Lesson with Lewis Rossignol

 Just finished a six lesson mixed media class with Lewis Rossignol.  I'm happy to say, that if you haven't taken a class with him before.  You should!!!  Letting your inner child play is not an easy thing to do.  Too many adult rules. 

This class free'd me up to do so.  Using Posca markers and fat Stabilo woody pencils to create some fun pieces.

Latest projects

 Well, I'm working on several things.  I went thru my stash before leaving Arizona and brought with me a bunch of blue fabric.  I want to make an all blue quilt.  Found a book called Tula Pink's City Sampler 100 Modern quilt Blocks.  Not sure what I was thinking. LOL. So far I've made 25 block.  They measure 6.5".  It's gonna take a lot of blocks.

Had to take a little break from making quilt blocks.  So I started a pattern by Ann Wood , called Dastardley Owl.  Went out and thrifted some fabrics and had at it.

I'm having fun with this pattern.  Made a few adjustments.  Added a belly gusset and more fabric around the face.  Last thing to do are the feet.  I will post another pic, when he's all finished.

New little Troll Girl named Olley

Meet "Olley" my newest little Troll Girl!  She was a lot of fun to make.  Even her pumpkin and skeleton are hand made.  She has needle sulpted features including her eyes.  Eyes are hand painted using acrylic paints.  Her little pumpkin is made from T-shirt fabric with sculpted bumps. 

This is another version of my Oggie Pattern.  Which is available at my Etsy Shop.

Troll progress

I love this part of creating.  You have to listen very carefully.......try on things and listen some more.  Which was the case here.  I'm getting very close to being done.  She'll needs some earrings.  Finish stitching her little dress.  Maybe a couple spiders on her pumpkin?!?

Oh' yeah, some color on her hands and who know what other little adornments I find to add.

Continuing on, after a little break

Slow and steady, seems to be the way I work these days!  Yesterday I sewed on ears, thumbs, stuffed a little more closed openings, sculpted some toes and added button joints to the arms and legs.  Oh' yeah and started this pumpkin.  

Then got interrupted and that's where this little dude or dudette was left sitting on my work table.  While laying in bed last night it occurred to me how I should have cut the pumpkin.  So today I might make another.  And why does it need to be organge?!?

Inspired by a fellow Doll maker

This week I was inspired by a fellow doll maker Sharon Mitchell.  She gave my Oggie some very special eyes.  So I decided to try my hand at it.  Found my Oggie Pattern and had at it.  He's a cutie for sure.  

Here are a couple of pics of the progress.  Calling it a day, because my fingers hurt from sculpting, stuffing and pinning.  

I have not decided on what he or she will wear.  So stay tuned.

Scrappy, the Pincushion Troll

This little guy was so much fun!  I picked out bits and pieces of fabric to make this 6" Troll.  He has steel BB's to give him a little weight, so he won't move around too much.  

Needle sculpted features, opposable thumbs, inset eyes  and a little tail ornament that I took off a vintage pincushion.  Must keep those needles sharp. 

Oh' I almost forgot.  I needle felted the circle on his belly.  Feeling very happy with how he turned out.

Time to make a Troll

Summer has come to an end, even though the temps are still up there.  The night are finally cooling down which helps.  I've been doing more painting these days. But a couple of days ago I decided I needed a new pincushion.  I had sold the one that used to sit next to the sewing machine a couple of years ago.

It's funny I forgot how much I love my little characters.  This is the miniature version of Mopsy.  Which by the way is available at my Etsy Store.  I have invited my FB friends to play along and have posted the pattern page.

Anyways, here are some pics of my "Scrappy" Pincushion Troll as of yesterday.

Another mixed media piece

Side tracked again!  This all started out with a crappy 22" X 30" piece of paper.  The intent was to make some layers and then rip it up and use it on another piece of mixed media Art.

Well, I got lots of layers using paper, acrylic paint, oil pastels, and a mark all pencil.  My piece just kept evolving, not sure I can rip this up.  At least not today.

So instead, I'm having a fat quarter of fabric printed from Spoonflower.  If I like it I may have some available for re-sale?!?  We shall see.  It was a fun process and is very addicting.  Summer has finally arrived and the Studio gets pretty warm.  My Troll is sitting on the table screaming at me. ;) More later!

Last month of the year

Not sure what happened to November, but here we are.  I've been busy working on a few handmade Christmas things.  Knitted this little fox scarf for my grandson. 

Been working on this rug hooking thru out the year. It's only my second piece that I have done.  Made using t-shirt strips.  It was a great way to use up T-shirts.  I want to make a really big one.  Maybe next year.

Now to finish up my Alabama Chanin style scarf.  I'll post pics later.  I hope everyone, is Happy and Healthy.  Happy Holidays!

