MY FIRST DOLL - DOROTHY

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Hello, my dear friends! Now I would like to present you all my dolls I made for the past three years. I will show them to you one by one in chronological order. And of course I will start my story with the very first one!

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Here I was... Sitting in the classroom and listening to our doll making teacher... She was telling us about the wonderful world of dolly creatures. Before we came to the first class, we had been told to think over the image of our first doll we were going to create. It didn't take me a second - it looked like my cherished image was lying somewhere deep in my mind ready to pop out when called up. It is little DOROTHY from "The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz". 

The fairy tale translated into Russian by Alexander Volkov was one my favourite in my childhood.  

I adored them all: the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, the Cowardly Lion, the trustworthy black dog Toto... And the girl - little brave Dorothy - was my hero!  She was sweet and simple, sprightly and energetic. She lived in the present and didn't trouble herself with much anxiety and worry about the future. This is exactly the character I wanted to be all my life. 

While preparing for the classes I made some sketches of how my Dorothy should look like. 

I wanted to represent her at that very moment when a whirling cyclone took her farm house up into the sky and swept it towards the Emerald City. 

I imagined how she was sitting on the doorstep hugging her small back dog Toto and pointing out at the beautiful land showing up at the horizon. "Look, Toto, look where we are flying!" - she kept saying. Of course such composition was not easy to accomplish because I had to make Toto and the house as well. But I decided to act like my beloved Dorothy - first I will make the doll and then I will take care of the others.  No worry.  Everything comes in its due turn. 

I started sculpturing Dorothy's face at the class and then continued my work at home. I made an inevitable mistake which all beginners do - the face turned out very elderly.  It looked like a granny's face, not that of a small cute girl. The face was rather interesting and vivid, but absolutely old. I must admit that I lost my heart at that point and decided to change the character I was working on. It is awful, isn't it?  I told myself: "Since it looks like a granny, let it be a granny doll, but the second doll will be my Dorothy". 

I came to the next class with this decision in mind and shared my cowardly plan with the teacher. The teacher was very wise. "No, my dear! You should never do that!  You shouldn't  betray your character just because of the poor sculpturing.  Remember the doll making rule: IT IS YOU WHO MAKES THE DOLL BECAUSE YOU ARE THE ARTIST.  THE DOLL SHOULD NOT DECIDE WHAT CHARACTER IT WANTS TO BE. IT'S UP TO YOU TO DECIDE AND STICK TO YOUR DECISION". 

She took my work and manipulated with her stick over Dorothy's clay head. She showed me how easily I can correct my sculpturing mistakes. In five minutes the elderly face's right side changed to a girl's one. "Now please do the same with the left side of the face, my dear" - the master said. "I am sure you will make a perfect little girl". After I had worked on the face for an hour I finally saw a smiling funny baby face looking at me. Of course it wasn't perfect, but no doubt it was a girl! A small sweet girl!  

Now looking back at that episode I feel so grateful to my teacher for that important lesson. I am following her advice in every doll I make. I pick up the image I want to create and work on it until the desired character begins looking at me. 

My first doll was successfully finished a month later. I made Toto from the same clay and glued some black sheep's fur to it.

While making a house wall with the door I was assisted by my husband - he made the wooden frame which I covered by cardboard and then painted it. 

DOROTHY doll has been exhibited at several dolls fairs. But I don't sell it since it is my talisman. It brings me luck. For me this little girl is a vivid example of how easily the obstacles can be overcome if you are brave, open-hearted, honest and simple.

THE DREAM OF VIOLA PLAYER: FINALE-APOTHEOSIS

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It's my pleasure being with you again, my dear friends! We are just two steps away from the finale of the story.

Last time when we met the Viola Player doll, he got the new hair and turned into a very handsome artistic personage.

The doll fair-exhibition began the next day after the hair cutting and styling. The theme of my doll exposition was "Masks and Masked Doll Characters".  The portrait doll of Mr.Yury Bashmet didn't fit the theme at all. But I was so eager and impatient to show Maestro's new look to the world that I brought him to the fair and simply put the doll on the table before me.  

By the way, I forgot to mention that Mr.Bashmet celebrated his 60th jubilee in January 2013. The celebration was widely covered in the mass media and Maestro attracted a lot of attention at that time.  That was another reason why I wanted to exhibit my Viola Player doll at the March 2013 fair when Yury Bashmet's name was still on everyone's lips.

For three days Mr.Bashmet has been sitting on the Viennese chair holding his feminine-shaped viola and smiling cunningly at the fair guests. Needless to say that he had greater success than my masked dolls. What flattered me a lot is that people especially praised his hands. I was happy! 

