Thursday, August 28, 2014

Off with their heads!!

Heads have been rolling here the past week. I have 6 varnished heads ready for their wigs, head bands and hats. I have started on the 6 body armatures this week and dyed some mohair for wigs. I'm also making a chair for one of them. Next week I should have at least 3 dolls ready for costumes.

I'm also really loving the doll for the Alien show. It's funny how you can start a project on paper with one idea and then end up going in a totally different direction once you've painted the face and looked at the eyes. That's the part I enjoy the most, seeing that little person looking back;)

By the way, while I was working I realized one of my pugs had what looked like a green bouquet in his tail. He's old and is pretty much blind but he finds ways of getting into crazy situations all of the time. He strutted around,


dropping leaves, for about an hour before he let me pull it out of his piggy tail. Of course, I had to get a pic first, he's my sweetie pie!

Have a Wonderful Labor Day Weekend!!
Rosanna

P.S. I forgot to add that I used acrylic paint to completely cover one of the heads and used water color and pastel chalks on the rest. The acrylic paint seals the paperclay and leaves an egg shell finish. I would not use this to make a realistic skin color unless I found some matte paint. The water colors are great on the paperclay as well as the pastels, just make sure to use a very light touch. Its better to keep adding little by little than to have to scrape or sand off. Good Luck!

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Paperclay Face Time!

The paperclay I ordered arrived and I have been working with it all day. I really like this stuff, I can give these dolls a more painterly style versus the very realistic dolls I usually sculpt. The high humidity is a pain but I just set what I'm working on near a warm oven and let it dry that way.
So far I have 6 heads going at the same time!! These dolls will all be 14 to 19 inches tall and one of them is going to be an alien;)
Here are my works in progress, hope you enjoy

I couldn't resist trying some hair on one just to get an idea of what they will look like. Now I just have to sand them all, add some ears, a few tweaks and finishing touches.
Next step will be to test what paints and powders will achieve the right look for my dolls.
Bye for now,
Rosanna

Thursday, August 14, 2014

New doll with Ankie Daanen

I was fortunate enough to spend last week with some great gals and the amazing artist Ankie Daanen!! I took part in her class from aforartistic. Ankie is such a wonderful teacher and Adele Sciortino was a wonderful host to us all.
I don't usually work in paper clay but because of the extreme heat here in Florida I will be working in this medium for the next few months.
Doll is paper clay and approx.19 inches tall.



I am so excited that I have already started on 5 other dolls as well!!
Have a wonderful weekend
Rosanna