Meet Lynde

Hard to believe it's been three weeks since my last post. My summer days are anything but lazy, and there just isn't time to get everything done. I took pictures of Lynde a week ago but wasn't satisfied with how they looked, even after editing. I finally found some time to try again today, this time outdoors, and am much happier with the results.

Lynde is my third blonde Gotz no-navel, though they are all slightly different. She is from 1969, and has blue eyes like her younger sister Liesel (both came from the same collector). Their friend Lucinda is also from 1969 but she has brown eyes.

Boo is watching over my shoulder, waiting for me to be off the computer. She says that I should say Lynde is "beautiful". She's right, though I think all of my Sashas are beautiful.

Look for comparison photos of Lynde, Liesel, and Lucinda in my next post.

1969 Brunette Parties

My favorite posts involve comparison photos of my dolls. I love to see (and share) the similarities and differences between the "same" dolls. Here is my new Lorrie with Lilith, another 1969 side-part Party. That's not a ding on Lilith's nose, just a light reflection; her vinyl is far less matte than Lorrie's.

Just for fun, here are Pandora, Lorrie, and Lilith ... pretty maids all in a row. Pandora (who I originally called Layla) is from 1968, and has almost-black brunette hair. She was most likely originally a Gingham, but was dressed in Party attire by her previous owner.

Meet Lorrie

Lorrie is my most recent Sasha purchase, and has jumped to the head of the blog queue. She wasn't an intentional gift as I first inquired about purchasing her almost two months ago, but she arrived on my birthday. What a fun coincidence! She is a 1969 Brunette Side-Part Party with crisp clean face paint and slightly falling hair. She still has her gold tag and original outfit, minus footwear -- I found her a pair of replacement socks and appropriate shoes in my stash.

I discovered how photogenic she is this morning, and adore her sweet expression.

Her face paint is particularly exceptional and looks brand new: no lip rubs, great coloring, and wonderful eyes with the outlined iris and pinprick pupils.

This was a Sasha birthday for me in more ways than one. My friend Tina (AKA dollydetroit) sent pinwheels for my "Five Amigos", and Boo's two dolls as well. I will try to photograph them all in a future post, but for now here's Lorrie checking out one of the pinwheels.

And my Mom surprised me with a box of handmade goodies, including clothing she knitted for my Sashas from the Golden Hands patterns (which I didn't even know she'd purchased). I will share pictures of these in a future post as well.

Festival Schedule

Here are some additional details from Jan Johnson regarding this year's Sasha Festival schedule:

Thursday, July 15th, 2010
4:00pm Early registration begins, in the hotel lobby
6:00pm Meet and Greet - Hotel Library, adjacent to lobby - no-host bar, light hors d'oerves

Friday, July 16th, 2010
8:00-12:00 Registration, in the hotel lobby
9:00-12:00 Workshops - Sierra Ballroom
12:00-1:30 Lunch on your own - Chutney Grill in hotel, or downtown Burlingame
1:30-3:30 Gift Exchange (bring a wrapped Sasha-related gift, $20 value) - Sierra Ballroom
3:30-4:30 Guest Speaker - Sierra Ballroom
4:30-6:00 Free time! Shopping in downtown Burlingame, walk along the Bay, socializing
6:00-9:00 Banquet Dinner and Program - Sierra Ballroom

Saturday July 17th, 2010
8:00-5:00 Helper Items Viewing - Tiburon/Sausalito rooms
8:00-1:00 Auction Items Viewing - Sequoia/Redwood rooms
9:00-10:00 Dress-A-Sasha Contest (details here) - Sierra Ballroom
10:00-12:00 Free time!
12-1:00 Lunch Buffet - hotel courtyard
1:00-3:30 Children's Fund Auction - Sequoia/Redwood rooms
3:30-7:00 Dinner on your own - Chutney Grill in hotel, or downtown Burlingame
7:00-9:00 Sales Room - Sierra Ballroom

Sunday, July 18th, 2010
9:00-12:00 Brunch (thank-yous, 2011 festival, helper item/raffle drawings) - Sierra Ballroom

Busy As a Bee

Alas, I haven't met my goal of blogging at least once a week recently. My husband has been away quite a bit the past two weeks. Between that and the extra busy-ness associated with school and kid's activities winding down, I just haven't had any free time. I'm hoping for a new post this week if the clouds part for long enough to take photos (this is our third consecutive rainy day, with more forecast through midweek).

My Swiss Dress sewing efforts have also stalled, partly due to lack of time but also because I'm hoping to buy a sewing machine as a birthday gift for myself (my birthday is Thursday, but due to the busy holiday weekend I may not shop until next week). There are still over seven weeks until the Festival, so I'm not worried yet. Though perhaps I should be, since I need to get cracking on Table Hostess gifts as well.

