Costume Chaos Causes Caravan Delay

Breaking News is just in that Fiona has been so busy sewing medieval trousers and tunics for her son's film that she has not had time to work on the Doiley Birds' caravan.

The filming starts on Saturday so after this weekend she should be able to get on and show developments of the caravan. Her intention is to cover it in paper mache to make it stronger and warmer then paint it in gypsy caravan colours.

She has suggested to the girls that while they are waiting they should make lists of the essential gear they should take.

Her own list goes like this:
warm clothes (and she has started a knitted coat -picture will come next week)
sleeping bags
blankets
hats and scarves
pots and pans
crockery and cutlery
books
maps
journals
food (of course with plenty of chocolate)
first aid kit (with stuff for tummy aches)

Does anyone else have any suggestions? We don't want these intrepid explorers setting off without something vital they'll want on their journey.

PS: Fiona found the basketry wheels and will post photos next week when her life begins again.
We can't wait.

Introducing the Doiley Birds

Hi, we are the Doiley Birds. We are the creations of Fiona McDonald, an awfully talented girl. One of our main features, apart from being stunningly beautiful is the fact we are made from recycled fabrics and bits and pieces.

Fiona's workshop is overflowing with cutoffs, cast offs and snippets of lace and ribbon, old socks, wool, cardboard boxes, broken toys and whatnots.

I am Tilly and I am the eldest in the family.

I have knitted hair.

This is my second sister, Delia, she also has knitted hair.

Suzie is one of the twins...

and Jemimah is the other and officially the youngest.

Soon we will be available to purchase in Fiona's Etsy shop: 123fionadolls

Fiona has big plans for us. She wants to design a wardrobe of clothes and accessories that can be purchased seperately and she is working on some travel trunks to keep us safe in transit.

But the most exciting thing at the moment is that she is helping us build a caravan. It is going to be delightful, painted with bright colours and warm and cosy inside. We have not decided what kind of animal will pull it for us, we might even install an engine of some kind.

Here is a preview of it under construction.

You can see I'm in the driver's seat and Jemimah is in the back. We have been discussing what kind of wheels we need too. Cardboard may not be strong enough, Fiona thinks she has some woven basketry ones somewhere.

I shall keep you updated about the caravan, we do hope to be on the road in a week or two, depending on how busy Fiona is.