BOM ~ September

It took me some time to get started on the September's blocks for the Craftsy Block-of-the-Month course, as I had to order a Drunkard's Path template. These blocks were a bit more labor-intensive than some of the others, because of the curved piecing.

The first block was the chain block. I didn't really have any trouble sewing the curves, and I attribute that to making cloth dolls (lots of curves there!).

The second block was to be Cleopatra's Puzzle, but I chose to make this variation, which is basically Cleo's block with the center four squares rearranged a bit. Of course, after I took the photo I noticed some misalignment of the circle in the center. I have since unpicked that section and fixed the eye-sore.

Only two more blocks to go!

Funky Flowers

I was so surprised and pleased to have won Brave Girl Art School tuition a couple weeks ago. I'm a little behind on my assignments because I needed to gather a few crucial supplies, but have been catching up.

I just finished my Week 2 assignment: Truth Cards:

I Mod Podged some fancy papers to plain chipboard coasters I bought last year. Then I cut some flower medallions from quilting fabric I had on hand and Mod Podged them to the covered chipboard. I painted and embellished, and added the phrases from the course materials.

I love Mod Podge.

Brave Girl Art School

Looks like a wonderful new class, offered through the Brave Girls site! I enjoyed the Brave Girls "Soul Restoration" workshops, though I'm still working on some of the projects.

Commissions...

There hasn't been much free time since returning from New Orleans, but I'm chipping away at a few commissioned dolls. I'm not really fond of making dolls on commission, but at least these are from my own design (as opposed to working with someone who has an idea of a doll in mind).

For these dolls, working assembly-line style is the most efficient. It's easier to get into a rhythm, and it minimized the number of thread color changes (which is a little tedious). At this point I've sewn all the parts and have baked the faces.

I've also sewn three chemises. Actually, I've sewn five chemises, because when the commissioned dolls are done, I'll make a couple more to that to next year's UFDC Conference/ODACA Day in Washington DC.

The tough job of choosing a quilt block

I'm having the hardest time settling on a quilt design for my granddaughter Fiona's birthday quilt. As a brand new quilter, I just don't have the repertoire of blocks in my pattern stash or brain.

I saw a pillow on Craftsy made using the Simple Courthouse Steps block. The link to the pattern/template was included, so decided to audition this block to see if I liked it. I'd never tried paper piecing before, and it went together pretty well.

The fabric used is from a fat quarter bundle by Riley Blake, called "Fiona's Fancy."

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

BOM ~ August

 Just finished Crafty's August's blocks. Both went pretty fast. This one is called the Ohio Star block.

 The second block was the Double Star, which required a bit more cutting. Fun, though, and it went together pretty well. I wanted to make the most use of what fabric I have left, so I did a little piecing. I can hardly find the pieced ones!

Sixteen blocks so far, four more to go. 

Hoffman Winners!

I home from New Orleans, and boy, do I love being home. NO was wonderful, and I'm so glad I got to experience a little piece of it. Now we're back in the beautiful northwest, with its moderate weather - I sure don't miss the heat and humidity.

While we were out of town, the winners of the Hoffman Challenge were announced. I am pleased, but very surprised to have won the 3rd place award. Come HERE to see the doll winners, and click HERE to see the winners of all the categories.

I received photos of more Hoffman entries while I was gone, so now I'm off to update the website. Check back in a little while!

Helper Doll (raffle) for ODACA

It's 4:30 in the afternoon, and I'm getting nowhere fast. We leave for New Orleans at 2:30 a.m., and I've not yet started packing (and that includes lots of dolls for the Sales Room). Today I've been busy finishing a doll for the ODACA Luncheon raffle. The Luncheon is on Monday at the Sheraton New Orleans on Canal Street, under the umbrella of the UFDC Convention.

We've never been to New Orleans before, so the trip is pretty exciting. There should be lots to see and do. I even upgraded to First Class this morning - for at least part of the trip. Thought it would be a nice anniversary surprise for my husband Chris. I sure hope I can sell some dolls to help offset the cost of the trip.

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.