Apologies to all for the gap since I last posted on 'Natterer' - my old computer went on a go-slow - I would switch it on, go and make a cup of tea and drink it, and with luck it would be up and running by the time I returned!
The new computer fires up fully in 35 seconds - marvellous!
Anyway, I had a few teething problems with it including finding out what it had done with my build write-ups. Found them eventually, so here we go with Part 15.
‘Natterer’ – A shipbuilding Odyssey? – Part 15
Nearly there! There is a lot of debate in model boat circles as to whether a crew should be included on a boat. My own view is that an open launch such as Natterer looks daft sailing without a crew on board, so something had to be done. You will recall that the scale of Natterer is 1 to 4.5: this meant the average adult scaled down to around 16” (400mm) Now although I think my modelling skills are reasonable, there was no way I could produce figures at that scale and have them look remotely realistic. So I had to look elsewhere.
After a lot of searching, I eventually found Shirley Nason, of Kent Garden costume Dolls, who was prepared to produce me a couple of dolls dressed in late Victorian costume. It was an interesting experience as the two fields of model boats and costume dolls don’t often cross, and Shirley had her own way of doing things which didn’t always chime with mine! For example, Shirley’s dolls use bisque heads and lower arms allied to a body which is basically a rag doll. The dolls are traditionally displayed standing using a frame, and the lower legs (also in bisque) are hidden and tiny (No – I haven’t a clue why – they just do it that way!). My problem is that the crew had to be sitting down with feet showing, and the concept was alien to Shirley. We came to a compromise in that Shirley produced the dolls in the traditional way, and sent me the feet from a larger doll, which I grafted on. I then stripped the dolls of their clothes and modesty and produced an aluminium frame to which the body and extremities were sewn so that I could pose the dolls as necessary. This worked a treat, and the dolls now sit in the boat by means of a spike emanating from somewhere the sun doesn’t shine, to allow me to fasten them in when sailing.
The clothing Shirley produced was exquisite, and included all the embroidered underclothes, even down to the detachable bustle under m’ladies skirt! We had some problems with the father, as we couldn’t find a suitable male face, so ‘he’ is actually a ‘she’, with the addition of a set of whiskers. I won’t go any further down that route!
So good were the figures that we commissioned a further two from her, depicting a couple of children, who sit and stand in the front well, because the young lad won’t behave himself.
I probably can’t do better than reproduce the information given on the display card that goes with Natterer when she is on display:
Crew: Father is so proud of his new toy, and the opportunity to show it off, totally ignoring his rather apprehensive wife, who worries about her two children in the bows and the whole idea of boating. The son won’t keep still, and has to see where they are going, while his sister, who disapproves of everything her brother does, appears not to be enjoying the experience at all. Figures all by Shirley Nason of Kent Garden Costume Dolls.
Sadly, Shirley was getting on, and these were I think the last dolls she produced before having to give up commissions in order to look after her ailing husband
I think I will leave it at that for now, as SWMBO has other plans for me, so the final part 16 will hopefully appear in a few days.
Ted
The new computer fires up fully in 35 seconds - marvellous!
Anyway, I had a few teething problems with it including finding out what it had done with my build write-ups. Found them eventually, so here we go with Part 15.
‘Natterer’ – A shipbuilding Odyssey? – Part 15
Nearly there! There is a lot of debate in model boat circles as to whether a crew should be included on a boat. My own view is that an open launch such as Natterer looks daft sailing without a crew on board, so something had to be done. You will recall that the scale of Natterer is 1 to 4.5: this meant the average adult scaled down to around 16” (400mm) Now although I think my modelling skills are reasonable, there was no way I could produce figures at that scale and have them look remotely realistic. So I had to look elsewhere.
After a lot of searching, I eventually found Shirley Nason, of Kent Garden costume Dolls, who was prepared to produce me a couple of dolls dressed in late Victorian costume. It was an interesting experience as the two fields of model boats and costume dolls don’t often cross, and Shirley had her own way of doing things which didn’t always chime with mine! For example, Shirley’s dolls use bisque heads and lower arms allied to a body which is basically a rag doll. The dolls are traditionally displayed standing using a frame, and the lower legs (also in bisque) are hidden and tiny (No – I haven’t a clue why – they just do it that way!). My problem is that the crew had to be sitting down with feet showing, and the concept was alien to Shirley. We came to a compromise in that Shirley produced the dolls in the traditional way, and sent me the feet from a larger doll, which I grafted on. I then stripped the dolls of their clothes and modesty and produced an aluminium frame to which the body and extremities were sewn so that I could pose the dolls as necessary. This worked a treat, and the dolls now sit in the boat by means of a spike emanating from somewhere the sun doesn’t shine, to allow me to fasten them in when sailing.
The clothing Shirley produced was exquisite, and included all the embroidered underclothes, even down to the detachable bustle under m’ladies skirt! We had some problems with the father, as we couldn’t find a suitable male face, so ‘he’ is actually a ‘she’, with the addition of a set of whiskers. I won’t go any further down that route!
So good were the figures that we commissioned a further two from her, depicting a couple of children, who sit and stand in the front well, because the young lad won’t behave himself.
I probably can’t do better than reproduce the information given on the display card that goes with Natterer when she is on display:
Crew: Father is so proud of his new toy, and the opportunity to show it off, totally ignoring his rather apprehensive wife, who worries about her two children in the bows and the whole idea of boating. The son won’t keep still, and has to see where they are going, while his sister, who disapproves of everything her brother does, appears not to be enjoying the experience at all. Figures all by Shirley Nason of Kent Garden Costume Dolls.
Sadly, Shirley was getting on, and these were I think the last dolls she produced before having to give up commissions in order to look after her ailing husband
I think I will leave it at that for now, as SWMBO has other plans for me, so the final part 16 will hopefully appear in a few days.
Ted
