Work in Progress: Shoes for Cixi

Concept sketches for the shoes.

Wax models of the shoes in the works. I hope to finish the second one by Wednesday and begin molding. It's probably the most challenging pair I've made so far. I'm worried about the mold design and the inject-ability of these molds and hope to find out if they work by the end of the week.

Tonight I've got lots of writing to do, but it's hard, because I can't stop thinking about these unfinished waxes sitting on my desk.

More ED shoes

Last week all the shoe orders from January with the exception of two pairs have been mailed out to you guys. So, expect them in the mail in a couple of weeks. They are so yummy looking; I just want to eat them up!

In the meantime, enjoy some pictures of a several new shoe finishes I've been playing around with. They are also available to order now.

I added three more colors to Marie-Antoinette 24k gold plated and synthetic-enameled Macaroon Collection. From left to right are Creme Macaroon, Fuchsia Macaroon, Rose Macaroon and Lavender Macaroon. I left the soles uncovered, because as my new assistant had told me: "Marina, deliberately covering up gold is ridiculous. Don't be ridiculous please". I've decided to heed her her advice. This time. They are $485 CND each.

These are new and adorable additions to the Hopscotch enameled Candy Collection. From left to right are Red Candy, Lavender Candy and Turquoise Candy. These are synthetic-enameled bronze. No gold plate this time, but they totally could be. Hopscotch Candy shoes in un-plated bronze are $350 CND and $385 CND for plated.

Which one is your favorite Candy?

You can find more information on the shoes here.PS: Post about a birthday contestant guessing my current project #2 is up next.

Twenty To Midnight-upcoming London show

Here are some preview shots of my new doll-Twenty To Midnight. She is going to a show in London at the end of this month.

Twenty To Midnight is a one of a kind tattooed doll, featuring a silver-plated, limited edition bronze casting of a hand carved Rococo wig sculpture. The wig is magnetic and removable, with one of a kind gemstone accents of 6 Pink Tourmalines and 2 Rubies.

Midnight's china face painting was loosely inspired by Audrey Kawasaki's beautiful girls.

Midnight's silver-plated, bronze slippers are accented with solitaire Rubies, glass beads and tiny bows.

The finished wig weighs only 119.1 grams, or 4.2 ounces and is relatively light compared to some of my other metal head ornaments, such a Sterling Snowflake crown or a Sterling Cathedral crown. I am immensely pleased with how it turned out, as I really didn't anticipate such a close fit to the contours of the head because of the shrinkage and inevitable warping of the model during molding and casting. The inside of the wig is lined with layers of soft leather to maximize the tightness of contact.

We are still working on the web gallery for Twenty To Midnight, but I'll post more photos and information for her on Monday or Tuesday.

Today I have to get her ready for shipment.

Enchanted Doll Tins on Sale: 20% off!

We are having a Christmas Sale on Enchanted Doll tins for 20% off until December 24th, 2010. All tins come with special custom shaped foam inserts to safely store and transport an Enchanted Doll, but even if you don't have a doll the foam can be removed allowing the tin to be used to store all kinds of things. I'm a bit of a box fanatic; I just love keeping things in metal tins, from art supplies to photographs and other nick-nacks.

For more information on the tins, please visit the Enchanted Doll Tins page. That is where you will also be able to fill out an order form for purchasing.

This sale is for a limited time, so now's your chance to order a tin!

Shoes

Wax models for Marie-Antoinette and Hopscotch shoes.

I have my own little superstitions when it comes to metal projects: I don't like to show pictures of any wax models until I have my first successful cast. That way I know I have tangible results before I disclose it, but I also have this irrational belief that if I show progress shots before the end result, it might somehow jinx everything. This refers almost exclusively to metal projects though. I know it's silly, but I don't like to deviate from that.

Below is the inspiration for the Hopscotch shoes.

sulamith-wulfing_nature-spirits_snow-stars_med

This beautiful illustration was my very first exposure to Sulamith Wulfing's work in 2001. It reminds me of a Siberian Winter landscape so much. I think that the contrast of her uncharacteristically light outfit and particularly her little shoes against the coldness of the setting made a really strong impression on me. "Why is she wearing those summer shoes in the snow?"- I kept thinking as I held the book in my hands: " That's not an appropriate outfit at all. She'll die of exposure!" There is probably an evil stepmother involved in this business somehow.

It actually reminds me of one particular Russian fairy tale "The Twelve Months", where a stepdaughter gets sent to the forest in the dead of winter to pick some flowers and instructed not to return without any. In the middle of this suicide mission she meets human representations of each of the 12 months of the year and they save her, setting up further event in the story.

Anyway. Every time I look at this picture, it makes me want to drink hot chocolate and wear warm socks.

Another New Shoe Design - Hopscotch

My childhood leather sandals + Sulamith Wulfing illustrations + Japanese schoolgirl stereotype = Hopscotch.

Although, these are Sulamith Wulfing more than anything else, as the design is directly inspired by a certain illustration of hers. I'll show you later.

