Selena~Danielle~Other Bendy folk creators~I NEED HELP!
I have tried and try and just can't get it. Whenever I wrap there is tons of pipecleaner fluff poking out all over. Are there any tricks to this? Katie showed me the general shape, I just have the hardest time wrapping those things, and I just committed to making eight for a swap here! HELP please!
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***Jennifer***
Mama to Max (3/2000) and Maizy Grace (9/2002)
Happy Fall!
I try to keep the floss so the strands are lined up flat next to each other. And each time around I slightly overlap the last wrap. I've been teaching my dd to wrap bodies more neatly and what's really been key with her is to get her to slow down and really pay attention. To notice the fuzz poking out as she's wrapping...and to unwrap, flatten the floss out, and rewrap. She was wrapping the whole thing and then noticing how much fuzz was sticking out. Well, it's too late then...ya gotta notice it while it happens and back up.
I have to unwrap bits here and there all the time and I've probably wrapped 500 by now. The key is to catch it right away so you don't have to unwrap much.
Probably not the kind of answer you were hoping for, huh?
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~Dannielle
Momma to Isabelle (8/95) and Mason (1/01)
I don't usually wrap an entire body all at once. One night I'll do nothing but bend pipe cleaners (while watching a movie or tv). Another night I'll wrap arms on all of them. Then another night I'll do legs.
I suppose it takes me about 5 minutes to wrap a whole body. Sometimes I race commercials (try to wrap a body before the show comes back on) and win. lol!
y'know I was wondering if you'd really want me to answer that! It does take me a long time to dress bendies though. I tend to get carried away. I'm sure I've gotten faster with all my practice. I definitely wasn't this fast when I first started.
Have you thought about using the 3mm pipecleaners from Michael's? Or go to a tobacco/smoke shoppe and get the cotton pipe cleaners. A shop that sells real pipes should have the 12 inch ones. They are denser, and cotton, so cover easier.
if I timed myself doing one, while being jumped on my children, distracted by a johnny depp movie or any other non focusing activities, it takes about 15 minutes. I don't time myself while power wrapping But I am sure it isn't much faster.
The regular size pipe cleaners are 6mm I think, and are really hard to wrap if you haven't had a lot of practice... I tend to wrap as Danielle says, watching carefully, twisting the floss so it "opens" and "flattens" out. I also hold it at an angle, a bit, so it makes the fluff fall down away from me, against the wire, instead of trying to wrap it straight up and down... so it covers better...
sigh, the science of bendies.. I wish I could just show you.
Try the thinner 3mm pipe cleaners, or the denser cotton ones... they will make things SOOO much easier!
hope that made sense....
__________________ ~Selena~
Mama to Daniel (5/00), Anna (5/02) & Chloe (11/05) All natural soaps, essential oils, lotions, butters, perfumes, salves and more at Motherhues!
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I think it was either Jennifer or April (at Shining Star) who figured out a cool trick that I never realized...
The pipe cleaners have a 'nap' or a direction that the fuzz goes naturally. If you run your fingers up and down one, notice how depending on which direction you are going the fibers either bend or resist more. If you wrap in the direction that the fibers are going down instead of against them then there are *less* fuzzies that poke through. Does that make sense? There will still be some, and I have found that just really being aware and not trying to do them too fast (I think it takes me between 10-15 minutes to wrap one - never timed it.) . I also overlap the thread a bit and go back as needed like Danielle said.
It is really a matter of practice and patience. I see things like this as a good chance to practice mindfullness - wrapping bendies for the sake of wrapping bendies. Not wrapping bendies to get them done or onto the next step. kwim?
HTH, and if nothing else - keep in mind that not all fairies have access to a daily shave so maybe your fairies just choose to be a bit more au natural than others.
I am like Dannielle, I bend my cleaners then I wrap them another time when I have less distractions. What I do and this is an added step but seems to work on covering the fuzzy stuff - I strip my floss. I cross stitch and if you have ever read a book on that it tells you to strip the floss - simply put you pull all your threads apart then re-align them. I have found this works wonders. And I use 6 strands. Takes more time in the beginning but is worth it in the end. I also give the pipe cleaner a hair cut at the bends sometimes if I am using a dark color and the fuzz really seems like it would show up. No wonder it takes me a long time. And I learned the hard way to go check every inch or so to see how the floss looks. Nothing is more frustrating than having the fuzz stick out and you are done or close to being done. ARRR
Thank you for your help. I'll be wrapping and watching ER tonight. I'll let you know how it goes! In other words if you see a bendie c-n-s in a few days it worked! If not and you see the Mad, frustrated, sobbing smilie you'll know it didn't work! Darn, that's putting a lot of pressure on some floss and pipe cleaner huh?!
Any thanks again! One more question~What would happen if I just trimmed the whole pipe cleaner before I started wrapping?
I don't use pipe cleaners for my bendi dolls, I use the white, cloth covered, 20 gauge florist wire. No problem with pipe cleaner fuzz, plus for the tiny dolls, the result is a finer, more delicately "boned" doll. I cover them with cotton embroidery floss. The fairy doll in this picture is 2½" tall. (You can buy the wings from The Silver Penny.)
You hair is so cute on the bendy. How do you get it so nice looking? I tried and ripped the first wig off and the second one I am more happy with but not completely. LOL. I have the wire you are talking about I will have to give it a try. It would be easier plus you still have some type of outer on the wire to keep the floss from slipping like wire would allow.
The hair is wool roving. I take about 8" of ¾" rope of roving and sew across the middle to create the center part. That is glued on the head of the doll, then styled in a braid or ponytail. If it's too long, you can cut it. The thing about wool roving is that it has the tendency to shed if left long and loose. If the doll is played with a lot, it might go bald. That's why I always braid it or draw it back into a ponytail.
I'm thinking about adding a Fairy Doll kit to our webstore in the (somewhat) near future that will create a doll like the photo above, including the wings, which I make. Right now I'm working on a revised design for my Enchanted Fairy Cottage using some revolutionary, new material that wasn't available when I first created it in 2003. It is so much easier to sew and the result is fantastic!
Selena~Danielle~Other Bendy folk creators~I NEED HELP!
But I am sure it isn't much faster. 
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