Surprise!

[nid_dabeille]

I finished my Surprise Family!  (Jack, Stephen, Sophie, Diana.)

Disclaimer:  I did not make the bodies.  I just dressed and adorned them They're just standard little wooden manikins.  (Where did the spelling "manikin" come from?  What happened to "mannequin"?  Anyway, these are called 4 1/2" wood "manikins.")  (My art supply store was having a huge going-out-of-business sale, and they were only $2.50 each!  How could I resist???)

Surprise!!!

An unfortunately typical scene.  (Jack underestimated his own strength.)


A more pleasant scene.  Diana sans base, because with it she positively towers over Stephen, especially with her outre' hair.

ETA:  As a joke, I made Stephen a temporary wig out of my cat's fur, but when I tried to photograph him wearing it, the cats became very interested.  In fact, Nemo ended up carrying it off in his mouth and destroying it.  I didn't mind.

For more pictures (including closeups of the fabulous wigs, and Stephen wigless and also with his messy!wig, see my photobucket album.  Do it!!!

Comments

[ozfille]

Where did the spelling "manikin" come from? What happened to "mannequin"?

I guess people who can't spell have taken over the world.

Your cat obviously just felt the magnetic attraction of "the Stephen Maturin", beloved of all the animal world or at least a representation of him or maybe he was channelling Killick who never approved of the standard of Stephen's dress or his wig. *g*

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Well I've decided that it's the WIG that attracts animals to Stephen. They didn't bother him at all when he was wigless, and they weren't really interested in the other people. But when he was wearing his horrible cathair wig, they were drawn irresistibly to him!!!

Do you like my manikins? :D

[des-pudels-kern.livejournal.com]

"manikin" looks like you spell it like "Männeken", isn't that Belgian for boy or little man?

Hee, love the Surprises. Stephen and the animals...

[reconditarmonia.livejournal.com]

Oh, they're so cute! I like how Stephen's wig is lying on the floor next to him in that one shot.

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Hee! Thanks! (It really was an accident that he got knocked over. They're really very unstable and topheavy. I need to find a way to weight down their little bases.)

[zed-pm.livejournal.com]

Fantastic work! I love Jack's shiny, gold hair! hehe

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Hee! Thank you! He and Sophie have hair made from the same fringe trim. The hair was definitely the hardest part.

[scaryfangirl.livejournal.com]

Hee! What fun! :D

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Thanks! :D

[iansmomesq.livejournal.com]

Cute!!!!!!!!!!! <333

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Whee!

[rosamundeb.livejournal.com]

*G* Looks like I beat Gilly... Mannekin means "little man" in Germanic languages; I'm guessing that's the Germanic spelling, and Mannequin is the Romantic language spelling. What country were your little guys manufactured?

*L*!!! Love the cat sequence, especially because I could so see Stephen being cheap and buying or making a wig out of cat fur - *L*!!!

Wow... they REALLY look like the characters? How in the world did you make such realistic wigs? The blonde ones are especially gorgeous. I would only make one suggestion, and that is to make or paint Stephen a vest or coat or that cool coat he wore in the Galapagos. They are GREAT!

Oh, sorry, I do have ONE more comment... so where the hell are Bonden and Killick?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Aww, Bonden and Killick! Well, I think I bought all the little manikins they had in the store!

I think I remember they had "made in china" stickers. But Stephen is by a different maker (hence he's shorter and different wood). But anyway, when I look them up online in art supply catalogs etc., they're mostly all called "manikins!"

I did think of painting a vest, but it's hard to paint their round bellies, because they bend and move over them and scrape the paint off. But I bought some wood stain, so maybe I'll use that. Did you see my photobucket pics? Stephen's chest got kind of dirty with the handling, but I kind of like the dirty look for him. :D

(Gilly had a sneak preview, bwaha!)

