Meet the Wisemen - The Restoration

Last post I was talking about the "vintage" (doll making) using Dip and Drape fabric.  I mentioned that my Mom tried the original method of making these dolls and then changed the whole process to create a completely different looking doll.

These dolls are her original creations, and are as beautiful today as when she created them in 1975.  She was a seamstress so she had a huge stash of beautiful fabrics - velvets, brocades, etc.  She bought costume jewelry at garage sales, flea markets and church rummage sales, and then she put it all together to make these very special heirloom quality figures.

                                                     Meet the Wisemen


 Here is the first set of Wisemen that Mom made from the Dip and Drape fabric.  She bought the face and hands sets and then used brocades and velvets to create the clothing with the dip and drape fabric beneath it.  She cut all her clothes first then the dip and drape fabric.  Once the dip and drape fabric was wet she folded the velvets and brocades around it, and draped it.  These figures have multiple layers so she worked from the inside outwards.

Beneath the layers of material is a simple Styrofoam cone, which formed the base for her sculpture.

The material of these clothes adhered to the dried dip and drape fabric and is permanently affixed to the dolls.  I wonder how she worked with the velvets without getting sticky finger prints all over it.

Her detail is incredible, and I think you will agree these figures are works of art.

This particular set is the set she made for her church.  It is the set that I have been working on for the past couple of weeks.  Some of the jewels had fallen off over the years, heads were crooked etc... I am donating these to my church, which would make Mom very happy, as this was always where she intended these Wisemen to be.

Mom completed this set along with the rest of the nativity for her church, and I will share the rest of the figures with you next week.
She made one set of Wisemen for each of her children.  With the church set - 5 sets in all.  I don't know if my siblings still have or use theirs, but mine sit under our tree every Christmas and remain a most precious gift from Mom/ Grandma.