HAPPY NEW YEAR

WISHING ALL MY FRIENDS AND FOLLOWERS

A VERY HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR!

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**** NEW DOLL on the "MY FAVOURITE DOLL" page ****

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****PLUS ****

THE GARDEN OF TRANQUILITY

(Website Id:  (Dioramas) Europe - Wales - 0033)

(Diorama I made in 2002)

How I made this diorama:

This is a little garden which I made in 2002.  I purchased the little cherub and the large terracotta pot in a Charity Shop, which gave me the idea for the diorama.  To make the running water I used scenic water (which has yellowed slightly with age). The bits of fern are real dried pieces of fern and I made the flowers with Fimo.  To make the running water (after much thought!)  I poured some of the scenic water over a pencil and left it to "set". When set, I glued the end into the pot (probably NOT the correct way to do it!). The bottom of the liner for the pond is part of a cheesecake container. (I don't throw much away!)  I painted the path and steps and sprinkled some miniature garden scatter around, while it was still wet.  I also added some tiny pieces of real moss around the flowers and steps.  I brought the stones for the rockery back from one of my holidays abroad!  Finally, I glued a length of real, delicate shrub around the "walls".  This was from my garden.  The glass fronted box in which the garden is set, is also from a Charity Shop.

***

MY FAVOURITE DOLL:
On this blog I am adding a lovely doll onto the "MY FAVOURITE DOLL" page, with the kind permission of DIANA from WALES.  It is a very treasured childhood doll.  You can see further information about the doll by clicking onto "MY FAVOURITE DOLL" at the top, right hand side of the HOME page of the blog.  I am also listing two dolls from PAPUA NEW GUINEA.  For further information about them, please see the website.  You can also see my Diorama, "The Garden of Tranquility" on the website, under "Dioramas"

DIANA'S DOLL

****

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

(Website Id:  Oceania - Papua New Guinea - 004, 004A and 004B)

 PAPUA NEW GUINEA

(Website Id:  Oceania - Papua New Guinea - 005 and 005A)

***

Have you made a New Year Resolution? Each time I have made one it has been broken in a very short time, but this year I am planning to make more miniatures (time permitting!), but of coarse, first and foremost is my doll collection. I will as always be looking out for new additions to my collection. The exciting thing about collecting is not knowing when you will come across something new and interesting for your collection, so happy searching everyone!   Carole.

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MOROCCAN AND PUERTO RICO DOLLS (and an outside toilet diorama!)

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Welcome to my new followers.  I hope you will enjoy my site!
This is such a busy month for a lot of people.  I have been trying to keep up with my doll cataloguing but have only had time for a few.  The outside toilet is one which I made C.2000, so I have cheated a bit!  (Do you remember these?)  The old tin bath was quite often hanging up on the outside wall.  Some used to call this type of toilet "the lavvy" or "the privvy". 

On this Blog I am putting my Father Christmas from Vietnam, dolls from Morocco and Puerto Rico, and another of my Dioramas - an outside toilet.

For further information about the dolls and information about this type of outside toilet and how I made it, please see the website.

OOPS!  Poor Father Christmas has fallen down the chimney again this year!

(This doll is not catalogued.

He is for decoration only).

 Father Christmas from Vietnam.

(Not catalogued).

 MOROCCO

(Website Id:  Africa - Morocco - 0014)

 MOROCCO

(Website Id:  Africa - Morocco - 0015)

 PUERTO RICO

(Website Id:  America - Puerto Rico - 003)

 AN OUTSIDE TOILET

(Website Id:  (Dioramas) Europe - Wales - 0034)

 AN OUTSIDE TOILET

(Website Id: (Dioramas) Europe - Wales - 0034A)

 AN OUTSIDE TOILET

(Website Id:  (Dioramas) Europe - Wales - 0034B

ENJOY YOUR CHRISTMAS!

(Carole).

COMMENT RECEIVED BY EMAIL - 1st.. August.

QUOTE:

Hi Carole,  Whilst browsing your site I came across this item. You bought back 
such memories. As  a small  child I can remember running across the yard of the 
farm to the outside toilet. In the dark I was always terrified something was 
waiting to jump on me. I also recall hot water bottles in bed, no heating in the 
Winter . We just accepted it in those days - - - - - .

REPLY BY CAROLE:

Hi. thank you for taking the trouble to comment on my outside toilet.

I also remember using one across the yard at my grandparents house and taking a torch with me.  It was the spiders I didn't like in the dark!

I can remember having hot water bottles.  I still have my own original stone one from the 1940's.  I also remember having to scrape ice off the inside of the bedroom window some mornings, to see outside, and like you, we also used to wear a dressing gown in bed to keep warm!  Things have certainly changed!

