Painting By Numbers

 Oh where, oh where have my little Lucys gone....

 

I have to say I was more than a bit surprised at how quickly the cupboard was bare after listing the first batch of dolls and books in the shop yesterday. Thank you everyone for wanting to welcome Lucy into your homes and out of that "dim and drafty attic!" We are both so happy and have decided we will do everything we can to make everyone who did not have the opportunity to get a doll yesterday happy as well.

 

Remember the basket full of bells I acquired last February?

Well, there were 166 of them and every single one will be turned into dolls if need be. And beyond that, should the interest continue I do believe I have located a source from which to purchase even more bells. The only other thing needed, therefore, will be patience. Do to limited space in the house and time in the schedule I'll be keeping batches to a maximum of three. This will help me focus on each little dearie and give her the attention and care she deserves. It will also give me a little wiggle room to continue making the mini books and also figure out the lingering glitches in the velvet cushion, the bigger book, and some other surprise goodies I have coming up.

 

 Thinking of there being so many more Lucys in the future I decided to keep track of each one.
So I found myself a notebook and started listing them out by number, name, slight variations, and last but not least their eventual destination.

 

I also put a corresponding number on the bottoms starting with the first three I listed in the shop...

 numbers 6,7,and 8.

 

But what about the first five you ask?

 

Well numbers 4 and 5 belong to me and to my mom and dad who collectively received her as an Easter present although my mother continually refers to it as hers alone. Funny its the same thing with the house, the furniture, the Christmas decorations and just about anything else she has a fondness for. The lawn mower, the snow blower, and the old car on the other hand, those exclusively belong to my dad!

 

 



That of course leaves numbers 1, 2, and 3.

They were my first attempts and I like to call them my Three Muses.

In the purple is China Lucy since her colors were based on some old dishes, pretty on the dishes but not so much on a doll. In the middle is Poor Lucy due to the fact that she has most unfortunate arms in addition to a sad color palette. Finally I followed my youngest son's advice and created one in blue and ditched the yellow base. Success at last...or at least she was until I realized the ivory pinafore had a dingy cast to it and then she became Linen Lucy because it reminded me of trying to whiten old tablecloths and napkins.

 



Looking back it's fun to see what I learned from each one.

 

Looking forward on the other hand, it's time to move on and attend to 9, 10, and 11!

A batch a week can easily be completed and ready to list in the shop so that's the plan. I'll keep you posted here on the blog as to when they will arrived in the shop and this time I'll give both day and time! I felt so bad yesterday when I realized I had left the time aspect up in the air and people wondering...oops! I won't do that again, I promise!