My name is REGINALD. I have been made in New Zealand but my designer is elinor peace bailey. I am a 1920's man and I have slipped in a photo of my beloved flapper, Mary

Zeke is a working ranch hand from the 1850's decade. His day is filled with hard work roping, branding and mending fences.

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Zeke is made from a pattern by Patti Culea but modified to have a male body and face. Both the arms and legs are wired. All of the clothing is sewn by hand (not machine) including the hat and boots. The hat is formed by needle felting a flat piece of craft felt.

Men who for truth and honor's sake
Stand fast and suffer long.
Brave men who work while others sleep,
Who dare while others fly...
They build a nation's pillars deep
And lift them to the sky.

From: A Nation's Strength
by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

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Nathaniel's body is made from a Claire-Ellen pattern. His face is a combination of chalk and watercolor pencils. From his tri-corn hat to his boots, his clothes are originals - no patterns. His black felt hat sits on his needled-felted white wool hair tied in a queue. The navy blue jacket is accented with cranberry cuffs trimmed with silver scrapbooking brads. He's wearing lace at his neck, ruffles on his sleeves, and gloves on his hands. His fawn colored breeches are topped with a black belt and tucked into his tall riding boots. His flintlock rifle is made from a foam core base covered with brown scrapbook paper. Accents were added using a hollow metal rod and jewelry fastenings. The powder horn is made from air dry clay that was painted a flesh color while the black pouch is made from leather like fabric.

At 17 Ned dropped out of high school in 1945 and joined the Navy. The war ended when he was in basic training so his aircraft carrier was refitted to transport the troops home. (His story is my Dad's and he is named for a high school friend who served in Vietnam.)

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Ned of the Navy's body is made (and tweaked a bit) from the pattern "Dude for All Seasons" by Mary Ann Kaahanui and Bonnie B. Lewis. I designed and constructed the uniform, hat, etc.

Living during the 60's blue jeans with ratty hems, tie dyed loose shirts, fringed vests, jute belts, boots, sandals or bare foot, love beads, head bands and tinted granny glasses were the clothing my friends and I wore all the time. Using my memories as a guide I dressed my hippie "Taylor Shaughnessy" in similar clothing and added a guitar ( inspired by a photo of a toy one I saw on the internet) made of cardboard. The hair style, loose long and wild was also the norm but free thinking deemed wearing what ever way we chose and I usually wore a single braid in back or my hair loose with it reaching below my waist! Gee...I still wear my hippie clothes my kids tell me...could it be the long flowing dresses, bare feet and hair in a braid in back might be fashionable today? They are to me!

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I used a pattern by Mimi Winer called "Stretch" for the body and clothing and then tweaked it to lengthen the pants and changed the shirt and vest to more of a hippie style. My doll is named "Taylor Shaughnessy" which is a nod to friends I had in that decade and why I chose the 60's for my doll.

My doll is the Nutcracker representing the decade of1880's.

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I used a pattern of the same name by Michelle Munzone.

All of his clothes were handmade by me. The Nutcracker will be attending the Christmas Eve party of a wealthy family so he is dressed in elegant rich colors, with extravagant beading. This was the mode of formal dress of the wealthy during that decade.

The first picture shows the entire doll. He wears a beaded silky helmet of alternating, blue & red panels and one brocaded red panel, a silky red jacket and blue pants. His boots were painted and then a hand quilted & gem encrusted cuff was added. His staff was made from a wooden skewer, painted gold and I embellished it with beads & gems.

The second picture is a close up of the hand beading, embroidered ribbon & thread work on the front of his costume.

The third picture features his painted face and the hair made from tiny strips of white, gray & silver organza. Each strip was burnt by a candle flame & dropped in water to curl the ends.

