Googly Goes "Back East"

In late December, I finished another one of my interpretations of a Googly doll.  She has flyaway hair, as you can see and is dressed in her scoot-around dress, with a book bag. 

 Pictures can be clicked on for a larger view.

I made her for a trade with Artis Corwin, a talented dollmaker whose work can be seen on the Maida site.  I used my own patterns for the clothing.  Above is the Googly walking on her way to school, maybe passing by a dog.   I like Googlies for their various expressions....

Below she is in her other outfit, her school uniform.  I pleated the skirt so the green is on the inside pleats, and gave it a little pin as I remember my tartan skirt had one when I was in the sixth grade.

Her little bag and shoes I made of leather.  I used Gail Wilson's pattern for the shoesies. 

I made the teeniest shirt I have ever made.

It was fun to do a doll trade with Artis.  

Some Progress on the Alabama Baby Doll

A sculpted Baby new year: this is the doll I am working on for the Alabama Baby Challenge for the Maida group.

I changed her eyes from my original sculpt, made her head more rectangular, and when I added fabric to her, put a seam at the top, as is shown in some of the photos of the antique dolls.  It looks a little Frankensteinish, but oh well, how can you get the first sculpt totally right.  It's to learn.

I kept seeing more things, the more photos I looked at.  The main thing was the eyes; they have no lids, they are sort of like triangles.... and so many variations in head shape among the photos I looked at. 

But be that as it may, I came up with this, and am now making a body pattern. 

I like dolls in this stage; when I have decided on them.  I feel some relief that I have decided in some corner of my mind; saying okay, move forward. Although I kind of wish I had just started over, rather than changing the sculpt I did originally!

Happy New Year!

Alabama Baby Challenge

There is a challenge going on at the Maida dolls group, to make an "Alabama baby" doll.  This was billed as an "indestructable" doll, made from around 1905 to the early thirties. 

 Image  from Theriault's - hope they don't mind

I looked at several of the doll photos online, and was all set to go....I sculpted a head using Paperclay, trying to get her little turned up nose

and the jowly cheeks; but I didn't have a firm grasp of the eyes...or the mouth...
 so I ended up sculpting them more like this:

Image from Skinner auction site.  This is a Philadelphia Baby!

My sculpt

 So I have to change her face later, if I am to call her an Alabama Baby doll....

Hope everyone is having a good Holidays.