Monday, October 29, 2007

Patti Medaris Culea

Patti is an extremely popular designer and teacher. She has written a series of books under the banner of Creative Cloth Doll Making. Her website is www.pmcdesigns.com.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have all her books and the patterns are easy to make. She explanes a lot and will answere your questions by e-mail.

Megan said...

Patti has a number of patterns and several books published. I think her books are fantastic value as they also include patterns in the back of each book and they are sized so that the patterns pieces from each book are interchangeable. Book One is still my all time favourite (if you were limited to only buying one and is worth it just for the face instructions alone). The gallery sections are also wonderful to look at over and over as you can see how many different ways the basic pattern can be interpreted. I still regularly sit in bed and leaf through mine and always notice something new. I am currently working through Patti's Tome patterns with a small group and they have been terrific - a wonderful way to experiment with different techniques which of course can be used on dolls as well as other textile art pieces. The key things with Patti's dolls are her bold use of colour and techniques such as direct dyeing, beading and free motion embroidery to really enhance the doll beyond it's simple form. The faces generally have a front seam to give them a profile and simple needlesculpting to give them shape - so they are achievable for someone wanting to progress beyond pancake faces.

Patti's doll are nearly always made with 100% cotton so easy to source - this is important for those in remote areas or countries that where you can't easily get other fabrics such as robe velour or doeskin.

girlgonethreadwild said...

Patti Culea is actually my favorite doll artist out there. Her patterns are easy to use & she freely grants permission to the artist to sell the dolls made using her patterns (I've encountered a number of pattern designers who allow private use only) so this is a big plus for those selling in art shows, etc. Patti's patterns have relatively easy lines to stitch by with instructions that are simple to follow. She offers patterns that appeal to beginning doll makers to those who are advanced. Her range spreads to beaders, mixed media artists and collage enthusiasts. Trust me, you will be inspired by her books and patterns both. Art on, Monica

Anonymous said...

A few years ago I had to make a doll using one of Patti's patterns for a challenge at the "mumswhoplaywithdolls" yahoo group. At the time I didn't have any of her patterns and money was tight..we were able to use patterns from her books. To make this short...my public library had no clue as to making a doll..no books...but their librarian is a woman with vision...she purchased the books herself and made them available at the library! My "Luna Cobalta spaced out faery" is the result of that challenge. She was super easy to make...the instructions were precise..easy to follow and made me want to make more right then! As an added note...because of Patti I was given the pleasure of having a month long display at that library of 3 dolls I created with my own designs (which never would have happened if I hadn't looked for her book) and started an interest in dolls that people in my area never knew existed! Thank you Patti!

Judith said...

I am having the Most Wonderful time this year working my way through Patti's Creative Cloth ..book. She is a really lovely woman too. I want to make all the dolls in her books now, plus the beading. Enough to kepp me busy for the next 3 years at least!!!
Judith