NEEDLE PULLING THREAD DESIGNS BY NITA

Our Little Cutie Patootie

2012-01-22T19:50:00.000-05:00

Hello to all my friends and family! I cannot believe that Jan. is almost over! We have had a very busy new year so far.And I have not had a lot of time to do much sewing or artwork but a new doll is screaming to get out of my head so hopefully time will free up soon. In the mean time I have a living doll to share with you! She is our Great Granddaughter Alaina. She is now 2 1/2 years old. My how time flies!!! She is still living with us and brings us much joy. I hope that you all are having a great New Year so far!

2011-12-31T22:06:00.000-05:00

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year filled with goodhealth and many Blessings!

Pixie's and Brownie's

2011-11-01T13:37:00.000-04:00

I hope that you all had a spooktacular Halloween! Today I have a pixie and a brownie to share with you. They both live in the forest and are very mischevious!Both of these creatures were made from patterns by Allison Marano. First is Gillie, he came into being to collect all my dust bunnies and to keep my cat, Gizmo, entertained! Next is the bookshelf pixie. She is not a pretty thing but she is well loved by her pixie family, she is very naughty however, she keeps herself busy by hiding things in my studio so that I have problems finding them.She makes all the other dollies in my studio laugh. I hope hope these two make you smile too!

Gabby's Night Out

2011-10-22T12:25:00.001-04:00

Gabby is my latest creation. She was made from a pattrn by Jill Maas.I adore her patterns. Gabby's is on her way to a night out on the town, dinner, then opera. She has put on her best silk gown and her favorite velvet feathered hat for the ocassion. she is embellished with beaded earrings, bracelet and rings. She has not many riches but she makes the best of what she has! Gabby will be on display at Indy Cloth Dollmakers Show and Sale next month along with some other fab soft sculptures by our club members. Be sure and stop by if you can, you will not be diappointed!

Meet Fidel

2011-10-07T15:08:00.000-04:00

Meet Fidel. I created him from a pattern by Sylvia Schorr.
Fidel was created for a doll club challenge. We have a challenge every fall and for the challenge this year we had a member pick a fabric and we were challenged to make a doll using the fabric. Fidel's torso and sleeves are made from the fabric. He is a little jester, just about 12 1/2 inches tall
when seated. His hat and vest are made from felt and embellished with beads. His pantallons are blue velvet with a black tulle overlay.Otherwise he is all cotton. His shoes are painted on with silver metallic paint.
Fidel is having a great time entertaining all the other dolls in my studio.
He is quite the ham!

2011-07-29T11:55:00.001-04:00

This is my lastest creation. She is made from a pattern by Sherry Goshon.Sherry designed her to hold eye glasses. It is a fun design and fun to create. I named my version Alyssa. She is made from a some several different fabrics such as Moire, velvet and cotton. She is embellished with a flashy ribbon trim and beads. her face is done with pens and Prismacolor pencils. I adore sherry's designs and this one is fun and quick to make!!
I hope that enjoy viewing her.

2011-07-29T11:43:00.000-04:00

I finlly have a couple things to share. A few months ago our local doll club had a wonderful fun class with Annie Hesse. We made her Garden Party doll. It was an intense and educational class filled with fun and laughter.Annie is a very talented teacher and so forth giving with her talents. I am sharing photo of my doll but it is not a very good photo. I am not a good photographer and need to work on that!!!!! You can not see the beaded face very well but you can get an idea of what she might look like!

Happy Spring!

2011-04-28T09:59:00.004-04:00

It has been ages since I posted. I have been supper busy with our Great Granddaughter. She is 21months old now and such a joy to us.I have also have been struggling with some health issues. But when you get to be my age the aches and pains and problems start happening. I am offically turning 65 in July! I have been depressed a bit about this milestone. It started when I got my social security card in the mail. Getting all the parts of medicare taken care of was a nightmare but we have accomplished the feat.
A month or so back I was playing around in my studio and was in a creative mood but did not want to start anything complicated so I cut out a stump body shape and got busy. I wanted to use a color I usually do not use so the orange and green fabric jumped out at me. Thus Sunny was born. Clay face, metal charms for hands and beads and lace were added for embellishment. She is not in perfect proportions but I like her anyway!
I also made a simple doll from a Mirim Gourley pattern. I did make adjustments to the pattern however. I reduced the arm pattern and next time I make her I will reduce the legs and feet. The arms and feet on this pattern are huge. I used some antique lace for her collar and apron and merino wool for her hair. Her head piece is part of a broken antique brooch.You can see Sunny and Olivia on our doll club blog http://indyclothdollmakers.blogspot.com/

A couple of weeks ago our doll club took a class from Annie Hesse,we made her Garden party doll with a beaded face. We had a blast and all the doll turned out wonderful. If you go to our doll club blog you can see the unfinished dolls. See them here: http://indyclothdollmakers.blogspot.com/
My doll Annie Hesse doll is finished and as soon as I can get a decent picture of her I will post her here. I am photography challenged and need to get a tent to photograph my dolls in.
I am off on Sunday to go to Columbus Ohio to visit AFIC. It was not in my budget to attend the conference but am going on visitors day to see all the exhibits and vist friends. Cannot wait!
That's all the news for now. Take care and will post about my AFIC Visit next week!

