Category Archives: Gracie

“Beauty and Blossoms”

At long last, I can say “Spring is here!”, and see that it is true here in northern Illinois.  The trees are starting to look plush and green, rather than spindly and grey.  Our lilac bushes have tiny cone-shaped growths that are getting larger by the day.  The phlox is starting to bloom and turn the garden into a lilac colored carpet, so pretty.

I don’t think I ever see as many shades of purple in gardens as I see in the spring garden.

beauty and blossoms 305

Gracie, my Kaye Wiggs MSD sized BJD, is appropriately attired for early spring.  Her dress is made from a light weight Japanese cotton floral print that depicts the purple hues of spring gardens so perfectly.

Her dress features a plethora of violet shaded blossoms:  dark blue violet, red violet, lilac, light red violet, cool pink.

beauty and blossoms 289

A band of luxurious Swiss cotton lace that I hand dyed to a very light ecru adorns the dress’s skirt.  It is snugged up underneath a deep tuck near the hemline.

beauty and blossoms 310

Gracie’s crocheted hat is decorated with a band made from the dress fabric and crocheted blossoms in three purple shades.  The lariat styled necklace is also crocheted.  The beads in purple, pink, and white are crocheted into the necklace; tassels decorate the ends.

beauty and blossoms 275

beauty and blossoms 297

Gracie’s shoulders are kept warm with a hand knit lace shrug made with a coordinating color of wool.

beauty and blossoms 301

For Gracie’s bracelet, I used six different colored blossoms and arranged them in a gradated pattern.  Gracie has picked a colorful bouquet to accompany her spring ensemble.

beauty and blossoms 284

“Beauty and Blossoms” will be available tonight (April 18, 2017) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com.

I’d love to hear about the colors in your gardens!

“A Springtime Garden Stroll”

As soon as the gardens start blooming (or maybe yours already is blooming, lucky you) Gracie will be ready for a leisurely garden stroll with Theodora Bear to keep her company.

a springtime garden stroll 920

Gracie’s floral print dress is made from the same print, but in the warm colorway, as Lucy’s here.  The roses on this print are in mauve-y shades and blush pink.  The green is a lovely shade, and the background is a very light warm off white.  There are tiny bits of straw colored blossoms which go nicely with the ecru English cotton Cluny lace used on the skirt.

a springtime garden stroll 875

I used two strands of baby alpaca/silk lace weight yarn to knit the sweater.  The natural color and blush pink are very close in value, but still create a subtle marled effect.  The sleeves are a true 3/4 length which I don’t think I’ve made before.  Scattered rose bouquets and motifs are embroidered on the front of the sweater.  It looks equally cute either buttoned or unbuttoned.

a springtime garden stroll 840

a springtime garden stroll 849

Theodora bear sits perfectly in Gracie’s wicker basket of blossoms.  She has been embellished with a teeny tiny hand made bow and a “Made with Love” heart charm.

a springtime garden stroll 882

Gracie’s delicate headband has been crocheted with pink bamboo and tiny pearls, and is decorated with a hand made bow.  The bow on the headband and the bow on the skirt visually line up with each other.

a springtime garden stroll 843

“A Springtime Garden Stroll” made for Kaye Wiggs MSDs will be available tonight (Monday, March 27, 2017) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com.

a springtime garden stroll 846

FYI, Lucy’s “A Whisper of Spring” ensemble is still available on my website, cindyricedesigns.com

I hope you all have a beautiful day!

Gracie is Ready

Gracie is all dressed and ready to show you what I’ve just finished making for her.  Do you remember seeing the marled blue/ivory sweater I was working on last week?  Well, it was for this special girl.

sky-blue-wishes-224

I am very happy with how this little sweater turned out.  I tried something new by holding two different strands of lace yarn together.  I’ll admit that I was a bit worried that the embroidery would get lost in the two colors of yarn, but it worked out perfectly.  Since the yarn is busy, I kept the embroidery more monochromatic.

And here is Gracie is all her glory!  She loves her new ensemble!  It makes her feel like spring is right around the corner, and I do too.  (We even had a thunderstorm last night!)

sky-blue-wishes-184

sky-blue-wishes-218

I am still loving this fabric that I received about two years ago.  (It reminds me of my grandmother and her pillowcases.)  I got this particular design in all four colorways:  blue, yellow, violet, and red violet.  If you click on the colors you can go back and visit the other ensembles I made with this print.  The collection is designed by Eleanor Burns and it is called Zoey Christine.

sky-blue-wishes-221

sky blue wishes 189.jpg

Gracie’s new ensemble will fit both of Kaye’s MSD sized dolls although the dress will be slightly longer on the Mei Mei (Talyssa) body.  “Sky Blue Wishes” will be available tonight (February 7, 2016) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com.

Thanks for visiting with me today!

Have (or, I hope you are having) a great day!