FROM BROKEN TO BEAUTIFUL A.K.A. THE HOT FLASH DOLL

It was a party all weekend when Kat Bunker came to City Quilter to teach a doll class. She taught her doll called “From Broken To Beautiful,” and what a freeing experience that turned out to be! The fun was choosing fabrics and embellishments and letting loose at the sewing machine. We were surrounded by a sea of colorful fabrics and trimmings, with the invitation to think out of the box as we made the doll. There were some basic instructions, but the interpretation of the final doll would be left to us. And that suited me just right. My fabric palette was coral, red, gold, orange, and brown. They looked so pretty when held together. However, my doll looks nothing like what I originally had in mind! It wound up being as red as a ball of fire! Dolls really do take on the personality of the dollmaker, because as I was making her, I was flashing like a neon sign on Broadway. So were many of my classmates. We must’ve frozen the other ladies out several times because the heat of the room and the hot flashes weren’t working. I remember sweating as I made the doll. To embellish her, I used beads, bits of cracked windshields because they look like cut crystal, metallic threads, etc. This doll holds a ting bag in one hand. Kat told us to write our troubles and problems onto scrolls, put them in the bag and let them go. I did and never looked back. I was well pleased with the completed doll. I am proud to say that she is currently on exhibit at the Doll & Toy Museum in Brooklyn. More on that in a forthcoming post.