Is Neil Gaiman really The Sandman?

According to a friend, also the housemate of the person who previously requested the Sandman, my plushie looks like Neil Gaimain. I suppose he is pale with straggly hair and wears a lot of black. But I can't imagine he goes barefoot or wears a black onesie.

Anyway apparently a second copy was required to donate to the man himself at a signing, so very much at the last minute I started making him. I didn't have the particular black I wanted for his body but fortunately with no time to spare I found I had enough of some black to be the body and to be the fabric under the hair.

 I was also out of white felt so after some debate and query with the requester I used some white fabric I had to hand which was slightly heavy but not too bad.

Making was remarkably easy considering I'd not made one for a while but I'm still searching for a better solution to fixing on the hair. Another friend suggested I should have sewn it into the top of the head seam. I guess I could but I'm not convinced yet.

Anyway. In order to get the hair right I basically cut it far longer than needed and then give it a hair cut. Before the haircut this is what it looks like:

I then cut the hair the way I want it. I'm not sure I got the coat's proportions right but I did use the same pattern as alwys.

Then all that's left is the photo - in this case I felt like being arty and used some books as background. The one behind him is The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak.

If you're interested this is a comparison picture showing the previous attempt at the Sandman:

Previously  : Dream a little dream

Dream a little dream....

It appears to be bad time right now for many people, but fortunately no-one I know or am semi closely related to is OK. I send love to all affected throughout the world by violence and suffering big and small, and offer a small distraction. A short post on my latest creation.

I was asked to make the character known by the multiple names of Dream, Morpheus and Sandman, one of the Endless, most particularly his incarnation in the comics written by Monsieur Gaiman. Not sure why he got a French mister there but meh.

There was a certain level of uncertainty about how to approach the doll as in essence he's rather simple and stark - a white skinned character with black eyes, hair and clothing. The details of what he wears seem fluid from a google search for details. Some have capes, some don't. Details are obscured by the black. There is a sense of flowing and black and sometimes bare feet.

As I started making the doll there was an element in my choices of making it more complex or challenging as well as more interesting and appropriate. I did debate making his helmet but couldn't quite work out how I would do it and although it's known it's not all that iconic somehow.

So unusually as I normally work from basic body, outwards, stage 1 was the coat, which I decided to make in fake leather since I had some! I tried out a new technique for sewing whereby only the shoulders were sewn inside out with the under arm and sides sewn from the outside to stop the ripple effect along the front opening that happens when I sew it entirely inside out. I also decided to try making the sleeves separately. I was as always extremely extremely grateful that it was fake leather and thus didn't need hemming.

This was kind of tough to sew with black thread on something shiny. I had to squint a bit without my glasses and in really strong light. I ended up with the sleeves slightly too long so I hemmed them a bit shorter and compensated by trying to make the arms of the body longer.

So yes, then I got to the body. I had a bit of a dither about the hair because I didn't have any black wool or anything I wanted for hair but I decided to hope someone would come through (at the last minute Mum found some) so I made a black hair base with embroidery for the fringe-y bits ("bangs" in American?)

The sketch shows a belt but I got sidetracked by another idea - to give him some sense of flowing, I had some semi transparent black I'd used before which I chopped about with scissors as it wouldn't tear. It couldn't be added without complications before the body was sewn up as it would get in the way of turning it the right way out. So I made the body basically black with white hands and feet.

Then Dream was right sided out and I added the floaty bits. Finally I got to the hair. I couldn't work out how else to do it, so I cut lengths of wool and sewed them on to the stuffed and sewn up doll. In retrospect I should have stuffed but left the top open to allow for ease of sewing down the wool but I think it's relatively secure, so long as you don't really yank at it.

The fun last stage was that I cut the hair too long and then gave Dream a "shaggy" haircut. This was particularly fun because the requestor had asked for "wild" hair.

So it is now complete. Eyes could have been bigger but I can't fix it now. I'm rather pleased with it.

In amusement afterthought as I was making this it occured to me that it resembled Neil Gaiman himself.

I mean dark shaggy hair, mainly black clothing, long coat? I nearly joke tweeted him that I should make an Amanda Palmer to go with but I didn't.