ODACA Caps & Corks Challenge

 ODACA Day is fast approaching (July 23, in Kansas City) and a doll challenge was issued, to create a doll using at least one cap and one cork. These will be on display during the ODACA Luncheon and Sales Room events. 

I'm not sure what the others are making, but here's a sneak peak at mine. I'll update the blog with the finished doll upon my return home. 

I found this to be quite the challenge!

Here's Magda:

First (Annual?) Nurse Doll Challenge

In August 2018, my friend and coworker Danielle Patterson proposed a challenge: use the same doll pattern to create dolls dressed in historic nursing uniforms from eras of our choosing. Danielle suggested using my "Verity" pattern. This doll is made completely of cloth, and stands about 22 inches tall.

After doing some research, I started my doll in February. I was drawn to the Red Cross uniforms worn during World War 1. Turns out Danielle chose that era as well.

After finally finishing my doll this week, we revealed them at work.

We've already decided to challenge ourselves again, though we haven't discussed the details. 

Here's Danielle's doll:

Here's mine:

Farewell, Josephine!

I made this figure in 2001, just a few years into my doll career. A couple days ago, I received an email informing me that she finally sold!

She was made for a fat quarter challenge hosted by Lisa Risler, who formerly owned www.clothdollpatterns.com and provided the fabrics.

I used a pattern an Antonette Cely for her body, and the face design is my own. She is painted muslin, with armature throughout.

I just finished dusting her off and taking a photo, since the original photos were taken with an early digital camera.

Here's my inspiration:

Blast from the Past

After a whirlwind trip to Orlando for ODACA Day, my husband and I was talking about dolls. He told me he had a couple favorites. Bilbo is one of them. I'd forgotten all about him. He's been in storage since 2003.

I used to belong to an active doll club in St. Helens, Oregon, called the Reigning Dolls & Bears club. We would have challenges regularly, which I loved, as they really pushed our skills. We decided to have a Storybook Challenge, the dolls to be displayed at the Hillsboro Public Library. Bilbo is the result of this challenge. I pulled him out of storage and photograph him again (digital cameras have come a long way since 2003!)

After a number of years, our club lost its meeting place. And that was the end of it. I miss my fellow doll club members, but do get to see what they're up to on Facebook. You can see some club photos HERE and HERE.

Farewell to Alice

I really had to scrounge around the attic to find an appropriate box (only whacked my head three times on beams). My doll Alice (and Flamingo) will soon be on her way to her new mom. She was made for a storybook challenge/Prims Magazine submission  for MAIDA.

I haven't made a new doll in awhile, and this one was made nearly three years ago. Fellow ODACA member Lillian Alberti has been writing a series of articles for Art Doll Quarterly magazine, and this will be a huge incentive for me to get my act together and make something new so I can be included.

 

http://www.blueherondolls.com/Storybook%20Challenge%202012.htm#413

 

Storybook Challenge - MAIDA group submission to Prims

Back in February of this year, the MAIDA (Making Antique Inspired Dolls & Accessories) online group decided to host a challenge with the intention of submitting those dolls to Prims Magazine. Our group project was featured in the most recent issue of the magazine (Autumn, 2012). The article was written by Dixie Redmond, who also has a MAIDA blog.

We decided the books/characters chosen would be old enough to be in the public domain, the dolls were to be under 17 inches in height, and no characters would be duplicated. Most of the dolls were included in the magazine feature. All of the submissions were wonderful, and really stretched our skills.

My doll is "Alice," made using my Verity pattern at 75%. Her clothing is removable. I used a vintage hankie for her pinafore (I knew all those hankies I bought on eBay would come to good use!)  Her flamingo caused me fits to make - not an easy project!

Alice (like Verity) is made from muslin. Her face is lightly needle-sculpted, then painted with a mixture of acrylic gel medium and modeling paste. Then a couple coats of gesso are applied, followed by flesh-tone acrylic paint. Her hair is Tibetan lamb. 

 Be sure to order your copy of the magazine here:

Autumn 2012 Issue of Prims Magazine

Autumn 2012 Issue of Prims Magazine

Hoffman Finished!

I finally finished my Hoffman Challenge doll this morning. Now I've just got to round up a box, complete all the paperwork, and head for the post office.

I'm happy to say I was able to observe my New Year's Resolution of completing an unfinished doll before starting a new one. I've got a big basket of UFOs (UnFinished Objects), and my half-done Viola Ruth fit the bill and size requirements.

This year's challenge fabric was a really big print, so I decided to break it up a bit and try a weaving technique, though it made her pinafore a bit stiff. What a pain that was!

Viola Ruth is made using one of my patterns and pressmolds. She's 18 inches tall. Her face and the back of her head are made from polymer clay, sandwiched around a rudimentary stuffed cloth head. The gaps are filled in with paperclay. Then the head and upper chest/back are covered in a knit fabric. Her ears are fabric.

