Rose ribbon doll by Juliet Arrighi, guest designer

The Rose Surround is one of my first SweetStamps purchases - I love how it is perfectly designed to accent a curved focal area, and it is a great way to add a floral touch without bulky embellishments.  However, I was admiring a set of Dia de los Muertos dolls with floral garlands in their hair, and I wondered if the gentle arch of my Rose Surround would work that way.  I decided I wanted a fairy instead of a skeleton, though:

 I drew the patterns for the doll, dress, and hair myself.  If you think you can't draw, I will tell you a secret - even professional artists don't expect to get it right the first time.  They draw something over and over, with their erasers in their other hand, constantly tweaking until it looks the way they wish. also, you don't have to get the whole thing right - I drew the torso, head, and arms separately.  I went through a lot of sketches before I got the shape that I wanted.  once I had a pattern, I cut the parts from an old book page and glued it all together.

I started out coloring the roses with Tombow markers and a blender pen, but then I didn't have a pink cardstock to match for the dress, so I ended up painting the dress and then painting the roses to match.  I used a shimmery pearlized paint for shine.  The wings are actually from the Dot Butterfly, stamped on vellum and embossed with lavender tinsel embossing powder.  Along with the shimmery paint and ribbons, this fairy practically glows!

I added a ribbon on the top of the head for hanging, but I found that a glue dot worked fine for mounting the doll on a door.

I have a friend who will just love her - and she will  fit flat into an envelope to send!

It has been so much fun sharing the ways I use SweetStamps with you this month.  I hope I have inspired you to try something new!