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About PBDesigns Dolls |
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The Particulars of the Makeovers ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ There is a unique vision to PBDesigns Dolls. Here, it isn't about the costume or the repaint or the hair. It's an entire look, an expression of mood or attitude. Every detail of the doll, from costume, repaint, hair, accessories, even her pose is a means to create that mood or attitude. I try very hard to get that across in my photographs. I hope that I can convey to you, what I see when I am creating her. As each doll is created, though I may have a general theme in mind, SHE is the one who tells me who she is, what type of person she is, what she should wear, what are her dreams. These things dictate and guide how she will be created. Sometimes things have to be removed because, though planned, once on her, it just doesn't work and the process has to be backtracked a bit until it does. I don't profess to be the best makeover artist out there. There are others that sew better, repaint better, etc and some that just blow my mind away with their creativity. What I do try to do is to do my best on each piece and to do whatever it takes to create the doll that is currently talking to me. To constantly learn new techniques and skills to apply to my dolls so that as time goes on, my work becomes more unique and better in quality. To constantly strive towards the goal of perfection (which I know I will never achieve but I don't stop trying). I love exploring fabric, fit, mood and "I wonder what I can do with this"...Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It pleases me that others like what I do. It pleases me that my work has won so many awards. I will never stop being amazed that what I love to do is pleasing to others. The particulars of the makeovers: Each doll has had all her original paint removed. Then she is completely repainted with artist quality paints and sealed for protection. Rooted lashes are rarely used on the smaller dolls, saving them for the larger repaints. I find I much prefer to paint the lashes on the smaller dolls, as I think it looks nicer. Her hair is restyled, and this may or may not involve a reroot, depending on the color or condition of her original hair. Some styles may be stiffened to hold a particular style, especially short styles. Very short hair tends to want to stick up as it doesn't have the needed weight to lay down properly. If a vintage head is used, she probably needs a new body as well. The body style (whether the twist or flex waist styles or the belly button style) is chosen according to the mood and style of the doll. Until recently, I had drafted all my own patterns, then hand sewn each costume. However, what I love most is creating the total look. I spend an enormous amount of time on the details as you will read in this section. Much more time than I actually spend on sewing the costume. To help cut my time involved down, I have invested in some pattern drafting software. The software gives me the patterns I need, then I can do my own detailing for design much more quickly than drafting the entire pattern from scratch. Because the basic costume (pants, top, skirt, whatever) are just the base on which I work, I plan to include more machine sewing in the future. Sleeves, darts, etc. will continue to be hand sewn as well as all bead work. I'm hoping that I can include more removable costumes now as well. Most often, the costumes are non-removable as a sleek body hugging fit usually can only be achieved on a doll if it is sewn onto her. Glue is very rarely used unless working with items that can't be sewn or with items in which glue will give a more professional and attractive result. All hosiery, jewelry, purses, hats and other accessories are hand created by the artist, with style and color carefully coordinated with the doll, her attitude and her clothing. Shoes are sometimes purchased shoes, but most often, they are hand made, either by modifying purchased shoes or starting from scratch by casting my own soles, and going from there. Every attempt is made to use the finest materials and supplies. I particularly love silks, though sometimes, other fibers and fabrics are more appropriate for a particular design. Sources for in scale, beautiful trims, fabrics and other items that will look beautiful without overpowering her are constantly being sought.. Note from the Pamela: I have always been too tall, not thin enough and now I'm too old as well to look fab in fashion. So I live vicariously through my dolls and I dress them in every way I ever imagined I would dress myself if I just had the figure for it! Most PBDesigns dolls come boxed, with a clear window or lid. Included is a stand (which I am working on designing my own stands but for now, am including purchased stands) with the PBDesigns logo, the dolls COA signed and dated by the artist. Any small items that may get lost, such as shoes or bags, will be placed in a small clear bag for protection. PBDesigns dolls are designed with the idea that you will display and enjoy her so boxes are kept basic white to encourage you to do just that! Yes, my photos are simple, with no pretty graphics, but I want you to know what you are buying. I want you to see what she really looks like, from head to toe and even from the back if I've done something special there. As pretty as all the graphics can be, when I put that much work into a doll, I want people to admire her, not my abilities (or lack of) with Photoshop! The only modifications made to photos are resizing, cropping, lightening and sharpening of the photos. Sometimes a star light is added here and there on fantasy dolls or the photo is given a border of some type but usually prefer to keep it as basic as possible. No touchups are ever done to any part of the doll herself in the photos! Note from Pamela: I've kept photos of almost every doll I've ever made on the website. Yes, some of my earlier efforts were rather pitiful. But it's all been about learning techniques and getting better at them as I go along, exploring genres to see what I liked to do, as well as learning to listen to the doll. I love to try new things, learn new things and that is what makes this so exciting for me. There is always something new to learn, a new challenge to overcome. I'm grateful to all those who have supported my efforts and hope you enjoy my dolls even when one is an experiment in technique or skill. I feel like I've finally learned enough that I can really play with the dolls and stretch with decent results. I do tend to flit from one genre to another but only because I want to try something new and it may not fit in with what I just did...Be patient with me, it comes from being a psycho nut artist. If you are a new doll artist, I hope photos of my earlier dolls give you the patience to learn each new skill, one at a time. It really does happen over time. I'm just grateful that people like what I do as I'm not sure I could quit now. :) All PBDesign Dolls are guaranteed! If there's anything wrong with the doll, or an accident happens during shipping, PLEASE let me know immediately so that we can arrange to have the doll shipped back for free repairs!! If anything ever falls off or comes undone, let me know! My girls are meant to please, I've probably bonded with them, I want them to "live" as much as you do! Yikes, this one is difficult for me. I never know what will appeal to people so I keep my pricing structure to a simple formula: How long did it take me to make it, plus supplies used and will my husband squawk if I charge less. In fact, he often squawks because he thinks I didn't charge enough but I think he has a higher opinion of my dolls and talent than I do. :) There is a simple rule in our house: If I want to indulge my love of creating dolls, instead of working at Taco Bell, I need to make sure that my dolls are paying for my obsession. Most dolls are purchased by my first to know list so never make it to auction; however, sometimes, I list on ebay to keep my name out there, to build my mailing list/customer base, to gauge the appeal of a style I'm working on, and to keep tabs on how much people are bidding for the dolls so that I know if my pricing structure is in line or not. For auctions, my reserve price is what I want for the doll. My BIN (Buy It Now) prices on auctions generally run about $100 more than that. I really don't expect the dolls to sell for the BIN price, but it's nice when they do. Dolls that don't sell in their auction come back to the website for sale and prices are very rarely lowered, unless the doll has not sold for a long period of time (generally, at least 3-4 months). I'd like to think people always like what I do, but I'm realistic enough to know that doesn't always happen. Unlike many other artists, I do not offer lower prices on commissions. Creating for the love of it is fun and I love it. I feel that I do my best work under such circumstances as I can easily change directions on a piece if it is needed. Commissions on the other hand don't allow me as much freedom to go with what the doll tells me to do so create an enormous amount of stress for me to work under and still create a great doll with results that I am pleased with. And I often turn commissions down for that very reason. I also do not pump out dolls by the dozen. If I'm on a creative streak, you may see dolls being consistently released for sale once every week or two. Be assured, that I'm working every day of the week for a minimum of 8 hours per day to get dolls out that often, though sometimes, dolls just fall together in less time. However, there may also be a month, sometimes two with no dolls for sale at all. I don't try to force it when it isn't there. There are times, when everything I attempt just turns to crap, so it's best to just give it a rest for awhile. LOL!
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