My New Fairie

2010-10-26T07:56:00.000-04:00

In September a group of my doll club sisters got together and made Fairies. Leslie Wright designed the doll and we all met at her house and constructed the dolls. It was an awesome day and Leslie was an awesome hostess and teacher.The doll has a molded paperclay face which we covered in cloth.We call chose a different skin color for our fairies and they all turned out great! We will have them on display at out annual show and sale in November. Hope my fairie makes you smile! Pleade forgive the bad photography. I desperately need a class in that!

A little chit chat about my local doll club!

2010-09-04T11:08:00.000-04:00

Greetings. I belong to a wonderful group of ladies and one gent, we are called The Indy ClothdollMakers. We recently participated in a one day event called Walk in the Park at Ellenberger Park here in Indy. We had lots of people visit our little booth and we even sold a few dolls which is always fun! If you go to our club blog there are a few pictures from the event. http://indyclothdollmakers.blogspot.com/ This show is a juried show and we have been accepted for the last several years.
We have gotten several new members to our doll club via this event. If you live in Indy or near Indy we would love you to come and visit us. We meet the 3rd Saturday of every month at the Irvington Library.

Greetings

2010-09-04T10:53:00.000-04:00

Greetings from Indy. The weather here is a little cooler this week. It is enjoyable but I am sad that summer has reached it's end. I love summer even when it get to 100 degrees! I am not a winter gal but I do enjoy fall.
I was fortunate enough to go to Ohio last month to take a class from Cindee Moyer. I was a wonderful class and it was nice to visit with some of the RiverCity guild. They served us a wonderful lunch and the fellowship was wonderful. I did not finsih my doll but will share pictures when I am finished. It will be a few week though as I am getting ready for a a few holiday shows. One in October and two in November.

New Doll for July

2010-07-22T22:18:00.000-04:00

I hope that everyone is enjoying summer and staying cool. We have had some strange weather here in Indy but not as hot as other parts of the country. Well, July 4th is one of my favorite holidays. I guess it is because I am very patriotic. Even though I enjoy looking at fireworks it is not what makes the holiday special to me. I am a July baby, born on the 6th. My grandfather used to tease me and tell me I was almost born a firecracker. Given my red hair and temperament as a child. My red hair has faded and my grandpa is long gone but the 4th of July remains special to me because I love America.
I decided to participate in a challenge on Cloth Doll Artistry. A very special and talented Sherrie N designed a pattern for all of us to use. We were to dress our dolls In Americana costuming. I did not win a prize in the challenge but I loved making the doll. I named her Americus. I am sharing her here with you. Her body fabric is lightly tea dyed. I embroidered on her hair and her little buns are braided Purl Cotton. Her face is done with paint and pencils.

There were 35 dolls in the challenge and they were all adorable. I felt like a winner just by completing my doll. If you are a doll maker and have not joined Cloth Doll Artistry why not hop on over and check it out.

What I have been up to

2010-06-03T08:43:00.000-04:00

I am participating in several events this year and wanted to make some low end dollies so I designed a little doll approx 8 '' tall. They are just simple dolls but I think they are kind of cute. I have made 6 so far so far and thought I would share them with you. All of the hair is embroidered on. Hope that you enjoy the dollies!

Lucy Mae

2010-03-20T13:59:00.001-04:00

I finally got time to finish a doll. I am continuing to make items for a shop that my cousin is opening in Minnesota. I made this doll from a pattern by Whimsy Doodle Her hair is made from a real chunky 3 ply yarm that I unraveled. She has white cotton bloomers under her blue cotton skirt. Her top is made from a vintage handmade napkin. Her collar is made fom wool felt that I embroidered. She was pretty fast and easy to make. I purchased the pattern for this doll from Patternmart.com. A great place to find country and prim patterns.

Look what I won!

2010-03-08T10:34:00.000-05:00

A while ago I entered a wonderful blog give away at Marie Segal's Blog and I was one of the lucky winners. Marie is a wonderful artist. Marie made this pin with clay and wire and personalized it just for me. I love this piece and feel honored to have it in my collection. Please visit Marie's Blog to see some more of her work.
Thanks Very much Marie! I love the pin!!!!!

http://www.mariesegal.blogspot.com/

2010-02-05T20:06:00.002-05:00

Check out the DIY button on the left to see how you can win one of two sewing machines!

A couple of creations to share.

2010-01-10T13:15:00.003-05:00

I hope that you are are having a great new year so far. Even though we re only 10 days into it. I was hoping that 2010 would get me back in a creative mode but so far it has not. Today I have a couple of small things to share that I made. The 1st is a Goddess doll that I created in Sept. She has a marbled polymer clay face set in an old tablesppon that I dyed with alcohol inks and outlined in gold metallic paint. Her clothing is made from painted tyvek. She has lace appliques and is beaded.
The 2nd photo is a small spirit doll that I created for healing. She has a crystal inside.
I will be making a series of these little spirit dolls, all different, for a little shop in Minnesota.

