TAODA.gallery show....

I had two special guest who came to see me, my two beauties Kinsley and her mom,my daughter, Chencha. Kinsley was so good, she even flirted a bit with Neva's husband, but mostly she amused herself with one of her toys. Kinsley loves to taste everything, Much to her mom's dislike, so everything that looks good must taste good, right? ahahaha!!!This is my most favorite age!!!


The Ladies of TOADA,
L-R standing Gwen Ross, Joyce Patterson, Wilmer LaBome,Marsha Krohn, Beth Akin,Karyn Jewel,Annette Foley, and me (Yes I know, Chunky monkey)
L-R seated Donna Simms, Neva Waldt,Pepper Hulme, Janet Bodin, and Annette Money


Well It was very Texas, that's for darn sure!! The heat was very HOT? hehehe
Honestly I think I melted a bit, but I had loads of fun!!!Sure wish all this extra weight had melted off too!!!
I got to meet Marsha Krohn and her sweet mom, who reminded me of my mom!
So many beautiful creations by so many talented women, if y'all get a chance, go by Somerville and do stop in ART C's Gallery,the wonderful and gorgeous hostesses, Cathy and Cheryl, I hope I got those names right, are the nicest ladies around.

There were too many beautiful art dolls, I have to say my most favorite was done by Neva Waldt of Art Dolls by Neva
This one is called " Harry was always a leg man " Harry is the puppeteer and he is holding on to string that are attached by magnets to the the jointed legs, everything Neva does is so clean and precise, just perfect!!!



This is called " All Dressed up and no place to go" again another wonderful piece!!!


Gwen made this sweet one and 2 other creations, she really does great dioramas with her dolls, my very favorite one of hers was a very large detailed piece with two musicians and a conductor,I wasn't sure if I could show it here, but it is spectacular, each instrument was so detailed ,I know I use that word a lot, but it's so true, the details do make a big difference,from the expressions on her face to the positioning of the bodies


Janet's of " Expressive Figures of Janet Bodin" , pieces are always so sweet and gentle with little elves or sprites,
this tree's bark ,she said was made of dryer sheets!!! which she has painted and
made to mimic the look of tree bark...!!!The little characters have caps made from acorns, too cute!!


Marsha's of "Shreds and Tatters" art is all elegance and so exquisite!!! I could look at her art all day long and never tire of it!!!Her beautiful art reminds me a bit of the art made by Marlaine Verhelst and Ankie Daanen


Pepper Hulme of " Dollworx " shown with two of her entries,this lovely art doll is dressed in beautiful lace and I looked but never found out how she was attached to the base, it's as if she floats on air, I wonder if she'll share?

Annette Money of " Just 3 more stitches---" stands next to her adorably whimsical creations , I love the colors she chose!!!



Joyce Patterson of " Fabric Images by Joyce",is from my hometown or just a hop, skip and a jump away from where I grew up!!!!!small world, such a lovely lady, she was getting ready to go to another show out of state, My dd loved these, full of fun and whimsy!!! I kinda favored the pirate!!!


Wilmer La Bome, with one of her entries, a patchwork angel, very fluid
and sweet!!She must have been the only one of us who didn't melt!!!Well her and Gwen!!!


One of my favorite artist is Donna Simms of " Donnas Art World ", she has to be one of the sweetest ladies on the group!!! I adore her art dolls and so did everyone who came by!!!


This is the little guy that made such a big hit, Donna was very generous with tips on how he was made!!!I think it's so funny how she said she does all her dolls differently, mostly because she can't remember the exact steps from the previous !!! I can so relate!!!


Annette Foley is another artist who made 2 sweet little girl dolls and a clown, the top one is hers,called Eleanor at 5,too adorable!!!She said one of the funniest lines I have ever heard, something about a " Slippery Slope" leading to "and pretty soon we're all crack whores" in referrance to once we start missing group meeting,I thought I was going to die laughing!!!All good fun and so funny,you had to be there to appreciate it!!!!?

The art below , next to Annette, is one of Angela Jericki's gorgeous entries, her dolls have beautiful fluid lines, a must see!!

Karyn Jewel is near my neck of the woods too, Lake Jackson!!!!She's a very quiet and sweet lady,who's dolls are full of whimsical fun, these two are mixed-media,I like Lola the one on the right,the colors she chose are like her, jewel-like!


