In the Home Stretch:
Miniature Izannah Walker Doll


My antique Izannah Walker doll Hope has a little friend.   Let me pause and say, I never thought I would be able to say, "My antique Izannah Walker doll Hope."   I dreamed and hoped, of course, but thought that's all it would be.   There were other things to attend to, other things to spend money on.  But my husband knew how much time I'd spent studying these dolls, and how much effort writing about them, and so Hope came to live at our house.   I've been working on this miniature Izannah Walker doll for quite a while.  She is starting to come together....


She's about 10 inches tall. 
She has pantaloons 
and a petticoat 
and a custom apron... 



here is where she began (she's the one in the back....


In process sculpting - she's in front...


I sculpted her, added a knit cloth stockinette cover, 
along with tiny, tiny fabric ears.
then painted and then aged her....

But something was bothering me
so I gesssoed her....



 and then I repainted her....


And I think we are on the home stretch.  
She looks happy. 



And that, my friends, is how a doll can take a year to make.  

9 comments:

Robin's Egg Bleu said...

Well she's beautiful and I can't wait to see her all dressed up! I'm no stranger to how long it can take to finish up a doll. I have dolls sitting in varying stages of completion all over the place. Some need only a paint job but if I'm not in the mood, I don't like to paint em. It comes out in the finished product.

Sadly I have had so many things come up in life and work that I haven't had much time to sit and work on dollies in the last few months. Might be getting back into costuming so the poor little dears might get squeezed out of my life altogether pretty soon.

Jan Conwell said...

She's perfect. I think Hope will be happy for the company.

Dixie Redmond said...

Thanks, Jan. But she's not mine. She's my last commission ever. ;-)

Dixie Redmond said...

Robin - I know. Trying to wedge these little wonders in between soccer practices and advocating during my older son's last year of school. I have to be in the right frame of mine to work on her. She is almost there!

I'm sorry to hear you won't be making dolls. But I know that you will be doing something creative, for sure!

Martha said...

She is a beautiful litle doll. Sometimes the tiny ones are the greatest ones.

Rebecca said...

So petite! And she has the sweetest face! Everything is perfect!

Unknown said...

Dixie~ Your little Izannah's are just the sweetest!!!! Aren't they so wonderful, no matter how many times I see an Iz or Iz reproduction, they can't help but make me smile. Yours are darling!

Unknown said...

Oh Dixie... she is so adorable!!! I'm super duper sad. Some lucky person out there is going to get your last commission ever?! I've been hoping for an itty bitty rare Dixie Izzie to keep Izaac and Anna-Jane company. *sniffle* I can't wait to see her all finished up. :) xoxo

Unknown said...

She is a beauty Dixie. Wow, good things take time don't they? She'll be worth it in the end.


"Do not let what you cannot do
keep you from doing what you can do."

John Wooden