Category Archives: Doll Hats

“A Rosy Outlook”

My Little Darling, Alice, is forever contemplating life and the world with a positive attitude.  Actually all three of my Little Darlings are like that, and they remind me on a daily basis to do the same.  Really, though, how can one be gloomy gazing at their beautiful and sweet faces!

Our latest blast of springtime hasn’t made it difficult to have a rosy outlook either.  Spring has been here in the Chicago area for a good many days now, and I am spoiled beyond being spoiled, if that’s possible.  The warmth and sunshine feels heavenly, and I am enjoying every second of it!

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Just like our weather, Alice’s new ensemble is all warmth and sunshine.  The dress features the tiniest pink roses in shades of warm pink and pretty green.  The background is a deep ivory or light maize color.  Ivory scalloped French lace edges the hemline.  A  hand dyed rayon ribbon sash ties in a bow at the back of the dress.

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The wool sweater is knit with panels of lace on the center back, down the center of each sleeve, and a narrower panel along each front.   Tiny bullion stitched rosebuds mingle with the knitted lace on the sweater’s front.

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A beret that matches the sweater is knit from my beret pattern.  A pair of embroidered rosebuds and a hand made pom pom embellish this tiny beret.

Accessories to complete this ensemble include a crocheted flower basket filled with a paper wrapped bunch of blossoms, a bracelet, and tights.

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Alice’s “A Rosy Outlook” ensemble will be available tonight (February 21, 2017) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com.

BTW, I am so sorry about the technology problems last night which made me unable to publish my website at 7:00.  I stumbled upon a work around which will hopefully prevent it from happening tonight.

I hope you all are having a great Tuesday!  Thank you so much for visiting with me today.  Bye for now! ❤

Nearly Three Weeks!

I finally got my mojo back for photo shoots yesterday.  It’s been missing nearly this entire month, almost three weeks!  I’ve been working at creating, and the ensembles are starting to pile up.

Ha, ha . . . not really, but I do have three ensembles completed.  So yesterday I had a mammoth modeling session with two of my Little Darlings, Lucy and Alice, and my sweet and patient, Patience.

I got to work right away on editing the photos for Lucy’s ensemble, so I have something to show you this morning.  You might have caught glimpses of this one on my Facebook page or Instagram feed already, but now the “real” photos have been taken.

Here is my happy Little Darling, Lucy, in “Pastel and Pretty”!  What I noticed when working with this fabric is how pastel and cool the color palette is.  The blue background is as pastel as a blue can get and is a beautiful cool shade.  It’s like a breathe of fresh air!  The roses are in shades of cool pink to cherry red.  The greenery is true mint green with a slightly darker green also.

Something new with this dress is the lace on the skirt and how I’ve applied it.   This English cotton Cluny lace has been in my stash for months; I’ve been pondering on how to use it, and it finally came to me.

I decided to use this lace as an insert between the the skirt fabric.  The lining barely peeks through and offers the tiniest bit of translucence.  The lace is pretty dense, so it’s not see through at all, it’s just a little hint of light.  I like the effect a lot.

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Lucy’s “light as a feather” short sleeved mohair/silk cropped cardigan was knit from my Light Cardigan pattern.  Two mirrored white/pink rose motifs add crisp white brightness to the rosy pink cardigan.  The motifs also include pastel blue and green to coordinate with the dress.

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A pure white crocheted slouch cap frames Lucy’s face perfectly.  It is made with drapey bamboo thread.  A hand made crocheted rose and ice blue glass flower bead decorates the band.  More white pearls are used on these embellishments.

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A crocheted basket is Lucy’s choice for holding a few pretty blossoms.  White pearls and an ice blue flower bead create the dangling tassel.  I put a bit of green Easter grass and a tiny bunch of bright pink blossoms in the basket.  Both can be removed, and the flowers are secured together with a clear elastic band for holding.

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White mesh tights and a bracelet complete Lucy’s springtime look.

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Lucy’s “Pastel and Pretty” ensemble will be available tonight (February 20, 2017) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com.

I hope you all have a great start to the new week.  Thanks so much for visiting with me today! ❤

“A Little Wish for Spring”

So far winter has not gotten the best of me.  It should have really; we’ve had a LOT of extremely gloomy days!  However, I am enjoying the coziness inside my house with cups of tea, twinkle lights around the window, and a fire in the fireplace.

So . . . Alice and I are only sending out “A Little Wish for Spring”.  It is so nice to see roses, even if they are the embroidered kind.

I chose Alice to model this ensemble because she looked the prettiest in it.  Her coloring goes perfectly with warm, neutral, and rosy colors.  This pink yarn is a little bit neutral—it is a heathered yarn with very faint hints of lavender and warm red.  So all three primary colors are accounted for to make this yarn a neutral color even if it is “pink”.

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Alice’s beret features a hand made silk ribbon bow in a hand dyed warm lavender with ecru pearls decorating the center.  (Alice’s beret is knit from my beret pattern which is available for your knitting pleasure.)

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I chose the embroidery colors from my notes when I made Patsy’s sweater dress.  I added the very pale peachy pink colonial knots for a pop of light.  You can see Patsy’s sweater dress set here.

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I am currently working on this sweater dress knitting pattern which will be ready for purchase very soon.  It will have two sleeve length options and two dress length options.  This is the short sleeved and shorter length version.  The Little Darlings have adorably shaped arms and legs which I like to show off.

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Alice’s “A Little Wish for Spring” will be available tonight (January 12, 2017) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com.

How about you?  Are you faring well this winter?  I’d love to hear about your winter where you live.