Monday, August 15, 2022

 August 15, 2022

A Hitch in my Get-Along

 

Well in another week it will be a year since I last posted.  You would not believe all that happened.  Whew, it is something isn’t it how quickly time can go and get away from us? 

 

I am an irregular blogger to be sure, but a couple weeks from the time I last wrote I had an “event” we’ll say that didn’t bother me so much as the doctor when I described it.  I felt no different, but apparently, I needed tests done, and NOW!  After a few echocardiograms, I was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect.  Imagine at my age finding out I have had this since birth?  Why did I not know sooner?  And this is a common heart defect.  When I was born the hole in which my mother fed me during gestation did not close automatically when I was born. This is called a PFO. (Just look it up, I cannot even pronounce it.) As I aged, the whole grew larger, and a microscopic piece, possibly, of blood trash did not get cleaned up and caused me to have what appeared to be a stroke.  Honestly, I am not sure as it was so minor, but the doctors were being cautious. 

Fast forward to 25 doctor visits, all kinds of them, pick a specialty. 

In January, the hole was closed.  I was all fixed.  Except for a stint in the ER.  Wow, that was scary, I thought “the plug” had become dislodged, but no. Just a fault in the electricity of the heart beats. 

 On July 5th, I got my 6-month check-up and am all wonderful and perfect again. 

I was homesick and wanted to get back to my family and old friends.  We made plans, ready to list the house when I got out of the hospital, to hopefully move back to my hometown.  The areas which we were considering had grown so expensive that it did not make sense to make the move. All the work that one does to put a house on the market now had to be reversed.   The unwinding and redefining what life looks like going forward has taken extra time, too. 


The Queen size bed is stacked under, over, and around.  


And in the bathroom and excess in another room, embarrassing.

I now have boxes stored in the guest room.  However, there is a silver lining.  I have a closet upstairs that the original owner had finished from an attic area.  It is a good 12 X 12 feet on the floor, but the room is not quite 8’ tall.  As we speak my painter extraordinaire, Justin is repairing the walls and repainting.  If all goes well, new shelves are being installed this week.  I am excited to get my hoarded, stashed, stock, yes stock put away and organized in a room of its own.  I shall call it my stockroom.  Stocking supplies sounds so much better than hoarding, doesn’t it? 

I shall share the progress with you.  I hear from my husband that I am lacking in making decisions.  I never knew that about myself, I thought I was quite a decisive person.  I have purged until there is only the best left, and by looks, it appears there is more of that to be done.  No doubt, sad face, I will need to gift and donate some more.    

I will be posting more blog entries as I have not been a sloth while healing!  I will share things I have done, and outfits completed soon. 

Have Fun!

Kathi



Thursday, August 26, 2021

 August 26, 2021

When I last posted I was showing that there had been great progress on completing the “Knight to Remember” Dress.  This was an Alice Leverette workshop at St. Simons Island.  It was a full workshop with about 30 participants.  Due to me being in the sponsoring club, I also had work assignments for the weekend and managed to not complete the garment and allowed it to sit for quite some time.

But alas with some perseverance, the dress was complete.  All the beading and flowers have been added. 

It was time to add some jewels.  Here you see a necklace being made, and the earrings to match. 

Progression of making the necklace. 

    Jewels are just right! 
Perfect additions!

She needed some pretty flowers for her hair.  Alas, totally complete.  

Pretty floral coronet


How about a fan!  

What dance is complete with a fan?

Beautiful! 


Complete!  

A new project awaits.  

Whatever you create, 
Have Fun!
Kathi






Friday, August 20, 2021

 August 20, 2021

 

I reported before that I was trying to complete an unfinished project a month until I seemed to be caught up.  I completed this project in May.  The workshop is called Knight to Remember, St. Simons Island, 2013.   This was the inspiration picture for the project:


 

My partially completed project had languished for quite some time. Pulling the contents, I reviewed the directions and discerned the kit was complete.  However, I needed to start over as I had skipped around in the making of the pieces.  The skirt was completed but as memory served the ruffle was giving me fits.  And true it was only pinned in places and basted incorrectly in others.  The main portion of the bodice was complete but I was stopped in the middle of decorating and attaching the sleeves.  The sleeves were being worked one at a time, so one sleeve was flat and unworked the other nearly completed.   I will add, at the time, I was a member of the club sponsoring the workshop and I had other duties to perform during the groups’ visit.   

