Handmaden Designs at the Scripps Ranch Farmer’s Market offers doll dresses, pajamas, purses, shoes, boots and sandals. (photos by John Gregory)
Darling clothes for a favorite doll
There is an enchanted booth called Handmaden Designs at the Scripps Ranch Farmer’s Market where little girls can find clothing for their special dolls. Two sisters who like little kids sell the items which they lovingly make by hand. A third sister often helps create the small items before they arrive at the market.
These women started taking their handmade products to craft shows in the early 1990s. Now, they bring their products to the Scripps Ranch Farmer’s Market.
They offer American Girl-type doll clothes and clothes for most of the popular brands of dolls in all sizes. The selection includes dresses, pajamas, purses, shoes, boots and sandals. Many of the footwear items have tiny details like ribbons.
“We’ve tried to price it so it’s affordable for kids,” explained Cindy Frye, one of the sisters staffing the booth. “We do have kids who bring in their dolls. They try on the clothes. I’m willing to let you handle them because it needs to be playable. I think kids should be able to touch it and play it, not hang it up and leave it.”
A young girl named Marie suddenly appeared at the booth and looked through the items, giving her approval. Marie is a daughter of one of the nearby vendors and often goes to the Handmaden Designs booth to browse through the merchandise and supervise. She is the perfect marketing executive.
“The dresses usually go pretty well. … They love frilly,” Frye said. “We do a lot of sandals and shoes. I have people come for the pajamas.”
Handmaden Designs also has purses and other doll accessories, as well as items for baby dolls.
“We’re willing to do special orders,” Frye said. “If you have a doll that’s not the size of what we have, we can make things adjustable.”
Frye said they once made a special outfit with a hole in it for a monkey tail because a little girl wanted something for her Curious George doll. They even made a Halloween costume for a doll to match the costume of the doll’s owner. They will also make clothes for girls to match their doll’s clothes.
Besides items for dolls, Handmaden Designs makes and sells a variety of colorful bandanas and soft cloth harnesses for dogs.
Cindy Frye can be contacted at cfrye628@yahoo.com or phone (619) 456-2427.
Find the Handmaden Designs booth at the Scripps Ranch Farmer’s Market which is open for shoppers from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. every single Saturday at 10380 Spring Canyon Road, in the Innovations Academy parking lot. Visit srfm.org.
