Alma Benita- Process of Costume 2- Printing

Printing on Fabric*

I love the printed word on my pieces for many, many years.

I have found this to be one of my signatures characteristics of my dolls! Even one word can change the feel of a piece.

And so, for my Alma series, a written Spanish Blessing is so fitting...

      Amor 

Dios  te  bendiga  y  te dan  paz  y  amor,

corazón  a  corazón y  mano  a  mano

Alma Benita

Love

God bless you and give you peace and love,
heart to heart and hand in hand

Blessed Soul  

hand-sewing band into place

Design Concept: I also placed the Blessing so that heart to heart and hand in hand faces to the front on the skirt- just really liked that!

Step 1: Supply List

-Fabric - preferably a tightly woven thin fabric such as silk or cotton
-Freezer paper 

-One sheet of 8 1/2" x 11 computer paper
-Tape -INKJET Printer*- this will in no way work in a laser printer. As it is my husband found out I was running farbic though the inkjet- so I bought my own for my studio! I got it on special for around $80-90 and it has worked out nicely! HP Officejet 4500 ratings are fair on this one but I have had really no trouble.

-Rotary Blade, ruler, and cutting mat

Step 2: Cut to Size

Cut a piece of fabric to 8.5"x11". 

Repeat with freezer paper.

Step 3: Press Together

Place the fabric wrong side up onto ironing board. Place shiny side of freezer paper down facing wrong side of fabric. Line up so freezer paper it matches cut fabric.

Step 4: Trim

Trim around all edge so there are no stray threads.

Re-press if necessary.

Secure stabilized fabric face up with a piece of tape on top of regular computer paper about 1-inch down from top. Make certain that everything is lined up nicely with no sticky tape sticking out over the edges.

 Step 5: Set into printer carriage

Do a test run to check on using a sheet of paper to see which side of the paper your printer prints. I do this by making a small pencil mark in one corner with paper facing up. After I run a test print, I check where the pencil mark is while paper is still in the carriage to confirm if I need to place my fabric up or down.

You now have a piece of fabric that is supported by the attached piece of freezer paper and the secured onto the computer paper. This makes a solid grouping to be grabbed by the printer. Treat the finished piece like a regular piece of paper and stick it into an inkjet printer.  

Step 6: Print (with crossed fingers)

I always cross my fingers when I press print..so far so good! 

Note: I print in a very large font size. I calculate out how the font size and the spaces with fit evenly around the skirt.  I arrange the spacing to fit within the 11" length of the fabric to create lines of lettering "tapes" that can be sewn together with 1/4" seams to create one band that will end up to fit nicely around the diameter of the skirt.

Note: This is a very temperamental process and it may take you several times to see what works for your individual printer but once you have figured it out the results are amazing!

Other Dolls

Butterfly Story Doll with "book" vest

With vest open displaying Butterfly lore

in Chinese and in English.

Goldi

Just right...

Rose- Le Fleur

French "...that which we call a rose

by any other name would smell as sweet."

Snow

Mirror Mirror on the wall...

*Disclaimer: Not all printers can print on fabric, and putting fabric through your printer could damage it permanently. This is an experimental technique, and you should only try it if you understanding that it involves an element of risk.

Alma Benita- Process of Costume 1

 Gown

Choosing fabrics for this doll series was done with much thought and planning. I find that your fabric choice can reach beyond just the color and print, it can bring in a feeling to your piece. 

 As I have stated, I wanted to start with the White Feather from my inspiration words. I loved the floatiness of the feather...being able to take flight strongly and still symbolizing a softness and transparency.

I found a very delicate sheer linen fabric. It was as if I was actually working with feathers.

As this piece is very monochromatic, texture works really well to elicit a visual interest and in this case, with the sheerness a sense of the ethereal.

So light and transparent, every cut edge needed to be stabilized. I needed to use a very light hand while sewing to make certain the gown would be secure but still represented the lightness and floatiness of a feather.

sleeves with stabilized edges

To balance the sheer linen, I used a stiff tightly woven silk. I liked that this silk has a variegated weave within it.

The silk is so crisp that it can hold a beautiful pleat without pressing, which I will show you in the pants later.

The front and back of the bodice have the edges stabilized and then lined with the silk. You can notice that the sleeve areas are not sewn, my main concern here is to remove any bulk was not necessary.

 

The bodice complete with sheer sleeves...

The skirt is higher in the front and will frame the feet. I placed a French seam to one of the sides instead of the traditional back seam. You can spot it if you look carefully on the left of the photo. I planned this since there will be an Alma tag behind the feet and did not want an interruption in the flow of the back of the skirt.

at this point the skirt is un-hemmed.

Pants

When designing this under section, I originally created an underskirt, but found that I lost that transparency that this linen captures do nicely. When sewing, make the best use of your fabric's natural talent. 

So back to the drawing board and came up with slim cut pants.

In this piece, I added a bit of color to the hemline of each leg that just peeps out from below. I used a bit of my Indian silk fabric that holds a metallic gold thread woven within it.

I enjoy hand-stitching andlove that you can see just the slightest wisp of the thread at the hemline.

Next week, the printed band and Alma tag!

Alma Benita- Process of Design

It has taken me some time to get into my new studio and manifest that creative energy...and it is here!

With that I am finally getting to my commission pieces that have been waiting patiently (as well as my clients!).

Part of my year to follow is be more patient- thoughtful with myself, to give myself the chance to be mindful when creating...and with that I would like to share my process of creating the commission piece Alma Benita- Love-Marriage.

