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Saturday, June 16, 2012

Cooked and Stuffed....

Tessie has turned into quite the nurse.  She is taking the new person under her wing.

She reassured her as she went into the 275 degree oven....She reassured her when she came out.  She sat with her whilst she cooled down.

I keep telling her that this person is not aware of what is going on yet.  That will happen when she gets her face painted later today.

But first she must get some padding on her bones.
I use a polyester batting that is medium loft and loosely put together.

I cut strips that would fit between her elbows and her shoulders, a strip the width of her body length, and strips for her upper legs. 

I cover the upper arms first.  That's the easy part.

Here, you can see what the batting looks like.  Tessie helped me cover the inner body.

I wrap it as tight as I can, without distorting it.

I wrap the two chenille stems separately first.

You will notice that I don't use any glue to fasten these pieces.  If torn where I want to end the wrap, the fibers will stick to them selves and kind of melt together with a little help.

After wrapping the two sections separately, I then wrap the whole torso.  If the body needs extra padding, this is the time to do it.  I added a bit of extra to the butt area.  She will be sitting down a lot and needs the extra padding.

I simply folded a piece the size that I wanted it to be and then put in place.  Then I wrapped the larger piece all the way around a couple of times.

At this point, I could have made her larger in the bust area if it were going to be covered all the time, like Tessie.  Or if it were a man, I could have done a pot belly.
The last to be wrapped is the upper leg.  Here is a good photo of what I mean about tearing the batting instead of cutting it.

When this piece is pulled around, it will end very smoothly and need no glue.

I used to go through all kinds of stuff with glue and wrapping the bodies with strips of nylon stockings.  I probably still would, if I were doing this for someone else.

I don't do it for my own people.  It is too hard to get them apart to give them new parts when the old ones wear out.

We all know what Tessie and Zar can do to themselves without even trying.  Broken legs, arms and other parts.  They are much to active to put up with glue.

The last step for this one was to wrap the waist with white sewing thread to give it definition.

Tessie is still trying like mad to get her to stand up by herself and talk.  At one point, I thought that she was trying to teach the new girl to dance....No.  She was only being helpful and showing off the waist.

Right after the photo was taken, Tessie threw her hands in the air and yelled, "OK! I am done being nice to this person until she gets a personality.  She is no fun whatsoever and moreover, she weighs more than even Zar!"  Then, "You carry her around and finish her.  I am going to go raid the refrigerator."

That doesn't sound like a bad idea....Refrigerator raiding, that is. "Hey, Tessie.  What's for lunch?  Wait for me!"

See you tomorrow.




5 comments:

Knillie Bears said...

so cute togheter.

greetings corina neeleman

Phyllisa said...

Hi Casey.
Tessie showing her "nice" side was
short lived! But perhaps it will
show itself again when the new
"person" is complete.
Phyllisa

Lucille said...

That's a very helpful tutorial. Thanks, Casey!

Kathi said...

How nice to see Tessie consoling her new friend. :D

I am enjoying watching this little person come to life. She looks great!

Rhissanna said...

The little ears are so CUTE! Thank you for taking us along with you as you make her.

And yes, I can understand Tessie's frustration. It's like txting a pal who never txts back. I hope they friends when the newcomer is all done.