Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Dedicating remembrance Edith Flack Ackley



Edith Flack Ackley Wengenroth Born : June 6, 1887 t o November 28, 1970
residence: Greenport, Suffolk, NY
Edith Flack Ackley a legend now and in her own time.
Dedicating remembrance here on my blog to my favorite cloth doll maker Edith Flack Ackley a cloth doll designer and maker. Inspiration to cloth doll-makers now, past, and future generations yet to come.


Edith Ackley has inspired so many artists/dollmakers since the publication of her first books and patterns. Edith's dolls and patterns have their very own extremely distinctive style ,
Even yet today 70 years later...this special woman and her dolls, and patterns still hold their extremely distinctive style
I first discovered her when purchasing her
My good friend Linda Johnson, also introduced me to her own EFA dolls that she created,
Miniature Edith Flack Ackley Twin Cloth Dolls -- Only 4 Inches!
Sara Cole's EFA dolls...
here is a nice web site that will give you all kinds of info about the designer and her wonderful dolls http://www.ragdollroom.com/
EDITH FLACK ACKLEY, Wife , Mother , Designer , Teacher , Pattern Designer, Author , of several books and magazines
"Paper Dolls, Their History and How to Make Them"
"Dolls to Make for Fun and Profit"
"A Doll Shop of Your Own"
"Holiday Cards For You to Make"
"How to Make Marionettes"
'For a Little Girl's Christmas', from the 1934 Woman's Home Companion magazine
Just think about it ... dollmakers from young ones just learning to sew and creating their very first cloth dolls, to young ones at age of eighty using her designs for more than 70 years!! EFA dolls are still going strong , showing no sign of slowing down !
From Edith " quote"I have had in mind those women in homes all
over the country, who like to sew and make things and
who would like to earn a little extra money".
from A Doll Shop Of Your Own, p. ix"
Her dolls on any given day or holiday are always sooo very special, EFA dolls are one of my personal favorite dolls to create, Each new year I create a new special holiday EFA Doll... It has become a family tradition,
My EFA dolls are not always created for Christmas, but for all holidays and even special family events,
I create EFA dolls through out the year for pure enjoyment , relaxation ,
Great place to get your own EFA patterns

Monday, November 27, 2006

Foster-A-Soldier if you'd like to send a package


Please pray for our troops and their loved ones

http://www.treatsfortroops.com/


Mike Gallagher asked us to make it super easy for you to send a package and make a soldier smile. So all you have to do is click here to go to Mike's Page.Our Gift Shops are filled with treats that are sure to put a smile on a soldier's face. You'll find a wide range of ready to send packages in Gifts To Go, or you can choose from hundreds of individual items in the shops on Market Street and put your own package together.Visit Foster-A-Soldier if you'd like to send a package, or just go shopping if you already know your soldier's address or TFT ID.Thanks for visiting Treats for Troops, and supporting America's men and women in uniform.


Thank you very much for the gift, it meant a lot to receive something like that


Lets ALL send a little some thing to OUR Men and Women


Thank you for your support and thoughtfulness; it added a bright spot for me and my soldiers during a holiday season away from home. The support from Americans like yourself truly means alot to a deployed American soldier in a foreign country. It really means a great deal to receive a friendly message and some treats to share. Thank you. ”
LanceU.S. Army

"It just blew me away that a complete stranger to be so kind to send the things as you did.

Our Troops are far away.... Far Away from their Home land, Far Away from their Friends, Families, Jobs, Their Far Away ! BUT NOT Far Away from OUR hearts and prayers.

Their defending OUR FREEDOM, OUR USA, Look at the pictures their all so young

PLEASE pray for them all every day, PLEASE give of your self, give of your own family

Send a gift for Christmas, Send a gift for no reason at all, Just to let them know we support them, We are thinking of them

God Bless You

Thank You Sherrie

Sunday, November 26, 2006

RUSSIAN PUNCHNEEDLE EMBROIDERY

This is what I am working on right now, it is a Christmas gift..The pattern is by:By MeMe's Cottage Collection
Approx. 5 3/8" x 6 1/8
RUSSIAN PUNCHNEEDLE EMBROIDERY
Punch stitchery, sometimes called Russian Punch Embroidery is an oldtimer! It got the Russian Punch name when someone learned about the Russians using this needlework for their clothing decorations, and believed that's where it started.
But Punch Embroidery of any kind, no matter what name it is called by, began long before the Russians began using this needlecraft.
History researched at the University of Michigan Library takes us back to the 15th century when "punch stitch" as it was called in the beginning, was used mainly for decorating religious vestments, and by men who used it for punching rugs while on long sea voyages from port to port.
It began as a yarn craft, and remains a yarn craft for most punchers,though some 'yarns' look more like embroidery floss in a finished design.A wall hanging punched in 1675 with crewel yarn exists today in a private collection!!
Fine gauge acrylic, lusters and polyester yarns are used extensively for Punch Needle Stitcheryand look very delicate when finished, and is easier to use without constant re-threading.

Did you know

Stuffing your cloth doll with wool, cotton, or rags gives the doll anolder feel when it is picked up or handled. These dolls will feel quite different from those stuffed with polyester fiberfill.