I hope that you all are staying warm. We have a bunch of snow on the ground and it is 10 degrees above 0. BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

Christmas Day and Happy New Year

2009-12-26T11:55:00.001-05:00

I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas.We were missing a few family members this year for Christmas dinner but we had a very nice day. We had dinner then opened gifts and had great fellowship and conversation. I have added a picture of Alaina with her mommy and her Uncle Anthony who is here from Illinois for 2 weeks.Alaina looked so pretty in her Christmas dress. I want to wish Everyone a Happy New Year! I am glad to get 2009 out of the way. It wasn't the best year but we are thankful to have been around for it! LOL!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!

My first Christmas

2009-12-11T10:02:00.000-05:00

I ran across this picture yesterday and thought I would share it. This picture was take in 1946. It is a picture of me and my 2 cousins in front of my grandparents Christmas tree. I am the baby in the picture, my cousin Sara Ann is holding me and Sherry Lee is beside her sister. The three of use are still very close today.My mother and I lived with my grandparents when this picture was taken as my dad was in the Navy stationed in Alaska at the time. Merry Christmas!

Alaina and Santa

2009-12-08T18:43:00.000-05:00

Alaina saw Santa last weekend. Here she is with Santa in all her glory!

Getting ready for Christmas

2009-12-06T20:13:00.000-05:00

Well the tree is up, the Santa's are in place and the place is all decorated for Christmas. These are just a little tiny bit of the decorations at our house. I, however, am having a hard time getting in the Christmas spirit.

I have started my shopping, most of it was bought online and have attended my first Christmas party but I just cannot seem to get with it this year. Christmas is bittersewwt for me. But on the bright side we have a baby in the house and even though this is her 1st Christmas and she will not remember it we are all making a big deal of it! She sat on Santa's lap today and did not cry! I am proud of her! Hopefully I will soon have a picture of her on Santa's lap to share. We pick up the picture on Tuesday. Our little sweetie is 4 months old not and weights in at 15 pounds. She is 25 band 1/2 inches long now.

We hope that you have a Blessed Christmas!

Our little lady bug!

2009-12-06T19:57:00.000-05:00

I just have to share this photo of our Alaina! She was dressed as a lady bug for halloween. She was soooo cute. Can you tell that she has stolen my heart?

2009-12-06T19:53:00.001-05:00

What???October Already!

2009-10-03T13:20:00.004-04:00

Wow...did I miss summer?It sure seems like it!!! I have nothing creative to share today so I am going to post another a picture of my sweet great granddaughter. She is actually 2 months old now.She is growing fast and is a really good baby. I have nothing creative to share because all I want to do is hold her! Oh my!

I am planning to be get back to my doll making now. So much has been going on in my home life that I seemed to lose my muse but I am itching to get creative again. I am working on a doll right now for a doll club challenge. Our challenge this year is to create a doll that is wearing or has a mask. I have all the body parts completed and am in the process of putting them all together. My deadline is October 10th so I need to get cracking to finish her.

David and I are planning to take a much neede night away in the middle of the week. We are going to spend a night at Spring Mill State park at the Inn. A very interesting place to stay. I plan to take some pictures to share. There is a pioneer village to tour and a monument to Gus Grissom. I have not visited the park in several years so I am looking forward to it.

Have a great week!

Catching up

2009-07-16T20:01:00.003-04:00

I have been so bad about updating my blog. I have been waiting till I had something to tell ya'll about. But, it seems that I have been in a bit of a slump with dollmaking and just with life altogether. I still have not finished Morris, the WIP I wrote about in March. I have make a couple of rag dolls and some brooches but that is about it. I have read 12 books this summer so far and just trying adjust to some changes that have occurred in my family life.
I do have a bit of news however. My granddaughter is expecting her baby any day now. And since she and her mom are living with us for a while we will have a brand new little bundle of joy at our house soon. I am not sure if I am ready to be a great grandma but it isn't up to me! LOL I will be called gg for great grandma.
I have also become very addicted to Facebook as of late. I reconnected with 3 very good friends from high school. I had not seen two of the gals over 40 years! WOW have we had fun since we reconnected. We have lunch once a month now and it is just like the old times except we all are older in appearance but still young at heart!
I would really like to get back to being creative. I have gone in my studio at least 100 times and just walk right back out of the room. I do not know what my problem is but I hope it is resolved soon! I just feel like my creativity had died. I am however teaching a little class at doll club this Saturday, so I am hoping it might give me a kick start.

That is about all for now. Hopefully the next post will be about a new baby in the house!

Blessing to all of you!

2009-03-27T14:37:00.001-04:00

This talented lady is having a giveaway on her blog to celebrate a publication! Lots of neat goodies and a wonderful blog to visit.....http://calamitykim.typepad.com/calamity_kim/2009/03/calamity-kims-apron-celebration-giveaway.html

2009-01-31T11:31:00.004-05:00

While cutting the fabric for the dolls clothing I had a little supervision from my little helper Gizmo! He loves to watch me while I work and I always give hima scrap of fabric to lay on and he is a happy boy!