Here we are with a slip and ready to go.  


This reckoning with what I had done and had not done was confusing at first. Here the sleeves are partially completed.  

The start of skirt repair and redo.

Staring me in the face was the skirt ruffle that caused me a lot of grief.  Removing the ruffle thus began the slow process, of straightening it, pressing it, and dividing it again.  There were many peaks and dips to getting the ruffle on correctly.  I finally made a line with the sections marked was a better method for me to get the proportions straight.  
It took a week, but the skirt, fewer beads, and bows were completed, fitted, and on the doll. It was my intention to complete both the skirt and the bodice before adding any of the jewels and bows that would finish the outfit.
  

While I was at it I made the extra bows. 

I was on a roll and would get the outfit done soon.  Little did I know it would take the full month. 

 
I'll be back with more!  
In the meantime, 
Have Fun!
Kathi



Thursday, July 29, 2021

 July 29, 2021

 Things are catching up a bit around here, but not so you could really tell.  It has been a lot of work, but I am still working on the dining room table.  I don't know if I am blaming the slowness of my purging and organizing, or if I just like working downstairs where there is more life and sunlight.  Perhaps a bit of both.  

I would be remiss before going forward on my projects if I didn’t talk a little about my Ultimate Fashion Doll.  I had named her Molly after my grandmother Mary Lee.  All her life her nickname was Molly, and we the grandchildren were born, we called her Grandmolly.   Family quirks.  As many use French girl’s names for their French Fashion, my doll had arrived in the USA and Mary became Molly, and that was it. 

I had Molly for quite some years, she’s been in pictures on the blog with her cousin Emilie Claire.  One of her dresses was featured here in 2009,  I think.  


Molly had been corresponding with her friend Simone and planned a trip to visit and be pictured together and going to tea.  On her way to Simone, her “carriage turned over” causing great damage.  (That’s my story and I am sticking to it.) Nevertheless, Molly could not be saved.  She broke her noggin and her life as we knew it was expunged.  No more Molly. 


May I interject here, in spite of the levity which I write, I was devastated.  My friend, Gillian, was quite dejected and did not want to give me the bad news.  I was literally sick to my stomach, and for a little white depressed about the whole thing.  Gillian was to photograph our “girls” together and then take my doll to an Alice Leverett workshop she was attending to deliver her to Alice for a little tightening and refurbishment.  The doll would be returned as Gillian got home.    

The stars did not align.  We set upon the process of making a claim for the doll.  I had paid for an additional $1000.00 of insurance.  After about 6 weeks, the claim was denied at the post office.  I had according to instructions provided proof of value by suing several sold auctions in lieu of an original receipt.  But they wanted the original.  Alice worked diligently to get the original receipt, as I had lost or misplaced mine, I mean three moves since the purchase of the doll, and she produced one for me and even set aside a replacement head at the same time.  It took 3 months to file a claim, have the claim turned down, and then fight for it.  Finally, 6 months later, I was rewarded with about $695.00 on a thousand-dollar claim.  But we were allowed to salvage the body, so all was not lost.  Later, I received devastating news.  The replacement head was broken in a small household accident and the doll was not to be produced any longer.  I had a body and no head!  

I explored the idea of joining Emilie Claire's head to Molly's body.  Emilie's body was not well done (I made her).  But Gillian had other ideas.  Her friend Lynn would make me a new doll head. The next hurdle, she only had a head for a doll face that was not a particular favorite of mine.  More months passed while I pouted and thought.  I was convinced to examine it first and make a decision when I had compared the heads.  So this is what I did.    

What I received was a beautiful face on a Smiling Bru reproduction head.  Emilie’s head was a bit too large for the doll, so I grudgingly place the Smiling Bru on the UFD body.  May I say, after 2 years of hedging and grumbling and fighting it, yea, two years, I now have a new and favorite doll.  It was as if it was meant to be.  I have considered naming her Eugenie after the French Empress, Napoleon III’s wife, or name her after the two ladies whose patience and persistence to replace the lost Molly. She remains nameless today, three years later.   One day I will settle the doll name issue. 

