A COMMISSION: Claire lives in North Carolina with Adriene.
CLAIRE'S STORY:
Adriene requested a peaceful look on her doll's face, with soulful slightly side-glancing eyes . . . like a Renoir painting. Adriene emailed a photo of a reborn doll with red hair and freckles to use as a guide for the repaint.
Dear Nancy Lee, My little girl is home and I love her! Thanks for transforming her into such a beauty. ~ A
Dear Adriene,
I am so glad to know you are pleased with Claire. I tried to do my most delicate artistry with her. Her freckles are the size of the tip of a hat pin. I wanted them to look natural, just scattered around with various sizes and colors ~ unlike lined-up ones I have seen on some dolls. The reborn baby picture you sent was a great help, although everything had to be miniaturized much more for Tulah's one-inch-high face. ~ Nancy, March 2009
EYES: Claire's hazel eyes are a delicate mix of transparent layers of umber, blue, and green. She has many fine eyelashes (upper & lower) and feathered eyebrows using varied colors.
HAIR: Adriene selected a natural mohair wig in size 4-5, a wig called "Nicole." Natural mohair can be styled with the same techniques and products as is human hair.
CLOTHING: The white dress with blue smocking is by Boneka.
HER NAME: Claire is a name of French origin that means clear, bright.
Little Pippi Tulah was a limited edition doll in 2007-2008 by Kish & Company.
She has joints at her knees & hips, elbows & shoulders, and neck.
COLOR & PAINTING: Some computer screens may modify the color of the art. Some may make the image lighter or darker than it is. The doll has finer detail and more subtle coloring than a computer-jpeg-photo can show.
After removing all factory paint, I am using artist-grade alkyd-oil paints (in thin translucent glazes) with the addition of alkyd resin to make the paint surface become as flexible as the doll’s vinyl skin and to make it adhere well. I finely sand (Q-tip and finest pumice) the surface before painting it for better adhesion.
