Today I am sharing some Art Dolls that I made and put up on my Etsy site.  I made these dolls(?) by gluing pieces of wood together and adding layers of stain, acrylic paint, paper, rub-n-buff, gel pens, paper clay and ribbon or lace.  I then added a coat of matte medium to the faces and hair, sanded the bases and aged them with distress inks. The taller ones stand approx. 3 3/4 inches and the base is 1 inch square. The shorter one is about 2 inches tall,  7/8 inch at the base and 1 1/8 inches at the head.

This is what they looked like after gluing the ball on top of the wood spool and painting or staining.  The hair is made of paper clay.  I found it necessary to wet the wood in order for the clay to stick! (let dry 24 hours) Then came the tedious task of painting those tiny faces.  I like painting dollhouse miniatures and I sculpt tiny birds and flowers out of polymer clay but for some reason I thought these little ladies were tough!  I guess I was being to particular, the quirky faces just seemed to add a folksy charm when all  was said and done.

That's all for now. Hope everyone is having a  creative day!! Thanks for looking!!!

Still playing with dolls!

I finished up a couple of Dottie Dolls for some Flickr friends and thought I'd share them here too.  These little cuties are so quick and easy and I do love making and trading them!

This one has Easter basket grass for hair. It was quit unruly and it took me a little while to sew it on and tie it up but it was worth it.  She really makes me smile.

I used basket filler, paper strips for this ones hair.  Much more manageable!  Still, I think it was effective.

I'm still hoping to get a few of you interested in an Art Doll swap.  Sherry has said that she's interested (thank you Sherry!) and I thought I would let you all know that I am open to any style of doll.  It doesn't have to be and Altered Art Doll...paper, fabric, wood, Dotties.  They're all fun!  If you're interested just leave a comment or e-mail me to let me know.

Off to play with some more dolls...Thank you for stopping by and have a great day!!!

New addiction!

I spent the weekend making Dotee Dolls.  I'd never heard of them until last week when my friend Sherry invited me to join her new yahoo group and now I'm hooked.  I looked for some instruction and inspiration online and found that I'm a little late to the game.  The creator of the concept doesn't even have her tutorial posted on her blog anymore. From what I learned, the bodies are anywhere from 3 to 7 inches long. They usually have a felt face and they should have something to hang them from, either ribbon, cording or a beaded wire. They have no arms and you can add beads across the bottom or a beaded tail.  Dotee Dolls are fun, fast and can be funky!  I like that!  They take very few supplies and anyone can make them.  The dolls are not meant to be sold, they are meant to be traded or given as gifts.  If you would like to trade Dotee Dolls, come join us in the new group! http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DazzlingDoteesDolls/