WIP: Paint, sand and leather

Now, if you make dolls 

or you're interested in quirky, cute 

and highly idiosyncratic creations, 

you probably know the work 

of Cart Before The Horse couple,

Dylan and Jo.

They make sewn and painted little creatures

 that are sweet and spooky,

cuddly and creepy,

delicious and disturbing

( I've run out of alliterative adjectives.)

You can find their lovely stuff
 for sale here

Why am I eagerly promoting them so loudly?

It's the least I can do. 

They were the first place I saw the whole 

paint/sand/paint/sand 

technique of turning stuffed cotton

 into a kid-leather soft surface.

And do you know what?

It really works.

This is my test piece.

A spare arm.

I painted it black. 

Let it dry.

Sanded it.

Nothing special.

Then, I painted on a second coat.

Let it dry.

Sanded it. 

And it turned into this.

Sexy or what?

Without the words, this is a really, really odd picture.

Not only does it look like leather

it's amazingly soft to the touch.

I tried a layer of PVA glue

(White glue? School glue?)

at one end as a finishing seal.

It's lovely and shiny,

(but not what I want for Miss R White

I'm testing a matte spray sealant tomorrow.)

Having done a test piece, 

Miss White and I discussed the options 

and she said she was prepared to give it a go

I was going to paint her, after all.

Might as well make her smooth and pretty.

I was so pleased with the trial arm
 that I'm going to paint on her striped stockings
and she's in full agreement.

Protective gear.

(Dollar General bag)

The reason for the protective clothing

is to keep PVA glue off her cloth body.

I've been looking for a way to seal the paperclay

before painting it and the

 best and cheapest I've found is PVA glue.

I'd done a test piece some time ago

and it seems stable, 

doesn't seem to be affected by humidity 

and takes acrylic paint  well.

 The biggest drawback is that you have to be certain 

you're absolutely finished with the sculpting process.

Because when you're done with the glue,

 you're done.

I covered all of Miss White's head and ears and shoulders

in a thick layer of PVA.

Then let it dry.

Then, I painted her head and ears, 

her arms up to the elbow

and her legs from top to toe

in thick white acrylic paint.

No fabric medium and very little water,

just enough to help the paint flow.

 So, paint and sand

And then paint again.

And another view.

Yes, our lawn is that brown.

I was going to write "Assume the Position" here,
but that would be in poor taste, right?

 I sanded down the painted cloth areas

with #100 grit sandpaper.

And now she has smooth, soft skin on her arms and legs.

It's a really satisfying process.

Smooth and shiny!

 Tomorrow, we begin face painting!

Yes, we're both excited! 

For Miss R White's beginning,

see here.

To see what happens next,
look here.