Chicago International Miniature Show April 2008

Well, I finally did it! I was able to attend the miniature show of shows. The Chicago International produced by Tom Bishop.

I had heard that I would be overwhelmed, maybe go into miniature overload. But no, I felt right at home. I wish, however, that I would have had more money. There were so many nice things but a budget is a budget.

Most of the dealers were great, whether you spent a little or a lot. At one table, I spent as little as $3.00. At another one, I spent a total (2 day combined) of over $250. Some just wouldn't give you the time of day, even if you told them their items were great and wished you could afford them. Others, even knowing you couldn't buy, would take time to show you the little special details that made their items so great. Landscape Magic from Texas, WONDERFUL. Cindy of Miniature Luxeries in Georgia, WONDERFUL.

I finally got to meet Nancy Cronin and Anna Hardman, two wonderful dollmakers. I had the luxery of attending workshops from both of them. With Anna, I learned how to sew using a machine (without the fabric getting eaten) along with hand sewing (not my forte') and from Nancy I learned how to use a wonderful glue product (got to find some) and how to make nylons!

By the time I arrived home early in the morning on Monday, I was exhausted. I still haven't gotten completely rested up, and my little miniature purchases are still waiting for me to go through them, sorting and recording as I go. Probably 95% of my purchases were supplies, so I need to keep an accurate accounting of what I purchased.

I was able to meet several members of The Camp, an online miniature group, including our beloved DM (Den Mother). Another highlight was meeting Alice Zinn. Oh, the stories she can tell. The one dark spot was that I was unable to meet Dana Burton of MiniatureArt, the owner of another online group, MiniDollList. She is a wonderful person and has helped me so much in the realm of miniature dolls. But, alas, our meeting wasn't to be.

Well, I guess I better run for now. Lots of work to do and minis/dolls to make. And sometime, I have got to figure out how to create a website to showcase my dolls AND a database so I can stop recording purchases by hand and embed pictures with the information so everything is at my fingertips.

Until Later!

Museum Donation Piece

Finally finished! Well, she's not the greatest in the world, but she's my contribution/donation to the National Miniature Trust Museum. It was an honor just to be chosen to create a doll with a toy to be donated to this great museum.

Her name is Cammi, she would be 4" tall if standing (that's right, 4"). She is resting against some barrels as she has been playing with her hoop and stick, a popular toy in the late 1800's/early 1900's and needs a break. Cheap and easy to come by, children -especially those from poorer or lower middle class families- had a toy that could keep them entertained for hours.

Some where made from wooden barrel bands (like this example) and some were metal (possibly from different types of barrels). Girls and boys alike played with these.

Cammi represents a child from a western "boomtown" family where her father is a metalsmith. Her father must be doing okay money-wise as she is dressed fairly well with lace accents on her petticoat, the skirt of her dress, and around the hem of her pinafore though she is currently barefooted!

The doll was fairly hard for me to costume as I had never worked with this tiny of a doll before. My ladies are 5-1/2" to around 5-3/4", a big difference from this little 4" girl. She also represents my first paint job (horrible), the first time I altered a pattern, and except for a corset, my first original design straight from my mind and not a kit!

I hope the docents at the museum like her and that the patrons do too.

It Finally Hit Me

I must be the only doll maker in my entire area! What a bummer. Talk about feeling down.

Spent the afternoon calling all over the place widening out to over 100 miles from home. No luck. No person I could find making dolls. Now, I'm a miniaturist dressing 1/12th scale dolls. However, I didn't just constrict my search to that small niche. No. I was looking for anyone making porcelain dolls of any size. Who knows, maybe I'll want to make a larger doll (I do) while still concentrating on my small ones (definitely).

No person. No place. Even the local ceramic supplier is considering not restocking his porcelain doll making slip because there are no customers! Now, are there no customers because the people out there making dolls are doing it by internet, or are there no customers because there are no dollmakers?

Okay, if the answer is that there are no dollmakers, is it because there are no customers? We're taking two large metropolitan cities here with a large population in the surrounding smaller towns. So no customers, no dollmakers? Or did all the dollmakers either pass away, moved away, or just had to give up the dolls for age or health reasons?

Could it be that the lack of local suppliers contributed to the dirth of porcelain dollmakers? One fabric store - Hancock Fabrics - in one town, JoAnnes in the other. Neither exactly your choice for fabric/notion purchases. I couldn't even find silk thread around here. Have to order over the internet. Same for silks and fine cotton. What I can't get by cutting up second hand clothing, I have to order over the internet.

So, you say; "What's the problem?" It's on the internet so get it there. Well, have you ever tried to order LARGE porcelain doll parts? EXPENSIVE! The shipping eats you alive. Even with smaller pieces, the shipping has gotten to be enormous (thanks to the USPS). And don't you like to see, feel, smell what you are buying?

I love my on-line vendors. I have found a small, wonderful group of people who are more than willing to help me find exactly what I need. And if they don't carry it, they suggest someone who does! But, it would be nice to have some local place to at least get the porcelain parts I need. Just a gripe!