Home Improvement: Tips for Sellers & Scattershooting

Whoohooo....I dodged a bullet today!! Thanks for your prayers...a cortisone shot, a brace, some fluid removal and I'm back in the saddle...sort of. However, instead of a riding crop, I'm using a cane. The MRI went well...they positioned the nicest person in the clinic in the MRI room! She had great MRI-side manner. Ok, that being said, I'm doing a quick little post because I can't sit up at the computer long...still a little painful...but I could NOT not do a post! (After the dr visit, we went shoe shopping...WARNING: after a stressful morning involving your knee...that is NOT and I repeat NOT a great idea. Had to take a two hr nap to regroup the troops.)

So I am doing a rather disconnected post...scattershooting, I'd say.

Saw the canvas below in World Market in Spanish Fort, Alabama and thought I'd try my hand at it...I'll post results later. LOVE the colors and the designs...it was big...mine probably wont be quite as large.

Couldn't imagine what was holding up the traffic at the railroad tracks at Whitfield...whoa...it was just an ENTIRE house being moved down the road. My father did that once...years ago he moved two houses from Coffeeville, MS across the Grenada Lake levee..that gives people an eyefull! (And YES, there is a Mississippi town called Coffeeville and one named Hot Coffee, too.)

I am trying to do some research on these little dolls found at an estate sale. Especially the one on the far right. Aren't they cute?

From the left moving right: Celluloid, two bisques, and the last one is similar to a Patsy doll which may be composite. Anyone have any ideas?

Ran into this little book in the sale bin at Michael's..it's got lots of tips on how to make your house sellable. I agree with most, there are a few I'd be wary of.

Thought I'd share a few with you.

1. Did you know if you will find a bar of soap similar to the color of your walls and rub the slightly damp bar over holes in the walls they will disappear? It's true I do it all the time...sometimes I wonder if there's anything holding up my house sheetrock except soap, I've hammered so many times!
2. Flat paint hides imperfections on walls better than satin. (But it isn't as easy to clean.)

3. When using a color scheme in a room or on the outside of your home, use these proportions: 60% main color (sides of room or house); 30% second color (trim); and 10% accent (door or accessories like pillows.)

4. If repainting the outside of your home, choose a paint color one shade darker than you like...the bright sunlight makes the outside color appear lighter.

5. Dark shades of color make a room seem more serious and possibly elegant and paler shades exude congeniality...or so says this author.

6. Spend a little time attending open houses in your area...to assess the competition.

7. An attractive doorknob on the front door makes a good first impression.

8. Use trial size jars of paint rather than buying quarts or gallons! (Rather obvious.)

9. If you have a septic tank, don't opt for a garbage disposer...it may overtax the system.

10. Use a pumice stone to remove hard water or rust stains from the toilet.

There is a lot more to this little book than first meets the eye...I think the $3.99 I spent was WELL spent. I just wanted to give you a taste of the 11 chapters and 256 pages it holds.

Hope this scattershooting hits the bullseye,

Madame Alexander Birthday

Last year for my granddaughter's tenth year Family birthday dinner, we used a Madame Alexander doll theme. It was close to Easter, so bunnies played a small part in the scheme. I used my very vintage china, milk glass glasses and all the 8inch dolls made "the cut" except for Little Red Ridinghood...she just wasn't dressed in the right colors..sorry LRRH.


Four vintage napkins were the foundation for the centerpiece. Angel hair Easter grass filled in where needed. That's the prettiest stuff made! I have all different colors!



Happy Birthday doll was at the top of our list of invitees. Look at the tiny package! So sweet!

Naturally, our first doll acquisition, Tinkerbell, was invited. She's been around a very long time! She helped by waving her wand and wiggling her nose to get everything placed just right!!

Dorothy's ruby red slippers and the fact that she wanted to bring a dog almost kept her from being invited, but since we needed four dolls to balance the centerpiece, I relented and let her attend.

Last, but certainly not least, Gift From Grandma, attended. The tiny crocheted vest and sateen checked dress were too much for old grandma to resist!

