Creating a Uniquely YOU doll

Its a beautiful Sunday morning, well its early afternoon as I look at the clock. Where did my morning go? I have been lost in creating....I just love those periods of time where the clock just seems to stand still for you while you dream and create.

I've been working on Mahdreen and I thought I would show you a few steps while she's in the making. The little steps make the biggest difference. I began by drawing the pattern myself because I wanted her to take on a certain look. I've posted a pic of the initial drawings and a picture of what her hand has been modified into since Sophia took off with that original :) I chose to go with a 3 finger look on the other because she is a mythical creature, ahh the beautiful choices we have when we create.

I also wanted to pass on a few items that make my doll life easier. I love water color pencils for one, they really give you a chance to detail a dolls face and then make it so much more with just a touch of water. My favorite pencils right now are Faber Castell acquarelles. So many great colors available and so much you can do with them. I love to draw an initial line, take my detailer brush, dip it in a bit of water and blend. Give it a try on a bit of paper that you have lying around, play with it, get comfy and see what you come up with. You'll be amazed at the possibilities of color combinations and the qualities that watercolor pencils can give you. I love them and I cant say enough about them.

 These are a few of my favorite things!

 I so want to try my hand at Ink Pencils, I saw them at an art store during the holidays and almost bought a set, don't know why I didn't! I'll save that for another day tho :)

I also just purchased a hemostat that has a mini grip at the mouth end. I swear I was dreaming of this instrument just days before and then all of a sudden there it was. Really....I kept thinking to myself while I was stuffing, or trying to stuff Mahdreen's fingers, "I wish there was something that would grab a piece of stuffing and deposit it at the tip". I think I'm psychic because when I went to a doll class a week ago there it was. The perfect instrument of my dreams, exactly as I had dreamed it. I haven't had the chance to use it just yet but when I do....watch out doll fingers! cause I will not have the problems that I have had before! And if you've tried stuffing doll fingers you know what I mean..Of course there's turning them too but I have a remedy for that one also....sly smile on my face.

I'm posting a pic of Mahdreen in the make up stage-so to speak, she will have her ears painted and shaded also and her coloring will be played with a bit. But this is what steps are all about, creating, step by step. And knowing that each step is a move in a perfectly beautiful "you" direction. Because no one can create the way you do. No one can lend that distinctly "you" quality that you so lovingly do with every stitch and every brush stroke. With every creation that you hold in "your" hands you impart that uniquely you love into it. Create, Love and Harmonize, thats my thought for the day...

I'll be back soon with more steps and a handy hint or 2:) and more of Mahdreen's progress.

Michelle

A Reggae Day in Sedona AZ

Took a day trip to Sedona yesterday, we listened to Reggae music while we drove, it was a relaxing, blue sky day.

We took off early in the morning, drank Starbucks-salted caramel coffee and ate breakfast burritos! The drive to Sedona is so relaxing, wide open highway and amazing scenery, wow, you cant ask for more. Well, except some good driving music, so we decided on reggae :) peppered with great conversation.

We took in the sights and stopped at a few local shops. Some were great and some were so so. The center of town was too touristy and not like I thought Sedona would be, but we did find some fun little artsy places too. We bought a little here and there, some sage sticks, incense and 2 beautiful crosses that we just had to have.

All in all a great day and fun to be out and about in the blue skies and red rock mountains.

So on to creating......we ran across so many great ideas while we were there in Sedona. I've got lots of creative energy this morning that I'm eager to attend to so I'll post a few pics and get busy.

See you soon,

Michelle

Mixed Media Art doll workshop

Back from the Art Doll Workshop and I had a great time. They taught everyone how to make a "pin doll" tonight, so I have that to show you. And I also have some new pictures of Mahdreen :) I made eyes as I previously posted and I have put them in and added eyelids.

I gave her face a coat of gesso and let it dry then sanded it once and added another coat. I will sand one more time and then paint her features. I will also work on her hand addition, I'm excited to see what I can come up with. So far I'm loving what she is evolving into, I couldnt be happier.

I'll be brief for now...I'm tired, go figure :) I've been going non stop all day. Up at 8am, working on Mahdreen and then straight into gathering my misc. for the workshop. We meet next thurs and have decided on a Mermaid project. Looks like lots of funnn!

Be back tomorrow with more :)

Michelle

Mahdreens progress :)

I am moving right along with Mahdreen, my female Elf of wisdom. I have her body completely done but for one hand...I told you about Sophia confiscating it. Well I never did find it so I decided to add a half limb and I want to embellish her hand, well what would be her hand. My daughter Kristen saw her without the hand at the end and said "hey why dont you put something there besides a hand?" So I am.

