(Inside A Black Apple)

A Little Bear in Striped Trousers

I made this little bear for a new bebe.

I went into this with delusions that I'd make a beautiful, heirloom teddy bear -- old-fashioned and soft mohair and shiny glass eyes. But when I set to work, this funny little guy is who I ended up with.

Not exactly the perfect Winnie-the-pooh bear I'd imagined, but a bear nonetheless.

A bear with his own charms & his own striped trousers.

We just returned from London (and a side-trip to Paris) & there are things I want to share from the trip.
I also need to finish posting the last few Eleanor pieces.

More dispatches soon!

Little Red Elephant Purse

  

  

I made this small lady for another small lady who recently turned five.

I found the girl-sized corduroy elephant purse at Black Wagon, a sweet children's shop in N. Portland (especially nice for baby & toddler gifts.) The purse started it all - once I had that in hand, I wanted to make a doll...and then once I made the doll, I wanted to make a doll-sized matching elephant purse. I used some scrap felt and a bit of yarn for the strap, and voila! Tiny purse.

Making dolls only occasionally & for gifts is so much fun, but sometimes I do wish I could find a way to design and/or create a line of stuffed things for purchase. The problem is, that would be a full-time endeavor.  Finding a way to do it that fits with my art & book projects is a pickle & a mystery I haven't cracked so far...I hope one day I will.

I spend most of my time hoping there's time enough for all the things I'd like to do/bees in my bonnet!
I know it's not just me, it's probably the commonest of wishes.

A B.B. for a B.B.

Thank you so very much for all your kind Oddfellow's book-birthday comments and well-wishings! This was a really exciting week.

And to say hello before the weekend comes, I wanted to share this little black bear fellow. I made him recently for our good pals the Berkleys for their soon-to-be bebe Berkley.

You can click the images to enlarge a bit!

That mustard bow-tie is one of my favorite accessories I've ever stitched to one of my sewn things. I love making toys so much - but I love making just one or two every once in a while.
It stays fun for me that way!

And some nice randomness : the Stephen Colbert / Maurice Sendak interviews are my favorite things I've seen on television in a long time. Maybe of all time.
"The sad thing is, I like it." - best book blurb ever.

Bandit Dolls

Edition size: two each colorway
Made from: Cotton, wool felt
Featuring: vintage dotted fabric bowties, hand-painted faces & removable bandit masks

These little rascals will be part of tomorrow's update!
Just two ginger-hairs and two acorn-hairs available, along with all the new paintings.

See you then! 

An Incredulous Bear

I wanted to sew a soft little black bear for a friend's new baby boy, but all I had was a stack of vintage brown wool. So this fellow is a nice soft little brown bear.

His face is embroidered in what I would call "crazy person satin stitch". His permanent incredulous expression seems to suggest he's always hearing:

"This is a stickup! Gimme all your graham crackers!"

He also has a scarlet scarf for situations that require more pizazz.

I love this little man! We were calling him Bosco around the house, but now he's looking more like a Walter to me. Maybe that's just the new Breaking Bad season talking somehow.

I think I'll just leave the naming to the mama and the little bebe.

The Knitting Kitty Doll

I just created the mini-update, and things have already flown out the door! It was kind of a bumpy road today, worse than ever (what's up, Etsy?!). I'm very sorry if anyone experienced weirdness beyond the usual fast-buying issues.

This little cat was the only thing in the update I hadn't shared here yet.
She (like the Pretend Bear) has some pretty fancy accessories!

The Knitting Kitty    Approx 10" tall   
Made of: Cotton fabrics, wool + wool-blend felt, wool yarn, hand-painted face
Edition size: 1

I am particularly happy with that pint-sized jacket of hers.
The tiny buttons kill me!

Thanks so much for all your sweet words about the paintings and dolls for the October mini-update. No matter how long I've been working for The Black Apple, I'm just so pleased that people like the funny things I make.

Thanks for that.
And Happy week-o'-Halloween!

The Pretend Bear Doll

I'm excited to share this little lady!
She's got a bunch of little accessories - and I've always loved it when dolls come with lots of doodads.

The Pretend Bear    Approx 10" tall   
Made of: Cotton fabrics, wool + wool-blend felt, cotton string, hand-painted face
Edition size: 1

She has many guises!

Bandit:

And, of course, bear:

She'll be in the update tomorrow (Wednesday)!

