Brooches

My new range of brooches! I'll be listing them on etsy and folksy soon, and I'll be doing custom ones, so if you want one with a particular hair style, or even a portrait brooch then do get in touch. They are crafted in the same way as my puppet dolls, so each is one of a kind. They are backed with hard wearing fabric on to which a 1" brooch pin has been hand stitched. You might recognise the fabric, it's what Ingrid's skirt was made from!

Duckpond Market

Well I did it! My first art/craft market! It was a great day, so friendly and some wonderful stalls. I had a bit of a crisis the night before when I realised that no table was provided, but with some creative improvisation I got around not having anything to use (thank you to Mr Roselullabydolls for stopping me from panicking for long enough to think something up!)

I sold 2 dolls and and plenty of postcards, there was also a lot of interest in my portrait dolls, I'm very glad I put together some literature to give to people about them.

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I didn't sell a single brooch though, which I was rather disappointed about, but I think I need to look at how I present them, I'm not sure that many people realised what they were, and I was so busy talking to everyone about portraits that I didn't explain them.

I'm really looking forward to next week up in Cambridge, and next month back at Duckpond!

Real life places to see my work!

So far, almost all my dolls have been sold online, but over the next couple of weeks I'm going to take part in my first ever art/craft markets!

This Sunday - 21st Feb - I'm going to be at Duckpond Market in Ruislip. I've visited this market a few times, and it's just gorgeous. Started up by a local woman last year it's turned in to a roaring success, with high quality arts and crafts, a farmers market, children's activities and lots of fun entertainers.

Then on Saturday 27th Feb I'll be up in Cambridge at the Made-it Market. This is a brand new event which is taking place in 'The Shop' which is a fabulous community art initiative.

Towards the end of March my work will be part of a group exhibition in a shop window in Camden, and there are other exhibitions coming up around Harrow and further afield.

So I'm very busy trying to get lots of dolls and doll brooches made!

It's a terrifying thing, putting your work that you put your heart into out there for all to see, but even more terrifying is sitting next to it and seeing everyone's reactions!

I've been putting a lot of thought into how I'm going to display my dolls, something which as a trained set designer should come very naturally, but most sets I've designed don't have to be transported on the bus and erected in half an hour!

Currently I'm planning on using two of the cardboard dolls houses I blogged about here as the main display areas for my dolls, but I need to think about how to show off my brooches, postcards, literature about custom 'portrait' dolls (which I still need to create!) , business cards, guest book and of course prices! I'm sure I'll make plenty of mistakes to learn from!

If any of you have wise words on the best and worst ways to display things at art/craft fairs then please pass them on!

If you want to be kept up to date with events my work will feature in then do sign up to my facebook fanpage.

Four more puppet dolls dressed in Liberty's fabrics! All girls this time, there'll be a couple of boys coming soon. I've experimented a bit with their hair dos this time.

Martha and Connie - custom dolls

These dolls were made as imaginings of how two sisters who are at the moment gorgeous little toddlers would grow into beautiful young women. These dolls are going to be companions for the girls as they grow. Its such a wonderful thought that I've created things which will be a part of their world for a long long time.

I've made a brooch...

...and I'm not sure what I think of it! I like it but I'm not sure other people will! what do you think? shall I make more?

My day at Liberty's

Yesterday I went to Liberty's of London to show their buyers my dolls, hoping for some good advice and the chance of seeing my work on Liberty's shelves.

I'd made a collection of dolls clothed in Liberty fabrics...

I arrived at 8.15am (they were to start seeing people at 10am) and already the queue was truly enormous! There were some lovely people there, with beautiful things, from wedding tiaras and headpieces, gorgeously upholstered chairs, a gingerbread dolls house, and stacks of brilliant mens and womens wear.

After queuing outside for about an hour we made it to the staircase, still queuing, but at least warm! Eventually we got to a holding room, where we signed up to a list for our respective categories and waited for our name to be called. This was another hours wait, but with a chair and free tea and biscuits this time, so although nervous I was content!

I eventually got to see 2 buyers, for the briefest of times. They didn't think my dolls would be right for Liberty's - they are too 'rustic'. They suggested making caricatures of famous models and politicians. I have thought about doing a Kate Moss doll in the past, but I'm really not sure about politicians, I'm not sure there's a huge market for Gordon Brown dolls?

Anyway, although it didn't end with Rose Lullaby Dolls being put on the shelves of Liberty's it was a good day, and preparing for it was a really useful process to go through.

Now I'm going to start listing my Liberty dolls on Folksy and Etsy - Jasper is there already and there are more to come. I'm working on another group so there will be plenty to choose from!

The first group of Liberty dolls!

Here's a sneaky peek at some dolls I've made who are dressed in Liberty fabrics, all their clothes are totally hand stitched, I think they're rather special!