthday of our very favorite doll maker!

The recipe for the cake came from The Best of Shaker Cooking by Amy Bess Miller and Persis Fuller. I chose this recipe because it is one that would have been in use during Izannah’s lifetime and is filled with apples, the perfect seasonal fruit for an autumn birthday. I picked apples to use from our oldest apple tree. It is a very firm, late season cooking apple that I have never been able to positively identify. We grow our apples organically, so they are not picture perfect, but I’m sure apples just like these would have been a familiar site to Izannah.

Apple Cake

from Shirley Shaker Village

1/3 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1-1/3 cups flour

1/4 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

3 apples, peeled and chopped

1/4 cup currants or raisins

powdered sugar

ground cinnamon

Cream butter and gradually add 1/2 of the sugar, beating well. Beat egg with remaining sugar, add to first mixture. Sift in flour, salt and baking powder alternately with the m ilk. Flavor with vanilla. Add apples and currants or raisins. Beat well to mix and turn into a well-buttered 9 inch cake tin, square or round.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar and cinnamon, and bake in a moderate oven (350 degrees) for 30 minutes. Makes 1 cake.

Antique Izannah Walker Dolls · Doll Clothing · Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll · Reference Materials

Waved Braid or The Amazing Things You Can Do With Rick Rack

December 28, 2011December 28, 2011 paulawalton2 Comments

I’ve always been rather fond of rick rack. It reminds me of my childhood. The dress I wore to my first day of kindergarten was trimmed with white rick rack and I remember seeing it on countless aprons and kitchen curtains during my youth.

In truth, rick rack or waved braid, as it was first known, has been in existence far longer than I have. 🙂 I haven’t been able to track down an exact date yet, but it was certainly available when this papier-mache milliner’s model was made in the 1830’s.

The waved braid on the dress above is an exact color match to the dress fabric. Both the braid and fabric are cotton and I am speculating that they were dyed to match. The dress is original to the doll. Three rows of waved braid circle the skirt and the bodice is adorned with a lavish combination of braid and knotting.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA — Waved braid and knotting trim the bodice of this 1830's doll's dress. (click on image to enlarge) Collection of the author.

By 1882, when the following paragraph from The Dictionary of Needlework was published, waved braid was certainly common place and was being used to trim children’s clothing. It’s not a far leap from children’s garments to doll clothes, which explains why waved braid is often seen on doll clothing from this era.

“There are also waved cotton braids, used for trimming children’s dresses, which are sold by the gross, cut into lengths. The numbers are 11, 17, 21, 29, and 33. There are also waved worsted braids for children’s use, which are sold in knots of 4 or 5 yards each, and sold by the gross pieces. The numbers are 13, 17, and 21.”

In the 1880’s it was also popular to do crochet work using waved braid. Some fantastic laces can be created in this manner. I don’t crochet, but if you do and would like to read more about how to make this type of lace, follow this link.

No matter what name you call it by, waved braid, snake braid, corrugated braid, rick rack ( alternately ricrac, ric-rack or ric rac) is a very authentic choice for trimming historically accurate, mid-1800’s reproduction doll clothing.

Antique Izannah Walker Dolls · Celebrations · Doll Clothing · Doll for Sale · Izannah Reproduction Doll Class · Izannah Walker History · Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll · Where to Shop

Happy 194th Birthday Izannah!

September 25, 2011September 29, 2011 paulawalton2 Comments

Izannah Walker was born 194 years ago today on September 25, 1817. Happy Birthday Izannah! To commemorate the occasion I’ve created a special Izannah Birthday Doll with an outstanding eleven-piece wardrobe. I’m also having a birthday sale, from today 9/25/11 through next Sunday 10/2/11, all reproduction Izannah Walker dolls, Izannah Walker Doll Making Classes, Izannah Walker Doll Clothes Patterns and Spun Cotton Ornament Classes are 10% off. This sale includes custom order dolls and as always you are welcome to place items on lay-away. If you have any questions, want to place an order, or would just like to chat about Izannah and her dolls and mine, I can be reached at 860-355-5709 or paula@asweetremembrance.com.

Izannah Birthday Doll

Doll clothes 600_7865 — SOLD - Birthday doll and her wardrobe.

Even though I was rushing to beat the rain and falling darkness, I had the best time yesterday taking photos of this doll. It was great fun to “play dress up” with her. Her extensive wardrobe includes three dresses, two chemises, two pairs of pantalettes, two petticoats, an apron and a real coral bead necklace. If you’d like to add more pieces to her wardrobe I can make her hand made leather shoes, a cotton sunbonnet and a straw bonnet.

