I Remember When......
Recalling Memories of My Childhood
I was a DOLLY Girl"! I loved my dolls which, as my mother was a dressmaker, were the smartest in the street. With my best friend, Carol, we would wheel our prams up and down and put the dolls in their cot (an old box), with a crocheted blanket and lace trimmed pillow and quilt cover, again courtesy of my mother, or set up the doll's tea set for a tea party.
My dolls were not particularly sophisticated, though I had one that said "Mama" if you pressed it in the right place. My mother made rag dolls, but my very special doll she made me in 1953 for the Queen's Coronation, with a long fur trimmed purple velvet train, and embroidered, beaded dress. I so wish now I had kept it as a family heirloom.
I had a "Last Doll" for my 11th birthday, which seems in today's lifestyle, really old for a doll. The inspiration came from one of my childhood favourite books, "Sarah Crewe or the Little Princess", by Frances Hodgson-Burnett, where Sarah was given a grand doll with an extensive wardrobe on her 11th birthday.
I saw the book serialised on television and decided that would mark the end of my "dolly" era - it didn't really, as I went on to collect costume dolls.
More D's:
Did you have a DOG as a pet?
Did you go to DANCING lessons?
What were your favourite DESSERTS?
Onto E's
Events, Eating Out & Easter
Events, Eating Out & Easter
Copyright © 2016 - Susan Donaldson. All Rights Reserved
I remember getting a baby doll when my sister was born. I also had a bride doll and Shirley Temple. And Barbie of course. Momma made clothes for Shirley and Barbie.
ReplyDeleteI was never very fond of dolls, though I adored my teddies and I remember having a Barbie and a Cindy (who lost a leg!). My daughters were all dolly girls, and for a few years our house was taken over by toy prams, cots, push chairs and so on.
ReplyDeleteOne of my very favorite dolls was a bride doll that was about as tall as an average 7 year old. My grandma sewed the dress herself. I still have her, even though she has since fallen apart. The dress is still in tact though!
ReplyDeleteMy Mom loved dolls so I had quite a few. My favourites were the small ones my Mom made for me that fit in the doll house my Dad made for me. I think I was 11 or 12 when I got my last doll. My girls all loved Barbie type dolls and I spent many nights when they were in bed sewing clothes for them and knitting sweaters for them. I also sewed outfits and put them on cards for the school fundraisers. Not many of my granddaughters are dolly girls.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't have called myself a dolly girl but when I look back I did have a few and like yours, my mother made me rag dolls - usually one for every Xmas/birthday. I was spoiled indeed. They were beautiful. I've kept one - some have been hard to let go. Lucy with the blue hair was a particular favourite.
ReplyDeleteI loved dolls. I had one that I dressed like Sarah Crewe! And I had a doll house my grandfather made me and I recreated Sarah's room in the attic in that house. I played with dollhouse dolls way past 11. None of my grandkids have been all that interested in dolls or dollhouses.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter was a huge doll girl when she was small, but she's also the daring and adventurous type, so moved on to other things. But, from the time she was 6, she talked about getting an American Girl doll (expensive dolls from assorted geographical areas, ethnicities, or eras). But, each year, as July neared, she'd decide on something else.
ReplyDeleteShe wanted a doll with her slightly unusual coloring - vividly deep-blue eyes and burnished auburn hair. None of the dolls available was quite right.
Until last year, when the American Girl was Grace, a modern girl who goes to France to help in her aunt's bakery. She has freckles, which Annalise does not, but is otherwise a very close match.
We couldn't afford an extensive wardrobe, but we did pay for ear piercings and sweet Eiffel Tower earrings, and fancy party shoes.
Of course, my daughter is homeschooled, so, while schoolgirls her age might consider themselves "too old" to get an expensive doll at 11, and, with my daughter now nearing 12, Grace seems to have had her months in the sun, I have no regrets for helping her to have a near-lifelong dream come true. I think the memory will be far more precious to her than the doll, over the course of time.
As for your questions, we didn't have a dog until I was grown. My father was convinced that he could only have a bulldog, and they are rather expensive here in the States. I was in my early 20s when I helped them finally bring that brindle bully into their lives.
We have an older family dog, now - but we've been considering just having a cat or two when he's lived out his life. We'd like to travel, and dogs can make that more difficult.
I'm loving your posts, and seeing your mother's handiwork. =D
Boldly Going Through the Alphabet!
@shanjeniah
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shanjeniah's Lovely Chaos
Thank you all for sharing your "doll" memories. It is amazing how similar they are in many ways despite the distances between us. My daughter enjoyed her Cindy doll and my mother and I were kept busy making clothes for her, but my granddaughter has not the slightest interest in dolls - all her attention centres on a large menagerie of soft toy animals.
ReplyDeleteI too had a bride doll for which Mum made the outfit. It's now with my granddaughter who I'm sure doesn't really appreciate it..too many other toys. I did love my dolls though I don't recall having a suite of them. Mum or my Aunty would make their dresses, or we bought them from the church fete.
ReplyDeleteDogs, no, though I often asked for one. I did tap dancing very, very briefly but danced three or four times a week at a ballroom dance studio in my teens. Fave desserts: mum's lemon delicious or her custard tart. YUm!!!
You're right that we played with dolls and such much later than you'd see these days.
I had many different kinds of dolls when I was growing up. Every year my grade school had a doll contest with categories for baby dolls, little girl dolls, fancy dolls, big dolls, small dolls, dolls with the largest wardrobes, & hand-made dolls. This last category was divided into dolls made by adults, & dolls made by a child. I couldn't compete in the other categories, but one year I decided to compete in the 'dolls made by a child' category & made a cloth doll. The doll your Mom made reminded me of that. Mine certainly did not - by any stretch of the imagination - compare to the cute doll your Mom made. But it was good enough to win me a blue ribbon! I wish I still had her, but sadly, I don't even remember what happened to her.
ReplyDelete