Here is a thing, a very pretty thing, it looks like a flower and so it is. I planted JaneLaverick.com six months ago, tended it and cared for it every day. Now it has flourished and grown into readers all round the world, who have proved to be thoroughly self seeding, as you have scattered it by email, pingback and word of mouth.
Now it’s time to say thank you. Thank you!
If you are coming to Miniatura please come up to my stand and say:
I read JaneLaverick.com and I claim my free badge.
or words to that effect and if you are one of the first two hundred people to do so I’ll give you one of the badges that says ‘I read JaneLaverick.com’. If you’ve never met me in person, I’ll be easy to spot, I’ll be festooned in badges like the one in the middle, saying ‘I write JaneLaverick.com’ because I do. I’m sorry there’s only 200 to give away, it’s all I can afford; in the six months I’ve been doing this, I haven’t had time to earn money as gardening is a labour of love and I have loved it. I know from all your comments that you have too, so thank you, thank you, come and get a free badge, you deserve it. And thank you too, to www.badgesaplenty.com and the web manager who between them have an admirable turn of speed. If this is popular there’ll be more free badges in the autumn.
9.45 pm
Some idiot let herself in for writing a blog the night before set up. She must be more sandwiches short of a picnic than a soup kitchen. I wonder about myself, I really do. There are still 6 dolls to dress and all the dolls to price and pack except the 24th children. The kiln experiments all have wigs but best of all I’ve nearly finished something I didn’t mention before in case it didn’t happen.
Two entire years ago, or it might have been two and a half, customer Pat, seeing my glass eyed stuffed lower body 24th scale ladies, asked if I would do her a glass eyed 24th scale gentleman artist. So, for the last two years I’ve been writing apologies and being charming at fairs while I got on with it because, of course, what I wanted to do was an all porcelain articulated doll. It has taken some doing, because I like the joints on my men to be rather positive. Women are rounder generally, it gives you a degree of latitude but men, to be manly, have to be quite angular which means very sharp positive joints, which in a 3mm ball and socket knee joint, in a material like porcelain that has to be rubbed down by hand is a lot to ask. One scrub too many or a sneeze and you’ve lost it. But I haven’t and I didn’t and I poured a lot and got some.
I would have to say that lengthy commissions in miniature are not unusual; I know someone who waited five years for one of John Hodgson’s carved armchairs. She waited and he sold it at a five year old price, which was nice. I hope Pat will be similarly pleased; everyone wins, I’ve got the learning and you get the picture, a bit scruffy with funny light because there is no time to set up a studio and all the guys are on their dolls stands cause I haven’t got time to balance them and if one fell over and got damaged I wouldn’t have time to say a word or three, nevertheless:
All three inches with brushable hair and, if I stop blethering on to you, a couple more might get dressed. I’ve still got to dress at least one kiln experiment and pack and price and sleep. And sleep? Maybe not but I can dream, of sleeping, whilst remaining awake. You would think after 17 years I’d be able to dress dolls in my sleep, wouldn’t you? I wish.
Meanwhile, next stop that you’ll know about is the queue on Saturday morning and me with a camera trying not to get squashed in the rush. That’s approximately 36 hours away, which is a pity because I’ve got about 48 hours worth of stuff to fit into it.
See you there!
