Whisky Helen

I came across these photos yesterday and realized that I have never shown them to anyone. This is the first doll I ever made!

I made her for my dear friend Helen, who I lovingly call Whisky Helen (she kindly took and sent me these images). Although I had learned how to sew several years before and had done some upholstery work, I wasn't confident that I could actually sew when I embarked upon this project. But I was determined to see what I could make. So I dusted off my sewing machine, crossed my fingers and did a search on marthastewart.com for a cute gift idea. Luckily, the pattern I stumbled upon was Emily Martin's Black Apple Doll. I added a few embellishments like her boots, scarf, poncho and little flask.

This doll represents a lot for me because until the moment I came across this doll pattern, I was completely unaware of Etsy and I had no idea that I was going to fall in love with my sewing machine. I certainly had no idea that I'd open a store for goodness sake! My life shifted very quickly in a brand new direction and I am so happy that it has!

After Helen adopted the name Whisky Helen, I decided that I needed a nickname that was just as bottom of the world sounding. Because every time I thought of Whiskey Helen I thought of the song, Bottom of the World by Tom Waits. Specifically, when I think about Whisky Helen, I think about her dining with "Scar-faced Ron on tilapia fish cakes and fried black swan" and, well, I want to be there too. So Helen was kind enough to come up with a name for me, Big Momma Deal. This name seems like just the right one for me to be "handcuffed to the Bishop and the barbershop liar... lost at the bottom of the world".

♥ Big Momma Deal ♥