I can't seem to get away from this bird motif...it wasn't planned, but I will readily submit. Below are the photos of my most recent dolls, and I'll be announcing the details of my shop update shortly (it's looking like Sunday). I'll also be posting links to the shop listings so you can see prices and details in advance of the update itself.

Wren lives on a windswept outcrop where she feeds gulls from her hand and mostly keeps to herself. The villagers think she's a witch. I guess when you sequester yourself, wear vaguely victorian clothing and talk to birds, you're sort of poking the hive...

Gretchen is taller than every boy she's ever met and stronger, too. She can only fit swallow eggs on her head, but she's channeling Ostrich all the way.

If there was a ballet called 'Bluebird' it would star Maeve. But she wouldn't eat wet kleenex or stab the other dancers or get up to any of that other weirdo ballerina behaviour. She'd make them all a nice cup of tea and offer up embroidered hankies.

Gisele is the weird one, let's be frank. She's a little bit gawky, a little bit of a bird herself. But she's fiercely loyal and can put up her dukes and when she gets into scraps defending one of the Bird Gerhls, she doesn't even get a run in her stockings.

Black Swan Shop Update: July 2nd

June 27, 2011Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name1 Comment

Mail service has resumed, so I will updating my Big Cartel shop this Saturday, July 2nd at 2pm EST/ 11 PST. (You can convert this time to a different time zone by clicking here.) All the dolls (photos, descriptions and prices) can be viewed in the shop now.

Update on Hold due to Postal Strike

June 22, 2011Music, Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name1 Comment

Just a quick note to let you know that, while the newsletter is all ready to go and the doll listings are finished, I'm waiting to announce a date for the update until the Canada Post strike is over. It looks like mail might resume here by the end of the week, but I want to be on the safe side to be sure that no one is waiting too long for a doll.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with a video by my favourite new band, Mountain Main. I bought their beautiful album, Made the Harbor, while I was pregnant with my lovely and it still makes me feel all warm and fuzzy whenever I listen to it. I've always fantasized that I might sing gorgeous, lush harmonies in front of an olf-fashioned microphone, surrounded by candles while holed up in a sweet little house. Sadly, I can't sing. (The same reason I'll never share the stage with Nancy Wilson and rock out to 'Crazy on You', but that's a different fantasy...)

Swan Lake Dolls

June 12, 2011Dolls (Mine), Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name11 Comments

I've been away from blogland for a while, but I return bearing treats...I have finally finished and photographed all of my Swan Lake dolls! Completing these five dolls felt a little like a marathon at times; gone are the days when I could sit and work for hours at a time. Now I sneak in an hour here, twenty minutes there. So, while spending time with my babe is my absolute priority, I'm pretty proud to have finally finished these, despite being way behind my projected schedule. ('Schedule' is a word that is beginning to seem preposterous to me!)But enough babbling and onto photos:

~click photos to enlarge~

Over the next week, I'll be making up the doll listings with descriptions, sizes and prices for each doll. I'm going to wait until the listings and the newsletter are done before announcing the date of the update because I don't want to get stuck racing to finish things at the last minute. I'll provide links to the listings in the Shop Update announcement. Remember that if you would like to receive my newsletter, you can sign up by filling out the badge in the upper right hand corner of this blog, just below the banner. I send out a brief notice a few days before each update, as well as a notice just before the dolls are added to the shop.

Fall Update Preview: New Dollies

October 5, 2010Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name8 Comments

I'm so tired I can barely keep my eyes open, so hopefully I won't make mistakes in this post, but here are all the new dollies. The listings are all up in my Big Cartel shop, so you can see more photos, descriptions and prices there. (I'm pretty pleased with myself for getting everything photographed and posted, even with an unexpected trip to the vet today. Luckily, my sweet little cat seems to be doing okay...)

Sweet dreams!

Fall Shop Update on Big Cartel: October 6th!

September 29, 2010Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name7 Comments

My next shop update will take place Wednesday, October 6th at 5pm EST/ 2pm PST at my new-ish Big Cartel Shop. (You can click here for a time zone converter.)

UPDATE: There are photos below and the listings are now posted in the shop. (They will be marked 'coming soon' until I activate them at 5:00pm on October 6th.)

