Oct 11

Oct 11 Glenda, Natural Fiber Art Doll Ready To Play

dollmaking, creative process, petite fig, storytelling

Glenda is a natural fiber art doll, 16” tall, made with all natural materials and one of a kind.

My sweet little lady is finally ready to find a home of her own and we are pleased to introduce her to the big world and try to hold her hand while she looks for a family.

Since she comes with two outfits, we went a little bit photo heavy. Please be patient.

Glenda, a natural fiber art doll by Fig and Me. Hocus pocus, witchy time!

As all green witches know, this time of the year is nothing but bonkers!

A million things to do and not a break in sight. Though Glenda likes to take things easy and she does stop every couple of hours to gulp up a kettle full of tea.

Who can blame the little one, when she is up from morn ‘til dawn?

Her idea of sprucing up the cottage consists of bringing inside any furry critters left alone during the hard summer, she brings them all in and makes them beds amongst our baskets and my knitted blankets.

She gathers all the torn little branches from the trees, making great bundles of kindling and storing them by the door side. She chops so much wood that our pile is reaching Mount Everest proportions and dutifully carries out the ash bucket, to be emptied out and made into lye and soaps later on.

She brews creamy soups, bakes seed bread, boils vegetables for broths and turns the pickling jars upside down.

Checks daily on the mushroom crop and forages wild cranberries, rose hips and rowan berries.

Her grandmother knitted her a pumpkin-coloured cape, to keep her shoulders warm as she flies high through the forest, aiding injured animals and making sure all the crows and ravens behave as they should.

She loves her cape, you often see her petting every stitch in the afternoons, once she comes in from her daily adventures, and counting all the wee stitches. Then she tells you how many she counted and wonders if Grandma put a kiss in each one…she is so clever!

While Glenda can be so busy she doesn’t have time for human gossip, she does lend an understanding ear to all the troubles of the forest.

A fungus getting a bit too adventurous, a doe with offspring that are running too wild and she needs a break to decompress, or an abandoned nest found in a dark corner of the woods.

She often wonders if the parent birds were struck by those mysterious metal birds she sometimes see flying high.

Glenda keeps a handy journal of all her adventures. She also writes down her recipes, for soups, brews and treatments.

For example, how to best take care of a broken leg, be it a fox, a squirrel or a mole.

How to calm down angry spiders when someone walks through their web and what sort of tea to offer to a malicious bear, who is just trying to size up your larder to raid it later on.

Glenda is happy to share her knowledge and she hopes both the animals and the humans keep sharing theirs with her.

Glenda, a natural fiber art doll by Fig and Me. Children of the Forest.

But don’t make the mistake of thinking she is all work and no play! Glenda knows how to party. And she absolutely loves dressing up.

Whenever a glorious event happens or she is invited to celebrate a birthday, she wears her best white and fluffy dress and mushroom hat, with her very special wooly shoes.

I think she is a vision and I am so grateful she chose my hands to bring her out of the wool.

I believe dolls have their own story, and their own purpose. It is my job to uncover that story and tell it to you, so that she can then fulfill this purpose.

Her purpose is simple, to bring others joy. To reconnect them to their childhood energy, perhaps to bring them back cherished memories.

I don’t make many dolls for sale anymore, she is the fourth doll I offer up to another family this year and it’s already October.

I have chosen to concentrate more time on my dolls, to let them arise slower, without me rushing them.

This is very wise for me, as it has allowed me to really develop the sensibility of my dolls and to help them connect with others.

It also gives me plenty of time, and energy, to follow them at their pace, when they make suggestions or want me to try something new.

There was a time when I was making three or even four dolls per month, and of course they were nowhere near the intensity in skill and time they require now. Those were crazy days, full of wool and doll adventures and sometimes I miss the crazy energy they brought to my life.

But I am very happy to have now all the time in the world to see my dolls develop with their own flavour. To see them slowly, to gently dress them, to choose with care, to let things simmer and start fresh the next day.

I am very blessed in that I do this as my profession, that it is my job to make dolls and play with them. How lucky!

If you would like to bring Glenda into your home, please enter your details in the form below.

She is 16” tall and made with my Petite Fig pattern. She has a rotating head and quite moveable arms and legs. She is weighted with glass beads, so she feels nicely heavy in your hands. Her hair is mohair weft and her eyes are embroidered. She comes with two outfits, which you can see in all her photos. The broom too!

Her traveling fees are $1750 USD plus postage ($50 USD to the United States and Canada. International destinations will need a revised quote). She travels with tracking and insurance in a beautiful box. She will remain up for sale until Saturday October 15th at 6 PM. At this time I will close her entry form and select a person at random to purchase her. A Paypal invoice will be sent then, which is due upon receipt. Glenda is an art doll, recommended for 12+.

-THANK YOU to everyone that offered their home to Miss Glenda. The form has now been deleted.

Her outfits consist of:

A white cotton dress, with a linen overskirt and an attached apron made of lace. Long and puffy sleeves with angora cuffs, to keep her warm. The bodice has cute pintucks and you can see a little of the process here and here.

She wears jersey underwear, a lace collar and a fantabulous mushroom hat made of velvet, angora, wool, a hat form and with hand painted spots. This outfit is finished with a set of wool lace up shoes with leather ties.

Her second outfit consists of a black cotton dress, with long sleeves and cuffs in merino ribbing. Sport collar and front linen band, dyed with birch bark. The dress is long, with an attached linen apron in a whimsy print and decorated with a jersey bow.

She wears striped cotton socks and fitted tall boots with leather ties.

Her pumpkin-colour hand-knit cape was made with hand dyed wool yarn, and a wet felted witch hat, made of merino and suri alpaca. The hat is decorated with needle felted details, two bracket mushrooms and a bird’s nest with a spotted egg. You can watch a little behind-the-scenes of my wet felting adventures here.

As a sweet extra, we made a broom together and now we wonder why we don’t make brooms for all the dolls? So much fun.