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agree! Chag sameach, y'all!

my calendar said it was on the 28th but chabad.org said it was today so

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Welcome back to the Spring Has Sprung doll photo challenge! I know we skipped a year, but since there seems to be some interest--we're bringing it back for 2024! My dolls and I are all very excited to get this started, and we hope that you guys enjoy this too! Like last time, we decided to focus the prompts around some of the maybe lesser known holidays taking throughout spring! This is an absolutely no pressure challenge, please feel free to participate as much or as little as you want to, we’re all just here to have fun! I’m using the tag #springhassprungag2024 for this challenge if you guys want to use it too (and please, even though this challenge was made primarily with American Girl Doll Tumblr in mind if you have other kinds of dolls who want to participate they are totally welcome as well!) I'm making it my own personal goal to try to showcase my dolls you all may not have seen as much, and I can’t wait to see what you guys come up with!

Week One: Reading 3/17-3/23

In honor of "Read to Me Day" on 3/19 share a picture of your dolls reading or sharing their favorite books :)

Week 2: Theater 3/24-3/30

In honor of "World Theater Day" on 3/27, share your dolls performing in or enjoying their favorite piece of theater!

Week 3: Colors 3/31-4/06

In honor of "Crayon Day" in 3/31 and "Rainbow Day" on 4/03, share your dolls wearing their favorite color--or all the colors of the rainbow!

Week 4: Pets 4/07-4/13

In honor of "Pet Day" on 4/11, share your dolls with their pets--or, if they don't have a pet, sharing their favorite animal or stuffed animal!

Week 5: Lookalike 4/14-4/20

In honor of "Lookalike Day" on 4/20, dress your dolls up like each other, or dress up to match your doll!

Week 7: Creativity 4/21-4/27

In honor of "World Creativity and Innovation Day" on 4/21, show your dolls being creative or innovative, or sharing a piece of creativity or innovation that they think makes the world a better place!

Week 7: Superheroes 4/28-5/04

In honor of "National Superhero Day" on 4/28, share your dolls dressed up as or appreciating their favorite superhero!

Week 8: Teachers 5/05-5/11

In honor of Teacher Appreciate Week, share your dolls appreciating their favorite teacher--or, if they want to be a teacher, share what they dream about teaching!

Week 9: Endangered Species 5/12-5/18

In honor of "Endangered Species Day" on 5/17, have your dolls help raise awareness for their favorite endangered species.

Week 10: Tea Time 5/19-5/25

In honor of both "Baking Day" on 5/19 and "Tea Day" on 5/21, share your dolls having tea time--or maybe even a whole tea party!

Week 11: Smiles 5/26-6/01

In honor of "National Smile Day" on 5/31, share something that makes you and your dolls smile :)

Week 12: Oceans 6/02-6/08

In honor of "Ocean's Day" on 6/8, share your dolls enjoying or sharing something they love about the ocean!

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Re: your request for people to ask about their fav dolls of yours: I'd love to know more about your Dovie!

Dovie was originally a Rebecca display doll, I just switched her wig to an older Felicity one and gave her some freckles and teeth.

I wanted a doll to represent Ireland from about the Bronze age to the medieval period. Her name is actually Dubheasa Ni'Mhaoileidigh (pronounced DUHV-uh-suh NEE-milady), I ended up shortening it to Dovie. I wanted a name that would have been used in pre-Christian Ireland, so no Bridget or Maire/Mary or Megan, and her last name is taken from an Irish dance teacher (from Ireland) I had several years ago. The "Ni" part means "daughter of", her older brother is Cathaoir O'Mhaoileidigh (Cahir O'Milady), because "O" is "son of".

I've had a lot of fun researching the time period(s) I placed her in, and I think she's one of the prettiest dolls in my collection. She has such a timeless look that I tend to put her in all kinds of different periods.

I made her leine (tunic) based on descriptions of ancient ones, as best I could understand. Saffron grew well in Ireland after it was introduced and many (most?) leinte were yellow. They used a LOT of fabric for them - one note I read was that during the time of Henry VIII, Irish men were banned from wearing shirts made from more than 7 yards of fabric! So, Dovie's is made as wide as the length of a pillowcase, with wide sleeves to match. Another source described them worn as "pleats upon pleats" and to dress her in this requires a lot of folding. As a bonus, a child wouldn't have needed a lot of new clothes, just to adjust the pleats and blousing over the belt as they grew.

The shoulder brooches hold the fabric together on each side, and the homemade annular brooch (popular in the Bronze age, though much more elaborate) keeps the top together without falling off. Her "amber" necklace was also a popular Bronze age decoration. Her woven belt is very basic, and would probably have been checked or striped, but I'm no weaver, so I used what I had.

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My dolls with their mini dolls!

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Felt inspired to make a new AG doll dress for the first time in a while! I used this pretty ombre pink yarn and love how it turned out on Miss Kitty!

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Happy valentine's day!! Here's a pic I took last year, Melody in an adorable dress by @doll-princesse !!

