Tuesday, January 26, 2010

FLORA


Hi everyone.....Here is another of my favourite English woodens we have made. I am posting a few favourites of mine even though some of their photo appear in earlier posts. Mainly to tell a little bit of their stories, as suggested and asked for by our dear friend Ulla (ullabenulla) see link below to the right. She said she was missing reading the stories I write when we e-mail out photos of our dolls.


The 16.5 inch doll itself was based on a antique example from the 1735 / 1740 era.
Her dress was my creation and not based on the antique's dress and it is 18th century fabric along with some "rare as hen's teeth" 18th century fly-braid. I had always wanted to find some antique 18th century fly-braid but its nearly impossible to find. When we did find a piece and usually a small piece, it was priced between $1000.00 and $2000.00.
We lucked our and got the piece that's featured on this dolls dress and stomacher. It was about 3 feet long and we paid a LOT of money for it....lets just say we got it under the $1000.00 mark but its so rare and so amazing I had to have it.
Here it is showcased on the doll I named "Flora"......

Now people who know us, know we usually do not name our dolls but this name just seemed to fit this doll and it was my wonderful Grandmothers name (actually Flora Letha) who I was SO close to. She passed away when I was 17. The first photo is of my Grandmother Flora.
I hope you enjoy the photos.

Best Wishes to all!


Posted by The Old Pretenders at 7:00 AM

7 comments:

  1. JulieJanuary 28, 2010 at 9:32 AM

    Miss Flora is INCREDIBLE!!! as are all of your WONDERFUL dolls. You truely are blessed with a wonderful gift. Thank you so much for sharing your LOVELY ladies with us.

    I my self am a doll maker inspired (and inspired is the key word here) by the old wooden dolls. My are in no way reproductions, just my own interpretations in clay and cloth. I must admit I have grouped all the woodens as Queen Anne's. I will no longer do that. Thank you for your kind explanation on this.
    I eagerly await for next post,
    Julie

    ReplyDelete
  2. The Old PretendersJanuary 28, 2010 at 11:53 AM

    Thank you Julie for the nice compliment! We really appreciate it!
    It's nice to hear you are enjoying the blog.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UllaJanuary 28, 2010 at 12:02 PM

    I could sleep in that dress - like a wearable garden! sublime!
    Ulla

    ReplyDelete
  4. The Old PretendersJanuary 28, 2010 at 1:16 PM

    Thank you Ulla! Hope your feeling better.

    ReplyDelete
  5. LoisFebruary 5, 2010 at 1:19 AM

    She is gorgeous, her stomacher is truly spectacular with that incredible rare braid. I wonder if you could tell me a little more about this braid, I am rather curious, it is sooo beautiful, and I have never heard od it before.I will look forward to your next post! xx

    ReplyDelete
  6. The Rustic VictorianFebruary 6, 2010 at 3:57 AM

    Spectacular! Amazed once again at your talent and knowledge.
    Marcie

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousMarch 3, 2010 at 4:51 PM

    Oh my gosh, this doll is wonderful, and the detailing on her dress is exquisite. Your grandmother has such a sweet face, she looks like someone good to hug...my grandmother did, too...is it the generation, the memories, or just the passage of time that makes us remember them like that?
    Karen

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)