These are replicas of the pair my one of a kind doll Alice in Wonderland wears, except instead of leather, they are cast in bronze, plated with 24k gold and painted with synthetic enamel.

Introducing a new feature- the strap button: a simpler, yet equally elegant solution to the teeny tiny buckle. I love it.

Hopscotch Styles From left to right: Sunday Best, First Ball and September.

Experimentation with the most basic finishes and color combination. More experiments required, of course. Especially the kind where I wear gloves and laugh like an evil scientist from time to time. While working on specimens of miniature footwear. "Chad, scalpel please, quickly!..."Two styles Hopscotch and Marie-Antoinettes, both 24k gold-plated and enameled. Marie-Antoinette style features my signature, tiny buckle strap and decorative ornamentation on the front, back and heel, while Hopscotch is a simpler, less decorative style reminiscent of classical child's shoes.

My place is just crawling with dolls and their tiny shoes, amongst other doll things right now. Some of my guests find it a little strange here. Can't blame them-sometimes I find my own home quite strange. But lovely.

Any favorites? Yes, yes, I know everyone likes Macaroons.

New Metal Shoe Designs

I'm adding more designs to the Enchanted Doll line of cast metal footwear. I call this style Marie-Antoinette. These are Cast in bronze.

Marie-Antoinettes from left to right: MACAROON - 24k gold plate and synthetic enamel finish, in the middle CLASSIC BLUE - silver plate with black patina finish and on the right is WARM LAVENDER - bronze cast with satin finish.

I've been wanting to make slippers in this 17th century/Rococo style for months, but had to put it off and off and off until I just couldn't wait anymore.

Some more experiments are needed with different enamel colors and finishes, but i'm already quite infatuated with these.

I'd also like to see how they can be accessorized and which of these styles can be made available to order.

I love the enameled look, but it's quite a challenge to apply. If there is enough interest in them, they may become available for orders occasionally. I donno yet. So far, only the creative part of the shoes has been done. Sill need to figure out the logistics of orders.

I'll be announcing more information about Marie-Antoinettes, such as the price and wait-listing in a bit, meanwhile, stay tuned for more photos. And more shoes.

Yummy?

Dye sublimation print kimono

I originally intended for this to be a night robe of sorts, but then it somehow evloved. It could still work as a fancy night robe and be dressed up or dressed down. Love the flower combs. I think I'll try doing more colors.

The long road to Sulamith Wulfing

This is just a little something from my doll closet. It's Sapphire wearing an extra casting of the two-horned helmet. Did I mention that this helmet was inspired by my beloved artist Sulamith Wulfing?

This one appears to be one of her earlier drawings from when she was only 27 years old, practically the same age as me. I'm 28.I've always loved this particular drawing not just for its haunting beauty, but because it contains the stylistic characteristics of both her earlier, as well as her later work; it captures the gradual transition between styles, like a still frame of her creative process and represents a moment in time when   Sulamith's distict and unique style was beginning to truly establish and solidify itself into its mature form.

I value this little drawing because it's like a nostalgic, Polaroid snap shot of Sulamith's Wulfing search for her creative identity and her own creative language of symbols with which to express her fantastical inner world.

One day I hope to make a spiritual pilgrimage to her home in Germany, to experience for myself the place where she had lived, worked and died, and to be close to her original paintings, which are still hanging on the walls of her house. I hope that I may see the original of this drawing as well.

I still have to find out where exactly her home is located. All I know is that it's in the Eilberfeld disctict of Wuppertal, on the slope above river Gelpe. Her address is not exactly advertised. Google Maps tells me that there is a street named Sulamith-Wulfing Strasse in the city, but I'm not sure if that's in the same place as her home.  If I can't find it, then I'm fully prepared to just go to Wuppertal and wonder around town asking strangers if they know where Sulamith Wulfing's house is. I'm sure I'll get a lead eventually.

Perhaps one among you, my dear readers, may have visited the house of this amazing aritst and knows where and how it can be visited? I would appreciate any help in finding my way to Sulamith Wulfing-the source of my inspiration.

Enchanted Doll tins

Purchasing information coming later this week.

Original source behind Lotus shoes

In response to my first post regarding these lotus shoes, there were some who questioned the authenticity of my shoe design on the grounds that the top part of the shoe is Han while the sole is Manchu-two different traditions and cultures. Although I have absolutely no problem with taking liberties with historical accuracy for the sake of achieving the highest expression of creativity possible, this particular project was actually entirely based on a real, authentic lotus shoe. And now I give you the source for my inspiration. Behold this antique beauty!This picture is from a book written by one of my favorite authors, Beverly Jackson. It's called "Splendid Slippers: A thousand years of an erotic tradition", and this photograph is from page 106. Here is an excerpt from the text:"Exceptionally rare silver couched, pink slipper, length 4 inches. Although made for a bound foot, the shoe sits on a Manchu-style mid-sole wooden pedestal painted white, height 1 1/2 inches. It probably belonged to the Han Chinese concubine of a Manchu gentleman, thus explaining the unusual fusion of styles." -Beverly JacksonIt's a wonderful book which is one of my prized possessions. I bought it a couple of years ago and as soon as I saw the picture of this little shoe, I knew I was going to make it. It's just so exquisite. I've actually recently had the honor of becoming personally acquainted with the author, which is an interesting story for another time.And here is more silver shoes. I had them gold plated and painted with synthetic-based enamel. I really enjoyed playing with colors, but it's actually really difficult to lay the paint on evenly on such a small surface and then get the shades of color to come out right after thermal stabilizing aka, baking. You may think that your blue is the blue you want, but the temperature changes and distorts the tones, which makes it difficult to guess what it's going to end up looking like in the end. Also, they are really tiny shoes and, well, let's just say I cursed a lot while painting them.But I'm more than pleased with the results. Which one is your favorite?

