1 post tagged “dollhouse doll”
Welcome Back, minidoll creators! Do all the wonderful gratis tutorials and archives in Blog #1, leave you a bit floundering and overwhelmed? Well fear not - brave artists! We're ready to help YOU, help YOURSELF get started... through a tiny bit of research.
Lets get started with a small self exam. Are you a *DOLL* inspired artist ... or a *MATERIAL* inspired artist?
1. Do you pick up a dolly and with one look at her sweet little face, just KNOW how she should be dressed?
2. OR ... do your fingers need to run over the weave of many materials until one just jumps out from the bunch ... and, after a quick glance, you know exactly WHAT the outfit should be?
Two different ways to get inspired .... but one common goal. A finished doll!
Dolly Inspired: Pick up your blank doll (or even one with a painted face) and listen to what she tells you to dress her like. Not kidding . Each little face has a bit of magic string connected to your artistic brain bell ... and when the right idea comes up ... ding ding ding! It could, of course, be influenced by a book you read, a photo you'd like to copy, a competition you'd like to enter, or simply a kit already purchased. The main thing ... is to get a grasp on what you'd like as an end result.
For our sample - lets say we'd like to do an old fashion girl, moving to New York for a job interview. Once I have this background info .... a *storyline* if you will, my job as an artist just became easier.
I know I need a pretty, fresh face... but with a unique feature that would help her stand out in a big city. Then a simple but elegant outfit which could have been purchased on a budget. And lastly, a contemporary hair style that would be easily done by herself.
Once I have the fiction ideas down - its time to pull out my *idea* scrap book and start paging through all the entries.
Soon I have pulled out a face photo (for makeup) with similar features to the doll..... a simple, but elegant hair updo picture, and lastly a tailored black pencil skirt, with a slim, but embroidered cuff white blouse. Wow! 2 of the 3 things we need to get started!
Alright ... once we have the fictional storyline, the visual aids in photographs ... its time to surf online to find the tutorials to make these ideas happen!
WHERE to start?
If you happen to belong to the minidollLIST.com its easy! We have over 150 tutorials online - 75 of which can be found in the tutorial section alone. I know there are at least 2 painting face tutorials there, a basic wigging, and with a little modification a slim black skirt. The key is to adjust your *inner eye* to see what you need in existing patterns. Simply take what you need and erase the rest. For example - the slim black pencil skirt could be the MAE WEST dress pattern, with material cut off from the knee down. Add a tiny slit in back and wala!
Wasn't this easy? We now have a storyline for our dolly. Visual aides and tutorials on how to actually MAKE her. Now I Bet you can't wait to get started! In the upcoming blogs we will of course go into more detail on all the different areas ... but for now ... start looking for the right material to match your vision and tune in for the *material inspired artist* hints.
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HAPPY CREATING!
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