Murina Updated

Murina the Bat Doll got a little more work done on her - I added eyelashes, worked on her face a little more, and painted some little flying bats on her neck (which was looking rather bare).

She's on Etsy: www.allegromelody.etsy.com

Here are some more photos!

Red and black paisley fabric wings and skirt.

I think her eyes look much sharper with more definition.

 

Her wings are held in place with a purple button just like her arms.

Her boots are painted with a paisley-like pattern to match the wings and skirt.

She comes with a little shelf that she sits on -- can be hung on the wall with a nail.

We created this shelf so that she might be displayed easily. I'm always running out of shelf room for my dolls, so this is our solution -- hang them on the wall like picture frames!

Please let me know what you think, and feel free to message me if you have any questions! I hope you like her.

Murina was made for the Art Dolls Only Halloween Challenge - check out the other lovely art dolls here! 

Murina the Bat Girl

Finally finished my Halloween project - Murina the Bat Girl doll!

She has just been listed on Etsy:

www.allegromelody.etsy.com

She's made from paperclay (head and hands) and cloth.  The paperclay is sculpted over part of her cloth torso, too.  She's got paisley bat wings (wired for posing) and her feet are painted in a similar pattern. Her knees are jointed with wooden beads, and her arms are jointed with some lovely purple buttons.

I've painted a bat on her torso. Her skirt matches her bat wings, and she has a tulle underskirt. Her hair is made from Tibetan lambswool. She's about 19 inches tall if she were to stand, but sits a lot better than she stands.

She's ready to fly to your Halloween party! 
Murina was made for the Art Dolls Only Halloween Challenge.

We Art the People Folk Art Festival

Ran into my friend Leighanna Light at the We Art the People folk art festival in Albuquerque yesterday, and thought I'd share some of her work! She makes these lovely mixed-media figures out of found objects and clay, and gives workshops around the country.

 

 

New Doll Begun

Getting started on a new doll. Clay head, cloth body. This time I wanted to be able to turn its head, so I'm working on figuring out how to connect it. She will be similar to Redwing, but I haven't decided whether the hands and feet will be sculpted or cloth.... Sometimes I feel like I spend more time figuring out how to do something than I do actually making the piece! She will definitely have something painted on her torso like Redwing - researching different Steampunk images now.

Some of my favorite artists

The Cart Before the Horse team (Jo and Dylan) are a couple of people who I never met, but whose work I have been following for some time now. They make wonderful, whimsical figures and other works of art. Click on the image above to visit their blog.

Watching how they consistently crank out work, market it, and sell it over the net has encouraged me to consider doing the same thing (in my own style, of course). I look forward to their weekly newsletters, and almost feel like I know them. I have a couple of their little angels hanging on my studio wall:


One angel holds some dolls with red yarn hair; the other has symbols representing prosperity. My hope is that they help bring both dolls and prosperity to my studio! The piece in the middle is by my friend Richard Maitland; the three fairies on the bottom are by Rebecca Miller Campbell.

Calypso Finished!

Here's Calypso.

I'm sure I could keep working on this doll for a while, but I'll stop with her for now! I worked on her features more, gave her some tattoos on her cheeks and chin, added ears and earrings, made her a necklace, put some beads in her hair, and finished up lots of loose edges. She sits on a candlestick which has a red glass globe.


The character that inspired her, Tia Dalma from the Pirates of the Caribbean movie, is depicted with what look like tattoos on her cheeks and chin. Curious as to their origin, I did some research and discovered that these types of markings are actually facial scarification. These scars are created to express personal beauty as well as for identity and social status. I found some beautiful images taken of people from remote areas of Africa by British photographer John Kenny.

She has little shell-buttons sewed to her skirt.

She's not meant to depict one particular culture or person, but is a combination of many different images that I came across in my research. I see her as a gypsy pirate queen influenced by many cultures.

Calypso

My newest doll project is Calypso, a gypsy pirate character.

This weekend I took a class with doll artist Arley Berryhill, who also lives here in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The class was to make a "witch" candlestick doll, but of course I had to deviate from the established path and make my own. I learned a whole lot - Arley's background in theatrical makeup and costuming was invaluable.

She's inspired by the Calypso character in the Pirate movie. I decided that she needed button-jointed arms and dreadlocks. Since the workshop was held at our local yarn shop, I found some wool that I twisted and needle-felted to make the hair. The doll is in progress, so I'll post more photos as she develops. I need to add finishing details, perhaps work on the face some more, and I think she needs ears and earrings. I may add some tattoos to her face and hands, too.


Here's the beginning base & pattern for the doll.