Ta da...Luna the Pixie Kitten's web page is up

I just got Luna the Pixie Kitten's page up here on our web site this afternoon. Here are some more pictures of her flying around in our garden amongst the ageratums.

I have two tutus to sew for two more Pixie Kittens. That's a tongue twister. Next is a tabby kitten named Celeste. She gets a gold tutu to go with her pretty fall colors. I'll have to ask her to pose with the yellow chrysanthemums I got yesterday.

Luna is sniffing a marigold here. They smell kind of funny, but she likes them anyway.

Sneak peek at "Luna the Pixie Kitten"

I'm in the middle of editing photos of "Luna the Pixie Kitten" by Max Bailey and myself. I had to share my favorite shot. I was crouching next to our Shoal Creek Chaste Tree, which the bees love, hoping one would cooperate, and one did. Once I have the rest of the photos color-adjusted, I'll get Luna's web page up over here.

I asked my mom to take a shot of me too. She told me I looked tired, but I said go ahead anyway. I got my flu shot recently, and since then I've been feeling a little under the weather. I'm not sure if I just happened to start coming down with the flu at about the same time, or if I'm just experiencing some side effects. Hopefully it won't turn into anything.

I picked up some new fleece colors and am in the process of pre-washing them right now. I pre-wash most fabrics, if not all. You never know what might run or shrink, and it's good to get that out of the way first. I'm always suspicious of reds, and even though polyester fleece doesn't usually run, this one did. I got the extra dye out so it won't be a problem later, if anything needs to be washed in cold water in the future. I'm going to make some fleece "Hug Me! Slugs" out of these.

I also picked up a dry-erase board, at Staples, so I could keep track of things I need to do. My current system of little pieces of paper, strewn across my desk, doesn't seem so reliable, although it's worked so far. The first thing I need to write on the board is, "Hang up the board." My mom said no, it's, "Take the wrapper off the board," which, I guess, I'd have to write on the wrapper. I'll get right on that after I write it down on one of my little pieces of paper.

Pixie Kitten in progress and a new slug

This is actually the second Pixie Kitten original, one-of-a-kind folk art doll Max Bailey and I have been working on together. I got some really cute photos of the first, a Siamese, the other day, which I can't wait to show...but I have to color correct them first. This Pixie Kitten is going to be a tabby with an orange tutu, or that is the plan so far.

She's made of paperclay and cotton cloth. Her paperclay is still drying. Next she'll be painted with acrylic paint, and varnished.

This is "Hope the Hug Me! Slug". She's spoken for already. As you can see, she's excited and happy about this.

She and the Pixie Kitten have been speculating all afternoon about what her new home will be like.

Hope has her own, personalized hang tag too. I think she's in my workroom trying it on right now.

Pixie Kitten in progress

A kitten in a tutu. My latest project. She has hand-quilted wings that I borrowed from another project that I hadn't finished. Max is going to work some magic on her next. She'll be taking on some Siamese (or Himilayan, or Ragdoll...not sure yet) kitten features soon. We were thinking "fairy kittens" but then I liked "Pixie Kittens" better. It sounds more mischievous. There may just be a "Pixie Cat" to follow...

Dealing with the tulle has been hysterical. Purchasing it was interesting. We piled the bolts up in our arms, and when we got to the cutting counter, the guy there seemed really angry to see us! He looked up and said, "Oh, you're killing me!!" After the twelfth bolt or so, cutting half yards at a time, he seemed to recover a bit. Maybe that was because the end was in sight, or maybe he was due for a break. I prewashed the tulle, and then had to fold and iron it. It does take some patience. It's true.

I cut strips with my rotary cutter, each half an inch greater in skirt length than the next, and basted them together, two at a time. Then I basted the two sets of two together, and pulled up the basting stitch to gather the edge. The longest skirt length goes on top/outside, and the shortest goes on the bottom/inside, so the tutu fans out from the body. The whole thing is sewn to a band, which is then folded under and hand stitched closed. I closed it with a snap in the back, and added a ribbon rosette in the front.

I got a couple of new presser feet too. On the left is my new clear 1/4 inch piecing foot with guide, and on the right is my new clear edge joining foot. The first one allows you to butt your 1/4 inch seam up against the guide, to keep your seam even. I used that when I sewed my doll body. Being able to see through the foot helped me make those tiny, sharp turns. I did mess up the bottom surface of my new foot a little when I sewed over some Fray Check that hadn't dried yet. So, I will avoid doing that again. I tried removing it with some alcohol, but the surface seems a little damaged. It may have reacted chemically with the coating of the foot somehow.

The clear edge joining foot will help attach lace to dresses, and it also acts as a guide for sewing a decorative stitch down a center line.

I used the clear edge stitching foot I bought before to sew my gathered tulle onto my waistband, as I wanted to sew past my gathering stitches, which had built up from so many layers of basting.

