Dolls and epb

Tiny 'Tude dolls, my husband, Liter, (It's pronounced Lighter.) took this photo. I walked in and he was telling these little 8" dolls to keep their legs crossed and behave themselves.

To purchase a Tiny 'Tude pattern
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Today, Liter drove me about 75 miles to Farmington, New Mexico, just to go to Hobby Lobby. It seems that is the closest place of any consequence to buy anything other than what Wally World has. Well, we did need to buy a mat and frame for Christmas presents for daughter and his sister's gift, that I made for them. After Christmas I'll post photos. The Hobby Lobby visit got my juices and my memories going.

In another life I was an avid cloth dollmaker. In 1994, a friend and I drove about 150 miles to take a class from elinor peace bailey. Like so many women, our lives were changed forever by one of her classes. My friend, Sue, and I stayed another day for a class and we hadn't even taken our toothbrush with us on the trip. We loved sitting in the same room and making dolls with the women she had gathered together. Since then and for many years, I made many dolls, big ones, little ones, crazy ones and pretty ones. I quit only because we became full time RVrs and there just was no room to make dolls.

On the second day of that famous first class, there was a small piece of trim at my place when we got back from lunch. elinor had left it and it was for the Monique bed doll I was making. Then, of all things she told me to put silk ribbon embroidery on that doll. So, with silk ribbon flowers twining up that doll's very long legs and spiderweb roses on her cheeks, Monique was finished. I don't know if anyone had ever done silk ribbon embroidery on a doll before.

At some other time, I took more classes and developed the little doll "Tiny 'Tude". The 'Tude stands for attitude. The latest 'Tude that I have made is here. It's on Etsy. I have made about 60 of those little dolls to various specifications. Now, I want to skip the clothing and make beaded dolls. I still have a blue 'Tude just above me on the computer cabinet.

The trip today got me to thinking of elinor, who become my mentor. What a wonderful thing a mentor is. She stayed in our house when she taught in Helena, Montana, where we lived and then I saw her at various doll conferences. She produced the pattern for "Tiny 'Tude" and we both sell it after all these years. Mine is on Etsy. She also produced a pattern of Lorelei, which is a mermaid. She's on my Etsy page too. She is two-faced, with one side smiling and the not so much smiling.

I saw elinor in Denver a year or two back and helped her unpack her dolls. There in the midst of all those dolls in those great big suitcases was the 'Tude that I had made for her some ten years earlier. This is her.
This is kind of lengthy.

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