Pumpkin Hill Studios

For Sale: Poppy Parkers, Reluctant Debutante, Summer Magic

2012-01-22T11:52:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone. Well, it is time to part with some dolls due to medical expenses from last year, and I have acquired too many fashion dolls. It breaks my heart to part with these two Poppy Parkers, but I must. I have already listed them for sale on the W club forum and the Doll Divas message board, if I hear nothing by the end of the day they will be listed on Buy It Nows on Ebay with Free shipping. I am hoping to just sell them quickly by tomorrow morning. Link for dolls on Ebay after today 1/22/12 will be here . I already have some playline Barbies listed, and will be listing more dolls as I sort and that includes my Gene dolls as well.

Terms: I will invoice you for the amount via Paypal. You must contact me via Email with your address, name, and email addy so I can invoice you. When payment is received after invoice is sent, I will ship your doll. I will ship internationally, via USPS Priority international mail, please send your address & country for me to calculate correct shipping cost for you. I ship Monday thru Friday. Depending on your location, I will ship via USPS Priority mail or UPS Ground.

First up- Summer Magic Poppy Parker, $175with free shipping in the USA only, comes NUDE with box and stand. Mint condition, has been displayed in my dollhouse.

2nd up- Reluctant Debutante Poppy Parker SOLD! .

More dolls will be moving along to other homes, so check my link on Ebay- http://tinyurl.com/ydd6la

~Lisa

Exploring the World One Century at a Time...

2012-01-21T07:54:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone.. Becca2012 here. I thought today since I had so many inquiries, I would explain more about my travels in time, and the research and study that goes into traveling into the past to explore. It isn't all about playing dress up in pretty outfits, (though I admit I do enjoy that part, since I am partial to petticoats and corsets..lol) Right now I am finishing up some correspondence with other members of The Society of Clock-Watchers in Extrodinary Times that Marigold Finch, our postal system courtesy of Finch Express. It is how the dolls here at the 'Patch on Pumpkin Hill have their correspondence delivered. Marigold is a tiny finch, and she and her helper Wren, a small pixie, sort our mail. She is especially helpful to me since I have so many packages and letters that are usually urgent. I am finishing up some entries in my travel diary, and am beginning to prepare for my research to time travel to another era.
The next era I am thinking of is the Colonial era, and Felicity Merriman has been helpful in this aspect. You see, I must have some sort of doll contact so I won't seem er, out of place when I suddenly appear. So it is important in my explorations.
I thought today I would explain some of my tools I use, here in the time traveler library/parlor of sorts. I like to sit by the fireplace and do my research and studies of other eras in solitude...

I have some of the items I am preparing for my Colonial trip here on the table. It is important when time traveling with my tools and other items that they fit into the time I am traveling to...nothing must be out of place, since it is important to blend in....

Currently, I have gathered my basket together. This will be more fitting than my messenger bag or purse...These books will probably not go, except for the one on birds and wildlife, as I would like to study the species of Felicity's time and place, so hence the book on birds of prey such as hawks, peregrines, etc. I understand they used to hunt with birds, and this is an interesting thing I would like to attend in that time.

Within my basket you will notice some long cylindrical glass bottles with corks. Ah, these are literally, my time messages in a bottle. I will use these to communicate with Felicity in certain spots where her birdbottle was, as well as my letters of recommendation which will be helpful on introductions in that time period. The long cylinders bottles are extremely useful and small.

You will notice a large assortment of various bottles and baskets of letters, and my travel journal books as well. I take many specimans when I go to other times, of plants and other items. Of course, as I spoke before, I also take small bottles with emergency potions to allow me to shrink and grow in times when I MUST disappear quickly without causing a disturbance. The Society of Clock-Watchers in Extrodinary Times has VERY strict rules regarding this....

As you can see, before I even think of going to another time, much work and research goes into deciding if it would be safe and possible.

In my Time Chamber, I frequently consult the globe to pinpoint the place where I would like to travel to. Exact navigational coordinates are so important! For instance, I don't want to end up in Kansas when Williamsburg , Va is my destination!

I'd like to thank you for visiting me and being so interested in my work and explorations! More to come as I prepare for my next journey into time!

Rebecca Rubin, 1904, AKA Becca2012....

2012-01-20T14:57:00.000-08:00

Hi. I'm Rebecca Rubin, 1904...well, that is my historical year. But I am also known as, AKA, Becca2012. Yep. That's my code name.
I'm a time traveler. I'm also a doll........but that doesn't matter. Didn't think dolls time travel? hmph...well, we do. Anytime you stuff me in a Victorian dress or a colonial gown, I'm time traveling...only I'm the real deal...er, doll.
I have many tools I use to time travel, and report on the historical findings. Time is a tricky thing, so my bag is ready to go at a moments notice. I also wear a peculiar looking necklace which is considered 'fashionable' now with all the steampunk about...each number specifies periods of time. When I turn the dial, I go to the four numbers of the year I want to visit, in quick succession...and it's complicated. All you need to know is I can turn up anywhere, anyplace, ...any time. I belong to something called The Society of Clock-Watchers in Extrodinary Times... and the future, the present, the past are ALL extrodinary! That is why we are a secret society of ..dolls...who travel thru space and time. These are the voyages of Becca2012...and any other doll who wants to come along...
But first I may need a new wardrobe...depending on what year and time I wish to visit next. That is something I am studying quite closely. I may need a shrink potion and a grow potion. No, this isn't Alice in Wonderland, but Lewis Carroll was onto something. They come in useful when you need to disappear suddenly...
I'm pretty much a normal doll. I like lots of things, like climbing trees, reading, and all sorts of interesting things where I can have an adventure. But most of all, I like to travel.
In the coming weeks my doll mom (the human) will post more about me and the clock-watcher's society...but for now. ..I'm signing off as BECCA 2012...

Felicity and Marigold Finch...

2012-01-16T05:26:00.000-08:00

Felicity was tired of being cooped up, so she went for a walk outside. Marigold Finch, the tiny bird at Pumpkin Hill who is in charge of the mail (Finch Express) flew down to greet her and landed on Felicity's hand, to greet her. Felicity was surprised and pleased.

I thought everyone would enjoy the pictures. Marigold is an artisan creation for the dolls by Patricia Cabrera of Wooley Tales Miniatures she has several blogs, one of which is the Magical Marionette Theater here on Blogspot.
Enjoy the pics!

The Alice Project...wigged!

2012-01-11T06:09:00.000-08:00

The Alice puppet project continues....and now the Hatter is Wigged! My mohair in the exact shades of the color Johnny Depp wore in the movie arrived yesterday, from a fabulous Etsy seller called
Split Rock Ranch . I only expected a small amount of this mohair, great quality. (I am thinking of turning my reproduction Francois Gaultier french fashion doll into a red hair if I find a pattern to make her a wig, maybe even make a bjd wig for one of my tinies. This mohair has a great curl and texture to it.) Check their feedback and you will see the appreciation photo, one of these above, in her feedback.
I did not make the hatter's hair as large as the character in the movie; working in miniature is always a compromise in trying to achieve the realism factor. I have this great top hat from my Goodreau bjd that is the perfect shape of the top hat in the movie, just an ugly yellow with a brick road pattern on it, and it fits his head perfect. The hat will be glued on in any event, so no need to add mohair where it will not be seen. I have some black sateen that I can alter the hat with, and jewelry findings along with ribbon. I worked with the thick electrical wire last night for his thighs and calves on the puppets' legs which have to move as his arms do, I am quite pleased with how the puppet is coming out. Hopefully, I can go thru the fabric stash and find some of the pink polished cotton I have that will be his shirt, and start working on dressing the torso. The frock coat and trousers are harder, since the legs have to be fully complete along with shoes. So may be only a couple of things I can do until I can order his shoes.
My biggest search now will be for the tiny spools I need to make his spool sash, with the different colors of thread he wore. I have looked at images online and this appeared to be attached to a chain of some type. I have found these spools before, but for the life of me, can't remember where I bought them, so will keep searching. As a last resort, I may end up sculpting them out of clay.
I will have more pictures on this project at another time! Enjoy!

The Alice Project...

2012-01-06T19:12:00.000-08:00

So, my 'Alice' Project has begun....and progressed thus far. One of my resolutions last year, or rather, goals was to do the projects that I never had time for. One was a to create a Marionette puppet. I have been totally enthralled with The Magical Marionette Theatre , a blog by a fellow miniaturist Patricia Cabrera of Wooley Tales Miniatures. It is simply stunning, how she and her family built and created a puppet theatre, that looks as though it stepped from the movie Sound of Music. Remember the part where Julie Andrews and the Von Trapp children perform a puppet show for their family? That was one of my favorite parts of the movie, 'One Little girl and a little goatherd, yoda lady yoda lady yoo-hoo...' lol. So I decided that I would try , at least try to create a marionette this year. It turned into an obsession. First, I researched many links on google and watched many marionette shows on YouTube to figure out how they were strung, made, and moved.

When I began sculpting, I originally wanted to create Alice, who I thought may be more simpler and I had the blue silk in my stash. I wished to base my marionettes on the Tim Burton movie, which seems more realistic as Alice is grown and doesn't really remember Underland, so therefore thinks it is a dream. But then the Hatter came out of my head and onto the clay. I must admit for several days I was stumped as to who exactly I had sculpted. When I began sanding and smoothing, it then hit me I had the bones of the hatter's facial features, which came together with paint and sanding. I have already ordered his orange mohair for his wig and eyebrows from Etsy. I am thinking of using a pair of bjd boots for dolls that I have seen on Ebay, which will be on his feet.

So far, here is my progress....

So far, so good. I have been rather ingenious as I have not been able to carve the marionette's body out of wood, as most marionettes have wood bodies. Patricia had all of hers carved from wood and used resin and polymer clays to make the head and hands. I have seen some work of Japanese miniaturists who used La Doll and it is finally available here in the USA, which I got at Michael's. The torso is made of a block of styrofoam, carved to fit the size. His arms are a reynolds wrap form around wire, wrapped with masking tape, and covered with clay. The wires are looped at the joints and the puppet will be strung when he's fully dressed. I will probably order the shoes and start working on his thighs and legs while waiting for the boots to come. I already have a top hat to customize. I do not want to start on another puppet/marionette until I fully finish this one, and must admit working on this is fun!I could not believe that the Hatter's makeup came out so perfect like in the picture, I am usually not very good at sculpting or painting eyes...unless the character is 'mad as a hatter'...lol.

Since the Hatter is the first character that 'jumped' out of my head, I am mostly waiting for the next Alice in Wonderland character to fall out of my imagination and into the clay. I have already thought of how I would do the tea scene and the scale of the characters would be 1:4 scale in doll scale, as I have some perfect large pieces that would do well with puppets. Alice will be pretty complex, as there will have to be multiple Alices, since she grows and shrinks. Hopefully the Knave or one of the queens will pop out of my head. No deadlines on this one, since this creation is going so well!
Have a Frabjous Day!
~~Lisa

The Dolls' Christmas....

2011-12-29T17:18:00.000-08:00

*Note: The dolls had a great Christmas, as did I. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, and will have a Happy New Year. Enjoy the pictures, and thank you for the interest in my blog and the dolls' adventures here at the 'Patch. ~Lisa

Gracie got ALOT of presents....really I think sometimes I spoil that doll! But she has worked so hard on the blog. And everyone deserves their own sock monkey and Bubble Cut Barbie, right?

And then there is the magic of Christmas, and the tree....

Not many presents this year, for me, but squee! I did get Kit's stove this year. The dolls' kitchen is well on its way to getting together. Kit was certainly pleased!

Kit's American Girl stove is really an awesome piece. I had a great grandmother who had one of these, but it wasn't blue. The frying pans, wooden spoon are from a $1 packet from the dollar store. The spatterware red coffee pot is from an antique store, as is the blender. The cheese grater is from World Market. The 'pie' in the oven is actually one of those $1 candles from Michaels with the wick pulled out. The pancake mixes in the colander are from a dollar bag of doll food from Michael's, the colander I picked up at a gift shop somewhere. The table and chairs are from Molly's collection I purchased a few months later. I have so wanted this piece and bought it on sale, it was my present from hubby Chris. :)

I hope to post more pics soon after the holidays, enjoy!

More Christmas photos of the 'Patch at Pumpkin Hill...

2011-12-18T06:34:00.000-08:00

Not much is going on, except new Christmas pics of the residents of Pumpkin Hill. Surprises have already been wrapped and are under the dolls' tree, and Kit has a new Christmas dress- she is so happy and cute in it!

Felicity has also acquired the bedwarmer, which was a great acquisition! We are currently trying to win Felicity's bed on Ebay, as well as other items from her collection. Felicity was happy with this early Christmas present!

Things are underway for the dolls' Christmas dinner as well at their Open House...

So far the table is partially set, but far from finished...the turkey looks a little lonely, so the girls and Miss Ashton have alot of cooking to do! Have a Happy Holiday week!

Christmas in Felicity's parlor....

2011-12-12T15:20:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, it's me Gracie, finally catching up and blogging again. It's great to be here & Dixie pointed out that she did the last blog, so I needed to catch up. hmph! But here it goes. Felicity has decorated the parlor, and we have a seperate spot for the tea table & the tea cabinet. Miss Lisa finally got us a proper tree, and all kinds of surprises are already wrapped.

Yep, and I have a new musical instrument for Christmas as well- I think it's an oboe or a clarinet. I have enjoyed sitting about tooting it! If you'd like to see a video of Felicity's parlor, here it is, uploaded on YouTube channel- KingWilliamMinis is our channel name!