White closeup 400_7854 — SOLD - This dress has wonderful sleeves, notice the rows of gathers at the top of the sleeve by the shoulder line.

Brown dress 400_7869 — SOLD - This view shows the yards of 1/8th inch velvet ribbon encircling the sleeves, skirt and waistband.

SOLD - The fabric for this dress is a very old 24 inch wide pumpkin orange on white print with small brown leaves and red berry dots.

Doll w apron 400_7873 — SOLD - Here she is wearing her brown and red dress, which is made from another fantastic early fabric.

White doll close 400_7876 — SOLD - She comes with a real coral necklace, which matches the Turkey red embroidery on her linen apron.

Feet 400_7874 — SOLD - This view shows her tiny stitched toes peeping out from beneath her pantalettes. The pantalettes have Turkey red embroidery to match her apron and crocheted lace in a triangle pattern that echos the zig-zag stripes in her dress fabric. Look at the coordinating fabric lining the "false hem" of her dress.

White closeup 400_7899 — SOLD - She's all dressed for a party in this sheer cotton dress embellished with row upon row of lace insertion.

White Closeup 400_7880 — SOLD - Two long ringlets curl in front of each of her ears. Thank you for looking!

To read more about, or purchase this doll please visit my website A Sweet Remembrance. I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have or provide additional photos, just ask 🙂 860-355-5709 paula@asweetremembrance.com.

Make a Wish

This year the girls and I baked a pound cake for Izannah’s birthday using a c.1754 receipt that I found in The Williamsburg Art of Cookery. This receipt is old enough to have been a well loved family favorite by the time Izannah was born. Here’s the recipe so that you can bake one too.

Pound Cake

Beat one Cup of Butter to a Cream, slowly beat in one and one third Cups of Sugar. Add one Teaspoonful of Mace and beat in five whole Eggs, adding them one at a time. Sift in two Cups of Flour, turn at once into a greased and floured Pan or Mould and bake slowly for one Hour.*

*I baked my cakes in a 300 degree oven, 30 minutes for the doll size cakes and two hours for the larger version.

Click here to see the recipe for last years Birth-day Pudding.

Thank you for stopping by to party with me and don’t forget to light a candle and make a wish for Izannah!

Antique Izannah Walker Dolls · Doll Clothing · Other Types of Doll Making · Reference Materials

A Visit to the THE ROSALIE WHYEL MUSEUM OF DOLL ART

September 21, 2011November 23, 2024 paulawaltonLeave a comment

Last month, while in Kirkland, WA for a family wedding, I had the chance to visit the Rosalie Whyel Museum in neighboring Bellevue. Sadly the museum will be closing in a few months on March 1st, 2012.

If you can get to the museum before it closes, do so! The collection is wonderful. The highlights for me are the two Izannah Walker dolls, a lovely pre-patent doll dressed in red wool challis, with a trunkful of belongings and a tiny 13 inch patented doll with the molded shoulder-plate. The wooden dolls are also amazing, especially one 24 inch George II era English wooden from 1750-1760 with a large original wardrobe of superbly sewn garments.

The day following our museum tour we headed over to Rosie’s Too , which is a second, off site, collectible doll shop owned by the museum. I found a cute, tiny black bisque baby doll and an antique chemise just the right size for one of my Izannahs.

If you can’t visit in person, the museum sells a book entitled The Heart of the Tree, which chronicles their 2002 exhibit of the same name. It’s a lovely book and I didn’t mind paying the $49.95 cover price, but I do wish that it included the fantastic 24 inch 1750-1760 doll that I mentioned above. I had to make do with buying several postcards of her and her wardrobe. They also sell a small paperback souvenir book about the museum called Rosalie Whyel Museum of Doll Art Opening Our Doors to You for $11 or $12, which has a nice photo of their pre-patent Izannah. I did not buy their larger book “THE ROSE UNFOLDS”
RARITIES OF THE ROSALIE WHYEL MUSEUM OF DOLL ART Volume One. It wasn’t so much the $79.95 price tag as it was the size and weight of the book. I just couldn’t face dragging it around Washington, then on to California and finally back to Connecticut 🙂 I may have to break down and purchase it a some point, because it does have large lovely photographs of both of their Izannah Walker dolls.

