Begin with a sketchThe character of Violetta began with inspiration, a mug mimicking a vintage Valentine’s Day clown motif fell into my hands on the same day I rewatched an old tv show from my childhood The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack. I wanted to make a character that ran with a circus, a mix of a tattooed woman, a peep show girl, and a tightrope walker. The name, Violetta, was what my grandmother chose for me when I was born, but I think it fits this character much better. The mug was included in the initial photo shoot of this character
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The BodyCreating the body of this character was something I had to put considerable effort towards. Designing and sculpting the entire body took 18 hours collectively. Having never made a model before, it was an interesting challenge to undertake.
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The FaceI thought doing my own eyeliner was a challenge, until I did Vio’s. Turns out model makeup is just as much fun, though.
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The ClothesUsing traditional patterning skills, I was able to create an accurate pattern block for the body created. If you’ll notice, the pattern is a great example of something being made to fit. Seeing as the clay body was imperfect in nearly every way, the pattern needed to account for the uneven proportions so that it looked perfect in the end. Here we see the pattern block for the body suit looking completely lopsided, without a symmetrical body the pattern had to be made as a whole body piece, accounting for the irregularity. The dress on the other hand, was created with near perfect symmetry as it was made to hide the body shape, with the exception of the back panels and straps.
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Knitting on the miniature“Why would you do that?” Is a question that has darkened my doorway for years, why would I *ever* want to knit the tiny sweaters that will never be worn. I don’t think there is an answer that will make sense. Sure I could find some jersey fabric and sew one together, but jersey will only do so much for me, you can’t put a cable in it, can’t make a texture, and there will be a seam. There are times where the result I want to achieve is a seamless, multi textured work, and jersey simply can’t do that at the scale I want it at. I find that most of the time knitting a difficult garment shape is easier than sewing it.
For this piece in particular I wanted the plainest, most constricting looking sweater. Taking inspiration from old fisherman’s woolen sweaters, this one is the penultimate in bland fashion in comparison to Vio’s extravagant and formfitting bodysuit she wears for performance. |