Kentucky is filled with history.

My parents were born in Kentucky. We have Kentucky ancestry on every single line, with each line going back to the 18th or early 19th centuries, when Kentucky was a very young state.  As a child, I visited relatives there every summer.  Those are some of the best memories in my life.  I still enjoy going to back to Kentucky, and I appreciate it on a different level now.  There are so many historic homes and buildings there - you can point your camera in almost any direction and capture one.  Here are a few.

Antebellum town home in downtown Lexington, Kentucky.

Hunt-Morgan House, Lexington, Kentucky - home of John Hunt Morgan's mother.  This beautiful Federal house was built in 1814.  In the early 20th century, it was converted to an apartment building with tiny little rooms.  In the 1960's, it served as student housing for a nearby college.  It was in danger of being demolished, but was saved and restored to its original era by people who cared.  I'm glad that they cared!  It is now a museum.  The tour was super interesting.

Newport, Kentucky - old, abandoned house with graffiti.  It looks like the Munster's house to me.  There are old buildings like this everywhere in Newport.  It is a small town, just south of the Ohio River and very close to Cincinnati, Ohio.

Long Lick Baptist Church in Scott County, Kentucky - WAY out in the country.  Under the large part, there are probably remains of the original log church that was built in the 1850's.  My great grandmother and her family attended this church when she was a little girl.

Antebellum mansion in the middle of rural Kentucky.  It looks so strange sitting out there all alone.  I wonder what stories it could tell.

Barn for a tobacco farm in the beautiful bluegrass region of Kentucky.

The older property fences for farms in the Lexington area are made of the native limestone.

The Waveland Mansion was the home of a slave-owning hemp farmer outside of Lexington, Kentucky in the 1840's.  Hemp was used for ropes in shipping and bags for cotton.  The subsequent generation, post Civil War, bred race horses.  There was once a race track right next to this mansion.  It's called Waverly because the blowing hemp looked like waves in the wind.

These were the slave quarters for the house slaves on Waverly Plantation.  The field slaves lived in much harsher, rougher quarters.  Currently, the University of Kentucky history department is researching exactly what happened to the slaves from this plantation after the Civil War.  They have been able to track down several people, which is very hard to do because there is a very sparse paper trail for African American people.  It's fascinating and exciting research.

Waverly field with a little play cabin.

This is hemp!

Irenea, her quilt, and her antique doll

Irenea has a head made of cloth layers and a flexible armature sewn into her body.

She is painted with acrylics.

She wanted slippers instead of boots.

She is wearing a worn, vintage doll apron.

Irenea loves her little antique china head doll.

Her doll has a lovely, old flower print for her cloth body.

Irenea's grandmother, my mom, made her a small quilt, based on an antique quilt that I recently bought at an antique store.  I love the browns and reds together.  I think Mom did a wonderful job.

My mom's beautiful little creation.  She based both the pattern and the colors on the antique quilt that I bought. 

Doll quilt back.

Poured concrete house in Seguin, Texas. 1856

Seguin was once known as Concrete City because there were over 100 concrete poured homes there.  The Sebastopol House was the first one in Seguin, built in 1856.  The roof is concave, for collecting rain water and cooling.  You just never know what you're going to find in a little Texas town.

Inspiration photos for painting

I will paint you when I get home, Leonabelle Turnbull Birding Center of Texas.

Thursday Morning at the Texas Coast, I want to take you home with me.

Three cloth heads, before bodies.

I am deeply satisfied with these heads.  I have worked for over a year on figuring out a way to make heads of cloth layers and paste by draping fabric instead of making a plaster mold.  When I made Eydth's heads, I draped and created cloth layers for the face half of the head - the head backs were not made of cloth layers.  These three doll heads have both back and front in cloth and paste layers. They are hollow.  They are so light weight!  They are also very sturdy.  I have no objection to sculpting a fresh head from paper clay.  In fact, that is one of my next projects, after I finish these dolls.  However, to create cloth and paste layered heads in a process that suits me (without using plaster) has been a personal goal of mine.  Goal reached!

I made the large cloth head from Edyth's original sculpey mold.  Rebecca is astonished at the likeness.

Comparing Frederick's profile with his new sister's.  They definitely share DNA.

It's hot, so I bought an antique quilt.

My flowers love the heat.

The sun is both beautiful and painful.  The crepe myrtle smells deep and rich right now.

Passion flowers look like they are showing off.

The butterflies love this one.

Here is my new, old quilt.  I love the reds and browns.  I will probably take it apart to use for doll dresses.

Here are some inspiration boots for dolls who are waiting to be made.

Fabric detail from quilt.

Acorn fabric from quilt.

Funny shapes.

Here is the quilt back, a nice, large piece of cotton.