The Need To Create

All my woodworking tools are in a storage shed down by Utah Lake. So are my paints, brushes, palette knives, canvas and easel. I knew this was going to be, so I started preparing back in Seoul. I went to Dongdaemun with Rebecca and at first just followed her around bedazzled by the fabric, ribbons, beads, buttons, and silk threads that come in a bazillion colors. Then I started thinking: I should create something out of all this raw material. So I started collecting "swatchees" (Korean 'konglish' for "swatches") that were rife with possibilities. Now I have a collection of materials that are fairly lightweight and the only tools I need to work with them is a needle, a threader (my eyes aren't quite as bright) and a pair of scissors.
Here's what I've made thus far:

They are called topsy turvy dolls, because there is a doll on one side and you flip it "topsy-turvy" and voila!

There is another doll hidden under the skirt.  My sister Karla had a doll that was a white girl/black girl. That was my inspiration for the one adove. Only mine is a bit more on the wild side. Plus the arms of one doll become the legs of the other.

The "swatchees" are what I used for their bodices. This one is called Black and White.

This one is Asian-Caucasian.  As I said, just a needle, scissors and thread. No sewing machine neeeded.

The body is made from ramie, a fabric used by the Koreans in making their "Hanbok" the traditional costume of Korea. Ramie is similar to linen, but where linen is made from flax, ramie is made from the stems of thistle plants.

This is Cat Woman. Notice the tiny cats on the fabric. Dongdaemun is like that.  You can find most anything EVERYTHING you need there!
These figures range from 26 to 32 inches.  I am selling them at
KurtKnudsen.etsy.com (click on the photo at the upper left corner of my blog) along with our stained glass stars.