My Girlies

I've been fascinated by antique dolls ever since I read Missing Melinda, a young adult book that was one of my sister's and my favorites back in the seventies. You can find this book, used, on both Amazon and on Abebooks. In it, twin sisters Ophelia and Cordelia move into an old house with their parents and find an old doll while exploring. The doll ends up being stolen, and in their quest to find her the two girls learn lots about the world of antique dolls.

So, when I found out that there was a man in Germany digging up broken doll heads and selling them on eBay, I was immediately intrigued. At first I purchased some doll arms and turned them into charm/pendants by soldering the tops of the arms. While I thought those charms were totally cool (I loved the idea of someone unearthing these forgotten doll parts from a field next to a factory that was bombed by the Allies in World War II) most people thought they were a leeeeetle bit creepy. Like many unique items, though, there were people who absolutely ADORED them...

Fast forward to now. I started making art dolls using old doll bodies and heads. I use wooden printing blocks, brass letters, children's alphabet blocks, dice, old wooden thread spools and tart tins to help form a little doll, and when my amazing college roommate, Kelly, sent me an enthusiastic email saying "I love your little girlies!" I knew these new assemblages were named. The Girlies were born.

I actually made the top Girlies' head using polymer clay and a face mold I made. I then painted her face myself--it turns out my hands are steadier than I thought! The bottom is a Frozen Charlotte doll, suspended in two-part resin, in a house-shaped bezel that I made using an old silver-plated serving plate I chopped up.

I'll post soon about more of the unique bits and bobs I've been using in my work--