Merry Christmas! More to come later!

Christmas with the dolls on Pumpkin Hill....

2011-12-07T15:33:00.000-08:00

Chrismas preparations have begun for all of us dolls on Pumpkin Hill, down here at the 'Patch. Felicity of course, has logs on the fire and lit her candles. It took so long to find a tree! Hopefully, Marigold and Wren will settle down in their nest once it is built. Marigold loves to have her winter nest in the Christmas tree, and sleep by candlelight.

Miss Lisa has been in a whirl of decorating- even painting the den so the tree would 'look right'! She finished painting the den just before Thanksgiving...and then took me with her & Mr. Chris to the hotel in Williamsburg where the Miss Virginia Job's Daughters pageant was being held. Miss Lisa helps the bethel and went to see the two young ladies from her Bethel participate in the pageant. To learn more of Masonic youth such as Job's Daughters, CLICK HERE .

Here I am in the hotel with my suitcase. And my new dress for Christmas! Maizie got one too, but more on that later. Pageant was fun. Afterwards, Miss Lisa went shopping, at the Christmas Mouse and the Yankee Candle store. She bought some candles, and also Gracie got a Santa hat.

Miss Lisa went a little crazy with the pictures in Yankee Candle's Christmas world...it even SNOWS in there at certain times of the day! This is a special place because they keep this part of the store a Christmas village all year round. As a doll, I wouldn't mind living there..especially with all of the Santas!

This is Gracie's santa hat...it is supposed to fit the really big jar candles, but it fits Gracie just fine.

Maizie and I in our new dresses. At Thanksgiving (yes we celebrated with the other divas from

The One Sixth Scale Dollhouse ) I got to meet Santa and have a serious talk about what I want for Christmas. Don't know if the old guy listened....but he seemed interested.

Thanksgiving...oh wow, the food! Miss Lisa wanted us in the family shoot with our new dresses on. What a feast!

Mini American Girl Emily had a blast, and so did we. Getting ready for Christmas is so much harder for us tinies. Miss Lisa hasn't yet decorated our dollhouse...she has been so busy.

We also have a new resident , er several new residents! Miss Hitty arrived, as have Mini American Girls Felicity and Julie. So Gracie and I have alot of blogging and catching up to do...but we've been having too much fun.

I'll end this blog entry with the really really BIG porcelain dolls, who have their OWN tree in the front window!

These are Miss Lisa's BIG porcelain dolls. The one on the left with red braids is Big Rebecca, and the other one is known as Big Amanda (to distinguish her from Miss Lisa's daughter, Amanda) Miss Lisa redressed them in antique toddler dresses from the early 1900's (that's another thing she collects- antique toddler clothing!) These dolls are wearing crinolines under their muslin/lace dresses. She won the dresses on Ebay.

There are many many more pictures, more to come!

Merry Christmas!

Way down South with Dixie Doll...

First day of school......

2011-11-04T19:33:00.000-07:00

The Tinies of Pumpkin Hill began their first day of 'official' school with their new Professor, Wallace. After he had settled in and got to know his students, Wallace felt quite at ease, and quickly interested the most unalert brownie fairies and entreprenuer mice in literature. Dixie being the official tiny blogger of the Patch, she wasn't sure she was going to like homework, but surprisingly, found she liked it.

As you can see, Wallace provided alot of composition notebooks for essay writing and lots of research books on birds, as he thought it would interest the tinies to study about birds, since their postal carrier, Marigold Finch, is a small bird with pretty amazing sorting abilities. Wallace explained a little bit about their study program, and rules and so forth.

More pictures soon, as the new school gains more students!

New Tiny arrival- Professor Wallace

2011-11-03T04:38:00.000-07:00

A new tiny has arrived at the Patch at Pumpkin Hill....Professor Wallace. Wallace is a learned and educated bear, or the polar region. Wallace also has the distinction of coming from our friends at the
Wylde Bunch from the Treehouse.

The tinies are quite suspicious, as they are not exactly the most studious of dolls, but since Gracie goes to Pumpkin Hill Academy with Miss Ashton, Lisa felt that the tinies needed a school as well...Wallace is kind of cool, he had bought all of us notebooks, and met us all in the parlor of the dollhouse. He liked the dollhouse, and was quite cordial to everyone for a teacher.

He had a fancy smancy briefcase, we were expecting someone stiff and stuffy, but he was quite funny and told us lots of stories of our friends at the Treehouse, and Miss Wendy, who we've all just been dying to meet, and Miranda too. He also said that we would have fun with some new books he had brought for us to read together. Turns out Wallace is really smart, and not your usual run of teacher/professor. He's pretty cool. After settling in, he asked to see the school, and prepare for the next day's program, which he wanted to set up that evening. So far on our list is me, Maizie and Minuette, and possibly Emily, one of the mini American Girl dolls, and Kit. April Mae is being difficult, but I think once she sees how much fun we have at school, she may want to come too.

Wallace showed up at the schoolhouse and was quite impressed, I don't think he expected it to be as clean and neat at the beginning. He liked the modern schooldesks, and said he was expecting a Laura Ingalls type of schoolhouse, and was relieved we didn't have ricketty desks and all. He was disappointed there was no chalkboard, but liked the alphabet and numbers border stenciled at the top of the ceiling. He set to work immediately re arranging things, and getting things in order.

Wallace soon had everything ship shape, and ready for the first day of school. Meanwhile, back at home, Minuette packed the tinies' lunch boxes.

The lunches were packed with peanut butter sandwiches, bags of pretzels, and a candy bar...hope all that sugar helps us focus on what Wallace has planned for us on the first day of school.

Professor Wallace is already looking forward to the first day of school, and is excited about teaching at the 'pumpkin Patch! Welcome to our new resident at Pumpkin Hill!

The Halloween party at Pumpkin Hill!

2011-10-31T14:45:00.000-07:00

So we invited our friends for the Halloween party- the first in the dollhouse in years since it's been restored! What a blast! Lots of candy- and mice who were regular's at Minuette's sweet shop came in costume as well....

Minuette's friend, Jack Mouse, came with his candy corn and everything....April Mae decided to come as a skeleton. Fitz & Floyd made Jack's costume...

I myself, decided not to go as a bee- and a good thing! My buddy Chelsea came as a bee in the same costume I had tried on! and my other friends Kelly and Kelley came as a witch and a bat! I decided at the last minute on my bunny costume. The bee costume was scratchy and tight...Marigold perched on the new TV between my rabbit ears....lol....

Happy Halloween from all us down here at the Pumpkin Patch on Pumpkin Hill!
~Dixie, way down South in Virginia

Happy Halloween from the Pumpkin Patch!

2011-10-31T03:24:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween everyone- from the 'Patch down here at Pumpkin Hill...This is such a favorite picture of mine. Our own pumpkin house is coming along...slowly.

We are almost ready but not quite. Windows are coming along on our dollhouse restoration. But I have news- MORE dolls are arriving...one is coming today. His name is Wallace and he is a dollfactory polar bear from the Wylde Bunch ....my buddy Miranda Facebooked me...I'm getting real savvy with this Facebook thing for a doll.

So Wallace will according to dolly tracking, be arriving today. From what I gather from Lisa, he is looking for a new venture here at the pumpkin patch, and will be taking over as the professor/teacher at the local one room schoolhouse Lisa is setting up . Evidently us dolls don't have enough to keep us busy, so we need to go to school. I'm not sure if I'm going to like this very much. But our Rement desks are here, and Lisa is busily looking for additional items. If more dolls keep arriving, then I don't think the one room schoolhouse will be BIG enough....

But there is another doll that has been on the 'list' that is arriving as well....(evidently there is a list of 'wanted' dolls Lisa has- she won't show it to me cause she knows it would probably disappear-!) but a doll named Miss Hitty, made out of wood. Lisa has long wanted a Miss Hitty- I think it's because all of her FRIENDS have miss Hittys, but you could do the same rationalization with us tinies on that line of thinking.......after all, there are alot of us!

She won Miss Hitty on Saturday night. Here is a picture of her

Evidently Miss Hitty isn't even finished! Not only do we have a ANOTHER doll coming here to the Patch to live, but she needs to be finished! And she's made out of wood! whoever heard of a wooden dolly--?? but oops, there I go again- the Woodenhouse family will probably welcome her as they are made out of wood and look like Queen Victoria's dolls........as moderator of the blogs, I have to be open minded about alot of these made to look old dolls...
But on a happier note- Halloween is here and Miss Lisa and Mr. Chris took me driving yesterday up to Spotsylvania- the historic part. It was a beautiful fall day and it was lovely with the leaves turning, and all. We even stopped at a one room schoolhouse- Lisa's passion is taking photos of these places.This was the Stubbs schoolhouse and it is now fully restored and preserved. I think it was built a very long time ago- as it had a well and an outhouse and a wood stove.

There are a couple of one room schoolhouses near our place here at the 'Patch, but they are no longer used as schoolhouses, just storage places, or closed up and stripped of the old schooldesks, or worse. So it was nice to see one so beautifully restored and cared for, since it is a part of our history. Miss Lisa's grandmother went to a one room schoolhouse and often told stories about it, which is why I guess she is so insistent that we dolls go to school, and is bringing Professor Wallace here. I was glad to go along that day in my basket and see the schoolhouse now...

Here's hoping everyone has a lovely Halloween!
~Dixie, way down South in Virginia

Progress on the dollhouse Restoration....

2011-10-29T15:06:00.000-07:00

The dollhouse restoration really came a long way today- the top two bay windows were painted and adhered to the two windows on the 2nd floor. Now I just have the middle window to finish and install. Lots has been going on today- it was a rainy, cold, wet and dismal day- no better time to work on the dollhouse than a day like that! Dixie was in her room blogging, Minuette was in the kitchen washing the dishes- yet again- she loves her kitchen. April Mae was trying on costumes for Halloween- she was hesitating between a princess dress and skeleton costume- which she finally squeezed into. Maizie was on the floor in the parlor reading spooky books and looking thru old halloween bags stash for decorations...and I have prepared the tinies for yet another tiny anthro- a polar bear who is making his way to us from ....drum roll, the Wylde Bunch at the Treehouse from Miranda Wandering ! Wallace has a mind to probably open an ice cream shop, so we will have to see. Where Wallace will reside is a tricky situation, but Dixie seems open to it.
Also new in the Pumpkin Patch- if you haven't seen the badge to the right- Dixie has a Facebook page all her own- where updates on the blog and new dolls, new friends will be posted about. Imagine- a doll, having other doll friends on Facebook. Well, if you're a doll, be sure to friend Dixie Hill on facebook- she would love that. She already has over 12 friends so far!
Wallace will be arriving next week, and we are hoping too- that Miss Hitty will arrive as well. Miss Lisa's Sybarite Slipper has arrived, and so have her new shoes and new wigs...

these two wigs are from Facets by Marcia, and are a synthetic mohair...the white one looks so Marie Antoinette, and the ringlet one reminded me of Keira Knightly in the movie 'The Duchess' about Georgiana Devonshire. I have been toying with the idea of making a loose gown like a gaulle that the dresses of the Petite Trianon were based one, with a high waisted sash, in white. The shoes - the court pumps and court mules fit her wonderfully. I love looking at this doll and she models so beautifully on the large scale Bespaq. Perfect, perfect.
I will have more on the dolls and Halloween later....I have been playing catch up with my photos, and have had to draw back some from the ATC trades I was doing, as I just couldn't keep up. I am hopefully going to be finishing the pumpkin house for Halloween display, and Marigold Finch and Wren can possibly get some mail delivered soon as well.

New stuff happening at Pumpkin Hill- Dixie's on Facebook!

2011-10-20T11:32:00.000-07:00

New things are happening at the 'Patch on Pumpkin Hill...one, our kitchen fridge, stove and sink arrived! You should have seen Minuette's face! (she loves to cook and was having to cook all our meals at the sweet shop, which everyone was getting tired of candy and brownies and pie...well, not really...)

Minuette was quite happy, but there are some kinks with it- the furniture, I mean...

I, Maizie and Minuette are a little 'short' but the furniture fits April Mae just right...no, Goldilocks doesn't live here, but April Mae was a little smug. overgrown princess.
But we also got into the 21st centure and our big screen TV arrived as well!

April Mae & Maizie wanted to try it out NOW, but I pointed out that we didn't have a TV Table, or anywhere to plug it in just yet. Miss Lisa said our other windows arrived, so the house is coming along..
and now drum roll............
I'm also on Facebook ! I hooked up with my pal in Denver , Colorado Miranda Wandering and Lisa set up my email and everything! So now I'm official...you can friend me on Facebook and also follow all of our updates from my facebook page for the other dolls as well. I did such a great job of making some of the new dolls feel at home that I've been given the job of reporting on the 'Patch and its inhabitants...hmm..sounds like work to me..
All for now!
~Dixie way down South in Virginia

Pumpkin Houses...

2011-10-18T13:09:00.000-07:00

Hi there. Well the title seems appropriate for a blog called Pumpkin Hill, doesn't it? A little history about pumpkins, seems people have thought of making houses out of them for ages and ages...and I'm a pretty old Brownie.
Anyhow, I was wondering how long it would take Miss Lisa to get out her tools and carve- er, build a pumpkin house. Wren decided she liked 'round' houses but I didn't see how she would fit thru the tiny doors Miss Lisa was using....
She got the idea from this page on Facebook called Flying Fairy Pumpkin house., from the
Urban-Fairies-Fairy-Doors-of-Ann-Arbor facebook page- it is really cool. Miss Lisa got to cutting into this foam pumpkin she had picked up at Michael's with a coupon and decided this would be a 'test' pumpkin...

