Vernal Equinox Fairy

Vernal Equinox Fairy by Linda Ehrenfried

The day between Winter and Spring when the vale of winter is lifted and the magic of spring and all its colors takes over the landscape and bloom and birds sing.

Materials needed:

*Creative Paperclay
*Transparent Paverpol
*Woodbase with tall dowel
*Ziplock bag
*Wire Armature
*Aluminum foil
*Yard of white satin fabric
*Luminarte  Primary elements
   in assorted colors
*Synthetic or natural Hair
*White Embroidered lace
*Silk ribbon roses
Wings (Angelina film and wire) Not included in tutorial

First step is to cover your work surface with plastic as it is the only thing Paverpol does not stick to. I began with the wood base and dowel and added the armature attached to the top of the dowel through a hole drilled near the top. I wanted a dramatic look so there is an exaggerated length to this dress so the torso is for a smaller doll intentionally.

I sculpted the head and hands in Creative paperclay on wire and attached them to the armature which is connected to the top of wooden dowel and then I used masking tape to secure it. I used aluminum foil to build up the body shape and masking tape to cover it and prepare the surface for the paperclay layer so that it will not be to thick and take longer to dry. Next I covered the entire armature with Creative Palerpaperclay and sculpted it into a dress form that will make the dress look natural on the doll when I add the Paverpol coated fabric later.

The next image is the fabric. Cut the yard of fabric into a circle. Try to use all of the yard.  Then find the center point and let all the fabric hang from that center point and cut off the tip this is where the large circle will go around the waist of the doll. Cut a slit to give you enough room if needed.

At this point while the body dries, I went ahead and cut the fabric (see below) and dry fit it on the doll for size to make sure there is enough to drape it the way I want.  I am looking for fluid movement so that the dress looks like it would on a twirling ball room dancers skirt. 

The slice will let it go over the base. I used a rubber band to hold the center  of the circle so I could keep the fabric gathered from the center out. Next You need your transparent Paverpol and the Ziplock bag

Next picture is the finished torso with its Creative Paperclay layer applied, sculpted and now dry. Note the shape if not the anatomical body but the dress form as I am using shear thin fabrics. I find with the Paverpol sculpting the dress works out better then sculpting the  actual anatomy. 

Next step is to pour about 2 cups of Paverpol into the bag. Using a glove start pushing the fabric into the bag moving it around in the liquid and adding more of the fabric and more paverpol as needed until you get the entire piece coated.  Make sure to keep the rubber band at the top of the bag, as you will want to know where the center is later.  Don’t worry that you are wasting any Paverpol as most of this will be squeezed back off into the bag for later use when you are done. The bag will keep it fresh until the next project. Zip the bag and continue to manipulate it through the bag and let it sit in the bag for about an hour (Sealed) until the fabric is completely damp with it.  Then take the fabric out of the bag wringing it to remove excess Paverpol. Now go ahead and unhook the center point, pull it up onto the plastic and up onto the doll, use a piece of string to secure it around the waist of the doll and start laying the fabric out in the pattern you want. I did not want to skirt to hang straight down so I added a hoop skirt to hold the fabric out and away from the base. This hoop is held up by temporary wires and will be removed later. This next picture shows what you will see under the skirt once the paverpol dries.

I used upcycled lace from an old wedding dress and applies it onto the doll one small piece at a time after dry fitting for size and dipping in Paverpol. Then I did the same with the ribbon roses which I later coated in Paverpol also.

The doll is laying on her side or is upside down through this process depending on what area of the head I am working on. I glue on one small lock of hair one by one until the entire head is covered all flowing in the same direction. Last step is to coat the hair in paverpol while the doll is on its side and let it dry I used a fine tooth comb and a pint brush dipped in the Paverpol.

Skirt is dry and I will remove the under wire now by cutting the supporting strings. I do not want it to show through the skirt in sun light.

 I used small cups and the Luminarte Primary elements with water to make a wash to color the skirt and bring spring into the currently all winter fairy.  I hung the doll from the ceiling upside down and began adding drops of the water color mixture to the bottom of the fabric and allowing it, with the help of a few paper towels, to  run down the dress. Creating the illusion that it is actually flowing upward when she is turn right side up again. I added more color in some spots by just brushing it on. I changed the colors as I went around until the entire skirt had color. Her hair also had flowers and more paverpol added to it just before this step as you can see in the picture.

These are additional roses that I added to the lower part of the dress I hand colored them with the same Luminarte Water color mixture and again glued them in place and sealed them with    Paverpol.