A Joyous Beginning …
IT ALL BEGAN WITH WILLOW. My heart practically melts every time I look at her. Since she was the first Waldorf-inspired doll I made, I had no idea what she would look like when I reached her finished, put-together state. I truly enjoyed every moment I spent creating her, but I must admit that embroidering eyes is not for the faint of heart! It’s a tedious step that comes long after the project has started, so I put a lot of pressure on myself to get it right. (Or at least get it okay!)
A BIT OF BACK STORY. If you’ve read the “Yesteryear” portion of my website, you already know that doll making was not my first delve into the creative world of artist-made “friends”. Many, many years before Willow, I began sculpting clay-faced bears. Computers were a fairly new thing in 1996, so I didn’t have the advantage of tutorials, videos or reaching out to other artists across the internet. I remember laying awake at night, mentally constructing my first clay-faced teddy bear … first by one method, and then another. How would I get the clay face to stay inside a fur “hood” and how would I create a moveable head? What steps needed to come first, then second, and so on? Finally, I figured out the process I would use for my first bear, and continue using throughout the following years of bear-making.
Then, of course there was the actual designing and drawing of body and hood (head) patterns to accommodate the structural process I’d settled on. My thoughts would continue way into the night. It was during those hours that the house was quiet and my time was my own. I looked forward to those late-night hours when I could just get lost in my thoughts and creative ideas.
GIVING CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE. All that being said, I feel it’s important to give credit where credit is due. The process of me creating Waldorf-inspired dolls did not require me to lay awake at night, figuring out the process of what came first and what came second, as it did with my bears.
I discovered figandme.com on Etsy in early 2023, and purchased one of her Waldorf-inspired doll patterns. It came with very detailed step-by-step instructions and dozens of photos. So, when I was ready to start my first doll, Willow, I had all of the information I needed. (See Willow, Sage and Posy in the Gallery.) Thank you Fabs!
Later that same year, I purchased doll and clothing patterns with detailed tutorials including dozens of photos from Ildila.com. These patterns further developed my doll-making capabilities. I love the baby hands! (See Randy and Rhonda in the Gallery.) Thank you Ildila!
These two ladies painstakingly and generously put years of their own expertise and experience into their patterns, tutorials and videos, helping those of us who are new to doll-making begin with confidence. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if one or both of these ladies had their own sleepless nights early in the developmental stages of their doll-making, as they sorted through their imaginations to develop these patterns and processes! Fabs and Ildila, thank you for making your beautiful patterns and perfectly detailed tutorials available to the public! Each one is a true treasure. ~ Patti