FINALLY!

I FINALLY finished this mermaid. It was a commission I have had to do since September. I had asked for extra time, because I had gone to MMM and then -well I don't know about you - but when I go to those types of classes, I am fried - for a long while. So I just could not get into her. Different color request and not a velvet tail - this is the 2nd tail I made for her. I am SO happy with how she turned out. She is not pretty to me - she is lovely. I can't wait to take her into work tomorrow and give it to her. She is a little Marion Antoinette-y to me with the white hair - but that is what I had in mind all along.
It is finally snowing here - should get 3"-5" overnight. The drive into work may not be too fun - but it sure will be pretty. I love it when it snows - it is so very quiet and peaceful - everything looks so clean with the white snow.

8 girls journal

8 girls is going to do a Teesha Moore style journal. We each have to decorate the cover only. We are meeting on Sunday and will swap the books for the 1st time. We will decorate 2 pages in the book we receive. Next time we meet, we will swap again and do 2 pages in the next book, etc. I am excited to do this one - the other "girls" are very artistic and the pages should be awesome. Here is the cover of my book. We made each book the same - constructed them as Teesha Moore shows in her youtube video - so the covers have the little flap - that is where I put my name. Hope you like it - I think it is really girly - didn't intend for that, but this is how it ended up and I really think it is pretty.

funny little pin doll

Man is it ever cold - it is in the 20's and briskly cold. I like it though. Wonder if we will see snow this weekend.
Well- just before 10pm I finished my pin doll for our exchange tomorrow- I had this partially made a few years ago and added fibers, beads and sequins. I am pretty happy with it - sure is a silly and funny little person. The body is the size of a tea bag and the head is the size of a grape. I hope whoever gets it enjoys it. Hope you like it too.

busy, busy, busy

Well, I have been here - just not in the doll making mode. 8 girls got together with another friend (an honorary girls 9&10..hahaha). We made day of the dead faces with fabric and paper. I made mine with felt and hand stitched everything. The others used a combination of both mediums and machine stitched and "quilted" theirs - they ALL turned out really neat. Mine has sequins and french knots for texture, plus the hand stitching. I like it and it hangs in the Happy Place so I can see it when at my sewing machine.
Now, if you want to try something REALLY fun and freeing - you HAVE TO check out Teesha Moore's videos on youtube and her blog (link is on my blog to the right). She has tutorials of EVERYTHING she does on her art journal pages - and even shows you how to make the book!!!!!!!!!! It is so awesome. Can I say enough good things about it??? I started a book and will be doing another one with 8 girls - so you will see some crazy stuff I am sure. We will be doing pages in each others books. But for now - Book 1 is mine only and I have the cover and page 1 posted. the cover is pink with the blackbirds, page 1 is the crazy looking girl on the green page. Honestly - it is so much fun. I really have to limit myself or I will do this only.
Lastly, my poor Finn- he is not done yet, but it has been brought to my attention that I have not posted in a long time - so I decided to show you him -even though he is not done yet. I have just not been in the mood to make dolls and have so much to make for people - thank god, not for christmas gifts..... So here he is - I LOVE his sweet little face and such a cute profile.
Hopefully, I will have more completed stuff to post, soon.

Happy place & doll clothes

I painted this light switch at my friends' pottery studio - Spirit of Clay, in Mayfield Village, OH. It is a paint your own pottery studio with all kinds of things to paint. I hung this up in my art room. It really is my happy place.
I am 99% done with the clothes for the doll class I am taking this weekend - what a struggle it was to complete these. I am pretty happy with the way they turned out - pants, shirt, vest and cape with hood. I crazy quilted the cape and used the fancy stitches on my machine on some of the seams. It looks ALOT better in person than in the photos. I still have to make the boots and the arm guards. My friend has some fabric for me to check out for boots, so I will wait on that - otherwise I have a leather jacket I am dying to cut up and will use that if not her fabric. Hope to have the doll done by Sunday evening, so maybe I can post it then.

statues & headstones

You know I love my headstones & statues in the cemetery - these are some pictures I took when in Kentucky at MMM- we had a day off; and on the way home from shopping - the gps, we had, took out of town the back way and we found this OLD place - from the civil war time.... It was a beautiful warm bright and sunny day - check out the years on these headstones.

the tree,,,,

My friend and neighbor moved last weekend. It is so sad that she is gone. She is not even a mile away, but we have lived across the hall from each other for 8 years. I miss her so much. She has a new position at work that takes allot of her time, so for the last 6 months or so, we have not seen each other as much - but we were always there for each other. Evening card games, word games or a good competitive game of backgammon was always a good time. We planted flowers and herbs together every spring. She had house plants that she took out each spring and they stayed out until fall. When the came back into the house it was a cozy "earthy" wonderful place to be. Her prized possession - a gorgeous ficus tree was not able to go with her. Yesterday she gave it to me. It had to have grown a foot out and up this summer and we moved it into my place. I have photos of this beautiful tree. Even if she is not across the hall anymore - I still have her spirit here with me. This is an old apartment building from the 1920's and the ceilings are pretty high. It is about 10"-12" from the ceiling. I also have a photo of my little Nellie. She is a puppy mill rescue and is 6 years old. In March it will be 2 years since I adopted her. She has really come a long way - too cute for words.

Lastly - I am taking a Barbara Schoenoff class later this month. I will be making her Finn pattern. It is an elf-like person with beaded joints - a new technique for me to learn. I am working oh his cape. It is a patchwork of all the fabrics I am using for his other clothes. I think it is going to be really neat when it is done. I couldn't find the perfect fabric for the cape - so I mixed them all together - looks warm and cozy too. I will have him posted around month end - he is ALLOT of work so far - and we have not even gone to class yet!