Twila, my interpretation of a primitive Americana Christmas doll

 

TwilaPreviewBorder This special little angel is Twila. She is my original design and is guaranteed one of a  kind! I’ve used no patterns or molds to create her. Twila is 29" tall from the top of her rusty, wired star to the bottom of her feet. She is made of muslin and has been stuffed with fiberfill. Twila’s lower torso is rag-stuffed & bean filled in order to weight her little bottom. I have primed Twila from head to toe with gesso. I then hand-painted her & sanded her. Then I did all that stuff again. Twila has been treated to a series of paint washes that give her a beautiful, deeply aged patina & make her look oh so vintage. Twila’s arms are lightly wired allowing her to be slightly posed. Her neck is supported with wire.

Twila’s facial features (nose & bottom lip) have been needle sculpted & hand-painted. Her little bottom lip pouts. Her upper lip is simply painted. She has peachy cheeks, detailed eyebrows & big brown eyes with yellow accents.  Twila’s fingers & toes have been needle-sculpted. I’ve painted fingernails & toenails & accented her knuckles with brown paint. Twila has been painted with premium acrylic paints & has been accented & shaded heavily with oil pastels. She has been sealed top to bottom with clear, glossy acrylic sealer so that she may be preserved beautifully over the years & kept a lifetime.

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Twila’s wings are spectacular! They have been made of muslin, stuffed with fiberfill, then hand-quilted with a swirl & feather design. I then primed Twila’s wings and hand-painted them with two coats of rich, light buttery yellow acrylic paint. I sanded them between each coat & then stained them to achieve a beautiful grungy,old look. They have been attached with a big, brown, cream swirled button.

Only angels have auras like this! Twila is surrounded by four luminous stars attached to rusty wire. I created Twila’s stars from paper clay, using absolutely no molds. They have been painted with 2 coats of buttery yellow paint & then topped with a coat of pale gold pearlescent paint. I then lightly stained each star to richen their appearance. The stars have been attached to the wires like beads on a string. They are not glued. Twila carries in her hands her own little guiding light. Her star was made of muslin & stuffed with fiberfill. I then painted & sanded it several times. I shaded, highlighted & detailed her star with oil pastels & chalk pastels. All stars, fabric & paper clay, & all wires have been sealed with glossy, acrylic sealer.

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Twila is wearing a white muslin undershirt which has been grunged up good & proper. It is accented with a ruffle made of white cotton voile that runs down the middle of her blouse. Sewn atop the ruffle is a piece of jute twine. Twila’s apron dress is made of a sweet navy print & a lighter blue floral print. Both fabrics are 100% cotton. These pieces feature tons of visible hand stitching. All hems have been hand-stitched & there is decorative stitching where Twila’s apron strap attached to her dress.   I’ve dyed her clothes in a coffee, lavender bud & vanilla bath. They do not smell however. I simply dyed them in those substances to obtain the desired hue. I then hand-washed her clothes & pressed them with linen water.

Twila’s hair is honey blonde 100% mohair. It has been lightly glued for extra stability & then carefully needle felted to her head. Twila’s hair is fashioned into a side braid & is fastened with a chocolate ribbon.

Twila is currently being auctioned on eBay.She will be available until Nov. 11th. Click here to view or bid.

Hey there, Delilah.

 

DelilahHeadOn Delilah is a special angel. She is the Protector of the Harvest Home. This year Delilah has kept watch over a special patch of pumpkins & now, they’re ready for display! 

Delilah is my original design. She is 30" tall & made of muslin. Delilah & her green/blue pumpkin (modeled after my favorite type of pumpkin, the Jarrahdale!) have been stuffed with fiberfill. Delilah’s lower torso has been rag-stuffed & bean-filled in order to weight her little bottom. Delilah’s arms are lightly wired allowing her to be posed slightly. Her legs are loosely stuffed, though not wired,  and can be slightly posed. I’ve hand-painted Delilah, her wings & her pumpkin from top to bottom. Then I sanded them, painted them from top to bottom again & sanded them again. Delilah has been treated to a series of paint washes that give her a beautiful, deeply aged patina.

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Delilah’s facial features (nose & bottom lip) have been needle sculpted & hand-painted. Her bottom lip pouts. Her upper lip is simply painted. She has blushing, peachy cheeks, detailed eyebrows, and big blue eyes.  I’ve needle-sculpted Delilah’s hands & bare feet. I hand-painted, shaded, highlighted & detailed her fingernails & toenails.  Delilah has been painted with premium acrylic paints & has been accented & shaded with oil pastels. I’ve sealed her from top to bottom with clear, glossy acrylic sealer so that she may be preserved beautifully over the years & kept a lifetime. 

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Delilah’s wings have been made from muslin, stuffed with fiberfill & hand quilted. I’ve heavily stained them to accentuate the small hand-stitching. Delilah’s wings are attached securely to her back with a big vintage button.

Delilah’s pumpkin has also been heavily stained & sealed. A rusty wire stem tops off the pumpkin & has been attached securely with invisible thread. Delilah’s pumpkin is not attached to her. It has been designed to rest in her lap.

Delilah is wearing a striped prairie style dress. It features a ruffled hem &  slightly ruffled sleeves. On top of that, Delilah is wearing a white muslin apron fastened with two vintage brown buttons.  Both pieces of clothing feature extensive hand-stitching. The hems of both the dress & apron are hand-stitched as well as Delilah’s sleeves, apron pocket, apron top & sash. I’ve dyed Delilah’s clothes in a coffee, lavender bud & vanilla bath. They do not smell however. I simply dyed them in those substances to obtain a desirable hue.

Delilah’s hair is 100% raw wool. It has been lightly glued for extra stability & then carefully needle felted to her head. She sports loose buns at the base of her up-do.

 

Delilah is currently being auctioned on eBay & will run through 10/18/07. Click here to view or bid!