NEW DOLLS AND MINIATURE KNITTING LISTED ON WEBSITE

POLAND, PORTUGAL (MADEIRA) AND GHANA DOLLS,

(AND MINIATURE KNITTING)

On my blog this time I have listed more dolls (as above) and also some miniature knitting which I have recently finished.

For more pictures and information about the dolls, please see the website.  The knitting (anti-macassar set), and a room in the dolls house in which I have put them, can also be seen on the website, under "Dioramas".

Carole.

POLAND

(Website Id:  Europe - Poland - 0018)

 PORTUGAL (MADEIRA)

Doll rattle.

(Website Id:  Europe - Portugal (Maderia) - 0015 and 0015A

 GHANA

(Website Id:  Africa - Ghana - 009)

 MINIATURE CHAIR BACK (Antimacassar)

one of a set of three

(Website Id:  (Dioramas) Europe - Wales - 0032, 0032A and 0032B)

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NEW DOLL VALUES PAGE ON BLOG

THE VALUE OF DOLLS

I have added a NEW PAGE called : THE VALUE OF DOLLS onto my Blog.

To see the page, just click onto "THE VALUE OF DOLLS" at the top, right hand side of this page (the Home Page).  I hope you will find it useful.

More dolls will be listed shortly.

Carole.

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FOUR MORE DOLLS LISTED ON WEBISTE

These are my latest doll additions, and I will be adding more dolls shortly. 

For more pictures and information please see the website.

INDONESIA (Bali) - witch doctor

Website Id:  Asia - Indonesia (Bali) - 005

 INDIA - Baul musician

Website Id:  Asia - India - 0027

SPAIN - pair of dancers

Website Id:  Europe - Spain - 0031

SLOVENIA - Pedlar

Website Id:  Europe - Slovenia - 003 and 003A

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NEW DIORAMA JUST FINISHED

This is my latest diorama, which I have just finished making.  Her name is "Auriana" and she is a Cypriot lace maker.

For more pictures and information, please see the website under Dioramas.  Carole.

CYPRUS - "Lefkara"

Website Id: - (Dioramas) Cyprus - 001, 001A and 001B

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HAPPY HALLOWE'EN!

HAPPY HALLOWE'EN

TO ALL MY VIEWERS!!

MAGGIE MOON

Website Id:  (Dioramas) Wales - 0028



Above is a picture of my Hallowe'en witch, which I made in 1998.  She lives in her roombox which I called "The Witches Brew".  Maggie is busy making her spells, carefully watched by her black cat. 

Black cats were originally believed to protect witches' powers from negative forces.  You can see the full roombox on my website under "Dioramas" Id. no:  (Dioramas) Wales - 0028. 

When looking at her recently, I began to wonder when Hallowe'en actually came about.  I have since found out the following information:

According to Irish legends, Jack-o-lanterns were named after a man who could not enter Heaven because he was a miser.  He could not enter Hell either, because he used to play jokes on the devil.

Originally, lanterns were made out of  turnips.  Today people put lanterns made out of pumpkins outside their homes to frighten away ghosts and witches.

Hallowe'en dates back to the ancient Celtic Festival of Samhain, which is a celebration of the end of the Harvest Season.
Hallowe'en is on the eve of All Saints Day, or All Hallows, which is an ancient word for saint.

Carole.

CROATIA, BOSNIA AND MONTENEGRO DOLLS

I have recently returned from a trip to Croatia, Bosnia and Montenegro. 

As usual, I was looking for new dolls!

The dolls in CROATIA were mostly made of porcelain with thick unrealistic hands, and rather "starey" eyes, so I chose the hard plastic ones instead.  The chimney sweep is made of a more dainty porcelain than the regional dolls.

In BOSNIA, as I was limited for time, I was only able to find dolls made of vinyl, but they give an idea of the costumes.

In MONTENEGRO I found the delightful little "elderly people" dolls which are hand made.  The other pair of dolls is vinyl.

For more pictures and further information, please see the website.  Carole. 

CROATIA

Website Id:  Europe - Croatia - 008, 008A and 008B

(Woman wearing the headress of a married woman).

CROATIA

Website Id:  Europe - Croatia - 008C

(woman wearing the headress of an unmarried woman)

CROATIA

Website Id:  Europe - Croatia - 001

(chimney sweep)

(His face is clean because he hasn't started work yet!)

