It's not much of a secret that my primary focus is bonsai .... and I tend to gravitate toward plants that are unusual and that I can manipulate into something unusual or more attractive than they would end up being if left to their own growth habit. I really didn't BUY those plants. We had a guest artist do a workshop for our bonsai club, and the selection of plants she had for the plantings was very limited. Those were the most attractive of what was available, so I just grabbed those, but I was really never pleased with the appearance of the plants, which, as you can see from the pictures above, quickly became unruly & to my eye not so attractive ....... so I was just looking for an opportunity to give them away. Using them in a demonstration allowed me to keep the tray they were planted in, so it all worked out. Some of you might be surprised at how much root pruning you can do without concern for the plant's survival. Here's a little boxwood I've been working with before root pruning: and here's what it looked like before it went into it's new pot: Plants are plants, whether they are houseplants or trees normally found in the landscape. They grow the same way and use the same nutrients in the same proportions as other plants, so 95% of what applies to trees applies to houseplants. If your houseplant has a branching root system, don't be afraid to bare-root it and root prune. You'll find it has a significant rejuvenating effect for the whole plant. There is a physiological reason for this that I've explained before, but I won't go into it now because I've already strayed a long way from my original intent, which was to thank you for your kind words. - Al

This is little off subject I think but Joan talking about making things with toilet paper rolls & oatmeal boxes made me think of all the fun I had making forts, school houses, or a fine house- all out of the refrigerator or appliance cartons. The ones we got were around a new appliance & had wood frame & heavy cardboard or maybe even lightweight paneling with reinforced corners. They did well in summer rains(I added some kind of roof) & in winter dad had gotten 1 for me to retreat to in the basement. I put 3-4 of them together on a vacant lot & "taught" school, played house with other neighborhood kids or fought off cowboys or Indians as we often changed which ones we wanted to to be. There was a tree on the lot, so we could escape the fort & go up in the tree & be lookouts, of course the lake was right below so we had to watch"on land & sea" it was quite a job & we were very serious about it. Too bad I didn't have my camera yet! I was shy but always road after the appliance truck & asked if I could have the crate, I think we ended up with 4 on the lot, they were very heavy but delivered right to spot I wanted.So disappointed when torn down & new house went up in there. Dad really started something fun by bringing that 1st 1 home tho. Jan

I found the pattern on her site and have ordered it......I ordered it via paypal because she said she ships in three days but haven't heard from her......she is slow in responding but she does have a list of patterns there that she will sell.... I also made patterns for the doll by my little old self and they turned out quite nice. I posted a link to three of my dresses in the other My Size thread.......

Here's a free pattern for a doll. Print it out and enlarge everything. Here is a link that might be useful: doll pattern