Gentleman Black Bear

I've been working on a crop of dollies to take to Renegade SF, and among them is a new pattern:

A gentleman bear!
In dapper striped trousers, no less. He's a continuation in my sort of "imaginary vintage toy" designs.

Gentleman Black Bear   
Measures: Approx 13" tall
Made of: Nubby wool, striped cotton, wool felt, hand-painted face

These were actually the striped trousers I was attempting to photograph when it became woefully apparent that my old camera was dead.

Oh! Speaking of which, I now have a new camera, and it's pretty swell. It's a simple Canon Powershot Elph, and it is tiny and easy to use. And I must say, I'm almost a little freaked out by how great the strides have been in digital camera technology since I bought my last one circa 2007.
Egads! What a nice surprise.

Happy weekend to you!

Bear + Friend, Part 2

Here is the finished pair I posted a snippet of last week - a birthday present for a darling little person. I couldn't decide between an animal doll and a girl-doll, so I made both.

They've got a bit of a red, white + blue theme going on, so I suppose they could be celebrating the birthday of my ol' home country this weekend, too. Happy (belated) Birthday, Lyddie - and Happy Birthday (in a few days), United States. And Happy Weekend, everybody!

Bear + Friend

Just the feets of a pair of unfinished dolls I worked on yesterday for the belated birthday of a little pal o' mine.

Unrelated to doll feets, but I'm very excited because all the new work (plus the brand-new set of postcards with images from Lost on the Midway) will be up in the shop early next week.

Also very excited for a date tonight with my mister to see the highly anticipated new Jeunet movie. It is not every day that a new movie from a favorite director arrives.
Happy Friday to you!

Midway Dolls

I was able to photograph the dolls I made for the show today - huzzah!
They're all one-of-a-kind right now, but I might (meaning, probably will) make a small edition of at least the conjoined twin dolls...and heck, maybe the tattooed folks, too.

  

Tattooed Lady Doll     Approx 12" tall   
Wool felt, self-designed fabric, striped cotton, acrylic paints

&

Tattooed Man Doll     Approx 12" tall   
Wool felt, self-designed fabric, striped cotton, acrylic paints

And last, but certainly not least:

Twins Doll   Approx 10" tall    Wool felt, dotted cotton, acrylic paints

 

These will be up, perched on a shelf, with the rest of "Lost on the Midway"...I couldn't have an art show without a few dolls!

Happy Wednesday to you!

Little Book-Tags

I've been thinking about tags for my dolls for a long time, but in the last few months I really buckled down to designing one. It's just back from the printers, and I'm so happy.

They're made to look like tiny storybooks:

 

And when you open them up, this is what you see:

You will probably remember this little painting from a few posts back (and there are notecard sets arriving with the same image very soon!). I can't wait to tie these little tags onto many, many future soft-things.

We went out of town rather suddenly for a family obligation on the Easterly coast, but today we're back and I'm back to working on my June show and all the usual Black Apple things. I'm always so excited to get back to work (which, methinks, is a sure sign that I indeed have a lovely job).

Happy Tuesday!

And Now for a Springtime Doll Parade!

In the shop on Thursday for the Springtime update...and there will be lots more photos with each individual listing.

Without further ado, here are the new dolls!
I'm very excited about this curious assemblage of fellas and gals.

Egg Fella with Striped Trousers     Approx. 5"x12"   Edition size: 3
Materials: Muslin, Cotton, Felt, Paint

Egg Fella with Dotted Trousers     Approx. 5"x12"    Edition size: 3
Materials: Muslin, Vintage Cotton, Felt, Paint

 

Boy Bunny and Carrot     Approx. 5"x13"    Edition size: 1
Materials: Muslin, Vintage carrot Pin-cushion, Cotton, Felt, Paint

Girl Bunny with Hat     Approx. 5"x13"    Edition size: 3
Materials: Muslin, Cotton, Felt, Paint



Springtime Girl Blue Calico     Approx. 5"x10"    Edition size: 3
Materials: Muslin, Vintage cotton, Felt, Paint



Springtime Girl Yellow Calico     Approx. 5"x10"    Edition size: 3
Materials: Muslin, Cotton, Felt, Paint

See you soon!

