As a little side note to those of you who use stuffing for dolls or other projects, check out your local discount stores and look at bed pillows. The last bag of stuffing I bought at Fabricland was over $15 and the doll ate that up in a hurry. Not having easy access to Fabricland here I had to get creative and ended up buying a pillow for $5 at Giant Tiger. The stuffing inside was a little 'fluffier' than the so-called proper stuff but it actually worked better. Saving myself $10 AND the gas to travel 45 minutes to get to Fabricland was a win/win. Just be careful to buy a pillow that's filled with fibrefill and not foam.
Next up on the doll was to do more for her face. The original pattern calls for the eyes to be embroidered and I did outline them that way. I emboidered the mouth and nose, eyebrows and eyelashes but chose to use paint to do the actual eyes. I put a light coating of white glue/water on the inside of the wig to make certain the yarn would stay in place and then glued/stitched it onto her head. Now it's on to trying to figure out the dress and some underwear.
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Most of you might remember the huge storm we had last August where our car was badly damaged by hail. We finally have/had a date (Aug. 20th, more than a year after the storm) for the repairs to start with an estimate of nearly $14,000. Sadly, we've been hearing from other people that, despite having been originally told that their vehicle was repairable, the costs in the interim have risen dramatically and the insurance companies are now writing them off. Our car is a 2016 Rav4 so it's in the danger-zone. After much to-and-fro'ing with our insurance adjustor and much ponderment and sleeplessness we decided not to go through with the repairs and will drive our 'dimply' car as is. The insurance company, I think, is in full awareness that the price has gone up hugely and were happy to offer us a cheque in the amount of the original estimate. Thank you, we'll take it, put it in the bank and not have to worry about going into debt for a new-to-us vehicle that, chances are, I won't be driving for too many more years. RC is giving up driving in the next couple of weeks (a good decision on his part) and it will all fall to me and truthfully I don't care if the car doesn't look absolutely pristine. Huge relief to have that decision behind us!
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- THIS looks like a fun project that would be quite useful for many things.
- If I was planning to make another afghan I would seriously consider THIS one.
- THIS is another thing that would be handy to have - or to give.
- A lot of THESE made me smile.
Today's quote..."The best teachers are those who tell you where to look, but don't tell you what to see"
Your partner giving up driving is probably a mixed feeling for you. Better for him, but now you're the designated driver. Been there. I hope he quickly learns to be a passenger!
ReplyDeleteI agree about cheaper batting options. Free cycle often has batting on offer, too.
Yes, it is a mixed feeling, but I know it's time. He's already pretty much the passenger so it won't be a huge change.
DeleteWish we had a Free Cycle here but if there is one I've not been able to find it listed anywhere.
Now I can't wait to see what clothes you make.
ReplyDeleteThe pillow stuffing is a great idea. We can even find good pillows here at the second hand store.
I can't wait too! I've made a pattern (I hope!) and just have to find time to sew it to see if it will fit.
DeleteI'd be leery on second hand pillows, particularly if using in a toy for a child because you never know what sort of 'critters' might be lurking within.
Pillow stuffing is such a great idea!! Everything has escalated so much pricewise these days...I want to make myself a "sewing pillow" for my lap to rest my work on so my arms don't get tired-- as I don't have one of those great old-fashioned armed chairs that hit you just right. --luckily, I have an almost full bag of stuffing from when I made "tooth fairy" pillows for my grandgirls...
ReplyDeletesee, it is good to squirrel things away...hahaha hugs, Julierose :))))
Yep, if you keep things long enough it's surprising how often it ends up coming in handy. Just like it's surprising how quickly you need the very thing you *just* got rid of because you couldn't envision a use for it.
DeleteWhat a great idea to use pillow stuffing and quite the savings.
ReplyDeleteI am of the same mind as you, dimples in my car do not bother me much as long as I can get from point A to point B.
God bless.
Getting to and fro safely is my main concern and, although I do like a nice-looking car, it's not all that important in the grand scheme of things.
DeleteI always buy Walmart cheap pillows for stuffing. It works great!
ReplyDeleteI usually do too but for some reason I couldn't get what I needed at the store I normally go to (no Walmart locally) and happened to be in the fabric shop so picked it up there. The price sticker was still on the bag so it did surprise me when I picked up the pillow and saw the price difference.
DeleteWhat a cute doll face. Those eyes you painted are so pretty! Your stitching is perfection. Glad you finally got your car/insurance situation settled. What an ordeal!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I opted to do a combination of paint and stitch for the doll eyes - of course they're not perfectly even, but I don't suppose real eyes always are either.
DeleteYes, the car saga has been ongoing for nearly a year and we still have to wait for paperwork to finalize before we get the money.
I'm glad you came to a decision about the car repair, and will still receive the original insurance payout. Drawn-out decisions can be very wearing, I'm learning! The doll's face is lovely - can't wait to see her dressed up :)
ReplyDeleteYes, it was a lot of decision-making and then re-decision making that went on over the car repairs.
DeleteSherry of createology: My Dear MA: So many decisions are so hard to make however you ad RC are wise in your decisions. A car is only a mode of transportation to get from A to B and back again. Good for choosing the check over the hassle and unknown outcome of repairs. Bless RC for deciding voluntarily to give up driving. That is a very difficult decision. I, like you, have been doing most of the driving. Dolly id looking beautiful with her face and hair. Pillows are a great alternative to buying fiberfill. I love this quote. My Grandma taught me to “see things with different eyes”. Blessings Dear.
ReplyDeleteThe saga of the car ended up with us making three different 'final' decisions and each time we did, the insurance company threw another curveball at us. We decided we'd rather have the money than a pretty car that we don't drive all that much.
DeleteI hope RC hasn't fought re: driving. (I was fortunate that S was okay with it, but we still have his car and drive it occasionally.) The doll is charming.
ReplyDeleteIt was entirely RC's own decision. He realized that it's time and doesn't want to be the cause of an accident. We see too many people in this town that have no business being behind the wheel and he doesn't want to be one of them.
DeleteGreat job with that sweet face. Sorry about your car. My daughter had hail damage and a tree branch fell on the car too last summer and it seemed to take forever for it to be repaired.
ReplyDeleteI imagine the reason it's taking so long here is because all the new cars at the dealerships that were damaged are taking precidence over the rest of us lowly mortals. There was a ton of damage all over town so there's a lot of cars in line to be repaired.
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