Princess Kate in Malaysia - A Paper Doll

I've been wanting to make a paper doll of Princess Kate for ages - when I saw photos of her taken recently in Malaysia I could not resist any longer.  These dresses combine two of my favourite combinations of fabric - white organza or lace over a sky blue background and a shimmering ballgown fit for any princess.

Princess Kate Paper Doll

My son was unimpressed when he saw the finished version of my doll.  I'm afraid portraiture is not one of my strong points.  I'm also usually in too much of a hurry to get on to the actual dresses as they are what I am primarily interested in!

Princess Kate Paper Doll Sketch

I don't know what started my love affair of sheer white on blue, but every time I see something made with this combination of colours and fabrics I get a little thrill of recognition.  I think this blue dress is one of the nicest I have seen for a long time.  I love the soft feminine material and the lovely floaty hemline.  These dresses look beautiful on Princess Kate - she has a wonderful slim figure, gorgeous legs and a tanned healthy glow that sets a dress like this off to perfection. 

Princess Kate in Malaysia - Blue Dress

Princess Kate in Malaysia - Blue Dress Sketch

Blue Dress - Detail of Sleeve

The ballgown also caught my eye because it is an updated version of a dress that captured my imagination many years ago when I was a child.  Once again the material and the floaty style are absolutely perfect.    

Princess Kate in Malaysia - Ballgown

Princess Kate in Malaysia - Ballgown Sketch

When I saw this dress I thought immediately of this wonderful opulent creation worn by Elizabeth of Bavaria in 1865.  I can remember that when I saw this painting for the first time couldn't take my eyes off it - I had never seen such a magnificent fairytale princess.  Kate achieves a similar result in a gown that has been cleverly updated for the current generation.

Other paper dolls I have made:

A Paper Doll of My Own













A Paper Doll of My Own - Homage to Embleton












Morgana - From the BBC's Merlin












Guinevere - Seasons 1 to 4












Guinevere - Season 5

 All Copyright Sharon Souter - not to be used for commercial purposes 

In the Morning

Early Morning - Wicklow Mountains

In the morning when the moon is at it's rest,

You will find me at the time I love the best.

Watching rainbows play on sunlight;

Pools of water iced from cold night.

In the morning.

Tis the morning of my life.

In the daytime I will meet you as before.

You will find me waiting by the ocean floor.

Building castles in the shifting sands;

In a world that no one understands.

In the morning.

Tis the morning of my life.  

In the morning of my life

The minutes take so long to drift away.

Please be patient with your life.

It's only morning and you've still to live your day.

In the evening I will fly you to the moon.

To the top right hand corner of

The ceiling in my room.

Where we'll stay until the sun shines;

Another day to swing on clothes lines.

May I be yawning.

Tis the morning of my life. 

                                                                   Bee Gees - 1970

                                                   Featured in the film 'Melody'

                                                          Early morning in my garden

The Proud Rose

The Proud Rose

When I was a child many storybooks sought to teach lessons as much as to entertain, instilling values of courtesy and consideration in a gentle way.  This little book with its exquisite illustrations is one of my favourites.  (Unfortunately the cover is a bit damaged but inside the book is perfect.)

The book was published by Piccoli of Milan in 1957.
Written by Jolanda Colombini and illustrated by Mariapia.

By today's standards there is quite a lot of text - a page and a bit of writing for every illustration. But the illustrations are self explanatory in themselves and (with a short summary by me) tell the story beautifully:



At the start of the season the Queen of Summer decides to hold a grand ball.  A prize will be presented to the loveliest flower attending.  Nightingale is sent to spread the news . . .

The flowers get ready, each making sure she looks her best . . .

There is great excitement as the flowers make their way to the ball (the empty sign must have been too great a temptation for me - learning how to write my name!) . . .
 

Rose travels alone.  She is confident of being the most beautiful in the land.  The woodland folk endorse her view. . .

All the dignitaries assemble, waiting for the queen and the flowers to arrive.  Even the press are there . . .

The queen arrives on a lily pad drawn by two swans.  (I can remember that I loved the way the butterflies held up her train) . . .

Rose rushes to be noticed by the queen, pushing timid little Daisy out of the way.  She is sure the queen will announce her the winner. . .

Instead the queen admonishes her, telling Rose that beauty only has value when accompanied by a kind heart.  To be really beautiful you must know when to say a kind word or do a kind deed.  Sweet little Daisy is awarded the prize of a golden leaf instead . . .

Of course no-one stays unhappy for long.  By the time the fire-flies light their way home Rose and all the other flowers are good friends!
  

A Glamorous 'Chicken'

Sometimes pheasants wander into our garden from the adjoining fields.  My husband joking calls them 'good looking chickens'.  They appear to be quite tame - after walking around a bit and finding things to eat they saunter off again!

After the most dismal summer we are suddenly enjoying the most glorious weather.  This afternoon we ate lunch outside and I was able to make a lovely salad (while the 'boys' BBQ'd), sourced predominantly from the garden - salad leaves, tomatoes, little onions, mushrooms grown locally and blackberries.  The only 'exotics' I added were a few grapes, some avocado (and a bit of cheddar cheese which my son likes).

When we eat outdoors I always like to make another staple from my 60's childhood - stuffed eggs!.

Dream House (Girl's World Annual 1966)

One of the stories (included here in full) originally featured in the post Its 1966! - and girls just want to have fun

Swans in the Green

Last year the swans did not breed in St Stephen's Green (Dublin).  I missed them terribly so was thrilled to see a new family again this year.  I always walk through the park on my way to work in the morning (I like it at that time when it has just opened and I have it almost to myself).  This year I've been able to follow the progress of the little family as the cygnets have matured.

I kept forgetting to bring my camera with me after I first spotted them so I did not get any photos of the 'day old chick' stage.  They cygnets were already a couple of weeks old before I eventually remembered to put the camera in my bag before I left for work.
 

They are such a wonderfully close-knit family unit.  The two adult swans are perfect parents - constantly protective and devoted to their young.

  

I love the way they swim in formation - usually with one parent in the lead and one bringing up the rear.

It is like family life in microcosm and I can't help feeling sad because I know it is for such a limited time.  Usually the park has either one adult swan or at most a breeding pair.  I don't suppose the area is big enough to support increasing numbers of adult birds.  When I watch them they seem so content and so much like a family in human terms.  I know this little idyll will end soon - and that they are blissfully unaware of it.
 

This is quite a strange photo but I think it is quite effective so I decided to include it.

These last pictures were taken a couple of weeks ago.   More and more white is starting to appear and the cygnets are almost full grown.  They live such a charmed and cosseted life here.  I hope when they are taken away that they end up somewhere equally as nice.

A bit of a gangly ballerina!  Eventually this one figured out where its leg was supposed to go, but for a while it kept flapping it awkwardly across its back.

Shop sign with two swans at the top of Grafton Street near to the entrance of the park.