Author: Elizabeth Ruffing

Posted on by

Cinderella’s Floppy Shoes

In keeping with my recent Cinderella theme, I went out last night and lost not one, but both of my shoes! The soles on each one split right in half, in the same place on each shoe, clean through the soles. I can’t imagine why they broke in half at the same time, except perhaps the one just couldn’t bear to live without the other. The funny thing is, just before it happened, I was walking along, not sure exactly where the place I was looking for was, thinking it would be a humorous time for me to lose a heel or something. I will have to curb these kinds of thoughts! Maybe I have some Carrie-like telekinetic powers. At least the Pliers from Heaven didn’t fall on my car, like they did that time I went out for coffee.

I wonder what this means? If nothing else, that it is time for me to put some new shoes on! Figuratively? Literally? Both?…

In other news, we spent the morning photographing new dolls. Be sure to check over at the Ruffing’s Blog to have a look. We are going to try to be more organized this season and introduce the original hand-sculpted folk art dolls there first, so people will know where to look for the new ones as they become available. Then anyone who wants to can subscribe to receive email updates. There is an area in the upper right hand corner on the Ruffing’s Blog where anyone can subscribe. I’ll still be posting about my cloth dolls and toys here too, as I make them.

Thank you for all the slug love! There is still time to vote for Gerard! Please do! He loves attention 😉

Wow. September is here. I suddenly feel the need to clone myself again! There is plenty to do around here. I’m feeling kind of nervous! There are toys and dolls and paintings and prints and web pages and ads to be made. Oh my.

By the way, I recently purchased these two very adorable books on hand-knitted toys. I love looking through them.

They come with complete instructions for making the toys too, not that I have any time to do this, but I’m really enjoying the inspiration just the same. They are Knitted Toys by Zoe Mellor, and Knitted and Felted Toys by Zoe Halstead. They are great fun.

Hope you are all enjoying the holiday weekend!

Posted on by

Then the light bulb came on

I traced my drawing, preparing to transfer it to my canvas with transfer paper, when I got an idea! Why not just print my drawing right on my canvas with a digital printer! Why didn’t I think of that in the first place?

Here is the stapling order, which is in the video, in case it goes by too fast, or you want to click on the photo to get a bigger picture.

And here is a photo of the two tucks in the corners that you make when you do a gallery wrap, which means the staples are around the back instead of on the sides. Again, you can click on the photo to make it bigger.

So much easier!

Posted on by

Persian Kitten Drawing

This is my second Persian kitten drawing. This one is even smaller than the first, and I am going to try to paint in three by four inch miniature, using acrylic paint. I am still struggling with how to transfer the drawing to the canvas without creating pressure that might warp my tiny canvas. I wish I had an overhead projector, or an opaque projector, or some kind of projector!

I’m debating over filming this, the painting part, that is. I’m leaning toward filming, but I’m trying to alternate painting with sewing, which leaves little room for a tripod. I may also need to use a magnifying lamp, which might block the camera view.
Posted on by

The question of the day is…

Why do I have so much acrylic paint?!

I was trying to get organized today, and put all my brands of acrylic paint together by color. I’ve got the higher grade Liquitex and Golden paints, and I’ve got many brands of craft paint. They have different consistencies, some being more fluid than others. They also have different opacities. The professional, or artist’s grade paint varies from some craft paint in that it doesn’t have additives, and there is, generally, more pigment in the paint. Additives theoretically weaken the chemical bond that holds the paint together to some degree, and thus, weaken the adhesion of the paint to certain surfaces. Water does the same thing. It is best to mix acrylic paint with mediums instead. Mediums are acrylic polymer emulsions, which is what the paint itself is made of, only the paint has pigment added to it.

By contrast, these are my boxes of watercolor paint. Not nearly as large a collection. Here’s the deal…Watercolor mixes so much more nicely. The colors are soft and natural looking. I can also mix watercolor instinctively, probably because I grew up watching my mom paint. I’m sure I passively absorbed a lot of mixing knowledge.

Acrylic, on the other hand, is so vibrant in its purest form, the professional grade, that it can be frustrating to mix. Colors don’t do what I expect them to do, and they come out too strong for my taste. The craft paint comes in hundreds of soft colors that I like much better. So, to compensate for the possible additives, I try mixing craft paint with, and coating it with acrylic medium, and then coating it with varnish. Mediums can also be like glue that lock things in, like when you do decoupage. I also mix both grades of paint together. Sometimes it isn’t clear from the labels on the acrylic paint brands that you find in craft stores, which grade they are, or if they have additives at all. The only thing I can say is that the pigments are not as strong, which can work to your advantage in some instances.

Oil, with its more natural-looking colors, is of course an option for anyone who doesn’t mind the smell, the longer drying time, and the cleanup issues. I like to take the non-toxic route and clean up with water. I can’t stand the oil smell either.

I shrank a loose canvas recently, but then someone furry, with pointy ears and a tail sat on it. It got all saggy again. I had some unprimed canvas, and this morning, I pulled the factory canvas off to replace it. I had to staple and re-staple to get it right.

I finally got two canvases done, primed with gesso, and coated with a couple of layers of white paint. The texture is still not as smooth as the factory canvases, but I can’t keep fussing! Sometimes these small, fix-it projects aren’t worthwhile. I think these will work out okay though.