Marina

Thanks for the comments (opinions) on yesterday's post. It seems there was a slight preference for the batik fabric. I went ahead with the bubble fabric and the mermaid before reading the comments, but no matter. I was planning on making another green faced doll using the batik anyway. And I never even thought about a witch, so I can make one of those as well.

The mermaid above is called Marina which to me seems like a perfect name for a mermaid. All the while I was stitching her, I kept thinking of the beautiful mute slave girl Marina in the 60s Supermarionation TV Series "Stingray". That Marina wasn't a mermaid, but she was an aqua creature able to "breathe" equally well under and above water. Anyone old enough to remember that show? No, eh?

The handsome Captain Troy Tempest, I am now learning, was based on the physical appearance of James Garner. I never made the connection as a kid. And Marina was based on Brigitte Bardot. Marina's theme song and some images from the show are in the clip below.

New Doll With A Green Face

My new doll will have a green face. I painted it a really weird and hard to match green. Above are two possibilities. I like the look of the batik but I see the bottom one with the bubbles as a possible mermaid?

Green is a tricky colour too as when someone looks green in the face, it is associated with sickness.
I've tried to make my girl look healthy. :)

Elisabetta

Hubby said her name must be Elizabeth. I was listening to some Italian opera as I was stitching her, so I have christened her Elisabetta.

I have not been completely happy with the hair on some of my dolls. I'm new at this so I really don't know what to do other than figure things out by trial and error. My very good friend Julia who always has a solution for every artistic problem has moved far away from me. I can't run across the road to her for help anymore (maybe that's why she moved?). Now I have to try and figure stuff out for myself. I think I've made a breakthrough with this doll. I love her hair.

And below, as I was fooling around with the kaleidescope effect in Nero PhotoSnap, I discovered this is what Elisabetta could look like as a floor rug.

"Maddie" FoLk aRt dOLL

(The fringe near the bottom of her dress is the fabric selvedge).

Fun With PhotoSnap

Just foolin' around with Nero PhotoSnap. :)

One World One Heart

EDIT: THE WINNER IS CAROL STOCKER OF SPIRIT'S JOURNEY DESIGNS.

EDIT: COMMENTS ARE NOW CLOSED. WINNER TO BE DRAWN BY HUBBY ON THE MORNING OF FEBRUARY 12TH.




I am taking part in the One World One Heart Blog giveaway. The last time I checked there were over 750 participants. Wow! Please click on the above image for information if you are not already familiar with this event.

My offering is my Joy(ful) Doll which I have previously presented to my readers. Since my entry is so close to the deadline, I don't have the time to make something brand new. Joy(ful) is one of my favourite dolls and I think worthy to give away.






















Let me tell you a little bit about her. She is 6 inches tall and her arms span is 4 1/2 inches. Her body is made of 100% cotton reinforced with a heavy fusible interfacing. Each dot is colourfully embroidered. Her face has been painted and drawn on muslin with acrylic paint, ultra fine Sharpies and coloured pencils and sealed with glossy Modge Podge. Her face is surrounded with sparkly aqua glass beads.

She is backed with turquoise felt. Back and front have been embroidered together with a blanket stitch. She is two dimensional (not stuffed) and ready to be displayed somewhere in a small space. She has been created completely out of my imagination and is an OOAK (one of a kind) art doll. I also see her as a mini wall hanging.

If you would like a chance to win her, simply leave a comment. The only requirement to enter is that you must have an active blog. You have until February 11, 2009, midnight EST. I will get hubby to draw the name of the winner on February 12th and I will notify the winner via Email.

All the participants and links to their blogs are listed on the One World One Heart site. I've already checked out a number of interesting new blogs and will continue to do so as time permits. This is a wonderful way to discover new blogs that I probably would not otherwise have found on my own.

Experiment in Darkness

This doll didn't turn out at all like I had expected. I used some awful black yarn for her hair, hated the way it looked and chopped it all off. I wanted to give her "bead" arms but I couldn't find the right kind of wire around the house. And I need some of those tiny jewelry making pliers, etc., etc....

It wasn't a total failure because I discovered I can use that yarn by weaving it in and out of some straight stitches and that holds it in place. Definitely, I will try this again but maybe make something else first.