Oh my goodness!

2009-01-07T10:53:00.005-05:00

Here we are, it is Jan 7th already and guess what? I do not have my Christmas tree down yet nor are my decorations put away! What a way to start a New Year huh! LOL.......I have promised to have it down this weekend however.

I am not making resolutions this year, at least not in the normal sense of the word. Someone suggested instead of making resolutions choose a word or words to live by for 2009. So I have chosen to do that. My chosen words are ENJOY, COMPLETE, GRATITUDE and LOVE.

With the economy and other stuff going on in the world, 2009 is probably going to be a challenge for a lot of us. But I am going to find something to ENJOY each and every day and try my hardest to COMPLETE every project that I start. And have GRATITUDE for all the wonderful things in my life instead of being sad for the things that I do not have or that have left my life.

And to be LOVING and understanding and helpful in any way I can to those who are already in my life and to anyone new who enters my life. These are my hopes and dreams for the New Year! All of things that will be a challenge for me but I am am ready to take a deep breath and plant my feet and fight the fight to battle the depression that I suffer from. In other words I want 2009 to be a brighter happier year despite the trial and tribulations that come my way. The things I have chosen are within my control........at least I hope they are...Oh my!

And I do have a bit of good news, there will be an addition to our family at the end of July.

My Granddaughter Ashley is expecting a baby, yep..that makes me a great Grandma! OMG!!!

I can hardly wait to hold the little bundle in my arms!

On the creative front I am working on 4 dolls that I was asked to make for a local organization. They will be complete soon and I will share pictures.

I want to wish everyone a great day and hope your 2009 is a good one!

Love,

Nita

New Santa

2008-11-11T13:45:00.004-05:00

I hope you all are having a great Harvest season. I am enjoying the many colors that nature brings to us this time of year but I have to admit that I am sad to see the warm weather go away!

I have been working on a new Santa and he is now complete. He is helping me get into the Christmas spirit. I made him from Deanna Hogan's Sleepytime Santa pattern. He will be in a special Santa display in a show I am participating in this coming Saturday.

He was a joy to make. Thanks Deanna for a great pattern!

My Iowa Retreat Doll IS Finished

2008-10-01T12:29:00.004-04:00

I Finally got finished with my Iowa Retreat Doll. And an sharing a not so good photo. I am not a photographer and my camera is not the best! Anywho here she is in all her glory!

I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed the Retreat!

Thanks Sherry and Jean and Jeffie!

A new Wall Doll to share

2008-08-22T18:39:00.002-04:00

I forgot to post a picture of a small wall doll that I made from a Sherry Goshon pattern. I scanned the pattern to print on freezer paper and for some reason it printed smaller that the intended size but I decided to make it us at the reduced size just to see how I would like it. I am pretty pleased with her but I decided she needs more beads!!!

A few things to share

2008-08-22T18:21:00.002-04:00

I recently made a few pins/brooches to sell at an artist event. I sold all but 2 of what I made and have these to share with you. They are made from hand dyed felt and I did a bit of embroidery on some and beading on all. Some of the faces had charm faces and some have polymer faces and all have beading. I have so much fum making these pins!

I am trying to make the best of all the days left of summer. Spring and Summer are my favorite season's with Fall coming in third. I am a person who craves the sun and loves hot weather and it is drawing to a close so I am spending as much time out of doors as possible these days. I tend to turn into a hermit in Winter. I have the pleasure of attending a few really fun functions this year.

I went to MM&M in the Spring and saw Annie again in July for a class with Pearl Moon. Both were wondeful it is always wonderful to be in Annie's presence and meeting Pearl was a real treat. I went to Ohio 3 times, once for a bead class, once to a sewing expo and the last visit to Ohio was to the Creation Musuem. Fran Meehan is coming to Indy in Sept to teach my local doll club a class and it will be so good to see Fran and spend some time with her. And I am also looking forward to seeing Jean Bernard and Sherry Goshon in Iowa in September. I can hardly wait to see old friends and meet new ones! It will be a fun close this years planned events for me. I feel very fortunate to have done all this fun stuff this season.

At Long last!

2008-05-16T16:38:00.006-04:00

At long last I have gotten around to finishing a doll from one of the two classes I took At MM&M last month. The one I am sharing today is Aldora, she was designed and taught by the one and only Natalie Hamade! This doll was a lot of work but so worth it! I learned gobs of good techniques from Natalie that will resonate in future dolls. I hope y'all like her! She is very content in her cocoon!

I also took a class from Barb Schoenoff. And the dollie she taught is adorable. I learned the best way to sculpt a nose from Barbara and also not to be afraid to use color and boy...does Lucinda love color. Lucinda is almost finished and I will share her when I return from my vacation next week. She just needs some finishing touches! I will also share a pic of my finished fantasy chair that I made March when Jean Bernard was here. It is all done now.

It seems I have gotten so behind on my art. I had hoped to have both my MM&M dolls done by now but y'all know how life can get in the way! I hope that Spring has brought some joy to you. I know the excessive rain in the Midwest has been a problem for many and I do hope that is behind us now! I have to stop complaining about the weather so much and just give thanks that I wake up every day! (knock wood)!!!