And last but definitely not least is Beth Akin, next to one of her creations,a dimensional cross stitch entry, with it's bright brilliant coloring!!!


Here I am, isn't it strange how we don't always look the way we think we do? I gotta
start exercising, starting tomorrow.....


One last picture of all of us at lunch,


The Margarita's with Patrone were excellent!!!

Blessings,
Flora

Blogger problem?....

I have been experiencing problems with my blog, I keep getting bumped off, I was sure I had fixed that problem when I put my followers widget lower on my page!!
I've also had problems with SOME of my friends blogs too, and now mine is acting up a lot again!!!I usually just click right back on on the back button of my browser and I'm good to go, Is anyone having the same problem? It really is annoying!!

I wanted to show y'all more pic's of my " From The Sea " doll so that y'all can get
a good look at what she looks like,but couldn't and now she's at the gallery!!
I didn't get the ones with her and the fins all I have are the ones prior to me adding them to it.?? OH!! Bother!!!! Here are some pic's of her before the fins.

She really is a sweetie,


I love her little belly with it's freckles



along with her cute tiny hinie!!!!!!


This is the start of the seahorse mask.






Premier clay is so good for details and I love being able to make it do what
I want it to do, with a bit of water on hand, works like a charm! I have given her
alpaca hair eyelashes and her eyes have wells in the center that were painted then filled with a dimensional medium for depth. Mica powders give her a subtle blush throughout. her lips have an extra bit of glossy varnish for a wet look.


blessings,Flora

From the Sea....

Just a small peek at what's been keeping me quite busy these days, among other stuff...



This is the doll I was inspired to make after doing Octoboy for Zan Asha's "Under the Sea" swap, I was going to make her, but decided to keep her for the gallery art show that I will be in this Sat.at Art C's Gallery this is my first show ever!!!
I'm very excited nervous and busy, these days I hit the floor running and don't stop till the wee hrs. of the morning, I know I'm being silly but when you've never done this before it really gets your heart pounding just thinking about it and it is!!
I also had some little cone dolls accepted for TAODA & Hands on Houston at HCCC
art project:


the simple design is my own but the sweet little faces are stamped on, as we needed something quick, in hindsight I could have just as easily drawn something myself but
I'm such an airhead, sometimes it's a wonder that I can even chew gum and walk at the same time??
I have more good news ,I have been incontact with "Cloth,Paper,Scissors" magazine, Many thanks to my wonderful friend Cheryl Prater of " Praterposte"
I could possibly have a publication of one of my older dolls, more later.

Her befores aren't very many because I was so busy but I managed to get something.
foamcore base

clay body finished

didn't like the "too cute " face, so off with her head...er eyes...


I think I need to have Alice's white rabbit's saying on my forehead!!!
" I'm late / I'm late / For a very important date. / No time to say "Hello." / Goodbye. / I'm late, I'm late, I'm late.
Disclaimer ,the publisher takes no responsibility for the many typos I'm sure y'all will find here...

Blessings,Flora

Say hello to...

"Friends"

A witch and her tiny black cat....
there's no better friends than that!!!
And I think you'll agree when you see,
their sweet little faces
all filled up with glee!!!

Looks like Wumble witch and her cat Shadow made it after all!!!One of a few trinkets for the STJ update this June 13th. We hope to see you there too, cause it won't be the same without you! You're the life of the party, the cream of the crop!!So do come on over to shop till you drop!!!!
Blessings,Flora

Nosey.. .

Thought y'all would like to see shadow being nosey



Funny how something so little could be such a pain in my behind!!!
Blessings,Flora

They're baaaack......

Ok, it's just one Wumble, a little witch and her cat....



only I'm not sure if they'll be ready for the STJ update,
but I'm trying!!!more later....
Blessings,Flora

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!...

Guess who's an Ehag member?..MEEEEEEEEEEEEE, that's who!!!! hehehe!!!


I'm Doubly Blessed and ALWAYS A LUCKY DUCKY,I think so anyway!!!

Blessing,Flora

Ciao Baby,

....to another Wumbles Imp , who is on his way to Italy!!!