Silver Lotus slippers

The idea of making a pair of Lotus slippers for my doll in precious metal has been on my mind for years,  ever since I made the doll Lotus with bound feet and beaded Lotus shoes in 2006. Even though I am appalled by the barbaric practice of mutilating women's feet for aesthetic purposes in ancient China, I am simultaneously enchanted by the decorative aspect of the exquisitely beautiful lotus shoes that were made to be worn by those mutilated feet- or as they were called in China, Golden Lilies.Such a pretty name to describe a pair of horrendous-looking, broken feet. Yet, even as I condemn the practice, inexplicably I seem to be drawn to the beauty of  the shoes and the surreal aesthetic of tiny feet. Cinderella wore glass slippers on her allegedly natural, little feet, and that was considered sexy in Europe. I mean, the entire fairly tale seems to be about those magnificent shoes and the virtue of having small feet. So, it appears that the Chinese were not the only ones to fetishize the size of women's feet, they were just the ones to do something about it.Anyway. I've dreamt about making these for months, if not years, and I'm so happy to see them finally finished! I had to make a pair of bound feet of course, so that my dolls could wear these pretty slippers. In this picture you can see Echo's normal feet next to her bound feet. The beauty here is that my dolls' feet can be interchanged back and forth from small to normal just like a pair of shoes, while the real women didn't have that opportunity.This particular pair was inspired by a real shoe, which in fact is very unique. It's a lotus-style shoe for a bound foot, that sits on a Manchu-style platform. And the Manchu women did not bind their feet. I'll post a picture of it soon and tell you more about my source once I experiment some more with these. I'll post the pictures of the feet once I make another pair and work out the painting style for them.I am considering making a pair of interchangeable lotus feet and shoes available for resin dolls. In fact, Echo will be the first costumed edition to be released. I don't have a price point for this costumed doll yet, as the project is still in the early stages. She will have to undergo some changes to address the incredible complexity of her present hair style, but the costume will remain the same. This is one of the things I'm working out now. And I'm very excited about it.

Accessorized doll shoes

Speaking of accessories: With the Olympics over, I had finally been able to get some castings of my shoe orders done. I was trying different color ribbon combinations for fun. I'm very pleased with how they look. I'll continue the experiments when I get the next batch of shoes cast.

Lolita outfit on Ebay: listing 330407456045

My beloved Lolita's outfit is finally on ebay. The auction has started today on February 21st and will go on for seven days, ending on Sunday, February 28th.The outfit includes eight pieces.1) Sterling Silver Corset with 24k goldplate2) Sterling silver bra with 24 k goldplate3) Bronze Stilettos with 24 goldplate4) 100% poly Stockings with hand stitched floral design.5) Detachable Garter  straps6) White slip  with Ruffles7) French Fan with 24k gold beads, peals and appliqué embroidery.8 ) Cubic Zirconium and Austrian crystal Hair bandThe starting price is $2,320.00 USD  (Two thousand, three hundred and twenty US dollars). Here is the link to the ebay page.Please let me know if you have any questions about the auctions.

The coffin pillar wax injections turned out!

They didn't really come out of the mold in one piece, but my complicated models rarely do, so it's business as usual. The waxes require extensive touch ups for casting, but that is always the case with my stuff because of the sheer size. The most important part is that there is no warping of the general form of the pillar, as that was the biggest concern. I am quite relieved now as this  was the most complicated part of the entire coffin project. But who knows, I might come up with something even more complicated to make tomorrow. I'm weird like that.It's almost a little bit masochistic: I don't seem to like a quiet, peaceful, trouble-free existence. I always need to deal with some sort of a problem to feel like my life has meaning. I think I inherited this trait from my parents who are pretty adventurous, cooky couple that also can't seem to live a simple, uncomplicated life. Like my mom and dad like to say: "First we create our problems, and then we heroically resolve them!"Unfortunately I won't have this pillar in time for the opening of the Dragonspace show as my casting techs are too booked up with Olympics coming up, but perhaps half way through I might be able to sneak it in. Don't know yet.Lolita's outfit is finally going up on Ebay auction on February 21st. It took me a long time to bring myself to part with it. Seriously, this time it's for realz y'all.ATTENTION CONTEST PARTICIPANTS: Mailing deadline has been extended to March 13th. And that big news I mentioned earlier is still coming up!