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Well, I save ALL my AG boxes that I get, & so what you can do is if you still have your boxes, just out your doll stuff in there, & then you can open them all again! What my sister & I did, was we also wrapped them in plankets & our Mom & older brother hid them after we put them somewhere, & we were running aroung trying to find them for over an hour, & at the end we found them all & opened them all up!!
I hope this helps some of you!
I really like making things for my dolls too. A really great book of doll crafts I have found is "Things to Make for Your Doll" by Kathy Ross
She has some really cute ideas in that book.
I also really enjoy making doll rooms. I'm currently working on a kitchen. Fortunatley we already have lots of wood and paint lying around our house from previous projects. And I asked for Home Depot gift cards for Christmas to get everything else I needed. So far I've made the kitchen room and painted the walls. I've almost completed the lower cabinets. Just need one more coat of paint and then all the hardware for the doors, and the single drawer added. Next I'm planning on making a fridge, sink out of silver fimo, and upper cabinets.
I'll post some pictures of the lower cabinets when they are done. It's been so much fun and it really keeps me from buying lots of stuff.
I dressed Felicity up like Anne of Green Gables once. I used Addy's work dress and apron, Kirsten's straw summer hat, and Kirsten's carpet bag. Then I braided Felicity's hair. It was really cute. I like the Orphan Annie and Alice ideas too.
I've made a kind of huge AG catalog too. I cut pictures from magazines of all the things they have sold from catalogs going back to before there were retirements. I cut the pictures and escriptions out and glue them to computer paper. Then I put the paper in those see through sheets that fit in three ring binder. I have the dolls arrange historically and by story then any additional outfits & accessories added. Then I have the limited edition dolls, then the face choices for the girls of today, then all the meet outfits, then the rest of the AGOT stuff by type. for instance all the school stuff together, holiday, sports, bed time.
Periodically for fun I rearrange the AGoT stuff a little. It's really fun to look through and since there is so much I can spend a good half hour- hour just flipping pages. It's a good way to relax at night. I also really look forward to getting new catalogs just so I can cut stuff out and add it to the binder.
I also like taking pictures and then I use them as my screen saver on the computer. It's fun to kind of zone out and watch cute pictures of my dolls having fun flash across the screen.
Then there's also my on-line guide of course and trying to keep it more or less updated.
Of course now with a baby I don't have a lot of time to do doll things, so lately I've been only working on the kitchen since it's turing out to be a really fun project and I'm really looking forward to the day that my daughter and I can pretend to bake cookies with the dolls!
Meg
I enjoyed your post Melissa. I have been AG-free since October (from buying anything)! Your methods really work. After awhile of not reading the board very often, I actually wanted to sell stuff instead of buy! I think reading the board everyday makes you want to buy more. I don't have the room to keep all my doll stuff around. Now I'm focusing on enjoying the things I already have.
Originally posted by Melissa
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I did not have money for a doll when I was little either, so I substituted paper dolls too. I also relished my Molly books. Molly has always been my favorite. I am looking forward to her movie and whatever new goodies appear in the catalog!Quote:
One of my friends when I was younger was told very adamantly by her mom that she would never have an AG doll (and she never did) so she got paper doll sets and really enjoyed those. With those you end up not only with a "doll," but also many of the accessories and a back-drop, too.
I also am not a frequent spender. It has actually been over a year since I placed an order. I am making a big purchase soon, but that is only after a lot of frugality and saving. I also seem to be immune to the "AG Force" that is mentioned so much on this board. I am just incredibly picky about how I spend my money and rarely buy anything on impulse.
My New Year's resolution this year was to save 10% of my personal income and so far I have succeeded. I started using Microsoft Money this year and that is a big help for saving. The program shows a chart of your projected income for the next three months based on your regular estimated income. It is much easier to save when you can look at the chart and see that in three months you will have "X" amount of money in your account.
Anyway, I will be getting Jess with my purchase and I am already thinking about what I can make for her. My other dolls have their own small spaces and I want a special space for Jess too. She will need lots of paper butterflies. Since I live in Florida, it should not be too difficult to find tropical things for her.
Aside from that, I just want to say that I really appreciate this thread. I like the creative ideas and the emphasis on what can be done with what you already have.
hmmm... how about- make a scrapbok of photos and stuff from your AG collection.
I really have to get rid of some non-AG stuff this summer. I have a lot of stuff in my room at home like old clothes and stuffed animals and stuff. I would like more room for a tall thin book case or something so that I can have room for my dolls, their clothes and accessories. Hmmm... that will be my big summer project come May. (Maybe I could try selling some of my stuff...)
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">AngieBelle, I'd love to see a pic of your Alice in Wonderland and Little Orphan Annie. That is so creative! Can you make more character dolls for us? I really want to see what you come up with!Quote:
Originally posted by AngieBelle:
Create new looks for your dolls using things you already own! Last night, I turned Elizabeth into Alice in Wonderland and Nellie into Little Orphan Annie entirely with pre-existing Pleasant Co. items in my collection. [img]smile.gif[/img]
Julia
Designate a special place in the house to display one doll at a time. In our home I always have a doll displayed on top of the piano. I rotate the dolls I have, dressed seasonally when possible. It helps me appreciate them more this way.
With younger gals, how about setting up a place similar to this, and say it's for one of her dolls to be chosen as "Princess for the Week." [img]smile.gif[/img]
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">DD & I checked out the Kathy Ross book from our library (as well as all the AG craft & cook books! GREAT books!) and are having fun crafting. We spent the last two weekends making a closet, hangers, tray, lemonade, cookies and balloons (all ideas from the Kathy Ross book). Hannah was inspired & on her own created a Cheerio box from a discarded Tic Tac container & some yellow construction paper.Quote:
Originally posted by *meg*:
I really like making things for my dolls too. A really great book of doll crafts I have found is "Things to Make for Your Doll" by Kathy Ross
She has some really cute ideas in that book.
Meg
We are reading the AG craft books & will start working on those next. Most of the AG crafts aren't for the dolls, but are dealing w/ a specific time period & what that girl may have made, i.e. Felicity & a sampler, Samantha & a glass paperweight, etc.
So to save $, head to your local library & pull out your craft supplies. [img]graemlins/thumbs_up.gif[/img]
Bren [img]graemlins/rose.gif[/img]
BTW, speaking of craft supplies, seed beads are very inexpensive and a lot of us have them sitting around already. DG loves making little necklaces and bracelets for her AG doll!