See ya again after my vacation!

Huggers,

Nita

Been a while.....

2008-04-16T10:31:00.009-04:00

I have missed ya'll! Life has been busy for me lately! I thought I would share a little something I have been working on. I have been beading a bit on some hand dyed wool felt. I decided to dye some wool felt with alcohol inks and like the results so I cut the felt into odd shapes and beaded them. Then applied paverpol to the backs to stiffen them and then backed them with another piece of felt. The pictures of the pins are not so good but you can get an idea of what they look like. They are much prettier in person.

Also a couple of weeks ago Jean Bernard was here in Indy to teach my doll club her incredible chair class. All the chairs turned out amazing and each one different. Jean is an excellent teacher and so giving of her time and talents! I will post a picture of my chair as soon. I decided to add something to the feet and it will be done!!! I have more chairs in my head waiting to be created!

I am leaving tomorrow to go to MM&M in Kentucky. I am so excited and will take photo's to share with ya'll!!!

See ya soon!

Nita

Meet Trixie...The Wall Pocket Troll

2008-02-12T12:09:00.000-05:00

I finished my version of Ute Vasina's Trixie the wall pocket troll. This was a fun little project to make and she made me smile while creating her. And she makes me smile each time I look at her! Her head is made from the fuzzy side of doe suede, color was added to her face with chalk pastels and her hair is tibetan lamb skin and her pocket is cotton that I used free motion embroidery on and then a little bit of micro beads and fine glass glitter was added for a little interest. Hope she make you smile too!

Beginning to come alive.....I think!

2008-02-03T12:38:00.000-05:00

Where oh where as my little muse gone? Oh where oh where can she be....!
This seems to be the song that many of my artist friends have been singing as of late 2007 and 2008. Me included....but even thought my muse has refused to return to me I feel I am starting to come alive and bud again!I have a couple of projects going. I am making Mya's secret again, pattern by Sherry Goshon, I forgot to take a picture before I gifted the last one I made and I am also working on Ute Vasina's wall pocket troll, the name of the pattern escapes me at the moment.....another senior momment...Oh My!
And I also have a design of my own planned when the other projects are finished. As it gets closer to spring the more alive I become!!

Feburary is the month we all celebrate LOVE And I want to wish you all much Love and happiness. Lets spread some Love!

Nuttin Much Happening here!!!

2008-01-07T19:33:00.000-05:00

Hi Ya'll,

Not much to report here from the Butler home. I am having a creative block and cannot seem to get in the swing of dollmaking for the new year but hope my muse will show up real soon. I have, however, been doing some scrapbooking recently. My daughter started me on that!!! She does beautiful scrapbooks and we have been having fun scrapbooking sessions together. David is still taking classes to become a Decongestive Lymphatic Therapist and he is enjoying it. I also am enjoying it because I get free massages!I have added a picture of my faithful buddy Gizmo...he is sitting next to me while I am on my computer. Hope you all have a great week!

I'll catch ya'll later!

Love,

Nita

A day late and a dollar short

2007-10-21T10:36:00.000-04:00

The saying goes...better to be late than never!!! I had hoped to have this update yesterday but it did not happen.

It is soooooooo good to be back! I am on the mend and feeling okay except for the on going pain. The doc says it is going to be a hard recovery but I am slowly getting back to some normal activities but just a little bit at a time!

Anyway I promised to show a doll I finished up before surgery. She is just a simple wall piece. Not much to her but she is cute. I hope to make few more for my doll clubs annual show and sale in November.I apologize for the the poor photo, I will try and get a better one later.

I hope you all have a great week! Love to All!

AT Last...My Charmed One

2007-09-16T19:37:00.001-04:00

At long last I have a photo of my Charmed One. I recently took a GREAT online class from Sherry Goshon and this is my version of the Charmed One! Althiugh the picure is not great, you can get an idea of what she looks like!
This will be my last update for a couple of weeks. I have to have another major surgery tomorrow so I'll post an update as soon as I can sit at my computer. Sooooo I hope ya'll have a great month and I look forward to getting back to my blog and a better quality of life! I Love ya'll.
Nita

2007-09-10T17:26:00.000-04:00

Dave and I have been visiting some places around Indiana this summer. We went to an Art festival in Napannee Indiana and saw some really beautiful art. I have included a picture of My hubby Dave and my cousin Lyle and our daughter Julie at the art fair. My cousin came through Indy and stopped for a visit. We had not seem him in several years. His making the trip to Napanee with us increased the level of fun that day. We also took him to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. I had not been there since my teen years so it was interesting to Dave and I as well. Included are a couple of pics at the museum as well.

See ya next week. I hope to have a picture of my Charmed One doll to share with you then!

Something New

2007-09-10T17:12:00.000-04:00

WOW..Seems like forever since I updated this Blog. My intentions have been to update weekly but the times gets away from me. (sigh)

I have been totally bummed because I had to cancel my trip to Reno to take the Luna class with Sherry Goshon and Jean Bernard. I had to come to my sensed and admit that the timing was just to close to my back surgery on Oct.1. I had been so looking forward to going since Spring. I will be attending next year come hell or high water!