Stump Baby

A newly five-year-old little person I know had a birthday very recently, and knew exactly what I was going to do for a gift. You see, there is this very odd vintage rubber-faced doll that is covered in brown fur, and white pom-poms. I bought her from an Etsy-vintage seller a few years back, because I adored the sheer weirdness of her. One day, this certain little birthday person (a notorious appreciator of weird things) was over and poking around my studio, and she emerged with this brown fur doll in her arms.

"Stump Baby!", she said. "Oh, I love her so much!"

Of course, I tried to send her home with Stump Baby that day. But her mama was wise, and in order to not raise a ruckus with the other sisters, she said "Stump Baby should live here, with Emily".

So, nearly a year later, enough time had passed...we were fairly certain no ruckus would be made, and I devised a rather deluxe Stump Baby themed present:

I made a little apron out of some calico I found at the antique fair a few weeks ago, and sewed a big felt pocket on the front to hold...a mini-stump baby! Ta da! For, what is better than an inexplicable doll such as this one but a teensy version?

And then, as a final mini-present, I made a tiny book that tells the story of how Big Stump Baby and Little Stump Baby met each other (it involves leaf-thievery and nest vandalism).

 

I also gave her a few doo-dads (some fairy soap, some unicorn bandaids), a wind-up bird music box, and All Kinds of Families, which is very sweet and illustrated by a wildly fantastic illustrator-hero of mine, Marc Boutavant. If he isn't one of the very best children's illustrators working today, I'll eat my hat!

Anyway, everything was a hit with the little birthday girl. I was very happy!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend & see you soon.

Bandit Dolls

They're here to rob your piggy banks!

 

Little Bandit Plaid    Edition of 2   Hand-dyed/aged cotton, muslin, wool felt

   

Little Bandit Night Story   Edition of 1   Hand-dyed/aged custom-designed cotton, muslin, wool felt

 

Little Bandit Swans    Edition of 1  Hand-dyed/aged custom-designed cotton, muslin, wool felt

   

Little Bandit Stars   Edition of 2   Hand-dyed/aged cotton, muslin, wool felt

Oh! And each bandit-gal's mask is fully removable!

They'll be available as part of the little October Oddballs update tomorrow. I'll have photos of their faces, sans masks, for the shop listings tomorrow. That's if'n you're curious about their real identities.

Happy Sunday!

Sewing Table Scenesters

Here is a peek at the creatures from yesterday's sketchbook post!

I glanced over there today, and they already looked so sweet there on my sewing table - I didn't have to move or change a thing. That's very rare - there's usually an old coffee cup or a huge pile of paper messing up the scene.

See you soon! There is tons (tons) of Oddfellow's-related stuff I need to add to the shop, and with so much going on, it'll take me a little while - but rest assured, good stuff is afoot all the way around.

Oddfellow's Sophie + Hannah Dolls!

I'm so excited to share all the new dollies that will be part of tomorrow's shop update with you guys!

   

 

Sophie Dolls measure approx 18" tall from tip of toes to top of head. They are each an edition of 1, and are crafted from wool felt, new and vintage cottons, custom fabrics, muslin, and are stuffed plump with poly-fil. Each has an entirely hand-painted face.

All of the Sophie dolls are sporting fully removable little woolen capelets, which close with a vintage brass button. They've also got their (also removable) little badges, comprised of my illustration of the all-seeing eye on a pinback button, pinned to a vintage velvet ribbon in either bark or cherry.

The capelets themselves just killlled me lined up like this...I had to take a photo:

And lastly, here's a look at the gals without their chill-proofing capes, so you can see them in their simple wool collars. Be sure to click to enlarge if you'd like to see them larger!

     

Both the Sophies and Hannahs are dressed in custom fabrics I designed with iconography from an IOOF poster from 1893 (except the ginger-haired Hannah, who sports a dress of little bees from my own drawings). There are globes, stars, shaking hands...it's neat stuff!

Okay, now on to the Hannahs:

   

These Hannah Dolls measure approx 9" tall from tip of toes to top of head. Each design (Mystical & Bee) is an edition of 4. The dolls are crafted from wool felt, new and vintage cottons, custom fabrics, muslin, and are stuffed plump with poly-fil. Each has an entirely hand-painted face.

High-five, lil' ladies!

 

I'm all abuzz about tomorrow's update...be there or be square!

The Dolls Are In Their Steamer Trunk...

And we're all headed to Renegade!

See you soon!

