Letter from Paris
Finny Girl
Dear friends,
Since I last wrote, Marianne and Thaïs have taken up their posts in the holiday windows at Les Tricoteurs Volants.
Marianne
Thaïs
I want to thank you for all the support that followed my letters about the creation of this display. My nerves are delicate these days–whose aren’t?–and I was dreading the wave of negativity that has followed almost any post I’ve made elsewhere about knitting for dolls.
Of course I should have known that readers of Modern Daily Knitting are a cut above. Kind, thoughtful, intelligent, startlingly attractive, and possessing uncommonly good taste.
You emboldened me to pick up the needles to dress yet another doll.
When my friend and colleague Melissa Leapman announced a virtual knitting retreat with an “Under the Sea” theme, I offered to present a knitted mermaid.
I first thought I would knit the entire mermaid, head to tail. Then I remembered Louisa, a 10″ (25 centimeter) antique doll whose clothes were in bad shape, leading to her sad sequestration in a workroom drawer.
Poor Louisa.
Why not kit her out as a mermaid?
There wasn’t much time to make it happen. This would be deadline knitting. Deadline knitting is seldom a pleasure.
I started (as I often do) by collecting images, shuffling and re-shuffling them, immersing myself in the idea, becoming even a bit obsessed by it. I re-read Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid (a story I frankly do not enjoy) to refresh my memory of his physical descriptions of mermaids. I even dipped into the lore of mermaid-adjacent figures like Mélusine the serpent woman, Rusalka the water sprite, and the sirens of The Odyssey. (The Sirens were of course part bird, not part fish, but there is enough confusion about this that the French word for mermaid is sirène.)
A Multitude of Mermaids
I also started swatching, pulling book after book off the shelf in search of patterns suited to fish scales, netting, flowers, seaweed, pearls.
Bird’s Eye mesh from Barbara Walker’s A Treasury of Knitting Patterns (Schoolhouse Press)
The deadline was shrieking closer. Louisa was still undressed. So how was I smiling to myself as I swatched all through a grey afternoon, listening to a compilation of watery hits like the “Song to the Moon” from Dvořák’s Rusalka?
Who smiles while they swatch? I mean, Clara Parkes does, probably. But not me.
I didn’t truly understand until I was putting the finishing touches on Louisa’s ensemble. In the end, I’d decided it ought to be a weird-yet-elegant travesti like the ones Worth used to cook up for society costume parties. (I loved the idea of her little shoes peeking out from the tail.)
Making clothes for this doll had allowed me to do something I hadn’t been allowed to do much for quite a long time: play.
This was a wholly unserious piece of knitting. Not only was it for a doll, but the concept itself was fantastical. I wasn’t attempting to create (or re-create) real-world clothing, so there was no need for even the semblance of practicality.
I was free to use whatever colors I liked, whatever yarns, whatever stitches–and that gave me permission to try out fantasies from Barbara Walker, Mary Thomas, and whoever else without considering for an instant whether the result would be fashionable or sensible.
I could, and did, mess around like a child who follows instructions to a point, then starts to ask, “What if…?,” pursuing curiosity without worrying about the outcome.
I came away from this project not only feeling proud, but refreshed. Inspired. Ready for more.
Play, I firmly believe, is essential in learning how to do anything. And since we never know everything about anything, we really ought never to stop playing. Lately my outlook on knitting had become terribly serious and goal-oriented, and I think that as a result my knitting had suffered.
In the time it took to dress three silly dolls, I could have made several useful, practical, manly sweaters. But I doubt that I’d have learned more from them. And I doubt they could have made me this happy.
Cordialement,
Franklin
You knocked it out of the park! Joyeax Noel.
Thank you, Franklin! It brightens my day whenever we have a Letter From Paris. It doesn’t matter if you’re making sweaters or doll clothes or scarves. All your work is outstanding. The dolls & mermaid are gorgeous!
What fun! Love it!
Thank you Franklin, for this post! I actually teared up a bit reading the joy in your words.
I am a very beginning knotter, but play this way in the kitchen, and you described the thrill and enjoyment perfectly!
Beautiful, Franklin! I love those fish scales. Play on!
Louisa looks positively smug in her new outfit. And kudos for slipping in that swatching comment about Clara! 😉
She is perfect! I love her expression: she is just daring us to elevate a querying brow! She is classic and modern at the same time – I picture her ending her work day developing AI code (for shipping perhaps?) and heading out to rescue and seduce a foundering sailor at her favorite watering hole. Truly another masterpiece!!
I simply love Louisa in her stunning sea green ensemble and shawl xx.
Merci merci du fond du coeur de toujours me mettre le sourire aux lèvres! 2025 is a year I’m happy to leave behind, but when I think of the bright spots, your letters from Paris truly light up my days. Little snippets of them often pop back into my mind. Your recent creations are playful and light, and I love the little brooch on Marianne’s top. I do wonder what customers of Les Tricots Volants are saying about them? And then there’s Sirène… her eyes are a little creepy — I’m grateful her wildly creative outfit distracts from them!