So far, so good. She stained the doors and windows a dark stain, and planns to use tealights inside of the pumpkin...I know Wren will be disappointed but those doors are small! And it's kind of pokey inside. It really does look like the two eyes and a mouth on the pumpkin.

So my good friend Miranda, from her blog, Miranda Wandering, has a brother Sebastian, who's opening a potion shop. When Miss Lisa wasn't looking, I flew into the spare room in the tub where she kept her miniature magical books she used to make.

Lisa Interrupts here...

Me: Hold on...you did what?

Dixie: Never mind, they love them and want them and they are already mailed.(shakes her hand at me sternly. Upset Brownie....)

Me: Sent what to who and why do they like..???

Dixie: Miranda's brother needs some miniature magical books. You have some and they are just SITTING in that storage bucket losing all their mini magical goodness..I did you a favor. Miss Wendy is happy..

Me:...Oh, so that was what I was just packing outside.

Dixie...hmph, you need to pay attention...

Dixie: Anyways, sorry for the interruption. Lisa can be rather a pain when she thinks things are messed up in the storage containers.

Here are some pics of the books Lisa used to make, and has sent to Sebastion and Miranda..

I couldn't believe Miss Lisa used to make books for fairies, and pirates it appears. But these were just too nice to sit around moldering away...so now they will have a new home at the Treehouse.

All for now-

from Dixie way down South in Virginia

And now to sleep...

2011-10-14T05:29:00.000-07:00

One of the hardest things on re-doing the dollhouse is not the papers, trims, windows, etc. -- it is deciding on furnishings. Another problem- deciding on how many tinies will actually LIVE in the dollhouse. Real estate at the 'Patch is scarce and quite expensive right now....Last night I visited Bell's Exclusives, one of the oldest dollhouse shops in Richmond- Mr & Mrs Bell have been in business since I was a small child of 10 or 12. (er, that's 30+ years....) I purchased the two beds and a small table for Kit's attic bedroom. Kit's bedroom is a project within itself since I am trying to replicate her room in 1:12 scale fromt he catalogs. Biggest thing I am looking for is her bed, which I will probably have to paint green.
I will probably order the kitchen sink, stove, and fridge, along with the windows for the house. I have a nice set of bathroom furniture for the room at the left of the Kit attic bedroom...but have wondered if maybe I shouldn't make that into a small bedroom for Wren (realpuki soso) and Marigold Finch. I will probably redo the linens on the beds as they do not really go with the wallpapers, but are big enough for the tinies. So looks like Dixie may be sharing with Maizie. April Mae is not too happy at sharing a room with Minuette, who is quite independent and I;ve been told she snores loudly for such a small mouse. Enjoy the pics!

Dollhouse restoration- windows

2011-10-12T05:32:00.000-07:00

Quick note here from Lisa- with a couple of pictures on the windows of the dollhouse in process of being restored. One of the windows is painted and done, and installed. The windows and doors are so out of scale onmy old dollhouse that I had to be ingenuous with using 1:12 scale components. HOpefully in this really busy week I will be able to order two more of these windows, am finishing painting the other one that will be installed on the opposite side where the kitchen is. The door has been done for a while now, big thing after the windows are finished are the interior window and floor trims to be installed as well. That's Maizie hanging out in front of the door, I thought it would be neat to use this door with clear glass to see the details inside. So far, so good...onto finishing this project!More pics in my flicker album under 'Dollhouse Restoration' set.

Part 2 of Tinies Moving in...

2011-10-10T13:46:00.000-07:00

I told alot yesterday about our chaos of

moving into the dollhouse. Well, turns out we didn't move everything, so we had to go back to our rental house from the Woodenhouse family for more tubs of stuff! The Woodenhouse family has been very understanding, and storing our stuff, er junk, in their attic rooms. Minuette and April Mae are such pack rats!

So we piled into the van and stuffed ourselves, the tubs, and Duke between Maizie & I in the front seat. Our van is a used one, (for some reason if you push a button on the dash a voice says, 'are we there yet?') but otherwise, it is serviceable. It was a long drive, Minuette and April Mae amused themselves by waving at everyone out the back windows.

Maizie makes me extremely nervous by constantly yelling 'Don't hit that tree! or Kid, on the sidewalk!'. I am going to have an extra cup of Java in my C&M Coffee cup that my buddy Miranda sent me to calm my nerves, and maybe some cookies too...It didn't help when Minuette and April Mae began singing '99 bottles of beer on the wall' and we made it to the number 40! before we arrived.

Hopefully the new windows, what are painted and done, will be installed. We are still picking out furniture and figuring out how many beds we will need. Miss Lisa is hedging, and when she hedges, that means another ! Tiny might be moving in and need a place to crash! I will probably have to share with Maizie, as the mini American Girl dolls are taking one of the attic rooms. sigh..I'm beginning to think I need a house of my own, instead of driving nervous nellie tinies about with tubs of STUFF. hmph....I'm feeling grumpy today.

After we had arrived, and everything settled down, I went with my pal Emily out back and watched the sun going down.It is really pretty back there with what is known as soy growing in the field.. Sometimes they grow corn too out here in the country. It varies year to year and at fall, with the leaves beginning to turn, it's really pretty. Emily & I sat on the fence post and watched the sun set.

After watching the sun set for a little bit, we decided to climb the old pear tree, and it was fun! And so relaxing. ...the other tinies grumbled I didn't help unpack- but what's to unpack? Just more STUFF...and we don't have much furniture yet. Sometimes you gotta smell the roses, or like me, climb the trees....

Now if you haven't gone to my buddy Mirand's Blog , then you need to. She's just inherited a whole new house...kinda needs fixing up like our house. Ok, not as much as our house...but more on our house restoring later....

Have fun! ~ Dixie from way down South in Virginia...

Dixie here....news from the 'Patch...

2011-10-09T15:22:00.000-07:00

Hi there. Dixie here with my trusty loyal and royal pug dog, Duke. Lots has happened in the tinies' new house- we have begun to move in even though the builder didnt' install the windows yet...hmph, something about needing to order more! Loads has happened. For one, you may notice there is a tiny fairy named Tinkerbell sitting on a thimble...she claims that MY room is HERS and she refuses to leave...in fact, this house is somewhat infested with fairies...but since I am in a sense a Brownie fairy, I guess it's all good.

As you can see, not much has been moved into my room, except a desk, chair, and this impossibly stubborn tiny fairy...this is just ONE of the plastic tubs. The problem with tinies, they don't know how to pack sensibly!

We had brought in some of the tubs containing stuff, but when we moved in, we found alot of let's say, unusual furniture and items that went with the house?? Here we are in the middle of the chaos of unpacking...

Wren and Marigold couldn't be found, they used the excuse that they had lots of mail to sort and deliver to the divas in the One Sixth Scale Dollhouse . Personally, I am going to visit some of the dolls there, as we have had some new arrivals of new divas that I have yet to interview. More on that later...

Back to the strange items & furniture...so when we were bringing in our stuff, there were two items that I thought I really needed for my room....

Yep, an Egyptian throne in lacqured black & gold and an Egyptian statue of some cool guy with a loincloth on...I might not go as a busy little bee for Halloween, but might decide to get a wig and go as Cleopatra ....since I have this cool throne and all.

Here I am in the upstairs bedroom, this room is pretty large and there will probably be bunk beds in here to accomadate more tinies. Plus we have two mini American Girl dolls, Kit and Emily as well. With Miss Lisa's penchant for those dolls, I see alot MORE of them arriving...hmmph.
So I decided to visit some of the dolls int he Skipper bedroom, attached to the One Sixth Scale Dollhouse...those gals are fun!

You know, they have some marvelous cool toys. Skipper's Bedroom is a room scene Miss Lisa built to accomadate her collection of vintage Skippers, Tutti, Kellys, Chelseas, Stacies, and Todds. She's afurniture nut you know. Skipper's bunk bed was bought on Ebay, and the Suzi Goosie chest underneath all those toys was picked up at a yard sale.

I played a bit with the cool mini Barbie dream house that Kelly and Chelsea have, and asked if I could come again. Silly Kelly thinks I'm wearing her clothes..

Then...it was onto to interview one of the new larger dolls that is a 'holy grail' doll, whatever that means. Miss Lisa was raving about this doll who had made her home here, and was evidently demanding shoes. Shoes.....

Her name is Slipper, and she is a Sybarite. Made by some company over the ocean in London, England. Only this Slipper is French, because she came from a museum in Paris! She is a really nice lady, and says she is a bjd as well. Miss Slipper was nice and liked me very much. Evidently all she does is recline in her loungerie and diamonds and look in the mirror at herself. She liked the company, and hadn't met many of the other dolls yet- they thought she was a snobby doll. She even asked if I would sit on her lap, so Miss Lisa could take our picture. She's a really great doll, and taught me to say, 'Merci, beaucoup'. That means Thank you so much, or alot, I think. She also said I was so tiny to be so full of joie de vive...I think that means I am full of it--- life, I mean.
Well, the next doll that had arrived before Slipper was the 12 inch Harry Potter doll by TOnner.

Gee, I hope he knows what he's doing with that wand, he looks blind as a bat with those glasses. And I didn't know there was a witch up here too! So I made myself scarce.

Miss Lisa said we had a new bear that had arrived, that she bought yesterday at Masonic Family Day. Masonic Family day is when all the Masons, Eastern Stars, Shriners, Job's Daughters, DeMolay, and Rainbow Girls and other Masonic organizations have one big day at the Masonic Home of Virginia and have a big parade. Miss Lisa helped at the Ladies of the Oriental Shrine of North America tent and decided that this nice little bear needed to come home. Really? Or is it just because he's also purple???

Miss Lisa says he doesn't have a name. The patch on his tummy has the L.O.S. insignia. I couldn't go, but Miss Lisa said the free bbq dinner that they serve to the public was good, and we sold lots of items for the Shriner's Children's Hospitals . Mr. Chris is also a Shriner, but couldn't go to the parade and ride on his go-cart.

Anyway, I had enough of interviewing all the new occupants of the 'Patch, so I went and watched TV with Gracie...who was eating way...to many cookies & not sharing...

Well, I have way more to tell, but will do so in another blog- I have so many pics to go through! But don't forget to check out my friend in Colorado, Miranda Wandering 's blog, she is having such cool adventures!

Toodles! ~Dixie, way down South in Virginia

Slipper Sybarite is here!

2011-10-06T04:55:00.000-07:00

Slipper is here!

I have finally acquired my one and only 'holy grail' of dolls...a 2009 Paris Musee Sybarite exclusive Slipper. Slipper was one of the event dolls that Superfrock gives out at its exclusive events held in either Paris or London. Slipper was the event doll for 2009 at the Paris Museum owned by Sammy Odin, and Superfrock designed her. One of the members on the Prego doll boards was selling part of her fantastic Sybarite collection, and she was willing to allow me to make payments.

My good friend, Susan Sirkis, has a Slipper, she actually got to attend the event, & when she brought Slipper to the shop I fell in love. One of the things I could never understand is why Sybarite collectors were so over the top about these dolls, and I have to say I understand now why--- there is a beauty about the facial sculpts, the bodies, the clothes, that puts them on the level of the French Fashion pandores- the doll mannequins sent to other countries in the early 17th centuries with the fashions and details intricately miniaturized.

Slipper is a wonderful doll, and is probably going to be one of my favorites in my collection- I love shoes, and also belong to a dance unit called the Ladyslipper dance unit- a line dancing group I belong to and one of our emblems is a high heeled slipper mule. She has already laid claim to the customized swan vanity and the diamond necklace from the Metrodolls dress set I have...lol

Enjoy the pictures!

Lisa

I'm a busy little 'bee'...

2011-09-30T02:40:00.000-07:00

Hi there, Dixie here . Yes, that is me...sigh. Miss Lisa has gone over the top on Halloween preparations, don't you think? I am dressed as a BEE. a Honeybee, she corrects me. My wings are detachable and came off of a current extra Halloween Chelsea. My costume goes to my knees, but I'm adorable, a tiny bit of honey cuteness, so I can pull it off. I settled on the bee costume because I like my antennae. headpiece....I have been falling down on my blogging duties, (so has Gracie) but hey, alot of new dolls have arrived, and I haven't yet checked out this new diva in the One Sixth Scale dollhouse nor this Harry Potter character from Tonner that showed up either. I've got alot of interviewing to do....so my costume is appropriate- I am so busy like a bee! And that's my new dog, who thinks he is a King, but really he's named Duke...after John Wayne. I like John Wayne movies. So Duke is my new doggie...

Dollar Tree Sundae lip balms...

2011-09-14T15:10:00.000-07:00

Just a few quick pics of Gracie (she got a new soccer uniform and wants to show it off- Ebay find of Hopscotch Hill from American Girl, retired) and her lip balm sundaes from the Dollar Tree. I have long browsed the Dollar stores for the soda can lip balms, ice cream lip balms, (the Wolverine fridge in the pic is full of them!) I found these at the Dollar Tree, but I imagine they would also be in Family Dollar, Dollar General, and so on. chair and table are from American Girl from the historical Molly collection.

Pumpkin Hill Academy- Back to school!