Today I am sharing a picture of a little doll I made in late July. I made her from a pattern by Julie McCullough called Flit. Of course I added my twist to her, I added silk velvet to her skirt and gave her a hand dyed applique bodice. Her wings and her cloth leaves are quilted with metallic thread.

A great day in the life of the Nita and Dave

2007-07-29T09:42:00.000-04:00

On Friday Dave and I took a day trip to the great city of Madison Indiana. It is a historical town dating back to the civil war era. And it borders the Ohio River.I LOVE it there. There are many shops to explore and it has a very friendly atmosphere!We walked up and down the town exploring shops and I was very surprised that there were very few cloth dolls in the shops! There was a doll shop but they sold only manufactured dolls, not a handmade cloth doll in site! We also took a scenic drive by the river! It was fun. We also visited Clifty Falls State Park and even hiked to one of the waterfalls. Ouch...my aching back but I am proud we did it! At my age these things are getting harder and harder to do!

The first picture is Dave outside the Clifty Falls Inn. The other two are pictures we took of the River area. It was a great day and we met some interesting people! We will be going back to Madison in the Fall when all the leaves are turning! What FUN!

Good To be Bak to the living!

2007-07-08T12:58:00.001-04:00

Well, I am finally back on line after surgery and computer woes. It is good to be back and I am slowly catching up to what ya;ll have been doing! I am planning on stitching up some things, next week, for a show my local doll club is doing in August. It is called "A Walk in the Park". Several local artists set up tents in Elenberger Park hare in Indy and sell there wares. Our doll club was invited to join the fun last year and we liked it so much we are doing it again this year.
This year I am making some dolls that are play dolls for kids. We did not have any for sale last year and there were many requests for them.I'll share some pictures as they evolve!
Hope you all have a great week!

Love,
Nita

Dollie on the move

2007-06-18T20:53:00.001-04:00

Hi Ya'll,

Been a while since I updated. Sorry bout that. Has been a busy month with company and my hubby wanting to sight see now that he is retired! YYIIKKES.. having him home all the time is taking some getting used to but I am mostly glad! LOL!
I am sharing a picture of Prissy. I finished her today. She is going to be traveling to Panama on Saturday with my handsome nephew Joshua. He is visiting his grandparents for the summer and ask me to make a doll that he could take to his new little cousin.SOoooo here she is! I hope she will be well loved I am gonna miss her!
It is funny how it hard to turn lose of some of our creations isn't it?You can not see it in the picture but the pink fabric has glitter on it...came that way!

It will probably be a couple of weeks till I post again, having surgery AGAIN on the 21st of June, this Thursday, I feel like a slice and dice machine. :-[

Take care till we meet again and be kind to one another!
Nita

Sharing some Photo's

2007-05-27T13:54:00.000-04:00

Happy Memorial Day Holiday everyone! I have a couple of pics to share. The one on the left is my husband David. It was taken outside The new Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas. He was a winner and he is a keeper! The other picture is a little treasure box that I made for my granddaughter Jessie to go with the money we gave her for her 17th birthday. She liked it so well she got teary! It is hard to believe that my babies have grown up so soon! I'll be back in a few days with some pics of the doll I am working on!

Love, Nita

2007-05-12T19:51:00.000-04:00

LizBeth ..Keeper of The Royal Shoes
Mother...Class with Jean Bernard
Jasmine....Class with Fran

The above pictures are my AFIC pictures. After fighting with Blogger on and of f all day I FINALLY had success!

Unfortunately I do not have many pictures. My camera and I had conflict and of course it was my ignorance, I now know how to take care of it the next time! Should have taken my trusty manual;-)

And, I do not have the names of the dollmakers or the names of the people in the photo's. I did not do a very good job of reporting...good thing I am not making a living at it! LOL!!!!

The first two pictures are of my challenge doll. She won a red ribbon. I was surprised but happy!

The next picture is the doll I made in class with Jean Bernard, and the next is Jasmine that I made in class with our Frannie! I LOVED both classes and am pretty pleased with both dolls. You can not see it in the picture but Jasmine has beading on her dress and headdress.

There were so many wonderful dolls there, wish I could have taken more pics but I think they are probably scattered about the web.

Hope you enjoy!

2007-04-19T08:10:00.000-04:00

I have no new dolls to share so I thought I'd share a smile poem! I hope you enjoy it!

A Smile

A smile is a frown turned upside down.A smile is painted on the face of a clown.A smile brightens a dreary day.A smile chases tears away.A smile is a gift that shows you care.A smile is priceless no matter where.A smile is the key to happiness.A smile is a sure sign of success.When you feel lonely in a strange place.It helps to see a smile on another's face.If there is any real magic around.It is the silent magic of a smile's sound

Kurt Hearth

Share a smile today!

Love to All!

