Dollmaker’s Journey
CUSTOMER CONNECTION
November 2006 Issue 61
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Dollmaker’s Journey CUSTOMER CONNECTION
Dream ~ Imagine ~ Create ~ Grow ~ Believe ~ Magic
at http://dollmakersjourney.com we help your creative dreams come true.

November 2006 Issue 61

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Copyright 2006 by Dollmaker’s Journey

Dollmaker’s Journey Customer Connection newsletter is a free e-mail newsletter. Tell your friends, family and fellow dollmakers about us, and feel free to forward this newsletter to those who might be interested. You can visit our companion website at:
http://www.dollmakersjourney.com/

**Notice!**
You can read all the past issues online. Go to:
http://dollmakersjourney.com/newsletter/archives.html
The archives include an easy to follow index to all the past issues.

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Dear Dollmaker Friends,

As the holidays approach it is time to renew ties with family and friends. One of our traditions is getting family members together for wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas feasts. Bonnie just completed collecting recipes from everyone in her extended family (there were almost 1,000 different recipes) and created a family cookbook. She is including a CD-ROM with all the recipes and pictures so her brother and sisters can print more copies for their own children. She printed them on 8-1/2” x 5-1/2” paper, created cardstock dividers with cute drawings of rag dolls on them, and put everything in an 8-1/2” x 5-1/2” looseleaf notebook (so more pages can be added by the recipient.) She used the Verdana type font (size 7.5) which is very small but very readable. This enabled her to get many recipes on a single double-sided page. Her idea was to collect all the recipes her family loves and uses in ONE BOOK, so she won’t have to search through lots of different cookbooks and recipe card files for a certain recipe. Of course, the largest categories were breads and desserts. I guess this tells you what type of food the Lewis family enjoys! We just wanted to share this idea for a unique gift that can be personalized to fit your own family.

Mary Ann and Bonnie

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NOVEMBER SALE

We’re kicking off our November Sale with 20% off everything in the CHRISTMAS and ANGEL categories. Check out our newest Christmas patterns below. http://dollmakersjourney.com

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FUN CHRISTMAS TREES TO MAKE

One is made from rags, and the other from net. These trees were popular long ago. Get together with your children and make a memory.
http://www.wwvisions.com/craftbb/santa/10992.html
https://extension.usu.edu/files/tipsofweek/RagXmasTree.pdf

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NEW DESIGNERS
We are so happy to welcome SARA MADDOCKS from the United Kingdom to our Dollmakers’ Journey family of designers. We’re starting off with her very lovely and clever “Cushionella” and a great male figure “Ben the Flautist” with more terrific designs to come soon. Do stop by and take a look. http://dollmakersjourney.com/maddocks.html

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SAFETY FIRST
By Bonnie B. Lewis

A customer wrote: I noticed that you are selling aluminum sculpting wire for dollmaking. I have been told that the aluminum wire available in hardware stores has a seriously toxic coating on it and it banned in some states. How is your product different? I hope that your wire is safe because aluminum is wonderful to use.

I did an extensive search, and discovered that the aluminum sculpting wire we carry is just that - aluminum wire. Apparently some wire sold in hardware stores has a problem, and is deemed a health hazard in California, but our soft, flexible wire is designed to be easily shaped by sculptors. Here is the safety information I found:

Health Rating: 0 - None
Flammability Rating: 1 - Slight
Reactivity Rating: 1 - Slight
Contact Rating: 0 - None
Lab Protective Equip: GOGGLES; LAB COAT

Potential Health Effects

Inhalation:
Not expected to be a health hazard.
Ingestion:
Not expected to be a health hazard.
Skin Contact:
No adverse effects expected.
Eye Contact:
No adverse effects expected.
Chronic Exposure:
No adverse effects expected.
Aggravation of Pre-existing Conditions:
No adverse health effects expected.

This wire is designed for sculptors. If you are worried, I suggest you use surgical gloves when working with it. There is a black residue that is left on your hands, easily removed with soap and water, so please wash your hands before eating. I have used it for years with no adverse effects.

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MUSINGS FROM MIMI - How to Disappear the Center Front Face Seam
By Gloria J. “Mimi” Winer

All my dolls have seam down the center of the face. You have to look hard to notice them.

To keep the seam from standing out and being the first thing the viewer sees make sure the seam allowance is perfectly straight. If there is a twist in it that will be the only thing you see, and from across the room.

Trim the seam evenly in half, down to one-eighth or slightly less. Snip and notch the innies and outies (around the forehead and under the nose and the chin). Snip off the seam allowance quite close at the tip of the tip of the nose.

Turn the head right side out and using your fingers to protect the seam use your stuffing took to GENTLY push out the seam all the way. Finger press it to make sure none of the seam is still inside.

As you stuff use your stuffing tool to keep the seam from twisting. If you notice after it is stuffed, that it has twisted, use a long darner or a doll sculpting needle to GENTLY reach under the fabric and turn the seam allowance into the correct position. It is quite doable.

After the face is colored the seam should be almost invisible. Happy dolling!