On the fair last day when I was busy sewing something at the back of my exhibition cubicle I suddenly heard a voice saying over my head: "Oh, God, luckily you didn't sell him yet!" I raised my eyes and saw a young man pointing to the Viola Player doll. He introduced himself and told me that he was working for Maestro. He had already seen the doll two days ago and decided to buy it as a gift for Mr.Bashmet's jubilee. He photographed the doll on his phone and showed the picture to the musician's close friend. The friend approved the doll and the idea of such gift.  So my customer returned to the fair on the last day to buy the doll. The Viola Player doll was carefully packed and handed to the customer. 

I was so overjoyed that I couldn't remember how the fair ended. Shame on me that I didn't make any picture of the doll while it was exhibited.  After the fair had finished I asked one my friends visiting me those days to share his photos with me.  So the only piece of evidence I have now is this poor phone made picture:

This is the happy end of the story. I do hope that my doll made its own long and hard way to the lucky finale. The best lot for the portrait doll is to be gifted to the prototype. I am extremely happy that it happened to my Viola Player doll. My special thanks to dear Ms.N whose critics, though being rather bold, encouraged me to improve my work and get a better result.

Happy jubilee, dear Maestro! Viva music!

P.S. Dear friends, don't forget to photograph the work you are making! Our creations leave us, but the memory of them should stay with us forever. 

THE DREAM OF VIOLA PLAYER: MAESTRO'S NEW HAIR

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OK, my friends, we are very close to the end of the story.  I won't take much of your attention today.  

Maestro's hands were done and fixed to the doll. It had taken me quite long before I gathered all my courage to redo the hair.  My viola player doll's old hair was of sheep mohair. Being of the right colour it was of the wrong texture: too silky and dim.  Instead of sheep mohair I decided to use goat fur which is rigid and shiny.

It was just a single day left before March 2013 Dolls Exhibition when I got down to work. I peeled off the old hair from the doll's head as it was a potato. The look of the bold viola player was so funny that I simply couldn't stand it.  I glued the new goat shiny hair to the head.  Mr.Bashmet suddenly became very handsome but... he looked like an American Indian! Long straight black hair!  His hair definitely needed some light waving. 

The problem is that I have no curling or waving device at home. But that afternoon I was planning to visit my hairdresser (a good friend of mine) to have my own hair cut. I came to my friend and while she was cutting and drying my hair I asked if she could share any waving device with me.  She smiled, plunged in her working drawers and brought to light this fantastic appliance:

It was gorgeous but no doubt it came from the previous century.  Since I had no choice, I took it. Though being so antique it worked perfect! I heat it over the gas-ring and waved the doll's hair. It took me about 15 minutes to make the hair styling I needed.

I couldn't believe my eyes! Yury Bashmet changed completely. He had an absolutely different look. Now the resemblance was evident.

Let's take a small break, my dear readers.  Next time you will hear the final chord of my Viola Player saga.

Good night!  Take care of your beautiful hair!

THE DREAM OF VIOLA PLAYER: MAESTRO'S NEW HANDS

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Hello, my dear friends! Are you still here?  It makes me happy to have all your ears:))

Do you remember the severe critics lesson I was taught? How did I take it? I decided to improve my doll. As I told previously, two remarks on my "Viola Player" were absolutely fair: wrong hands and wrong hair. Everything is possible! I can redo both! 

I started with hands. First I studied carefully a lot of Yury Bashmet's photos where his hands can be seen clearly. He has quite a big palm with long fingers of beautiful 

masculine shape. He always wears a massive golden ring on his right little finger. I selected several pictures, laid them before me, and started modelling the Maestro's arms.

I must admit that I never worked on the doll's hands so elaborately. The respected Miss N. told me that hands could be often more important than the face. While sculpturing I realised how right she was! Human hands are so unique and expressive that they have a lot of character in themselves. And when it comes to a portrait doll, THE HANDS MUST REFLECT PORTRAIT RESEMBLANCE AS WELL AS THE FACE.  

I worked hard two days and finally the new hands were ready. Unfortunately I was absolutely stupid because I didn't photograph them.  During the first year of my doll making I wasn't accustomed to take pictures of what I was doing.  I feel so sorry for it now!  The only piece of evidence I have at the present moment is a pair of Mr.Bashmet's "old hands".  Here they are!  Aren't they ugly? 

I keep them as a reminder to myself of the hands' crucial role in the doll's image.  Being ugly they still remain useful to me. 

I will hold on the "new Maestro's hair" story for the next time.  Good night, my dear friends! 

