Work In Progress - Dolls In Bits

It's been quite a productive week for me. So I thought I'd share some photos that I took last weekend while I was putting my 6 new dolls together.

After sculpting, endless sanding, paint and varnish there were 6 bodies and heads, 48 lag bits, and 48 arm bits laying on my table waiting to be strung into dolls.

I spent a very nice lazy Sunday with a real of vintage thread on a wooden spool, that was given to me by my grandmother, stringing these poor bald things together. Hoping they'll become the dolls I see in my head.
From Left to Right we have Rose La Touche, Mary Shelley, Elizabeth Armistead, Christina Rossetti, Katherine Walters, and Lizzie Siddal.
I tend to have spurts when I want to sculpt, so try and make a few dolls at a time to use up that creating burst. Once I have them strung together I dress them one by one, including all the details I want to finish them off.

I've spent this week giving them all some hair, so they all look a little less alien now. Sitting together on my bookshelf wearing only their painted stockings. I've had some trouble with getting the right colour of feathers for poor Katherine, so unfortunately she's still bald until the new order arrives. Why anyone would think that sage green was a good substitute for a medium brown I really don't know.

I always love the soft texture that the LIQUITEX MATTE VARNISH  I use gives to their skin. It's such a nice soft velvety looking colour, and very different from what the colour was before I put it on. Before, the paint was a darker shade, with a shiny finish to it. And I'm always really worried that it won't come out as I want. But I have to give it credit, this stuff always does as I want it too. The glossy touches to their eyes and lips I added last and left dry for 24hrs.

I'm going to spend this weekend sorting them out with bloomers, if they would have worn any, shifts, under petticoats and corsets. I'll take some more photos when they're a little more respectable.

Hope you have a great weekend.