Future Fantasy

Today I was working on a Future Fantasy doll costume for the Pidgin doll. It went from this…

© Melissa Gaggiano

To this…

© Melissa Gaggiano

#PidginFanArt

This Mermaid's New Groove

© Melissa Gaggiano

    This dry, sunny and eventually grey, wet saturday morning I was asked to make one of my mermaid dolls. I hadn't made one of these in a fair while. In fact quite a few new doll designs have come along since I first made the mermaid.

   I made the doll in a record half work day with a couple of tweaks, updating the old design.

© Melissa Gaggiano

Turtle Love

© Melissa Gaggiano

    Recently, while playing at a friend's house my youngest fell in love with one of their toys - a plush turtle. We went home and I spent the afternoon creating her own little turtle. I can hardly wait for my little turtle dove to meet her new toy turtle.

    Good timing for this, I hear that it was international turtle day this week.

© Melissa Gaggiano

© Melissa Gaggiano

Thinking About Next Project

© Melissa Gaggiano

Meet a Doll Named Donna

I just finished making a new art doll which is now available in my store.

World meet Donna!

© Melissa Gaggiano

Torres & Gillian merchandise

{link}

    To celebrate the creation of my new line of pose able dolls, Torres and Gillian, I have crossover merchandise available in my Red Bubble store. Check it out!

Garden Photography

© Melissa Gaggiano

   Torres and Gillian stepped out for a garden photo shoot. You can tell they are close friends.

© Melissa Gaggiano

© Melissa Gaggiano

© Melissa Gaggiano

© Melissa Gaggiano

 www.etsy.com/au/shop/MelissaGaggiano

Meet Torres and Gillian

    Each doll I have developed has been a continual evolution. I am not one to keep producing the same old design, each doll I make is always going to be unique and an improvement upon the last. I have gone from large floppy, cuddly cloth dolls and over time moved more toward articulated fashion doll concepts. This year I have been playing with armature [that's what makes a doll poseable], and now with no further ado may I present two new poseable fashion dolls, in store now -

https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/MelissaGaggiano

{Instagram}

An Excellent Day

© Melissa Gaggiano

    It is a good day when things fall into place. Even more so when working on something completely from scratch. But even then it wouldn't be realistic to not expect problems and mistakes along the way. Thankfully today was an excellent day for making a new pose able  doll.

    I'd been wanting to make a pose able doll like this for a very long time. After working out a few technical aspects it finally happened. I'm pretty happy with how the test doll turned out. Only a few tweaks required, so... happy day!

Chimney? No! Instagram? Yes

    Apparently Peter Parker doesn't have a chimney. But that's alright, because neither do I. What I finally do have though is Instagram. This just may make it easier for me to keep a photo log of my projects in progress. Check out my first photo upload.

Pinspirations

    Today I delved into some old pins from my Pinterest collection. As a regular pinner [I know! That's not a word… yet.], a lot of history is created. But I still find it strange that anything collected after only a year can now feel so retro.

Pin #1  |  Pin #2

Pin #3  |  Pin #4 

Pin #5  |  Pin #6 

Pin #7  |  Pin #8

Saturday Something Snapshot

© Melissa Gaggiano

    Photographed is a new something I am working on. It can be one of many things for a doll house collection. Be it a rug, a blanket, wall art. The potential for this little piece is really quite limitless.

Inspiration Rages On

© Melissa Gaggiano

    Here's a snap shot from my work sketchbook of what I am working on at the mo'. I'm thinking fashion cloth doll, painted features, wire armature. I'll be trying a new thing of using a clothes peg to create internal neck support. Inspiration rages on. Very excited.

Message on the Wall

© Melissa Gaggiano

Yoshida Style

    Just a couple of minutes ago a special package was delivered. It is Yoshida Style: Ball Jointed Doll Making Guide, a book that I bought a mere week ago. It was a recommended reference guide by Joshua D McKenney, who himself has developed his ball jointed dolls based on the learnings that this book provides.

    I am so excited about studying this book. I have had a slow growing interest in different doll making techniques, particularly when it comes to armature and ball joints.

    I can hardly wait to sink my teeth into this book. Time to learn something new.

Many thanks to the supplier - Kokindo,
for their prompt and polite customer service.

Georgina Haynes Talks Puppets

    Years ago I was blown away by the magnificent big little details that went into making Coraline. But let's face it I've always had a soft spot for stop motion animation having grown up on Wind in the Willows and Gumbie. Of course stop motion animation isn't a thing of the past and continues to hold its own in a time of CGI.

    Here I found a fascinating interview with Georgina Haynes a puppet maker from LAIKA. My goodness, how I would love to work with this company.

Candy Pop Stop

Noodle Box Girl
Sleeping with Music
© Melissa Gaggiano

    Flash of news! I have new artwork in my Red Bubble store. The candy pop colours in my latest collection appear to be coming from a very happy place. Check it out!

Dolly Doctor

Circa 2014

    Quite a while ago I made my youngest a softie doll based on the steam punk character - Robecca Steam. The doll is made of felt and has been well loved, and had a lot of play. Consequently the doll had quite a few wear holes in her upper body. So I put on my dolly doctor hat on and did some patch up sewing.

Before repairs
[sad face]

After repairs
[yay]

Thank Glam It's Friday

© Melissa Gaggiano
{link}

    Yes, it's Friday… and how about we add a little glam to it. This Doll Eyes piece is now available in my Red Bubble store. Check it out now!

Pony Love

© Melissa Gaggiano

Pinspirations

Link #1    Link #2

Link #3    Link #4

Link #5    Link #6

Link #7    Link #8

Who Knows

© Melissa Gaggiano

    I have all sorts of ideas rolling around in my head. Nothing new about that. I've never really been linear or singular about the things I make.

    A couple of months ago I sculpted these doll limbs, then left them to sit, not really knowing what I wanted to do with them next. This week I pulled out those sculpted limbs and took to some freestyle painting. There's something about the boots that remind me of Astroboy, and the arms must have been inspired by the cold weather because they look like woolly knitted sleeves. There's no telling what will happen next. I might leave the limbs just as they are. Or I may create a body and head next.

© Melissa Gaggiano