Dolls

I always seem to want to write something just when I should really be going to bed. I really meant to get there by 10 tonight and look-it's nearly 11.30! The trouble is there is just too much to do in the evening when I get home from work and I resent having to stop doing whatever that is. Tonight I have spent a long time looking at archives from Beth Robinson's blog (strangedolls-link in blog list) Through one of the many fascinating posts on there I was led to dollseye's photostream on flickr and I have spent a long time marvelling over her work tonight. I love it-the atmosphere she creates in her beautiful and creepy pictures is incredible.

Anyway, by way of a tangent it made me want to do what I originally intended to do on this blog and to share some of the things I am working on.

I have been continuing to make dolls and have made a couple of just cloth dolls that I am quite pleased with- Tall Skinny Cloth doll (she has not got a name-I have trouble with the names)

You can see she is sharing her space with the lovely conjoined twin ghost dolls from Kerry Kate at October Effigies.

She has no hair, just hats. Next I made this blond doll-she has little objects in her handbag that she has collected and will use to make something in the future. She likes adventures and fancy clothes. I don't know her name either.

My next two dolls have been inspired by my favourite painting- 'The Fairy Feller's Master Stroke' by Richard Dadd-this article by Neil Gaiman on the painting is interesting. I love this painting-I first saw it in 'The Reader's Digest Book of Myths and Legends'-a book I constantly looked at as a child-full of spooky and mysterious goodies. I have now seen the real painting a number of times in the Tate-much better in real life! My two favourite characters in the painting are the big calved ladies to the middle left. I love their legs, their strange skin colour, their full pleated skirts and their strange head dresses. So I have had a go at making my own versions. This doll is now finished but I have not taken photos yet-she looks roughly like this though.Pre-limbs...

This doll is my third clay and cloth doll-and I still have no control over how it turns out. I have used little glass eyes in this one which I like. Once I put her make up on she began to resemble a man in drag.Last night I kind of dirtied her up a bit with some brown paint. As you can see I have not conquered my other problem either-hair-so I have painted a kind of skull cap onto her.

The wide staring eyes make her look permanently shocked or scared but I quite like the way she has turned out-I made felt hair that looked awful so my solution in the end was this concertinaed paper.She is being given important information by her friend the flycatcher-she looks no less scared though.