My Doll Haven

Everyone Needs Playtime

In our hectic, modern lives, many of us focus so heavily on work and family commitments that we never seem to have time for pure fun. Somewhere between childhood and adulthood, we stopped playing.

When we carve out some leisure time, we’re more likely to zone out in front of the TV or computer than engage in fun, rejuvenating play like we did as children. But play is not just essential for kids; it can be an important source of relaxation and stimulation for adults as well.

There doesn’t need to be any point to the activity beyond having fun and enjoying yourself. By giving yourself permission to play with the joyful abandon of childhood, you can reap oodles of health benefits throughout life.

Monday

Pre-Treating Fabrics & Clothes

Do you ever worry about getting stains on your dolls from the clothes they wear? Here's a tip that may help you.

When sewing for my dolls, I like to pre-wash cotton fabrics to remove any sizing (starch), and colours such as red, black and denim, are also treated to help their colour fastness. Then they are rinsed, air dryed indoors (stops the sun bleaching them) and pressed, prior to laying the patterns and cutting the garments out.

When purchasing garments, I find it's a good idea to check with suppliers to see if the garments purchased are colour fast. If new doll clothes were not pre-treated or should the supplier not know, I soak them in a tub/sink with a mixture of enough cold water to cover the garments, a 1/2 cup of white vinegar and 1/2 cup of salt for at least an hour. I DO NOT mix colours, and always do a seperate load for red and another for black or denim. Then I simply follow the steps above . . . rinse, dry, press.

Tuesday

Kelsi and Kenyon

My newest arrivals and last for the year. Fairyland Pukifees, Rin and Tiki arrived yesterday and have already settled into the Elvin Forest. I am sewing fur clothes suitable for a sheep and a wolf, but as I haven't a pattern I am winging it a bit and just hoping they turn out as envisaged in my mind. :)

I love Kenyon's pretty blue eyes, but Kelsi's were a very dark brown they almost look black, so I changed them.

My Early Christmas Box Opening

My Christmas present arrived yesterday from Camelia Dynasty and I was very surprised by the lovely presentation box it came in.

Inside the box everything was securely and neatly packed.

The free gift was the unicorn horn, which I was very pleased with as I had ordered spare mane and tail inserts to make a fantasy set with either mohair or alpaca.

The blushing was okay, but not fantastic, if I was to purchase another, I would do my own blushing. The other slightly negative thing was the stringing, it was really loose, but that's an easy fix. The horse blanket is very well made and I liked that you could select your colours . . . I chose the navy with white trim, but there were several to choose from.

Overall I am happy with Sage who has been renamed Snowdrift and now with the horn, I have two animals in one. The lovely white horse for my human dolls AND a fantasy unicorn for my Elvin folk! That is, I will have, as soon as I do the mane and tail . . . I'm off to Etsy now to find the right colours. :)