2011-09-03T19:36:00.000-07:00

Just a few quick photos of the girls of Pumpkin Hill Academy...I created this in photoflexer in Photobucket for the American Girl Playthings forum, for their annual back to school PT event they do this time of year ...that is why Gracie and Dorothy are not in the photos, even though they are part of 'proper school' like Our Dolls calls it...I am also preparing some photos for their current Fall/Autumn contest. I staged this small setting with Miss Ashton and Rebecca and Kit in their school desks...I still need about two more desks for all of the dolls. I am currently on one of the long term projects -- trying to get their school uniforms together. I may end up using Rebecca's uniform, but I like Molly's too, the plaid looks like a regular school uniform, even for Felicity.

Autumn, Candlelight, and a little blogging....

2011-08-30T06:01:00.000-07:00

Autumn is coming, and in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, I was bored one evening so decided to play with the shadows, candlelight and my favorite pumpkins. I even dragged out my Wizard of Oz wicked witch and a little Bespaq table I had aged & customized with spiderwebs...since we have no power, the fireplace mantel was the perfect spot to drag out my candlesticks and candlelabras, and play with 'Elegant' halloween placement.

I took some time when my netbook was re charged (we are running off of generator power from the RV now, until Power returns later this week) and did some re-arrangement of the blog. I've added some artsy art doll and Halloween art links- I will be adding more, these are some of my favorites from Art Dolls only . I also purchased Stampinton's Art Dolls magazine and have been enthalled with the artistry of some of these dolls- no rhyme or reason, but the art behind the dolls is fascinating and fabulous. I have put a few things on my list to create- one is an art doll, some ornaments, and possibly a marionette &/or a marionette theater. I have been entrhalled with Patricia of The Magical Marionette theater and how they perform, plus create the marionettes. One of the new boxes to the right will feature some links to marionettes, Patricia's blog, and also the Czech Marionettes, which are art forms within themselves. A doll on strings that performs! lol...One of the things that fascinated me as a child was Mr. Roger's puppets, I loved Henrietta and the King, and how he did the different voices, with the train running around the castle and throughout the magical village...So one of my future projects this year will be to create a marionette, possibly from Puppenfimo or paperclay. I am currently working on finishing my art doll- she is made of paperclay, and some halloween pumpkin ornaments, all made of paperclay! Yes, I am creating again, even without power. I seriously think candlelight has been inspiring me- there is something very tranquil about lighting candles, and seeing the light from their soft glow, that sparks my creativity. Also, if you are doll lover as I am, the dolls seem to have their own kind of magical whimsy in candlelight. Tasha Tudor had magnificent art for a reason, and I think it was because of beeswax candles....nutty I know, but hey we're all a little nutty here in the Pumpkin Patch!lol

I hopefully will be posting more photos as I make progress on my doll, and please enjoy the links- I encourage you to browse them!

The dolls outside in the evening....

2011-08-24T16:22:00.000-07:00

What do dolls do, you ask, in the evening? Here Dottie and Gracie are lounging...yes, dolls Lounge, outside, on the grass, on antique linens and just ...dream, talk, and laugh. At least here at the Patch on Pumpkin Hill they do, and look at the clouds in the sky. I chose this spot in our yard as the weather, evening light, everything was perfect for this photo shoot, and it looks quite timeless, like they have found a secluded spot with their baskets, their book and fan, and are enjoying each other's company. Things I like to do myself, when I have time too. I have always been intrigued by timeless paintings of women in white from the late 1890's by the great painters like Monet where women lounged, rested, fanned themselves and did not seem to suffer from the day to day high tech drudgery of today. lol...

To dream in tranquility and peace, ah, heaven.......Enjoy the pics!

~Lisa

A gift from Miranda Wandering....

2011-08-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

Today we received a gift from Wendy Wylde, from the famous blog of Miranda Wandering .
I was one of the ones chosen for liking the C&M Coffee page on Facebook., It was quite exciting, and of course Gracie went out to the mailbox and found the package way before Dixie did.....here is Gracie unwrapping the goodies Wendy & Miri sent...

'What have you got there Gracie?'

"It's a present from Miss Wendy, that nice friend of yours near the cool doll store where I came from!! And that little doll named Miranda!!!!W0w!"

                                               'Lisa they even have their own card for their blog!! Why don't WE have a card for Pumpkin Hill Studios??'
                                           " We do Gracie."
                                            shrugs shoulders...'No, not the EBAY store, but the blog ...about US!"
                                              Me laughing..."Oh..."

Dixie immediately clamed the book, the cup, and the cinnamon bun and doughnut...I think Gracie wanted the cinnamon bun, but Dixie was quite for such a little Brownie fairy....she took her loot home to strut in front of the other tinies, and then wished me to come and take pictures....mystified, I followed her to the doll room, where the Pumpkin Hill dollhouse was....they were all in the kitchen with..............their dolls!

Dixie decided since the C & M coffee had had a cool doll meetup, that the tinies of Pumpkin Hill could have one as well. Minuette had her Tigger bear, April Mae had a porcelain jointed doll that was sleeping, Maizie had a tiny Kewpie and so did Wren, only hers was in a small dome, because she did not wish it to be broken. Dixie had one of her Bratz dolls! (I didn't even know she liked Barbie or Bratz, ) and they wished me to take this photo to send to Miri and Miss Wendy.

Have fun with the pics!

~Lisa

A Few private Memories of Dad...

2011-08-05T18:22:00.000-07:00

Above are pics of my dad from the year 1966-1967? I think. Today on August 5th, was my dad's birthday, he would have been 73 today if he were alive. We lost him about two weeks before Christmas in 1969 of a brain anorism when he was 31. So today, I thought I would take a few moments in remembrance of him, and the fun we had while he was here.Above he is receiving an award of some sort from when he was in the Air Force. With each passing year, I think I miss him more and more, he was one of the most positive and friendliest people you would ever meet.

I know many have seen the picture I have posted of me, at the age of three standing in front of the amazing playhouse. My dad took this picture of me, after being dragged up from his nap on my great-grandmother's front porch when we were visiting for the summer. The playhouse stood beside the house of my great-grandmother's neighbor, whose large North Carolina home was across the street. THe playhouse was originally built for the couple's daughter, who was my mother's age at the time, about 27, and had a family of her own. The playhouse or dollhouse, was built like a real house- it had a replica fireplace, small table and chairs, built in cupboards, windows that opened and closed- the shutters closed as well, and was landscaped like a real house. The funny part about this day is I remember sitting on the front stoops just wanting so badly to go over and play in the dollhouse. I remember once being allowed to go in, it was quite difficult for Dad to get me to come out until he went and got the camera and promised to take my picture. It is one of my fondest memories of him, and his patience with me, and unknowingly, put me on my path to my love of dollhouses, dolls, and most of all, doll furniture and anything in miniature. The most wonderful part of this story is after we came home, my grandfather heard so much about the playhouse that I was presented with my very own playhouse, not as elaborate, but just as wonderful. I think the reason for this is I never stopped talking about the playhouse or dollhouse and my fascination must have bordered on a child's obsession, which led to the wonder of the world of dolls and miniatures. So began my story into Lilliput land, and I guess you could say, it was more than a Kodak moment...it was priceless.

Thank you Dad, and have a Happy Birthday with the Angels , we miss you.

~Lisa

Bjd's, Marie Antoinette, Hats & other things....

2011-07-29T14:41:00.000-07:00

I haven't done much with the dolls lately, except try and finish up their colonial/Marie Antoinette inspired costumes. Poor Dorothea has been consigned every since she arrived at Christmas from Paulette Goodreau in her wizard of Oz costume, with no new clothing or even a new wig...until now. I have been wanting to take photos of them out in the yard having tea, with a real Petite Trianon type setting, but until now had not finished the hats for them. I did however, think this was a great time to show off the open book wardrobe catalog that I made to fit Gracie & Dorothea. Marie Antoinette had so many gowns that a wardrobe book or catalogue was brought to her in the mornings- she pricked the fabric swatch next to the drawing of the gown she wished to wear that

day, then they brought in her wardrobe choices to her apartments in large baskets. This fascinated me to no end- though there is still a couple of these books in existence, I could find no images, so I made my own.

Dorothea's ensemble was really thrown together today- almost an afterthought. Her skirt was made by me, & had a matching bodice- but I have misplaced it. Her top is a Tonner camisol I got off of Ebay- in Scarlett's underpinnings. With a lavender sash it coordinates with Gracie's ensemble. Both ensembles were made using the 2008 Arcadia dolls Haute doll pattern. I still have some tweaking to do on these. I was really pleased with the straw hats, and how they came out- I have some larger ones that will fit the American Girl dolls- so I know Felicity would love a new hat to match her pink dress and her rose garden dress.

Gracie's gown was made using cotton- her slippers are made of taffeta. I have not yet finished embellishments on her slippers- need to make some for Dorothy as well. I played with the pattern a bit on this one- I think it needs a ruffle or two in retrospect. The dolls' wigs came from an artist on Den of Angels forum named Mimi who specializes in the most beautiful mohair wigs. They really soften the look on these outfits, I don't think I will ever have anything but mohair again for the bjd wigs. I am hoping to take more pics when I get a few scenes set up but not with the heat index as it has been. For now, hope you enjoy the photos and what the dolls have been doing here at the 'Patch...
~Lisa

More Jewelry creations.....

2011-07-23T06:18:00.000-07:00

I have been creating.....and creating........shown above are some simple jump ring earrings I created. I am really enjoying the creative process of making jewelry, especially the recycling of old vintage pieces as well. My newest creation? Some thing casual and funky and vintage, out of the possibilities Mayonnaise jar that my old friend of my dads' Cherokee, gave me. He used to frequent old yard and tag sales, and would come home with all sorts of interesting findings and old jewelry.

The chain, key ring, and vintage earring all came out of the jar! The only thing I added was copper wire wrapping the key ring, and the jump ring to connect it. There were alot of onesie old clip on vintage earrings that are really just too beautiful not to be made into pendants, or a focal point for glitzy pieces. I have a couple of ideas for about three to four pieces, and think they will really pop.

And of course, here is the first piece I did, Gears turn the Wheels to my Heart, a little bit of Steampunk. I absolutely adore steampunk, and last night began work on doll sized goggles for Gracie. I want to make doll size jewelry with a steampunk theme, but the trick is finding gears and charms, and findings in appropriate scales. Also, though I do sketch, I work better 'off the cuff' so to speak. Usually that entails throwing a bunch of chain and findings on the table, then pulling out the jump rings, glue and fasteners....

Right now, I'm living a 'charmed' creative life.,...& I LOVE IT!

~Lisa

A 'Little' bit of art from Lisa.....

2011-07-20T10:18:00.000-07:00

Usually, I post here about the new going ons in the 'Patch, and what the dolls are doing, or learning. Actually, not much of anything has been going on with the dolls....they pretty much have been quiet, except for Gracie, who just got her new wigs and is striking a pose all over the place....Since moving the One Sixth Scale dollhouse into the display room, as well as refurbishing my very first dollhouse that daughter played with, as is now mine again...I've been busy.
First of all, I decided to experiment with my artwork...jest a little bit' like the song says. I had recently discovered Steampunk, and also Steampunk styled jewelry. Here is a shot or two of my worktable of the ingredients I've assembled so far.......since Steampunk is so exciting to work in as a medium. I think I have found a new calling....

This book is called Steampunk Styled jewelry by Jean Campbell, and it is a great book for ideas, inspiration and explanations on the culture of Steampunk. Got it yesterday with coupon from Michael's....with more jewelry making goodies...

Shown here is the very first steampunk themed necklance I created to the left- on a leather chain..'Gears turn the wheels of my Heart'. It has a key hanging from the big gear, with all the gears connected to look as though they turn, with a small heart charm in the center of the pendant dangling. The book is a miniature book I made, plus some charms, odds and ends that will be pressed into service soon.

A better view of the pendant, with the heart above the gears. I like it, but am biased, so decided to wear it out to one of my favorite restuarants when going out to dinner to see if there were any stunned looks, gasps of horror, or interest in it all around. The waitresses loved it- so much so that my husband laughed and said they forgot to bring the ketchup for the fries he ordered, they were so busy looking at it. I have to admit, after being like an artistic dessert for the year 2010 - so many emotional upheavals, letdowns, and other problems too draining to mention, it was nice to see I had not lost my touch artistically. The wonderful thing about the steampunk culture is anything can constitute steampunk...and it so embodies my way of thinking...I have always been attracted to the clean lines of wood, brass, veneer, chrome, and glass..I love Victorian era and remember watching 'Wild Wild West' as a child...& loving it. (early 70's tv show, but the movie was good too.) So besides the lives of the dolls, I will probably be showcasing new items here in a steampunk theme, hopefully in more jewelry, but in miniature and for the dolls as well. Gracie has already said she would like to be a Steampunk Alice....

This is an example of steampunk I did in 1:12 scale a few months ago, earlier in the year. I adored doing this table, and the pieces came together with some items I had and it kind of just came together naturally. It's a steampunk themed tea table, and the table is veneered on its tabletop with birds' eye maple veneer by me. All of the items were modded or scratch built by me; Rhett is a doll by the talented artist Sherri Colvin of Colvin Studio. I hope to be doing more of this type of thing in 1:12 scale as well as for the larger dolls. The doll world I have already thought of things for, or more projects, I should say. lol. My creative juices are flowing again and I will be showcasing my steampunk items here....and watch my Etsy store and Ebay store as well for those artisan creations.....
~Lisa

All 'Wigged' out in the 'Patch....

2011-06-17T13:39:00.000-07:00

So Gracie has been having an Alice in Wonderland complex.....and started complaining about her hair.

