My Miniature World…

February 25th, 2010

Firstly, I wanted to say a Big Welcome to all of my new followers, you know who you are… each and everyone of you are very welcome here… please pull up a chair and stay a while…



My “Miniature World” is just perfect… unlike my ‘real’ one which has been challenging to say the least these past few weeks… anyway, I’m happy to say I have finally completed another doll and as promised I have a couple of pictures of her for you to see…



She’s an Edwardian lady, her blouse is made using vintage lace, it was a most beautiful piece of over 100 years old… so pretty and I sure wish I had more.
The feathers in her hat were hand dyed and getting the exact shade I wanted just-so was a little tricky… but all-in-all she was lots of fun to make.

My next project is a courting couple, please keep watching this space as I will release them for sale soon.


Lisa x


“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow”
~ Audrey Hepburn ~

Posted in Dolls, Things I've Made | 12 Comments »

Love is in The Air…

February 15th, 2010

Its been a long while since I shared with you dolls
which I’ve been working on.
My latest piece is another repeat order of a Regency lady, based loosely on Jane Austen’s Emma.

“Emma” is a true romance and if you love the soppy stuff, charged with wit and folly, you will love this movie too. More importantly its true to the novel with a few twists added for pleasure.

I had a lot of fun creating my Emma, I hope her new owner enjoys her as much.
My next project is an Edwardian lady, she is coming along nicely and I will post pictures as soon as she is finished.

Lisa x

“Love is for fools wise enough to take a chance”

~ Anonymous ~

Posted in Dolls, Things I've Made | 10 Comments »

Dear Valentine…

February 13th, 2010

heart





there is a love




a special love




that is for you alone




there is a place deep in my heart




that only you can own




I will always love you




forget you never




the love of my life




forever




&




ever






…With love to Mr J-R…

Lisa x

“A heart that loves is always young”

~Anon~

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February 12th, 2010

Count Alexander von Beregshasy...

Count Alexander von Beregshasy...

I’ve had some very sad news today, one of my dear friends passed away.

We first became acquainted through my work when he purchased a Georgian doll from me. Being such a passionate follower of 18th-century France, he knew instantly my inspiration for her came from the movie Dangerous Liasons. More recently, Count Alexander commissioned Sleeping Beauty dressed in a Madam-de-Pompadour costume… and I adored working on this creation for him.

Over the years our working relationship blossomed into one of deep friendship… I feel so very saddened by his passing… I shall miss our conversations for Count Alexander had such a passion for costume, which he expressed through every aspect of his own careful personal appearance. Dressing in early 19th century fashion himself he was every inch a charming gentleman from the ‘Old World’ and a ‘Time Gone By’… I shall miss him and his sweet kind heart…

In memory of Count Alexander von Beregshasy who ascended into the light to dance with the Angels on Sunday 7th February 2010.

Rest in peace my dear friend.

“Your presence we miss
Your memory we treasure,
Loving you always
Forgetting you never.”

~ Author Unknown ~

http://www.countalexander.com/thecount.shtml

Lisa x

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In Life We Must Be Who We Are………

February 9th, 2010

…… and not what we think others want us to be!

I like to think I express myself through my art, whether that be through my dolls or my paintings. However, like most artists, I suffer from the “Artists Curse” where by, I’m rarely satisfied with any new piece.

Rose… Acrylics on Canvas (24×30")...
Rose… Acrylics on Canvas 24×30″…

You may remember my rose painting, above, which I began before Christmas? Well, this is a prime example… I wasn’t terribly pleased with it and thus its spent the past few months sitting in my parents house behind Dad’s easel. However, today when I visited my Mum and Dad, I saw it had been positioned up on the wall in their kitchen and I have to admit to thinking it looked rather very nice!

Kitchen Wall

My painting in Situ on My Parents Wall in their Kitchen…

It made me smile and I thought perhaps you may like to see my new piece which is obviously a ‘work-in-progress’…

Work in Progress... Lily… Acrylics on Canvas (24×30")
Work in Progress… Lily… Acrylics on Canvas 24×30″…

And now for a true work of art… this is my Dad’s creation, he too suffers from the “Artist’s Curse” and he is not happy with this piece either… me, I think its absolutely wonderful!

Poppy Field
Poppy Field… Oils on Canvas…

Something which makes Dad’s painting all the more incredible is that it came out of his head from his memories of Provence and a time when Mum was well.

“You are not discovering yourself, but creating anew.
Seek, therefore, not to find out who you are, seek to
determine who you want to be.”
- Anon -

Lisa x

Posted in Our Family, Things I've Made | 3 Comments »

Spring Clean…

February 2nd, 2010

Well, its not exactly Spring as such… but I have been cleaning… greenware cleaning that is…

I’ve spent the past four weeks pouring, casting and ‘cleaning’ of what is known as greenware… I thought perhaps you may like to see what I’ve been up to.

Firstly, you have to ‘cast’ by pouring liquid porcelain ‘slip’ in to a mold…

A Simple Two Pour Hole Mold...

A Simple Two Pour Hole Mold...

In more complex molds, pour holes can be extremely small and generally molds tend to have more than just one or two pour holes as often they have more body pieces to them. This can really make pouring a little tricky and somewhat of a challenge to do correctly, its been known for the slip walls to collapse for example and only partial pieces to be poured within the mold.

Once poured we then have to ‘cast’ from the mold, but there is no set time to do this as it varies considerably from day to day and mold to mold… it can be anywhere from 20 minutes to over an 1 hour.

Greenware Pieces Cast From A Mold...

Greenware Pieces Cast From A Mold...

I prefer to use the old fashioned method of cleaning greenware, known as ‘wet cleaning’ personally I find I get much better results this way. However, it does mean a mask should be worn as the dust is dangerous and has been found to cause serious health problems.

Taking Away Seam Lines...

Taking Away Seam Lines...

Using a finger tool I remove all seam lines working my way through each piece. Then, I put the body pieces onto kitchen roll into a plastic container which I cover with cling film to keep moist and set aside.

To achieve the results I want means laboriously and painstaking cleaning each piece using a fine brush, which has been dipped in distilled water… taking care not to use too much water otherwise the piece will simply disintegrate, literally!
I repeat this method over and over again.

When cleaning a pair of hands for example, it takes me a minimum of two and a half hours. However, if I want to manipulate the hands so that the doll can hold something for example, it takes at least twice that length of time…!

Only when I am entirely happy do I move on to another piece, when the ‘cleaning’ progress begins again.

Almost Finished...

Almost Finished...

The final stage for me, is polishing the pieces. Using a piece of soft fabric and also my finger, I carefully rub over every piece, taking care as the greenware is still very delicate and it can break and snap easily, which at this point is very frustrating. I continue to polish until the pieces have a subtle shine. Then, the greenware is placed into my kiln and fired to over 1200ºc, this is at the point when ‘vitrification’ occurs and this is when the greenware becomes porcelain.

Fired Porcealian Pieces In My Kiln...

Fired Porcealian Pieces In My Kiln...

Once removed from the kiln the fun part starts and this is when I breathe life in to my dolls, by beginning my painting process.

“Each day comes bearing it’s own gifts… untie the ribbon.”
By Anon.

Lisa x

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