The holiday season is finally over, it’s time to get back to work!
I was in the middle of putting a Chevrot Bru body together before Christmas. This antique Bru body came with reproduction arms and SP, but the leather torso and wooden lower legs are the original.
I noticed that the repro arms were one size larger in proportion to the body, so I made a new set of arms on a smaller scale. I also made a new SP because the one with the body had a hairline.
The copper upper arm parts were still usable, I recycled them and covered them with vintage kidskin to match the color of the leather torso as much as possible.
I assembled all the parts together with the Bru label at the chest as a final touch; now she is ready to be dressed!
I finally unboxed the last doll from the trunk on New Year’s Eve, and my doll room is now complete. This is an EJA head I made a few years ago. I wasn’t very happy with her look for a long time, and to be honest, I didn’t feel like displaying her in my new doll room. Part of the reason was that she was wearing a wig and bonnet not suited for her. I studied antique EJA photos and decided to shorten the wig and change the bonnet. Well, now she looks much more like an EJA, and I think she’s adorable! A doll’s appearance really changes a lot depending on how you style it. This was another opportunity to learn the importance of paying attention to the smallest details for finishing touches.
This year unexpectedly turned out to be a turning point in my life, and I wasn’t able to dedicate as much time to my creative work as I would have liked.
However, I was able to get through it thanks to everyone’s kind words and encouragement.
From next year, I plan to work in a better environment and dedicate myself even more to my work. Please look forward to my postings and activities!
I’ve noticed my dolls look better when I take photos under studio lights at night.
I usually take their photos during the day with natural light when I need to show the images to my customers so that they can get images more true to the actual dolls.
But tonight, I am just playing with her by putting antique gowns on her and seeing how she looks when she is dressed. (I haven’t finished her body yet though)
I am sharing her images here since she looks very pretty at night.
It’s been almost a year since I last started working on a bisque head, but as expected, my concentration was waning and my first head was completely scrapped.
There’s a pinhole I missed during cleaning, located in the center of the upper lip. Once the skin color is applied, the tiny crater becomes more noticeable because the paint pools inside it and appears as a dark spot. The feeling of complete despair when it pops up is incredible… ( ;∀;)
For now, I’m just painting it for practice. My new glasses seem to fit, so my eyesight is fine, and I was able to draw the eyelashes without any problems.
Now that Thanksgiving is over, I’m back to work on my second head.
I set up my doll studio and kiln, casting room in our new house. I think I am ready to resume my doll making!
I am still working to finish my waiting list, and I have to pick up where I left off back in February. My next doll is a 16″ Bru Jne, and she will have antique eyes and an antique Chevrot body. This doll already has a buyer, but I will post her progress each step for your enjoyment.
Our new house gets more sunlight since it’s not in the forest; it’s very bright and airy. I can see the mountains and forest we used to live in from our backyard, yet it feels almost like we moved to a different state since the climate is so different.
We finally sold our previous house last week. Now I can really get serious about setting up my new studio space! And since I absolutely had to have this bookcase to store my tools, I went ahead and ordered it online — (yes,I know these DYI furniture assembly difficulties are rated MAX ….) I gave it a shot right away when it was delivered, and surprisingly, it was pretty straightforward. I finished assembling in just 4 hours! ( not bad for a first timer?) Who knew my childhood addiction of assembling origami and paper crafting would come in handy here?