To those of you who sent your well wishes for my family, and your kind sentiments, thank you very much. My mom is doing much better, and hopefully she will be all better soon.

Collecting supplies

I'm back. No worries. I haven't gone over to the dark side :) I haven't grown to 50 feet tall, and no old boyfriends were harmed, at least not by me. I'm thinking if I do ever wake up and notice I've grown to gargantuan size, my first thought would probably be, "Cool. Now I can eat all the cupcakes I want," followed by a zillion worries, the first of which would probably be "I hope I don't step on anyone," and then "How do I get some privacy?" So much for wreaking havoc. It's just not my thing.

I accumulated some more supplies today. Sulky rayon thread, above, for my machine embroidery stitching. It's going to look so pretty combined with all those Kona cotton colors for doll dresses. Sulky threads are on sale right now at Joann.

Hancock Fabrics is having a sale on lace and trims too. I picked up these cotton and rayon laces and a yard of off-white Kona cotton. I've been getting my Kona cottons through the mail at this Hancock's, Hancock's of Paducah, and have been happy with them.

I also went over to Jerry's Artarama and was tempted by these 6 x 6 Claybord Aquabord squares. As you can see, I've got a collection of Claybord at this point! I didn't get all these today, just the 6 x 6's. They had a pack of 4 x 4's too, but I decided "cuteness" wasn't a good enough reason to add those to my pile. They were awful cute though...

Btw, they're participating in a fundraiser over there, at Jerry's, to raise money for children's cancers, which you might want to check out. I was kind of wondering what happened to people's hair when I went in!

I also, for no other reason than inspiration, picked up these "Day and Night" Notecards, featuring the paintings of Edward Robert Hughes. I love the Pre-Raphaelites, and have long had a love of his "Night and Her Train of Stars", above. It was part of my inspiration for both my "Moon and Star" and "The Moon Sings a Lullaby". In fact, I wrote a children's story inspired by this painting, and those are two of the illustrations from that story. It was never published, but who knows, I may get back to that idea some day.

"Moon and Star"

"The Moon Sings a Lullaby"

Okay, I've got some email to answer, so I'd better be on my way. Hope you all had a great weekend.

A(nother) Star is Born

"Leah", my new star baby is born! Leah is a one-of-a-kind original art doll, made from my own design and pattern. She is jointed at the hips and shoulders so she can sit or lie down. Leah's body is made from 100% cotton fabric, which is entirely hand painted with acrylic paint and sealed with matte varnish for protection.

Leah is a very friendly, good-natured, and happy baby.

Please click here to visit Leah's web page.


I took the colors for Leah from my "Moon and Star" watercolor painting. I have a giclée print of it available in my Etsy shop, and on eBay, and on our web site as well. It makes a great a companion piece for Leah.

"Greta", New Flower Baby Fairy Art Doll

"Greta", my new flower baby fairy art doll is finished. I'm still trying to figure out what sort of green flower that is on her head! Some kind of chrysanthemum perhaps. (Excuse me while I take a small detour onto Google.) Ah ha...they do exist: green chrysanthemum.

She has hidden button joints and hand-quilted wings, just like "Rosa" who left for her new home just yesterday. I managed to get a few pictures of them together before she left on her journey.

Both are hand painted with acrylic paint and weighted with Poly-Pellets so they sit nicely.

Please click here to visit Greta's web page.

I also painted my plaques and mounted four reproductions of my original watercolors on them. Clockwise from the upper left they are "The Guardian", "Laurence with Primroses and Daffodils", "Iris and Foxgloves", and "The Rabbit Dances". The are all made using archival grade materials and I will be varnishing them for further protection.

Rosa the Flower Baby Original Fairy Art Doll!

She's done! Rosa is all painted and ready to go.

Rosa has an antique reproduction baby face of papier mâché. Her head and ears are paperclay, and her body is 100% cotton cloth. Her periwinkle butterfly wings are hand quilted and she is entirely hand painted with acrylic paint. She will be sealed with matte varnish for protection.

I took my color inspiration for Rosa from "The Fairy and the Dove" and "Fairies and Butterflies". both prints can be found on our web site, or in my Etsy shop.

You can see more photos of Rosa on Flickr.

More progress on my fairy original art dolls

I've made some more progress on my flower baby fairies, and my Spring fairy, who may turn into a Summer fairy as time goes by. I made her a skirt today, and tried Wonder-Under for the first time to fuse fabric layers together before I cut out individual petal shapes for the skirt.

I'm going to paint the "petals" of the skirt so they will compliment the pastel green of the fabric petals around her head. I also permanently attached her wings so her stand can be inserted in the opening between her wings and her body. This way I no longer have to tape her to a stand, which will allow me to paint her. She needs a little more paperclay as well.

The painting on the babies is already under way. I will add a lighter layer of color over their onesies to give more detail. I will have to plan butterfly wings for all three. I've already hand quilted the wings on each one.

