26. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Sophie in bed.  (Photo taken by Sophie's new friend's Mama.)

And here is the latest photo of Sophie.

As you see she is sleeping soundly in a bed made for her specially by her new little friends. 

It is "Forest Bed" with two trees and blades of grass.

***

And I wish you all

very merry, and nice, and quiet Christmas 
and 
a prosperous and healthy New Year 2014!

25. Promise

It was Wednesday when I said goodbye to Sophie. First we went for a short walk
and then we only had to pack. Sophie was very excited. After all she was about
to start a new adventure in her life.

I hugged her and wished good journey. 

"You will have a wonderful friend". - I encouraged her. 

She waved her hand to me smiling. And she left.

***

I returned to our morning walk. We went to the sea. 

It was quiet with no trace of the recent strong winds at all.  We went up the stairs to the top of the cliff and looked around. In front of us there was a small clearing, where we noticed a big bird standing in the grass.

"Ohhh!" - cried out Sophie. - "What is it?"

"A goose". - I answered. - "She is a wild goose."

"How beautiful." - I heard Sophie ... I looked at her surprised. She was enchanted with the bird and started walking towards her. The goose suddenly got scared off and flew away on to the nearest tree. A moment later she flew farther, towards to the sea. She flew faster and faster until she disappeared...

On our way home Sophie showed me something - a green little hood.

"How did you get this?" - asked I.

"Found it in the clearing where the goose stood. It's like my hood, only much smaller. I'll give it to you if you like." 

I thanked her and imagined at once Beauty staying all this time around Sophie until she was sure Sophie chose staying here. She reminded me of Niels too. "I'll have to find him... I must.'

Thank you for your visit!

24. Sophie's description

Sophie is a Waldorf inspired doll. She is about 14 inches tall.

She is made from a special cotton jersey designed for dollmakers (swiss cotton with eco-tex label).

It is firmly stuffed with clean, carded sheepswool, but soft enough for hugging. 

Her head is sculptured in the traditional Waldorf style. Sophie's facial features (her eyes and lips) are embroidered with floss. In her face you can notice a tiny tip of the nose, and a few freckles embroidered with floss. 

For her medium-length hair I chose a light brown woolen yarn with a hint of ginger and mixed it with mohair in a nearing colour. I made her hair by applying strand by strand to the embroidered , with the same yarn, head. It is very strong. Her hairstyle can be easily changed, and it needs to be finger styled. Sophie's cheeks and nose are coloured with wax crayon.

Because she is made of sheepswool, Sophie is soft, warm and nice to the  touch. It is very pleasing to hold her and cuddle. She smells of home and gives her little friend a sense of security.

Sophie comes with a complete outfit of clothing: 

two pairs of underwear, a colourful dress, green trousers, red bootees, a white and green hat (little hood), a red shawl, a green hair band and two ribbons to tie her hair.

In additon Sophie has a white nightdress and 3-pieces bedding set (a duvet, a pillow filled with sheepswool and a pillow case).

The doll herself and all her clothes including the bedding set are made from natural materials: her underwear, dress, trousers and a nighgtdress from cotton; bootees and her shawl from wool, and her hood from soft mohair.

Sophie is suitable for children aged 3 and more.

For more information about how to care about Sophie visit my blog ("Waldorf doll care tutorial" page).

Sophie has already found a loving home. Her new little friend is waiting impatiently for her.

Thank you for dropping in!

23.Beauty, and a brave little doll

Yesterday it was 6th December and it was Saint Nicholas day. On that day Saint Nicholas brings children presents in Poland. So I also prepared a little present for Sophie she was supposed to find in her bed just after waking up in the morning. But it turned out differently...

On the day before St. Nicholas day just before going to sleep Sophie found a book about birds and looked at it with interest. She was particularly interested in geese. I even asked her about it, but she did not seem to hear me. 

There was something else that attracted her attention. It was a little packet tied with a ribbon that lay under  her cot... Well, what to do. Sophie unwrapped her present and in it found a nightdress and some favourite sweets. 

She became very excited, as it was for the first time in her life that she got a present from Saint Nicholas. As a matter of fact it was the first present in her life too. Sophie immedaitely examined the nightdress and decided to put it on. After doing so she lay down on her cot comfortably. I though she would fall asleep, but I was wrong. 

Her eyes were wide open. I heard her telling her story...

22. Her favourite place

When we returned home after morning walk, Sophie immediately came up to her little bed.