Gracie in her 'before' pic with Leekeworld wig from Denver Doll Emporium
The wig was great, but unfortunately, new to the bjd world when I bought it, it soon frizzed on me. No amount of combing and wetting would settle the frizz on the curl. It is still a good wig, but then Gracie decided to contact Mimi on Den of Angels and had TWO wigs made in the same color??
This is why you don't give bjd's laptops.....
Well, the wigs arrived today. Gracie maintains that Dottie will want to look JUST LIKE HER....and needed one. Or one could be used for styling rococco when I make her new dress....(hmm, how did that slip in there........) Now she has decided that the wonderful fluffy wigs would make her into a perfect Alice in Wonderland....so she definitely needs the Tim Burton Alice dress, not the silly one from Disney....hmmph. Well, here is Gracie in her new wigs..

This one or .....this one?

One is more wavy than the other, and the other one she settled on was longer with the waves in it. There were variations of color in the other one as well. She has a white rococco dress made from a pattern by Haute doll, I will have to dig that out and make her another one, with the other wig restyled in a rococco/Marie Antoinette style, to match the dress. She does resemble Alice in this new wig though, so maybe an Alice dress made out of that remnant of blue silk would be lovely too.

All for now~~Lisa

More Correspondence from Miss Ashton....

2011-05-28T06:01:00.000-07:00

Miss Ashton was once again writing to her dear Friend Penelope,who lives in England. Alot has happened lately at Pumpkin Hill , as well as the Academy has a new pupil, so let's peak over Miss Ashton's shoulder while she writes....

May 28, 2011
Dear Penelope-
Much has been happening -where to begin? My new pupil, whose name is Kit, has arrived, & what a handful! Thankfully, we haven't begun formal classes yet at the academy! She dislikes school but loves learning new things. She also loves to write, and I frequently find her writing in her journal book at my desk. I might have found the young lady who could report on our activities at the Academy, my dearest Penelope, and maybe influence Becky & Felicity to read more.
Spring has come and I have been baking again! Dearest Penelope, could you please send me your receipe for cherry cordial comfits? I used our fresh cherries from the orchard to bake several pies. We were thinking of having a bake sale to raise money for the Academy's school supplies that are still needed...So I have been busily baking for days now. The girls have been such a big help, especially my newest pupil Kit.
Must run now dear, and prepare the scones for tea! Sincerely , Ashton Browne

While Miss Ashton has been writing to Penelope, her new pupil, Kit, loves to come into the study and write in her journal. Kit is new and is more 'modern' than the other girls, and dislikes school intensely. But she adores reading and any sort of writing, and loves Miss Ashton's study- it is the one place she knows that the other girls will not read her stories or journal.

Other residents of Pumpkin Hill have been busy at their correspondence as well, such as Annabelle from the The One Sixth Scale Dollhouse . Annabelle is a 12 inch French Fashion reproduction doll.

Here is Annabelle with her letters, neatly tied with ribbon, ready for Marigold Finch to deliver them to the other dolls.

Have a wonderful weekend!

~Lisa

Felicity feeds the chickens....

2011-05-09T04:46:00.000-07:00

Random photo of the day: Gracie blogs in the tree!
Random Link of the day: Meet Marigold Finch!

As I stated before in a previous post, I will be doing a random photo and a random link from the blog, please let me know how you like it. I believe for those stumbling across the blog this will encourage you to explore the posts and see the history behind the Residents of Pumpkin Hill, the dolls and their lives here in the 'Patch.

Every morning, before beginning lessons at the Academy with Miss Ashton, all of the girls have their chores to do. Felicity's chore is feeding the chickens. This morning Felicity could only find one chick, which she thought was unusual. She had the feed pail with her full of chicken feed, but no chickens!
'Oh well, I will just feed this one, the others will flock here soon.' she thought, and began to scatter feed for the one lone chick. She didn't think anything of it , as the mother chick will sometimes hide in the wheat field.

Felicity finished feeding the chick who was quite greedy and gobbled up the feed she scattered, and then went to the kitchen. Miss Ashton was baking early in the morning, so lessons would begin when the girls had eaten their breakfast. Felicity hurried, as she was feeling quite hungry.

Felicity came in running...'Oh Miss Ashton, I couldn't find all of the chickens, so I just..........' she stopped at the smell of warm, apple pie on the table......'.....you baked PIE!' Becky was squealing beside Miss Ashton. This was indeed a treat, as it was breakfast, and Miss Ashton told them the pie must cool, but they could have a slice for a snack later.
~Lisa

The Dolls at Maymont Park...

2011-05-09T04:26:00.000-07:00

Random Picture of the day: Miss Ashton bakes a Pie!

Random link of the day:Miss Ashton at her Correspondence

With the blog of the dolls and their activities, I have took a great idea from one of my all time favorite dolly links- Our Dolls the residents of Pleasantville, and am going to be posting a random picture, and also a random link if possible here at the beginning of each post. This will encourage everyone to go thru the blog posts and enjoy more of the lives of the dolls who live here at the 'Patch on Pumpkin Hill.

The bjd's attended a meetup at Maymont Park, here in Richmond, Va on Saturday. Lots of things were going on in the city that day- a Susan G. Komen walk for breast cancer, an Asian food festival, and more. Gracie, April Mae, Dixie, and Wren all attended and we met up with the other members of Den of Angels bjd forum where the meetup was planned in the Japanese gardens. Please enjoy the pics!

Some of the girls brought their bjd's and lots of food!

Gracie on a rock near the pond, where the carp were swimming about. Behind her was where the meetup group had its picnic.

All too soon, we had to leave. It was quite a walk back up the hill.

This was the bottom of the fountain with steps on each side, up to the Italian gardens.

These are pictures of some of the fountains and the Italian gardens at Maymont Park. Maymont was once the estate of the Dooleys, who also owned Swannanoa in the mountains. Maymont was decorated with swans, as Mrs. Dooley used swans to decorate the home here in Richmond for the winter--even to having a Swan bed and vanity made! They also donated funds for St., Joseph's Villa. a home that exists for handicapped children, and orphans. I hope to visit Maymont again and take more pictures.

Gracie really enjoyed meeting the other dolls, and is wanting to go back for more visits....

~Lisa

A Doll Filled Day at Pumpkin Hill............

2011-05-07T15:56:00.000-07:00

*Note to Reader: Gracie will be moderating and writing the events on the blog today. Enjoy her advetures & story!*

Gracie is busily typing....(sound of keys on keyboard, rapidly typing...)

"Oh hi there! You started me. Yes, I'm up the tree. It's a beautiful day and I needed quiet. Dottie would not leave me alone in the schoolroom! And I have so much in the 'Patch to tell about today....I haven't recorded things as I should on the blog.'

Hops down from the tree,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Gracie motions..'C'mon, let's go into the house...you can help me carry my laptop up the steps.'

So sayng, we start walking towards the steps into the house....

Carefully Gracie climbs up the steps, placing her laptop nearby, and slinging her back with Mr. Socks in it over her shoulder, making the difficult ascent up the steps. "I'm sooooooo glad I wore sneakers today! Those Mary Janes would have hurt my feet!'she exclaims.

Carefully making sure Mr. Socks is in her lap, and Dottie is pre occupied with homework Miss Ashton has given, Gracie begins to type and tell her story, settled at her schooldesk.............

(Types Gracie.......)

The day started out nice enough..........Becky was up early as usual, and found Miss Ashton in the kitchen in the early morning! making pie!
No, I don't get up that early.........but (sigh) Becky does..............

Becky squealed. 'Miss Ashton! You made my favorite- APPLE PIE!' Becky shouted, so glad. Miss Ashton simply smiled calmly at Becky's excitement. 'WHY are you baking so early????"

"Why, I had some time this morning while you sleepy heads were sleeping...and besides, this morning is Saturday. My dearest friend Penelope sent me a new recipe". Miss Ashton placed the pie on the table to cool...

Becky smelled the spicey apple goodness, the pie was still warm from the oven. "Miss Ashton, can I have a slice of that cake for Breakfast?' she asked shyly..Miss Ashton's smile faded. "You most certainly may NOT. Why Rebecca , you know cake is not good for you -- and it certainly is not breakfast food!" (darn Becky thought...well, she IS baking PIE in the morning..........)

(Gracie typing..continues the story....) Meanwhile, at Strawberry Hill Manor, home of the tinies......more residents have arrived........

Two new tiny bjd's had arrived just in time for Miss Lisa's birthday, which was on May 1st. Dixie, Maizie, and Minuette Mouse had made preparations for them both. Leekeworld Rainy, and Realpuki Soso (Wren, who was to be Marigold Finch's Assistant with Finch Express) had been settling in and getting used to the 'Patch. Today they got reacquainted in the dollhouse. One of the problems for the tinies is having enough places to sleep, Wren had a small bed in the spare room, until her home she would share with Marigold was finished. Minuette had a small bed in the other attic room, but there was nowhere for the new guest from Leekeworld to stay. So Miss Lisa decided she would stay in the big house- Maison de la Royale- the The One Sixth Scale Dollhouse . Sleeping arrangements settled, Dixie and Maizie asked the new inhabitants of the 'Patch how they liked it.
'it's quite wonderful' Wren garbled, and ' such a large nest in the upper bedroom!' Marigold glowed with pride , and her feathers ruffled a bit. 'You are quite welcome! That is my nest but it is quite large. You are welcome to share it!' Thank you!' Giggled Wren...
Dixie asked the other guest how she was fitting in. The poor doll looked a little bewildered.'It is so pleasant here, and Minuette has made me feel so welcome..' Minuette beamed.
'You are welcome, but we haven't properly introduced you, and I know flying in on fairy dust is so hard, especially in the spring. The pollen is quite polluting the air so fairy dust takes longer to materialize...." said Minuette, sagely shaking her head. 'Everyone, please meet April Mae'..
'Wonderful to meet you!' Dixie said ' It is so nice to have another tiny here. Miss Lisa has talked all about you!' said Maizie........

Minuette walked towards the parlor door. 'why don't we all go downstairs and have some refreshments?' and she led the way, with the others following.

And with that, they all retired to the dining room, with pets included, and had strawberries, tea, and lemonade. Marigold sat on the back of Wren's chair, and everyone beamed.

Gracie types faster now.......

Sorry folks, but here I end for the day...it is time for supper, and I am enjoying my perch in the tree...and I will tell more about my day tomorrow!

~Lisa

Happy Birthday Lisa!

2011-05-01T04:05:00.000-07:00

Some of my divas in the One Sixth scale dollhouse got together and decided to wish me a Happy Birthday! This is an older picutre, but I consider it one of the best I ever did. My birthday is May 1st, and somehow dolls or doll related things have always come into play on my birthday. One of my pre birthday presents arrived a couple of days ago- Regal Solstice from the W club....

I haven't yet unboxed her, as I was saving her to open today later...I love her features, dress, and her accesories, she is so a mixture of Avant Guarde and the 50's of extravagance in fashion...her dress resembles one photographed by Cecil Beaton and the British designers of the time.

The tinies also got together and made me a cake...from Rement...lol

So many memories to make today....what a great birthday weekend!
~Lisa

Happy Easter from Pumpkin Hill!

2011-04-24T08:09:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter from the Residents of Pumpkin Hill!

The dolls at Pumpkin Hill have been busy, in preparation for Easter, and all its celebrations at the hill. Yesterday Felicity and Becky had fun gathering eggs, and dogwood branches to decorate the house. (I know they were probably secretly hoping to find candy in those eggs!)

Armed with baskets, they soon had some branches and lots of eggs gathered together!

On another note, Dottie & Gracie also set out seperately as well, and had great fun sitting in the grass...

Gracie insisted on wearing her Easter bonnet, and her Disney princess dress...she loves pink! She makes a sweet picture with her basket....

Dottie also looked adorable, in her sweet wizard of Oz dress and with her basket as well.

Marigold Finch, flew about sitting in the dogwood tree, waiting for Wren, (Realpuki Soso) to arrive, along with another tiny, Rainy to arrive....

Happy Easter from Pumpkin Hill!

~Lisa

Easter preparations with the Residents of Pumpkin Hill....

2011-04-22T05:02:00.000-07:00

*Note to readers: Gracie, our blogging assistant, agreed that she would blog this entry with permission from Miss Ashton during quiet study time at her desk. Since Miss Ashton is quite strict, Gracie needed a note- also promising that she wouldn't go on Facebook....lol!*

Hi Folks...yeah, that's me, Gracie here with my trusty laptop. I'm sorry I haven't blogged for the Residents of Pumpkin Hill for a while now. I've been busy with (grimace) Schoolwork! Miss Ashton has us in different classes, so Dottie & I are in the same class....

Dottie interrupts -"Gracie what are you doing? You're not on Facebook again are you?"
Gracie replied- "No Dottie! You know that Miss Ashton gave me permission during quiet time to do the blog entry for Miss Lisa!"
Dottie- "Oh. What are you doing for your art project?"
Gracie-"Dunno...let me get back to it Dottie..."

Gracie goes back to her computer..."Where was I ?" she said to herself, Dottie answered "Blogging!" Thanks muttered Gracie & began typing again...

The Residents of Pumpkin Hill are getting ready for both Spring and Easter, which is tomorrow....in this I'm helped with the assistance of my tiny assistant, Dixie....

Dixie blogs about the tinies in Pumpkin Hill, who live in the dollhouses all over Miss Lisa's house- and there are alot! Dixie has been busy with Maizie and Minuette Mouse, as we have two new Tinies coming to live here! But more on the new Residents in another entry- back to our preparations for Easter here at the 'Patch.

