Please click on “Manoscar” above. This funny Powerpoint presentation was sent to me by Lize Kindt. As you see you never have to get bored.
Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog! Take a second to peek around and check out some of my previous posts. Of course, I would love to find out what you think as well, so make sure to comment. See you around! More ...Author Archive for Marlaine Verhelst
17
Jul
Finished!
This is one of the two figures that will be part of my new piece and I fell in love with her. I started talking to her during working and my students use to say that if I start talking to a doll that means it is a good one.
I am working on the last details now and I still not decided if I will use the chess horses in the piece. They would make the theme stronger but they might be too much.
Less is more……..or not?
11
Jul
Working on a new piece
I am finally working on a new piece! Seeing all these things laying on my table makes me happy so I wanted to share this with you. So much stuff and never enough. Collecting stuff like this is one of the attractions of being a doll artist. I might end up using none of them but taking them out and just playing around is already so much fun.
The name of this new piece will be “Check-mate” or in Dutch “Geschaakt”. Wood will be part of the piece and I am thinking of using purple for the clothing.
04
Jun
online class results
Some time ago I was teaching an online doll making class for Adele Sciortino’s “A for Artistic”. it was a wonderful experience and a huge success. I had some very enthusiastic and talented students and I am still receiving pictures from finished dolls. This online teaching really works and is a lot of fun. The results were amazing and I want to share with you some pictures I recently received. Just a few of the many beautiful dolls my students made!
This is a doll by Yvonne Nathanson.
This beautiful piece is made by Anne Schroeder
This Juggler is made by Barbara Evans
This piece is made by Wendy Rinehart
I am really proud and happy that I could inspire these students to such wonderful work worth showing! After summer I will teach a few animal classes at A for Artistic and we are planning on repeating this doll class again next year. Look in my workshop schedule for specific dates.
15
May
Blog Hop Tour
Welcome! This is going to be my longest post ever.
Today is my turn in the Blog Hop Tour organized around the new book about epoxy clays: Inspired Remnants, Curious Dreams by Kerin Gale. Some of my work is included in this book. In case you don’t know my work: I am a doll artist from the Netherlands, NIADA and DABIDA member. I use to add animals and other props to my fantasy pieces. I work mainly in hand sculpted porcelain for my dolls and papier mache for animals. I use epoxy clay to make weak parts of the animals stronger. Here you see a few examples of my work:
The nice thing for the visitors of my blog today is that they can win all the prizes listed below. The only thing you have to do to win a prize is to leave your name and addresses as a comment. Winners will be picked by a drawing. As an extra prize I have added an online class on animal making. This class tells you all my secrets about how to start and build an animal of your choice from papier mache.
To give you an impression I show here how to make an open beak for a duck:
Bend copper (or other non rusty wire) into a loop, a bit wider than the width of the duck’s head. (I used a Styrofoam egg as base for the head) Cover this both sides with paper masking tape. Let about an inch of the wire stick out. Make a second piece almost twice as wide as the first one with an extra strip of wire placed in the middle.
Bend the two beak parts to hollow shapes and stick the wire ends in the Styrofoam, the wider part on top. This gives you a great base to cover with papier mache or other sculpting material. This method is easy to adjust to other shapes. I also use it for animal ears and that works great.
This is the complete program of this Blog Hop tour
May 1
Kerin Gale
Remnants of Olde: http://RemnantsOfOlde.com/posts
May 2
Alicia Caudle
Altered Bits: http://alteredbits.wordpress.com/
May 3
Lesley Venable
Flatwoods Folk Art: http://www.flatwoodsfolkart.typepad.com/
May 4
Christine Lehto
Lilly Bug Studio: http://lillybugstudio.com/blog/
May 5
Seth Apter
The Altered Page: http://thealteredpage.blogspot.com/
May 6
Nancy Perennec
Little Bit Wired: http://littlebitwired.blogspot.com/
May 7
Jen Cushman
ICE Queen Zine: http://www.iceresin.com/category/inspired-remnants-blog-tour/
May 8
Happy Mother’s Day!
May 9
Beth Robinson
Strange Dolls: http://strangedolls.wordpress.com/
May 10
Brenda Schweder
Brenda Schweder Jewelry: http://www.brendaschweder.com/
May 11
Esther Verschoor
Vanessie Art Dolls: http://vanessies.blogspot.com
May 12
Kecia Deveny
Lemoncholy’s Flight of Fancy: http://www.lemoncholys.blogspot.com/
May 13
Rachel Whetzel
A Year In The Life Of An Art Journal: http://oneyearartjournal.blogspot.com/
May 14
Shannon LeVart
MissFickleMedia.com: http://missficklemediacom.blogspot.com/
May 15
Marlaine Verhelst
Marlaine Verhelst Art Dolls: http://marlaineverhelst.com/blog/
May 16
Lisa Jurist
Mud Hound Studio: http://mudhoundprimitives.blogspot.com/
May 17
Michelle Bernard
Yesterday’s Trash: http://michellereneebernard.blogspot.com/
May 18
Kerin Gale
Remnants of Olde – Alan Rogerson feature: http://RemnantsOfOlde.com/posts
May 19
Facebook Party!
Apoxie Clay & Epoxy Clays Page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/home.php?sk=group_158159677562761
SPECIAL OFFERS DURING THIS TOUR
Book & Online Workshop Bundles – special pricing of $5 off.
All you need to do is put in the name of this blog when you check out through Paypal and you will receive the $5 back.