I have already noticed  that Sophie likes sleeping. It is all because of her long journey that
brought her here. - I thought. I still knew little about her, because Sophie didn't want to tell me
her story.

So I waited. In the meantime Sophie's bed became her favourite place to rest and play.

And now she quickly started to climb up her bed too.

Sophie, hold on!  Take off at least your hood and scarf.

Oops! Where's my bootee?

Here it is! - cried out Sophie. And she played for a long time. It was soon lunchtime, when she realised that....

Thank you for visiting us!

21. A little hood and booties. A beginning of the story

"And how are you, Sophie? How are you doing? OK,  I'm fine". 

And then I could only listen to her endless stories about what happened in the morning, 

in the evening and at night. We have had such and alike talks  since Sophie came to us. 

Well, that she came is maybe not the adequate word. She appeared suddenly. 

When I asked her how she arrived and where she came from Sophie only smiled mysteriously. 

One day, however...

she asked me to make her a green little hood and red bootees. She wanted to look like her friend, 

a little gnome, she travelled with. I pricked up my ears. "And what happened to him? 

Where's he now?" - asked I. Sophie's answer was short. He just jumped into a white house, and she chose my window. As she was saying this, Sophie nestled herself in the sunlit chair and stretched. Hmmm, very interesting. I did not say anything. And then Sophie fell asleep. 

I wondered - "Have I got any red and green yarns? Well, let's try and find something."

I was beginning to think that my adventure with the little doll was becoming more and more interesting each day.

Soon the cap and bootees were ready, but Sophie was sleeping on and on. At last she woke up. Seeing a new hood she put it on immediately. She really liked it. So did I.

"And what are they? Bootees... red bootees. Just as I wanted them..." 

The little shoes walked down to Sophie and quickly jumped onto her little feet.

She admired them for a few minutes. Next she looked anxiously through the window just to be sure nothing exciting happened outside while she looked at her new shoes. 

It was quiet, she glanced at me.

I knew she wanted to tell me something. I waited...

Thank you for dropping in.

20. Sophie?

I thought about Sophie even then when, after returning from holidays, I tried to sort out my impressions associated with holidays....

One day when I sat at my computer looking at photos I noticed "something" on the table. This tiny "thing" stared intensely at me or the computer in turn.

Sophie - I thought. Yes, she will look like this... Why not?... Sophie, absolutely, or... maybe Sophy.

Sophie... a high-spirited and smart little girl. With her brown and ginger hair, not too long, and... greenish eyes. Her eyes - yes... with a nice shade of green, almost turquoise. They look deep into your eyes as if they wanted to x-ray you. I wonder what thoughts this little creature may have. - I meditated for a second or two, when suddenly I heard quite clearly : What are you doing? Looking at something...?

Oo, yes, I... am looking at my photos. Do you know what photos are?

Sophie, because this was little Sophie, doesn't look surprised. She nodds her head vigorously.

Ooh! A lizard. How you got this pic? - questions Sophie.

I took it. It's a picture from my holidays.

I never seen such a green lizard. She's got a very long tail and is so... fast. - she adds.

Mhm, yes, it is very agile...  And you, Sophie,you are really bright. Green is your favourite colour, I suppose. - I say.

Maybe. I'm not sure, but maybe it is. - Sophie agrees in the end.

I am quite certain about Sophie now, so I have started  working on her. 

I hope she will be finished soon, because Sophie herself promised to help.

Thank you for visitiing us.

19. About Istria in Croatia

Storm with a whirlpool on the Adriatic Sea.

During our stay in Istria we toured quite a number of places. First we went by ship to Rovinj 

(Italian Rovigno). Before we reached it, we saw a storm with a whirlpool on the sea westward. Luckily the storm was a long distance from our ship, somewhere near to the Italian shore 

where Venice was. About a hundred kilometres from us. We sighed with relief... 

Below Rovinj.

Rovinj. Old Town with  St. Euphemia's basilica towering over the hill.

Rovinj. A steep alley.

There are lots of narrow lanes climbing up to the top of the hill in Rovinj. We took this one.

Lim Canal. Nine-kilometre long estuary of the river Pazincica near Rovinj.

 Then Pula. Pula (Pola in Italian) is probably the oldest town on the Croatian coast of the 

Adriatic. Its most famous monument is a great Roman amphitheatre, Pula Arena constructed 

in 1st c. A.D., still standing to this day.  

