March Make

Following on from my January dolly make, I have been having a bit of a play in an effort to try and improve my designs.

There were several things in particular that I didn't like...the head piece being seperate from the body for instance. I have now made the head an integral part of the body. The face has been one of the hardest things as well. I have now decided to keep it simple and just paint on eyes.

The skirt on the original doll didn't seem to hang quite right and I realised that she really needed some legs, so I have now included them in the design too. And wings have been made too......

The best part has been selecting the fabrics, ribbons and lace. I have had a good rummage and found some really pretty bits and bobs that I have collected over the years, things that have just sat there waiting for me to put them to good use.

I never realised just how many pretties I have and spent the weekend washing and ironing and untanging yards of lovely trims, sorting out beads and crystals and writing down different combinations. Some of it is vintage and some of it not, but all of it is simply gorgeous.

I am on the verge of sharing a "tah da" moment with you all, but not quite yet. There are just a couple of things that I need to tweak first. So be patient with me and all will be revealed in a few days time. I am so excited about these little girls of mine.

Dev x

Make a Month

I mentioned in my last post about taking part in Annie's Make a Month and decided that I would try and make a small doll. I have so many bits and pieces of old lace and linen and here is what I came up with.

In all honesty, she needs some work (well a lot of work actually) and there needs to a be a fair bit of tweeking here and there, mainly in relation to the head and face. It took me a while to work out what I didn't like about her and realised that she needs to have a neck to make her face look less round and I must also position her eyes and mouth a little lower. Does she need a nose, for instance? I must also look into different mediums for her face too.

I made her skirt from a rather stained tea tray cloth and edged it in some old lace and then I made an overskirt from the corner of a damaged tablecloth. Her hair is just a length of wool that I finger knitted into a long plait that I sewed onto her head with invisible cotton. ( I am rather pleased with her hair). I used a piece of ribbon for her waistband and arms and embellished with a pretty button and an old earring in her hair found in my Mother's bits and bobs box. She is completely hand sewn as well.

Despite the mistakes, I had a lot of fun making her and have been through my stash and found oodles of pretty bits. My head is full of ideas, so I will have another go and keep on until I find a design that I am happy with.

Dev x