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It’s a beautiful winter day, and Josefina is glad to be exploring outdoors!

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We're going to start playing around with wigs now that we can swap Rose's hair out more easily, and this wig gives me major mermaid vibes! 🧜‍♀️

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American Girl is offering FREE downloads of books featuring their Black characters!!

This includes books and short stories featuring historical characters like Addy Walker, Cécile Rey, Melody Ellison and modern characters like Gabriela McBride, Makena, Evette, and Maritza.

Check it out!

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This is going to be a cranky post.

The thing that is unique about American Girl dolls is the idea of helping kids gain awareness of history through characters' stories and the dolls, clothes, and objects that bring them to life. I learned about the change in women's roles in World War II from Molly. I learned about the challenge of going to school speaking a different language from Kirsten. I want that for kids now. There's a value to the characters and stories beyond just making money.

I'm annoyed by AG's announcement that the Disney princess dolls are permanent, in the context of AG having discontinued and not brought back some of their historical characters (like Marie-Grace and Cécile) and greatly reducing collections of other historical dolls. AG doesn't even carry the books for some of the historical characters anymore. Either you have room for a lot of characters or you don't. And if you do, then could someone in a decision-making position please place value on the historical characters that authors have created rather than just rewarming already-out-there characters that will sell?

No one's understanding of life is going to be forever enhanced by a new version of a Disney princess doll - thay sell precisely because they're already out there so much and so kids recognize them - the way they would from learning about characters living in different historical circumstances.

This feels like something one or two individuals in the right positions in the company could be doing a better job with.

If you're excited about the princess dolls, my intention isn't to rain on your parade. People can like different things. I guess I just see the lie in any arguments that there's not room for the historical dolls or not enough market out there.

#agig

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Wishing everyone a wonderful national cheese lovers' day!!! These dollhouse-sized cheese wheels were made by etsy shop minniekitchen.

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Merry Christmas! Here are some of my historical characters in their festive finery and with their dolls.

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It's December of 1775, and Elizabeth can no longer bear the boredom of staying indoors. She wants so badly to take a horseback ride around town with her best friend Felicity, but the Merrimans are not receiving visitors while Mrs. Merriman recovers from the birth of her new baby, Polly. So Elizabeth dresses in her bright red riding habit and goes on a solo ride.

Elizabeth's riding habit was made by me from an old wool jacket. I didn't want it to resemble Felicity's too closely, so I used the actual outfit from her collection as inspiration, as well as the one she wears in Felicity's movie.

I also made her riding hat by covering a plastic container lid with felt. I tried white felt on the first version, but didn't love it and so made it black instead.

Elizabeth herself is my customized doll made to resemble the original version of Elizabeth Cole depicted in Felicity's books.

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¡Feliz navidad! to those who celebrate! Miss Josefina and I made some biscochitos today. I really enjoy anise flavor so this is a favorite of mine.

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Zoe and Grannie did a lot of cookie baking over the weekend. Now they're gifting tins of homemade cookies to friends, family, and everydolly who needs some holiday cheer.

They baked chocolate chip cookies, candy cookies, and cinnamon-dusted bizcochitos!

These pretty little tins used to hold scented candles. I found them at a thrift store and knew immediately they'd be perfect doll-sized cookie tins. The cookies in the front two tins are real, but the bizcochitos are clay.

Grannie and Zoe are very dear friends, and love to make Christmas memories together.

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adorable!!

Shortly before Christmas, Josefina and her sisters bring a big basket of red chiles to Señora Sánchez, a generous and neighborly woman who was a dear friend of Mamá. She says she can't make her traditional Christmas stew without the delicious chiles grown on the Montoya rancho!

In return for their gift, Señora Sánchez gives the sisters a beautiful little hen.

"She's a vain little hen, very proud of herself, I'm afraid!" Señora Sánchez says. "But she has reason to be proud. She lays very fine eggs. I thought you and your sisters could raise her chicks to increase your flock. I know you'll take good care of her."

Papá straps the hen's basket to the burro for the mile-long walk home.

Josefina peeks into the basket and is surprised to see that Señora Sánchez has included two of the hen's little speckled eggs!

Josefina loves animals, and is happy to help care for all the animals who live on the rancho.

(Buy your own hen here!)

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"Saint Lucia invites you to breakfast!"

Swedish families like Kirsten's celebrate Saint Lucia day every year on December 13th. The oldest daughter wakes up before dawn, dresses in a long white gown and a wreath crowned with candles, and brings breakfast to her family. This marks the start of the Christmas season!

Saint Lucia buns are the traditional breakfast food. They're flavored with saffron and garnished with raisins. I made these buns for Kirsten from clay and seed beads. I made her tray from foam board, and her candlestick is a metal drawer pull.

I also made her Saint Lucia wreath, and it has real candles that I carefully lit just for the few seconds needed to take the photo. I actually used to have the real wreath sold by Pleasant Company, and I did not like it at all. It was too small and perched on top of her head like a bird's nest. The one I made uses plastic vines and faux leaves, and sits perfectly on her head.