I've still got about a half dozen unfinished dolls to complete. It sure felt good to   eliminate one from the basket.

I've been hosting webpages to share others' Hoffman dolls, and have received quite a few so far. If there are more out there, please send them to me at blueheron61@charter.net.

A Call for Hoffman Dolls

It's time again to start thinking about this year's Hoffman Challenge. I've had the challenge fabric for a couple months, but have hardly had a moment to think about it. The print this year is rather large, so I might experiment with some different fabric manipulation techniques.

For the past 10 years or so I've been hosting pages on my website dedicated to Hoffman doll entries - as many as I can get. Visit my webpage to see some of the past challenge fabrics. On that page are links to some of the challenge dolls - not all of them (there are many more), but just those sent to me by the dollmakers themselves. Not everyone gets to travel to the Hoffman exhibits, so this is my way to see as many of the dolls as possible.

I encourage participants in the doll category to send me photos of their dolls for inclusion. Remember, it's all about challenging yourself and not comparing yourself to others. Please consider entering this challenge (I'm not affiliated with Hoffman Fabrics). Take photos of your doll (ideally with an uncluttered background so we can better see your doll), and send them to me: blueheron61@charter.net. I include links to your blogs and websites if you have them. Please let me know the name of your doll and the source of your pattern (your original design, or patterns by other dollmakers) and inspiration.

Finished Hoffman

I finally finished my Hoffman doll this afternoon. All that's left is the labeling, completing the entry forms, and packaging. Oh, and I've named her "Eolande," which is Celtic for "wild flower."

I think this is the first time in a very long time that I haven't had to send my doll Express Mail to meet the deadline.

The costuming evolved as I worked. I saved her hair for last, and as I had no fringe or other fiber of appropriate color, I settled for Tibetan lamb. It may not travel well, but will be fixable when she gets home (hoping the rest of her survives - like the armature, which is wire).

Hoffman...Progress

Worked all day yesterday, and finished my Hoffman doll. Now I'm ready to start her clothing, which is what the Hoffman Challenge is all about.I'm just under the upper size limit, so hopefully I can get her on a base without exceeding it.

I've not yet decided on hair yet, but want to use a fiber that will travel well.

Hoffman Doll...started

After pouring through inspiration books, photos, and drawings, I've finally started my Hoffman doll. I'm using my "Under the Harvest Moon" pattern, reduced to 90% and further shortened at the waist (in order to meet the size requirement of less than 20 inches in height). I have a vague idea of costuming, but I know it will evolve as I go.

Remember, I'm collecting photos of any Hoffman dolls out there for this year's challenge (dolls are due in mid July). Just send them my way - I've received six dolls so far! Go to my website to see them:

http://www.blueherondolls.com/

Click on Hoffman dolls, and on 2011 dolls.

Call for Hoffman Entries!

Time for my annual call for any Hoffman doll entries. For those who are unaware, I host pages on my main website dedicated to Hoffman dolls each year. I've got this year's pages all set up, just need photos of the dolls! The link below will tell you a little bit about the Challenge if you're not familiar with it. I think this year's deadline is July 15, but better check the Hoffman site to be sure. Here's this year's Challenge fabric:

My Hoffman pages:
http://www.blueherondolls.com/Hoffman%20Challenge.htm
I started hosting photos on my site in 2002, the first year I heard of the Challenge. It doesn't matter if you made the doll but never sent it in because you missed the deadline. I still want photos! For the best photos of your doll, keep in mind the lighting and background. I put some photo hints here on my blog some time ago - just click on "Tutorials" at the top of this blog page - it's the first tutorial listed.

I've not started my doll yet but received the challenge fabric last week, with a couple accent fabrics. No ideas yet, but right now I'm focused on finishing a new doll/design for a class I'll be teaching next May in Ohio (almost done, too!)

Send me photos here: blueheron61@charter.net

Primitive Americana Patriotic Challenge Doll ~ Revealed

Now that the voting is over, I can post my Primitive Americana Patriotic Challenge doll. I called him "Freddie, waiting for the parade." He's clay over cloth with a cloth-over (t-shirt knit), then painted with gesso and acrylics. His clothing is removable.




The propeller on his cap is a little big, but I couldn't think how to fabricate one with the deadline looming. So I bought a balsa airplane from the toy store.

All the challenge entries were wonderful and all so different from each other considering we all used the same pattern by Sherrie Nordgren.

I took Freddie to Chicago with me, and sold him. It made me sad to see him go, but I had to sell dolls to pay for the trip. I know he's in a good home.