Until then I thought would introduce you to my newly refurbished French Fashion Ultimate Fashion Doll, body by Alice Leverett, head by Lynn S.  (I did not ask permission to reveal her name.) But kudos to Lynn and Gillian.  Thank you. She is just so beautiful.  

More about her burgeoning wardrobe as we go along.  

I am having fun!  

Kathi

Thursday, May 20, 2021

 

May 20

For three years we have been in a state of disorganization and remodeling.  If anyone has moved and lived in the house during remodeling, you understand completely the stress and discombobulation that I describe. 

The house is nearly complete.  There are some smaller projects that need doing but for now, we are taking a building break.  Once the upstairs was “finished” I started opening boxes and putting things away.  Apparently, I need to purge some more.  I am so overwhelmed with the organizing at this point. 

I have followed along with Cas Aarsen of Clutterbug.  https://clutterbug.me/get-started

Purchasing her book has allowed me to read slower and digest her advice.  I have been an organizer from childhood practically and am trying desperately to drop excessive habits.  I am Cricket in her test, with some crossover bits of a ladybug.   I am trying desperately to be a patient Cricket, waiting for perfection by first macro-organizing.  Apparently, according to Cas and I identify with what she is suggesting, I am an overthinker and an over organizer…for now.  This process is difficult for me.  She has in her blog and videos suggested that I first MACRO organize.  In the middle of this wonderful exercise of using a big bin and putting everything in it for this one subject, for example, sewing machine accouterments.  , I find I am putting smaller boxes in that big box that is supposed to be for general organizing.  Stopping that micro-organizing is a bit of a challenge.  I sort into different categories.  Don’t let me get started on miniatures, paleez!    

When I first moved from the “big house “I downsized by half.  The first decision was to define what I actually wanted to do in hobbies as it was apparent, I was not going to continue down the road of doing everything I pleased.  (Anyone who is into doll making or costuming knows it is hard to give it all up as we use all those skills in this one pursuit.)  I pared down ruthlessly.  Not quite enough, though.  Getting my 30’ X 15’ hobby room to a 12’ X 12’ room was excruciating.  I wound up using a wall in the garage as well. 

Not long after that endeavor, we moved again.  The space is similar, but the rooms organized a different way.  Here we go again! I still have too much. 

Am working on divesting myself of dolls, miniatures, fabrics, tools, excess projects, it is a chore.  So, my friends, I have been overwhelmed with sorting, purging, donating, trashing (why did I save that piece of paper or that inch of fabric?  And no, it cannot become an inchie art piece!) 

Upstairs in this “new to us” home, there are three rooms.  One is a nice guestroom for us, the second is a similar in size third bedroom.  This to be my sewing room as it has a large picture window.  And finally, the bonus at the top of the stairs is a closet built into the rafters and finished off.  This is my stock room.  Well, it will be when I finish as right now the whole house feels like my stockroom. 

The bedroom is a sorting and stacking station for each “leg” of the organizing.  The stockroom is still sort of a hide it space, and I am working on it, box at a time.  I have a large organizing chest from a Paula Deen furniture collection, and now 6 Alex cabinets.  The taller 9 drawer ones.  They are currently in a state of reorganization, too.  The hope is when I am finished and labeled, that the cabinets will all be straightened out and everything centered, and pretty.  (I want pretty so badly!)

                This is the stacked-up guest room.  Thankfully, we have no visitors at this time.  

The Sewing or display room is being sorted more and more.  It is beginning to look like a real workroom and will have a pretty display on the bookshelves and the cabinet.  Another Paula Deen furniture piece called "The Bag Lady."
                        This will be a nice display and sewing machine corner when completed.  
                                        Currently in a holding pattern.  But a good workplace.  
    It's a start!  I hope this will be pretty, too.  I need to have some skilled doll ladies help me with the                                                                                 display.  

Frankly, the overwhelm has frozen me from doing the things I love.  I have pulled three unfinished projects and taken them downstairs.  Removed from the mess upstairs, I am working on those projects.  The break is greatly needed. 

And if you are unaware of Cas and the Clutterbug theories, you can click on the link above and watch her show Hot Mess House, https://www.hgtv.com/shows/hot-mess-house.  Or stream on Discovery Plus. 

The book I purchased was this one.  (no affiliate sponsor) The Clutter Connection.  

Can be found wherever you find your books.  

Have Fun! 

Kathi