Also, just a gentle reminder that I can't reserve dolls in advance. The dolls have been selling out quite quickly the last few updates, and I know this puts some people at a disadvantage if they can't get to their computers in time, but for the time being this is best and fairest way I know how to do updates.

But I will be sending out a brief reminder email to my newsletter recipients a couple of days before the update to let people know that it's coming up, I'll also be adding photos over the next week, and I'll do my very best to have the listings up a day or so in advance so that anyone who's interested can sneak a look at the prices and descriptions in advance. I have a wall hanging, a bust, and ten new dolls, some of which are a bit larger and have somewhat more complex jointing than most of my small dolls up to this point. These dolls have no particular theme, but they do seem to be organizing themselves along lines of either all-black or all-pale clothing; perhaps a hint of witchiness and ghostiness in anticipation for my second favourite day of the year? (After Christmas, because at heart I'm really just a sentimental old fool).

Shop Update on Big Cartel Tomorrow!!

June 24, 2010Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name5 Comments

I realized that I made a mistake on my shop update banner, so I've deleted it and added a corrected version above; please note that the update is at tomorrow, June 25th at 6pm EST /3pm PST (not 2pm).

Below are the final photos; there are 11 dolls in total (Tabitha is a figurine). All their listings are posted in my new Big Cartel shop, so you can go check them out if you want to see more photos, prices or descriptions. Some people have written asking when the dolls will be available on Etsy, so at the risk of sounding like a broken record, please note that they will not be on Etsy;

ALL DOLLS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON BIG CARTEL.

(Sorry for shouting!)

Shop Update & a Brand New Shop of Fanciness

June 22, 2010Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name8 Comments

Some exciting things afoot in the land of the Black-Eyed...I'm finally putting the finishing touches on some dolls for my next shop update, which I'm planning for this Friday, June 25th at 6pm EST/ 3pm PST. (You can click here to convert this time to another zone.) I will have at least 11 new dolls - possibly a couple more if I really hustle in he next few days.

I'm also opening a new shop on Big Cartel, and while I'll continue to sell prints on Etsy, for now the new shop is where you'll find any new, available dolls. There are two major advantages to the new shop:

1) You don't need to sign up/ have an account with Big Cartel to purchase; you simply log into your paypal account directly from the listing.

2) Big Cartel allows me to list items and photos in advance and mark them "coming soon". This way, you can see more photos of the the dolls, as well as their prices, before the update and get a better idea of whether or not there's a cutie you want to try and nab.

One drawback:

1) While I can create and save the listings in advance, I can't activate them all at exactly the same time the way I could on Etsy. Instead, I while have to have multiple browsers open at once and activate them one after the other. This means that it might take a moment or two for all items to switch from "COMING SOON" to "ADD TO CART", so you might need to refresh the page a few times if you're waiting for a particular doll to become available.

I apologize if this is pain for anyone, but I do think the pros far outweigh the con. The listings take far less time to create, and the ability to create and save listings in advance is *huge* for me. I can only imagine that once I have a tiny human to care for, such time-saving and streamlining measures just might save my sanity. Okay - enough blabla...pictures are so much more fun. Here are the first six dolls and I'll be adding photos of the rest sometime tomorrow or Thursday.

You can see more photos and the prices for all these dolls over at my new Big Cartel shop. A little note about Gisele: at 12.5"/ 32 cm, she is somewhat larger than the others and also has jointed elbows and more detailed hands, which you can see in the photo below. She was fun to make and I will most likely have more like her next time.

More Alices, a Hatter and a Queen...

March 13, 2010Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name22 Comments

Below are the final six dolls for today's update. They are all made from paperclay, and the larger ones (the first four pictured) are painted with oil paints, which is new for me. All stands were handmade by Mr. L who has, once again, helped me tremendously with this update. Thanks, baby!

Pouting Alice

Pouting Alice is fully poseable and measures 21" (53 cm) long.

The White Queen

The White Queen has poseable arms (no legs) and measures 21" (53 cm) high, including her handmade stand.

Alice and the White Rabbit

Alice and the White Rabbit is fully poseable and measures 19" (48 cm) long.

The Sad Hatter

The Sad Hatter is fully poseable and measures 23" (58 cm) long, including his hat (made by the resident haberdasher, Mr. L.

Alice in a Blue Dress & Alice with Red Hair

Alice in a Blue Dress measures 10.5" (27 cm) high

Alice with Red Hair measures 11" (28cm) high.

