I was thrifting with my daughter
recently when I saw this little girl.
She is a 1961 Effanbee Suzie Sunshine.
She is wearing her original dress,
underpants and shoes.
She is a bit faded.
Her hair is messy, but not bad
for being over 60 years old!
She has old bits of rubber bands
stuck in her hair in places.
Someone used double-stick tape
to keep her shoes on.
Her shoes are oddly 2 different shades.
I think I have another pair of shoes for her.
First thing I did was wash her dress.
Her dress is soaking in cold water
with Dawn dish soap.
Spa Day!
She is a little grimy, but remarkably clean for
her age. She must have spent most of her life in
a cabinet, not being played with.
Using up my styler conditioner on her hair.
First comb out.
And the back. Looks really good.
Her hair dried overnight and looks nice and shiny.
Sweet freckle face!
Her dress and pantalettes are nice and dry, so
now it is time to replace stretched out elastic.
Her little pantalettes were just falling off her!
The elastic was SO stretched out.
I opened the rear seam and unstitched all around the waist.
When all the old elastic was removed, I zig-zagged
new elastic all around the waist.
I did a similar thing with her sleeves.
I opened along the seam a little then
removed all the old elastic.
I stretched and sewed with a straight stitch.
Then I closed the seam.
NEXT is some new cheek and lip color!
As ususal, I select a skin tone and a warm pink color.
The warm pink refreshed her lips
Then I mix the 2 colors for a soft shade for
her cheeks. Using a make-up sponge, I dip in
mixed color and pat almost dry on a paper towel.
Then I pat gently onto cheeks, chin and nose.
Lastly her dress needed a good pressing.
I noticed it looked like something had been
on this bow, so I added a little rose.
Want to see her now?
Here
She
Is!
Before and After photos.
Suzie is similar to another Effanbee doll I
had as a girl. I'm so pleased to have found her!
10 comments:
You have been having wonderful thrift shopping luck lately. She's so happy looking now. I just found nice cotton fat quarters for only $1.00 each. Not to exciting but useful for dolly sewing.
Have a great day, Doreen
She is very cute! What an amazing refresh! I love that shade of blue, pretty partial to it actually. Glad you found her! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Brenda,
I love Suzie Sunshine, she looks so much happier now. She just looks so pretty after her make over.
Anna
What a beautiful job you did! She is absolutely lovely, she even looks happier in the after photo.
What a lovely restoration!
Hi Doreen,
Thank you, I’m very pleased with how Susie came out. I have been so fortunate lately, but I thrift a LOT'! Haha! I love finding cute fabrics. There was a thrift store I used to go to and they had a huge stash of fabrics. I miss that place. Sigh.
Hugs
Brenda
Hi Jennifer,
Thank you! Her dress is so cute. The photos do not do it justice. She really came out much cuter than I anticipated. This particular doll has a kind of scooped face that I have not always been a fan of, but after refreshing her cheeks, wow! I love her!
Hugs
Brenda
Hi Anna,
Thank you! It’s amazing how dolls can look happier, right? Susie is such a cutie. I’m so glad I found her.
Hugs
Brenda
Hi Conni,
Thank you! It is amazing how a doll’s expression seems to almost change when they are cleaned and beautified. I think this is what I love about restorations.
Hugs
Brenda
Hi Mary,
Thank you! I do enjoy restoring these dolls. Susie was a joy to work on.
Hugs
Brenda
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