|
From ShakerWoods.com Archived Articles
“I was making wedding gowns and fancy bridal baskets with embroidered garters and padded photo albums when a friend suggested I put some of my baskets in a consignment shop,” Patricia says. Her baskets sold well enough, but the cost of keeping enough baskets in stock made it hard to realize any profit. “That was 1990 and my husband, Dan, and I had two daughters and a son and would have two more sons before our family was complete,” Patricia says. “I was looking for something I could make and market from my home.” She loved babies and the idea to make an infant-size cloth doll appealed to her. But she didn’t want to make ordinary dolls. What could she do to set them apart? She had an artistic flair for humor and as she shopped around in fabric and craft stores she found the acrylic hair that has become the trademark of her collectible dolls. “This curly hair comes in the wildest neon colors . Orange and green. Pink and purple. Every color you can imagine. With an armful of colored acrylic, I raced around finding coordinated cotton prints.” She seamed the colorful outfits into the 22-25 inch white muslin dolls; attached the serendipitous wigs she made and then embedded special marble eyes as a first step in giving the face character.
In addition to his day job, her husband has become expert in rolling hair and stuffing doll hands. He also makes stands and swings for the dolls. The angels on swings can be hung on a nursery wall. “I make the angel gowns from wedding gowns I find in thrift shops. I love the antique wedding dresses with lace and appliqués that I can use creatively,” Patricia says. “It’s hard to cut into the dresses but I can get at least three dolls from a dress and when they’re finished with a kind of glitter I use, they will be enjoyed by a new generation. That’s better than being stuffed in a box.” Each doll is different. She made five test dolls in 1990 and added them to her display of baskets at a small craft show. She watched the customers smiling and chatting about the unusual dolls. One woman asked if she could make her a black doll. “Absolutely,” Patricia said. She also added an off-white body base at that time. “I call them keepsake dolls and it seems the wilder looking I make them,. the faster they fly off the shelves.” Last year 500 dolls “flew off the shelves” of the shows where her dolls were featured. “We got a little trailer to haul dolls and announced our schedule of shows. I noticed that we had many repeat customers and I knew word-of-mouth was fueling our sales. Last year I made frog dolls and they were a big hit. Their bibs say; I’m so hoppy.” Prices start at $38.75 for the large collector dolls. Doll accessories also available. Find Patricia in Booth 147. © Copyright ShakerWoods.com |