Black-Eyed Suzie in Elle Canada & Alices

March 11, 2010Black-Eyed Suzie in the Press, Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name23 Comments

I've been a busy, busy dollmaking bee, so my apologies for not responding to all the kind comments about the first Alice dolls - thank you all! Just a quickie post here, lest I be any further admonished by dear readers for not sharing this (Kristyn, I have rapped myself on the knuckles, I promise!) There's a short article about me and some photos of the dolls in the April issue of Elle Canada, which is on newsstands now. Woot woot!

You can also see the electronic version here. Mr. L took the photo of me and I think it's pretty funny that neither of us noticed that my bra strap if hanging down over my arm. Ah well... done, like most things, with our usual flourish of disorganization! A special thank you to Katie Addleman for putting together such a nice profile.

And here are the first nine Alice dolls. These are all the smaller ones, and Saturday I will post photos of the larger dolls, as well as some figurines. These are all between 10-11.5" and you might have noticed, a little bit different from my past dolls of this size; I spent more time colouring the faces with pastels to give the faces more depth. I think it also gives them a slightly grittier look, which is a nice contrast to the extreme froufiness of their dresses.

(Disgraceful misspelling of 'albino' but I just noticed it and am too exhausted to change it right now...)

Alice in Wonderland Shop Update!

March 7, 2010Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name13 Comments

A slight change of plans: on my Etsy shop announcement I said that I'd be adding new dolls on March 12th, but I've decided to take an extra day. So, my Alice in Wonderland update will take place this Saturday, March 13th at 5 pm EST/ 2 pm PST. To convert this to a different time zone, click here. This announcement will stay at the top of my posts, but I'll be posting photos over the next few days, which will appear just below. Yay!

An Unhappy Valentine & Five More Dollies

January 26, 2010Dolls (Mine), Prints, Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name14 Comments

Here are the final dolls for tomorrow's update, as well as two new prints.

These four ladies are all between 10 - 13".

The Unhappy Bride is fully poseable with a wire armature, and stands 16" (41 cm).

It would appear that groom met an unfortunate end, but at least she's sentimental enough to have held on to a souvenir.

She also stars in one of my two new Valentine's Day prints. Now, as you might have garnered from my blog, I am very much in love with my dear Mr. L., and yet I have a morbid streak that compels me to flout the warm, sweet sentiments of Valentine's for stories of heartbreak and love gone horribly awry. Abandoned young girls? Eviscerated grooms? Oh dear....

My Bloody Valentine

And poor little Dafia got all dressed up and put out her best tea set for her special one, only to be...

Stood Up

But hey, at least I observed the convention of red and pink, right?

*Some important changes to my Shipping & Insurance Policies*

Every January, Canada Post rewards its faithful customers with a rate increase, so my shipping rates have gone up by about a dollar for dolls (this is still slightly less than the actual cost of shipping + materials). Also, I will no longer automatically insure items under $175 shipped outside of Canada. Items shipped outside of Canada are insured up to $100, so please contact me as soon as you purchase if you would like to purchase additional insurance ($2). Items over $175 will automatically be insured for the full amount. Also, tracking is available within the US for an additional cost; please contact me if you would like tracking.

Shop Update: Flowers in January

January 24, 2010Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name3 Comments

So it's official: The update will take place this Wednesday, January 27th at 2 pm EST/ 11 am PST. To convert this to a different time zone, click here. See photos galore below (and more to come on Tuesday).

Sunday, January 24, 2010 at 06:46 PM

January 24, 2010Dolls (Mine), Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name12 Comments

My most recent group of dolls don't really have a theme per se - I just tried to use more colour than usual in effort to rebel against the frozen drabness of January. My dolls' hair and clothes continue to become more and more asymmetrical, which is fun because it gives me a lot of freedom and I really enjoying texturing fabric. I'm posting the first ten dolls today and will post the next four on Tuesday.

Winnie, in the upper right-hand corner, is the doll whose proceeds will go to Doctor's Without Borders Haitian relief fund. I named her after a little girl that was rescued after three days buried under the rubble.

I'm also working on a couple of prints; just keeping my fingers crossed that I can finish them by Wednesday.

(All dolls are made from paperclay and measure between 10" and 13" inches.)

