Christmas Countdown Characters #7

Grinch - watercolour and ink -Wilma Simmons

"Today is your Day" ... G is for Grinch
The Grinch hated Christmas! The whole Christmas season!
Now, please don't ask why. No one quite knows the reason.
It could be his head wasn't screwed on just right.
It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight.
But I think that the most likely reason of all
May have been that his heart was two sizes too small. ( from 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas')

A creation of the famous Dr Seuss, the Grinch is a green, grumpy, anti-festive recluse who is annoyed by the happiness of others and gains pleasure from the act of spoiling other people's celebrations. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" tells the story of the Grinch's fiendish quest to ruin Christmas for the citizens of the town of Whoville. The Grinch sets about stealing Christmas decorations and gifts from all the Whos' homes. Amazingly, the Grinch discovers that even though there were no presents, the good people of Whoville continued to enjoy Christmas with their families.

As Lou Lou Who says ," I'm glad the Grinch took our presents. You can't hurt Christmas because it isn't about the... the gifts or the contest or the fancy lights. That's what Cindy's been trying to tell everyone... and me. I don't need anything more for Christmas than this right here: my family."

Convinced that there must be something more to Christmas than crass commercialism, the Grinch decides to return the stolen gifts and joins in the Whoville Christmas celebrations. Perhaps the Grinch was inspired by the character of Ebenezer Scrooge from "A Christmas Carol" - the similarities are there. There certainly is no contest for a prize for Christmas meanness and sudden change of heart , so let's just say both Scrooge and the Grinch exemplify,in the end, that the Christmas spirit cannot be conquered and will flourish in all who have an open heart.

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Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks .... The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or my husband or from off cuts gifted to us from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks. Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as w...

From my workshop page....

Current Workshops Offerings Thinking of a workshop for your group in 2022? Art Doll Workshops : - Garden Thread Dolls (one day workshop - WoW -(Woman of Wisdom) - embellished stump doll with either cloth head or clay head. This is an a rt doll workshop .... either offered as a series of workshops or 2 full days days! - Message/Story Stick doll - doll made with found objects and upcycled cloth. ( one day) - Elemental totems - stick doll variation , with sculpture ( one or two days, depending on surface decoration of fabric) TEXTILE AND MIXED MEDIA WORKSHOPS Temari - embroidered wrapped balls in traditional style. - Dipping Into Tea - tea and embroidery on canvas with photo transfer on fabric. ( two days) work by Judith Bee, workshop participant. - Tea Bag sculpture : ...

"Temari Or Not Temari?" Tutorial

Background Information: Temari (literally translated “hand ball”) is a Japanese folk craft that is alleged to have originated in China and was introduced to Japan five or six hundred years ago. Traditionally, the balls were constructed from wrapped kimono fabric remnants and silk threads. They were made by mothers and grandmothers for children to play with. Nowadays, decorative embroidered temari represent a highly valued and cherished gift symbolizing friendship and loyalty. Recently I've wondered if your don't use traditional techniques whether you should call what you create "temari". That is an ongoing debate but today I share what I do to make a "non-traditional temari".... 1.I start with a polystrene ball ( traditionally the balls were wound silk scraps or other organic materials) and begin to wrap with approx 4 ply wool, turning the ball as I wrap. 2. I then wrap another layer of wool in a similar fashion , this time a 3 or 2 ...

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

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