CROATIA

hand made dolls

Website Id:  Europe - Croatia - 0010, 0010A and 0010B

 

BOSNIA

Website Id: Europe - Bosnia - 003, 003A and 003B

BOSNIA

Website Id: Europe - Bosnia - 004

MONTENEGRO

Website Id:  Europe - Montenegro - 004

 

MONTENEGRO

Website Id:  Europe - Montenegro - 003 and 003A

CROATIA

The medieval City of Dubrovnik.

The main street showing the shiny, worn cobbles. 

CROATIA

Another view on a coach trip

BOSNIA

(Mostar)

The famous Turkish bridge which was built in 1566

and re-built after it was damaged during the war

in the early 1990's.


BOSNIA
The Turkish street in Mostar
(and the shop on the left where I bought the Bosnian dolls).



MONTENEGRO

View from the highest point in Montenegro

(from the coach).

MONTENEGRO
Monks in Kotor.

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MORE DOLLS (AND OTHER INFO.)

WELCOME to my two new followers - manhamana and Aniarozella.  I hope you will both continue to enjoy my site!

These last few weeks have been quite a busy time for me, following my recent newspaper article which I added onto my last Blog - 17th. August, 2011.
Following this I have shown a few of my dolls locally, and will be showing some more in November.  Thank you to all those very kind people who have sent me such lovely emails regarding the article!  I really appreciate it.

The GREEK ISLANDS MALE COSTUME:
I have it on very good authority from a Greek lady viewer who has studied and worked as a Director and Costume Designer - (quote) "that the male costume of the Greek Islands is not called a "FUSTANELLA" but is a balloon kind of pants called "VRAKA".   The Evzonne costume was worn mainly in Central Greece (Sterea Ellada), and in the Peloponnese in the 19th. century.  (Thank you again to that kind viewer).

THE DOLL MAKER PAGE:
SHYRONE from the U.S.A. has sent me some further information about the Doll Maker - Baronne Sandra Belling.  I am very greatful to her and have added the information onto mine, on the Doll Maker page.  (Just click onto Doll Makers at the top, right hand side of this page).

MY MINIATURE MAKING:
After a break of two and a half years I have now started back onto making miniatures and I am enjoying it.  I have just started working on another roombox which hopefully will be finished shortly.  (Watch this space!)  In the meantime, below is a selection of 1/12th." scale dinners which I made a few years ago.  I came across them in one of my craft drawers so I have put them onto my website where there are also pictures of some cakes and un-cooked meats (under dioramas).

A selection of 1/12th." scale  dinners

Website Id:  (Dioramas)Wales - 0031

AND FINALLY  - - - - - - - MORE DOLLS!  For more information about the dolls, please see the website.

SARAWAK

Website Id:  Asia - Malaysia - Borneo (Sarawak) - 005, 005A, 005B, 005C



SPAIN (Basque Region)

Website Id:  Europe - Spain - 0030

BOSNIA

Website Id:  Europe - Bosnia - 002

EGYPT

Website Id:  Africa - Egypt - 006



- - - - - - -

MY RECENT NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

Following my recent visit to Spain (BLOG dated 3rd. July, 2011), an article about my doll collection and my trip to Spain, has just been published in a local newspaper (instigated by a friend!)

As it is a rather large article, and I do not have a scanner, I have tried to photograph it to share it with you.  If you click on the pictures it should enlarge them and you will need to use the scroll bar accordingly.

My apologies for my lack of skill in the BLOG world!!  Carole.

The full article spanning two pages

The left hand side page

The right hand side page

Me with my Spanish Basque doll at the book launching in Spain

(There will be more dolls listed here shortly).

- - - - - - -

NEW DOLL MAKER ON THE "DOLL MAKERS" PAGE

The name of the Doll Maker is:  BARONNE SANDRA BELLING.

For information about the Doll Maker, just click on "DOLL MAKERS" on the top, right hand side of this page. 



SYRIA

(Id:  Asia - Syria - 001)

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NEW PAGE - "BOOKS" ON WEBSITE

NEW PAGE ON THE WEBSITE 

On this page I have listed doll and costume books which I hope you will find helpful.  They are written in English, with the exception of two books which are written in French and Dutch.  Just click onto the "BOOKS" tab at the top of the HOME page.

I have also listed 

FIVE NEW DOLL GROUPS

FROM

Poland, Wales, Madagascar and Zimbabwe.

To see more information about these dolls, please see the website.  Thank you.  Carole.



POLAND - (Carpathian Mountains)

Website Id:  Europe - Poland - 0017

WALES

Website Id:  Europe - Wales - 0026

 WALES

Website Id:  Europe - Wales - 0027

MADAGASCAR

Website Id:  Africa - Madagascar - 003

ZIMBABWE

Website Id:  Africa - Zimbabwe - 007



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