The old saying "clothes makes the man" seems to be true, at least for this guy anyway. He now has a shirt made from a golden colored deer hide suede split (probably 2-3 oz weight). I attempted to dye interfacing orange using food coloring but it didn't hold (interfacing is probably synthetic instead of organic like cotton and needs a chemical dye which I didn't have on hand); I then beaded this interfacing but unfortunately didn't double the material...the thinness makes the beads seem loose. Note to self: always double the beading medium (which I usually do). Forgot to take photos as I worked but had taken them during an earlier doll construction; working on interfacing in an embroidery hoop is easier, keeps the bead work straight and reduced strain on the hide. Old hide shirts show a similar effort and presumably beaded sections could be removed and placed on new shirts when necessary.
I made a strip for each arm and two for the body (passing over each shoulder) then sewed each onto hide with enough space on either side to cut fringe. Then these were sewn onto the shirt and the side seams closed (gets a bit tricky under his arms). The fringe could have been cut a bit thinner but it floats fairly well.
For me a doll really comes to life once hair is added. In this instance I used a mix of gray and black horse hair; braided and then sewn onto the head with a curved upholstery needle. The braids were tied with a short strip on suede and wrapped with red ribbon to help hold them together.
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