Check out her website at: mimi@mimidolls.com
See some of her patterns at: http://dollmakersjourney.com/mimi.html

DESIGNER DOINGS

We were just wowed by JULIE MC CULLOUGH on an episode of B. Original With Textiles on the DYI network. Julie demonstrated how she creates her fabulous “Muse” dolls. It was so fascinating to watch her sandwich embellishments between velvet and a top layer of netting and then sew all over it to create the fabric for the clothing. If you go to http://www.diynetwork.com/ and put Julie’s name in the search engine you can get more information about this and other programs she has done for them. Read more about Julie’s two newest patterns below. http://dollmakersjourney.com/mccullough.html

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CHALLENGES
The winners of the Treasures of the Gypsy winners are:
Grand Prize/Best in Show: Susan Justin
Judges Choices: Elise Peeples
Camille Pratt
Beth Ritter-Perry
The theme was “Dance of the Gypsy.” Photos of the winners will be available soon at http://www.quilts.com Congratulations to everyone who entered.
Next year’s challenge will be “Gypsies of the Sea”. The challenge packets will be ready to be mailed in January, and finished dolls are due in September.
To enter next years challenge, send $15 to:
Pamela Armas/Treasures of the Gypsy, PO Box 748, Mountainair, NM 87036.
You will receive a packet of fabric, trims, and trinkets to use on you Gypsy doll. You may add additional fabrics of your choice to your doll.

Home for the Holidays Bluette Challenge
Deadline: November 15, 2006
For more information go to: http://thedollnet.com/bleuette/

All Dolled Up: Beaded Art Doll Competition 2007 – Theme Celestial Reflections
Deadline: August 31, 2007
For more information go to: http://www.landofodds.com/store/alldolledup.htm

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UPCOMING EVENTS YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS

March 3-10, 2007 – 2007 Soft Doll Art Cruise
Leave Miami, Florida for a 7 day fun-filled cruise to 5 islands in the western Caribbean on Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas. Take classes from Ute Vasina, Patti Culea, Leslie Molen and Barbara Willis
Call Carl at 1-888-537-8267 or Tim at 1-800-755-1191 for more information.

April 15-21, 2007 – Creative Doll Artist’s Voyage
Leave Galveston, Texas for a 7 day fun filled cruise to Montego Bay, Jamaica, Grand Cayman Island & Cozumel, Mexico on Carnival Conquest. Take classes while you sail from Jean Bernard, Sherry Goshon, Jeff Kantrowitz and Maryanne Oldenburg. For more information email Jeff Kantroqitz at nyeggartist@si.rr.com or call (718)983-1888.

May 3-6, 2007 - Artistic Figures In Cloth
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.cyndysdolls.com/AFIC/AFIC.htm

May 10-13, 2007 – 8th Annual CDAA (Canadian Doll Artist Association)
Ottawa, Ontario
Theme: “Floral Fantasy in an Enchanted Garden”
www.dollartists.ca

May 18-20, 2007 - Flowers, Fairies and Fiber Fancies
Aurora, Ohio
Contact Joan Stephens at 330-562-9145 for more information

To save yourself time and energy, get all the details on upcoming doll related events at CLOTH DOLL CONNECTION: http://clothdollconnection.com/

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SPECIAL GIFTS FOR YOU
Make an "Angel for the New Year" using a free pattern provided by Sherry Goshon. There is a challenge also. Go to: http://clothdollpatterns.com/id75.htm for free patterns and more information.
Still don’t know how to use our felting needles? Kathy Hays is offering a free class on Needle Felted Hair at: http://www.fiberandfigures.com/hair2.html
Free pattern for Dancing Diva from Hancock Fabrics
http://www.sewing.org/enthusiast/html/ef_dancing_diva.html

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CUSTOMER QUERIES

Q: I would like to make 2 of your Averill (by Deanna Hogan - http://dollmakersjourney.com/hogan.html) dolls for my granddaughters. Is it possible to transfer a picture of THEIR faces onto the fabric?
A: Just go to any office supply store and purchase the photo to fabric paper they sell. Determine the size of the pattern face, shrink or enlarge your faces to that size, and print on the paper. You can then iron the picture onto fabric, or with some papers they have muslin already attached to paper and you print directly on the fabric. Make sure you get the correct paper for your color printer. They have different types of paper for ink jet and laser printers. You can also visit your local quilt shop, and often they have good advice on how to print pictures onto quilts, and some shops even carry the necessary supplies to accomplish this. Follow directions to heat set or seal the ink so the face will be permanent. Be aware also that sometimes this method will create a reverse photo, so be careful that letters aren't mirror image. To correct that, as you scan your photo into your computer, you can enter the command mirror image to reverse the photo.
Q: How do I put a cloth mask over a cloth profile doll?