I have created Alma before so have my pattern already drafted, but how did I get to this point?? read more here

Alma was many years in the making- gathering...gathering information from many areas of life to come into one form of a doll.

I believe that these two image are the ones that inspired me the most to be able feel what I wanted to create. The serenity and peace...

 

I would like to emphasize that my goal here was not to copy these master pieces, but to be inspired by them...to gently catch their genius...their heart with which these pieces speak.

I always like to start with the head. It determines the size and the complexity of the rest of the body. The more complex the head, the rest of the body must follow suit and be as complex or as simple. It is wonderful to keep your pieces compatible all the way through.

For this piece, the head is sculpted in clay with the head open so it can be jointed onto the neck. Fabric is overlaid covering the head. I use a silk crepe. I love the texture and matte finish of this fabric. It is hard to find, so when I do, I put out the expense and buy at least 5-6 yards to hold me a couple of years.

Next comes sewing the body which I line using a cotton batiste, it a very light weight cotton- lovely. I  believe that when you sew-create- using the finest materials you can afford, it does a couple of things for you #1- it is much easier to work with fabric that is of high quality, it will just flow as you sew and #2- you put in so many hours and heart in creating- make it count by using something that is of consistent value as your time. You will find that you gather a sense of wanting to do the best you of your ability when you use nice products.

This piece is wall mounted so no need to have the legs bend at the knee. I made straight legs with a upper leg that inserts into a knee cap. Since the head is jointed I wanted to create a continuity and so jointed the elbows with a ball joint.

At this point, I usually add a bit of coloring in the face to give her a bit of a voice...identity.

Join me next week 

or the beginnings of the costuming!

Queen Anne- Process of Costume

The Process:

In creating the dress for Queen Anne, I thought it would be most appropriate to start with an 18th Century Robe à la Française...so off to the Internet to research...

The Robe à la Française gown that is most associated with the eighteenth century Rococo style, or a decorative style that featured purely ornamental designs and ornament with intricate floral patterns, popular between 1715 and 1775, is the robe à la française.

Made of rich fabrics and loaded with frilly decoration, the robe à la française was worn by only the most wealthy women. It featured a tight-fitting bodice with a square neckline. The ties along the front of the bodice were hidden beneath a stomacher, or triangular panel, that was richly decorated with bows or ruffles.

Tight sleeves covered the arm from the shoulders to the elbows, where many layers of lace and ruffles, called engageantes, circled the lower arm.

The back of the dress featured the same floor-length pleats. The outer skirt of the robe à la française was made of a fabric was left open at the front to reveal a petticoat.

Next I needed to find an illustration, this will give me a more simplified look to help me understand what is to be created. This helps me in two ways, one breaking down the pieces and parts of the gown to create the pattern and to know approximately how much and what kind of fabric to buy for each part.

Finding the perfect fabrics was next on my list. It so happened that my dear friend Pamela Armas (Treasures of the Gypsy) was in town with her lovely fabrics.

I found these two fabrics...the ornate for the outside robe and the peachy "burn out" for one of the underskirts...other pieces can be filled in with dupioni (not period correct) silk.

 

What held my attention mostly of this robe fabric was the scallop edge that I thought would work out very nicely for the hemline and somehow with the sleeve.

Although gorgeous, I wanted to tweak the robe fabric, by softening the value -color intensity.

I have been over dying fabric for years and do not find this process in the least bit intimidating in any case...I decided to start with the less invasive treatment- tea. No luck, I believe the embroidery threads are of a poly mix and the tea had no effect. So my next trick up my sleeve is good ol' Rit dye. It will dye just about anything.

I mixed up a dye bath of tan a little stronger than usual to counter react the poly. Into the dye bath went the fabric and it came out not bad but, a little darker than I really wanted. So I washed the fabric in my machine. I know you are thinking how can this fabric take all this??- good quality is the answer.

It came out- still not happy with the color- so yes, I made a bleach bath and dipped it in and took it down in value to achieve the exact color I wanted- back into the washer (and dryer)...perfect!

 

The Design:

As I design any garment, I draw out my pattern, sew, make corrections, and (always) write myself notes. Sometimes, it may be a year before I come back to that pattern- so notes are always good!

In some cases, I will also do a test run on the paper before I commit and cut (my usually expensive) fabric. 

Here I folded the paper to see how it could drape and 

adjusted it several times, marking the final pleats in blue...

Side note: I love sewing, especially hand-sewing- and I am grateful, that now I have made schedule changes that allow me to be mindful- focusing of attention and awareness. It has brought a whole new caliber of experience to the moment-to-moment stitches. I feel that my work is reaching closer in communicating what is in my heart- my soul.

Sewing the Garment:

I am doing a gown of inspiration from a period and not a replication. I find that the more I use my brain in creating things that are an inspiration from something and not a replication, the more original it will be.

Much of this garment was hand-sewn together. I did use dupioni as many of my liners- which I have stated was not time period correct, but I love sewing with it and it drapes with a bit of stiffness that I like..and it IS my design!

sewing the ruffle to the sleeve

Robe a la Française 

Over lace with liner of silk orange dupioni

 

Skirts and Stomacher
Under skirt of pale peach dupioni with silk tie

Over skirt of (peach burn out) fabric with silk tie

 Stomacher pale peach dupioni with antique lace overlay

Hat and Mule Slippers

 All hand-sewn
Hat of mat board, dupioni, antique lace, & silk ribbons
Shoes of mat board, silk fabric, little pearl buttons, & silk ribbon

 Costumed and ready for an outing!

 check out the Designing of the Body! Link here