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The Moon Sings a Lullaby Full of Poppies and Katydids watercolor fantasy art by Elizabeth Ruffing

The Moon Sings a Lullaby Full of Poppies and Katydids watercolor fantasy art by Elizabeth Ruffing

The Moon Sings a Lullaby Full of Poppies and Katydids watercolor fantasy art by Elizabeth Ruffing“The Moon Sings a Lullaby Full of Poppies and Katydids” is an original watercolor painting with pen-and-ink detailing. I am making a limited number of reproductions of this image as a signed giclée print as well, on 8 1/2 by 11 inch art paper.

This is a fantasy piece. I was imagining what kind of lullaby the moon would sing, if the moon could sing, to help people drift off to sleep. I thought of the sounds of katydids, which I’ve always loved to listen to on summer nights. And I thought of the poppy field in The Wizard of Oz, which caused Dorothy and her friends to fall asleep on their way to The Emerald City. This is a picture of the moon singing us all to sleep with a lullaby full of poppies and katydids.

Pink poppies and katydids float all around her, like music coming from her mouth. She wears a crown of paper dolls. Stars glow on her robe.

A decorative floral border encloses the central image.

The Moon Sings a Lullaby Full of Poppies and Katydids watercolor fantasy art by Elizabeth RuffingThis is what the 8 1/2 by 11 print might look like framed without a mat. (A mat and frame are not included.)

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Iris, pansy, and rose floral art prints by Elizabeth Ruffing

Pansies floral watercolor art paintng by artist Elizabeth Ruffing

I made up four floral giclée art prints from my watercolor paintings of pansies and iris flowers.

Each one is 3.5 by 5 inches image size on 6 x 8 inch fine art paper. I chose a standard size 6 by 8 inch paper size to expand framing options, as these will fit in either a standard 5 x 7 inch or a standard 6 x 8 inch size mat and frame set, with a white border showing.

Each giclée art print has a decorative floral border surrounding the central image. Above is “Pansies”.

“Purple and White Iris”

“Peach Iris”

“Pink Roses with Gold Border”
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Suzie the Sunflower Fairy Original One-of-a-kind Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth Ruffing

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth Ruffing

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Folk Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth RuffingSuzie the Sunflower Fairy is a handmade original, one-of-a-kind flower fairy art doll, handmade and hand painted by artists Max Bailey and Elizabeth Ruffing.

Here is Suzie, a cheerful little soul created to remind us all on dreary winter days, that spring is on its way. Suzie loves her job as Sunflower Fairy.

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Folk Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth RuffingWhen the earth is warming, she calls upon the sun to bring new life. Like magic, the little seeds that lay dormant in the cold of winter emerge as seedlings from the ground. With her sunflower wand, she touches them and gives them the strength they need to become tall and majestic. She watches over them, and loves their sunny friendly faces.

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Folk Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth RuffingIn the fall, when the birds and squirrels and chipmunks have had their fill of the sunflowers’ seeds, she takes the seeds that are left behind and gently tucks them into the earth, where they will emerge again next year.

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Folk Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth RuffingSuzie is an original one-of-a-kind work of art, created in collaboration by Max Bailey and Elizabeth Ruffing. Suzie is the first art doll Max and Elizabeth have made together. She is 12 and 1/2 inches tall, with a wingspan of 5 and 3/4 inches. Her body is sewn from cotton fabric, then stuffed and painted with acrylic paints. She has warm brown eyes, and brown hair streaked with gold from the summer sun. Her hair is sculpted from paper clay blended into the fabric.

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Folk Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth RuffingElizabeth made Suzie’s skirt from a pretty yellow cotton print with rose hearts and green leaves, and Max painted the top of her dress with matching hearts and leaves.

She wears little brown shoes with buttoned ankle straps, decorated with sunflowers. Her green tights are painted on, as are her ruffled white bloomers with rose ribbons.

Her wings are quilted and painted in a multitude of fairy-like colors, from pastels to bright greens and yellows. The sunflower wand she carries was created from wood and paper clay, and it is removable, should you need to borrow it to make your sunflowers grow.

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Folk Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth RuffingThere is a small loop in the top of Suzie’s head, in case you would like to hang her up. Suzie can also sit on a chair, or on a shelf, or stand with a doll stand (chair and doll stand not included). She is signed and dated, and sealed with matte varnish for protection and preservation.

Suzie the Sunflower Fairy, Original One-of-a-kind Folk Art Doll by Max Bailey and Elizabeth RuffingUpdate: Suzie the Sunflower Fairy has already been adopted. Thank you!

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Art Doll Beginnings

Serenity Starr angel sketch by Elizabeth RuffingI’ve completed my first set of original, one-of-a-kind art dolls, and these are some of the sketches I drew for them, before I turned them into patterns to sew. Above is “Serenity Starr“, and below are “Cottontail Charlotte“, and “April May“. They all turned into angels, and have since flown off to their new homes.

Cottontail Charlotte angel sketch by Elizabeth RuffingOnce I had an idea of how I wanted them to look, I experimented with making patterns for them, using 100% cotton sheeting. I used a sateen-finish sheeting, so I would get a nice smooth surface for painting. I learned that your initial doll shape changes a lot once your doll is stuffed, and so adjustments are necessary. Your pattern design usually needs to be a little wider than you think, and slightly taller.

Each angel got a set of hand-quilted wings, which were stuffed with 1/4 inch batting, and then hand sewn onto each doll body. I made wooden stands for my angels first, so I would be able to leave the right amount of space between the wings and the doll bodies. That way, I was able to slip the stands between the wings and the bodies.

April May angel sketch by Elizabeth RuffingNext up, I’m going to be trying some hand-painted, jointed art dolls, for a little more dimension.

Elizabeth Ruffing's doll pattern sketchesThese are some of my sketches for pattern prototypes. They’ll be sewn, stuffed, and then redrawn until I like the results.

Elizabeth Ruffing's doll pattern sketchesFor instance, I’m going to redraw those feet, above, because they came out more pointed than I wanted them to be. Making patterns for doll bodies and doll clothing takes a lot of experimentation.

I’m going to be experimenting with Creative Paperclay, and Li-Qua-Ché pourable papier mâché, to add some sculpted parts and details to my fabric dolls, as well.