Fables and Foxes Flip Doll

So I finally finished up this little owl art doll! She's actually two dolls in one. Her dress reverses to reveal another doll! You can see additional pics here on my Fables and Foxes Blog.

More Fables and Foxes Related Fun!

I spent a majority of this weekend working on this new folk art doll or whimsical sculpture. I still need to finish up some of the final details but it's coming together nicely! I just realized how stern fox looks! You'd almost think she was for a mug shot!

Unfold Illustration Friday and Fables and Foxes Shop

So I did this illustration for my other shop: Fables and Foxes but I figured I'd share it here for my gumball readers as well :) She calls out to be sculpted.

Bear Folk Art Doll Sculpture

So as you can see I've had sweet little bears on the mind and maybe a little bit of Little Red Riding Hood as well! You see a while ago I signed up for a cloth and clay doll workshop taught by the extremely talented Jane DeRosier. I have such a love for folk art dolls and thought that it would be a great way to get started. Well I'm more than embarrassed to admit that even with a mom who teaches and sells sewing machines I still have not had the time to learn how to sew! But today I just felt the need to make some kind of folk art doll so I ran downstairs to find my paper clay and get started. I was set on making a doll even if I had to hand sew every little stitch. Well you know how it goes, when you need something you can't find it. I ran downstairs to take advantage of my time and began rummaging through the various piles, corners, and drawers. I couldn't find it! Determined to complete the mission I settled and grabbed my box of old polymer clay. Either it will work or it won't I thought to myself.

Well here's the end result! Her name is "Sorrow" in conjunction with the theme over at Cloth and Clay Dolls. Can you believe that she is the first sculpture I've done in over a year! I couldn't believe how she turned out! When I compare her to some previous paper clay dolls I made I am shocked with the difference. I'm glad I followed this nagging need to sculpt and took the time to do it. Creating her has definitely encouraged me to keep sculpting and add more of these folk art dolls / sculptures to my Fables and Foxes etsy shop.

Oh I should mention her details: She's sculpted out of polymer clay and painted using acrylic paints. She stands just slightly under 7 inches tall and has been antiqued and distressed to give her that folk art feel.

I also thought I'd add in this photo so you could see her prior to painting:

Pale

I'm ready for the wildlife to come out and enjoy spring. Rarely do I think of spring and Easter without also thinking of Beatrix Potter and her amazing depictions of little, forest creatures. My grandmother gave me an inscribed collection of her tales when I was little and it is still a cherished gift. With the advent of spring weather coming I have a strong desire to get into the mountains. I want to see Spring coming out of it's long slumber. Getting into the mountains is something I need to do more. What I have been doing more of is making one of a kind pieces lately. Here is the latest piece called Pale. Available in my Fables and Foxes shop.

Sour Grapes Painting is Finished! Yay!

Well here's the problem I went and played around with the painting digitally and I prefer the digital version! So the digital version is going up as a print in my Fables and Foxes shop. The "Sour Grapes" painting is...I don't know...it is here for me to ponder.

I've been smitten with the tale of how the saying "sour grapes" came about. Some poor little fox spies a bunch of delicious ripe grapes hanging from a grape vine that has grown up a tree. Despite his best efforts the little fox is unable to reach them. In the end he walks away, with the thought that the grapes were probably sour anyway! Life is like this sometimes. You blow up an idea to insurmountable proportions and then with the flick of fate the idea is no more. Reality hits. You realize that what you desired so much wasn't attainable, or wasn't worth attaining. So you walk away. Isn't desire interesting.

The Big Bad Wolf in Silver!

It's been such a busy week. The little ones and I had a bit of a cold. We are all feeling much better now and are enjoying a quiet Sunday afternoon. So I'll take this quiet moment to share one of my latest fine silver creations, Little Red Riding Hood's Big Bad Wolf! Made entirely by hand out of fine silver PMC / Metal Clay! I love working with metal clay. I just don't don't get a chance to do it as often as I'd like to! He is now available in my Fables and Foxes etsy shop.

The Keeper

I just updated my Fables and Foxes shop with this little papercut, The Keeper Art Print. Such wonderful things lurk in the deep and dark forest. Dare to step in and you never know what the outcome might be. Maybe something wonderful, magical, made up of the pure essence of all things you love. Or linger on the outskirts. Peer from the boundaries. Dance around the edges and never know the wonders that await. I've been thinking of the new year. I'm going to into the deep, dark forest. I'll be sure to leave a trail of crumbs if you'd like to follow!

Harmonious Living

I love waking up to see all the little animals loving each other, bouncing around the house in playful romps. A sweet little scene this morning at the watering hole quickly dissipated as the aggressor, Boris the cat, tried to claim Marzipan's dog dish for his own. If only the harmony in nature wasn't so fleeting.

And now a glimpse at a new piece. As I type this the tip of my index finger sends the signal of "ouch tender skin!" up to my brain due to it wanting to blister from pressing so hard on the knife blade as I cut each leaf out on this piece.) It's worth it though.

"Wanting In Wheat Fields"

And this lovely little tidbit from Wiki! "Anthropomorphism is a well-established device in literature from early times. Aesop's Fables, a collection of short tales written or recorded by the ancient Greek citizen Aesop, make extensive use of anthropomorphism, in which animals and weather illustrate simple moral lessons. One poet who made high art of the literary device was the northern renaissance poet Robert Henryson in his Morall Fabillis, where the blend of human and animal characteristics is especially subtle and ambiguous. The Indian books Panchatantra (The Five principles) and The Jataka tales employ anthropomorphized animals to illustrate various principles of life.

In conjunction with other symbols it's a goldmine for the creative mind. This piece surprises me though, it's like a journal entry for me visible only in symbols and it directly correlates to what's going in the present for me. Revelation. Hmmm. Prints are now available in my FablesAndFoxes.etsy.com shop!

Things I've Read of Bears

Things in books are always so intriguing! This is the latest print being offered in my new Etsy shop, Fables And Foxes, called "Things I've Read Of Bears"! So Far I have two absolute favorites, two that seem a bit more special to me than the rest. Is that wrong to say? I don't think so...I can recount a couple original paintings that have been heartbreaking for me to part with, but I'm left with the comfort of knowing they're now in happy little homes.

Yay! Fables and Foxes is Up and Running!

Finally! I've been wanting to open Fables and Foxes for some time now and it's here finally! These illustrations and items were needing a little shop of their own. I love the feel of the shop although it's drastically different than the illustrations featured in the GumballGreande shop. Hopefully they'll carve out their own little niche within Etsy as I love them dearly. I love that I've found a way to combine my illustrations and paper cuts with jewelry! I was so excited that I couldn't even sleep last night! Here are some of the creations:

Little Red Riding Hood and Halloween!

A Little Red Riding Hood papercut that I did this morning! She's one of the first prints that will soon be available in my soon to be stocked up Etsy shop: FablesAndFoxes. I plan on launching about 6 prints on Sunday! This is the first!