1968-69 Dungarees

When I wrote a post comparing my Blue Cords, I noted that Audrey (my one 1968) looks delicate/dainty compared to the others (all from 1969). I feel the same way about Fiona when I look at her compared to my other Dungarees. She definitely stands out in all the groupings I tried, not just due to her wispy bangs, but also her eyes.

Here she is between my other "dark" Dungarees: Hayley (left) and Harlow (right).

Here she is between my Dungarees that have narrower faces: Hayley (left) and Hester (right).

Compared to my Redhead Quartet, I think Fiona looks most like Hayley. They might pass for cousins or even sisters, but certainly not identical twins.

Meet Fiona

This doll was an eBay gamble that worked out in the end. I knew she had white stringing in her arms and flecked in her legs, so she was a fairly early doll. The seller described her as having no bangs (which I doubted), and thought there might be a groove under her nose but wasn't sure (the pictures weren't clear enough for me to tell). It wasn't until she arrived that I knew for sure that she had both bangs and a philtrum.

I forgot to take a "before" picture of her tangled hair, but I washed it and uncovered her fine fringe. This picture was taken to show the seller ...

... because while she had beautiful hair now, she smelled awful!

I showed the seller that the doll had bangs, and also complained about her very smoky odor. She replied that the doll came from an estate sale and she hadn't noticed the smell due to a cold. After checking with her doll resources/friends, she concurred that the smell would be very hard to remove, if not impossible. She had a return policy, but instead we agreed on a nice discounted price.

I then set about trying to remove the smell from Fiona, my first 1968 Redhead Dungarees. First I aired her on my screen porch for several months, then I made a leap of faith. Instead of trying traditional odor removers -- baking soda, activated charcoal, kitty litter, coffee grounds -- I decided to use Biocide. We have a camper that was also in need of de-stinking, so I took Fiona apart and placed her inside it while the Chlorine Dioxide did it's thing. I consider the treatment to be a success; it does not appear to have damaged her in any way, and even to my sensitive nose she is nearly odorless!

Here are a few pictures of her in her original outfit, which cleaned up nicely with Perk. Now I just need to see if I can repair the straps on one of her sandals.

Comparison photos with some of my 1969 Dungarees will follow shortly.

Swiss Dress Plans

I decided that I need at least one Swiss-style doll dress to bring to this year's Festival, so I plan to make one. Hopefully posting about it will give me the motivation I need to complete it. Since I don't own a sewing machine right now, I'm going to have to sew by hand. Ugh! I chose the pattern, purchased fabric and lace, and am ready to get started.

Now all I need is patience, perseverance, and a whole lot of free time!

♥ 2010 Sasha Festival ♥

The 2010 Sasha Festival is happening July 15-18 in San Francisco, California. This year's theme is "Sasha Returns Home to Switzerland". The registration deadline is May 8, so there's still time to send in your registration if you haven't done so already. Registration information can be found at the official website.

Here are some additional details from Jan Johnson regarding this year's "Dress-A-Sasha Contest".

Themes:
1. The Life of Sasha Morgenthaler
Base your entry on one facet of Sasha Morgenthaler's life. Your entry could represent Sasha as an artist, midwife, humanitarian (aiding refugee children after World War II), world traveler or doll maker.
2. Switzerland
Your entry can represent one of the following aspects of Swiss life:
The story of Heidi by Johanna Spyri (perfect for Sasha as Heidi and Gregor as Peter)
The story of William Tell (Gregor as William Tell and a Toddler as his son)
Clara Barton - Founder of the American Red Cross (inspired by her 1869 trip to Geneva, Switzerland)
Watch-making (Gregor would make a great watchmaker!)
Swiss Banking
Chocolate-making
Cheese-making
Mountain climbing in the Swiss Alps

Classes of Entrants:
Youth: 12 to 17 years of age
Adult: 18 years and up

Categories:
1. Outfit made by entrant.
Adults only - all clothing must be made by entrant, except shoes, socks, underwear and accessories.
2. Outfit assembled by entrant.
Adults and youth - clothing may be purchased or made by someone other than entrant.

Blue Bicycle

As of this posting, there is a great picture with a blue bicycle on the Sasha "welcome" page at Let's Play Dolls. It shows a redhead no-navel riding the bike with a brunette baby girl sitting on the back rack and a basketful of toys. My Sashas wanted a bike like that to ride too, so I did some searching online and found several on eBay (turns out it's an American Girl item for Molly, which was retired in 2006). The bicycle I purchased is missing the mirror, but otherwise in great shape. It's a little bit large, but Gregor is a big enough boy that he can handle it.

His blue t-shirt came from Rosie Bloom, where I bought the most adorable pair of shoes a while back. Not only is it more appropriate for pedaling around than his long-sleeve checked shirt, but it makes his beautiful blue eyes really stand out.

That's Toto in the basket, part of the 2008 Festival Outfit (pictured here) which I won in the Children's Fund Auction at last year's festival.