In 2011, I made 26 dolls.
As you see, over time, even though I was running my business full time, I was making less dolls.
That is because I was spending more time on each one, making them better and better.
9 of those dolls were prototypes and 8 of them were custom orders.
I was slowing down on the custom orders, by choice.
Prototypes that year were:
Josiah~A Jenna prototype by Angela Harris that never went into production.
Hillary prototype by Cathy Rowland
Suzon Louise toddler Prototype by Laura Tuzio Ross...she was SO much fun!
Zasha Prototype by Claire Taylor...I adored this sweet boy!
In June, he traveled to the IRDA Conference in San Francisco with me and was on display as a new kit coming out. He later sold on eBay.
Sophie Madeline Prototype who I renamed Haku Ibu.
Oh my goodness, I was so excited that Bonnie asked me to reborn this prototype!
I thought he looked Asian...
Sweet and Sassy Prototype by Dee Stastany.
Sweet Melody Prototype by Laura Tuzio Ross.
Huggy Bear Prototype by Dianna Effner.
Huggy Bear was Dianna's first vinyl kit. I traveled to Missouri to Dianna's studio to teach Dianna to reborn vinyl. While I taught, we recorded every step and session and I later produced a Full Course Reborning DVD. This had been a dream of mine for about a year and a half of so, but it took well into 2012 for all of the editing to be done and the production of the DVD.
It can be purchased ~HERE~
It is still current on the techniques that I use today :)
Last but not least for prototypes for that year, as well as my last doll for that year, was the Lotte Prototype by Sebilla Bos.
I LOVE Sebilla's work and was DELIGHTED to be able to reborn this prototype!
I would say that she was my favorite doll for 2011.
The highest selling doll for that year was a custom order Angelica for $2000:
She joined a custom Ariana that I created earlier in the year:
In 2012 I made just 17 dolls!
Of those 17, just 3 were prototypes...by my choice. I turned a lot of prototypes down that year because my year was so full of teaching, traveling and doing the DVD editing/production as well as a free tutorial for the new Art and Magic Water Borne air dry paints.
I had the honor of my first prototype from Lilianne Breedveld...love her work too!
It was Nigel and he turned out so well:
I did Danene Prototype by Violet Parker...she was a fun baby because I configured a way for her to hold her head up while on her belly!
She went to the 2012 Down East Doll Show with me in Greenville, North Carolina.
I own two of Kellie Beckett's One of a Kind clay babies. I bought them when I first met Kellie at the 2012 IDEX show in Orlando in January. (Yes, I had been going to IDEX every year since 2007 but I only showed and taught that one time in 2010.)
Imagine how excited I was when she asked me to reborn her first vinyl kit, the Shy Prototype!
Does she look like someone famous you might know??
I did a special project (not a prototype) for Lorna Miller Sands.
(She liked the work I had at the 2012 DEDS and asked me then.)
She asked me to reborn her Trinitee sculpt as a boy with a certain skin tone.
I really, really loved this boy!
I did a video series (that can be found on YouTube) on creating textured eye brows while I reborned Trevor. I won't give the links for that (it's a 5 part series!) but this is the video I did of this gorgeous boy when I was all done with his brows:
My highest selling doll that year was Mariana...
An ethnic doll created from the Ariana sculpt.
She sold for $1500 after the Sauder Village, Ohio doll show.
Even if I do not sell at the several shows I show at each year, my dolls ALWAYS sell soon after the shows. The shows are excellent for promotion of your work as well as networking with the artists.
I know I already said that in an earlier post but I want to emphasize it again and again.
They DO cost real money to go but you can build your business by going.
Along with attending shows in January, June, the end of July and first of September that year, I worked on editing the DVD (I got my first peek of it at Dianna Effner's booth at IDEX in January~that was THRILLING! Her son was doing the initial editing so they cropped a small section of it to have at that show), and also was asked to try out a new paint from HunnyBuns/Stephanie Tackett called Art and Magic Water Borne Air Dry Paints.
I did a beginner's tutorial for those paints and have it available here on my blog.
This is the baby I created in the tutorial who sold to Jorja Pigott, my darling sculpting friend.
He was a Huti baby at that!
I had a lot of fun with the shows, the dolls and the tutorials in 2012.
It is hard to choose which was my favorite!
I made a portrait doll for a sweet gal of herself.
Her name was Laura and this precious woman, Laura Lightner lost her battle to cancer in 2013.
I am glad I could give her a short time of great joy in her doll.
The real Laura as a baby:
And the portrait doll, Laura:
One of the most playful dolls I made that year was Twinkle, a tiny Tyler elf kit by Julie Molloy:
And the one I made for myself?
I did an experiment with LDC paints mixed with Liquitex Ultra Matte Gel with no prep to the vinyl and no coating afterwards. I was hoping for a matte finish. I didn't really get that and I think the fingers and toes would have been perfect with a Genesis Matte Varnish as a prep but he sure turned out cute and EVERYONE at IDEX loved him.
I named him Billy. He is a 2006 Silly Dreams Berenguer LE doll.
Hmmm...I don't have many GOOD pictures of Billy!
Here is a WIP picture:
And his first Christmas picture:
And with friends from IDEX...and passer's by at Down Town Disney!
What a great years 2011 and 2012 were!
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My computer has been overheating. Since I wasn't able to complete my Hannah full body silicone's head, (I just did not get her finished on Thursday and I had my 16 month old grandson all day yesterday so didn't work) I am taking my poor old machine down to the computer shop this morning.
I will be without it for maybe just 2-3 days, but it could be all week.
How Hannah ties in here is that I won't be able to list her anyway so don't need the computer for that and then later this week, Wed-Friday, Becky and I will be back out in the dolly house working as she can be here then. So, I won't be needing the computer for Hannah then either. I better take advantage of the "free" time and get this thing fixed!
See you as soon as I can though!
XXOO
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