Sara Crewe And Her Doll Emily, A Custom Doll Set

Another Frances Hodgson Burnett-inspired set and we are all here for it. Let me show you what has been cooking in the studio.

If you haven’t heard about Sara Crewe before, she is the protagonist in a beautiful story written by this author, who is left in a little girls’ school in London, by her Papa who has to travel back to India. She has lost her mother and now her Dad, and must face life with not only a stiff upper lip but she does it with the greatest grace and generosity.

The book is called ‘A Little Princess” and I actually read it for the first time to my daughters, when we were doing our homeschooling years. Part of the curriculum was reading an ungodly (but perfectly satisfactory to me) amount of books, mainly highly-awarded and classic Children’s Literature.

This is one of the reasons I fell even harder for doll making, as spending half my day reading out loud to my daughters and having them at home all day, gave me so many ideas and young energy to pursue my doll making dreams.

Since Sara here is going to sit right next to Mary Wren, we decided their wardrobes had to be somewhat interchangeable, assuming of course the familial ties and the girly proximity.

We begun by selecting something light and airy, in soft colours, to signal the Springs and Summers where Sara reigned as the most valuable pupil at her school. Seeing that her father wanted her well-looked after, she had her private room, servant and of course, the special doll he bought her before leaving: Emily.

I chose for Sara only some of my favourite fabrics and laces. It really took us a long time to decide which ones to use, one of the reasons why it takes me so bloody long to make custom dolls. They seem to be the more persnickety when it comes to their clothing.

One of the things I love about making dolls, and Sara in particular, is noticing how the dolls come different, come alive, even from the same pattern. The pattern I used to make Sara I call ‘figlette’. A doll I have been making since 2011, when I made the very first one: Eva.

Even though I’ve already published an earlier and simpler version of this pattern, for your own making hands, the one I create continues to evolve so much. But the feeling of luxurious amounts of wool, of having a doll so large that sits on your lap and gives the best hugs, it’s still all there. If only with slightly thinner proportions and more delicate face ❤️.

I guess that’s one of the many reason my beloved doll collectors continue to request this style and size of doll. They really gravitate to the feeling of this doll, to her soft-spoken personality, her kindness and firmness of body, being large enough to give her a hug when you are feeling down.

I love all my dolls and each style and pattern developed over these many years (has it really been 17 years now?), making dolls has a special place in my heart. So whenever I actually get to make a doll based in this much earlier pattern, it brings me back so many memories.

Of where I started, what I was doing when I read the book, where we lived, the conundrums I had sewing doll clothes back then, etc. All good times of course.

Back then when I was homeschooling my girls, I wouldn’t have dreamed of making the clothes I made for Sara. I also never imagined I would, one very far day ahead, make a Sara Crewe while living in Portugal.

Life does take you in miraculous adventures. At the time we were very grounded in Southern Ontario, raising ducks, chickens and with a Labrador puppy in tow keeping us humble.

While Sara and I were revisiting my past, and choosing fabrics and what-nots-its, she sat in the studio wearing an antique child’s dress I was given a few years back, by a very kind friend of Fig & Me on Facebook.

Having her sit in that dress actually inspired the overall feel I wanted for her clothes, so we went for puffy sleeves, tight cuffs, embroidered laces and light fabrics, at least for long underwear, which we decided to make into one suit, instead of two separate pieces.

Too funny, but both the linen and the lace used on her underwear, came from antique markets here in Central Portugal. I think they were just waiting for Sara to come to the studio, to take shape as one thing together!

And what about Emily, you ask? Glad to tell! Initially I wasn’t commissioned to make her as well, but as I worked more and more on Sara, I felt like she truly needed Emily in her life, as she plays such an important part in her story, especially at the beginning.

So off we went to alter one of my patterns (the Mini Fig) and give her chubbier proportions to represent a younger one. I wanted her to feel more like a doll than a sister, so I used linen for her torso and beads for her eyes. A first one for me 🤓.

You can check out this little video that shows snippets of her creation, or read this post on Patreon where I talked about her design and making.

Now Sara and Emily are already well on their way home, but I still have a few more photos to publish here and share with you. It will have to wait for another day though as I am feverishly packing myself to head to Canada for the summer.

The Canadian studio, nestled atop the northern shores of Lake Superior, surrounded by the ancient boreal forest, is once again going to see wool-sculpted dolls come out of its depths.

I have quite the array of custom dolls to make while I am in Canada, so expect nothing but true love to come out from under the sewing machine and from these two hands, that seem to have an endless amount of doll dreams channeling through them.

All I know is that after 17 years you’re all still indulging my dollmaking spirit, supporting me with your requests and allowing me to bring such beautiful characters to life, in doll form.

Thank you.