This piece was commisioned by my sweet friend,Laura @ Creasioni Artiganali
She has a birthday that my imp needs to arrive on time for, so I hope he makes it
there for the party, Many Thanks Laura!!!!
Now I have to get back to work or I'll be late for a very important date!!! AHHH!!!
So much to do so little time!!
blessings,
Flora

I'm a lucky girl!!

Because of this!!!



Isn't she beautiful!!!My swap partner was Kristen Beason of Kristen Beason Designs
and I'm so glad Zan Asha of Wild at Heart Art paired me with her for the Under The Sea Swap,!!!I can't say enough great things about her!!! Thanks a bunch Kristen,
I do love my Mermaid!!!

Blessings,Flora

OCTOBOY ...

....is here

The doodle

A beginning

Are we there yet?

Almost!

A change of plans

A little more color

Hello little guy!!









I wasn't sure of what I was going to do for the doll swap that Zan Asha,
of "Wild At Heart Art", was hosting,actually it was my friend Cheryl Prater of "Praterposte" that told me about it. I signed up without a clue, but started sketching and researching undersea creatures immediately,although I didn't know exactly what I wanted to make, I did know I didn't want to make a mermaid!!! After a few sketches and doodles I came up with a little anthropomorphic creature that I call " Octoboy ". I had originally wanted only his little hands the way I drew him , but because of the nature of the clay I knew it would or could break, so I changed his fingers and added the fish.
My swap partner is the wonderfully talented Kristen Beason of Kristen Beason Designs She emailed me today and said that she had recieved her package today!!!YAY!!!
she seemed genuinely happy with my "Octoboy". He is a freestanding handmade,puresculpt of airdry clay from my own design with a foam core base.
The collar is seambinding that I handdyed myself, he has green mica through out
and red mica blushing to his face and hands,I sealed him with a spray matt acrylic.
Well I'm off to do more dollies, no rest for the wicked, weary or sleep deprived...
Blessings,Flora


.

Some of my favorite things....

Brown paper packages tied up with strings....



ok, so it ain't brown or tied up with string...but don't ya think it's sweet?
I'm getting these ready to be sent off tomorrow.
My friend Marie of Marie Patterson Studio gave me the idea for the little goodie packaging, of course hers looks fabulous!!!I always have a hard time trying to figuring out what to "gift" buyers and since I never really do "gift" the same thing twice, it got to be very time consuming and I always wound up with a headache...so I think this "BoneHead/SkellyPop" idea was not too shabby. I think I like it more each time I see it, what do y'all think?
A while back, I joined Miss Zan Asha of " Wild At Heart Art" "Under The Sea" swap and was really anxious to get my swap done, I had so many ideas but I finally settled on one, he was so much fun to do and he definitely had that flow factor going for him. I was able to finish him early so he's going out tomorrow too, I can't wait to show y'all what he looks like!! As soon as my swap partner gets him I'll show ya!!!

Blessings,Flora

A journey we all.....

must make...That old saying "Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts. And we are never, ever the same." The latter part of the poem was never so true as when we met "Mrs. Dorothy"
or "Dot" as she liked to be called, she came into our lives almost 4-1/2 years ago. But I felt uncomfortable calling her anything but "Mrs. Dorothy",she was a sprite 96 yr. old fraile looking little woman of German descent,who could run circles around me...(who am I kidding everyone can do that!!)...She tended her vegetable gardens, yard, home and all she met with much love and joy, of course she had family who was very devoted to her too. I marveled at how she could live all by herself and be so efficient,but she somehow managed it and still there was always time to sit and talk and oh could she talk, so many tales !!! She lived next door to my husbands business, on neatly kept property with beautiful old pecan and oak trees all about.
Every weekend my son and husband would go see " Mrs. Dorothy " and mow her yard and help gather all the fallen wood debris on her property and other odd jobs that needed tending, then they would come home triumphantly, showing me their hard earned prize of snickerdoodles or some other cookies, that Mrs. Dorothy had so thoughtfully baked for them,mostly for my son Walker,and he would remind anyone that came close to them!
Our dear Mrs. Dorothy, had been fighting a battle that she had previously won
or so we thought...
We went to see her for what would be the last time at a hospice,we wanted her to be well but in our hearts we knew it couldn't be. My husband and me, didn't know whether to let our 14 yr. old son go ,in the end we let him make the decision.
He wanted to go and although it was hard to watch my son as he cried,we knew he had to say his goodbyes to her." Mrs. Dorothy " seemed so happy to see him and was alert enough to hug him and call him "My Walker" one last time....Our sweet "Mrs. Dorothy" is finally at rest and our lives will never be the same....
cancer is such an ugly thing.
Blessings,Flora

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY !!!!!

