Things Are Getting More Ready...

         I feel like I went away for too long to update the blog. Yes, I was so busy for the whole week because there are many projects in my hands now.  There are some questions what the next doll will be?  What are details about her? I think it’s not a secret to tell. Yes, I’m working on “Pocahontas” The reason that I’m making Pocahontas is because of her beauty and wisdom. She was clever than her age and she had an innocent look with the love of the spirit things surrounded by her like the stones, animals, trees, sky, water, and all living and non-living creatures around herself. I watched The Disney, Pocahontas, animation when I was 17. This movie broke my heart as I felt so down deep after the movie had ended.  I didn’t expect that Pocahontas and John Smith would part at the end of the story. It’s unlike other happy ending movies like Aladdin or Beauty and the Beast that Disney had produced previously. However, this movie taught me how beautiful love is even though the characters had to set apart. I felt very sad for all of them, both Pocahontas and John Smith.  There are many scenes that I keep watching so many times until now that I grow up and come closing to the middle age (oops).  I love to see when Pocahontas talks to her Grand Mother Willow (that it could be something that she talks to herself, or within her own mind in reality) and she sings a song “ Listen to Your Heart”.  The sounds and effects by Alan Menken are incredibly beautiful like there are some spiritual things moving around her with the colorful leaves and golden flickering signs. The echo of the humming sound with the beating drums are very emotional and they caught my feeling so much.  This is may be a reason that makes me love natures and I always find a perfect time to go for a hiking, walking through the forest and escaping from the stress whenever I’m available. Another scene that I like is when John Smith was caught by the Indians and tided before putting to death for the alleged murder of Kocoum in the next morning. Pocahontas came in and they sang a song together, “If I never Knew You” I really love the lyric especially this part: 

“I thought our love would be so beautiful
Somehow we'd make the whole world bright
I never knew that fear and hate could be so strong
all they'd leave us were these whispers in the night
But still my heart is saying we were right” 

         Yes, why do we have to hate each other, as we are human beings? Skin colors and the races are a big matter for us to live and become good friends? Why wouldn’t we choose to love instead of hating? I really like this song as it teaches me a lot apart from just the love of the couples. No matter what we are, we were born under the same sky and the purpose of life is the peace and happiness among us all. (I’m not persuading you to be a super man, but it’s a simply thought in my mind that we need to be born and live peacefully without fear, being harmed or threatened, or occupied.) The last song in the movie is “ Savages” between English Settlers and Native Americans. Both called each other “Savages” as they thought they had more human values than the other side. I remembered that my heart was pumping so fast and I was so terrified that there might be a serious war and death during the end of the story.  Luckily that no one dies from the serious situation. I also like some sentences during the movie like a conversation between Grandmother Willow and John Smith:

Grandmother Willow: Now then, there's something I want to show you. Look. (She dips her vine in the water in which glowing ripples begin to form)
John Smith: What about them?
Grandmother Willow: So small at first, then look how they grow.But someone has to start them.

John Smith: They're not gonna listen to us.
Grandmother Willow: Young man, sometimes the right path is not the easiest one.Don't you see? Only when the fighting stops, can you be together.    

John Smith: Alright, let's go talk to your father.

         This cartoon movie is not just a cartoon that has colorful pictures and beautiful songs, but it teaches moral sense, love, care, and tenderness to kids and everyone. This is how beautiful the movie is and also the whole composition of  “Pocahontas” by Disney’s.