Felicity set to work cleaning the parlor, and setting out the tea things for tea lessons...polishing the silver, and setting out which tea cookies would look most scrumptous on the antique tea plates. Since Easter is special, she used the tea set from Japan that belonged to Mr,. Chris. Felicity was careful to dust the fireplace, and make sure the Silver chocolate pot shown.

Miss Ashton went outdoors to the front garden to look at the beautiful Spring day, and gather snowball blossoms from the Snowball bush to put about the tea room. She found some buttercups, which are some of her favorite wildflowers, and stopped to see if the buttercups were ready for picking. Filling her basket with flowers, she hurried back to put them in water.

Meanwhile, other residents of Pumpkin Hill joined Miss Ashton in the front garden...they were Miss Lisa's cats, who of course, are black cats. Sweetie Pie & June Bug. Here is Sweetie Pie near the pear tree. They were enjoying the day as well, and follow Miss Lisa all over the 'Patch when she is outside.

One of the Residents, Miss Annabelle, (reproduction French Fashion doll) she was attending to her correspondence at her desk after Marigold Finch had delivered alot of letters to her. She's a nice lady and I like her...she occasionally lives in the The One Sixth Scale Dollhouse with the other fashion dolls who live there. Annabelle is such a new resident of the 'Patch, hopefully more will be coming to her later. Marigold Finch delivers the mail for us here at Finch Express, and she is so excited because Wren, her assistant, will finally be arriving....

Marigold was making sure everything was in place to show Wren all about the 'Patch when she arrives...first she visited the deserted greenhouse...Wren loves plants, and the greenhouse will need a little bit of tidying up. Wren is a fairy who will be helping with the sorting of the mail, & Miss Lisa thought Wren and Marigold could use this greenhouse for sorting on sunny days, when the residents have alot of mail....

So Marigold went out into the garden when Miss Ashton did, and also flew to the dogwood tree to see outside, and check the mailbox. She could hardly wait for Wren to come. Miss Lisa took pictures of the lovely dogwood tree, so lovely in preparation for Easter, when we remember how Christ suffered for us & our sins.

Marigold had delivered a bunch of letters to Strawberry Hill, in their hallway, and finished her Thursday deliveries- there would be no mail delivery during Easter & Good Friday.