Hoffman, in progress

Now that I've finished my "Primitive Americana Patriotic Challenge" doll, I need to work on my Hoffman Challenge doll. The doll herself was started in 2008, a prototype for a doll that hasn't yet come to fruition. She's made of craft velour, and has a baked polymer clay head with a knit cloth-over, stitched to the head and painted.

I'm making up the costume as I go, and I'm not sure what sort of fiber I'll use for her hair. I'd planned to work on her all day, but FOOLISHLY volunteered to work evening shift today for the "big bucks." What an idiot.

Patriotic Challenge doll done (but no sneak peeks)

I'm happy to have completed my Primitive Americana Patriotic Challenge doll, and have sent my two photos to Sherrie Nordgren. The photo deadline has been postponed until July 20. This is a good thing for those who need a bit more time. The list of participants is lengthy, and I'm excited to see what everyone has created.

Once all the photos have been posted and voted upon, I'll be uploading photos of my entry. It was a fun challenge.

Bits & Pieces

It's been hard to find time for dolls, or just about anything else lately. Today I spent way too many hours drafting and sewing a shirt for my patriotic challenge doll - not that easy, as the doll's got no shoulders. I've been making up the costuming as I go, and had better get this doll done by the deadline. I thought I had tomorrow off, too, but my plans were dashed when I checked my schedule :-(   Challenge doll photos need to be submitted by July 1, so my evenings will be full, too.

Long Time Gone

May. Gone like it was never here, and I don't really have that much to show for it. Only a few weeks left before we leave for Chicago and the annual UFDC Convention/ODACA Day - and I don't have very much "product" for the big sale.

This week, in between work, babysitting, and painting the living room, I've been working on a "Primitive Americana Patriotic Challenge" doll, hosted by Cloth Doll Artistry's Prim group. Participants are using the same pattern, designed by Sherrie Nordgren. No alterations can be made to the pattern, but paperclay, etc., can be added, which is what I've been doing. http://clothdolls.ning.com/

I plan is to make a little boy doll, with some sort of patriotic or red/white/blue clothing. I used paperclay to sculpt his face, then covered it in knit fabric to make it more durable. I'm so used to making girl dolls, it will be a bit of a challenge to make a face that's all boy. One coat of gesso has been applied, and I'll apply a second before painting the skin tone.

While waiting for it the gesso to dry, I glanced out my window and saw a deer in the yard across the street. He'd been hiding in the tall grass (the house is empty and the yard is over-due for a mowing). I was able to get quite close.

It's a Miracle...ok, a small miracle

I actually finished a doll today. Pay no mind that she was supposed to be my AUGUST challenge doll for our doll club. Poor thing just kept getting pushed to the back burner. I used Patti Culea's pattern "Silvery Nights Angel."

I thought about making her a fairy instead of an angel, but can't decide what to use for wings. So for now she's just a lady doll.

Her face is paperclay over muslin, painted with Messy Mix and acrylics. I used little scraps of Tibetan lamb for her hair, glued in place like a puzzle. She's not really standing on her own, I just Photoshopped the pole of the stand out of the picture. Now I've got to think of a name for her. Time to check the big list of names pinned to my studio wall.

Mystery Doll's Head Attached

After a brief loss of electricity this morning (we've been having some stormy weather lately), I gave my mystery/challenge doll her head. She's a mystery, because I have NO idea where I'm going with her.

After joining the head to the neck, I painted it with white tacky glue. This will make a nice surface on which to add paperclay. I considered doing some needle sculpting before applying the glue, but decided against it. I put a little tape around her neck to avoid getting any glue or clay on the paint. Let's hope I can get it off again.

If I make any progress today, I'll update this post.

(Taking) the Long Way Home

Ok, I've been listening to Supertramp lately. But what I'm really trying to say is that I always seem to make things more difficult than they need to be.

I'm working on a doll for doll club, using one of the two patterns chosen for this challenge. Someone said the designer of the pattern I'm using creates patterns that don't quite go together. So I thought I'd just make one in plain muslin to check out that theory, without wasting my good skin fabric. As it turns out the body pattern did NOT go together well, and I had to do quite a bit of modifying.

But after all the modifying, sewing and stuffing, I really didn't want to start over with the good fabric. Now I've got a really white doll (and I don't mean Caucasian). So I decided to paint it. Of course, I'd already attached the arms, making this a bit trickier. I also painted on layers of Messy Mix and gesso before the paint. Her arms are sticking up in the air for ease in painting and drying, with one coat of acrylic skin color in place.

She's headless, because I'm not particularly happy with the head shape, either. I thought I could just augment it with a little paperclay. Easy peasy. Except I thought I really ought to paint the neck/body first, before sticking the head on. If I do this right, I'll have a fabric/paperclay head that can turn side to side. Of course, I'll need to paint that, too.