 "Phocahontas",Disney 1995

 

         About Phocahontas's face,I like her face as I remember that the model for Pocahontas is Naomi Campbell.  It would be a very first character that has a very unique look. She (Pocahontas) has a very “thick” upper lip and the lower lip is thinner. She also has strong jaw. But her long dark hair naturally moves along when the wind blows, makes Pocahontas become more lively and beautiful. I started drawing many pictures of her but that’s ashamed when I moved to a new house, all the pictures were just gone. As I said in the FB, I’m still lucky that I can make a sculpt that I think it looks nice with some pictures of my own doll inspired by Pocahontas from my mind.  For my own doll, now I have a test on the doll skin after the firing. The factory said I should use cone 5 for the African American tanned doll skin color.  As I have planned, if the doll skin has a light tan skin, not very dark, I would paint her with a light blue eyes color. Or if the result gives a look of a very serious dark tan skin color, I would paint her eyes with dark brown green eyes color. My lovely friend tells me that lots of Native Americans-- pureblood and not and they have all manner of eye colors. That’s really helpful for me to know and have more ideas about the eyes colors painting. The experiment is very unpredictable now but at least I have find a solution for her. (Oh I forgot to tell that I ordered the African American from a factory in America (yes, that’s why I make this doll skin color:-), and it took a few weeks to ship a porcelain slip to my hometown. It’s such a long long journey as the customs is always so strict about shipping liquids to another countries. I also had to wait for days and days for the slip and I went to the customs in my hometown 3 times. The officers seemed very lazy and just told me to come back again in another day. I wasted my time and gas to drive to the customs just to ask and checked the slip. I called them so “many times” but no one answered the phone (what the phone is for? I asked myself). When the slip had arrived, I had to pay for a very expensive fee at the customs. I wanted to cry out but it would help so I just kept quite and tried to claim down. Sign!)

 A gallon that can make 4-5 dolls

         Now everything is ready for the mold and cast. However, to make a tan skinned doll color, it needs to use a new mold.  It’s a restricted rule that a light skinned doll mold cannot be used with the dark skinned doll as there would be some mixing of the colors slips and it would cause unexpected results after the firing.  So that means it must be a completely newest mold for my Pocahontas specially. To make a new set of the mold, it takes time around a week up or two as the doll consists of 19 pieces. Each tiny parts are very fragile and very complicated in making mold method. So I decided to have a minor modification on the doll’s body. Although it’s not a big modification, it took time to polish the whole parts of her body, added more muscles at her upper arms, modified some hip joints and her knees to make a better function for her several posts, and then coated with a spray to make the skin ready for cast in a plaster mold method. It took the whole days (Sunday and Monday) for 12 hours in each day with the correction and the beauty of a new doll for a new porcelain skin color.

 Set for making a new mold

            In the meanwhile of making two newest molds, the headpiece with the decoration with the antler moose head is on the wax process. How does it look? I decided to weave a net cap for the doll head as a part to attach the antler moose more steadily and strongly when the doll posts. The net cap will be decorated with  many gemstones like purple, turquoise and golden beads. This is the sample.

 an antler moose that is now on the wax process

         I also asked Mr.Jaruphan A., the artist who previously made a very breath-taking beautiful white feathers wig for Adriana, the Princess of the Sea, as a special bird for my doll. The bird is designed roughly with the spread wings. The idea that I’d like the doll head looks more natural that becomes as a part of her companion. I asked him to redesigned a new bird that keeps the wing to its body,looking cute and elegant at the same time. I believe that the bird by his creation will be very precious and beautiful as he has worked with several kinds of arts, not just the feathers, but the beading and embroidery works as well. Thank you to Mr. Jaruphan A. here.

 a roughly bird design before a real decoration by Mr. Jarupan

         Also, the outer, cape, is almost finished. It needs some decorative items like Swarovski, some kind of rocks, and stones. As the cape is mainly decorated with golden tinsels and embroidery work with beads and features, I decided to choose a violet cloth as a liner and the outcome is very beautiful.

 a front look of the cape

 and at the back...

         Now the only one thing is her main dress that is not starting yet. In a few days, the main dress will be started and then I will back to post more about the doll costumes and the doll working processes. I hope you will have fun reading this blog entry. 

 

          This is a test with the overall length and general look of the costume composition. The model in the picture is Adriana.(just a test, not the real doll for use).The real short dress inside haven't started yet. Now it's time to work again:-)   

Thank you for visiting. Hugs/Nune