She said remember the skecksies (sp?) from the Dark Crystal (one of our favorite movies, go figure !)? When they were eating they had these extensions made of some kind of metal that were really cool. I said "perfect"!

I havent decided exactly what that extension will look like but it will be really cool :).

In the meantime I've made some eyeballs out of clay, not my original idea, I got this one from Rivkah at Doll Makers Muse. I bought her pattern for her doll called Tikvah and there were many great ideas that can be incorporated. I did however devise a way to put in eyelids that came out great and were so easy to do. I will include this tip in the pattern of Mahdreen when she is done and the pattern is ready.

Well Im off to a new doll workshop in a nearby city. Cant wait to see whats new in the doll making world!.
I will post Mahdreen tonight when I get back, she is drying. For the time being I will show you what I've done with the eyes and also her face before the eyes were painted and inserted with eyelids. Oh I also gessoed her face and sanded it one time but not in this picture. She is looking great, I cant wait to show you what she looks like. My camera is also charging or I would post it now.

Oh well the element of surprise...

See you soon,

Michelle

A Cozy Basket for your Baubles

What a great day its been and a busy one at that. I posted my first "rag" product on Etsy and I'm really excited about the possibilities! I posted the beginnings of my basket previously and just last night I made the final stitches :) I love this basket! It was so much fun to make and I couldn't wait to put it in my shop. Please visit Rag Romance by clicking the Rag Romance Banner to the right. I will have more in my shop very soon.

As for my dolls, I am currently working on Mahdreen. She is the female Elder Elf that I began before I left Ohio. What an amazing, beautiful lady she will become. I'm really looking forward to dressing her and creating her face and will post the day to day progress so you can see whats going on with this enchanting woman:)

Mahdreen is a pattern that I have drawn myself and may be one of the first patterns that I put in my Etsy shop as well. I'm working on her forearm and hand at the moment....and funny but as I finished one hand and went to pick up the other....It was missing! SOPHIA!!! she's not admitting it but I think that she knows where Mahdreen's other hand is.

Well back to work!

Oh Happy Days,

Michelle

Rag Romance is Open For Business!

I have just finished creating my new business....."RAG ROMANCE" I know you'll love it as much as I do! It is everything that I've always known I've wanted and more. 

Rag Romance is the offspring of my love affair with fabric. I am always saving scraps of fabric and Im always looking for something else to make of them. I can remember doing this even as a child. My mother got me started with this habit so I have her to thank for it, Thank you Mom.

 I feel it may have come from her being raised during a time when fabric was not affordable for my grandparents. She was raised in what she referred to as a "holler" in the hills of Kentucky. She used to tell me stories about those times which I'll pass on in bits...its an interesting story.

For instance, the dresses that she wore to school were made out of feed sacks. She was raised on a farm, not the type of farm that comes to mind when you think of a farm but a very small, family sustaining farm. So the feed sacks were actually from the feed that was used to feed the animals, one cow, one pig, a few chickens and so on.

Scraps of fabric were life altering.

I could tell you stories about the sewing room that my mother worked out of as a grown woman....boxes and boxes of scrap fabric and she found uses believe me :)

So I came by my love for fabric genuinely, an apple off the same tree.

You can find my Etsy Shop at ArtRmOfChellev@etsy.com  Visit often, you never know what you'll find.

I will also post the beginnings of Mahdreen so that you can follow her progress. I have her body stuffed and am sewing her together tonight :) She's just beautiful and I cant wait to put her clothing together! She's the female Elder Elf that I began late last year and had to be put on hold due to the move here to Arizona. I am loving the unfolding of her personality. She is one of my self drawn patterns and may become a pattern open to purchase.

Romance is in the air..I can feel it. Talk to you soon,

Michelle

Rag A Muffin Rug

I just finished my rug last night! I just love it,  colors, texture and all. I havent made a rug of this type for so many years I cant tell you. I started making them 16, 18 yrs ago? as I count the time I cant believe that its been that long. I made a few way back when to pass some time while my shop was taking off and enjoyed it so much that I cant believe I didnt keep up with it. Anywho...I've caught the bug once again and all because of a get together project for my youngest daughter and myself.

I had a great time rekindling an art that I had almost forgotten about, so much so that Im adding it to a division of my workshop.

I have now started a basket and have the bottom portion finished. I'll start decreasing to bring the sides in (im not working with a pattern so its design as I go) until it starts to look like the shape Ive got in my head :) I'm even thinking that I will make a basket for my kitty Ms Sophia! She has never liked a traditional cat bed, even though I bought her a brand new one the moment she came home to live with me. But I love her and I'll make her a bed and see if she likes this one, lol, lets hope? Cat lovers, hmm, we are a different breed ourselves.