2. Sanding your doll with the finest grade of sandpaper after stuffing her gives a worn look and feel.Be careful not to sand through the fabric (unless that is the effect you want).

3. For Aged Look (Recipe 2)These directions apply to 100% cotton fabrics. Here is the recipe I use: 1 ½ c. warm tap water (thats 1 and 1/2 cups) ½ c. instant coffee3-4 tbsp. Vanilla extract (takes the coffee away, some like the smell it gives to the dolls)bring to a almost boil . Add the fabric or doll pieces.Now let it steep for approximately 5 - 20 minutes, or until it is the desired darkness.
( preheat oven to 225 degrees. ) Line a large cookie sheet with paper towels or an old dishtowel.
When the fabric is desired color, (it will look darker when wet) gently squeeze out excess, jus t so it’s not dripping. Crumple loosely and lay on cookie sheet crumpled. Place in oven and watch closely. Check on it every 10 minutes or so. Every so often, recrumple the fabric and change directions. Dry until you have the desired streakiness. After dry, steam press with iron to remove excess wrinkles.( Put down an old towel to protect your ironing surface.)
I stitch all pieces and dye body before stuffing. Clothing I also stitch and then dye, so the stitching thread will also be dyed.

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

what you are doing for Thanksgiving

Hi All !!!!!! "Happy Thanksgiving" , Was wondering what you are doing for Thanksgiving ? Thanksgiving and it's Traditions are my favorite holiday of all....Thinking on wonderful memories from our own childhoods through the wonderful years when our kids were small, I think about Gene and I , Our 37 yrs of being together , sharing our many firsts and still am so Thankful...This year we have started a New Thanksgiving Tradition ! Yepperswill have the Christmas Tree up and Decorations out, (Well at least those I didn't pack away for our move that is)any ways after Thanksgiving is over, and our tummys are full, sipping on eggnog or munching on pie,we will then light the tree!!Just as Thanksgiving and Traditions are, I am so looking forward to this Thanksgiving ., Making again wonderful memories and laughs, and pictures, yeppers and eating !!!I was asked what our Thanksgiving Traditions were, So here goes...Nothing way out there, The most important of all Is family and friends all being together , as in every day always being Thankful..for our family and friends..... Just yesterday I went and bought every thing we need for our Thanksgiving Dinner,I have started cooking my pumpkin pies today..I do every thing from scratch for Thanksgiving and Christmas,I am making six pumpkin pies, and 2 pecan pies, We will eat two and the rest get sent home with the kids, Bought a 23 pound Turkey who is thawing as I write, I wanted a fresh Turkey (we usally have a fresh one) But I was late in putting in my order, so had to buy a frozen one... Okay here is ourThanksgiving Tradition Menu:Get up extra earlie to get the ole Turkey in the oven!! Then: Start the Day with turning on "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" Then start cooking!!!!!Turkey with Regular Herb Dressing,and also Oyster Dressing, Cooked cranberrys, Fresh Fruit salad with REAL whip cream, Fresh Yams ... yeppers cooked with brown sugar, real butter, and topped with marsh-mellows, Real mashed potatoes, Hot Yeast Rolls, Turkey gravy, Fresh Peas, Corn on the cob,May you have a Blessed "Happy Thanksgiving" Much Love Sherrie

Friday, November 17, 2006

PONDERISMS*

PONDERISMS*
I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of natural causes.

Gardening Rule: When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant.

The easiest way to find something lost around the house is to buy a replacement.

Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.

There are two kinds of pedestrians: the quick and the dead.

Life is sexually transmitted.

Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth.

Some people are like Slinkies. Not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you see one tumble down the stairs.

Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.

Have you noticed since everyone has a camcorder these days no one talks about seeing UFOs like they used to?

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.

In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?

Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, "I think I'll squeeze these dangly things here, and drink whatever comes out?"

Who was the first person to say, "See that chicken there? I'm gonna eat the next thing that comes outta its butt.

"Why is there a light in the fridge and not in the freezer?

If Jimmy cracks corn and no one cares, why is there a song about him?

If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons?

Do illiterate people get the full effect of Alphabet Soup?

Did you ever notice that when you blow in a dog's face, he gets mad at you, but when you take him on a car ride, he sticks his head out the window?

Does pushing the elevator button more than once make it arrive faster?

Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the tube?

Do you ever wonder why you gave me your email address?--

The sublimity of wisdom is to do those things living that are desired when dying.

Thursday, November 09, 2006

I have been wanting to learn how to Quilt

above picture was taken out side, hope this shows you the deep colors! larger picture
Inside picture click for larger picture
I have been wanting to learn how to Quilt ,and create Wall Hangings,and Applique' for a very long time,SO!!! I HAVE taking the plundge,
This is my very first quilt block ever!I am so proud, I can tell I am learning already cause I can see where I have a couple small mistakes....but I am so pleased how it turned out,Now I will continue creating more of the blocks, and create a beautiful Quilt
The pictures are Not showing how rich and deep these colors really The colors just aren't showing their true colors :)
I plan to hand quilt it, also adding a nice border,And a beautiful backing :)If all turns out well, I want to make this for my daughter Valerie for Christmas!Have started this quilt on November 9, 2006