Tag Archives: Noreen Crone-Findlay

August 28, 2015 · 5:15 pm

Itty Bitty Hitty and the Tall Ship

Miranda Mermaid was cold, so was very pleased to receive a new shawl woven just for her.

Her friends were all so busy admiring it….

that they didn’t notice that Itty Bitty Hitty had climbed up

onto the tall ship that had lead Miranda to the Story Door.

Coco saw that it was starting to move away through the Story Door….

Even though she shouted at Itty to jump, JUMP! off the tall ship….

it slipped away and the Story Door quietly, but oh so quickly,

closed!

The Story Door dolls raced off to find Tottie Tomato to see if she could help.

Coco was so sad that she just laid down on the ground and cried and cried.

Tottie Tomato cuddled Coco and promised that she would go find Itty and bring her home again.

copyright Noreen Crone-Findlay www.tottietalkscrafts.com

Coco sniffed sadly and sat down to wait….

and wait…..

9 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, Tottie Tomato Loves, wooden dolls

Tagged as doll, doll making, dollmaking, dolls, hand weaving, hand woven, handwoven, Miranda Mermaid, Noreen Crone-Findlay, Tottie Tomato, wooden dolls

August 17, 2015 · 3:41 pm

Miranda Mermaid joins the Story Door Dolls

Itty Bitty Hitty was playing on the Story Door today.

She has discovered that the Lion’s Head door knocker is perfect for practicing acrobatics.

If she asks the Lion nicely, he is quite accommodating and will hold the ring ‘just so’.

She heard a strange sound behind the story door, so she scampered back to the Wall Doll House, and asked Coco and Bessie if they would come investigate with her.

Itty Bitty Hitty scrambled back up the door to the Lion’s head, to see if she could hear the odd sound again.

She was surprised when the Story Door creaked on it’s hinges and then, it opened, and a lovely lady appeared….

Not just ~any~ lady!

A MERMAID!!!!

Bessie and Coco were so excited that they raced back to the Wall Doll House to see if anyone else would like to meet the beautiful mermaid.

Coco and Itty Bitty Hitty introduced themselves, and so did Miranda.

Hitty Tennie and Bessie Gnome brought some comfie couches from the Wall Doll House, as they were sure that there would be stories told at the Story Door.

Sure enough, just as everyone settled in to hear Miranda’s story, a little ship floated through the Story Door.

Miranda told her new friends that she had been frolicking in the waves.

Suddenly a the tiny ship sailed past her and zoomed towards something that looked like the opening to a cave.

It wasn’t a cave…. it was the ‘other side’ of the Story Door!

Everyone ‘oooohed’ and ‘ahhhed’ at Miranda’s adventure…..

Tottie Tomato popped by to meet Miranda and see the magical little sailing ship.

Tottie, Coco and Bessie were so enchanted by Miranda’s stories that they didn’t notice that….

Itty Bitty Hitty had climbed up into the rigging of the tiny ship….

Only Kitty saw, but no one paid attention to her ‘miaows’.

Hopefully, Itty Bitty Hitty will get down off the mast before the tiny sailing ship sails away through the Story Door…..

10 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, Tottie Tomato Loves, wooden dolls

Tagged as doll, doll making, dollmaking, dolls, Noreen Crone-Findlay, Tottie Tomato, wooden dolls

August 14, 2015 · 7:14 pm

A truly tiny wooden doll

I couldn’t resist.

I just had to see how small a doll I could carve …

So….I cut very small doll parts from another birch tree twig.

And, I carved a doll that is not much bigger than a quarter.

Here’s a comparison of dolly sizes – ‘Bitty’ is right above the ‘yr’ in copyright.

She really is ‘Itty Bitty’.

She was fun, but rather challenging to carve. (of course LOL).

Bitty, Coco and Joy had a lovely tea party in front of the Story Door.

They had a lovely time, and were pleased that the missing teacups have re-appeared, but wondered where the cat and dogs were.

I wove a chair seat for Bitty, which is less than an inch square.

It makes her feel much more comfortable and she’s very please with it.

Coco, Bitty and Joy have heard the sounds of more carving in the studio, and are excited to see who is going to join them at the Story Door.

🙂

6 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, Loom & looms & small loom weaving, weaving & handwoven, wooden dolls

Tagged as crafts, doll, doll making, dollmaking, dolls, hand weaving, hand woven, handwoven, Noreen Crone-Findlay, small loom weaving, weaving, wooden dolls, woven

August 10, 2015 · 7:05 pm

Carving and weaving for the Birch Tree Sisters

Lately, I have had a very magical time, carving small, and even smaller, (much smaller) dolls and weaving for them.

It all began just over a week ago, when one of our son’s neighbors gave us some lovely Birch wood.

I knew that there were dolls inside the Birch wood that were just longing to get out!

