Christmas Goin' On ...

Okay, so here are a couple of the things I have been working on for Christmas. This first little project is something I am making for my bestest girlfriends ... I found these AWESOME lemonade pitchers at Tai Pan Trading Company for a really GREAT price (not gonna say what, though, as some of those same friends read my blog!)!! Anywho ... I am going to give them the pitchers with four of the little gift cards and some Country Time lemonade. I think they are stinkin' cute!!

Actually, I may get my daughter to make the rest of the cards for me. I am running OUT of TIME!!! I need at least ONE more day! (On top of the one I have!) YEEEE-IKES!!

Stamps: Tart & Tangy, Botanical Blooms
Paper: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Summer Sun, Pumpkin Pie, Always Artichoke, Old Olive
Accessories: 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, black grosgrain ribbon, pop-up glue dots


And HERE is the Raggedy Ann Saga as it has unfolded over the past year. When my daughter was 5 years old, I made her a set of Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls. Being that she has not really into dolls at ALL (which is just plain ol' WEIRD since I have always been such a doll FANATIC!!), I wasn't quite sure how they would go over. Needless to say, she fell head-over-heels in love with them!!

Fast forward to last Christmas ... we were doggie-sitting my friend's very darling but VERY naughty Golden Retriever - Beau. I was busily working on projects in my craft room when my daughter came in with tears just rolling down her cheeks and a BIG pile of torn fabric, yarn and batting in her arms. Seems Beau had found a new chew toy in our little Raggedy Ann!! We were SOOO heartbroken!! In looking over the mess we saw that the arms, legs, apron and bloomers were still intact. The doll's body, head and dress were TOAST, though (this picture shows SOME of what was left of poor little Annie!). I told my daughter I could just remake the head, body and dress and we would be back in business! Then she said something that tore my heart out ... "But Mom ... I really want her face! When I was sad when I was little I used to cry into her face and then wipe my tears with her hands!" OH MY GOODNESS!!! I knew I HAD to try and save her face!!! Needless to say, the doll then sat in a grocery bag hanging from the doorknob inside my closet for nearly a year. I went searching through the closet to find the pattern and found not ONLY some extra fabric to make her dress, but ALSO the same muslin I used to sew her body! HOORAY!!

The hardest part was the face transplant. It took me two-and-a-half hours to carefully pick the yarn hair off her face so that I didn't damage it any more than it already was. I re-sewed the body and attached the face (I had to iron the bottom edge up and hand tack it to the new face). It kinda has a "Frankenstein Monster" feel to it, but I don't care. I am happy with how it turned out! I also was able to salvage the "I love you" embroidered heart, which I stuffed inside Annie's new body (I embroidered a new "I love you" on her tummy). In the original Raggedy Ann stories, Ann has to have her stuffing replaced and a candy heart that says "I love you" is placed inside her ... kinda like what we have going on here ...

Sooooo ..... here she is! I got finished putting new hair on her last night. I am really pleased with how she turned out. Now that my daughter is 15, I hope that she doesn't think that it is too sappy!!

Have a happy Christmas ADAM (the day BEFORE Christmas EVE!!)!! Thanks to my friend Melissa for telling me that her kids call today Christmas Adam ... I LOVE it!!!