A Three-Day Class

• For Intermediate to Advanced Skill Level
• Class Size Limited to Twelve Students

Students have a choice of flukes and tails. A one-piece straight or curved tail with flukes made with either muslin or fancy, glitzy, sheer fabric. The muslin tail is stuffed with polyfil, and a plastic ring is stitched to the doll’s back to turn her into a wall art piece. The knit tail is treated so as not to leak the clean aquarium sand with which it is stuffed. This creates a heavy tail that can be posed on the edge of a shelf and expected to stay there without being attached to a base. There is another set of much larger flukes that are like a blank canvas on which to display whatever kind of needle-art one wishes to display. These girls just scream for embellishment.

Class Outline:

• Day 1:
  Starting with the pre-sewn body, students will stuff and needle model the torso. The knit tail will be treated and left to dry overnight. Arms and hands will be wired and stuffed. An optional armature will be made for a posable tail.

• Day 2:
  Will be entirely devoted to stuffing the head and needle modeling the face. More advanced students are encouraged to pre-stitch two or more heads so they can practice the techniques while teacher is working with less advanced students. Once these techniques have been practiced several times, the student will own them.

• Day 3:
  Students will stitch all parts together to create a whole doll (time permitting). Doll will be dyed or painted. Flukes will be made and stitched to tail. Time permitting students will begin to embellish them. Various wigging techniques will be discussed and, time permitting, will be demonstrated.

Kit Contents

• Pattern book and instructions or CD
• One yard of Southern Belle muslin (enough for two dolls)
• A fat-quarter of Ponte knit fabric for tail(enough for several tails)
• A dream-seamer tool
• Four special needles
• Pipe cleaners for wiring fingers
• Wire and tape for tail armature
• Wire for flukes
• Use of classroom supplies

Kit

Kit Fee $30 (a $45 value).

Please note that I have added $5 to this fee to cover the recently increased cost of individual priority mailings to students and for shipping and flying with classroom supplies. This is my first increase in 20 years.

Kits are optional. If students do not want a kit, or if the classroom is supplied by a shop who can stock supplies, I will not provide kits. I will be pleased to share suppliers with shop buyer. I will, however ask students to pay a $15 fee (payable in class) to cover cost of pattern and for use of classroom supplies.

Students Bring

If student does not own all of these supplies DO NOT run out to buy missing items. I will have some for class use.

• No sewing machine necessary as all sewing in done prior to class
• Pre-sewn torso, tails, and flukes
• Favorite dollmaking tools and supplies
• Thimbles
• Mettler Swiss Metrosene thread, off white color
• Purple air soluble marker, not the blue one
• Hemostats for stuffing
• Optivisor
• Small assortment of organza or other fabrics for flukes
• Florist wire – white covered wire, heaviest gauge you find in the craft shop
• Pipe cleaners from a smoke shop or newsagent for fingers. Not chenille stems
  Note: If you live in a very humid environment I recommend aluminum sculpting wire in smallest gauge available, instead.
• Plastic table cover and apron in case we have time to paint
• Heavy-duty wire cutters
• Needle nosed pliers
• About half-pound of aquarium or craft sand (optional)
• Bottle of Jo-Sonja or other textile medium to make sand tail leak-proof (optional)
• Small plastic container to immerse tail in medium (optional)
• Two clothespins to hang tail to dry (optional)
• Small hair dryer to dry paint and textile medium (optional)
• Small bag of Airtex Premium stuffing – or stuffing of choice
• Grrrip Glue with dispenser (DollmakersJourney.com)

Classroom Supplies: Provided by Mimi

• Optivisors
• Hemostats in several sizes
• Swiss Metrosene thread
• Nylon drapery thread
• Replacement needles
• Brushes and paints embossing powders
• Pins
• Colored pencils and pens
• Wire cutters in several sizes
• Pliers in several sizes
• Hair dryers
• Spray bottles
• Armature wire
• Pipe cleaners
• Textile medium
• Floral wire and floral tape
• And much more

Pattern and instructions mailed to each individual student 4 to 6 weeks prior to class, or to class coordinator to be given to student upon registration.

Copyright © Jim and Gloria Winer.
You may make a copy of this article for your own personal use.
Copying for commercial purposes is prohibited.