Nita

New Desk

2007-04-06T09:38:00.000-04:00

I hope that you all are having a great Good Friday! Several people have ask to see our new roll top computer desk and file cabinet. I tried to get some good pictures but could not get the bottom of the desk in but ya'll can get a good idea of what it looks like. It is in our VERY crowdwd dining room!!!!David does not like the hardware on the desk so we will be replacing that soon.
I want to wish you all a very happy Easter or whatever you all celebrate this time of year!

With Love,

Nita

2007-03-27T09:53:00.000-04:00

Hi Everyone!

I know you are probably getting tired of peeking at my atd's but I have yet another!
This one was madw using Judi W's foldy template. I call it My Jester Angel.
The face is drawn on with pigma pens and colored with prismacolor pencils.
The wings has gold leaf applied!

Thanks for taking a peek!
Nita

2007-03-22T21:04:00.000-04:00

WOW am I ever hooked!!!!!!This one is The Shell collector. She is a mermaid. Her bra and lower torso are made from fancy homemade papers. Her face is made from clay

Thanks for coming to visit!

I am back!

2007-03-21T12:07:00.000-04:00

Hi All,

I am finally back, still recovering from surgery but able to sit at the computer longer! Yiippee!!!

I have been making ATD's, I have only made 2 as of today but more are on the horizon! They are VERY Addicting!

T he ATD on the bottom is my latest one. Her name is Jewel! Her face is clay made from a Sherry Goshon press mold. Her bodice is silver paper flocked in pink. The bottom is jeweled silver paper. her headdress is a piece of crochet with beads around and on her head.

ATD on the top is my 1st one. He is called Cutie Pie.His face is drawn on, and he has ruched ribbon on his hat and collar.

My goal is to update my blog on a more regular basis now so stay tuned!

Thanks so much for visiting!

Spot of Sunday Tea!

2007-02-11T17:15:00.000-05:00

I have my teapot parts all put together to share a spot of Sunday tea with you all!!!!! Didn't everyone do a wonderful job on the parts??? She is so full of cheer! I am not sure who made all the parts but I think Kate Erbach did the face. I just love her! I added a few embellishments and gave her some boa hair. She refuses to wear her beautiful hat..keeps saying she is not a hat kinda girl. So another special dollie will wear her beautiful hat! This little pot has attitude! Can you see it popping out all ove her???????

Not much other news to report from Wrinkle Ranch, Actually it has been much too quiet here!

Thanks for stopping by and I promise to try and update my little space more often! My broken spirit is still healing but I am beginning to get a creative urge. I have a lot of UFO's to finish this up coming week so stay tuned for more updates!

Have a great Week!

Love to ALL!!!!!

Happy New Year

2006-12-29T10:41:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to wish you all a VERY Happy New Year,filled with much love, happiness and good health.

Adjusting to life without my beloved mom is hard but I have great support and love from family and friends. Our Christmas was bittersweet but me made the best of it just as mom would have liked.We all gathered together and shared many wonderful memories of mom and dad.

Creativity is a little illusive right now, but I plan to get back in the swing of things later today. I have a tea caddy to finish and a commissioned nutcracker to make. Busy hands are a good thing! I just wish my muse would show herself again! I have missed you all and it is good to be back!

Happy New Year with Love,
Nita

2006-12-12T10:27:00.001-05:00

I have been doing a lot of Christmas past reflections lately. My grandmother loved Christmas and always took me on a trip downtown Indianapolis after the decorations were all up on the Circle and in the stores. What fun it was to view the massive scenes in the store windows at H.R Block and L.S Ayres.They were animated and beautiful! After the trip downtown we would go home and have a cup of hot chocolate and I always had the warm and fuzzy feeling . While the modern day decoration are pretty and festive downtown it is not the same for me. There are now very few stores scattered on the streets, they have become corporate offices and there is now a Mall downtown!No more H.R Block or L.S Ayres. At home we always had a freshly cut tree and our stockings were a pair of freshly washed nylon hose. After Santa came the stockings were stretched to capacity filled with fancy oranges, apples, nuts and assorted hard candies.While the gifts under the tree were few we always managed to get that special something that we had asked Santa for, I now know how hard that was for my parents who had large medical bills due to the illness of my dear baby brother who we lost at age 3.Christmas is just not the same after we "grow up"!I try very hard now to make Christmas special for my family. I have grown to know that the only thing really important to me at Christmas is the love and closeness of family. This will be my second Christmas without Dad and the last Christmas for my mother. I feel Blessed to have had them for so many years and my Grandchildren have been doubly blessed to have known , loved and been loved by them!MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL from the Butler and Montague families!PLEASE make some memories this Christmas!

Our tree is up!

2006-12-04T09:26:00.000-05:00

I Everyone! Been a while since I have updated my Blog. Life at Wrinkle Ranch is hectic right now. Due to my Mom's terminal illness I have been in no mood for Christmas but I decided that since Mom loves a Christmas tree I would put the tree up and I must confess it has helped my blue mood some. So I am sharing a picture of the tree with you all. I have not gotten anymore decorations out yet but plan to do that today.

We are Blessed that Mom is still with us but knowing that the end could come any day has taken a toll on the whole family, we are determined to support and comfort one another through all of this, it it just so soon after Dad's passing last year but our faith is strong!