Okay, I'm off to sculpt tiny feet!

Hello Dollyface!

January 22, 2010Artwork (of Others), Music, Things I did Today (or Yesterday), Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name9 Comments

The other night, my dear friend Christina (who, like Tara, I met in grade seven - in fact I met them on the very same day) hosted a clothing swap. You know those clothes that you have that you still love but know you'll never wear again? Maybe you've outgrown them, physically or aesthetically, or maybe you're in the mood for something new but you don't want to spend a bunch of money. Well, if you get a roomful of people together who have roughly the same taste in clothing, this can be a great alternative to shopping. Personally, I loathe shopping: all the traipsing about from shop to shop exhausts me and the brightly lit change rooms seem as though they must have been invented by someone who truly hates women and wants us to feel bad about ourselves. But at Christina's, we had food and wine and music, and tried the clothes on in her non-threatening, lamp-lit bedroom. How civilized! I snagged some new-old sweaters, some very fly sunglasses, and this super-cute purse:

But would you believe when I say that my new prized possession was this Dolly Parton mug? Who would give this away?

Some people, upon hearing of my love for Dolly, accuse me of being ironic. Not so! I know her appearance over the last few decades has made her rife for caricature, but I genuinely love a lot of her music and she's a very charming person. I once saw her interviewed and when asked if she supported gay marriage she said, "Of course - I don't see why y'all shouldn't suffer as much of the rest of us." Love her.

photo credit: Marie O'Connell

Though mostly known for her own music, Dolly has written over 3,000 songs, most of which have been performed by other musicians. If you, like me, felt somewhat assaulted by the high production value of Whitney Houston's ubiquitous version of I Will Always Love You back in the 90s (thought I admit the high note was impressive) you might like Dolly's original and much subtler version, which is so sweet it chokes me up. (And check out Porter Wagoner's crazily awesome hair & jacket combo at the beginning!

Finally, just a few quick things: I've decided to start posting replies to comments directly in the comments section rather than sending them by email. I do try to respond to all comments, but I don't always manage to. I thought this way, when people ask questions, the answers could be there for all to see, and I can also respond to a few comments at once rather than each one individually, in case there are common threads. But I do read each and every comment and I appreciate them all.

Also, the dolls for my next shop update are nearly all finished! The update will take place Wednesday, January 27th at 2:00 pm Eastern time and will include 15 new dolls. I'll post the official banner announcement this weekend, and photos/ descriptions of all dolls over the next few days. Also, if you would like to receive an email reminder on the day of the update itself, you can always sign up for my newsletter; the badge is in the upper right-hand corner of this blog, just under the banner.

Tata for now dears!

And scene!

December 1, 2009Dolls (Mine), Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name6 Comments

Okay, this is really it: two little figurines and a few more wee ornaments.

Nikita stands 10.5"/ 27cm high and is made from paperclay. She's ready for the ball (the ball of very short dresses...)

Chloe is a bit taller (11.5"/ 29 cm) and a bit more reserved, but has been known to tell a rude joke from time to time.

Both Nikita and Chloe come with a detachable base made by Mr. L. with his grandad's fancy tools.

Slightly scary Bettina (the albino) and her friend Feigie:

And Lucy got a brass flower crown:

Yay!

Shop Update Today: Ornaments & Pendants

December 1, 2009Adornments & Wearables, Ornaments, Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name7 Comments

Below are the ornaments and pendants for today's shop update (see this post for details). I'm also trying to finish two figurines, and if I can get them photographed in time, I'll post them this afternoon.

~You can click on the photos below to see larger versions~

Ornaments

Pendants

I realized at some point yesterday that I hadn't been outside since Thursday - scary! Thank god I have Mr. L here to keep me from becoming some pasty, gollum-like creature, talking to no one but the dolls: 'One doll to rule them all!' Okay, clearly it's time for some coffee...

Pretty Girls in their Party Dresses

November 29, 2009Dolls (Mine), Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name6 Comments

Some of these ladies look like they drink wholesome cups of hot apple cider while baking berry-filled pies; some clearly never get up before noon and live on cocktails, cigarellos and canapés...

These ladies all measure between 9.5 - 11 inches (24-28cm) except for little Luanne, who is 8.5" (21 cm). They are all made from paperclay, with mohair/ wool wigs and scraps of vintage fabric for clothing.