You can also find photos of both the Rosalie Whyle Izannahs in the article “Izannah Walker – Godmother to Cloth Doll Makers” by Susan Hedrick, Soft Dolls & Animals, Summer 1998 and a photo of just their pre-patent Izannah in “Early American Stockinette Dolls: Part 1- Izannah Walker and Martha Chase Dolls” by Judy Beswick, The Cloth Doll, Fall 1998.

If you would like to read more about the museum there is a nice article on page 14 of the July 2011 issue of Antique Doll Collector.

Doll Clothing · Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll · Where to Shop

BOTH OF THESE DOLLS HAVE BEEN SOLD – September 1st – Fall is Approaching – A First Look at Autumn Works from My Studio

September 1, 2011October 7, 2011 paulawalton1 Comment

"Double double, toil and trouble. Fire burn and cauldron bubble." These Izzys are dressed for a girl's night out on October 31st.

These two dolls have already found new homes. Thank you for dropping in to see them! Just for fun, the girls are dressed in antique mourning print fabrics and wool felt hats to celebrate All Hallows Eve. Pack their hats away after Halloween and pose them with antique daguerreotypes or tintypes for a stunning monochromatic year round display. Check back soon to see additional pieces in their wardrobes.

If you would like more information on these two dolls or others that I am currently working on, please call 860-355-5709 or email me at paula@asweetremembrance.com .

Doll Clothing · Doll for Sale · Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll

Red Hot Summer! This Doll is Now SOLD – Thank You

July 23, 2011September 29, 2011 paulawaltonLeave a comment

The last few days have been scorchingly hot here in Connecticut! Much too warm to garden, or work on the antique cupboards that I’m in the midst of cleaning and painting. So I have been distracting myself from the heat by making doll clothes. Which has worked pretty well for several hours at a time, once I finally made allowances for the heat. It’s been too hot to sew in both my new studio and my sewing room, so I wandered around the house until I found the least stifling hot room and set up a sewing machine. After all, that is why God made portable sewing machines 🙂

My newly claimed sewing area was not without it’s problems. First off, I needed a flat surface to plop the sewing machine on. I didn’t want to haul anything heavy or have to move furniture too far. I wound up grabbing a child size Mission oak desk that was the nearest thing to hand. Not ideal, but I was starting to work up a sweat, so I didn’t really care.

Next it was time to plug in the machine and get it threaded. Oops! No bobbin in the machine. That meant a trek out to my studio through the blazing sun to get one. I grabbed two, just for good measure and came back in the house.

With the machine finally threaded, I started sewing on some glorious early brown and red stripped fabric that I had chosen to make an Izzy dress. More problems, the tension on the Singer Featherweight I was using was off and the machine was skipping stitches. There ensued a small pause for the removal of the offending stitches and tension adjustment. Back to sewing… and still skipping stitches!!! Reread the last two sentences a few times and you’ll begin to see why I trooped back out to my studio to get a different Featherweight! Good thing I have a spare 🙂 Once I cooled down and gulped a glass of iced tea I finally got to sew!

I am quite pleased with the way the dress is turning out and once it’s finished I’m planning to make a Turkey red sunbonnet to go with it, as well as a red embroidered apron. I had such a good time sorting through my antique fabrics and picking out just the right ones, that I almost managed to forget I was hot 🙂

I hope that where ever you are that you’ve managed to find a moderately cool spot of your own. This doll has been sold. Thank you for stopping by to look at her:)

Antique Izannah Walker Dolls · Doll Clothing · Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll

Pantalettes

April 18, 2011April 19, 2011 paulawaltonLeave a comment

My Valentine’s Day post this year was about chemises. Continuing with the undergarment theme, today I’m talking about pantalettes. Unlike my previous post, this time around I will not be modeling any of pantalettes. 🙂

Doll in pants 400 5824 — One of my reproduction Izannahs and her pantalettes.

All of my reproduction Izannahs wear pantalettes as part of their authentically recreated clothing. I base the pantalettes that my dolls wear on a pair that are part of the original garments belonging to one of my antique Izannah Walker dolls.You can see another photo of these pantalettes here.

The origins of pantalettes can be found in early 19th century France, and from there the fashion soon spread to England and America. Pantalettes were worn by women and children of both sexes.

Pants split 600_5853 — Antique pantalettes with two separate legs.

Pants closeup 400_5854 — Close-up of the center leg edge.

The legs of pantalettes can either be two separate pieces that are joined only at the waist (as is the case with my doll’s version) or the legs can be sewn together with either a side or back opening. The hemline of the legs varied from below the knee to ankle length.