A New Dobby is Born

Posted by, Paulette

It's interesting to me that I can use the same pattern for a doll, and they turn out so different from one another. I just finished another Dobby doll. He looks very little like the others I've made. There's something about the needle sculpting and the painting that makes each doll unique.

 I wanted him to be a bit different than the other guys, and my hubby said that he looked happier. So, he needed more clothes. That made sense to me, so Dobby has a new green  tie and a faux suede vest that he's added to his wardrobe.

He is now available for sale in my shop.
 

New little guy

Posted by, Paulette

This is the little guy I'm working on today.

 He's undergone quite a transformation already from what he looks like in these pictures. Originally he was supposed to be a baby. After wigging him and realizing that he doesn't really look like a baby, I decided that he' s going to be someone else. Maybe you can guess. He'll have a little friend perching on his hand.
 

I Will Call Her Rosa

Posted by, Paulette

My Dia De Los Muertos doll is finished and I will call her Rosa. I think it fits.

  

She is available for sale in my shop.

 

New Doll: Dia De Los Muertes

Posted by, Paulette

My new girl is waiting for her clothes. I am pleases at how her "make-up" turned out and I love her lovely curls!

 

Medusa cloth doll

Posted by, Paulette

Sometimes when I'm out shopping, I'll pick up an item and have a picture flash into my head. Before Christmas, Dave and I were on a date and found ourselves at Joann Fabrics. While shuffling through their clearance bins, I found rolls and rolls of snake printed ribbon. I had an image of Medusa flash into my head. Flash forward to a few days ago. I found the ribbon while looking for something else and pulled it out and took it to my desk along with some pipe cleaners and a needle and thread and got to work. I found that by rolling the ribbon around the pipe cleaners a certain way and hand stitching it, I could get something that looked like a snake, so the project was a go.

The next part to decide was to make her pretty with all of those snakes for hair, or ugly...or something in between. I remembered that a couple of years ago, I'd bought some fabric that resembled tree bark, and thought that was a good start.

While needle sculpting her face, I thought that I would go the in between route, and make her a bit pretty. I've never done the shading or painting on a dark skinned doll before, and after pulling up a picture of a beautiful African woman on the internet, I had a reference.

 

 

 After some research on the internet (thank goodness for Wickapedia) I put together a chiton and some jewelry and a stand that is reminiscent of ancient Greek pottery. 

Here's a better picture of all of those snakes.

 Medusa is available in my shop.
 

Sarah Swan Lake Ballerina Ghost doll

Posted by, Paulette

I finally finished my latest doll. Her name is Sarah.

 

 I imagine that children who have passed on have the same passions as they did when on this Earth. Sarah loves to dance. Her favorite costume to wear is the one from Swan Lake. 

She is available for sale in my shop.

Dobby the House Elf

Posted by: Paulette
Yesterday I went grocery shopping with my 5 kids. It was 108 degrees here in Arizona, and we were gone for three hours. When I got home, I was exhausted from the heat and the challenges of loading and unloading 2 kids from car seats and groceries from two stores. So what's a girl to do when she's too exhausted to do housework? Make a doll of course!
I introduce to you Dobby the House Elf.

Dobby the House Elf doll is inspired by the character in the Harry Potter books series. In this version he has just received a sock from his master, through some crafty maneuvering by Harry, and is so pleased and shocked that he has been gifted with clothes! He has been set free, and will not have to wear the filthy pillowcase anymore.

He stands 9 1/2 inches tall (24 cm)

This doll was a challenge to construct because of his body shape. I used techniques that I've not used before, and I'm becoming more confident in my pattern making abilities. I also think that I'm getting better at the face painting. I still need some work on my photography skills. Oh, well. It will come with practice.

Dobby is available for sale in my shop.

Now that I've finished him, I guess I better get to that laundry. Yuck!

Ron Weasley Doll Finished

Posted by: Paulette

 

I've finally put the finishing touches on my Ron Weasley doll and he is now for sale in my shop.
He is made from an original pattern by yours truly. His face is drawn first with pencil an then colored and shaded with Prismacolor colored pencils. Then the whites of his eyes, pupils and shines on his eye are painted in acrylic paints.I also painted some Mod Podge over his eyes and lips to make them a bit glossy.
After his body is tightly stuffed, all of his appendages are sewn by hand to his body in the position desired. And then I begin to design the clothing. His tie is individual strips of cloth sewn into striped and then hand sewn into a toe. His shoes are made from a soft vinyl, and his sweater and socks are made from orphaned socks. Nice to know there's a use for those, right?

Ron's fingernails were made by painting three layers of Mod Podge on his fingers and then when it was dry, painting the tips with acrylic paint.
Mr Weasley's wand and pet rat Scabbers are made with wire armatures and then Super Sculpey is sculpted over the top, and then they are painted with acrylic paints.

Ron's hair is made by crocheting a cap out of fun fur yarn and then hand sewing it to his head. An additional piece was added for his bangs.

Thanks for looking.

Meet Sapphire the Fairy

Posted by: Paulette

Sapphire is finished! Her wings are free motion machine stitched using, applique, stretch and zig zag stitches on to four layers of iridescent organza. 
Her stand is a plaque that I found at Goodwill. I painted it and added the dowel.
The other details of this doll can be found in previous posts. I hope Foxy Blue likes her.