I will get out my doll misc. this next week, im looking forward to it. I've had Zandar out almost since I moved into my new place. He's such an inspiration and guide to me. He reminds me that I love to create and that there's more waiting to come to life as well.

Have you ever looked at something that you've made and thought "how did I do that"? Well I have. I can remember feeling that way in my younger yrs after drawing/painting something. I had a teacher in Jr high ask me "so Michelle tell me how you made that painting" and I replied "I dont know" because I actually didnt feel that I could explain the process. Just an off the wall, random thought but I feel that way when I look at Zandar. He reminds me that I have a lot of creativity that is waiting to be shared with the rest of the world.

So back to the drawing board of life and what Im doing today which is a collection of things. Im first going to play with Ms Sophia who is trilling at me to stop typing, yes she trills not meows, cute though. And then I will work on my basket for a while. I would like to finish the bathroom today also so that I can put my rug in there. Its the reason I began a rug of my own after teaching Kristen how to start hers. I never mentioned that she's a lefty did I? Yes it was something to teach a lefty how to crochet :) but a good brain workout for me! Both of my girls, Andrea and Kristen are great at crocheting as well as many other artistic ventures, ahh passing on the genes, lol. I have to bring out my brag book every once in a while dont I? :D

Ok I'll stop, haha.

Talk to you soon,

Michelle

Sugar Cookies, Oh My!

I was chatting with a very dear friend of mine from L.A. this morning and in the course of the conversation she told me about a sugar cookie recipe that she's had for, well,  forever. Our conversation was about business, entrepreneurs and ideas for what sells and I was telling her about a local Farmers Market that Im interested in putting some food items in. Long story short; she gave me a beautiful Sugar Cookie recipe and I spent my day going to the market for baking misc and came home to make them. Below is the sugar, eggs & butter. Then next the flour, salt, baking soda &  vanilla.

This recipe calls for 4 1/2c's of flour! I dont bake often but I thought "wow that sounds more like a cake than a cookie". And as my girls can tell you, my cookies often come out more like crackers! I like them crisp and I like them tender but I dont like gooey cookies, so hence crackers. The dough is a bit stiff once completely combined but still pliable and needs to be refrigerated for an hour.

In the meantime I did some dishes, I really dont like having to do dishes at the end of baking or cooking so Im a clean as I go person.

They take about 10-12 mins at 350' and couldnt have been any easier to make.

They are mildly sweet and would be great with Tea, Coffee or Milk! And if you really wanted to make them a bit more decadent I could see them with a great frosting, mmm.

I've had 2 already and I think I'd better stop before I ruin my dinner, Im making some ribs in homemade bbq sauce :)

cant wait to show you my finished rag rug, its coming out so beautiful. I've even started a rag basket.

Talk to you soon, Michelle

New Projects! Crochet Rugs & Capelets

I have been working on a few things to keep me busy over the last week & 1/2, a crochet rug, a child's capelet & a much needed makeover for my dining room chairs.

The rug started out as a crafty something to do on Christmas Eve day for me and my youngest, Kristen. Somehow we got on the subject and before you knew it we were crocheting a rug. I brought out a few pieces of cotton fabric that I had in my collection of material and a large crochet hook (size 15 for Kristen and an 11.5 is what I'm using now for my rug).

The basics for it are: Chain a length of material (strips about 1inch), the size of the rug will depend on the length of the chain. Kristen decided she wanted a rug for her kitchen (oblong) and so she started with approx. a chain of 12. She then turned back on the chain & proceeded with single crochets across the entire length. At the end of the length she added 3 sc's on the last chain then continuing around in a circle.
If you're interested in the complete instructions for a crochet rug just leave me an email address and I'd be more than happy to send one out to you.

She is still working on her rug, it's pretty big now but she wants it larger so that it fits between the sink and stove. I have put a little less time into my rug but I've stopped to make a few other projects as well. And it can be a bit tough on your hands wrestling with a rug :) so interjecting a lighter project every once in a while is good for me.

I've also put together a child's capelet in a beautiful multicolored fleece, so cute. Its funny with some art/craft projects, they are so much fun and you just love looking at them so much that its hard to let them go. This Capelet will be on Etsy in my store in just a few days, I'll miss this one. But I know somewhere a child will be wearing it, with a smile and some laughter and a bit warmer for the wear.

I also re-upholstered my dining room chairs with some great fabric that Kristen & I found on one of our trips to the nearby fabric store find here in Phoenix (one of them, I did find another one that I love but the first is a bit more eclectic). They have a great selection of fabric and misc sewing needs for moderate prices.

Well I'm off to relax for a bit before bed, I hope you have enjoyed these new crafty Art projects. I will be posting a how to on a new doll sometime soon. I'm almost back in the swing of things and I'm loving it. My Art Room is coming along great.

See you soon,

Michelle