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Oh, and this is the braid and fringe stuff that I used to make the wigs! Sneaky, eh? :D Still, it took about 4 hours each. But now that I know I can do it, whee!!! I'm a dollhouse gal, so perhaps I'll be making more in the future.
Wiggy stuff. (http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r18/graceewhite/surprise%20family/braidandfringe.jpg)

[tootsiemuppet.livejournal.com]

XD I just noticed, but... DID YOU GIVE DIANA AND SOPHIE BREASTS?!?!

*so amused*

[tootsiemuppet.livejournal.com]

Why did you not post these to P_D?

[voontah.livejournal.com]

They are adorable!! Amazing job on those wigs.

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Thank you! They took ages, the wigs, but they were fun!

[sid]

So impressed. And such fun! :-D

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Yay! Thanks! Very fun!!

[ldhenson.livejournal.com]

Oh, these are wonderful! You did a great job with the hair--I particularly love Jack's. But what a bully he is, knocking over Stephen like that! Is that any way for an officer of the Royal N to behave?

Your cats are so cute.

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Yay! Well, Jack didn't MEAN to knock Stephen down, but there was just a sudden wave and the shelf was rolling, and his friendly clap on the shoulder sent Stephen reeling (and his wig flying). Hee! (They really are rather unstable. The little bases are too lightweight.)

[max-und-moritz.livejournal.com]

HAHAHAHAHA, delightful!! I love Sophie especially, but you got them so well!

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Yay! Thank you! I'm quite pleased with Sophie's hair (and boy, it was hard to do.) And her pink bodice and silky white skirt and her gold shoes!

[latin-cat.livejournal.com]

The wigs are fantastic! I admire your skill and patience. :) What kind of paint did you use on the manikins? (And your cats are adorable. Hee, tephen and his animals...)

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Yay, thanks! I used acrylic paints, some just artist acrylics, some house paint, some that were meant for painting on glass, I think... Quite a variety, but all acrylics. Oh, and some permanent marker, actually. It was hard to paint all the moving parts and have them still move nicely without scraping the paint or getting jammed.

Kitties!!

[kitmarlowe.livejournal.com]

These are adorable :). I love how Jack has knocked Stephen's wig off in his enthusiasm. How did you do the wigs?

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Thank you! The wigs were really challenging but fun. I made them out of braid trim and fringe. If you click on my photobucket link, there's a picture of the trims I used.

[soho-iced.livejournal.com]

Very impressed with these and your creativity and handicraftness in general! (And would have said so earlier, sorry: have been away and am working my way through all the good stuff on my friends page.)

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'm quite proud of them, must admit. :D

[esteven]

They are great! This must have been very early in their acquaintance because Jack is still quite slim. ;D So far we are having a wonderful time. Stephen Bear was hard to get out of the Victory's orlop and Jack played around with a cutlass. In the end they visited friends in Bath and today they had a good airing because we went for a walk through the fields from Petersfield to "Ashgrove"

I think your Jack, Stephe, Sophie and Diana would have enjoyed that too.
Thanks again for making them and posting those photos

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Aww, sounds like you and the boys are having a wonderful time! (And I'm glad Jack is getting a chance to take some excercise!)

I'll admit that I HAVE carried Stephen around in my purse a few times... But only when I was going shopping for something for the poppets and needed him for size. Without his wig, he's the least fragile (and the most impervious to accidents, which are many.)

[artyartie.livejournal.com]

I'm so very behind in posting but these are absolutely darling! You are so wonderfully crafty, and you put your skills to such good use.

Even though your kitties are very, very naughty, they're still adorable. But Stephen would do something like make a cat hair wig...

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Aww, thanks! Sigh, I haven't yet attempted to repair his wig. I hunted around for other lost bits, but to no avail. Maybe I'll tackle it tomorrow.

I love my little Surprise Family. :D

[matimate.livejournal.com]

It think your creativity will give us more of those little ones..who knows it may grow in the whole POB Universe:))) Thank you for sharing them.

[grace-poppy.livejournal.com]

Hee - well, I think I bought the only ones they had left! And besides, I wouldn't want the others to distract from the glory of the original four. Glad you like them!