Bon tricot, je me réjouis de ta prochaine lettre de Paris, and I hope you have wonderful end-of-year celebrations wherever you may be. May 2026 bring you continued health and creative inspiration. Thank you, as always.
Brilliant. Keep playing. I am deadline knitting a sweater for Christmas. Ugh!
I LOVE HER!
This is great! I especially love the scales and netting!
Oh my! I love the echo of fishtail and shawl closure! Tres elegant! ( I never remember quite where the accents go. Sorry.) And tres elegant your letters on the dolls. Our responses mirror your vulnerability. These girls inspired me to make tiny sweaters…so much easier….for a tree and for gifts Very merry Christmas!
Louisa is a beautiful doll, and she looks very pleased with her new costume. She was waiting in that drawer for this moment! Perhaps she needs to add to her wardrobe? Be on the lookout for one of those little doll steamer trunks–so much fun! So nice that you found some fun when you needed it most.
I love the fish scales!
Never stop playing! I am 66 and still adorn my doll house with new trinkets. I love the mermaid!!!!! You inspire me to knit things for the doll house, as well. Why did I never think of that before?
How delightful! Thank you for the reminder to goof around sometimes.
Absolutely beautiful! You rock! I love them all Hopeful about learning the netting
Thank you Franklin, for this post! I actually teared up a bit reading the joy in your words.
I am a very beginning knotter, but play this way in the kitchen, and you described the thrill and enjoyment perfectly!
All 3 are completely adorable!
I LOVE HER!
Wow she went from sulky to sultry!
Are the fish scales bamboo stitch?
% fabulous!!!
Oops 100%!!!
My very first knitted garment was a hot pink sweater for my Barbie doll in the 1960’s. Now in my 70’s, over the past few years I have been enjoying knitting (in between knitting larger projects) the little gnomes from Sarah Shira of Imagined Landscapes. Small doable projects where I learn some new technique. I especially love the mystery knitalongs, which bring a delightful clue every few days that require about 1/2 hour of knitting. These are small projects and I love discovering and supporting the small and indie dyers who make up kits for these play projects! Thank you for reminding us to keep the joy in our knitting!
The dolls are beautiful as is the reminder to play with our knitting!
Thank you Franklin for the inspiration.
Lovely knitting and preserving a niche of history.
The fish scale stitches are perfect, what stitch was used?
When I was a young knitter my mother gave me a Mon Tricot Knitting Dictionary and I just played for hours trying different stitches. It taught me a lot and is still my treasured book.
Nailed it. Your hard work paid off. Happy holidays.
She is so beautiful! I love the fins and the shoe peeking out is masterful.
She’s lovely.
Beautiful!
She looks glorious as a mermaid! (I, too, love her shoe poking out.) I also enjoyed your reference to Clara Parkes and her swatches – I’m still smiling from that!) I can’t wait to see what what the New Year will bring. Joyeux Noel, Franklin!
So beautiful! Love it!
Delightful and insightful! Thanks for sharing!
I love the green scales! Perfect choice for the mermaid!
I love to play too! Once the gift making season is over, I can get back to the play. ☺️
I love it, Franklin! All of it. You are a joy.
Agree with your philosophy, Franklin, “we really ought never to stop playing.” Otherwise where we will we find ‘ wonder!’
She’s adorable – I’m glad you had fun kitting her out!
I love the fishnet shawl and scaly “skin”! And what a snazzy outfit you gave to Doll No. 1! How right you are, Franklin, about play! As a famous Einstein poster quoted: Imagination is more important than Knowledge. You can’t find more of a testimony than that! Thanks for giving us knitters a reminder to play when we get ourselves all tied up in knots.
Shy Louisa looks rather pleased with her daring mermaid costume. She is making a splash, thanks to Mr. Habit’s fine knitting skills!
Love this . Thanks for the reminder to have fun. I’ve been working on it too the last couple of weeks. I’m loving my knitting again.
I look forward to your letters from Paris, Franklin. And the knitted outfits for dolls are lovely! Happy holidays to you.
This was absolutely beautiful, just the inspiring play I needed to focus today.
I love that you opted for a fancy dress costume – that makes so much sense! The little toe-peek is sublime. The stitch selection is perfect – the little scallop shapes definitely read as scales to me. I would love to see a couple of seaweed tendrils descend from her headdress or fringe off her netted scarf. But that could be gilding the lily.
She looks lovely – just as her two larger friends in the window.
I am not a doll person! That said, what you did with the three dolls was fantastic. Oh, to be so creative! Well done.
Love your writing (and knitting) and clearly you have found your place in Paris
Her skirt is so very cute and the stitch you used does look like scales! Impressive!
Oh, how delightful! I have a few porcelain or part porcelain dolls and it never occurred to me to make them fancy dress!
I love your final result and Louisa looks haughty enough to make a fine entrance at the bal.
Love the mermaid “tail” – and we all need more play in our lives
Oh, now that is brilliant! Your creativity knows no bounds. You are truly a wonderful inspiration for all artists.