Raffle prize for the Dolly Jolly

In preparation for the Dolly Jolly event which Janet has organised in May, I've been doing some sewing recently, using fabric I won on the raffle at a Sasha Celebration Weekend a few years ago: a pile of patterned fat quarters in shades of blue and yellow, plus some plain fabric. One piece of floral fabric was used to make an Easter bonnet with a matching outfit (including using the Ted Menton pinafore dress pattern), in the challenge posed by Gael S in one of the Sasha Facebook groups. I finished the bonnet and the outfit just in time for Easter day. We were in York for the whole weekend, so the photos I took of Florence with her Easter treats were in the little patio garden of the AirBnB we were staying in at the time. 

Florence models the Easter bonnet picnic outfit on Easter Day in York

The Easter bonnet trimmed with white roses, miniature buttons and ribbon

The Easter bonnet fabric is a delicate floral pattern in blues and yellows with a touch of green

The Easter bonnet tied under her chin with yellow ribbon

The Easter bonnet / picnic outfit includes a sleeveless shirt, knickers, Ted Menton pinafore dress and the Easter bonnet

The other part of the sewing I hadn't quite finished before we drove to York on Maundy Thursday, and required my sewing machine plus the iron, so I left it at home to finish when I returned. It is a double sided Sasha doll sized picnic rug.

The Dolly Jolly picnic rug side A

The Dolly Jolly picnic rug side B

The food pattern fabric used as the centre piece on each side was quite a large piece of Mary Engelbreit fabric which I had bought a few years ago, three patterns of which I used to make a dress for my younger daughter when she was 10. It seemed right to use this fourth piece in a picnic rug. 

I had been gathering items for this raffle prize for a few weeks - two hamper baskets, the miniature tea set, the Sasha sized tumbling tower blocks and I raided our Sasha toy collection for the remaining items of fun games to play on a picnic (frisbee, bat and ball, foam football). The larger hamper basket had no lining, so I lined it with some of the food pattern fabric, the smaller basket had red and white check lining but I ripped that out and replaced it with pale blue and white check lining instead, to match the picnic rug.

The mini picnic hamper containing the tea set and mugs in their boxes

The mini picnic hamper containing the tea set (sellotape still on the tea pot lid) and mugs

The lined larger hamper basket containing the picnic games and the mini picnic hamper

Florence, her shoes and socks are NOT included in the raffle prize. 

Everything in the raffle prize fits neatly inside the larger basket. This will be a special raffle prize at the Dolly Jolly event during May 2022 (in England).

Florence wearing the Easter bonnet outfit,
with the picnic rug, tea set in its mini hamper,
picnic games and the lined hamper basket to carry the prizes.

Easter Garden

Today Laura took Louisa to see the Easter Garden in Leicester Cathedral.  It had been set up inside the Cathedral around the altar, however there were notices saying they couldn't go close up so they had to content themselves with looking at the garden from the side sanctuary steps.  It was just before the afternoon service (Bach Cantata 'Der Himmel lacht! Die Erde juilieret! - Heaven laughs! The earth rejoices! BWV 31) and the choir was rehearsing with the small chamber orchestra as the girls admired the beautiful planting in the Easter garden and saw the 3 crosses on the hillside depicting the scene of Good Friday.  The altar had been used as the hillside containing the tomb, with the gap between the stone altar legs being the entrance to the tomb.

Leicester Cathedral Easter Garden 2018, with the altar being the tomb entrance

Laura and Louisa peered eagerly at the Easter Garden, they wished they could go closer as it looked beautiful

Laura and Louisa in Leicester Cathedral for Easter

Laura wore her Petrana dress with a cardigan and headband belonging to her sister Florence (made by DollMum) while Louisa wore her Sasha 2017 Festival dress by Lynn Field with strawberry cardigan and hat by Rosie Laird

When they returned home the girls were given Easter chick chocolates for being so good and quiet during the wonderful singing and readings.

Laura and Louisa with their Easter chocolate

"My chick is too pretty to eat, Laura"

Laura and Louisa (and all their siblings) would like to wish everyone a very Blessed and Happy Easter!

*****

It wasn't possible to position the dolls looking at the Easter garden from the front because the choir was rehearsing and it would have been very distracting for the singers. My elder daughter was playing in the chamber orchestra rather than singing and we brought her home afterwards for a few days holiday.  This week we'll be doing plenty of craft work in preparation for the Sasha Celebration weekend in May, 50 craft kits are being put together for the craft workshop on the Saturday morning and we have some red carpet outfits to make.

Easter Egg hunt

Laura has been shopping for eggs and has set out an Easter egg hunt in the garden for the others.

Her trolley is now empty as she checks the locations of all the hidden eggs

"Happy Easter everyone! We are having an Easter Egg hunt. Please be friendly, no pushing or shoving."

Florence is the first to find a pretty basket decorated with butterflies.

She sees there are several eggs in this basket

Melanie finds a bunny slipper full of eggs in the flowery undergrowth.

Isabel brings her shopping trolley along as she looks for eggs

"What's that" she thinks as she sees something peeping out from the flowers

Isabel has found an Easter chick!

"I can't wait to eat this later."

Edmund sees a pair of bunny ears poking out of the flowers and runs towards them

He wobbles and nearly falls over as he climbs towards the bunny ears

Trying to keep his balance Edmund approaches the bunny basket

But falls on his tummy just as he gets to them and admires the large collection of eggs in the basket.

Nicholas James, Reuben and Trendon Elliott find a treasure chest...

... filled with eggs!

Timothy and Miranda go looking through the flowers together

They find a bunny slipper filled with eggs

Everyone loads their eggs into the wagon and make their way to the picnic rug

Edmund, Florence and Isabel admire their eggs and chick

Miranda has one bunny slipper of eggs

while Melanie has the other bunny slipper

Laura and Clemence have no eggs and relax as they watch the others with their eggs

The bigger boys gather around the treasure chest of eggs

Edmund is delighted with his large basket of eggs

What is the difference between this basket of eggs and a few minutes earlier?

Edmund's basket of eggs doesn't seem so full...

Edmund looks in his basket of colourful eggs, which seems a little emptier than before

Edmund looks at the girls - his basket only has a few eggs now

Edmund holds a green egg

Clemence comes to look in Edmund's egg basket

Clemence looks at Edmund enquiringly... there is no chocolate around Edmund's mouth

Reuben and Nicholas James have LOTS of colourful eggs ...

The big boys have plenty of colourful eggs while the treasure chest of light coloured eggs is still full!

Edmund and Clemence firmly hold onto the remaining eggs.  What naughty big boys!

Meanwhile Isabel is enjoying licking the top of the chocolate chick filled with smarties.

Florence sorts through her basket of eggs and chooses which ones to eat first

Miranda peers into her bunny slipper of eggs, she doesn't think she needs to share them with Timothy who has PLENTY of eggs now.

Laura has some eggs which Florence has kindly given her from the pretty basket

Happy Easter everyone - we hope you had a lovely day.