So, I took some of the Birch branches to the bandsaw:

And, cut out the rough shapes for the 6 inch tall dolls, and then I started carving:

I showed how I wove dresses for ‘Hope’ and ‘Joy’ in my previous post: LINK.

They could hear that there was a little sister calling to them from inside one of the branches on their family tree:

So:

After a day or so of carving:

Tiny ‘Coco’ happily emerged from her branch.

Then, I got out my 2 inch square vintage Weave It loom to weave her a dress.

She’s about 3 1/2 inches tall.

Coco Birchtree is very happy to have her picture taken at the Story Door and to join her sisters and the other

Story Door Dolls in my studio.

I’m looking forward to seeing what she and her sisters discover about life around the Story Door!

6 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, Loom & looms & small loom weaving, weaving & handwoven, wooden dolls

Tagged as doll, doll making, dollmaking, dolls, hand weaving, hand woven, handwoven, Noreen Crone-Findlay, small loom weaving, Weave it loom, weaving, weaving techniques, wooden dolls

July 31, 2015 · 12:05 pm

Quirky wonderful loom

My son, Angus Findlay, and I have just co-created a loom and stand that I absolutely love.

Last January, I asked Angus to build me a box that I could turn into a loom.

I made the ratchets and pawls from purpleheart wood, cut the ends and sides into the shapes I wanted, made the warp and cloth beams and started painting it.

I loved it, but found it a bit too big to hold in my lap while weaving, and I didn’t have the perfect table to sit it on and weave comfortably.

So, I asked Angus to take some funky old legs that I had bought at a garage sale, and build a stand for the loom.

Woo hoo! I love it! I am enchanted by Angus’ design and how he built such a whimsical and quirky (and VERY solid and sturdy) loom stand.

He intuitively made it just the perfect height for me.

I brought it home and started playing with embellishments.

I cut out some of my favorite wooden shapes to glue on it, and then painted 3 coats of gesso to prime it.

Then, I slowly began the layering on of paint:

Painting was a long slow process, as I applied layers of acrylic paints in thin washes to build up the color shifts.

The screen behind the loom shows how I use this layering technique on other pieces, too.

I was quite surprised when the loom started to lead me in this direction, as I had had a totally different concept

in mind before I started painting.

But, I believe in listening to the piece and allowing it to tell me how it wants to be.

The ‘Dancing Girl’ and ‘Resting Rabbit’ motifs are a theme that I have used for more than 40 years.

They’re just me.

I made the metal image of the Dreaming Lady of Malta with sheet metal, using the repousse technique of pressing and shaping the metal from the back.

Because I work with my dreams and use them as one of the main sources in my art and artisanship, I felt that placing an image of the Beautiful Dreamer was a great metaphor.

and on the stand, I attached another repousse image that I had made at the same time as making the Dreaming Lady.

This is Xchtel, the Mayan Goddess of weaving, with her companion Rabbit.

So, the metaphor and message of these two images is:

Dream weaver. Weaver of Dreams…..

It is just pure bliss to weave on this loom.

Words cannot convey the delight.

I LOVE how my beloved son, and dear friend, Angus, and I created a loom that is so completely US.

I feel blessed.

11 Comments

Filed under band loom, Loom & looms & small loom weaving, weaving & handwoven

Tagged as Angus Findlay, band loom, hand made loom, hand weaving, hand woven, handwoven, loom stand, narrow band weaving, Noreen Crone-Findlay, rigid heddle weaving, textiles, weaving, wooden loom

July 28, 2015 · 1:19 pm

Carving a tiny wooden Gnome Doll

Sometimes, when you are carving a doll, you will start with one thought in mind.

But, there are times when it becomes clear that the doll wants to be something else entirely.

This just happened to me when I was carving a very small doll.

My grandson is five and he thinks babies are sublime, so he asked me to carve a baby doll.

I started…. I used a little doll that my mother owned long ago and far away in her childhood…

(Oh how I love this little doll!)

but soon, it became clear that it was a tiny Lady Gnome who wanted to be released from the wood….

And, there she is- among her friends, admiring the thimbles…

Her name is Bessie, or, just Bess, and this is how I carved her:

14 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, Loom & looms & small loom weaving, wooden dolls

Tagged as carving wooden dolls, doll, doll making, dolls, hand weaving, hand woven, Noreen Crone-Findlay, small dolls, small loom weaving, wooden dolls, woodworking

July 22, 2015 · 11:59 am

Fleur’s foot

Fleur did not make the move from our old house to the new one unscathed.

Fleur is a wooden lady of advanced years – I carved her more than 30 years ago, and she has some fragility about her nowadays.

Tottie Tomato and the Story Door Dolls heard that Fleur and her foot had had a parting of the ways during the move, and so they were rather concerned.

They came by to offer their wishes for a successful re-attachment….

Some glue, a little wrapping and a sincere apology on my part for packing her so badly, all seem to be helping.

Clover Bee, the Story Door Doll that is on the left hand side of the first picture also came to say farewell to Fleur, as she was about to head off to her new home just after Fleur’s fancy footwork.

