What's the Problem?

Okay, I'll admit it.....I might have a bit of a problem with magazines. There! I said it. But they are all so beautiful....full of wonderful eye candy! I have a very difficult time parting with these magazines...but alas we must part ways! (sob).

As hard as it is to sort through my magazines, and part with some, it did give me the opportunity to locate  two magazines that printed my dolls. Those I'll keep, thank you!

January 2007 "The Entertainer"

March 2008 "He Gave Her His Heart" (a gift for Melanie and Chris)

The Amazing Humphrey

Finally!  Humphrey has come to life!  It took him several months to explain himself to me.  He originally wanted to be a woodsman but quite suddenly he discovered music!

Somewhere to the left of reality is a kingdom.  In that kingdom, the Royalty are frequently entertained by acrobats, actors, musicians and the like.  Humphrey is, on occasion called upon to provide the evening entertainment.  As a one man band he is quite talented and one of the favorites.

Humphrey is sculpted with paper clay as is his mandolin.  His attire is all hand-sewn and embellished with tiny metal beads and buttons.  He seems to be patiently waiting to start his performance.  Break a leg Humphrey!

Working on my One Man Band

When I first started creating Cloth dolls I noticed that my dolls were taking on a theme. They seemed to be a mix of fantasy and old world royalty. "The Entertainer", "Sir Henry", "Madeline's Feeling a Bit Squirly" were part of that group. I believe they live just to the left of reality. I now am working on my "One Man Band". He is charged with entertaining the royal court. This time, however, I am creating him from clay but he will be clothed in fabric. Here is a sneek preview....sorry, he is still in his skivvies!

New Year, New Doll

Wow!  January completely slipped away and my resolution to blog weekly slipped away too.  Amid the hustle and bustle of Christmas Mr. D had the time to start on some of those projects around the homestead.  As is always the case, one project led to another and before I knew it we were completely remodeling his home office.  When I say "remodel" I mean tear out built-ins, rip out carpet (which exposed a huge crack in the foundation which led to having the concrete grinder guy in, etc.), paint, molding, base boards, wood floor, lighting....the works!  Add to that, we tore out the driveway and put in a paver drive and walk at the same time.  Finally, new roof and exterior painting of the whole house!  No wonder January got away from me!

In the middle of all that, however, I was able to complete "Spencer"!  Spencer is a futuristic Engineer.  He is approximately 16" tall.  He has large hand-blown German glass eyes.  While working on his head and imagining what he might become, I was inspired by the dolls of Paula Nerhus and thought I'd try piecing together his costume in her style.  I have so much fun learning from other doll artists!   I hope you like him.

Christmas Green

"Oh Tannenbaum" has been included in an Etsy Treasury titled "Green".  It's always exciting to see one of my dolls included in an Etsy member's treasury!  Thank you Cyn!

All Tucked In

Do you ever wonder what your pets do when they don't realize you are watching?  Our girls "pretend" they don't like each other but when caught by surprise, guess what......

We've been having work done in our house this week and they are usually freaked out by noise but eventually, as a group, they calm down.  I'll probably never see this scene again.

Welcome Home Cindy Lou

I must say that Cindy Lou is one of my favorite dolls (thus far).  I wanted to try using German Glass Blown eyes on one of my dolls and I just love how they turned out.  A little more difficult to work with but the end result is worth it.  I added a little crackle medium on her nose to achieve a more vintage look about her face.

I found vintage bisque doll hands and legs in my bucket of "parts" and I attached them the way they used to make baby dolls, with a vintage ticking fabric.  Then added her party dress and package.  I was fortunate enough to find a little scrap of dot paper in my stash that matched her dress.

Cindy Lou will stay in my personal collection.  I don't think I could give this one up.  She is so sweet sitting on her little shelf in our home.  Even Mr. D likes this one, although he thinks she needs a friend.