A Raccoon of Thistledown Manor

Here's my latest addition to the little group of animals who live in the forest near Thistledown Manor.  Her heritage is not native, as raccoons are indigenous to North America.  But they have had so many admirers over the years that many enthusiasts have brought them to the UK where they now thrive.  So she found herself quite at home in the forest near the manor.

Her clothes are so pristine and beautiful that she may well be the forest seamstress, saving the best bits found in the Manor's trash bins (and Lord knows she's an expert at scouring the trash) for herself.

I think she is also quite good at crochet since the collar and edgings of her outfit were obviously custom worked rather than being fashioned from cast off bits.

She's quite proud of herself, and rightly so.

On a more serious note, I made her outfit from one of a pair of lovely vintage pillowcase that I purchased on Etsy from Sylvia, a woman in England.  It was embroidered by her grandmother, Gladys Johnson, who was born in the 1900s and passed away in the 1980's.  She was an avid needlewoman, and Sylvia fondly remembers her Gram as always having her needlework, if not actually in hand, nearby.  It's an honor to remember Gladys in this way.