Hello all,
This blog starts with an admission and an apology to anyone waiting for the next in my BJD series of blog post.
I haven’t got any further!
I thought it best to just straight up own up!
Sorry.
Time has gotten away with me lately. I have never been very good at keeping to a timetable, when it is to do things for me as opposed to doing things in a job situation. I was actually very good at that, most of the time. And kept to my daily tasks and to-do list well. Now that I work full time as an artist I don’t have that boss looking over every aspect and I flit from job to job as urges take me. Much more fun, if not a triffle messy.
Bad Timekeeping and bright shiny new projects
Air-dry clay is especially hard for me to keep to a timetable for. During the drying out time what do you do? It could be days! So, I go and start a new project, or pick up a half finished one. Then in 2 days’ time when I could go back to the first project, I am fully captivated by some other doll and don’t think about my first project again for weeks sometimes. I have so many dolls around here that are only half finished. It’s ok they will all be finished one day, and there is no-rush in my mind.
This doesn’t help with this blog series though does it? The legs are no further along than last time and instead I have been playing with polymer clay and a new cloth body shape.
I shouldn’t have committed to a post each week. This in itself, is enough to start my brain going naw don’t want to do it. But blogging is something I enjoy doing, I like to write. It’s not the writing bit that is a problem it’s the needing to have some progress on a particular project to tell you about. Often, and yes, this week, I have no progress to tell you about. I have been busy but I have been doing other things. Consequently, I am changing my commitment. I will still try to write each week, but I shall just tell you what I have been up to. This will be much easier for me to commit to as each week I will have definitely done something doll related, less when I am on holiday as you would expect but even then I do have little projects that I take with me.
So what have I done this week?
Shop in the Square
The shop that I have stock in is getting ready to open up again on 29th June. We are all really excited and looking forward to this, and Sunday I spent getting my shelves ready for social distancing. We also have a website for people who cant get to the physical shop and all the usual social media accounts. www.shopinthesquare.co.uk
Leg problems
I had a doll I was working on with legs I decided I didn’t like. They were from my old mini-Bee pattern which was just one piece and with no knee joint and consequently no bend. So I cut them in half at the knees. This week she has had her severed legs sewn back together and they look ok and are now able to bend. I am half happy but they are a little messy, and obviously she will never walk again. Something I do like though is the red wool wig with the very curly hair I made her. I also spent an hour hand sewing her a polo neck which she then said she didn’t want and made her a ruff instead.
I have a blog post on how to make this curly hair here if you want to have a read and give it a go yourself.
update:
sorry the blog seems to have vanished. The photos weren’t all that good anyway so I will put it on my to do list and re make it, next time I make a curly wig. Give me a shout out if you want it sooner.
Alice’s playing card men
Oh and I am making two very sweet little chaps who will be the playing cards from Alice in Wonderland. I designed the cards, 3 of hearts and the 4 of hearts, and got my special material that goes though the printer ready and printed off the first one. It came out blank which was a bit confusing, until I realised that the colour cartridge had run out. Neither the printer nor the computer had thought to tell me.
So those dolls went on hold as I ordered and waited for delivery of new ink. But I do have the fabric cards printed out ready for the next stage now, which might happen this afternoon.
And my mind has wondered into crochet for some strange reason. I may design some tiny crochet collars (Peter Pan style) for my new range of teddies with faces.
Next week to help me, I will make a note of what I do each day. This will be good for me too. I so often feel I have been very busy, but then can’t think of what I have actually done with my time. Seems like this might be a good exercise for me too in realising and remembering what I get up to. That’s a nice added bonus.
Well thank you for reading and be assured I will get back to the ball jointed doll. And when I do I will use the tag BDJ for those blog posts that contain information about it so you can easily track them down.
‘till next week
Ally x