A) Resin Clay Pendants Workshop + Book = $35 + shipping (only $30 for you)
http://www.etsy.com/listing/63483761/inspired-remnants-book-and-resin-clay
B) Vintage Gentleman Workshop + Book = $40 + shipping (only $35 for you)
http://www.etsy.com/listing/27210387/inspired-remnants-book-and-vintage-gent
C) Both Workshops + Book = $70 + shipping (only $65 for you)
http://www.etsy.com/listing/72931590/inspired-remnants-book-super-bundle-with
SPONSORED PRIZES FOR THIS SITE
The only thing you have to do to win this prizes is leave your name and addresses in a comment. Please note the physical products will only be mailed to addresses in the US. Access to the online workshop and the digital collage sheets can be sent anywhere in the world.
A) The book Inspired Remnants, Curious Dreams
B) One Aves Power Pack (selection of their most popular formulas) from http://AvesStudio.com
C) Fluid Chalks Online Workshop by Lesley Venable on her The Art Of Altering site which features many other awesome online workshops http://theartofaltering.ning.com/group/fluidchalksbackgroundsbeyond
D) Two Digital Collage Sheets by Alicia Caudle of Altered Bits. You can see her very unique and cool collection at
http://alteredbits.com/digital-collage-sheets.php
E) Sample pack of Silputty 40 silicone putty mold mix from Silpak.
F) 1 OZ ICE Resin and a mixed metal bezel from http://www.iceresin.com/
G) Online workshop Animal making in papier mache by Marlaine Verhelst
Grand Prizes For Book Reviews*
Any reader that writes a review ~ however short or long~ of Inspired Remnants, Curious Dreams on amazon.com before July 31, 2011 and sends an email with the title “Inspired Remnants Review” to remnants.art@gmail.com will be entered in a drawing to win one of these prizes. Please note that your honest opinion is wanted on this review.
A) The art piece featured on the cover of the book, “Sacred Totem”
B) Power Pack plus extra Fixit Sculpt clay from Aves Studio http://avesstudios.com/
C) Frozen Charlotte Doll with digital tutorial “How To Crackle Charlottes” from Alicia Caudle of http://alteredbits.com
D) Resin Clay Pendants online workshop by Kerin Gale from http://MixedMediaArt.ning.com
E) Vintage Gentleman online workshop by Kerin Gale from http://MixedMediaArt.ning.com
F) Choice of any one workshop being taught by Kerin and Charley at Art Is You retreat in Petaluma, CA. The registration fee and workshop cost are both waived. http://www.art-is-you.com/mysitecaddy/site3/generalinformation-westcoast.htm
G) One copy each of Jen Cushman’s book, Explore, Create, Resinate and Susan Lenart-Kazmer’s book, Making Connections plus ICE Resin and a selection of bezels all from http://www.iceresin.com/
* Please note prizes include shipping to U.S. addresses only.
Good luck with winning a prize and enjoy the rest of the Tour!
Warm regards
Marlaine Verhelst
29
Apr
Curious dreams
I was invited to take part in a new book on epoxy clay: Inspired Remnants, Curious Dreams by Kerin Gale.
Personally I use epoxy clay to make the fragile parts of my animals stronger, covering it with papier mache. I am enthusiastic on the material. The books looks very interesting and beautiful and I can’t wait to see it.
Around the publication of this book a Blog Hop Tour is organized with artists involved in the book. I never took part in a blog hop tour before.
May 15 I will be the hosting blog. If you visit my blog that day and leave a message you can win many sponsored prizes and I will add an online animal class to these prizes. So you all should visit my blog on May 15: http://marlaineverhelst.com/blog
Here you can find the complete schedule of this blog hop tour: http://littlebitwired.blogspot.com/2011/04/inspired-remnants-curious-dreams-online.html
My fellow DABIDA member Esther Verschoor is also part of this book AND part of the Tour. Her blog is scheduled for May 11th.
16
Mar
First grand child!
I am finally getting my first grand child!
It turns out to be a Maine Coon cat by the name of “Koekebakker”. He seems to be named after someone, but not after my husband or me, and we are the grand parents 
My son and his girlfriend are going to get this little cat in a few weeks. In
the meantime they are gathering everything a cat could possibly need. Of course a small basket, but also a traveling box, a big cat litter box and also a small one for traveling. They even got him some toys. See picture (and this is no joke).
They know exactly how they are going to feed him and bring him up. They want to train him to travel so they will bring him to us regularly.
Oh well, I guess I can love an adopted grand child as much as a real one.
27
Jan
Art doll quarterly
Just received the newest Art Doll Quarterly in the mail. I love this magazine that is so beautifully printed. On the last page I found my piece “Taking Care of Fishes” presented as “odd Doll” . I hope “odd” is good
Although I don’t remember any more sending this text I found my own words telling about the piece to this picture. So here you can find the story behind “Taking care of Fishes”.
In the same issue you can find a beautiful ten pages(!) article about my friend Ankie Daanen. So I would say: get yourself a copy.
16
Jan
Art contest
I had sent in this piece for Beyond Fantasy Magazine’s Faeries & Foe’s Art contest. The piece came in the category Juror’s Pick and will be published in the next issue of Beyond Fantasy Magazine.
The piece is called :” Taking care of Fishes” hand sculpted in porcelain and air dry clay, placed on a wooden base. The piece is appr. 14 inches high.
It is a fish faerie: he has fishtail wings.
It was not my intention to win this contest but it is just fun to see my piece and some of my colleague doll artists between all these beautiful fantasy artworks. You should really check it out.
Enjoy.
