July Meeting Will Be All About Paris

The July Phoebe meeting will feature Sharon Martin's "About Me" presentation, including her love for all things Parisian. You won't want to miss seeing her French-themed treasures and hearing about her adventures in Paris.

 

Calendar of Events for 2014

 

August 16, Bead Sale, 1420 45th St, Studio #34, Emeryville, 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. and August 17, noon to 5 P.M. Presale appointments available from August 11. Eclectic collection of beads. (510) 654-5420.

August 21, Board Meeting, 5:30 P.M., Alameda Education Office. All members in good standing are invited to attend the board meeting to be held the hour preceding the monthly meeting.

August 21, Phoebe Monthly Meeting, 6:30 P.M., Alameda County Office of Education, 313 W. Winton, Hayward. The exchange postcard theme will be "Portugal." Please bring your Nola Hart pattern doll for the library exhibit to the meeting (may bring 2 dolls per person).

September 2014, Phoebe Doll Exhibit at the Castro Valley Library, 3600 Norbridge off Redwood Road. 

September 1 (Labor Day), Danville Antique and Art Faire, Danville. Downtown from 9 A.M. to 3 P.M. More than 50 vendors.

September 26, 27 and 28, Pleasanton Quilt, Craft and Sewing Festival, Alameda County Fairgrounds, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M.

October 2014, Roxanne Padgett's Surface Design Workshop. Contact Stephanie at smitharts2002@yahoo.com for details and to sign up.

October 16 through 19, Pacific International Quilt Festival, Santa Clara Convention Center. Thursday through Saturday from 10 A.M. to 6 P.M, Sunday 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. Admission $15 (I$13 on Sunday).www.quiltfest.com.

December 2014, Annual Christmas Window Display at the Book Shop in Hayward. Stay tuned for more details.

Challenge Results

The quarterly challenge was due at the June meeting. Mary had handed out a brown-skinned cloth doll and some fabric for participants to make a doll, or anything they wished.  

Stephanie sculpted the most adorable cat face and paws on her doll and dressed her in a kitty-pretty dress.



Anne used the cloth body to create more than one doll.
Each one was so original and clever.



Tani sculpted and painted a beautiful face on her doll and dressed her in ethnic garb.



Suzanne designed a very cute outfit for her doll, topped with curly fiber hair.



Zanaib chose to deconstruct her challenge doll and fashioned a cloth necklace instead. Something she can wear...
not just set on a shelf. Clever girl!

 Show and Tell

 

Several people brought show and tell items to the meeting  but had packed them away before pictures could be taken. Below are a few examples of the necklaces Donna made and sold at the ProArts Open Studios in Alameda. They are made from stuffed fabric yoyos.



 

 



An Enchanting Evening With the Faries

The theme of the May Phoebe Meeting was faries... or angels... or any other enchanting winged creatures. Marcella brought a "Flying Phoebe" name tag made from the pattern created by Elinor Peace Bailey. "Show and Tell" produced an amazing number of beautiful creations members brought to share.



Bonnie brought one of her more recent flat dolls... this one a guardian angel complete with wide-spreading wings she made to exchange with a friend.



Suzanne brought a curly-haired garden fairy with gossamer wings.

Betts shared her diva twig doll dressed in vintage stone washed silk.

She also exhibited her exquisite fairy doll. A perfect example of her attention to minute details evident in all her creations.
 





This is one of the numerous fairies Sharon has made over the years and sold in craft shows. So very cute and so sweet!

Sitting next to the Frog Prince is a fairy doll made by
Donna... one of the first dolls she ever made after joining Phoebes in 2006. On the right is a flower fairy made in Cyndi Mahlstadt's Phoebe workshop some years ago.



Harlene brought her very cute Nola doll for the Castro Valley Library Exhibit in September. She is a flat doll made with paperclay and decked out in an adorable dress and beads.

Marcella shared her felt Newenbury dolls from her collection.

Von Zetta participated in the May Day Fair in Los Banos and won "Best of Show." She made this doll, as well as a hanging rack to display 5 separate very cute doll costumes.

Several Phoebes participated in a tag exchange with the theme "hands." Here are a few of the tags made by the group.

Sharon, Rosie and Donna got together to make some greeting cards for the Phoebe Sunshine Committee. These are a few of the wonderful cards they made to donate. And, it was a lot of fun! In the upper right is a fairy book created by Sharon that was published in a feature article in Somerset magazine.

A couple more cards that were donated.

Sharon brought some of her beautiful cloth books for us to see. She will be in the Tinsel and Treasures craft show in Danville in the fall. Watch the calendar for the date.

Another of Sharon's beautiful cloth collage books.

Betts Vidal Frog Prince Workshop

 

 

For those of us who joined Phoebes after Betts taught her Frog Prince doll workshop sometime around 2005 or 2006, it has always been our dream that one day she would agree to teach her class again. Our dreams came true when we attended her workshop on April 26 and 27 at Always Quilting at 4230 Olympic Street in San Mateo. Above is a photo of one of Betts' original dolls, which inspired us as we worked. We were not limited to making a prince, and Betts had frogs in a variety of costumes displayed to give us an idea of the possibilities.

