"Street Clothes" coming soon!
"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch your name. What did you say it was?"
It was then that I learned that I kind of know how to read lips, because the tall - for a doll, that is - girl standing before me made whispers sound like shouting, but still I understood.
"Miranda!" I exclaimed. "How pretty!"
As I got to know Miranda, I learned the reason for her quietness was that she was extremely shy. Not sullen, not sad, just shy. With Halloween just around the corner, I knew just what to do to get Miranda out of her shell...
Meet Miranda!
The Girl Who Discovered Her Inner Carmen
Miranda is a 21" Effanbee Anne Shirley, and she is O.L.D. (Once-Loved Doll) No. 56 and SECOND in the '15 Halloween Series.
She arrived in decent condition. Her mohair wig was a little matted and worn, she was missing a pinky finger from her left hand, and she needed an overall cleaning, a re-stringing and a little touch up to her lips.
My
philosophy is to do as little as possible to these girls. Mend them, clean
them, and dress them up so that they can last and be loved for another lifetime
without losing the signs that they were Once-Loved before. Do not look for
airbrushed perfection here!
I rebuilt her pinkie finger and just did a quick paint for the benefit of getting her picture. Bless her heart, a little fruit hat and some colorful clothes, and she's the life of the party!
SHE WILL have a second, more "traditional" outfit. There's still much to be done for her! I hope to finish soon and plan to have the next O.L.D. ready by this Sunday. As soon as I get over these third degree hot glue gun burns I got making that hat. How I suffer! Totally worth it.
Because of her size and weight, I am offering Parcel Post shipping. If you would like her faster, let me know and I'll re-calculate. Thank you!
More description/pictures coming soon. In the meantime, I hope she will Samba her way into your heart...
On Oct-16-15 at 14:58:38 PDT, seller added the following information:Description finish coming soon! I just wanted to get the pictures to you ASAP.
On Oct-16-15 at 16:47:50 PDT, seller added the following information:PLEASE NOTE: Next O.L.D. will be up for adoption WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21st at 6:33pm Iowa time.
I still need to finish her finger repair. I was too busy making a hat stand and clothes! I saved a spot on her pictures. For her hair: her bangs were in two odd rows of loops. I confess, I could do nothing with them, so I gave them a snip and curled her hair. It now has the "signature" Hazel Twigg messiness. I may as well OWN it.
On with the clothes!
CARMEN MIRANDA:
FRUIT HAT: Note to self: Thank goodness we bought little fruits at the thrift stores when we saw them! Miranda's hat is laden with them over a Styrofoam core so it's not *too* heavy for her sweet head. The turban is fully lined with satin so as not to muss her hair. Two brass hoops, possibly curtain circles, are sewn in the general area of where her ears would be.
HAT STAND INCLUDED. I made it myself just this morning. You've got to have some place to put that hat when she's not wearing it! Also, you could display it in your kitchen. Everyone will think you're a health nut.
TOP & SKIRT: Miles and miles of gathering were involved. Well, yards, at least. Deep orange, yellow, navy, and green.
ACCESSORIES: Fruit bangles and necklace kindly given by The Mayor (my sister. She really is the mayor of this here burg!) from the time she was Carmen Miranda for Halloween. She won first place...
Miranda's red undies were made to be close-fitting so as not to interfere with her svelte silhouette. They snap in back Her navy blue SANDALS are factory made! I had them in my stash. They are a teensy bit snug, but they still fit her very nicely.
STREET CLOTHES:
COAT & HAT: Tapestry-type upholstery fabric in a swing-style. The coat is lined with this nifty red and gold-stripe fabric. It hooks at the neck and has a tarnished button to boot. Her BROOCH is vintage, lovely, and intact. Miranda's generous! She'll let you borrow it, if you like. Her hat is a rusty-red thick wool and lined with red satin to protect her hair. A navy blue fabric flower pin adorns it.
POLKA DOT DRESS: I was just going to have this dress Miranda was wearing as her main dress, but decided I really wanted to make her something just for herself. It may be factory made, it's hard to tell. The red is a bit faded, and there was something missing from the white waistband ribbon so I pinned a vintage flower there instead. I also added a bit of vintage white middy braid for her to tie in her hair. The dress pins in the back and she looks really nice in it. It goes with her coat, too.
BLUE-GREEN DRESS: I love this fabric! I wanna make a dress for myself out of it too. It has deep blues and greens and golds and was trimmed with vintage green braid. There are pleats on the side and gathers in the back. It's super sweet in person. I found a smidgen of dark blue velvet ribbon for her hair. Lucky for me, when you're working with dolls - even tall, shy ones - a smidgen is all you need.
There you have it! A colorful and subdued girl to suit your every mood...
I’ll note below when Miranda''s blog
post is up. Or you can subscribe and you'll get a notice in your email inbox.
Even better! There you’ll see The Mayor as Carmen Miranda, inspiration photos, and more! Thank you!
FEEL FREE TO
"LIKE" HAZEL TWIGG ON FACEBOOK. I would LOVE that!
