Creating Like You

In MAIDA Dolls Group, we have interesting discussions. A question that came out of a discussion last year was this:  

"How do I create unique creations from my perspective while being inspired by antique dolls?"  

Some of us want to make dolls which have the timeless feeling of antique dolls but are not exact copies.  Like art students, it is important to learn from timeless works. But once we have explored a type, how do we fold that into making a unique new creation?  I posted the following prompt in the group for thinking about, and thought I would share it here:

The purpose of this series of prompts is to discover your own unique style through studying favorite antique dolls. For many of us, a way to do this is to try on the styles of doll makers who have come before. When we want to try and copy an antique doll, it is because there is something IN us that the doll speaks to. 

So, choose 5-8 favorite antique type dolls and describe each of them. 

Materials used: One of a Kind, Cottage Industry, Factory Made? 

Processes used in making the doll? Examples: sewing, stuffing, embroidering, sculpting, molding... 

Physical Description (large, small, soft, hard, fat, skinny...) 

Feelings it evokes (calm, scary, mysterious, safe, excited... 

Now, once you have evaluated each doll using the questions above, take note of what they have in common. Which words came up more than once? Make a list of those and tuck that list away.