I have a sneaky feeling that the eleventh birthday will have to be a little more "contemporary" so I'm enjoying this while I can...hot pink has rocked her world...uh, oh.



I felt a special card should recognize a decade of existence, so a little mixed media canvas was in order. This was tons of fun to do and has endless possibilities! Try one!!



My cupcake "wrapper" was corrugated cardboard, cupcake itself was smushed tissue paper that had once again been ModPodged to death, background was tissue paper, lots of acrylic paint and a black and white photograph of Gracie completed the card!

We hope you enjoyed our tablescape ideas for a special girl!! All I can say, is they grow up VERY quickly...better use "cute" stuff while you can!

I am linking to Between Naps on the Porch (Tablescape Thursday)...see button on the right..

Blessing and joy to each of you,

My Great Grandmother's Handwork

I must say my life has been pretty low-key the past few days...I am still in the middle of "purging" my closets and I am not sure how much longer I can stand all the excess that is spilling out into the hall and other rooms. I am determined to do it right and this means I will just have to suffer "the visual noise" for a few more days!


While organizing my pictures, I thought it might be nice to show you some of my Great Grandmother Sallie Atkinson Whitfield's handiwork. She was quite the seamstress and a poet! (I may have inherited something from her, but not her height or build...can somebody say "skinny"...after 8 or 9 children?! Yikes)


As a teenager, Sallie sewed not only her own clothes but the clothes of her 8 younger brothers and sisters.I am privileged to have a precious blue stripe "day" dress and a blue checked gardening bonnet of hers. Below is a picture of a picture I quickly snapped in the hall, without proper lighting, behind glass and my battery pack in the camera was dying! However, it is my Granddaughter Gracie wearing her Great, Great, Great Grandmother's blue bonnet. (I will post a better rendition of this picture later! )



Miss Sallie began dressing china dolls in 1938 well after she was 60 years old. My own grandmother, Edna Whitfield Alexander, was able to keep that doll collection of over 60 dolls intact until a few years before she herself died. The china heads, hands and feet were from Germany and the bodies were muslin stuffed with sawdust. Grandmother Whitfield copied Victorian costumes from the famous Godey's Lady's Book. (This magazine was probably the most influential woman's magazine of its time. Hand-tinted foldouts showed the Victorian lady the most up to date fashions.) Her dolls ranged in size from 10-24 inches and were shown throughout the south and the east including Washington, D.C. Below are two pictures. The first is the cover of the National Geographic that included a picture of my grandmother and the dolls and the second picture is the one that actually appears in the 1951 magazine. (Grandmother is third from the left.)




A 1985 news article stated,
"Each doll wears the authentic hairstyle of her period and each little costume
hides tiny cotton pantalettes and slips trimmed with lace and ribbons. Accessories
include bonnets adorned with ribbon and tiny silk posies, parasols, fans and
handkerchiefs."


Some of the dolls from my collection are pictured below. If you appreciate beautiful detailed handwork, you would love to see these "up close" and personal!

I keep this doll under a hand blown glass dome. She is over 73 years old. Her black silk dress is beautifully beaded. She carries a silk purse and has tiny lace and flowers on her bonnet.



Many dolls were special ordered and purchased by ladies throughout the southeastern United States. Below is a picture of a doll with a note attached. My G Grandmother did not select this material and felt the plaid was out of scale to the doll. The doll was in a special collection in Springfield, Illinois.


Below are some of the smaller dolls in their day dresses.







The baby in the cradle was similar to a Frozen Charlotte doll. The cradle was made by my father for his mother's little doll. Many of the fabrics have faded over time.

I have a postcard featuring the dolls. The cards were sold in various shops around the south. You can see the various details of some of the dolls on the postcard below. One of my favorites is the doll in the green on the left with the purple parasol. (That's Victorian speak for umbrella!)



These little beauties were much trouble! They wore silk, which frayed easily over the years. They had to be stuffed with tissue when packed and everywhere they went they caused quite a commotion! However, you can see why I love them and try to treat those I have left in my possession with the very best of care. I hope GG Sallie would be pleased!