Tottie Tomato and the Story Door Dolls didn’t stay long, as Fleur needed to rest and allow the glue to work it’s magic.

(We hope…..)

6 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, Tottie Tomato Loves, wooden dolls

Tagged as fixing a broken doll, Noreen Crone-Findlay, small dolls, Story Door Dolls, wooden doll making, wooden dolls, woodworking

July 17, 2015 · 6:53 pm

Carving Wooden Dolls- My first homage to Hitty

Last August, I posted a brief introduction to my first homage to Hitty dolls. LINK

I have been carving and making wooden dolls since I was a very young girl, and it’s one of my passions, but hadn’t carved any homages to Hitty until I was utterly enchanted by the Quimper Hitty blog: LINK

The Quimper Hitty blog should come with a warning that it is utterly and completely addictive!

Such enchantment! Oh my!~!~

Thanks to the magical heart who creates the Quimper Hitties, I fell under their spell….

I really did mean to show how I carved my first Hitty, whose name is Tennie:

But, I got totally swept away by a combination of downsizing, moving and downsizing (after 21 years in a large house and barn and huge garage etc, downsizing to a wee house is intense!) and by the writing of my new book.

Well, this year has galloped past, and the book and photos and diagrams are now in the capable hands of the best editor ever, and I am able to take up all manner of things that I love…. like carving wooden dolls….

Here are a couple of pics that I snapped while I was carving ‘Tennie Hitty’:

Here she is after I varnished her:

Of course, as soon as she was finished, she began to campaign for more companions….

She was sure that she heard a little wooden dolly voice calling out somewhere in the studio….

Actually…. so did I…..

🙂

4 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making

Tagged as carving wooden dolls, doll making, hand made wooden doll, Hitty by Rachel Field, Hitty doll, Hitty dolls, homage to Hitty, making wooden doll, Noreen Crone-Findlay, wood doll, wooden doll, wooden dolls

June 30, 2015 · 6:47 pm

Teaching my young grandson how to carve a wooden doll

One of the joys of my life has always been doll making.

I have carved wooden dolls for as long as I remember, and I am now enjoying teaching my 5 year old grandson how to make wooden dolls, too.

I gave him a piece of wood, and had him draw a figure on it.

Then, I burned the lines he had drawn:

You can see to the right of his doll, a doll that his Mamma made when she was his age, and one that I am currently working on.

He chose some colors, and started adding them….

I cut her out with the bandsaw and he took her home, but wasn’t pleased that she had rough edges.

So, the next day, I took some of my tools over so he could work on sanding her and finishing her.

He’s already immersed in the family culture of being a Maker!

I’ve been giving him lessons on how to use a hand saw in a Zen way, as he tends to approach tools with wild abandon, which is not something I encourage at all.

Gently, gently, is my motto….

Ah, the bliss of being a granny….

my heart sings!

9 Comments

Filed under doll & dolls & dollmaking & doll making, personal stuff

Tagged as carving wooden dolls, doll, doll making, dollmaking, dolls, how to make a doll, how to make wooden doll with a child, Noreen Crone-Findlay, teaching children how to make wooden dolls, wood, wooden dolls, woodworking with children

June 15, 2015 · 5:11 pm

Hurrah! My Peg Loom and Weaving Sticks Book is Done- so far…

Hurrah and, Whee and wow and whew…..

I am such a happy and rather exhausted bunny.

A couple of days before my actual deadline, I finished the manuscript, photos, diagrams and photo coding for my new book: Peg Looms & Weaving Sticks: Woven Projects & Techniques, Basics & Beyond.

Wow. BEFORE deadline. Wow.

My lovely editor is off in Scotland perusing fibery goodness there, so bless her heart, she has said to me to take a week or so to do the proofreading. I love my editor.

Taking a week or so to do the proofreading is the most sanity saving way of doing the slow and essential plod plod plod through the manuscript, so I am eternally grateful that she has suggested this. Like I said. I. Love. My. Editor.

The final couple of weeks of finishing the book were grindingly intense and the last few days were proper pinchers, so I have been having some delicious recovery naps in the last couple of days.

Changing gears and shifting back into ‘real life’ is a quietly satisfying process.

I got explosively inspired for the ~NEXT~ book, so have been galloping into it, being incredibly inspired and feeling all excited and delighted and then taking another recovery nap.

Wow.

And, now…. for a few hours of sipping tea and sending my eyeballs on a mission across the screen:

Must. Find. All. The. Errors.

Must. Polish. Any. Clumsiness.

And, then…. I’ll take another lovely nap.

I love this book.

I love the next one.

Wheeeeeeeeee………..

17 Comments

Filed under Loom & looms & small loom weaving, Peg and Stick Loom weaving, weaving & handwoven

Tagged as Noreen Crone-Findlay, peg looms & weaving sticks, writing a book