Do you remember your Easter dresses when you were little? I remember how I looked forward to a new dress every spring. I grew up in the era of no white shoes until after Easter, no black shoes until after Labor Day. The 2 new dresses every year were enough, one for Easter, one for Christmas. One pair of white shoes that if you were lucky were sandals, one pair of black shoes for the winter. Well, my "pink Saturday" post is one of my Easter dresses. Like most of my dresses, it was made from a dress that had a lot of fabric that my Mom "repurposed" in to my dress. My Mom could take a sack and make it look good! The entire dress is made from other dresses that were torn apart and used in different ways. Half of the good feeling these memories bring is how I was "sold" on the idea of having a dress made out of other dresses. When my girls were young they would have DIED before having a dress made out of someone elses dress. I thought it was a privelege, and Mom and Grandma would build this up in my mind, and I felt like a princess. It is one of my favorite memories, and I was so proud of this dress. Probably as much as anything, because it WASN'T a hand-me-down from my cousin!
The doll that is wearing this dress is one that Grandma Alley "saved" from the garbage. She would bring dolls home and fix their eyes, arms, or whatever and give them away. This, I believe, is a "walking doll" from the 60's. If you stand her up and hang on to her hand, she will make steps like walking, for a little ways. Grandma was going to get rid of her and I told her I wanted her. Her hair was really messy, where some youngster had really worked it over. I sat one evening with the doll on my lap and curled her hair with perm rods and sprayed it with a water mister. I left it for about 2 weeks and when I took it out, it was in perfect little tight curls that have stayed for the past 15 years.
I love this doll, partly because she scares the peet out of people when they walk in the room, she's so big and real looking. More than one guest have sworn that her eyes follow them when they walk around the room! She fits my dress very well though, don't you think?
Go to see more Pink Saturday posts at http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/. Thanks again to Grace for hosting us!
That fabric looks like silk! I HATED for my grandmother to sew for me until I realized how much more I could have!! I'm afraid learning to sew has gone the way of home ec classes!
ReplyDeletewhat a beautiful dress and it fits the doll so wonderfully.
ReplyDeleteHappy Pink Saturday!
Melly:)
My mom sewed all my clothes, too. I was one of the best dressed gals in school in the 50's, too!
ReplyDeleteI never learned to sew...just hate it! And, yes, we didn't even THINK about wearing white shoes before Easter...How funny the "rules" were back then. They sure have all been broken, haven't they!
I enjoyed seeing your pink dress...and doll !
I remember the 2 new dresses a year, often made by my mom. She'd save the scraps and make dresses for our dolls!
ReplyDeleteWhat lovely pink-a-licious goodies this week. I could get lost in pink and never return☺ Beverly didn't know it but she made my day when she came up with this day to celebrate my favorite color!
ReplyDeleteWishing you a Happy Pink Saturday and a wonderful weekend full of sunshine and l♥ve!
What a neat memory. Lovely dress!
ReplyDeleteHow lucky you were to have such a talented Mom. I think it is great that you saved your dress and this doll. My Mom used to make me clothes out of flour sacks and hand me down ladies dressed. I though I was extra special because my dresses where so much prettier than them store bought things,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing.
Molly
My mom always made me a new dress for Easter every year. It is one of my favorite Easter memories, but then I have so many. Easter was such an important holiday in our home.
ReplyDeleteHappy Pink Saturday!
Erin :)
http://www.fairiemoon.typepad.com/fairiemoon/
Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHappy Pink Saturday!
X Es X
I LOVE pink. That is a lovely dress. Sounds like your mother & grandmother were very talented! I collect dolls & have thought about getting a BIG one to display some of my favorite dresses my girls have outgrown.
ReplyDeleteWhat a precious memory and so happy you shared it with us today.
ReplyDeleteI have all my dolls and quite a few rescues along the way.
Have a great Pink Saturday!
Oh goodness, this post brought back memories. I still struggling with wearing white shoes after Labor Day even though the fashionistas say you can!
ReplyDeleteI also had one of those walking dolls, although she never would "walk" right! I remember she was just HUGE! My grandmother was always buying me things like that! The trick was to then get her in the car from Detroit to Dayton. Guess it wasn't much of a problem since we didn't have seatbelt laws back then! LOL
Blessings,
Valerie
I enjoyed the story about the dress. How lucky you are to still have it. I have one of those big dolls too. I'll have to try your hair treatment.
ReplyDeleteThe dress is awesome. My mom use to get a special dress for Easter and Christmas too. We use to have the frilly socks and the Hats and the gloves all for Easter. I would then proceed to take it off halfway through Church and run around in my slip. My mother use to have such a fit.Those are some of my favorite pictures of my little sister and I are in our Easter garb, all dressed up!
ReplyDeleteHappy Pink Saturday!
Jennifer
Happy Pink Saturday, Sandi.
ReplyDeleteYour dress is exquisite. I love the fabric. It does looks so pretty on the doll, and how wonderful that your grandmother saved dolls.
You know my Mom made some of my dresses too, I love to watch her make them.. Today's kids love the mall too much to want a hand made... what a shame.... Love the dress and doll. lovely treasures'
ReplyDeleteHappy Pink Saturday
Hugs;
Alaura
Hi Sandi! I wanted to drop by before I left for Austin.
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh when I read about how the doll scares people....I used to have that same doll - in blonde hair- and I used to leave her on my bed and my grandma Ursula would give a cry of fright when she would see her sitting here! Oh what a wonderful memory you brought back for me...lol!
Mom used to sew our clothes and we were always so splendidly turned out that my teachers at my elementary started paying my mom to make them dresses and suits. I wish I had learned how to sew but I'm correcting that mistake by taking sewing classes this summer!
¸.·´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*´¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´ Happy Pink Saturday
Deanna :D
My Mom would sew clothes for me and my sisters, and my Grandma made doll clothes for my dolls. How well I remember new white shoes! Happy Pink Saturday!
ReplyDeleteyep, I remember all that too, thankyou for taking me back in time, Happy Pink Saturday, Char
ReplyDeleteI use to have one of those Patty Play Dolls back in the days. Such a sweet post. Thanks for sharing and bringing back some good memories for me. I had to have new white Easter gloves for church every year. My Mom would wash them after church and iron them the next day and put them away until the next Sunday. I remember wearing white shoes between Easter and not after Labor day. I wonder who made up those rules?
ReplyDeleteJoyce
My goodness, the walking doll brings back memories. I have a nasty feeling this was the one where I cut all the hair off (I think I must have assumed it would grow back). Happy Pink Saturday!
ReplyDelete