생일 - DollShe craft: looking forward toward another decade of grace and beauty

인사 (Greetings)

There are some events that beg to be commemorated, simply because to not do so is unthinkable. DollShe craft came into my life in late 2004 when I stumbled across a photograph of Bermann, a serious young man with a soulful face and the most incredibly expressive hands I had ever seen on a doll. And even though Bermann came at a price beyond my at-that-point meager means, I could not dismiss the image of his calm demeanor and elegant aesthetic from my imagination.

In 2005, serendipity put within my means the opportunity to help a young woman with emergency needs by purchasing her Saint -- and although it was the brother, Bernard, who I was at that time craving, I jumped at the opportunity to bring a Dollshe doll home. In person, the refinement and sensitivity of sculpting I now associate with Mr. Kim Ki-yong, the founder of DollsheCraft, is even more spectacular than in photographs. Dollshe resin is smooth and butterlike - the dolls are 70 cm of solid workmanship and creative innovation. That, and they can apparently use the internet on their own when left unattended. Within a very few short years, Saint was joined by white and oriental skin Hound brothers, and a Husky.

I was not amongst the first to acquire the DS28m 32s or 35s bodies but in 2011, when Mr. Ki-yong refined the original body so that there was no longer a hip joint to pop out at inconvenient times (such as when an uncooperative resin model was being fitted into Victorian trousers), the long coveted oriental skin Bernard showed up on his new "pure body" -- with a tan twin.

In October of 2012, when faced with an opportunity to bring home a pale DSAM32S Saint with a faceup by SDink and a godlike attitude ... well, I ask you ... what would you have done?

DollShe craft continues to surprise and delight. The first woman, Ausley Love, has been turning heads and conquering hearts. With David Kuncci who many, including myself, are keenly anticipating, Mr. Ki-yong has again shared his artistic vision and created yet another masterpiece. David conquers with classic lines -- a body akin to Rodin's "Thinker" and a face reminiscent of Michaelangelo's David. Every new innovation and each new resin creation offered expands the boundaries of how we define a doll.

Mr. Kim Ki-yong, 당신은 영원히 행복 할 수있다 -- May you be forever happy, and may you pour that happiness into your work so that it may sing and lure us, time and again, back to your site and into the beautiful heart of your creativity.

Sleeves

He always keeps up his sleeve a margin for the unexpected.

 

Arnold Bennet (1867-1931)

British novelist, playwright, critic, and essayist 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What could be more mundane than the lowly sleeve? It extends from some point on the upper arm to some point in the general direction of the wrist.

 

 

 

 For warmth, for modesty, for style, even for seduction, the sleeve has many shapes and forms. And here I show you only a few of them.

 

 

What will a sleeve look like in the future? Maybe our time travelers will give us a hint of what may be coming within arm’s reach.....

 

 

 

Joan accepts comments, questions, and commissions at thilgesh@myclearwave.net.

Accessorizing the pseudo-Victorian Gent

As Michel de Montaigne (1533 - 1592) once commented 

 

Fashion is the science of appearances, and it inspires one with the desire to seem rather than to be. 

 

Society is all about what people seem to be, and rather less about who (or what) they are. It should not surprise, then, that the gentlefolk of Timescapes are similarly inclined, although they would unquestionably argue this to a fine point!

 

That having been said, who are the gentlefolk of Timescapes? Perhaps a brief introduction to a few of the braver denizens is in order.

 

The Wordsmith craves text on a page and lives to opine.  He, who dreams of love but shies at the admiring sideways glances of the gentler sex is, in many ways, a contradiction -- the juxtaposition of prose and practicality.

 

 

The Aeronaut is a dreamer of dreams, a navigator of the great beyond, an ace extraordinaire. He traverses the skies where, hitherto, only birds have dared to soar. 

 

 

The Diviner is a master of illusions. He toys with time the way a cat plays 

with a mouse. He knows what demons plague man -- 

and dares to travel in the spaces between 

knowledge and superstition.

 

 

In the Timescape, we may find the grist to question facts, or be exposed to facts that challenge beliefs. 

Join us!

Tarot

In The Symbolism of the Tarot, author P.D. Ouspensky writes:

An idea or symbol can only remain vibrant and changing as long as we do not try to define it.

By defining a concept, we raise boundaries and limit its growth.

This concept seems perfect when contemplating the meaning(s) of Steampunk.  It’s like a liquid -- ever changing in form.  And this is why it is so exciting.

Joan accepts comments, questions, and commissions at thilgesh@myclearwave.net.

In the words of Lawrence of Arabia ...

when told he was a clown,

“We can’t all be lion tamers”

Joan wonders....

What would a Steampunk clown look like?  What about a time-traveling clown?  

There are few, if any, images of cosplay Steampunk clowns. The possibility that they could exist at all appears to fall into uncharted territory. And yet, the idea intrigued....

From the depths of my mind I saw images of copper tubing, brown tulle, and rusty metal. These had to be the ingredients for concocting a clown, but how? Where would I be able to find fine, small gauge copper tubing? Rusty metal strips?  Entering the legendary land of Google provided an education -- evidently such things do exist in other worlds.  

And so you will see.

She lives! 

But, alas, she seems unfinished. Does she need a hat, or clown shoes or even possibly a mask? What will work?  What do you think? 

We shall see.

Resources:

Joan's steampunk clown is Iplehouse Cocoori. Iplehouse dolls can be found at:

http://www.iplehouse.net

Cocoori's wig was done by Michele. You can find Michele's shop at:
http://www.thedollpage.com/marketplace/store.php?login=mhardy&category=All+items&order=item&page=10&rows_per_page=10

Joan accepts comments and commissions from admirers. She can be reached at thilgesh@myclearwave.net.

Doctor J Ponders

I am blessed with generous friends who give me magic things like decorations from vintage hats, unusual bits and bobs of indeterminate age, lengths of naturally aged leather and suede, and strips of copper and brass dark with the natural patina that maturity so graciously grants. I ask you ... aren't these things begging to be used in some way that honors their age?

Add these bits and bobs to some high end quilting cottons, a wonderful dobby weave vintage man's shirt, a new Saint faceplate received yesterday for a Dollshe abjd who will eventually have his lovely Bernard sculpt appropriately faced up, and we've got the genesis for invention. Here's what I have just now:

What I envision is long black suede trousers, a full sleeved Victorian male shirt with traditional bib front, a vest from that lovely mottled chocolate brown fabric (trimmed with the copper "ribbon"), a sleeveless tailcoat from the scholarly cotton, assorted and sundry accessories, and a top hat. I'm not entirely sure about the shirt fabric, though. What say you? Would a cream cotton, or perhaps a moss green, work better? What about pure white? Please feel free to select your choice on the poll -- which should be somewhere here on my page!

Resources:

The Dollshe Saint faceplate was faced up by Virginia. She can be reached through her website at http://www.forevervirginia.com

If you're old enough, you might remember a lyric in the musical Grease ...

Grease is the word!

Artisans Joan and Julie would probably swap in a different term:

Steam is the word!

The great thing about Steampunk is that there are as many interpretations as there are adherents to and/or admirers of the genre. Join us on our journey as we traverse timescapes.