All posts tagged: childhood

Retro cuddlies

Published by The Dreamstress

I found a couple of vintage knitted stuffed toys recently and just had to have them (or at least have them for a little while).  They didn’t come together, but are about the same size, and are the only two knitted stuffed toys I have ever come across, though I have seen lots of patterns for them. I don’t know a lot about them, as knitting and toys aren’t my areas of textile expertise by a long shot (if you do, please speak up!), but though they were too cute not to share. The first one dates back to at least the 1940s, and probably a little earlier. Isn’t it adorable!  It’s just so cute and simple and cunning! It’s pure wool, and, except for the beak, is worked all in one simple stitch – very characteristic of early 20th century knitted items, including toys. I’ve seen patterns for similar stuffed toys in pre WWII women’s magazines, but haven’t seen this exact pattern. It doesn’t look like it was every really used or carried around …

Jeanne Samary’s book: Charlotte’s Treats

Published by The Dreamstress

It’s really hard to get ahold of a copy of Jeanne Samary’s children’s book  Les Gourmandises de Charlotte (Charlotte’s Treats), which is really a pity, because it sounds charming, and the illustrations are adorable. Little Charlotte is a greedy, unruly little child.  She won’t eat anything but sugar! Her mother tries to tempt her with all sorts of delicious, nutritious food, but Charlotte just says “Non”! A doctor is called to warn her, but does Charlotte listen? Non! Without nutrition, Charlotte begins to shrink… and shrink…. and shrink… …until she becomes so little that she is smaller than a rat. Indeed, she is so small that she becomes the servant to a rat! Poor naughty Charlotte! Charlotte is so distressed that she begins to eat. She eats… and eats… and eats… She eats anything she can get her hands on! She eats so much that she grows enormously fat, and can’t walk or play! Poor naughty Charlotte! Will Charlotte ever learn to eat the right amount of the right kind of foods, and be a …