Humble Beginnings

Faerie Pin Dolls From a 2000 Jody-Judy Class 

Made by Judy Skeel

    I moved into my grandparents home when I was 4.  While my brother was in school grandma wanted to watch her “stories” so she gave me fabric, a needle and thread and showed me how to make very simple Barbie Clothes.  All to watch soap operas!  LOL!  At 16 I saw an ad in a magazine for a needle sculpted gnome that I thought was adorable.  I ordered the pattern and made a strange little fella 8-inch out of panty hose: my first needle sculpting!

    Much later, I was always working on something at my boys’ baseball games and practices.  Some of the ladies asked if I could teach them what I was working on.  I was doing craft shows and lots of dried flowers and herb gifts and other small items at the time.  We met in my kitchen for a couple of years and I  came up with a variety of projects including silk ribbon embroidery, painting birdhouses to look like they were in a garden, decorating paper maché boxes and a 6” “Mother Nature” in polymer clay from a Maureen Carlson book.  Then one week they asked if I knew how to make a doll.  I said my typical response, "let me check into it."  I had seen some elinor peace bailey patterns years before at a local store but the new owner thought they were “tacky and disgusting” and got rid of them.  Dollmakers Journey wasn’t around yet so I went to every craft store in town.  I found some Goosebury Hill patterns and purchased an elf pattern who, seated, measured about 12” total and he was needle sculpted. I added a beard to mine and made him a leprechaun playing a figgle I had bought later.  I always had to do something extra when I made something.  I never started doing a basic thing, I always wanted to jump ahead and make the best I could, no matter the craft.  Anywhoo, I showed the girls the elf pattern and we started it the next week. 

Shamus O'Brian

    Still on my quest for good doll patterns, the last store I went to only had Goosebury Hill patterns, so I bought my obligatory craft store supplies (can’t go in one without a purchase!) and I asked the clerk if they had any epb patterns.  She said no and she had never heard of her.  Then I went to put my money on the counter and found attached to the glass a flier stating epb would be IN TOWN in 2 weeks!  I took the entire class to her lecture/ presentation of telling a story or singing a song about each of her dolls she brought and then tossing them out to be passed around the audience to be touched and viewed up close and personal.  Then her slide show presentation with photos of dolls at every skill level from a basic pancake doll to incredible NIADA DOLLS was mind blowing for us.  She talked about each one, sometimes telling stories about those doll artists.  We all 6 drooled in our seats and we all bought multiple patterns.  Funny.  I don’t remember teaching anything but dolls after that for years. 

    I joined the local doll club that hosted epb and became the Guilded Lilies (we're on Face Book).  I found Doll Street which was a big active on line club then and I learned a ton of things there, FOCD (Friends of Cloth Dolls) another on line group, and a third that I think it was called Dolls ‘N Stuff, which is no more.  About a year later Dolls ‘N Stuff had their 2nd retreat.  They were looking for things to do so I said Jody Miller and I wouldn’t mind showing people who were interested how we needle sculpt or do faces.  They advertised it as the Jody-Judy workshop and we instantly became doll teachers and they insisted on paying us.  We didn’t have a clue what to charge and really would have done it for free but as they insisted we charged $5 a person.  Mary Ann Kaahanui and Bonnie B. Lewis had just started Dollmakers Journey and MaryAnn attended the retreat and brought some goodies to sell. (Yay!  More Shopping!)  We never had an idea that DMJ would grow so big!  Big Kudos Paul! 

Faerie Pin Dolls From a 2000 Jody-Judy Class 

Made by Jody Miller

    Jody and I went to many Doll Conferences/ Retreats together as Jody- Judy because everyone called us that if they didn’t know who was who.  We said it didn’t matter, they didn’t have to get it right as we were interchangeable.  Then we’d laugh and introduce ourselves.  After dinner and evening events you could usually find us in our room showing people how we did faces, sometimes till 3 am!   No class, just girls hanging out, sharing.  Loads of fun and awesome memories!!!

    If you’ve never seen epb perform you have missed a real treat!  I understand now why so many call her “The Mother of Dollmaking.”