Sewing friend and blogger, Rhonda Buss, had a great post on Wednesday, March 9 to commemorate Barbie’s 58th Birthday. Enjoy it HERE, along with very wonderful comments. Her post pulled me to our garage to grasp the pink doll case from the shelf and take a trip down memory lane…..
NO, I did not have a Barbie. Please take no offense (and I’m fairly certain it was my dear Mother’s opinion I adopted by osmosis) but I thought Barbie was ugly. Instead, I remember dreaming to own a JILL DOLL by Vogue displayed in the wall case down at the Neue Mode (hosiery) Store on Neil street in Champaign, IL. I don’t even remember now for which occasion I received her, but here is my Jill Doll – many love-filled years later. I remember my Grandma crocheted that pink dress with ric rac. In the corner behind the dress is her white fur stole and muff. I styled her hair over and over and over again!!! Google for Jill Doll by Vogue and you can find many more images of a Barbie competitor.
I’m sure she looked more like this Bride as I dreamt of having her at MY house instead of in the store window case. Check out those seamed hose and drop rhinestone earrings. HOW did those hose stay up? is what I wonder…
I’m sure when the time comes for this Nana to make doll clothes for her granddaughter, that I’ll work into all that TINY TINY stitching, but it amazes me to check out all the precious stitches on the clothes packed away with my Jill. The pink doll case also held Lucy (made by my Grandma), my dear Teddy Bear, and my green bunny. Sad, but I don’t even remember names for either of them except that even in High School, the bear became whoever I was ‘in love’ with at the time.
Shared with hopes that your childhood precious things have somehow survived the years – and with encouragement to young mothers out there today to carefully save the most special things from your children’s lives for them to enjoy some day.
PS…they all even still SMELL the same. I am a blessed woman with lovely childhood memories. My prayer for all children today is such precious memories, and the healing touch of Jesus for all who were not as lucky as I was.