Mariah

 This is Mariah and this is a very special night for her. She is dressed and ready to go to her first high school dance. Her date bought her a beautiful wrist corsage that matches her dress perfectly.

Dad says that curfew is at 10:00, "No Exceptions!"  Mariah will be 14 years old in a few weeks so mom says that she can wear a little lipstick and mascara, just for tonight because it's a special occasion.

Alice Blue

Well, work, illness and family commitments had to come first this year and I didn't get to finish the A to Z challenge. I will try again next year. I'm glad to report that my family is doing much better, I finally kicked the spring cold/allergy syndrome and work has leveled off a bit. I work on my art and my dolls every chance I get, even when things aren't going so well.

This is Alice Blue. She is one of the good things that came out of the cold I was trying to get rid of, so at least something positive came out of it.

Alice has been chasing this little rabbit for days now. Her mother tells her she must be more lady-like but her father loves her adventurous spirit.

Alice has great courage and an amazing imagination. She wants to grow up to be a writer some day.

She's wearing her favorite "Alice Blue" dress and a blue hair ribbon. She also has her little white rabbit tied with a blue ribbon so that he won't get away.

"D" is for...

"D" is for "dollmaker". Of all the thing I love to do from painting, drawing and quilting, I think dollmaking is my favorite. I think it's because I get to combine everything and I'm so pleased when one of my dolls gets adopted. "D" is also for Drew...

"C" is for "Carrie", "Cher" & "Cindy"

My day has been a long one, so my post is going to be a short one. The good news is that my boss is back and I very happily turned over the keys to her. After working 13 days straight, I'm looking forward to taking four days off after tomorrow. The weather is going to be cold and rainy here but I'm going to get warm and cozy at home and of course, make dolls!! I found three new books about doll making on Amazon so when I'm not creating I will read and learn something new and of course, I'll be blogging.

"C" is for three of my dolls Carrie, Cindy and Cher...

This is Carrie, she was designed for the character Carrie Bradshaw on the movie and T.V. show "Sex In The City".

This is Cindy, she's my little cheerleader and she was designed or my niece Cynthia.

And last but not least, is my Cher doll. I was such a fan of Sonny and Cher when I was in high school and I'm still a Cher fan..

This is the end of my short, slightly incoherent A to Z blog for the day. Very tired, I'm going to sleep now, see you tomorrow.

"B" is for "Boss", "Brickhouse Gallery", "Batik" and "Charles Bibbs"

"B" is for "boss". This week I have a whole new appreciation for what my boss does every day. I covered for her while she was out of town. I have always admired her work ethic and her commitment to her business. The business is a very large antique store that also contains a large art gallery that displays the work of local artists. Our building holds approximately a half acre of art and merchandise. I've only been covering for her for a week, she's in the store 7 days a week, every week for 8 to 10 hours a day. I don't know how she does it.

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"B" is for the "Brickhouse" Gallery. I am grateful to them for giving some of my artwork a good home. It's a great place that nurtures both old and new artists.

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"B" is also for "batik", one of my favorite forms of fabric art. One of my favorite artists is Paul Nzalamba from Uganda. His watercolor images and batiks are an inspiration for me. Some of my African Ancestor Dolls are designed with his paintings in mind.

I love his work and was happy to find one of his framed prints in the store I work for. Can't wait to share it here when I bring it home.

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These are some of my batik pieces.

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 "B" is also for Charles Bibbs. Another favorite artist who I get my inspiration from. Sacramento was lucky enough to sponsor Mr. Bibbs and an exhibit of his work at the Evolve Gallery

I was so disappointed because I had to work all day and I didn't get to meet the artist but I was able to take my time and view the exhibit. His work is beautiful. His colors, details and patterns inspire me.

This one was my favorite piece.

"A" is for Art & Attitude & My Dolls Ashley, Adilah, Akili, Akiba & Adriana

I am happy to be a part of the A to Z Challenge again this year. Last year I had a lot of fun and met some new people and I look forward to meeting new people again this year.

At first I thought I must be crazy to do this again. There were days last year that I didn't think I could think of something to post every day and I have a bigger time crunch this year because I'm working more both on my job and at home with my own art.

Which is a good start for the first day. "Art", can't live without it because it is as much a part of me as my fingers and toes.

"Attitude" is important in my life because a positive "attitude" makes being creative and my life in general a much easier experience.

Ashley

Adriana

Adilah (Justice)

Akiba

Akili (Wisdom)

Lastly, "Ashley", "Adriana", "Adilah", "Akiba" and Akili are some of my creations, my dolls. I call all of my dolls "Gloria's Girls" or my ancestor dolls. "Ashley" was adopted last week by one of my clients. I am always sad to let one of my dolls go yet so happy when I know they are going to a good home.

Carrie & Samantha

I was going through my photos and realized that I never posted pictures of these two dolls that I finished back in December.

This is Samantha...

...and this is Carrie.

They are currently waiting to be adopted at The Market Place

in Rancho Cordova.

Twelve Yards of Muslin Projects: 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12

I'm still enjoying working with dolls with the armature frames.



The lady African dolls were inspired by an artist from Uganda named Paul Ndebele who paints and creates beautiful batiks that tell beautiful visual stories.

This doll's name is Galimah. I'm not sure what her name means but it was the name of someone that I knew many years ago.

This doll's name is Adila which is Swahili for justice.

I also created more of the African passport mask dolls . The original designer who gave me the inspiration is Sandra Heading Marchand.

This Akili who is a very happy, generous and kindly king. His name is means wisdom.

This is Rafiki.

He is another storyteller or "griot". The first "Storytelller" that I made a few weeks ago along with the doll I named "The Leader" were both adopted from the Brickhouse Gallery the first week they were there.

This is Ndemasi another African king. He has a very strong and arrogant personality.

This is Sister Moon, another inspired piece...

...and Sister Stars.

All of these dolls are ready to be adopted at The Flower Collage gift shop in the Brickhouse Gallery, 2837 36th Street, Sacramento CA 95817.