A: The secret to covering a head with fabric to eliminate the center seam is to choose a glue that won't seep through the fabric and a thick enough fabric that this isn't a problem. Grrrip glue that we carry and tacky glue will work. That said, single knit COTTON fabric (such as in a man's T shirt) is a good fabric to use. You can dye this with Rit fabric dye or try and find some that is already a color you like. Be aware that if you dye the fabric, it should be 100% cotton, because polyester doesn't die evenly. “Cleo” by Lynn Butcher uses a Lycra fabric (this can be found with the swimsuit fabrics). This gives the doll face a shiny appearance. I have also used Dolskin (which we sell). Dolskin is very lightweight and you have to be careful when using glue. I usually needle sculpt the face, cover it with Dolskin, and then needle sculpt again to define the nose and eyes and mouth with a minimum amount of glue. I try to keep the glue confined to the part of the head that will be covered with hair. There is a heavy knit fabric sold in Europe that is used for Karen Heller dolls, but it is very expensive ($35.00 a yard). This fabric is mainly used to cover plastic face masks, and the end results look very much like a porcelain doll

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SPATS
Take a paper towel and wrap it around your doll's leg. Create a pattern by deciding how high you want the spats. Let the bottom come forward over the top of the shoe. This could later be tucked inside the shoe or just let it be on top. Let the spat open on the outside edge, and make sure you allow for a 1/2" overlap. Cut the pattern out from vinyl or leather. Sew Velcro or snaps along both side edges. Place on leg and close. You can also add tiny beads to front or side for buttons. If you want to be fancy you could turn under raw edges and hem (be sure and add this to the pattern). You could also line them, in which case you would add a 1/4" seam allowance all around pattern, place RST on lining fabric, and sew all around edge, leaving an opening for turning RSO. You would then add the Velcro as above. OPTIONAL: You can also sew elastic on both sides of the spat which would slip over the heel and be worn inside the shoe.
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NEW PATTERNS

We have just added BECKY HOLLOWAY’S enchanting “Vignette Noel” and the delightful “Christmas at Moose Mountain” two fabulous projects! http://dollmakersjourney.com/holloway.html

From MICHELLE MUNZONE we have “The Nutcracker” a fantastic cloth version of a favorite holiday decoration. “Kali, Kaleb & Karla” is a fantastic mix’n’match flying pixie pattern that will give you a ton of options. http://dollmakersjourney.com/munzone.html

FRAN PARRIGAN MEEHAN has just released “Bliss”, her exquisitely beautiful new fairy pressmold and body patterns. You are going to love embellishing this one! http://dollmakersjourney.com/meehan.html

“Sittin’ on Top of the World” is a great doll concept from a great designer MARY TRESSLER. Stop by and take a peek at this fun project. http://dollmakersjourney.com/tressler.html

Costumer extraordinaire SYLVIA SCHORR delights us with the newest ensemble for her Calendar Girl basic doll body “An Evening at the Opera.” Let’s just call it romance in red velvet! http://dollmakersjourney.com/schorr.html

What could be better than 2 new patterns from JULIE MC CULLOUGH! The versatile “Petals” can go in many directions depending on your fabric and flower choices. “Stick Figure” is fun and fascinating and includes a wonderful technique for making “bark.” http://dollmakersjourney.com/mccullough.html

Nobody does Raggedys better than JACQUE UETZ and we’re delighted to add “Just Anne” to her collection. http://dollmakersjourney.com/uetz.html

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NEWS FROM THE HOME FRONT

Bonnie finished all those cookbooks just in time for a family reunion in Utah. She leaves tomorrow at 3 a.m. (the airport is 2 hours away). There she will meet all her sisters and brother, and they will visit her mom in a nursing home. Her mom suffers from dementia, so Bonnie is giving her pictures from the cookbook to color and a baby doll to keep her company.

Every year Jim spearheads a Coat Drive at the school where he teaches for children in the area who really need them. Mary Ann is trying to pitch in by making as many hats as she can for this project. She’s determined to whittle down her ridiculous yarn stash one way or another! Son Mike and his bride Kyah have just moved into a wonderful new home. Mak wishes she lived a little closer so she could help with the decorative touches. Perhaps the best thing would be to get started on some Christmas presents. Hmmm, dolls or a lap quilt…decisions, decisions…..

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WEBSITES

Quick change artists – Bonnie was a professional magician and even she doesn’t know how they did this. For an incredible show check out:
http://hubertheller.googlepages.com/quick_change_artists_america_got_talent
Help fight breast cancer by clicking on “donating a mammogram” (pink box in middle) This doesn’t cost you a thing, and helps finance free mammograms for the poor. http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/
Weird uses for stuff you already have – a real fun site
http://www.wackyuses.com/index2.html

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We’d love to hear your thoughts about our Customer Connection newsletter.

Contact the editor Bonnie B. Lewis at
enchantedR@aol.com with any comments, suggestions, address changes, etc.

Please feel free to pass this newsletter on to any of your friends. Help us spread the word about Dollmaker’s Journey! All we ask is that you forward it intact, with all the subscription information included.

Thanks! (By the way, you might want to print this out and put it into a binder to keep for reference….)

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Copyright © 2006 Dollmaker’s Journey

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