My wonderful son Walker and dear husband Bill gave me these beautiful roses for my Mother's Day!!! They smell heavenly!!!

He was so proud!!!I miss my little boy, but love my handsome youngman....and his father too...Here's hoping everyone has a beautiful and Blessed Mother's Day too!!!

And did I tell y'all...


That I went to my TAODA meeting today and met Angela Jarecki!!!!
what a wonderfully talented and kind person she is!!! I drooled over her delicate
and very beautiful creations!!!Of course there were other equally talented ladies there too, all came with a wonderful creation of their own too!!Look for yourselves!!
Two of my favorite people
The lovely Janet Bodin and her gorgeous cloth doll, she made the clothing using the "free motion" sewing technique over yarn, all sewn on a medium that dissolves when wet? So that all she is left with is the sewn fabric!Janet was also being featured in a popular publication "Soft Dolls"


Sweet Neva Waldt was asked to be featured in Art Doll Quarterly !!!As soon as I get my information straight I'll put in here, she told us but "Al" is working overtime lately and I can't remember!!!!!! Here she is showing with a calendar of the beautiful art of a russian artist which I can't even begin to pronounce let alone write!?!!???

Beth Akin is such a gentle funny lady, she made bread dough people and is calling them "The Bushes" as in bush people of Africa? They look like fun, I think I'll try it myself!!!

I met Joan Pratt for the first time and she showed a wonderful clay and polymer doll
with an linen dress made from her grandmother's beautiful blue antique handkerchief.
she is called "Always a Bridesmaid, No More"...she caught the bouquet!

Next is the always smiling Miss Annie Foley, I met her for the first time too, with her cute " Virgin Mary @ 14" with a latin inscription
of a Catholic prayer

Cute Gwen Ross here , makes lovely art dolls and very detailed music instruments!!!
And she's a teacher too, It shows when she does her "show and tell"
about her doll and paper dolls as well as her tips for taking great photos!!


Pretty Mary Wiggins and her " Collette "and the only person who's name slipped my mind, I cannot for the life of me remember, ....I'm so sorry!!! these two kind ladies went to a " Dutch Touch"
workshop with the fabulous Ankie Daanen and Merlaine Verhelst , they have very distinctive features and anyone who knows their work can recognize them anywhere!!!
the each hold their prize possesions with the dutch touch!!!The fabrics are so rich and luxurious!



I had a great time and didn't want to leave!!! I'm sure I missed something important but time waits for no one so off to bed I go!! Happy mothers day All!!!

Halloween is everywhere !!...

Well at least here anyway...Here are my doll bust all together, each with it's own little personality shining thru.



"Halloween is Everywhere"

As darkness falls,
the moon glows eerily.
A brisk wind blows,
and leaves dance lightly.
The Jack-o-Lanterns smile,
as witches fly nightly.
Trick or Treats here and there
children laugh excitedly.
Halloween is everywhere
can't you feel it in the air?

by Flora Thompson.
Only the dark haired one isn't on my update as y'all know she is a doorprize at SpookyTimeJingles. I'm pretty happy with the way they all came out.
Make sure to be at our newest update at SpookytimeJingles and please don't be late, for the sights and delights that you will find, will make you want to keep us in mind!!!
See ya there!!!
Blessings,
Flora

Just bee-cause...

I had such fun creating the first one I thought I'd do one more!!!!




“ Dark Princess ”

I am the Dark Princess
I wear this crown and lovely dress!
I reign supreme of all that is seen,
And second to none....except maybe
the Queen!

by Flora Thompson

Her colors remind me of a bumble-bee!!
She is for my SpookyTimeJingles update. The poem is one of my old ones with a few words changed.I made her with a fuller collar and I added a glossy medium to her eyes nose and mouth,for a wet look.
Blessings,
Flora