Getting Ready to Visit Tulsa

I am so excited to be visiting Tulsa this May at the request of the Tulsa Dolling Dames!  I was so pleased to be invited to teach a class for them that I created a doll with advanced ball jointing techniques that I have never taught before.  The doll has a swivel head also.  I have even been playing with techniques to inset eyes in a needle-sculpted head with a cloth overlay for the class.  This is the doll for the class.  I still need to complete painting the body.  The class will also involve using watercolors for skin tone and facial coloring.
Hope you are enjoying a very creative week :-)

It's time for Spring Already!

Okay, I don’t think I am alone in having enough of winter and being ready for spring.  Well, I can’t control the weather but I can make it look more like spring inside.  I have been on a flower making spree and thought I would share some of the flower art dolls I have been working on.  

I really fell in love with this one and just might keep her for myself!

Most of them will be on sale at the Quinlan Art Doll and Teddy Bear Convention in Philadelphia on Saturday May 2, 2015.  If you are interested in finding out more about the convention click on the following link

http://www.quinlanmuseum.com/convention/agenda-details.html

 I am also teaching a class at the same convention on Thursday April 30^th on how to needle sculpt and use watercolors to create a cloth doll head.  Information to sign up for the class can be found by clicking on the same link.

I also wanted to share that I have been interviewed by my good friend Maria for a blog post on Greene Earth Originals.  If you are interested in reading the article and seeing some more pictures of my dolls you can click on the link here

http://greeneearthoriginals.blogspot.com/

If you sign up for her newsletter she will give you a free mixed media tutorial.  Pretty awesome right?

And last but not least, I am getting ready to teach Claudette:  A Cage Doll online class on A for Artistic starting March 30^th.  You can find out more about the class by clicking on the link here

http://www.aforartistic.com/claudette-a-cage-doll-marla-l-niederer-cloth-doll-artist.html

Claudette: A Cage Doll

I just wanted to share that I will be teaching a new online class,  Claudette:  A Cage Doll, on A for Artistic starting March 31.   If you are interested in more information click on the link to the class

http://www.aforartistic.com/classes/open-classes/claudette-a-cage-doll-marla-l-niederer-cloth-doll-artist.html

Claudette

 I just wanted to share with you my newest creation, Claudette!   Claudette is a mixed media, needle-sculpted cloth, ball jointed, cage art doll, with a cloth facial overlay.  She was inspired by romance, whispered words remembered from a dream, and Santos cage dolls.

She has a shrine to romance inside her cage skirt.  I used a variety of mixed media techniques to create the picture frame inside her skirt cage shrine.  

I hope you like her!

Season's Greetings

Wishing you and yours a very happy holiday season and wonderful New Year!

Entering the World of Romance

Now that my Bridgette online class is over I have immersed myself completely into my next project, Claudette.  Claudette will be a very romantic version of the cage doll.  And since Claudette lives in the world of romance guess what fantasy world I have been living in lately? I should be decorating my home and getting ready for the holidays but instead I just can’t seem to leave Claudette’s world of romance.  I spent the past few days playing with paper, paint, and cardboard to create the romantic and vintage style frame and flowers that will be used in her embellishment.  I woke up ridiculously early this morning and had to “gild” the frames by using an idea that just popped into my head. 

Of course this fantasy world has also influenced my search for the end of the internet.  I thought I would share a few romantic tidbits I found this week.

Did you know that December is one of the biggest times of year for getting engaged?  According to an article in USA Today (that of course I found online) the four big proposal days of the year are Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s. 

The Romantics, an American power pop and new wave band from Detroit, Michigan formed in 1977 on Valentine’s Day according to Wikipedia.  You can hear them perform one of their hits “What I like About You” on youtube by clicking on this link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rqnw5IfbZOU

Enjoy!

The Beginnings of Claudette

As my online class Bridgette is winding down on A for Artistic I have been working on my next project, Claudette.  She was inspired by words I remembered from one of my dreams, by cage dolls, half dolls, a good sale on pretty bird cages that I found at Michael’s, Marie Antoinette fashions, and Romance.  She is far from complete, just in her beginning stages, but I thought you might want to see how she is turning out so far.