I have also been experimenting with mini plaques. I have mounted reproductions of my original watercolor paintings on hand painted 6 by 6 by 3/4 inch solid poplar wood. I wanted little companion pieces of art to offer with my fairy dolls and I wanted to make them so none would need a frame. These will have hangers on the back. I think all the pastel colors will look lovely together.

Making these up reminded me that I have unfinished paintings that would look great in this format. I am fishing out my reference drawings and hoping to get those projects organized. It amazes me where I find things! I often have no idea what is in those piles on my desks and tables! Lots of good ideas just waiting for me to find the time.

Be-flowered Fairies and Babies in Progress

For these little fairy babies, I tried out Mimi Kirchner's directions for hidden button movable joints. They worked out great. I've made them jointed at their shoulders and their hips so they can sit or lie down. I've also weighted their bottoms to make them sit nicely.

They are made from all sorts of things, 100% cotton fabric, Creative Paperclay, and Li-Qua-Ché pourable papier mâché, not to mention fabric flower petals, pipe cleaners, carpenter's glue, and Poly-Pellets. I hand quilted their wings and left an opening on each one for wooden stands that I plan to add later. Since they they can be posed, I thought it would be fun to have them be able to be displayed upright as well.

This is my Spring fairy, a little further along. She is actually a little further along than pictured here, and has been already sanded and gessoed, as have the babies. I am just a bit behind on my photographing!

New Original One-of-a-kind Star Baby Art Doll by Elizabeth Ruffing

"Sigrid the Star Baby" is making her debut. Sigrid is a newly born star. She is jointed at her shoulders and hips so she can lie down or sit. She is made of 100% cotton which was gessoed, painted with acrylic artists' paint, then sealed with matte varnish for protection...just like I would treat an original painting.

She has an adorable pouting baby face, with one little tear on her cheek. Please click here to visit Sigrid's web page.

I put my picture "Moon and Star" her hang tag because it goes so nicely with her turquoise and gold onesie.

Prints of "Moon and Star" can be found on our web site, in my Etsy shop, and on Ebay.

Spring Fairy Art Doll in Progress

I am getting my hands dirty now...

First, I thought Plastic Wood would be a good modeling compound to use on my doll, just for a change, and it might have been. Unfortunately, I had no recollection of its ability to bond with, well...me. After much grumbling over my encrusted palms and fingers, I finally got it off with nail polish remover, the kind with acetone in it, which stung a bit. I was quite relieved just the same. At least I didn't bond one hand to the other!

I also relieved myself of the Plastic Wood, which is now in the trash. No offense to DAP...I'm sure it's great if you mind the warnings not to get it on your skin. Mea culpa.

So, I am back to Creative Paperclay, which cleans up nicely with water. I also used some carpenters' wood glue (Titebond Original Wood Glue, which also cleans up with water) to attach these big green flower petals to the head of my fairy art doll, and then made a cap and stem from the Paperclay. Her be-petaled head reminds me, for some reason, of those funny flowered bathing caps my grandmother used to wear to keep her hair dry while swimming. She and her best friend Lottie used to have a humorous assortment of them. I can still see them, perched on the edge of the pool, cooling their feet in the water, tucking their hair carefully away, talking whispering talking talking whispering...

New Fairy Art on Etsy and Our Web Site

Two new giclée prints on the Ruffing's site and in my Etsy shop..."The Moon Sings a Lullaby",

and "Moon and Star". Both are fantasy pieces and are taken from my original watercolor and pen and ink paintings.

When I painted “The Moon Sings a Lullaby Full of Poppies and Katydids”, I was imagining what kind of lullaby the moon would sing, if the moon could sing, to help people drift off to sleep. I thought of the sounds of katydids, which I’ve always loved to listen to on summer nights. And I thought of the poppy field in "The Wizard of Oz", which caused Dorothy and her friends to fall asleep on their way to The Emerald City. So, this is a picture of the moon singing us all to sleep with a lullaby full of poppies and katydids.

In "Moon and Star", I've depicted the moon as a woman with butterfly wings and the star as a little girl, both descending toward the horizon at dawn. The watercolor sky has shades of turquoise and blue and a little bit of yellow all dropped into a wet background for a soft effect.

Both giclées are a standard 8.5 x 11 inch image size on 9.5 x 12 inch fine art paper. Please visit my shop for these and other fairy art prints.

Populating my Etsy shop with art

I've gone Etsy-mad. I just put a bunch of my giclées in my new shop This one is "The Fairy and the Dove".

"Fairies and Butterflies"

"Angels' Flight"

"The Frost Angel"

"Jubilee"

"Iris and Foxgloves"

And finally, "Window Box With Pansies".

I also added some more dog and cat giclées to Mom's Etsy shop. Now I have to update some pages on the Ruffing's site...web work, web work, web work...

All these prints can also be found on our web site.