Today, I became a OOAK Artist!

Last week for father's day we went to visit our kids in South Florida.  While we were there my daughter Karina and I went to Michael's to get some things I needed for a doll I had in mind.  It was going to be the "Queen of Hearts".

I had something already planned, but when we were looking at the different ribbons her mind just filled with creativity and she started to blurt out a series of ideas of what the doll would look like.  I was amazed at the look on her face.  All of a sudden, she was feeling the creativity flow a million miles an hour! How wonderful to see that look in my daughter's face.  At that moment in time, only I knew what she was feeling and it was totally wonderful to share this with her.  Priceless!

I came home all excited and ready to start sculpting.  Every day, I would ask her different things such as, "is she going to stand alone in her pedestal or does she have someone else with her?";  "is her hair red or black?".  There are so many questions that you ask yourself when you are making a doll.  So many things come up while you are sculpting.  So much fun sharing these decisions with her.

Every day after work she would send me "pins" with her choices and little by little the doll started to take form.  It was so much fun.  She would have an idea and I would have to figure out how to make it happen.  The roses in her chest, the cards falling from her hand.  The watch the rabbit is holding, the umbrella.  It took almost a week and finally "Queen of Hearts" was done!!  

The best thing is that this doll was what made the Professional Doll Maker's Art Guild decided that I was no longer and apprentice, I was ready to graduate to an "ARTIST"
and my daughter Karina helped me accomplish that!

I will soon have my own page at the Guild as an Artist.  Once it is up I will be sure to announce it.  It will be an honor if you visit me there.  Art Doll Guild

The 2015 International Doll Show Event

I just got back from the International Doll Show in Asheville, NC.  It was an amazing trip full of synchronicity and surprises.  (I have used Italics throughout my story each time I felt I was being guided by coincidences)  Let me know if you agree..... 

It all began when I joined the Professional Doll Makers Art Guild as an apprentice a few months ago. I had sent Jack Johnston, the CEO of the guild, a photo of my doll so that he could critique it.  He gave it an unexpected excellent score and suggested I joined the Guild. At the time, I was making the Ballerina based on my granddaughter's upcoming ballet recital.  She posed and  I sculpted.  The doll broke several times as I was trying to bake it and it seemed hopeless at one point, but the Mentor (Cherie Fretto) from the Guild that had been assigned encouraged me to move on and not give up, so on I went....

The doll turned out to be really pretty so I entered her in the contest and crossed my fingers.  A few days later the winners were announced and to my surprise "Ballerina" had won in the apprentice category.  What a wonderful start!

The lady running the show (Debbie Weimert) suggested I attend the International Doll Show coming up and bring my doll so she could be displayed along with the award.  I am a little reserved and not very social so I was concerned about doing so but the Universe had other ideas.


The minute I opened myself to the possibility, things began to occur. Synchronicity at it's best!  It was one thing after another pointing me in the right direction and I was letting myself go.  The hotel was booked, no more tickets to the banquet, no babysitter for my granddaughter, no money for extra expenses and all of a sudden, it all started fixing itself like if I had a million angels/guides making sure I would get to the show.  One by one each obstacle was removed from my path without any action on my part and away I went.  The Guild was even asking me to bring a few dolls to the show for display.   Unbelievable!

I had two weeks to prepare and I wanted to finish a sculpture of a little old lady and her hubby I was working on.  I was happy when I finished but then  I found out the space I had would only hold three dolls and I had already chosen the three,  but for reasons unknown at the time, I decided to take it anyway.  When we got there, "Paradise" would be left in the trunk of my husband's truck.

The show was starting on Thursday but we would not be able to leave until Friday.   My daughter could not take that many days off work and we had to help with taking Mia, my granddaughter to dance class.  She could not miss classes since her recital was coming up in a few days.   But all or a sudden, her classes for the week were cancelled.  No reasons given....

We left on Wednesday and got there in time to set up in the Guild's Booth and be ready for the beginning of the show on Friday morning.  Since I had gotten there early,  Two of the artists spent the day showing me how to improve on my "sculpted hands" all day.  Just because....

Early on Saturday morning when we got to the show we noticed they were setting up a table at the front of the Expo Center where dolls were being displayed.  We inquired about it and they told us it was a special contest that the International Show was holding for the Outstanding Artistry 2015.  My husband and my daughter Cory, who had driven down from Mt. Airy, insisted I took "Paradise" out of the truck and into the table.   I wasn't sure if I wanted to do so since there were some amazing sculptures already on the table and I knew I didn't have a chance.  They insisted and I had nothing to loose.  The visitors and the collectors would be voting in addition to the IDTS judges. My daughter admitted to me later that when she had seen some of the other sculptures, she knew the competition would be tough.  Even if they had a Beginners Category!  That afternoon when the voting was over, I ran to the table, picked up my sculpture and hid it in the truck again hoping no one I knew had seen me entering my "Paradise" in the contest and thought I was being presumptuous.

Later on I was told by a very famous artist that her and her husband had voted for "Paradise" because it showed how much emotion I had put into the piece.  Apparently a lot of visitors felt the same way and that night at the banquet I was surprised with the news that I had won the Beginners Category!  I was totally in cloud nine when I got up to accept my award.  It was one of the biggest thrills of my life.  Not only was I walking out with the 2015 PADMG Apprentice Gold Award but I had also won the IDTS 2015 OOAK Outstanding Artistry in the Beginners Category! 

What an amazing trip.

All the artists in the show were amazingly beautiful people.  Everyone welcomed me like I was one of them.  It was like joining a "soul's reunion".  I met so many who genuinely were glad to meet me in spite of what I looked like or not caring that I was in a wheelchair/scooter.  All they could see was my creative soul!  Famous artists would want to come to the booth to see my dolls on display and knowing I was an apprentice gave me valuable tips and encouragement.

The culmination of the show came when one of the artists who apparently has the same opinion of how the Universe works as I do, sat down next to me and asked me if I knew that I was healing myself through the making of my dolls.  That I should never question the fact that I was unable to walk because there is definitely a reason that I have yet to discover.  Trust the Universe as there is a bigger plan and we are the dreamers of the dream!

On my way back home, I stopped at my niece's house for the night.  For some reason during the visit she showed me a book that had been autographed for her two years back.  It was "Dying To Be Me" by Anita Moorjani.  She mentioned how Wayne Dyer had assisted her in publishing this amazing true story.  It peeked my curiosity since I love Wayne Dyer and I purchased the electronic version so I could read on the long trip back home while my husband drove.  Amazing!  I felt like the whole story had been written to help me better understand what had occurred in the past few days.

I wrote this post not only to share my joy but to help me remember once in a while that there is a force much bigger than we are running the entire show and all i have to do is let go......