From the Butler Family to All of my Friends, we would like to wish you Blessed and Merry Christmas!

Dolls for Show and Sale

2006-11-05T10:15:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Been a while since I posted. My dear mother is very ill. I have had a lot of sleepless nights and I have been putting them to use trying to get some dolls made for my doll club annual show and sale on Nov 18th.

The doll at right, Jovice, has been in the works for a while and I decided to finish him for the show. He is one of the Kings Jesters. All cloth except for his hat which I made from a wire napkin ring. The face is colored with paint, pigma pen, PrismaColor pencils and chalk pastels. I was afraid my sadness would shoe in his face and it does somewhat but is not too bad I hope!!!!

The little snow angel at the left is made from Warm and Natural Batting, the wings are cotton chenille. I added Mica Flakes to make her sparkle. Her nose is clay.

That all I have to share today. As time permits I will have HOPEFULLY have more to share soon!

Stay well and happy!

Then and now!

2006-10-21T19:17:00.000-04:00

Hi Everyone! I adore angels and the 1st doll I ever made was a rag doll angel. She is the doll pictured below. I finished a new angel recently and I would like to share her with y'all! I made her for my doll clubs annual challenge. She has a cloth body and a clay face and is my original design.WOW I have learned a whole lot sine the original angel was made. I never, in my wildest dreams, thought I'd be creating three dimensional dolls! I still enjoying creating rag dolls however, In fact I love to create all kinds of dolls! I hope everyone is well and happy!!!!!!

Revamped Reproduction China Doll

2006-10-13T14:54:00.000-04:00

BOOOOOOO ya'll! Are you scared yet! I hope you are enjoying Friday the 13th! I have nothing spooky to share with you so I thought I'd share a doll I revamped a few weeks ago. I found a tattered dirty reproduction doll on sale at a antique mall for $5.00, her tag said she was made in the 70's. Her body was badly torn and some of the paint on her hair was missing. I stripped her head/breast plate and arms and legs from the body and made her a new muslin body. Repainted the head and cleaned the parts up a bit. Made her new lace bloomers and a new dress and added some embellishments and she is as good as new!

It's rather chilly here in Indy today but we are supposed to get a little warmer for the weekend. We did not get the dreaded white stuff that was predicted this week, just some rain. Whew! I am NOT even ready for the "S" word!!!!!

Take care and watch out for the spooks and goblins! Meet ya back here in a day or so!

Flit

2006-10-10T16:24:00.000-04:00

Hi Everyone! I hope that you are all well and happy! I just wanted to share with you the latest doll that I made. She is made from a Julie McCullough pattern, she is Flit, I made her in sort of a Fall theme. Her body is a speckled cotton, her wings and one leaf is lame cotton, the rest of her costume is batik. Face done with pens and colored pencils.

I hope you enjoy her!

We in Indy are in for a taste of Winter soon. We are in the 70's today and it is supposed to drop and possibly snow at the end of the week! Yikes!

Pokie pokie.....

2006-09-23T17:50:00.000-04:00

I have been playing with a little needle felting applique today. It is fun and could become habit forming. I have developed an interest in needle felting , I need to find a class to learn all the in's and outs, I just rolled a little wool and started poking away!I thought it might be fun to make some little stocking and mitten ornaments for Christmas, will give those a try later this evening! What fun!I need to add a little more wool to the top of the stem but I do not think it is too bad for the 1st attempt. What do ya'll think...

Germ invasion at Wrinkle Ranch!

2006-09-17T12:02:00.000-04:00

Seems some not so nice germies have invaded! They visited David last week and now they have taken up residence in me! David accused me of stealing his viral buddies BUT I am SURE he gave them to me! At any rate my creativity has turned to keeping the devils away from mom. My fashion statement the past 2 days has been a surgical mask and a can of anti-bacterial spray!
I wanted to try some needle felting today but it might be a little dangerous with all the aaachooing and hacking! Oh My.....such is life as a sick puppy!

Flying beads and curls!

2006-09-15T10:30:00.000-04:00

Hi Ya'll,

I got a perm yesterday, haven't had one in 6 years, but decided to try it again till it grows out. I like it, it is a loose curl, just like I wanted it! Yiippee!!!
Last night I was working on a beaded face, I think it will become a pin, this is my 1st attempt, I love to bead while watching tv. I was sitting in a recliner minding my own business, concentrating on my beadies and all of a sudden my cat, Gizmo, jumped up on the back of my chair, which he has never done before, and scared the begibbers out of me. Needless to say, I was holding my little tray of beads in my hand and they went flying up in the air, over my head and into my new curls.I screamed and Gizzy got scared and his tail blew upto 3 times it's normal size!I laughed so hard I cried.I'll post a picture of the pin in a few days, IF I can keep the beads on the piece and outta my hair! LOL!!!!!
Here is a picture of my rascally Gizmo!

2006-09-12T11:02:00.000-04:00

Last week I took a cue from Judi and created 2 fabric postcards for a charity, Fiberarts For A Cause. These are the 1st one I have created I hope they are acceptable!