Yet we were impressed by another monument - remains of the small Roman Theatre originating from 2nd century A.D. with  fragments of auditorium and proscenium.

Pula. Impressive ancient theatre.

And below the monastery of St. Francis built in the Romanesque style from the end 

of  13th century.

Pula. St. Francis' monastery.

We also visited Opatija (Abbazia in Italian) situated on the eastern coast of Istria by the Kvarner Gulf. There we liked a long promenade along the seashore extending for 12 km.

Opatija. Sculpture of a girl with a dove. View of Rijeka in the background.

Opatija. The same sculpture from a different side with a view of the Kvarner Gulf.

Polish traces in Opatija. A plaque commemorating stay
of Marshall Józef Piłsudski.

 

Eventually we went to Porec (Italian Parenzo) to see the most precious monument in Istria - 

the Euphrasian Basilica (inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List) - from 6th century A.D.

It was late evening, but we found the place easily. Inside the basilica we saw the most beautiful Byzantine mosaics. Porec was worth visiting.

Porec. Byzantine mosaics in the Euphrasian Basilica.

Porec. Ancient floor mosaic from 4th /5th c.

Leaving the basilica we popped in to a small gallery, where we wanted to buy some nicely looking souvenirs from Porec. Inside there was a tourist talking to a young shop-assistant. The girl was showing her a jug decorated with traditional regional patterns.  She was telling affectionally how her father (who was a sculptor) collected the patterns  travelling around, talking to people living in this part of Croatia, trying to obtain information, and so on.

The tourist asked with excitement:  Croatia? What do you mean Croatia? We are in Istria, aren't we?

The girl:   Yes, but Istria is in Croatia. We are in Croatia, aren't we? This is the name of the country you are in.

The lady:   No, this is not Croatia. This is Istria...

Well, tourists...   
Those were the holidays...

And now I think it 's time for new dolls to turn up.

Thank you very much for popping in.  

     

18. Croatia

Last shot from Croatia at the border crossing with Slovenia.
(with the view of vineyards on the hills.)

In September we were on holidays in Croatia. We spent two weeks on the most protruding southward end of Istria, on Kamenjak cape near the town Premantura.

Little bays with beaches, isles, Island Cres appearing on the horizon.  This is how the coast of Adriatic looks like from Kamenjak.

Kamenjak with Premantura far off.

Even now I can remember and feel that smell of the air, a mixture of herbal oils with spray sea water, warmth of the sun and wind. Water in the sea was not as warm as in August, but it was still much easier to get used to it than in the Baltic Sea in August (not September!) The time was going by as we swam, sunbathed and went sightseeing Istria. We started, however, with exploring Kamenjak...

Kamenjak and the view of the Uczka mountain massif on the horizon -
 the highest range of mountains in Istria.

Kamenjak. Blue thistle.

End of Istria, Kamenjak and land.   There stretches only the Adriatic Sea outside.
(You can see a tiny island and a lighthouse behind it on the left.)

Waters surrounding the end of Kamenjak are dangerous because of strong sea currents occuring there. Accordingly a relevant warning is placed nearby. However...

The last snip of Kamenjak and adventurous swimmers.

However... adventurers who like hazard can be found anywhere like the swimmers in this pic...

Gate or arch built from small pieces of rock and stones by a talented tourist

We often passed this "gate" walking to the sea. We liked it very much...

Kamenjak is a nature park. It is a beautiful place. What else have we seen in Istria? There is so much to write about that I 'll do it in a separate post.

Thank you for popping in.

17. A loving girl

Anja a loving girl. 

Anja is trying to help with packing her clothes, and I can see how excited she is to meet her 

new Mom. I took these last pics of Anja on Monday just before she left to start

her wee adventure - a journey to a new home. 

Thank you Anja for your adventures, our walk to the meadow on a sunny Sunday evening and visit to the playground in the park where you saw puppets in the poster. 

Good luck!

16. In the countryside

I would like to present some shots from around Kamień Pamorski, 

a small town situated about 20 km off the sea. 

On our way from Wolin to Kamień Pomorski we spotted three storks' nests with storks, 

parents and their youth, inside. 

The three nests were located on electric line poles, near the houses, 

almost in the farmyard.

Storks' nest. A little stork inside.

MyWaldorfstyleDolls' photostream

MyWaldorfstyleDolls' photostream on Flickr.