 

The quilt shop was a fabulous venue in which to hold a class. The workroom was so spacious with big tables—and next door was the salesroom, filled with a wondrous assortment of gorgeous fabrics, trims, and every kind of tool and pattern imaginable. Class members went home with new treasures in hand. It is certainly a place you should visit if you have not yet done so.

 

Betts taught us so much... so many sewing and doll-making tips and tricks. Everyone agreed it was an outstanding workshop. Thank you, Betts, for making our dreams come true! Here are some of the Frog Princes, as well as frogs from different times and places—some finished, some in progress, and some yet to be revealed in future posts.

 

 

Stephanie was first to finish her frog—a dashing prince. He is so regal in his elegant flowing cloak. Betts gave each of us a piece of dried seaweed she collected from her favorite secret beach, which we could use as a royal staff.



Donna also created a Frog Prince, who happened to be a member of the Royal Order of the Garter. He was embellished with a vintage pin and some dried materials that had once belonged to her late mother.

 

 



 Elizabeth is still putting the finishing touches on her dapper frog. Her charming interpretation includes spats and a very stylish top coat and vest. Can't wait to see him completed!

 

Zanaib also chose to take a slightly different direction. Above is her very creative tribal prince who is highly esteemed and deserving of respect.

 

 

Suzanne used a wonderful batik print for her Frog Prince's body and lush green velvet for his tunic. She is working on finishing his costume and we are looking forward to seeing more of him.



April Meeting Featured Tiny Collections

Speaking of fairies, we were thrilled to see this one brought by Phoebe member Elise Bozo from Spokane to the March Phoebe meeting. She proudly exhibited this
beautiful fairy doll she had just completed. The costume is hand-dyed.

SHOW AND TELL

The theme for the March meeting was "It's a Small World." Zanaib requested that we bring samples of miniatures to share. These could be items we had made, or ones we had collected. Many people brought  Gollywogs, which are historically small black dolls that are now highly collectible and said to be valuable. And, we were appreciative of those who brought new dolls and mixed media art they had just completed.

 

Elise is shown here with two of her Gollywogs. If you check the background of her fairy at the top of this post, you will see more examples from her large collection that she

brought with her on her California visit.

 

Diane Willis created this too cute "retro" costumed doll she made from a wooden figure like ones many of us have used to sketch human poses. And, how many of us remember when we wore skirts just like this to high school? Those were the days!

 

 

Several people brought collections of the figurative pins and ornaments they have made or received over the years. It takes skill and patience to create items this small!

 

Colleen is already ahead of most of us... she has made several dolls from the Nola pattern. They will be destined for the Castro Valley Library doll exhibit we will display in November. This doll is a true tribute to the essence of the art of Nola Hart, creator of this pattern, which was published in Cloth, Paper, Scissors several years ago.

 

Another fabulous and very colorful doll created by Colleen.

Obviously, Colleen has an amazing stash of fabrics!

 

 

 

Here is one of the latest dolls created by Stephanie.

I think she used the Nola pattern for this one.

Those legs look familiar.

 

And, here are two more of Stephanie's darling dolls. She used doilies for their underskirts. A really cute idea!

 

Stephanie is a master at creating animal figures. These made from felt are adorable. If you ever visit her Pinterest site you will see many boards filled with links to free patterns.

You might want to try some of them yourself.

 

Donna brought this wall-hanging made

from vintage fabric scrap. 

 

This is the second fabric collage she made to hang on a wall.

 

April 2014 Updates

A photo of artist Frida Kahlo reminds us that the theme of
the postcard exchange for April is MEXICO!

Calendar of Events for 2014

 

April 1 through 30, Zanaib's Altered Book Display celebrating the 54th anniversary of the B Street Book Shop in Hayward. Many Phoebes are participating and while the original goal was 54 books, many more are expected to be on display. Be sure to go by and see it.

April 17, Phoebe Monthly Meeting, 6:30 P.M., Alameda County Office of Education, 313 W. Winton, Hayward. The Exchange is a "Mexico" themed postcard. Theme of the meeting will be "It's a Small World," so bring any of your small dolls, whether pins, miniatures, collections... made by you or not... we want to see them! Patterns for small dolls will be available at the meeting, along with a discussion on tips for making them. Don't miss it! Also, read over your copy of the new by-laws, as we will be voting to approve them at the meeting.

April 26 and 27, Betts Vidal "Frog Prince" Workshop, Saturday and Sunday, to be held at Always Quilting, 4230 Olympic, San Mateo (on the border of Belmont). Contact Stephanie at smitharts2002@yahoo.com to sign up. Contact Betts at bettsbetz@aol.com for information.

