Our First Interview: Laura Lunsford

Workshop Artist Interview: Laura Lunsford
http://www.slvfest.com/hangingbyathread

Q. How long have you been making dolls, and how did you get involved in dolls & doll making?
Started seriously making them in 1997 after seeing an article in a magazine of a doll with silk ribbon embroidery. I was teaching classes for SRE for Michaels at the time, and thought it would be a fun project. By the time I got through designing an appropriate doll, I had several which I dressed as angels in flowers, shells, etc. and have been hooked since.

Q. What inspires you? Why dolls... instead of some other medium?
I still enjoy working in other media; however the wonderful thing about dolls is there are so many techniques incorporated into the process: designing, sewing, painting, applying "makeup", hair do's, accessories, etc. They can be as simple, or as intricate in detail as you want.

Q. Is there a particular doll size that you prefer to work with?
Not really, depends on what I’m trying to achieve. I have little angels and mermaids that are just about 3 inches. My newest doll, Marie Antoinette, is larger than what I usually make...she's 22 inches...most of my dolls are about 16 - 18". Storage is one consideration.

Q. Do you sit down flooded with ideas, or is it the result of a slowly developing process?
I just never know. It can be a piece of fabric, or a photograph, or often its challenges from magazines, or on-line groups. For the festival I thought it would be fun to make a simple doll which could relate to the venue, so we'll be using cloth of course, but adding yarns, fibers, cutouts, and just about anything the artist wishes to make the doll their own.

Q. What would you tell someone who wants to find their own creative "voice" in making dolls?
What I tell most people is to be willing to experiment. There is no right or wrong. Each effort teaches you something. That’s the fun of taking a piece of fabric and forming it into a "work of art". Of course there are times when you think you’re going to have one result, and the doll seems to have a mind of their own. So you go with the flow. Yes, I try talking to them, but sometimes it's just easier to let them have their way.

Q. We hear that you're going to be featured in Soft Dolls & Animals again? What’s new and exciting in your world right now?
After the editor contacted me about publishing some of my patterns, I was thrilled to send one of the dolls to her, so they can photograph for the cover of the July issue. Have had lots of dolls published in several magazines, but his is my first cover.