OK one more

Oh' boy, I think was bitten by the floral painting bug. This is what happens when Pilate class gets cancelled and you have an empty canvas. LOL  I won't post all the pics of how I started.  The process is actually the fun part. Prep the canvas, quick sketch your flowers.  Turn the canvas three times. Wipe!!!  Yes wipe, you don't want to get too attached to your sketches.

The next layer of paint is filling in areas of shapes that you see.  Find your vase and then sketch in your floral arrangement.  Then paint, pastel and Charcoal.  Love this!!!  And I love how the Sunflowers are singing with the background.  I will seal it today.  And move on to another project.

Knitting a scarf?!?

Finished my flower painting class

I can only stress, if you ever get a chance to take a class from Lynn Whipple.....do it!  I had so much fun learning to be more free and loose with my painting skill.  I have just finished the fourth floral painting.   It measures 50" X 40" .  It's big!!!!  And you would think going bigger is easier.  Hmmmm not so much. 

But I'm totally in love with by new Big Bold Wild Flower painting.

When the Troll speaks to you

I know you have probably heard this and think?!?  But my Troll Santa asked for Bunny Warmers.  And I have learned over the years not to fight those requests.  So I got out my sketchpad and then put on my thinking cap.  How could I do this with out making parts that you have to sew on.

I also know that just cause you can envision something in your head, doesn't always mean it comes out that way in cloth.  So here's my idea.

It took some finagling, but I like it.  Yesterday I spent the day making Bunny warmers and absolutely love how they turned out.  It's a lot of hand stitching and fiddly work.  But so worth it in the end.

Happy Accidents

I know I'm moving very slowly with my Troll Santa, but you know all good things take time.  This piece of art is no exception.  Besides I want to make sure everything looks good and fits like it should.

Love happy accidents. Gave this guy a tail that rotates back and forth. Button was kinda loose feeling. Fixed that by adding a belly button.

We ARE our worst critic!  And that is not a bad thing.

Slow and Steady

Slow and steady, it goes! I love taking pics as I go, because it is all about the process.  Today was no exception!  It's still pretty cool temperature wise in my studio, so I'm taking advantage and doing a little work on my troll.  

Sewed on the ears, colored the face, cut out and pin on the Santa bear.  Love how it looks.  Was covered in hair after cutting the Mohair. 

Revising an old pattern

Oh' this is a very slow process, as I don't want to change the pattern.  I just want to update the wording and diagrams.  It's really hard not to get side tracked.  Right now I'm stuck on the eyes, because I no longer have the eyes, that I used in the prototype.  It's those little things that can really slow down the process. 

I want you to be able to find the products that I use easily, without having to spend too much time tracking them down.  I'm very happy with Glastic Eyes that I'm using on the Troll Santa's face.  Time to move on and glue on the eyelids, add color to the face, attach the ears.............you get the drift?!?

Summer time

Another one of my early patterns is getting a little make over.  Right now I'm working on my Troll Santa pattern. The body has been sewn and stuffed. It's hard to stay focused due to the hot summer days and my studio is upstairs.

WIP, I will have to redraw the diagrams and since it is a digital pattern I will be able to also put in some photo's.  I hope to get this one done in the next week. 

The Day is almost here

Well, in just a few more day I'll be in Phoenix, AZ.  I will have quite a number of Dolls for Sale.  I've been posting them for a couple of weeks now.  It's been fun finding the pics on my computer and reminiscing about when they were made.  And much to my surprise one sold last night. 

She will be a great addition to any collection.  OH' I think I forgot to mention that her name is Olive, the forest troll.  Please stop in and say Hello.  I will be at ODACA Day:

July 16th, 9:30am - 6:00pm

JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Spa & Resort

5350 East Marriott Dr

Phoenix, AZ 85054

How to's on my You Tube Channel

Well I've been pondering this idea for a while.  There is a lot that goes into Dollmaking and I thought I could do some mini tutorials.  So I started a list.  Yikes, I had no idea how many things I could talk about. 

• stuffing the head
• sculpting the nose
• mouth
• inserting the eyes
• adding eyelids
• stuffing the fingers
• adding the thumb
• the tools I use

Whew!!  The list is huge.  Yesterday I posted my first little clip on using the Stuffing Fork.  Hope you have a look at my You Tube channel and then come back for more.

Taking my job very seriously

Been working on "Jake" the entire week.  LOL  What was I thinking. Revising a pattern that I designed 18 years ago?!?  Well not so much revising, but creating new diagrams.  I can't say that I like it. :(  But I will move forward.  The body parts are sewn and stuffed and today I'm working on the sculpting the face.  My favorite part, as it defines the character.  We shall see how it goes.  I'm trying real hard not get off track here. 

I have taken a couple of pics as I work on z face!