June 28 (Saturday), Phoebe Alameda County Fair Outreach Day. Set-up at noon. Open to the public at 1 P.M. Sign-up sheet to work noon to 3 P.M. or 3 to 6 P.M. will be at the April meeting. Each Phoebe is requested to make at least 25 stump dolls for this event, or donate push-mold polymer faces. Start going through your cotton stash for colorful doll fabric, and also for glitzy embellishments you would like to donate for the event. Bring your dolls—and stuffing and sewing tools—to stuff and sew at our monthly meetings.

July 7 through 11, Lisa Lichtenfeld Workshop, Boy Scouts Building, San Leandro. Class limit is 18 students. Contact Stephanie at smitharts2002@yahoo.com for details and to sign up.

September 2014, Phoebe Doll Exhibit at the Castro Valley Library. Date to be determined. Each Phoebe is asked to make their original interpretation of the Nola Hart cloth doll pattern (you may enlarge or scale it down a maximum of 10%). You may also submit other dolls you have made. Dolls will be due in August.

EXCHANGES AND CHALLENGES

The theme for the March postcard was France. Here are two examples of the very beautiful and clever cards that Phoebes made for the exchange.

The first challenge in 2014 was due at the March meeting. In January Mary Porter Vaughan had handed a bag with a CD in a tin and some origami papers to all who wished to participate. The challenge was to use one or more of the challenge bag items to create some original art. Here are a few of the many one-of-a-kind creations the very imaginative Phoebes came up with...

Harlene Strauss turned her CD and its tin into a working clock entitled "Time to Smell the Roses."

Daisy Kiehn covered her metal tin with the brown paper from the challenge bag 
and created a boudoir scene inside.

 

Elise Bozzo, our dear Phoebe who lives in Washington state shipped her challenge. It was
an amazing bunny doll with a clay head—the CD tin was covered for the body
and the arms, legs and head were then attached.

Suzanne Rudisill made a miniature table from the CD tin and added chairs.
Perfect for a tiny tea party.

Zanaib Green used her tin as a base for a fabulous assortment of cut and folded paper
shapes, including beautiful butterflies.



Zanaib also made the most wonderful pendant necklace from the CD buy heating,
cutting, and drilling it, then coloring it with alcohol inks to get a
stained glass effect.

PARADE OF DOLLS

 A special event at the March Phoebe meeting was the Parade of Dolls, which consisted of everyone bringing a doll they had made or collected, and wearing something that matched their doll.

Daisy Kiehn is shown wearing African prints to match those of her newly completed
cloth doll. Using some of the techniques she learned in the recent Leslie Molen
workshop, she made and inset the eyes into the cloth head and engineered the doll to stand alone.

Harlene Strauss matches her "Minnie Me" rescue doll. Harlene's scarf is made from a colorful tiny-print fabric, from which she cut little circle motifs to adhere to the doll's costume.

Anne Klocko is shown with her colorful clay figure riding a bicycle.

Bonnie Hoover wore lavender clothing to replicate the colors of her
original cloth doll, Millicent.

Elizabeth brought her fanciful "Timekeeper" doll made from a Barbara Willis pattern.
Elizabeth added an clay over-lay to the face and a feminine cuff bracelet for 
the timekeeper's wrist.

Marcella Hardy dressed as a babushka to match her three "traveling sisters"—dolls
she had made in a Sally Lampi workshop some years ago.



Rosie Dennis donned a cone headpiece with a sheer train to mimic her
Betts Vidal workshop doll, "Princess of Procrastination."

Stephanie Smith came down the runway wearing a French beret and proudly
exhibiting her lovely French doll with ruffles and lace.

Suzanne Rudisill wore stripes representing the colorful Julie McCullough doll that had
extra long legs in matching leggings.



Zanaib Green coordinated look included her original and famous stump doll, wrapped
in material from Ghana. Zanaib wore a matching twisted cloth necklace and headpiece
made from the same gorgeous material.



Tani Martinat swirled her skirt and presented her original doll, which is crowned with
a colorful abundance of yarn and fiber hair.

 

ABOUT ME BY STEPHANIE SMITH

 

 A special segment of the March meeting was devoted to our on-going "All About Me" presentations, where Phoebes talk about their artistic journeys and the road that led them to the world of doll-making. Stephanie Smith led us on an inspiring walk through her life. She was already sewing and making dolls by the time she was seven. Her past was hugely influenced by her Godfather, who was an artist and window dresser for the Emporium store in San Francisco.

Stephanie brought an assortment of dolls showing her progression from porcelain and mold-making to polymer and cloth dolls.

Stephanie at one point was seriously into bear making. A barber by profession, her barber shop
in Noe Valley in San Francisco has long been a popular attraction where people love to view the window arrangements of the bears and dolls she has created.
The name of her shop is Barbers and Bears.

Stephanie is also into making the most fabulous polymer and lamp
work beads, which she turns into beautiful jewelry.
 

Stephanie also shared her knitting and needlework creations with us. A woman of many talents!



Prominently displayed were pictures of her late parents who lovingly
supported her many endeavors and of her Godfather, who instilled
and encouraged in her artistic appreciation and pursuit of her creative talents.