Sweet Spring Cleaners

Here are the other little doll pals that will be a part of tomorrow's (Tuesday) update! They are happy little Spring Cleaners, here to help you sweep out any lingering dust bunnies:

 
Each doll is an edition of 3
Each is crafted of new and vintage cottons, muslin, wool felt, vintage bias tape (for the apron strings), and are stuffed plump with poly-fil. Their faces are, of course, hand painted.

 

And there's the cute tag, right on the bum:

Happy Monday & See you tomorrow for the shop update!

Helpful Hannah Dolls

I've got a pretty big crush on these new little gals!
Their pattern is essentially the same as my Sophie dolls, but with (much) shorter legs, and helpful little linked arms that you can slip tiny things into.

A note, a photo, a tiny book or miniature toy...if it's little enough, the Hannahs will gladly help you hold it.

  

And they have cute, sparkling, simple little 1960's-toy eyes and rosy, rosy cheeks!

All of the dolls are wool felt, new + vintage cottons, stuffed plump with poly-fil, and hand-painted. They measure approx 12" tall, from head to toe-tips.
All three will be available in the update!

Happy Friday to you!

Monster Matryoshka!

We're back from our trip! I will have some NY-specific posts soon, but I've got to share these little nesting dolls that I made during my sicky-hurt-ankle-under-blankets weeks. One of my favorite people had a birthday last week, and my rad friend Robert happened to send me some blank wooden nesting dolls, so the timing was just right for a custom matryoshka set for Devlin's birthday (monster-themed, for he is a very lovable, monsterish person).

I've been so excited to post them, and now I can because I know they've been received!

(From Left: Rockabilly Vampire, Lagoon/Sea Monster, Frankenstein's monster, Lil' Wolfman & Baby Mummy)

They're all acrylic on wood, with hefty coatings of hard-drying protective varnish. It was hard to let them go, we got quite attached to the little fellas.

  

The most fun thing to do with them (for me), was putting them in the "wrong trousers":

 
The little wolfman in the Frankenstein-pants!!  Be still my heart.

Another really fun thing was designing and drawing the packaging:

 
It's (a dressed-up) one of those cookie/candy boxes with the plastic window. I was so excited that I had one around that fit so well, though I did have to make a little platform so he could peek through the window correctly.

The birthday-man loved them...and I'm so thrilled that he did. He's one of those people-who-has-everything (everything cool, that is), so something like this was all I could think of that might fit the bill. I would love to make nesting dolls for the shop, but this little set took so many afternoons and evenings that I just don't think I can. But if a toy manufacturer came a-knockin' and wanted to collaborate on a set, I'd jump at the chance!

I hope your week is off to a good start & Happy Tuesday.

Milkland Sophies

Here is the quartet of sweet Sophies that will be available in the shop later on this afternoon!

Each one is dressed in a cotton frock fashioned from fabric designed (by me!) especially for Milkland.
They are each handcrafted and hand-painted with care.

Black Swan Sophie   +   Mint Star Sophie

 

Albino Sophie   +    Star Argyle Sophie

Legs!

More photos tomorrow...these ladies are still busy putting their faces on.
:)

See you Monday!

Little Lulas

 
Milky & Rosie Lula Dolls    Cotton fabrics, custom printed dress, and hand-painted faces + shoes

Approx 6"x10"  
Each doll is an edition of 4

These are the "variation" (of the usual pattern) dolls I mentioned yesterday...they're a bit smaller and with a a few tweaks to their proportions. I'm calling them "Lulas", but the albino ones name is Milky, and the Brown-haired girl is called Rosie. They're kind of a study in contrasts...the strange little girl and her dainty, perky pal.

 

 

I hope your week is going well!

Little Onionhead Dolls

This soft little patch of petite plush guys are ready to meet you, so hello everybody!

I love that photo so much...it looks like they're all waiting outside a rock n roll show. I wonder what music Onionheaded folks like? Probably music with a good "beet" (Insert snare drum + cymbal).
Oy.

Little Onionhead Art Plush      Cotton body, tie and face   

Approx 4"x6"x2"       Edition size of 20

 

Each Little Onionhead doll will include a tag containing a tiny poem:

This is your Little Onionhead,
He comes to you from the onion-bed.
If you are sweet to him, by-and-by,
He will hardly make you cry.

He will be part of the update next Monday. Excitement!

I will be back with more dolls tomorrow...they're a slightly modified version of the "Martha/Petite" dolls, and they're darn cute.

Happy Tuesday!