Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Niada Dolls

A few more ghosties going to Niada this week!
Little Lizzie, left out in the cold, living on grubworms, crawly bugs, and green mold! 12 1/2"

Peter, out for a stroll one dark night, later passed away from a werewolf bite seven and 1/2"

 Timothy van Helsing, met his demise when hunting for vampires, one took him by surprise 11 1/2"
Wilamina Glick an unfortunate passenger on the Titannic 8"

Niada Conference

I've been madly creating pieces to take to the Niada conference and sale this week. If your in San Francisco please come and see all the wonderful artists and their work and say hi. It's a great chance to see the dolls up close, attend informative doll related programs and visit with your favorite artist!




The show and sale is saturday June 29th 2013 11:00am-4:00pm At the Marin Art & garden Center- Livermore Pavillion, Ross Ca. For more info www.niada.org


Elsbeth and her new Nanny

Ghostie Group photo

Identity of Desgin

I've been absent for sometime from my blog. Life and responsibilites have set up camp outside my door. But things are finally calming down to where I can hopefully get back to creating and posting!
If you follow me on facebook then you've probably read my post about the person that copied the look of my dolls then had the gall to send it into a magazine as her own look,.I'm not going to harp on this as I normally like to keep my posts fun and informative.But I'll say this, I am happy when my work inspires someone to want to create, but hopefully they will have the ethics not to copy and have the desire to create there own style. It takes practice and time to find your own look. It's a small world and the artists in it know who created what. When someone can look at  a doll, or painting etc, and just"know" who created it without seeing the name, thats called "Identity of design". We are all inspired by the work of others, thats what makes us grow and contribute to the next generation of artists. Search for your own look and be a leader not a copier!
The magazine has apoligized for publishing the copier, saying they trust that the artists that send in work to be published are ethical, that they will give credit where credit is do. I am told there will be forth coming articles on Identity of design and copyright, I am happy to say!
There... thats all I will say about that! 

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Alice Endless wanderer in wonderland

Alice is up in my Etsy shop, but I can't seem to post photos or anything on my blog anymore ARRRGG!
It says my browser is no longer supported. Can anyone tell me what to do??

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Alice WIP

Ms "P", Princess We-We and a new tiny Vampire Alice baby sit a new Ghostie head in the studio.
I was cleaning up one of my many stacks of books and inspiration photos, when I ran across the Alice book from Tim Burtons movie. Of course, instant inspiration!!
I know Alice has been done a zillion times but I never get tired of her!! Here, her blind-eyed and unpainted head waits for the colors that will soon make her come Alive!! Always my favorite part, to see the a character come alive right in front of you...lets hope she still wants to be Alice after she gets her paint...they all have a mind of their own!
Eternally yours,
Gail and the Ghostie Gang

Saturday, March 24, 2012

A Sneek Peek!

Just finished a new group of tiny terrors that I will be listing in my etsy shop this evening between 5 and 6 oclock MST. I was hoping to have these done a couple of weeks ago, but lifes unexpected adventures and a bout with the stomache flu slowed me down a bit. Like Roseane Roseanna Danna said "Theres always something"!!
These tiny ones are a nice break from the larger ghosties. I've been feeling the fairys whisper in my ear though, so who knows maybe the next one will have wings. It's been a while since I've done a fairy.
I've been behind in posting info on my blog, any many of you have asked questions about how to get started  creating dolls, and I've promised to post some info about that.
I mostly work in Polymer clay, but occassionally used the japanese stone clay LaDoll.
 I started with Super Sculpy and it has been my clay of choice for over twenty years. I mix it with preemo to get the color and consistancy that I like. There are many brands of polymer clay on the market.Each brand is a bit different, some being softer to blend and some much harder. My suggestion is to experiment with some of the small blocks of clay of each to find the one that works best for you.I've tried them all and always find myself going back to Super Sculpy.
You can find it on line and on ebay if you don't have a craft store near you. I buy in bulk from Creative wholesale.com, but there are many online sources. If you are planning on working a lot in polymer clay a pasta machine is a must!!
I see alot of artists in their descriptions of their work talk about baking at the manufacturers recommended temp, But something I concider of MOST importance is "conditioning" the clay. This refers to, Pinching, Pulling,Squishing, and Kneading the clay like you would bread dough. This ensures that the polymers are properly blending consistantly through out the clay. It will make your clay stronger and is essential for good strong clay. Just imagine making a cake, and not properly blending the ingredients, same thing for your clay.To get an idea if your blending enough take a small amount of white clay and add a piece of colored clay to it, now blend untill you have a smooth consistant color without streaks. This blending should be done the same way with the flesh colored clay, even if you are not adding a color. Proper blending is a must,(no matter which brand of clay) and thats where the pasta machine comes in. I run my clay through the machine over and over then work it with my hands, then run it through again and repeat the process. It is time consuming and  the most boring thing about creating, but you will be rewarded with a must stronger doll and a nicer look in the end. A doll must not only look appealing but strength in the construction it is a must for your work to last through time!!
I'll write more tips later as promised. I hope this information helps in your doll creating!
Dark Blessings,
Gail

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Three Miniature Ghosties in my Etsy Shop!

Just listed 3 new ghosties in my Etsy shop!
 Two little Girls and the first ever tiny boy...Little Fred and his Zombie Bear Ted. They each come with their own "Our Darling" headstone
 I haven't been able to work as much as I'd like in the studio, the Ghostly Goblins and Goulies have been holding me prisoner down in the crypt, but occassionaly I've been able to sneek away unnoticed when they focus their attention on things more important to them, like a feverish game of tiddlewinks or racing potatoe bugs!
In the meantime these little ghosties are the only things I've been able to get done.
If you'd like to take a peek, heres the link!
http://www.etsy.com/listing/92007336/ooak-ghost-gothic-miniature-halloween
Dark Blessings, Gail