So that's what is going on here at Pumpkin Hill. There is alot of preparation here for Easter, Miss Lisa is getting good things ready for dinner on Sunday and sending out Easter cards. We haven't had our Easter egg hunt yet, but am hoping myself that we can before it rains! That's all for now-

~~~~HAPPY EASTER!~~~~

~Gracie

Let's Eat Cake!

2011-04-11T06:15:00.000-07:00

"Wow Miss Ashton- that is a delicious cake you made!Thankyou!" said Becky
"Thank you Dear, but I bought the cake!" said Miss Ashton. Becky was digging into the delicous cake.
"Where??" This is just our size!" exclaimed Becky.
"Why, from a little place on Etsy- the seller is Pumpkin Hill Studios and she makes cakes now and then. Very affordable! and such a treat for us dolls!" said Miss Ashton.

*NOTE: I am currently selling my doll cakes on Etsy, and will be listing more as they are completed. Cakes vary depending on amount of materials & detailling needed, and are in scales of 1:4 (14-17 inch dolls such as Ellowyne, Tyler, Gene) & 1:3 scales (17-24 inch dolls such as antique dolls, My Twnn, American Girl, SD & MSD bjd's,) Prices range from $9.99 & up. Please watch my Etsy store for more items listed for your creative doll scenes & settings and dioramas. *

Reading time at Tea with Miss Ashton

2011-04-09T17:30:00.000-07:00

It is last afternoon, Becky & Felicity's favorite time with Miss Ashton. This is the time they sit near the cozy fireplace, on cold or chilly evenings, with Miss Ashton and have tea & cakes, and read their favorite story. With the chilly evenings of spring, and since today it has been raining, they sit in the parlor nook and have tea. Miss Ashton has brought a book that she promised to read to the girls after tea & cakes.

Miss Ashton spoke. "Now girls, let's finish up your tea & cakes- we will begin our storytime if you are ready."

Becky was still not finished with her cake & cookies."Can I eat while you read Miss Ashton?"

"Haven't you finished dear?" Miss Ashton said surprised.

"Becky is a terrible pig! She took the last cupcake!" laughed Felicity. Miss Ashton was very grave suddenly in her demeanor. "Felicity, that is very rude to remark on someone's eating habits at table. Please apologize dear, I know you did not mean it except in jest." Felicity flushed quite red, and stuttered. "I was just joking! Becky always takes too many goodies at tea!" Miss Ashton suddenly was severe. "Felicity" was all she said.

"I'm sorry Becky." Felicity mumbled. Becky came to her friends rescue, feeling badly for Felicity- she was so right. "That's ok Lissie- I did take the last cupcake, and I didn't ask." Miss Ashton beamed. "That's my girls!"
"Now we are going to have our story. Is everyone ready for this one?" Miss Ashton asked

And so, Miss Ashton began to read the Tale of Peter Rabbit, while Becky & Felicity finished their tea & cookies quietly.

You may wonder why Miss Ashton was so stern with the girls at just a small threesome, and their manners. Tea & storytime was Miss Ashton's impromptu way of teaching manners and decorum to her pupils, along with manners which she found more and more important. And so, as they listened attentively to the tale of Peter Rabbit, Becky taking more cookies and Felicity smiling conspiratorily at her friend, the afternoon hour passed pleasantly as always on Pumpkin Hill.

~Lisa

Surprise lesson from Miss Ashton....

2011-04-07T04:51:00.000-07:00

As Miss Ashton promised Becky, she had a surprise that wasn't eggs, in her basket. Miss Ashton's surprise lessons are so enjoyed by the girls, they squealed with delight when they saw tiny chicks in the basket.
Dottie was the first, and the most shyest of the girls, so she got to hold one of the chicks first. "Hold her gently dear, she won't hurt you. " Dottie was pleased and very gently held the little newly born chick while Felicity looked on.
"Girls, we are going to talk of spring traditions and a little bit of Easter traditions as well today. So what are traditions or symbols of Easter or Spring that you think of first?" asked Miss Ashton

"EGGS!" said Gracie, "..that's how we got these cute little chicks!"

"Very good Grace. Are eggs also a symbol of Easter?" asked Miss Ashton.

Dottie spoke timidly. " Maybe eggs are what we think of at Easter because we gather them to decorate?? and chicks come from eggs??"
Miss Ashton was pleased, & quickly thought that her dearest Penelope was right in her advice in her letter. "Very good Dorothea!! You are correct on eggs are a symbol of Easter, and we do decorate them!"
Dottie was holding the chick, and so was Gracie. Becky & Felicity looked on fascinated. Becky asked" When will we decorate the eggs Miss Ashton?"

Miss Ashton had placed some items on the table. " Well girls, I thought today we would actually hold one of the symbols of Easter, and of spring, in our hands today. I have some easter dye kits so we can dye our eggs soon, maybe in art class after we learn how to gather the eggs, and boil them-- so that will beour spring art lesson. "
All the girls exclaimed- "Goody!" Becky squealed- "I love decorating easter eggs!" Miss Ashton smiled. " We have a few more things before the art lesson, but today I thought we would learn how chicks are hatched, "
"Miss Ashton, what are those books?" Felicity inquired.
"They are books on bunnies- another symbol of Easter. One is the tale of Peter Rabbit, and the others are about rabbits and mice as well. Rabbits or bunnies are another important symbol of Easter, so I thought we would have some nice stories about bunnies at reading time."
"We have a bunny, I have to feed him" Gracie said. and rolled her eyes
"No you don't, I feed him more," countered back Becky.
"Now, now girls, we all feed the buny." said Miss Ashton soothingly.

Miss Ashton bustled about the table, and prepared to open the storybook on Peter Rabbit."Now girls, you may hold the chicks while I read, but let's be quiet and we will have a short storytime before our art lesson"...and she began to read the tale of Peter Rabbit first.................................................

Later that evening......................

Miss Ashton wrote to her friend Penelope, in England....

April 5th, 2011

Dearest Penelope-
I hope this finds you and your family well, and in good health. I took your advice to heart, and just had to stop the day to day work and take a moment and thank you for your very sound advice. Dorothea (Dottie, as the girls call her) is beginning to come out of her shell and it such a joy to watch! You were so right to remind me of our schooldays and the teachings of Mademoiselle. Thank you again!
As to the school's progress...it is coming along. My order for the school supplies has arrived, so each young lady has an art supply kit, composition book for writing, writing tablet, and activity booklet as well. Two desks have arrived- they are used, but my school is on such a tight budget and it is so hard in this rural area finishing and refurbishing the schoolhouse which had been boarded up. I look forward to your next letter- Sincerely, Ashton Brown

Miss Ashton at her correspondence

2011-04-03T08:16:00.000-07:00

Now that Miss Ashton is home, and settling back in, she decided after the first part of the surprise lesson to attend to her correspondence since arriving from her trip to Paris & England, where she traveled with her dearest friend from her school finishing days, Penelope. Penelope lives in England, so Finch Express was busily sorting the letters as that correspondence needed attending to quickly.

Miss Ashton's study is one of her favorite places at the Academy, and only occasionally does she invite anyone in- so after picking some pear blossom for her favorite vase from Egypt, she settled down toread Penelope's letter and write her own reply, as Marigold Finch of Finch Express was waiting to send it.

Here is Penelope's letter to Miss Ashton-

March 28, 2011

Dearest Ashton-

Your visit sparked so many memories of our good times as young girls at Mademoiselle's! Do yu remember the tea where you spilt tea on his Lordship of Bath, & he asked you to the ball??I applaud your efforts of introducing to your pupils to the finer literature with one overall lesson- Mademoiselle would be proud! Yes, my dear mother has been under the weather recently. She is a terrible trial sometimes, my dear Ashton, but Mother can be SO trying. I foresee dearest Mother living with William & I, though William does not object, I know it is trying his patience.I would love to visit but I do not know when a steamer will be leaving. William may have to travel to London for his business. I cannot leave Mother at this time with her illness. I am hoping my sister, Ellen can stay with her if I decide to travel to see you. As to your newest pupil Dorothea, dearest Ashton, do not rush. Better to let the other girls welcome her in and draw her into conversations. Remember that girl at Mademoiselle's? She let her settle in on her own- she was so shy- just like your Dorothea. I must end my letter, regretfully dearest Ashton. All my love & friendship- Peneleop

Miss Ashton thought a moment before picking up her pen to reply. She noticed Marigold sitting on the letter tray. "Thank you Marigold for getting this letter to me so quickly, you do not know how much it means to me to hear from my dearest Penelope. " Marigold squeaked " Of course I do dear. Take your time writing your reply- it will go via Carrier pigeon tomorrow at the central drop off point in Pumpkin Hill'. "Thank you Marigold!" said Miss Ashton, and she began to write.

Here is Miss Ashton's letter for Penelope in England-

April 4, 2011

Dearest Penelope-

I have arrived safely home and it was such a surprise for the girls! Becky, one of my pupils, was so happy to see me- it brought a tear to my eye! I had thought of myself as just their teacher, but I am so much more, and it makes my heart glad. I must tell you, dear Penelope that with April coming I have planned my spring plantings and also the lessons for the girls. How is your dear Mother? You had mentioned whilst we were in Paris that she had some health problems. Please let me knowif there is anythinbg I can do. Thank you for sending my items from your home. I had left, I am such a goose for forgetting! My lessons are based this month & revolve around the Easter story & traditions, the coming of Spring, and all the lessons will encompass biology, history, grammar, arithmetic, and of course, the Easter Bible story as well. Thank you dearest Penny, for your very sound advice as to how to help my newest and dearest pupil, Dorothea, she is so very shy. I look forward to your reply! All my love & friendship- ~ Ashton Brown

After Miss Ashton had finished the letter, she was thoughtful. The rest off the surprise lesson would be with the rest of the ways, and she was thinking of how to draw Dorothea out ofher shell and to participate with the other girls in the lesson. Miss Ashton sighed- Penelope was right, Mademoiselle seemed to handle these little trials so much better than she herself did now.

Sighing regretfully, she stood up and blew out the candles on her desk. "Well, back to work. Thank you again, Marigold" and she left the room.

* I hope you have enjoyed getting to know Miss Ashton a little better, and also her refelective nature. Stay tuned for more on the surprise lesson which Miss Ashton has gone to work on preparing, as well as attending to her garden- it is too pretty to be inside, so she says today. To keep you enjoying this storyline today- here are some more pictures of Miss Ashton's study & her desk*
~ Lisa

The top of Miss Ashton's desk and pictures. The portait of her grandmother hangs above her desk. Pictures of the Madonna & Baby Jesus, and the Apostles also hang over her desk. The candlessticks are brass candlesticks, which sit on the candlestands. Marigold delivers the correspondence on her silver letter platter on top of her desk. The beloved vase she brought from her travels in Egypt is filled with pear blossom.

The interior of Miss Ashton's desk, and her letter to Penelope, just written today. A few more letters are put into the cubby holes, and extra stationary awaits more correspondence.
I hope you have enjoyed the pictures of Miss Ashton's study!

Miss Ashton- you're here!

2011-03-31T19:12:00.000-07:00

Becky was surprised when she saw Miss Ashton in the kitchen.

"Miss Ashton- you're back! When did you get back?? The others don't know you're here!" Becky said excitedly.

Miss Ashton put down the colander and hugged Becky. "I'm so glad to see you as well! It's supposed to be a surprise that I'm back! Give me a hug!"
"Miss Ashton, we have missed you so much!" Becky hugged her teacher. "Me too, darling, me tool" Miss Ashton said, smiling.

"We thought you might not come back....but oh, I'm so glad you did! I have loads of stuff to tell you!" cried Becky
Miss Ashton was surprised at this.

"Now what is this nonsense...me not coming back!!? Who told you such a thing? " Becky looked a little guilty."Oh no one, but you were gone so long....and, and we know how much you love to travel so, and see your friends. We thought you might like being there more than here..." Becky had a trembling lip as she stuttered this.

Miss Ashton smiled, and choked back a tear herself. " NONSENSE!" she exclaimed. "Becky Bailey, you & the other young ladies are my family...and so is the academy. And you're my friends as well! I had a nice little trip it is true, but I missed you all! And I understand one of the new girls is here as well...have you made her comfortable and welcome??"
"Why yes, Dottie is nice. But she won't go without that sock monkey ANYWHERE..." Becky rolled her eyes.
"Well, nevermind about that....aren't you going to ask me what's in my basket I brought in?"

Becky was all curious. " What is in it?? " Miss Ashton smiled. " Guess." Becky thought a minute. "Cookies!" "No, not cookies" Becky thought again....." Eggs??" Miss Ashton laughed, " No, ....but you are very very close!"

" Can I peep inside...before the other girls get here? " Becky asked.

"Of course dear....but don't tell! This will be our impromptu lesson ...a fun lesson.."said Miss Ashton

Stay tuned to see more of Miss Ashton's surprise in another episode of Pumpkin Hill. To learn more about Miss Ashton, be sure to click on our labels to the right of the blog page called Residents of Pumpkin Hill.

(Miss Ashton is a 23 inch 2001 My Twinn doll, that has had alot of TLC.Dress and pinafore were by Ebay seller Dollandbabytreasures . (highly recommend, this item was shipped quickly to make this post possible ahead of schedule)

~Lisa

Let's Eat!

2011-03-30T19:06:00.000-07:00

So the dolls are slowly getting items collected for their kitchen in gear, it is just a matter now to set up the kitchen. So far we have Molly's table & chairs from americangirl.com out of packing, and little items I have collected from my travels to antique or thrift stores. The small bowl is from Williamsburg, the plates are $1 finds from Michaels, and the small white cream pitcher and little blue & white trinket box- I have always had them. The coffee pot was a great find, and the graham cracker box is from paperminis.com newsletter. Becky is so glad the kitchen is coming together after all this time-

This is the top of the fridge, vintage Wolverine, and some of the other doll sized finds. The peeler thingy is from World Market store, the frying pan on the wall is from Cracker Barrel, the mixer is a find from my favorite antique store- same place I picked up the coffeepot & the colander is from a bargain store.

The baskets came from Hobby Lobby, haven't found anything to put in them as of yet. It needs a little rug, and of course a stove, which hopefully will come in time. Enjoy the pics!
* I am still working on the characters of Pumpkin Hill....more characters will be coming soon, and the storylines as well as soon as I have props in place and a place to take pics. *

*Pumpkin Hill Towne News-from Gracie, our Governess- The dolls are taking a sabbatical until Easter, so Pumpkin Hill Academy is currently closed, while Lent & Easter are observed. *

~Lisa

The Residents of Pumpkin Hill...

2011-03-27T15:47:00.000-07:00

I am going to be adding and editing this post- as this will be the main archival post of the inhabitants of Pumpkin Hill. Each of the dolls will have her/his bio here, or the central and main characters will, at any rate. I hope you enjoy the storylines.

Felicity Anne Merriman

Felicity hails from the town of Williamsburg, and lives in Pumpkin Hill now with her best friend Becky. She is 11 years old and quite the proper Colonial young lady- however, she loves to ride horses and most of all- bake cookies ! Felicity is a helpful girl and feels badly when her friends are sad, or hurt- a peacemaker of sorts. She is still new to Pumpkin Hill and its other residents, so is somewhat shy. She is excited to be able to attend the prestigous Pumpkin Hill Academy, a finishing school for young ladies.

~More about Felicity later~

Rebecca Lou Bailey

Rebecca Lou Bailey, also known as Becky to her friends, recently arrived at Pumpkin Hill, like her friend Felicity, to attend Pumpkin Hill Academy. She was accepted and is eager to go to the school, but apprehensive at meeting the new girls as well. Becky is a little headstrong, for an 11 year old and has her own ideas, but is quite decisive when she forges ahead with one of her projects. Becky's favorite food is apples, whether in pie, cake, ice cream, candy, or just plain apples off the apple tree. She loves helping in the kitchen, but especially loves to sing and is quite musical.

~More about Becky later~

"Gracie" Lisa's blogging doll assistant

Gracie's birthday is December 9, 2010...we celebrate her birthday on that day because that is the day she arrived all the way from Korea via Denver Doll Emporium. Unlike Becky & Felicity, who are American Girl dolls, Gracie is an asian ball jointed doll, created by Souldoll. Gracie is our main 'go to' doll here at Pumpkin Hill, and works with one of the Brownies who also assists her by letting her know what goes on in the tiny domains of Pumpkin Hill- also known as the miniature dollhouses & their inhabitants- but more on her assistant Dixie later. Gracie is about 12 years old, and loves to browse the internet and give Lisa pointers on her blogging. Very bossy, sometimes impatient, but is also quite reflective. She also helps Marigold Finch with the correspondence at her elaborate desk, and also likes to dress up, with different wigs and clothes. There is much , much more to tell about Gracie- she also loves to travel and often goes out for the day with Lisa just to see the sights. Gracie is a star pupil at Pumpkin Hill Academy and mentors the 'new' girls or dolls when they arrive for registration.

Dixie, AKA Gracie's tiny assistant

Meet Dixie, a Felix Brownie asian ball jointed doll. Dixie is quite tiny, only four inches high, and keeps Gracie & Lisa informed of all the goings on in the dollhouse section of Pumpkin Hill. She is a major blogger, and with her tiny laptop and assisted by Mr. Teddie, she keeps the flow of the incoming tiny dolls somewhat sane.Dixie is Gracie's very tiny assistant. Brownies are a type of fairy that is helpful, and Dixie is a big help in a very small way at the 'Patch here on the hill. She too is bossy (I think this comes with the miniature laptop computers these dolls have) and loves the color PINK. She is an investor in Minuette Mouse's candy & sweet shop and frequently visits there so Marigold Finch of Finch Express can get the tiny correspondence to her quickly. She is also impulsive, curious and very smart.

More on Dixie later.

Minuette Mouse

Minuette Mouse is also a doll, but is an asian ball jointed 'anthro' doll. She stands almost five inches high. Minuette came to Pumpkin Hill to start her own candy shop, also selling sweets and ice cream, with the financial backing of her cousin, who lives in Florida, who prefers to remain unnamed. Since the shop is a family affair, Minuette lives with Maizie and Dixie in the dollhouse known as Strawberry Hill Manor, and runs the sweet shop across the way. She is highly successful and the Finch Express does constant pickups and drop offs of packages that leave the shop and are delivered. Minuette simply loves to cook, and nothing suits her better than developing a new candy or a new pastry in the kitchen. Extremely successful, her waitresses are dressed like mice and work shifts.

~More on Minuette later~

Maizie-

Maizie is also a Felix Brownie asian ball jointed doll, just like Dixie and arrived with her. She too, is just barely four inches high and full of spunk. Though somewhat shy, and something of a follower of Dixie, Maizie loves to ride her bike to Minuette's sweet shop and gorge on ice cream. She also 'helps' Minuette when a new cookie or cake is being created as well. Maizie loves to play, and takes care of the numerous dogs and cats in Strawberry Hill Manor, but has absolutely no interest in helping Dixie with the blogging. She also dislikes school intensely and finds school and books boring...

~More on Maizie later~

Marigold Finch, of 'Finch Express' - Postal & delivery carrier of Pumpkin Hill

