This dress was made many years ago, before embroidery machines, before grandchildren and before I had any idea that grandparenthood would be such a busy time. Again and again I am grateful for all my class samples, like this dress, which seem to have been lying in wait to be worn or played with by a grandchild.
When Mildred Turner and I were doing our Sewing for Dolls schools around the country, we designed unique, personalized wardrobes for porcelain dolls, made by my mother Dollie Manning, an extremely telented and well-known doll artist, and included in the class kits. Each school had a different doll–the same body but different face and hair, like American Girl or Cabbage Patch dolls, so all the clothes and patterns were interchangeable.
Each doll was like a participant in the Witness Protection Program. She was given an identity and fictional life, even an adoption certificate, then outfitted to fit the character she became. Continue reading