If you're thinking of adopting one of these girls as a Christmas gift, please see Canada Post's suggested shipping dates here.

In addition to these dolls, I also have several new pendants and ornaments, which I'll post photos of tomorrow. They're also mostly themed according to my interpretation of Christmas colours, with a tiny bit of pink and chartreuse sneaking in here and there.

(Yes, that's a little bird nesting in Frazey's hair! She obviously never let her mother comb her hair as a child and now we know it's true what mom always said; animals really will come live in your hair if it's messy. Although my mother had a bit of a dark streak (surprise!) and she always said it would be rats...)

All photos courtesy of Mr. L; we are now off to be-wig the little ornaments. They're so dreadfully demanding....

Holiday Update: Champagne, Cranberries & Snow

November 28, 2009Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name9 Comments

Mr.L and I have been working away like elves on ritalin, getting as many new dollies, ornaments and pendants finished as we can for the pre-holiday update (this will be the last one before the new year). The update will take place Tuesday, December 1st at 5pm Eastern/ 2 pm Pacific. To convert this to a different time zone, click here. Just a reminder: I ship from Canada and if you're thinking of giving anything from the Black-Eyed Suzie workshop as a Christmas gift, if should ordered by Dec. 2nd so that I can ship it in time for Canada Post's suggested mailing dates. (Sadly, the date for International packages by regular mail will have passed by the time the update takes place, however it's stil quite possible .that things ordered after Dec. 1st for Europe can arrive on time. Please see here for suggested mailing dates within Canada and for express options). I know it must seem terribly early, but I wouldn't want anyone to be disappointed.

Ten new dolls are pictured in the post immediate below this one; busts, new ornaments and pendants still to come (and maybe a few more dolls if my fingers don't fall off first in protest).

The Good, the Bad and the Next Shop Update

November 25, 2009Black-Eyed Suzie in the Press, Ye Olde Shoppe UpdatesYour Name8 Comments

This past week has been a bit of an emotional rollercoaster here in Suzie-ville; some lovely and exciting things have happened, as well as a few of the crappier variety. On the less pleasant side, I had yet another computer fiasco and my dear, sweet life-facilitator is now idling at the mac shop, leaving me to (yes, again!) labour away on a seven-year old laptop. Of course, I realize that as far as catastrophes this one is, well, not one at all. But it is a reminder of just how very dependent I am on a machine. Sort of creepy, actually. But in the 'good things' category, I was interviewed a few months back for an article on Etsy and micromanfacturing, and it ran this in the Life & Style section of this weekend's Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper. You can read the online version here.

Probably the most exciting thing for me was the large photo of the divine Ms. Kelly they ran; it has led to many emails and some possibly other exciting media-type goodness, but my suspicious nature doesn't permit me to name it until it's actually taken place. We shall see...

Back to the bad, my poor kitty (pictured here keeping Vampire Bess warm) was coughing unusual coughs last week, so we took him to the vet and found out he has asthma. Who knew?? I don't think I've ever heard of kitty asthma, but they have lungs too, so I guess it's not that weird. But that bad becomes a good because it is treatable and after a few days of his medication, he's wheeze-free.

Good again: I finally made some gift certificates for the shop, which I think are pretty cute. Both digital and paper verisons are available here.

Last in the 'bad' category is that my husband and the three other writers on his TV show were unceremoniously laid off with no warning two months before their job was supposed to end. Merry Christmas, faithful employees! In the words of a dear, French friend of ours in the same field, "C'est juste une maudite gagne de crosseur de poule morte!" But let's turn that frown upside down; now I have a full-time (and exceedingly handsome) elf to assist with all my doll-making needs. He's a very talented sander and varnisher and with his help, I'm getting more done than I dreamed possible.

Here are few of the little ones we've been working on, all decked out in their Christmas colours. I'm not a big fan of bright red or forest green (except when it's in a forest of course) so I've chosen colours inspired by cranberries, champagne and snow (incidentally, also three things I love!)

These ladies and several others will make their debut on Tuesday, December 1st at 5:00 pm Eastern/ 2:00 pm Pacific. I'll be back with an official shop update banner in a day or two, once a few of these little darlings have some hair.

A party dress and a bald head in November? Brrr...The dolls say non!

The Bird Gerhls - Four New Dolls