I made Mikolaj a doll version of himself this August, delivered successfully in Babimost in the wake of a Polish wedding. Hopefully it has taken over Poznan by now, and is making its way across Central Europe. All with a look of discontent? Or maybe insouciance.
The John Waters Doll was finished on Christmas, he’s finally ready for his close up. He’s up on Etsy, ready for the world.
It is Kara The Doll!
In the general image of the great + legendary Kara herself. Blonde, in a violet leotard(?), glasses + green eyes.
She was in my first crop of dolls ever produced, and she was supposed to be completed in time for Kara to arrive in Pittsburgh.
But! Kara The Person got there early enough that she saw Kara The Doll filled with stick pins — particularly through the face. The mouth wasn’t totally on — so the needle was going straight through her lips.
A little disturbing I know, but she is intact + pinless now. A Proud Resident of Baltimore!
I made her in honor of Junior High teaching legend (and Number One Tom Selleck-Stone Philips fan) Miss Mullen. But Andy, who bought her last spring in Pittsburgh, decided she was a boy librarian — and the appropriate mascot for his professional wrestling persona — Andy The Librarian. You decide:
I sewed her several years back, she was one of my first five dolls. I did her face on the long flight, Pittsburgh-Berkeley, the stewardess found her disturbing. Ridiculous! I think she’s got a remarkably pleasant face, and her roly polyness is very pokable.
Andy had me sew her a red felt book that velcro on and off her hands — more of the librarian! — so she can enforce.
I’ve completed my online tutorial of How to Make a Monster — the pattern and instructions are still available for purchase as a PDF booklet at Etsy here — but this online tutorial goes through the instructions with step by step illustrations.
The resultant monster: 10 inches tall, big mouth, a little squat, very embracable. I made him in white fur, so he’s quite a soft little thing, but you can use the pattern with any sturdy, flexible material and come out with quite bizarre results.
Ready to monster? The instructions are here.
Detailed, illustrated instructions on making dolls, making monsters, bags, and more!
As requested by Claire, as inspired by the family room shrine recently constructed (with an Art Garfunkel LP cover, votive candles, and some fruits that have since been removed), here it is. Art Garfunkel The Doll.
I suspect Claire will subject him to voodoo procedures, but I do not endorse those. He likes to read, I am going to move him from bookshelf to bookshelf and hope that keeps him spry + pleasant
I know it’s probably (definitely) illegal for me to be using the image of Sally Wiggin for purposes of my own, but she is my favorite newscaster in Pittsburgh. And this doll is a cartoon version of her, not an actual Sally Wiggin face, so WTAE, don’t sue me.
My Sally Wiggin doll, she’s a Pittsburgh sports fanatic — friends with all the Bobblehead Pirates of years past, and her favorite is Jack Wilson (pronounced, like the PNC Park announcer, as one word, i.e.,” JacKWILson”). She enjoys the New Yorker, she’s held the Stanley Cup, and she has the nicest legs in the city.
He was made in Belfast, a few years ago, but I’ve kept him around until last month — when I put a Masked Avenger superhero cape on him (red and black). He was snapped up by Carrie at the Union Project sale — goodbye you little Gingham-Collared-Criminal!
