Category Archives: Sweaters

My “Calico Cutie”

Usually I cannot remember the names of fabric collections that I use for my outfits. I get asked quite often, and I’m sorry to say that I just don’t remember, especially when it has been in my stash for a while. The name of this fabric, however, stuck with me because it was named after one of my favorite childhood television shows and books, Little House on the Prairie.

I was probably older than the target audience when this show first aired, but still loved the cozy peek into pioneer life. My younger sister, who was really into this show had the book, so I also read that. I’ve been enamored with log cabins lit with cozy fireplaces ever since.

This tiny calico print is filled with shades of purply flowers on a navy ground. You all know I love every single shade of purple, but I don’t work with navy blue too much. When I received this fabric I wasn’t thrilled with it (it seemed too dark to me), but it looked so pretty with this lilac mohair sweater, so I took a chance and made this fabric into a dress. I am glad I used it! It is a different look for Gina. In fact, I love her in this dress set!

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Gina’s light as a feather mohair/silk sweater matches the beret which is knit in a heavier weight of Peruvian wool. I preferred the “less fluffy” fiber for her beret. I am now quite comfortable knitting in the round, so that is how I knit Gina’s beret. A simple white silk ribbon bow and bead decorate the beret.

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I had this ribbon in my stash which was the perfect color to accent the waistline of the dress.

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My newly acquired white tassel styled cotton lace from England looked perfect with this print.

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Of course Gina wanted a little bouquet to give you. She picked deep purple and white blossoms which she tied together with white silk streamers, and a bow made with matching embroidery thread.

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“Calico Cutie” will be available tonight (July 19, 2016) at 7:00 pm CST, cindyricedesigns.com. Check the “Shop What’s New” page at that time for more information on this ensemble.

“Garden Princess”

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I crowned my Little Darling, Gina, the garden princess. Her grace never fails to shine through on the thousands of photos I’ve taken of her over the years. She’s a beauty, my oldest, and I am happy she’s a part of my ever growing Little Darling family.

Here she is modeling her new ensemble called “Garden Princess”.

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I love the violet-y pink shades in these two fabrics from the same collection. The border print is the same design as “Beauty in Blue” made for my Kaye Wiggs Gracie. The print has a totally different feel when done without the leaves and stems in green, doesn’t it? I like them both, though, no preference.

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I didn’t have the right shade of pink, so I knit Gina’s sweater in white mohair/silk then hand dyed it in a very, very light rosy pink dye bath. I think it dyed to the perfect shade and created a nice background for the embroidery.

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Here’s a close up of the embroidery.

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The accessories all came together perfectly for this ensemble.

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Gina has a bouquet put together just for you. It features baby’s breath, tiny off white blossoms, and a cool pink rose blossom. She tied her bouquet together with a bit of lace and pearl trim.

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“Garden Princess” will be available tonight (July 6, 2016) at 7:00 pm CST at cindyricedesigns.com. Look for more information under the “Shop What’s New” tab at 7:00 pm.

“Cutie in the Garden”

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Look who was roaming around the garden yesterday! It’s Millie, my Kaye Wiggs 11″ BJD.

Millie wanted to have her photo shoot in the grass, and surrounded by flowers. I said okay, even though it’s physically harder to take photos “way down there”. I thought I’d give it a shot though; I didn’t want to disappoint my tiny Millie. I found the perfect spot in the shade of our apple tree and gave a small patch of lawn a hair cut, so she wouldn’t get swallowed up by grass. I brought out my yoga mat to lay on, but sitting on the grass was the perfect height. I was actually quite comfortable once I got situated.

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You might recognize this fabric. I used it for an ensemble for the Little Darlings earlier this year. Here is Lucy modeling “Pink Happiness” in case you want to see it again.

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Millie’s little cardigan is knit with blush pink lace weight baby alpaca/silk yarn. It’s super soft! Ivory/pink roses pink up the background ivory of the dress. I added a tiny bit of pastel sky blue embroidery. It’s in the print, but is very light.

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Millie’s headband includes a crocheted ivory rose made with very fine cotton. A hand made bow is tucked underneath the rose for added prettiness.

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I haven’t used my park bench for a photo shoot in a long time. I used to use it all the time when Bethany was getting lots of attention. The seat is a little deep for Millie, but she tried very hard to sit up straight for me.

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Millies is such a feminine little miss, isn’t she?

“Cutie in the Garden” will be available tonight (June 28, 2016), 7:00 pm CST at cindyricedesigns.com. At that time you can go to my “Shop What’s New” page for more information.