I'VE ALWAYS FANCIED MYSELF AS A PRAIRIE GIRL....

Yes siree...indeedy I have! .....So when the opportunity to purchase an authentic vintage Amish child's outfit came up ...well you know me......I couldnt resist ...could I??

Ever seen something and just had to have it the minute you laid eyes on it?...well let me tell you...my home is full of "had to haves" and the sad sad thing is I could probably tell you where and how I came to find each and every one of them.

I don't know about you but I have dozens of "oh thats my all time favourite thing" items! ...... Do you think that this is just our way of justifying the fact that we have spent a ridiculous amount of money on something we really do not need...whilst also totally ignoring the fact that WE CAN'T USE THEM EITHER????

Take my Amish outfit (figure of speach...if you take it I will HAVE to kill you...lol)., well....it's not MY outfit as there is no way I could squeeze my 40 odd years of good living into that little beauty!!!, but it is my outfit in the sense that I paid a stupid amount of money for it because I "just had to have it" just so it can sit on a stand and look pretty!! (well prim really!!)

Once again I was totally guided by my little inner voice telling me stories of who once wore this gorgeous little garment. ...ooooh maybe it was THE Laura Ingalls herself...hmmm....maybe not as it isnt quite that old...lol

So....heres my guess..........Bessie, Jessamine or Gertie. She wore it to school each and every day (nursing her slate and slate pencil and later playing ring-a ring-a rosy) only having the pleasure of changing into her good calicoes for Church each Sunday. She wore it while doing her chores (shucking the corn, milking the cow and drawing the water) and she played in it on weekends and afternoons after her chores were done (running "quicker then scat" with all of her friends, playing "batball and hide go seek").

If you smelled it back then it would hold the faintest scent of "Lemon Verbena" that her ma allowed her "to wear special" when attending her her first prairie party with all of the other little girls from surrounding farms. They would have eaten fresh cooked ears of corn and apple pastries, followed by freshly made lemonade....a treat saved only for special occasions as sugar was so costly.

She would soon outgrow this little outfit and move onto a larger one lovingly handstitched by her ma from hardwearing homespun and the smaller, outgrown dress would be passed on to her smaller sister......Constance, Emma or even Hettie......to start it's life over.

So there you have it.....but alas.....this dress WILL serve one more purpose as I hope it be worn by one more very special little girl..... namely Charlotte .....when she is big enough for it to fit and who knows her picture may just grace the pages of my website.....sounds like I have a plan doesn't it!!....you will just have to wait and see... she still has a bit of growin' to do though yet (plus she needs to learn to stand up by herself first..lol!).

Anyways...I hope you have enjoyed my story and looking at this sweet little treasure I am so grateful I impulsively purchased some time ago.

I will leave you of a picture of me... the prairie girl at heart....lol

This was taken  at my market stall by a friend, when I was "modelling" one of the prairie bonnets I had made. Those of you who know me will realise that this was taken when I had my "mild brainfreeze" and had dyed my hair chocolate brown......hmm thinking back now...maybe it was because I wanted to look more like the auburn haired Laura Ingalls rather than her blonde headed sister Mary...lol.

Just kidding guys... seriously......I am not that bad....dont worry.....hmmm ..... now where did I put those nice blue ribbons that I wear when ma, pa Mary and me hitch the team and ride to church on Sunday????...lol

Till next time.................. Chris x

AN UPDATE JUST FOR JACKIE....

I am still searching for those blue ribbons....just cant seem to find them.Hmmm....maybe I'll just have to wear my best bonnet instead...lol