The Dollhouse
Shhh… Nana’s still sewing.
Some stories aren’t written. They’re stitched.
Everyone deserves a Nana.
Nana’s Quest has always been about warmth, creativity, family, story and
the quiet magic of making something with your own two hands.
Now Nana is stepping out of the screen and into the real world.
She is not a random doll. She is Nana — the same Nana who welcomes you
through the door, sits in the living room, watches over the craft room
and reminds us that handmade things still matter.
The well-loved white prototype.
The first Nana prototype was made inside Cailin and Damien’s Avan
camper, tucked away on rural land in Western Australia.
She began as old white bed linen while her body shape, pattern,
cardigan, clothing and tiny details were tested.
She may look a little tired now. She has been pinned, pulled apart,
reshaped, stitched, dressed and generally used and abused in the name
of figuring out how Nana should be made.
But she did exactly what a prototype needed to do. She proved that
the idea could become something real.
The first version does not need to be perfect. It only needs to teach
you how to make the next one better.
The moment she started looking like Nana.
Sewing the first section of white yarn hair into the prototype was
one of those small moments that changed everything.
She started to feel less like fabric and more like the Nana we had
imagined from the beginning.
That prototype hair also became another test: learning how the yarn
behaved, how much was needed and how it could be attached more
efficiently for the real Founder dolls.
Founder Nana #001 has officially begun.
We have moved beyond the white prototype and started making the first
real doll in the Founder Collection.
Founder Nana #001 will go to Michelle, my mother-in-law, in honour of
Damien’s Nana, Olive, whose story helped inspire the heart behind
Nana’s Quest.
Her final skin fabric has been chosen. The body pattern has been
drawn, pinned and prepared for the sewing machine. Her clothing
patterns have also been drafted and are ready to be cut, sewn and
tested.
I am immensely proud to have reached this point. I would not describe
myself as an expert sewer or crocheter, but that is part of what this
collection represents.
Craft is open to every skill level. Sometimes the first skill you
need is simply being willing to give it a go — followed by a healthy
amount of delusion when you announce that you are going to make an
entire collection of dolls.
The prototype helped us discover who Nana could become. Founder Nana
#001 is where her real collection begins.
Founder Nana #001 Progress
The patterns are taking shape and the final materials are beginning to
replace the temporary prototype pieces.
✓ Final skin fabric purchased
✓ Body pattern transferred
✓ Body pieces pinned
✓ Clothing patterns drafted
✓ Cardigan prototype completed
◻ Sew the final doll body
◻ Trim the seams
◻ Turn and stuff the body
◻ Cut the final clothing pieces
◻ Sew and test-fit the clothing
◻ Cut the white yarn hair
◻ Test machine-sewn hair method
◻ Style Nana’s curls
◻ Complete the final cardigan
◻ Add Nana’s apron
◻ Attach the Founder Pin
◻ Add glasses and pearl earrings
◻ Add shoes
◻ Prepare collector card and box
The yarn hair will be tested using the sewing machine rather than
attaching every strand individually. If it works, it could help make
the remaining Founder dolls more efficiently while keeping each one
genuinely handmade.
The Founder Collection
Only 50 Founder Nanas will ever be made.
Each doll will be handmade, individually numbered, boxed and paired
with a collector card. The silver Founder Pin worn on her apron will
mark her as part of the collection that began it all.
Future Nanas may become detectives, gardeners, market holders, pirates,
crossword lovers, readers and storytellers — but only these first 50
will belong to the Founder Collection.
004 Reserved for my Nana
017 Reserved for my Mum
Family Hold
Family Hold
Family Hold
Reserved customer thanks
43 Places Remaining
Reserve your place in Nana’s story.
The dolls are not ready for sale yet. They are still being tested,
stitched, adjusted and slowly brought to life.
Join the waitlist to follow the collection and be among the first to
hear when the remaining Founder Nana places become available.
Every adventure starts in The Dollhouse.
One day Nana may become a detective, a market holder, a gardener, a
pirate, a knitter, a romance reader, a crossword lover and more.
But for now, she is here on the sewing table — becoming the very first
Founder Nana and opening the door to an entire world of stories still
waiting to be stitched.