Kisekae chan

Autumn has come.

With new mum and dad....

I am using one of my dolls photo as my avatar, and a while ago, I was asked to make a doll with kimono costume by fan club leader. At the time, I did not know for whom I was making it. But it turned out to be for Julia, Juan Diego Florez's lovely wife from all of us, his fan club members.... and here is the doll I made for her, on behalf of the fan club and ....



Here is my doll's new mum and dad!

Fuchsia baby

Fuchsia baby. Fuchsia is totally naturalised in Ireland. There are many types, but often tall hardy types are used as hedges. They usually have mauve~wine red small flowers....

Lavender baby fairy....

New version of "Lavender baby fairy".

The hitta-kimono baby....

A rose fairy....

A baby rose fairy....

A box for the doll....

A miniature kimono doll with toy

I have just made a miniature doll with "Hitta-sibori" print, "Hitoe" (Kimono for early summer~early autumn) Kimono and Apron, a bag with Japanese traditional baby toy "Den den daiko", and a change of "Awase" (kimono for winter season) kimono with "Sakura" print.

Cherry baby fairies in kimono....

...So finally, they are completed. They are "Cherry blossom fairies" in Japanese traditional costume, "kimono"& apron. The flower of Cherry or "Sakura" is so dear to the heart of Japanese people.

Cherry Blossom Fairy

Next one is going to be a "Cherry Blossom Fairy". "Cherry Blossom" is a special flower, that every time I see them, they remind me of my homeland; Japan. So I am going to dress this one with kimono; traditional Japanese costume.

So I pulled out an instruction book on how to sew kimono for dolls. It is A4 size, and I put the doll on top of it, to show how small the doll is. It is very small doll, so I will have to shrink the smallest size pattern available on this book.



And then, the fabrics & codes. I ordered some Japanese fabrics (it is not silk, but with traditional design)

Snowdrop baby fairies completed

Photo taken by me using my new digital camera.

Snowdrop baby fairies....

Attached mohair hair to the completed bisque dolls. I am going to dress them as "Snowdrop baby fairies'.

The first three....

It went fine until the first firing after the china painting. It looks as if the paint was burnt on the surface of dolls. I have finished soft firing of spare parts, as well as complete two more sleeping eye babies. If they come out all right, after paint firing, I will replace some of the limbs of these three babies.

Painting... (1) Over all wash

Painting the skin tone using sponge and occasionally, thin blushes....

after this, these dolls will go back into the kiln for the first firing.

Bisque firing....finished.

Bisque firing was successful.  Dolls came out fine. 

Comparing to greenware (right), they have shrunk! 

Next step is painting....

Bisque firing....

Now three mini babies are in the kiln for "bisque firing"... 

I have just closed peep holes and the lid about 15 minutes ago. 

It will be tomorrow when it is opened again.

Wet cleaning....

After soft firing, I waited over night for the kiln to cool down,

Then today, I did "wet cleaning"....

So far so good.....

 

Soft firing....

Today, I put green ware of three miniture babies into kiln for "soft firing" at 700 C.

Pouring to slip into molds...and

I started pouring porcelain slip into the mold again, today.