Just Desserts...

I was so excited when the editor of Prims magazine contacted me about a couple of my modern vintage rag dolls. One of my favorite Stampington & Company publications, Prims is among my very favorite. Chock full of all types of primitive style dolls from softies to sculpted versions, it’s a mixed media doll makers dream. So I was blushing with pride when I got the call to pen an article for their magazine, and super excited when I received the issue and saw my name on the front cover!
 

Being inspired by just about everything around me, I discovered a fondness for making dolls that resemble my favorite desserts. So I had worked with the editor in picking out the most appropriate dolls for the issue, and we decided on my 3-tiered cake and a smiling cupcake because they had a common teal color scheme. When I sent them off to be photographed, I had no idea what an adorable layout they would create with my babies! To pair them with the kitchen scale, muffin tin and sit them next to each other like they were best friends…. well, I was just tickled at how it turned out!
 

In the article I talk about my inspiration behind my rag dolls as well as tips and step-by-step techniques I used to create these modern vintage softies. If you’d like to read more about my vintage style dessert dolls, you can find the article in the Winter issue of Prims, available through Stampington and at many of your local or online book and craft retailers. Muggsy and Van I. La are also available in my Etsy shop if you would like to take a piece of dessert home with you!

I'm Stuffed!

I'm so very excited to announce that... I'm Stuffed! No... I'm not full from too much yummy food... I'm actually featured in the Autumn issue of Stuffed Magazine! A trio of my Modern Vintage Rag Dolls was chosen for their publication earlier this year, and my copy just arrived!

I was beyond giddy when I realized that my dolls were the first feature article in the magazine. How cool is that? And what an amazingly adorable job they did with the opening spread. Those paper lanterns are just too cute... and the perfect accent for my Geisha Girl!

Cloud E. with Raindrop and Dottie the Cupcake got full page exposure... what a thrill! The layout really highlights each doll and details much of the heart and soul (and stitching) that went into them. So awesome!

To get a peek into the Autumn issue of Stuffed magazine — or to purchase a copy online — visit Stampington & Company's sneak preview page. And to see more of my Modern Vintage Rag Dolls, check them out here. The issue will be on newsstands August 1st.

Cloudy With A Chance Of... Ragdolls!

This past weekend was spent distressing and stuffing and sewing... and sewing and stuffing and distressing my motley crew of modern vintage rag dolls!

I used a wash of two different brown acrylic paints to give the dolls an aged and distressed look.

Not enough room for all my dollies to dry...they're all heaped up on top of each other!

The paint actually ended up drying to a strangely mottled, greyish hue. That's what i get for using linen purchased at a rummage sale. But hey... they look really old and distressed now!

I tried to make each one unique and utilize a few unconventional embellishments... like this dishcloth nose (shhhh... don't tell mom... it was a gift from her!).

Of course I had to make some sweet treats... and these 3-tiered cakes were no exception. Yum! I tried some distressed and left some plain... just to see which style looked better. I think they both have their merits. 

And I'd have to say that even though I left some things to chance... they all measured up to my expectations! I'm excited to introduce them at my first Art Show of the year in two weeks... hurray!

Thoughtful Thursdays: Fabulous Fabric!

I'm not sure what it is about fabric... but I love it! All those amazing colors and patterns! New styles. Vintage linens. Mixing and matching swatches until my heart's content. I must confess though... I collected fabric for years before I even knew what to do with it. All I knew was that if I saw a piece of material that took my breath away... I had to own it!

I had so much fun making those rag dolls recently, that I went kinda crazy. I bought all sorts of fabric from 3 different stores... I rifled through my decades-old collection of vintage textiles... and even ripped up a few pieces of my own clothing!

My whole downstairs became a doll-making factory! The dining room table turned into a pattern station. The kitchen table became an assembly area. And when I ran out of room there, I broke out the ironing board (of course for crafts only, not for actually ironing clothes!), and turned that into a makeshift workstation.

I used combinations of fabrics that worked perfectly together and some that looked rather odd, but in a cool kinda way. I made dolls that looked like people, and turned inanimate objects into funny-faced figures as well. When all was said and done, I had made patterns and cut out pieces for more than 20 dolls!

So I guess I better get on that sewing machine and get some of these guys done lickety split! Craft Show season is soon approaching!

On The Rag...

You know how you get something in your head that you want to try and it won't get out of your head until you try it and then once you start, you just can't stop yourself until you finish... but then when you finish you want to try more and more possibilities until you've exhausted them all... but then you realize that the possibilities are endless and just exhaust yourself in the process of thinking about it? Yeah, me too!

Well, that's exactly what happened when i decided to try my hand at creating some fun and funky rag dolls from my vintage scraps and new bits of fabric. Having been inspired by doll artist Junker Jane, I thought I would try my hand at a few creatures of my own. I loved every part of the process, too! Picking out and matching fabrics was so much fun. I love mixing all kinds of funky prints.

Okay, well... maybe I'm fibbing a little about loving every part of the process. I realized that I really do love sewing... it's sewing machines that I dislike! Maybe I got a bad apple, or maybe I just don't know enough about them (quite possible), but mine keeps jamming up. But I move on and adore my fabric creations anyway. Hey... he looks pretty cool inside out though! Just don't pay attention to those extra loops of thread!

Distressing is a must for me. It really completes the folk art feel of the dolls and gives them an aged appearance. Always fun to get messy and dirty with brown acrylic paint!

Add some odd-length arms, embroidery floss hair and a puffball nose and he's all set. This orangy clown looks like a Herman to me. He's almost two feet tall! I didn't mean to make him that large, but what the heck... I went with it. Bigger is better, right?

Pinky here was actually my first (of course I started with a monochromatic pink palette!), but I didn't take too many pictures along the way because I wanted to get lost in the process.... which I did. In fact, my mind was racing with so many ideas about other dolls, that I couldn't sleep. I gave up, got out of bed, and finished her up around 2 a.m.!

She's a cutie pie and I had so much fun making her! I can definitely see more of these rag dolls in my future... as my mind is still racing and the sketchbook is filling up with lots and lots of ideas! If you're looking for me... I'll be at the fabric store!

Yay... I'm Stuffed...

Yay! My Coraline Little Me doll made it into Stampington & Company's Stuffed magazine. I am excited and honored! I hope it will inspire other softie fans to make a "little me" doll of themselves. The issue... Summer 2009... will be on newstands July 1st.

If you would like to make your own Little Me doll, I have the pattern for sale in my Etsy Shop!