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Eyes are, as they are
for human beings, the most important
part of the doll. The look reveals the soul,
or it doesn't. Eyes can also be so remarkably evocative that we can associate
them to a certain style . Take a look, for instance, at the eyes of Mr.
Bill Nelson's dolls which always emanate such tenderness.
Personally, I don't
use manufactured eyes for my dolls, I prefer to paint them myself. It is
a real challenge for me to be able to reveal, by a few tiny details, the
emotion of the doll.
Several doll artists
such as Nancy Wiley, Helen Kish, E.J. Taylor, Van Craig, Antonette
Cely have chosen to paint their dolls' eyes. Whatever technique they use,
their eyes invite you to look deeper.
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When your doll is completed, watch
its eyes and ask yourself: Are they talking to me? |
1. You know how difficult it is sometimes
to sculpt the eyes and the eyebrow and get the right shape of the
eyeball.
2. To make it easier, you
can model small balls with the product you use (paperclay, papier
maché or polymer clays). Bake them separately in the oven (beware
not to use your regular oven to avoid toxic fumes, especially for polymers*).
Let dry.
3. Place the balls into the head
of your doll and start modeling the eyebrow around them and then
sculpt the rest of the face. You are ready now to bake the head and
start painting the eyes. 
* If you are concerned with the possible toxicity of
the new clays and want to know how to bake them, you will get accurate
information on this subject in New
Clays for Dollmaking, by Mimi and Jim Winer (Mimi's
Books and Patterns) and in Fantastic Figures, by NIADA
member, the doll artist Susanna Oroyan (C
& T Publishing).
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Hands
and
fingers are not only very difficult to sculpt. They're
also fragile and breakable pieces. How many
times did you break a nail or a finger while sculpting the hand? How many
times did you send a doll to collectors and heard
from them that a hand of
your doll had cracks on it or had
got broken in transport?
How to avoid this situation? |
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Hands are expressive parts
of the doll's body as well as breakable
pieces.
Be patient and meticulous while sculpting
them.
1. Depending
on the doll's measurements, I use very thin wire to form the hand's
skeleton and I wrap each finger with a layer of masking tape. Then I add
paperclay to the fingers. If a finger breaks, the skeleton will stick in
place, I only have to replace the broken part. I don't recommend this technique
for those who keep polymer's natural tones, but for the others, I hope
it helps!
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You may think you have
sculpted your best doll ever, if you don't use the right fabric for it,
the final figure may look out of proportion. Then what is the right
fabric for a doll?
I like to use old vintage
fabrics
or the best quality natural fibers for my
dolls. I enjoy collecting antique and fine silk handkerchieves or
delicate brocart. On the other hand, I confess that, as many people
do, I bought many fabrics without asking myself if I really needed them.
And, frankly, I don't know if I will ever use them to dress my dolls. That's
why I have decided now to choose the best ones
(those I won't ever find again!) and leave
the rest behind.
Where can we find great
fabrics?
In most cases, you are surrounded by Ali
Baba's caverns and you don't know it. Your grandmother's armoire,
garage sales and flea markets, local antique shops, the nearest arabic
or persian fabric store, all these places can reveal wonderful or unusual
stuff. And you don't have to pay much. The most beautiful things I found
and collected over the years (even before starting to make dolls) were
the cheapest!
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1. The right fabric for a doll is
the fabric that fits it. First, it must be on scale and belong to
the right fashion style or history period. For example, if your doll depicts
a young teenage girl of the 90's, you won't use dark velvet to dress
her. A better choice would be to use cotton and colorful
fabrics, as all youngsters wear these days.
2. Being in scale means also light
material. To drape a dress properly and make the outfit look natural,
the fabric can't be too thick or heavy. Otherwise, it can spoil the balance
of the dolls.
3. Colors and textures
of the fabrics, or accessories
such as buttons also contribute to the whole composition.
Costuming is by far my favorite part of doll making but also one of the
hardest for me. I admire those who combine several colored fabrics and/or
material and let the doll's soul emerge through it. Personally, to make
the best choices, I cut small pieces of each fabric and place them together
to see if they fit together. I usually don't draw lots of sketches
before dressing a doll but I get interesting results with draping.
I drape the doll, try things and try again for several days or weeks before
making a final decision on what it is good for the doll.
Being too impatient has often led
me to ruin a doll's costume, forcing me to start all over again.
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