Mezzetino was a stock character in the Commedia Dell'Arte, a form of improvised theater popular in 16th and 17th century Europe, especially in France and Italy. His costume places him in the seventeenth century, probably around 1660 to 1670. His costume has gone through several variations, beginning as a baggy white costume but later evolving into a livery or else a tunic and breeches, usually with stripes;

Mezzetino is an adept schemer and trouble-maker, willing to commit acts of violence if necessary, but on the whole a little calmer than his brother Brighella, and much more gentle and cultivated, especially in his later life. He is often very musically inclined, and can sing and dance with skill. His character can vary greatly: he can be a loyal servant or simply scheming for his master's downfall; he can be a deceitful husband or be deceived by his wife. He also seems to be rather more interested in the ladies than is Brighella, often coming off as rather creepy in his efforts to flirt.

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Mezzetino and his clothing are made from a pattern by Peter A. Bucknell in his book "Commedia Dell'Arte at the Court of Louis XIV".

Barnaby is from 1860 although the bond between humans and their pets is timeless. People throughout history have had pets that they loved and cherished like Barnaby does his friend Rex.

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I made Barnaby from Priscilla McDonald's "The Gentleman" pattern, including his clothes and shoes. I also painted his wood base which has gold runes around the edge. Barnaby's little friend Rex, is made from Runo's "mini dog" pattern which I enlarged and made with felt.

I am named for the Terry I was made for as a gift. Jill Maas (the New Zealand designer} designed me and I have a character all my own. I should have shown my knobbly knees! I am made from a type of velour and have hand-made clothes .

This is my depiction of Martin Luther King, Jr. when he made his famous, "I Have a Dream" speech on the Washington Mall. My family, most specifically my Uncle (J.Randolph Taylor) became involved and joined Dr. King that Day. He took with him 75 members from his conservative white church, they were moved greatly and resolved to make a difference in the world of racism. Upon moving to Atlanta, Dr. and Mrs. King welcomed Uncle Randy only a short four months before the assassination of MLK. As the pastor of a downtown Atlanta church and a friend of the Kings, our family became involved and helped form a new American culture.

So, when Paul wrote and opened up this Challenge, I found the perfect opportunity to honor the King and the Taylor families.

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Made of cloth, fiberfill, styrofoam and wire, I used a cold porcelain finish over cloth to achieve the face of the doll. The hair is fiber flocking material and the face is painted with acrylic paints..

He was a american stateman, scientist, philosopher. He was a self taught of the arts of writing,debates,and a widely reader.He's scientic accomplishments gave him fame. But most people think of him as the kite man who dicovered electric. He himself belived were made possible by his pen.

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Desingner name Mary Tressler pattern Basic Male. I tweaked it around middle to give it larger belly. I made the clothe myself. No pattern for clothes.He stand on his own.

Jake, the cowboy, let his horse slip its hobbles during a nap and now has to go try to find the obstinate beast. Luckily for him, he has his rope - it had come off the saddle and he hadn't gotten around to re-attaching it. Jake isn't happy with the situation. He does not like to be afoot. He is worried that he might have been the victim of horse thieves and laments the loss of his saddle and rifle more than the stubborn old bay he picked up in Sante Fe.

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Jake is an original design. His body was made from an old sheet, with his face and arms out of craft velour. Hair is from a Halloween wig and the hat and gun/holster were purchased. His clothing is made from vintage fabrics, his long underwear from knit shop toweling and his boots, belt, vest and hatband from old leather jackets. The gunbelt is vinyl. His platform is a reclaimed old plaque with poly-clay "rocks and soil" and the scrub pine is from an ancient Christmas tree.

I designed and made this representation of Henry VIII from the 16th century. I made the doll from my basic man pattern enlarging where needed to account for Henry's size. I then draped his clothing with fabric I purchased at a wonderful Vermont fabric store. I have done a lot of costume research for costumes in my past life as a costume maker for theatre so I tried to be accurate in his clothing. He is wearing silk and velvet befitting a king. His trims are vintage pieces I find at auctions and estate sales. As you will notice, his codpiece is prevalent to let his subjects know that he is very powerful.

The following statement made to the Duke of Suffock at the time of an uprising reveals the extent of his power.

"if further rising was attempted he must immediately attack Louth and "with all extremity destroy, burn and kill, man woman and child, the terrible example of all others."

During this time in history the king was to be emulated and this is when "fashion follows power" was never more evident.