Penny Raile

Trash Dolls Debut on Etsy

I listed six of my new Trash Dolls on Etsy today.  Shown here is Kirky Joe.  He is made from recycled materials including silk, wool and a canvas calendar.  The silk came from the "discard pile" at Italian Fabrics across the street from me.  I have four more to list but I will save them for another day.

Go to www.raile.etsy.com to see them (and to buy them).

Now it is time for me to get back to my sewing machine and make more Trash Dolls.

Not A Collection Until You Have Two

I've been visiting local thrift stores recently looking for vintage fabrics for my Trash Dolls.  When I spotted this wonderfully tacky tea cup and saucer, I could not resist bringing the set home.  

I'm holding off posting new photos of my Trash Dolls until I have "the herd" built up.  I do have quite a few new ones and it is fun to see them peeking out at me while they wait patiently in the plastic tub holding them.  I keep them right by the sewing machine giving Mabel less room to stretch out.

The trash is piling up

Yes, the trash is piling up - as in Trash Dolls.  Here are two more for the posse.  The rose color is Bonnie Baylee and the blue one is Luscious Lou.

After scoring a huge load of new fabric from the Italian Fabric dumpster yesterday (I traded with a dozen donuts), I spent the evening organizing.  I have a beautiful assortment of silks and satins now and a bit of fancy lacy material.  For some reason, I also took some Sponge Bob polar fleece.  Why, I don't know.  I have enough to make many baby blankets - which, of course, I won't.  Maybe I can use it to make some weird tote bags or pillows.

I hear there is a new issue of the magazine Stuffed out.  I need to actually get in my car and drive someplace other than Starbucks.  Now that I think about it, I could go to Starbucks at Barnes and Noble to get the magazine.  I also want to get the new Cloth, Paper and Scissors magazine.  EHAG artist, Kristin Beason is featured on the cover.  (EHAG - Eclectic Halloween Artist Group).

Trash Doll

Here is a "Trash Doll" I made today from the material I snatched out of the Italian Wholesale Fabric dumpster.  The material is silk and I suspect expensive silk.  It is beautiful.  The black eye feels like cashmere but is felt.

I really want to work on my Whim-Bots, but this material is so beautiful that I can not just let it sit on my table without doing something with it.

Rifiuti Pesce II (Italian for Trashy Fish)

Another Trashy Fish. (Softie made out of fabric found in Italian Wholesale Fabric dumpster this morning.) The red material is soft and cuddly. By the way, I did wash all the material before I started sewing.

Rifiuti Pesce (Italian for Trashy Fish)

"Fished out" fabric from Italian Wholesale Fabric's dumpster (with their permission) this morning.  And this afternoon I made this cute little "Rifiuti Pesce."  My Italian is rough, so my translation made not be right.

Pennyfest

Kim and Lorraine, Artfest friends, visited me this last week, and we had so much fun!  It was all about "making stuff, and then making more stuff."

Shown here is "Pirate Girl" that Lorraine whipped out in about twenty minutes.  She is such a speed demon.  JJ, the cat, usually does not like to have his picture taken, but he seems to really like "Pirate Girl."  He also took a liking to Kim and Lorraine.

I'll  post more photos later from Pennyfest.

Guesta Rey Bot

With all of the Whim-Bots I have created, it was nice to have Guesta Rey Bot appear.  He likes order and seems to always being telling the other Bots which way to go.

He is made of a thin cigar tin, two beads, two pickle forks, two black rubber washers, a black Lego piece and two small measuring spoons.

With the anticipation of company in less than two weeks, I started clearing my work tables of "body parts." All that is left on the tables are half completed Bots. They are either missing "heads" or 'bodies." Kind of creepy.

More Whim-Bots

The Whim-Bots continue to multiply.  I finished two today.  This one is "Scale Man" for lack of any other name.  He came to me so fast that I did not have time to get to know his personality.  He did seem happy to have his picture taken.  

He is made of a scale, two forks, two mini loaf pans, a cable outlet thingy, two white leg casters, two black beads, and the thing that goes inside a percolator.

My neighbor Suzy gave me some great canisters last night that are going to work perfect for my "Tin Man's" legs.  He is one of my bigger pieces that has been sitting patiently while I found him some limbs.  Now, I need to figure out how to attach his arms (two sink faucets).

Betty Bundt Cake

Betty Bundt Cake aspires to be a ballerina.  She likes to eat berries and collects buttons.  She plays bingo every Saturday night and refuses to go close to bananas.

The newest addition to the Whim-Bot family was made with a bundt cake pan, a thermos, tongs, games pieces including a rook from chess (her nose), two measuring spoons, a fan from a computer and a cute little pink fu-fu.