Finally, my little 'papier mache' is done!

Hannah

Here's Hannah, finally all done!

Hannah is a new departure for me. I've been salivating over the fabulous Izannahs, Queen Annes, Primitives and Milliner's Models I've been seeing my extraordinarily talented sisters in dollmaking creating! My style tends to be different, although with a historical bent. I decided that I'd like to try my hand at something more primitive, antique and 'loved'. Not sure if I achieved that, but I gave it my all on this first shot. I really enjoyed the difference and would like to try some more styles, such as the Milliner's models with the hairstyle's a'la giraffe...and maybe I might even try to attempt an Izannah (my personal favorite!)

I made Hannah with a paperclay head, shoulderplate, and lower arms. Her body is cloth, as well as her legs and feet. I used a crackle medium to age her, and a paler shade of skin tone, with extremely dark (almost black) brown hair. I have to say, I really, really enjoy making the hairstyles with paperclay. You can pretty much do whatever you want! For Hannah's hair, I was inspired by the old Currier & Ive's lithograph prints of little girls in the 1840's and 50's. My absoloute favorite Currier and Ive's litho is 'The Little Sisters'. I've got an original and adore it.

Hannah's eyes are paperclay, but I painted them to resemble the old glass eyes often seen on the early papier mache dolls. Those glass eyes originally only came in one iris color: black. So Hannah has black 'glass' eyes, clouded with age to go with her little cracks. I used a high gloss medium on them to give them their glassy appearance. I am a @#$%^& photographer, so you can't really see that detail as well as I'd like.

Hannah is wearing a dress in the style of the 1840's, of reproduction cotton fabric in a print used from the 1840's to the 1860's. The dress is completely hand-sewn, and has the gathered bodice, with narrow sleeves, sleeve caps and self-fabric piping at the neckline, armscyes, waist, and sleeve cuffs and sleeve caps. Her skirt has a 'false hem' in another reproduction fabric. Hannah is wearing a tucked petticoat and drawers made of old fabric. Her stockings and shoes are painted on, white 'stockings' and black slippers.

I listed Hannah on ebay yesterday (robinseggbleu) so if anyone should decide they cannot live without her, please, feel free to bid away! Otherwise, she'll be relegated to living in an abusive home, like all my other dolls who don't escape. Stuck in a drawer and forgotten, or worse, incarcerated in deep storage under a freeway overpass.