Meet Marigold, our resident Finch mail carrier of Finch Express. Marigold assists in delivering the correspondence, and small packages to the doll residents of Pumpkin Hill. Gracie & Dixie, our resident bloggers, also help her as well. This is the main 'drop' box, for Marigold, outside of Minuette's sweet shop, and her favorite place to hang out and hear all the gossip. She reaides in her next in one of the rooms of the dollhouse Strawberry Hill Manor, and her fairy assistant, Wren, will be arriving soon to help her by covering teh letters with fairy dust so she can fly quicker. Marigold likes to sing songs, and also likes to assist Gracie with 'tweets' on Twitter. Marigold is a custom artisan bird made by miniature artisan Patricia Cabrerea of Woolytales Miniatures. She measures about 2 inches high.

Miss Ashton Brown~ Schoolteacher & Headmistress of Pumpkin Hill Academy

Meet Miss Ashton Brown, schoolteacher & temporary headmistress of Pumpkin Hill Academy, the prestigious school she started on a plantation farm. Miss Ashton had an unusual and sophisticated education, but alas, never married. Her parents,however believed in culture and the arts and as a result, Miss Ashton did the Grand Tour with her family, was received into society and had her debut. She excelled in school, and went on to study languages and the arts in England, France & Italy. Miss Ashton was highly influenced by a chance meeting with Florence Nightingale and even considered becoming a nurse because of her meeting with that notable lady- but decided that young girls, especially those who were less fortunate, might benefit more from education. Her ideas were scoffed at and so she raised funds and started a school with funds from her savings, having a building built that would house her school as well as a small apartment for herself so she could monitor the young ladies closely. Miss Ashton inspires the girls to always keep learning, which they do.
Age:29
favorite instrument- piano
favorite pastime- writing letters to her friends

*I will be adding more doll bios later, but this is mainly to give you a synopsis of the characters and their individual personalities as they participate in the various photo stores coming along. * enjoy!~Lisa

Coming soon- in the upcoming months-

Pumpkin Hill Academy

NewThings happening in the Pumpkin Patch...on the Hill

2011-03-26T05:48:00.000-07:00

New things will be happening inthe Pumpkin Patch, here on Pumpkin Hill. For one, my main girls decided to band together. On American Girl Playthings forum many of the participants write about their dolls, their dolls' personality, characters, and more with in depth story lines. Well, my crew wanted to get in on the act. So I will be creating a Doll Dossier with the story behind the dolls who live here, and the main storyline.

It has long been my intention to explain a little more of the Pumpkin Patch, or Pumpkin Hill. Each of the dolls has her own personality, whether developed totally by me or as in the case of the American Girl dolls, their characters are based on a historical character. For the AG playthings forum however, only these dolls will be featured- Becky Bailey (originally Rebecca Rubin, American Girl)Gracie (Soulkid Katie A. bjd), Dottie (Goodereau Wizard of Oz bjd) and Felicity Merriman (American Girl) Eventually, they will be attending Pumpkin Hill Academy, a finishing school for young ladies. The dolls were excited about this and decided to have cookies to get to know each other.

Do you like Cookies Dottie? my name is Felicity Merriman. "Why yes I do. That cupcake looks yummy." "What is your sock monkey's name? " Toto, I don't have a REAL Toto, so I never go anywhere without sock monkey Toto.."

"My name is Gracie, what is yours? "Uh, Becky Bailey is what the human has decided....she says I'm supposed to go to school with you & the others????" Gracie laughs. " Don't be worried, you'll like it here in the Pumpkin Patch? "Pumpkin Patch????what kind of ladies school is that-- are we going to grow pumpkins????" Becky is worried. "No, of course not. Pumpkin Hill Academy will be our school's name, simply because it is here in Pumpkin Hill. Miss Lisa (the human) calls it the 'Patch for short, as a joke." Becky frowns, and says"Oh, ok. I guess that will make sense later?" Gracie smiles. "Don't worry- Miss Lisa is always worried we wouldn't get along, since all of us are so different."

The dolls seem to be getting along, and enjoyed their cookies, and were looking forward to more about their doll dossier. Stay tuned for more!

~Lisa

A special day at Pumpkin Hill...

2011-03-09T04:57:00.000-08:00

March 9th, 2001....is a special day for me here in the Pumpkin Patch. This is the day my husband Chris & I were married, ten years ago. I still have special memories of that day, as does Chris, & our wedding we planned together. Pictured above are two photos from our wedding pictures. Shoes have long been one of my passions, and the pictured shoes above were from Peter Fox of New York...the bouquet was designed by me, and created for me by Coleman brothers. It was huge! pink roses, baby's breath, lily of the valley, and blue ribbons (color blue symbolized loyalty). My dress was a simple dress, so the bouquet which was so large would be more dramatic- the bouquet went from underneath my chest down to the hem of my gown. I did not wear a veil, as this was both of our 2nd weddings, but only a tiara headpiece, from Swarvorski. The comical picture at right is of me changing my shoes into gingham Tommy Hilfiger sneakers so I would not get my wedding heels dirty...
It is hard to believe it is 10 years later...and every day has been bliss with my husband. Even the dolls have found a way to celebrate for us....

Ellowyne made a celebratory wedding cake for us....

And here is my W Club, High Tide Vanessa, posing in wedding attire with my tiara....and pieces from my 1:6 scale Bespaq...
I hope everyone enjoys the pictures!
~Lisa

Meet Marigold Finch- of Finch Express..

2011-03-08T05:13:00.000-08:00

Things have been so busy here at the Pumpkin Patch on the Hill. With moving our shop inventory back home, displays, packing up miniatures, and trying to create items in the chaos, I have had no time to introduce our newest member at the Patch- Marigiold. One reason was I very particular about the story of Marigold, which was inspired by Tasha Tudor's 'Sparrow Post'. Here in King William county where I live, however, finchs abound all over the fields, our yard, and reside in the trees. They are quite small and perfect, a variety of little birds that are quite friendly. When I came up with the idea of my own 'Sparrow Post' I did not want to necessarily copy Tasha's idea and thought of Finches- hence, Finch express. The dolls needed a friendly little postal person, not necessarily another doll, to deliver their correspondence.
Another inspiration of the bird was the little bird from Stuart Little, who he goes in search for when she runs away. So Marigold Finch came about- with the masterful sculpting skills of Patricia Carabera of WoolyTales Miniatures who was pleased to send our little bird. She came with a little mailpouch and cap, but currently before taking on her duties as delivery of news both written & verbal to the dolls, she is settling into her home. I placed her nest, a find from a craft store, in the spare room of Strawberry Hill where the tinies are currently living. Marigold's room was originally the train room set up in the dollhouse, hence the clouds and background painted on the walls. I haven't yet stacked books and letters about her next, since she is a packrat- and likes to save letters that are 'lost'. The above pictures are of her in her nest, in her new room and on the back of the chairs in the dining room.

She likes going to Minuette's sweet shop and looking down on the customers, and getting to know her 'route'....

Her main place of pickup is the antique post office box next to Minuette's shop, we haven't decided the times she should pickup as of yet...

She also likes to make friends with the current residents of Pumpkin Hill, hence one of our new residents, Happy. He was quite 'happy' to meet Marigold, and likes to receive news of the other dwarves.
I will be including Marigold alot more on the stories when our new tinies arrive- Marigold's co-hort will be a RealPuki Soso from Fairyland by way of Denver Doll Emproium. The patch will be overrun soon with Tinies, but the Realpuki Soso, whose name will be Wren, will be Marigold's fairy assistant and help make sure that the correspondence is sorted correctly and packed well for delivery. (Marigold has wings, but no hands) I will probably put a little bed in Marigold's room for Wren. Marigold & Wren will be our postal system team at Pumpkin Hill...

Until later, Marigold says 'Have letters, will fly!"

~Lisa

My items on Pumpkin Hill Studios at Etsy

2011-03-06T04:53:00.000-08:00

I have begun to sell some of my items on Etsy. Pumpkinhill Studios on Etsy is where I have been posting my new handmade artisan items. Currently I am working on more, but I now have a 1:4 scale wedding cake for Ellowyne or Gene, as well as a 1:3 scale Lemon cake for American Girl, as well as some 1:6 scale items.
I will be working on replicating more 1:6 scale items, that in the works. Please visit my Etsy shop for more of my artisan scale creations!~Lisa

New resident in the Pumpkin Patch...

2011-03-02T19:22:00.000-08:00

We have a new resident at Pumpkin Hill...meet Annabelle, my french fashion doll, a reproduction 12 inch fashion poupee. She is a reproduction Francois Gaultier mold, on a Seeley body. I have always wanted one of these dolls, ever since I studied about them when I was twleve or thirteen or so. They were so fascinating! These dolls were the original 'Barbie' of the 1850's to the 1890's and the best, the creme de la creme of these dolls were French.
I loved the book A is for Annabelle by Tasha Tudor, and decided this little beauty by Sylvia Butler of Tarhill Studios would be perfect for my Annabelle. She has such a sweet face, glass eyes, and pearl earrings. I hope to do more sewing for her- as of today I finished her negligee taken and modified from a Gildebrief pattern. I think the simplicity I used on this gown /wrapper was better than what I saw, it accents her face mold more, and compliments the furniture props of Bespaq about her.
We will probably be having more residents come to live at the pumpkin patch, but more on them when they arrive later!
Lisa

Miniature creations done today....

2011-01-27T15:42:00.000-08:00

Down at the Pumpkin Patch Today I stayed home from the shop because of the icey road conditions....and created. There is a perfect feeling of tranquility when you work steadily and bring a piece to completion after you come up with the idea, see it, & create it. Hence, my miniature horse pull toys. The horses are mini whinny Breyer horses, repainted and maned. The larger horse has a braided pull string, and the tiny one has a pull string with beads on it. The larger one may be a little large for 1:12 scale, but works with my tiny Brownie bjd, Dixie. She couldn't resist playing with them...

These little darlings have given me all sorts of ideas, miniature carosel horses, or jungle animals, etc. I really enjoyed making them today, and it is so good to get my artist side back to me, the shop & other things have been personally draining these last few months. I hope to create some more items, especially with the paperclay.

~Lisa

New pics of the One Sixth Scale Dollhouse..Lucia reporting...

2011-01-15T05:43:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone. Yesterday I took some new picsof the One Sixth Scale dollhouse with my new phone, and they are great! Lucia, the indollhouse administrative assistant to the Baroness, or Agnes, has decided to take over reporting on the dollhouse for this posting...lol....

Hello Everyone, and glad to be taking over writing on this blog entry for Lisa. My name is Lucia, & I am the administrative assistant for the Baroness, Agnes. I oversee the day to day duties of the One Sixth Scale Dollhouse, so I thought I would give Lisa a break. She just acquired a new cell phone which has a much better camera than her actual camera! Here I am at work with my laptop in my home office.

Keeping the blog updated plus all of the administrative duties is alot of work, 24/7!But let's get onto the new pictureso f the dollhouse, which are much better than the old ones. The dollhouse is still residing in the window of Lisa's shop, King William Miniatures. We have had so many people enjoy the dollhouse, they are simply amazed that fashion dolls could live such a luxurious life...and why not? we were the first ones to acuiqre miniature cars, wardrobes, homes, you name it. That reminds me, I need to order the paint to paint our garage...Ken & the other men in the manor have been bugging me they have no man cave...

I hope you have enjoyed the new sharper images of the dollhouse. Not only that, but yesterday one of the arrangements was to bring home the Mt.Vernon replica home from its display spot in the library of Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, where we were assured it was a hit! Though the shop is closing at the end of January, Lisa is very glad her collection & work has brought so much happiness to everyone at the holidays.
~More coming soon on the one sixth scale dollhouse when it moves to its new home at Lisa & Chris' doll room. ~Lucia

A is for Annabelle...

2011-01-10T13:44:00.000-08:00

My 'A is for Annabelle' book by Tasha Tudor arrived today in the mail. The book is an alphabet book, and many French fashion doll clubs & artists have made or reproduced the doll, which was based on Tasha's great greandmother's fashion doll, which she called Melissa Shakespeare. The illustrations are so clear, and the patterns are quite easy to buy or replicate. The doll pictured above is like one I am thinking of getting- I have always wanted a Lady Jumeau or a Huret doll. They measure about 12 inches high and in the 1800's the elite place to buy dolls & their creme de la creme accessories was Paris. I purchased the book so I could have an idea what kind of accessories to do for my Annabelle when she comes. I am already working on a crocheted shawl- it has been so long since I crocheted it isn't funny. I think the last time I crocheted lace was when I was either twelve or thirteen for my dollhouse dolls.

The organizing of the shelves is coming along, slowly. I may change the doll & cottage arrangement on this last shelf. The plastic shelves are ones I purchased a few years ago at BJ'S when they were dirt cheap, hence the crayola colors. Right now, they will do because I wouldlike to totally repaint and floor the room. I have alot more Barbies in the box and out that need to go on the shelves, so some downsizing of the larger dolls will be in order. I also did some photographingof Strawberry Hill Manor, my front opening dollhouse the penny wooden dolls live in, it needs to be organized more, I have so many minis that would look great in it. I have more work to do on this house, it needs windows.
Be sure to check out my flicker album for Strawberry Hill Manor dollhouse pictures. I have also uploaded some new pics of new Rement as well as my A Doll a Day 2011 project as well. This is one fun photo project to do, and the groups' rules are relaxed & don't have alot of hard core rules like the date has to be on the picture, if you miss a day you miss it, blah blah. If you like to take photos of your dolls, then this is a great group, on Flicker, I encourage you to join.
~Lisa

A place for everything...& everything in its place...

2011-01-09T03:31:00.000-08:00

One of the promises, I made for myself this year was teh cleaning of the 'display', room. Picture to the right is sad, isn't it. Thus is the packrat nature of being a miniaturist & doll collector- you hardly ever throw anything away. lol. Yesterday I did, to create a path to walk in. The large house with no windows is a yard sale find that I have off & on revamped, it houses the reproduction penny wooden dutch dolls in my collection made by the late Fred Laughon, who lived here in Va. Most of the boxes contain, fabric, craft supplies by the score, my wool for needlepoint projects, and so on. I have lots to organize, and spent my valuable time finally getting this organized. Not shown in this room are the shelves, which are also being re organized so my fashion dolls can be displayed better as well. I will be bringing home severeal dollhouses from the shop after it closes, so I need to make room.

On another note, my A Doll A Day Project 2011 in my Flicker album is going well. Didn't know I had so many dolls. Most recent was a photo of an adorable little 8 inch Madame Alexander doll that I received when I was about six or seven, she was my very favorite. My mother would buy them for me for the astronomical price of a whopping $8!!! which she would save up from her tips as a waitress all those years ago, and they were bought at the Westover Five & Dime store. I loved that place as a child. If dolls could be bought for $8 I would probably buy one every day. There she is in the picture above.

I am still making my list of projects that I want to accomplish this year as far as the dolls. Number one is to finish the kitchen in the The One Sixth Scale Dollhouse & also work on the garage- Ken & his buddies want to make it their man cave. lol. Another project I would also like to do is redo my very first dollhouse my dad made for me when I was nine- it was built on a scale of 1 1/2 inch to the foot- using the little doll above as his 'scale'...I was thinking of making it a home for my Tiny bjd's - the Felix Brownies, my anthro mouse bjd, and the PukiFee I want to get as well. So many dolls, so little time....lol

~Lisa

Happy New Year..and a New Year's Resolution

2011-01-03T15:37:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone. A little late, but this year, I rang in the new year with a very bad flu/cold bug. So I wasn't exactly ringing in the new year feeling too sporty, lol.

But, I did make a new year's resolution- a Doll a Day 2011 project! Here in my A Doll a Day 2011 flicker album, I have started my project, and hope it will continue.

Happy New Year! ~Lisa

Sesame Street - Two Little Dolls(better copy)

2011-01-02T12:37:00.000-08:00

This was one of my most favorite videos on Sesame street as a kid, you could say I have always wanted this dollhouse. Thought it would be fun to post here- I finally found it on Youtube!

Lisa

It's A Goodereau kind of Christmas....

2010-12-23T08:41:00.000-08:00

It's a Goodereau kind of Christmas! On one of my many yahoo groups I belong to, Allbjdswelcome, Paulette Goodereau of Goodereau dolls, was giving away imperfect bjd's from her company for people who wished to redress, or repaint them...wow, what a Christmas present. I have been longing for a doll that I could repaint, and so on the 21st of this year Dottie from the Oz series arrived from Paulette, dressed in her adorable sparkle boots and gingham dress. It wasn't really looking as too great of a Christmas this year due to finances, it has been very tight and stressful this year. This little lady was a wonderful uplift, and Paulette is tops, a real Christmas angel. I am hoping to make her into an exquisite 18th century lady, maybe her dress will be white like Gracie's...and a poufy white wig restyled in the 18th century style. I love her faceup, and skin tone, which will look like one of the Vigee leBrun paintings from that era.
I am wishing everyone a Merry Christmas- and hope to have some pics of the dolls enjoying Christmas morning if I can manage it!

Merry Christmas & Have a Happy New Year!~Lisa

Felicity and Rebecca walk in the snow...

2010-12-17T10:32:00.000-08:00

We've had alot of snow here in Virginia, especially on Pumpkin Hill. The dolls were very excited, especially my American Girls. Gracie was busy trying on some new Christmas sweaters I bought her - Christmas ornaments, so she wasn't really interested in going walking in the snow. But Felicity and Rebecca were!

I thought the pics turned out wonderful, especially with the snow against the colorsof their holiday outfits. Enjoy!~Lisa

Dania Zarr Lady In Waiting...

2010-12-03T10:49:00.000-08:00

Dania Zarr, Lady in Waiting club doll arrived yesterday, so I pulled out some props to play. She is one of the most striking dolls besides Luchia that I have. The picturesthe W Club sent when we pre ordered did not do this doll justice. Her hair is so gorgeous! Wish I had hair this lovely!

Chair is one of the wingchairs, Red Dragon, that I designed for my shop exclusive (now sold out) for King William miniatures & Collectibles, & manufactured by Bespaq. Mirrors are created & designed by Jim Coates, of Jim Coates Miniatures on Ebay. Floor was a large placemat thingy from Pier 1.

I love this doll! She's probably going to be one of my favorites!

Happy Thanksgiving from Pumpkin Hill Studios!

2010-11-25T05:13:00.000-08:00

We wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!

Felicity wishes everyone a plentiful & tasty meal!

The dolls in the OneSixthScaleDollhouse are also have a tasty Thanksgivng meal as well.

And Gracie here is starting her Christmas correspondence, or rather, telling me to get those holiday cards out!

Everyone here at Pumpkin Hill Studios on the Hill is getting ready for Thanksgiving & so are the dolls!

I hope everyone has a safe & Blessed Thanksgiving Day!~Lisa