Don't forget how BEAUTIFUL AND IMPORTANT OUR HANDS ARE! 

MINI-CELLO FOR A TEDDY (Part 3)

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Coming back to my mini-cello! I jointed the body with the neck and improved the shape of the neck.

Before I continue telling my cello-making story let's examine how are different parts of the cello called:

So now we are cello-smart. I cut f-holes in the body and I also modelled tailpiece from paper clay. 

I painted the f-holes black. Then I cut a small "bridge" detail from carton. I also made some little holes in the body in which the bridge will be inserted later.

I covered my mini-cello with two layers of mordant. I chose the colour of larch.

Now it should be lacquered. I use special furniture lacquer. It has a strong smell, that's why you should better do it on the open air. This is my favourite work stage because after being lacquered the cello turns into a "real" one. Look at it!

Just minor details are left.  I hope to finish my little cute instrument tomorrow.  Follow the theme.

Have a nice day!  Don't forget that WE ARE THE MASTERS!

THE DREAM OF VIOLA PLAYER - SUCCESS OR FAILURE?

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The portrait doll of Yuri Bashmet was ready and I showed it at the first dolls' exhibition I participated in October 2012. People liked it a lot, made pictures of it and complimented me. One of the popular newspapers "Moskovsky Komsomlets" covering the exhibition even published a photo of my doll in its on line issue. Needless to say that I was absolutely happy. 

A month later I participated in the other exhibition where my "Viola Player Bashmet Doll" took part in the competition "Dolls Master".  Again the doll attracted a lot of attention, was shot and praised. 

Bashmet Doll's photo appeared in the other media source "Rossyiskaya Gazeta".

At the last day of the exhibition I met my master, that lady who was teaching me to make a violin (see my previous posts). Do you remember that it was her advice to give my violin/viola a feminine look. Let's call this respected lady Miss N.  So I was very excited to see her.  Miss N. was one of jury of the contest and I was very eager to learn her opinion on my work.

I showed her my "Viola Player" doll and asked how she would have evaluated my first portrait doll experience. Of course I wanted some constructive criticism, but... what I heard was much beyond all my expectations...

Miss N. said that she could see no character in this doll, no image... Just a YELLOW-BROWN BLUR... 

I was totally destroyed. Apart of a "yellow-brown blur" concept I was also told some really valuable and fair comments.  The two principal of them were: WRONG HAIR and WRONG HANDS. The hair I stuck to my doll's head was of a wrong texture - too soft and dim. And the hands were made carelessly without proper working-out of details. That was absolutely true.

At that moment I was so frustrated by such severe criticism that I wasn't quite able to distinguish the fair remarks from a subjective negative view. And what is more important: having learnt the basic doll making technique I didn't get a very important skill yet - I DIDN'T LEARN TO PERCEIVE CRITICISM. 

This was a lesson to learn. How did I take it? Read my following post. 

Thank you very much for the attention to my creative torments. I wish you good luck and a nice day!

VIOLIN OR VIOLA?

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So I need a very special charismatic personage who will be playing my "female" violin.  First of all I calculated the size of my future doll basing it on the violin's size. To my surprise the doll's height turned out too big. Since I didn't plan to make an oversized doll but I wanted to keep the realistic proportion I came to the following solution: it will be a viola instead of violin. Viola is 10 cm/4" longer than violin.  This difference was quite enough for me to make a smaller doll.

Now when I determined the instrument I started searching the desired prototype for my doll.  Actually it wasn't too difficult since the viola is quite a rare instrument. The image came to my mind instantly: YURY BASHMET. He is a very famous Russian viola player well known all over the world. And what is absolutely crucial for me - he has an extraordinary appearance: expressive features, dark eyes, aquiline nose and long black hair. He is the real character. Look at his pictures. Isn't he gorgeous?

I studied lots of Bashmet's photos and found the one which I like most.  He has a special cunning smile on it. 

I found this smile very appropriate to the unusual "female" viola he will he playing. I decided to portray him at leisure: my Bashmet-doll will be sitting on the chair at the rehearsal break and holding the viola in his arms casually. Like this:

No sooner said than done! I sculptured Yury Bashmet's smiling face rather quickly.  His facial features are so strikingly vivid that the portrait resemblance was quite easy to reproduce. It didn't take me long to sculpture this remarkable face.  And a month later the doll was ready.  I called it "THE DREAM OF A VIOLA PLAYER". 

At that moment I didn't have an idea how complicated and lucky would be the life of my first portrait doll.  

I will tell you more stories about it.  Please don't miss the DREAM TRAIN OF DOLLS blog.