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Doll
Wooden doll in Welsh national dress, carrying a small porcelain doll wrapped in a nursing shawl, 'Welsh fashion'.
Doll made from wood. Torso and head made from same piece of wood, arms and legs separate: each made from two movable parts (joints at sholder and elbow, hips and knees). Joints are held together with pegs of wood. Head, neck and upper torso, lower arms and lower legs are painted yellow-white. Details of face and hair picked out in black blue and red, shoes painted on in orange. Left arm missing. Remains of arm's mechanism still at left shoulder.
Costume: apron, bedgown, skirt, two underskirts, shawl, neckerchief, and holds a baby wearing cloak and underskirts. Body: made from wood. Torso and head made in one, arms and legs separate with joints at shoulder and elbow, hips and knees. The body is made from stuffed fabric. Hat: silk plush. The bold navy and red flannel fabric of the skirt is probably linsey-wolsey.
Inner petticoat: cream fulled wool (tabby). Made from one piece of fabric joined with open seam down centre back (running stitches). The lower edge is finished with 0.5cm wide double turn-back which is secured with running stitches along the hem and with overcast stitches along the upper edge of the turnback. All stitches using white cellulosic thread (S-twist).
Outer petticoat: white tabby linen, made from one piece of fabric with seam down centre back (top-stitched french seam, running stitches). Petticoat has one horizonal 1.3cm wide pleat secured with running stitches. Hem finished off with single turn back (selvage) and secured with small overcast stitches. All stitches using white cellulosic thread (S-twist).
Skirt: dark navy/blue with blocks of four vertical red stripes. Wool, unbalanced tabby weave: warps = thin navy blue, tightly spun (Z) singles yarn and wefts = thicker black and red, more loosely spun (Z-black, S-red) singles yarn. Made from three pieces joined with three open seams, one at each side, and at centre back (running stitches). 2cm wide single turn-back at lower hem,secured with two rows of running stitches. All stitches using brown cotton thread (S-twist). Upper edge laid into four folds: two foreward facing folds at each side and is sandwiched in-between a waistband of white cellulosic twill-woven tape. Folded in half, it is c. 1.8cm wide and is stitched to itself at centre back to hold it in place (white cellulosic thread (S-twist). The ends of these threads are wound round the waist and are tied at centre front. Also at centre front are remains of more recent stitches (into waistband): white cellulosic, Z-twist.
Apron: black and white check pattern (wool, balanced tabby-weave, all singles yarns, Z-twist). Constructed from one piece of fabric with horizontal tuck c.4.5cm up from hem, stitch-secured with 2 rows of running stitches. Double-turnbacks at hem & side edges, secured with overcast stitches. Upper edge gathered (pleated) into a waist band of red wool tape (herringbone twill). Original width = 3cm but folded in half and stitched together lengthways using overcast stitches. Upper edge of apron = 8.7cm wide. Waistband extending into ties which are each c. 19cm long. Ties secured in double-knot at centre back. All stitches using brown cotton thread (S-twist).
Neckscarf: triangular piece of printed cotton: black thorny plant design on white ground. Fine balanced tabby weave (singles yarns), selvedge edge on doll's right side, other edges unfinished. Held together with small stitches at centre front (white cellulosic thread, Z-twist)
Betgwn: wool, similar fabric to outer skirt, except has blocks of three stripes: two red with one white stripe (slightly thinner) in the middle. Made from three panels: two front and one back, plus one panel for each short sleeve, joined with two open seams at sides (centre front open) and under arms (running stitches). 0.6cm wide turn-back edges at centre front edges and 1.4cm wide turn-back at hem, both secured with overcast stitches. Turn-backs on ends of sleeves finished by stitching black silk (?) tape (w=0.5cm) over edges. Blue warps of this fabric are lighter than those of the outer skirt. Right sleeve is tucked in (wooden arm is missing). Lower centre front edges folded outwards and corners are stitch secured to keep folds in place. All stitches using brown cotton thread (S-twist). Previous repair / conservation: exposed warps secured with couching stitch over black fulled wool support patch using black cotton thread (tightly spun Z-twist).
Shoulder scarf: red tabby woven wool. Large piece folded in two: both selvages folded on top of each other on doll's right side (full width of fabric c. 76cm selvage to selvage). Other edges are unfinished. Scarf held together at centre front with several small stitches using red thread (Z-twist).
Hat: black silk velvet (black silk pile with brown cellulosic ground weave). Hhatband of black tabby-woven tape (c.1.1cm wide); ends of tape meet at left side, are stitched together and extend to resemble a bow. Brim = 2.6-2.8cm wide. Crown = 6.2cm high. Diameter at top of crown = 3.2cm; diameter at lower edge = c.5cm. Edge of brim sandwiched in folded black tape (held with running stitches). Hat is stiffened with printed card (red, orange, blue print): rolled and held together with large running stitches in vertical join (left side) using black thread. Black tape also used for ties (length = 17.7cm). They cross over under the chin and are tied into a bow at centre back of head. Inner lining of loosely woven brown cellulosic tabby woven fabric. Further black silk velvet fabric at top of crown (gathered and stitched to card).
Baby: Baby is tucked into folds of the red shoulder scarf with only the head being visible. It was not fastened in position and could be pulled out for examination. Baby does not appear to be original to the wooden doll as the proportions in relation to the 'mother' are incorrect (it is too small) and it is made from different materials (porcelain rather than wood). White porcelain head and upper torso, hair and facial features painted on in red and black. Lower arms and lower legs also from porcelain, shoes painted on in dark brown. Torso attached to padded fabric-covered body (white cellulosic, tabby weave, singles yarns) with brown (animal?) glue. Arms and legs appear to be attached to fabric covered upper arms and legs simply by tight stitches. The seams along the sides of the arms and legs are overcast stitches using white cellulosic thead (S-twist). The fabric covered part of the legs is connected at the lower end by a thread.
Baby has short petticoat (down to knee) of white fulled tabby woven wool (raised nap). The vertical seam at centre back and the single turnback at the lower hem are finished with herringbone stitches (using white cellulosic thread, S-twist).
Long outer skirt/dress of single piece of white tabby woven cellulosic fabric (singles yarns) which is gathered (running stitches) at the top and reaches to below the arms. Length extends by nearly 2cm beyond the feet. Vertical seam at centre back joined with top-stitched French seam (running stitches & overcast stitches). 0.7cm wide turnback at lower hem secured with overcast stitches. All threads are white cellulosic thread (S-twist).
Baby wears cloak of square piece of white fulled wool (raised nap, tabby woven, singles yarns) (9 x 9cm). The fabric is finished on all four edges by being encapsulated in blue silk ribbon, secured with running stitches using white cellulosic thread (S-twist). The cloak is held in place by some small stitches at the doll's neck (using the same thread) which turn into running stitches that continue around the back of the neck.