Finding Emo

I looked around the studio and wondered if I should start something new. My better self said. "Don't waste those doll bodies you made when you were trying out the production line approach."  

So, I dragged them out and began to put them together. Lorelei (my Muse) must have been pleased because she rewarded me with this little guy.  He still needs some shoes and a name, but he is well on his way to the look I sought.

Wanna see how we got here? It was a circuitous route with me not even knowing if, after the labor pains, I was going to have a boy or a girl but finally last night he revealed himself to me when I was trying to decide on what hair to give him/her.

After stitching the body together, I painted on the face...my favorite part.

I wanted to try out eye lids this time. I glued some "eyelashes" to them first.

The mood of the character can be changed dramatically with a carefully planned eyelid placement. I won't bore you with it here. This is the final placement I decided on.

 

Next, I looked for hair. I have had this extra-long "fun fur" since 1989 when I was making dolls out of nylon stockings. And you wonder why I need to declutter every once in a while.

But as you can see, I got so caught up in what was emerging as I started making the wig that I ran ahead to the next step ...the eyes...before capturing all the steps digitally. To me, the hair said Emo.

For those of you who don't have teenagers in your life or didn't stay up late last night surfing the net in a quest for all things Emo, allow me to enlighten you. 

From my research I gather that the Emo look has morphed from Punk and Goth.  Emo kid alert ... Don't shoot the messenger here. I am just repeating what I read. Feel free to leave me a comment.

Emo is short for emotional and originated with a type of music. Emo devotees see themselves as tragic and bored. They dress in black, and dye their hair with the deepest black color with patches of blue, green or pink dyed in it. Sometimes they create an ingenious striped piece that looks like a raccoon tail. they dress in layers and wear lots of badges and icons such as skulls, crosses, and hearts. Oh yeah...and both boys and girls use a lot of black eyeliner and black smoky eye shadow. Both sexes sport short fingernails with dark polish.  Piercings and tattoos may be evident. Some revel in writing sad poetry, thinking suicidal thoughts and cutting themselves. That is the downside, but they have a great style that appeals to my shallow nature! 

Oh, stop clucking your tongue!  I bet you dressed like Perry Como, Joan Baez or Bob Dylan, whoever was popular in your day.

Now I was not liking the sharply exaggerated features that I had originally designed for a witch.  Yeah, I know I should never try to decide what they are going to be...they are in charge... scary. 

So, I poked and prodded the nose and chin and arrived at this look. Trust me it is the same doll.  I also added a long bang over the eye. Then a little patch of bright purple to make it really Emo.

Check out the next post for further details on clothing.

Look Ma - No hands

This just in.  An elderly  resident of the Shady Grove Nursing Home was apprehended late last night as she careened through a quiet suburban neighbourhood on a big candy apple red Harley.  

Police say they noticed what at first glance appeared to be an organ grinder's monkey astride the bike which was weaving dangerously from side to side. The figure often raised its arms in the air  and screamed hoarsely " Look Ma No Hands."

Gentle persons of the press have determined that the rider was an octogenarian named Rose who refused to give her last name. "Just call me Second Hand Rose." she said over her shoulder as police placed her in a squad car.  They were unable to put her arms behind her to handcuff her due to the stiffness of her joints.

This photo of her, caught in the harsh glare of the lights from the squad cars, shows her hat is askew, her pussy missing, her makeup smeared.  Rose informed detectives that she had "borrowed" the keys to a friend's motorcycle and pawned her mink stole for gas money.

A nursing home official says Rose's pussy cat Mojo (AKA Fluffy), has been inconsolable.  They have not yet determined whether her continued presence at the home poses a risk for the other residents. 

"Many of our residents have conditions that could lead to their demise if they have too much fun or excitement. We try to avoid serving spicy food, or encouraging rousing games of Scrabble. We try to keep everything as boring as we can in order to prolong their lives and get more money from the families and the government.

A highlight of their morning is a nice glass of prune juice to wash down their all bran cereal. Afterwards they all gather in the common room where there are several public washrooms. They usually discuss their aches and pains as well as their bowel movements. It promotes a healthy rivalry and gives them something to live for," the nursing home source said.

To date Rose's family members have not responded to repeated messages left on their ipods and answering machines.

Boomer, custodian at "The Grove," as long time residents call it, was not available for comment but sources say he was trying to raise bail money and mumbled that Rose could always come to live with him if the Home
"boots her ass outa here". "  It is rumored that Boomer often refers to the home as Shady GRAVE.

Where it all happens

I have struggled with several versions and arrangements of a studio for myself and now I realize what was wrong with each of them.  Not enough room.  

And why is there not enough room? Because working in multiple media (ceramic clay, polymer clay, fabric,) like I do means that you require a wide range of diverse paraphernalia.

While making dolls, I get to use every skill and every bit of paraphernalia I possess. So, I run from the drawing board to the self-healing cutting mat, from the sewing machine to the ironing board, from the hot glue gun to the wire cutters, from the cardboard to the polymer clay, the jewelry box, the silk flowers, the antique buttons, the embroidery floss, the polyester filling, the acrylic paints etc. etc. etc.

Do I sound totally spoiled?  I am happy and grateful to have my nice bright studio. The problem arises when I get out the paints or the glue.  I need a place to use them where I don't risk getting them on something I shouldn't. Presently I have to keep clearing a space for each individual thing I want to do. See what I mean?

One way around this would be to do dolls in a nice, neat series of steps:  design them all at once, cut them all out, sew them all, wire them all, stuff them all, paint them all, make clothes, shoes and accessories for them all.

Somehow, I just don't work that way. Each step leads my undisciplined mind to a new jumping off point. For one thing I learn from each doll. No doll is like the next doll. I keep doing what I call "improving."

I tried this production line approach last time and now I have a series of doll bodies, cut, wired and stuffed but after I finished the first one, I saw that there were improvements I would like to make on that design. And I didn't like the fabric I had chosen as every thread and bit of lint clung to it. Plus, it pilled. So now what? Are all those doll bodies and all that time wasted?  Only time will tell.

My initial inspiration was dollmaker extraordinaire, Mimi Kirchner, who I would love to meet some day. Her pancake dolls have a character and charm that is second to none.  You can check her out on her blog  http://mimikirchner.com/blog/

Tina

My first doll was Tina. You can see how I made her in the "Well Lookee Here" post.  I did manage to wire her up since for some reason posing the dolls is important to me. She gets into some interesting yoga poses if you let her.  I know that as her creator I am prejudiced but she does have a certain je ne sais quoi. And my dear friend Joan loved her so much she wanted to adopt her even though I told her that this doll making thing was going to evolve. 

My next blog will be about how my doll making has evolved as promised....and continues to do so.