Retail Therapy

    It's been a rough several months. I've definitely had to do some dressmaking

And I've possibly brought home more Disney Princess dolls than was strictly necessary...

they were on clearance?

...but when even the packaging is fun to play with, who can blame me?

   But of course, when you buy more dolls, they demand more accessories! Thank goodness TinyFrockShop was there for me in my hour of need.

I made the skirt, TinyFrockShop provided the rest of the ensemble

I've had my eye on this necklace for months!

A few impulse buys of course

It's metal! It's about time my dolls had a smartphone

I couldn't resist this jewelry set

But I was going on vacation, and that meant that Regina wanted a swimsuit of her own. Out came the fabric and sewing kit again!

I had never made a doll swimsuit (or any swimsuit!) before! It is made from the fabric of an old swimsuit that is far too small for anyone living here, so I found it fitting to turn it into a doll suit. Super stylish and perfect for her!

But then while I was on the trip, I made the mistake of going to a bulk goodwill. Those places are so horrifying, but I found a few treasures, including a couple of dolls. One was a GI Joe that is a double for one I already have. Another was a blonde lady with frizzy hair who just needed to come home with me! Into my bag she went and for only a few pennies! She has now been washed and had her hair styled back to perfection.

When I returned home, there was a package waiting for me. I had forgotten that I had ordered a few more dolls...and one was eager to be out and about!

The new ladies seem to be making friends. There is one more new lady who is nowhere to be seen. Hmm, who could it be?

I really think it is going to be a slow doll year for me, but I would love to get one of the new yoga curvies! Eeee! If only! (but there are also some really cute fashionistas too...hmm but I need to save for a doll shelf...this hobby is dangerous!)

Mattel's Nightmare Christmas

I made a small order of dolls and accessories from Mattel before Christmas, and it still hasn't processed. I'm getting really concerned! I could technically still cancel, but I really wanted Hip Hoodie Ken and I can't find him anywhere else! I'm really disappointed. Customer Support has not gotten back to me. I guess they are pretty swamped. It sounds like their new Dream House is a nightmare for them!

I really wish they would let me know one way or the other though. At least my Christmas Amazon packages arrived. So many pretty new faces! I will be reviewing them all here soon!

Also, if anyone remembers this lady from Hair Boil Day...

 She went to her new home on Christmas! I forgot to get an "after" photo. She lives next door to me, so I will have to invite myself over and get one sometime! Apparently her new home was thrilled to receive her. Doll rescue mission accomplished!

Sparkle Fashion Show

this is only a few of them...

I will confess, this is the most I have ever bought Sparkle Girlz at one time. I usually buy one or two packs, maybe three. But sometimes, I've just gotta make the silly purchase. Sometimes, there are really cool fashions. Sometimes, a few more than I expect find their way into my cart! Yeah, anyway. I decided that since this was such a rare and special occasion, I should get some of the ladies out and do a fashion show!

I started with Destiny, who picked out the fun colorful knit/denim dress. It wasn't her usual suave style, but she definitely made it work. She was also the only one to hold the matching handbag.

 Next came Melody, who I knew would go for the rainbow metallic mini. She LOVES everything metallic, and thinks that everything is better with tall lace stockings.

     Of course, any part of the outfit is optional...

  Anja's outfit was set aside just for her. She recently donated her body to another doll whose body broke. Her new body is not barbie brand, but it is more articulated than her old one. Still, I felt that she deserved something special, and it reminded me of her.

 She has a very unique sense of style, that's for sure!

 Shalynn loved this funky fuzzy skirt/top combo and wore it with black leggings. It is winter, after all! She thinks it's a great outfit to go dancing in, if I will ever get around to building the club!

Health-conscious Maya has decided that this is the perfect outfit for her, and it helped her make a decision for her career path. She wants to be a fitness coach!

Lovely Carina modeled a dress that I found on eBay for her. She wanted something elegant to wear to a Christmas party. I think she looks quite angelic!

Black leggings are in this year in 1/6 LA. Echo stays cool and warm at the same time in this fantastic mini with a flower at the neck, accessorizing with a belt she found in the Giant Doll Clothes Box of Doom.

The dress is actually metallic!

A guest model shows off another eBay find...

And Anna and Elsa play dress up too!

   At first, I wondered why I even chose the outfit that Emily picked, but after seeing it off the cardboard, I realized that it was definitely for the lacy top. So cute! The shorts, though? I am not really a fan. Maybe they will look better on her!

No, they really don't. The top is so cute though!

 Okay, how is it with a different pair of pants?

Much better!

I guess I'll just get rid of the shorts...

"WAIT! I'll take them! OH I just know I can do something with these!"

 I don't even want to know, Melody. I can never get rid of clothes with her around! Eventually, her closet will be the Giant Doll Clothes Box of Doom. I think she's just fine with that arrangement!

    Next is Maya, in a zigzag dress with a sparkly strap and a purple gem. I wasn't sure I was going to like it until I saw it on a doll. It's not my style at all, but it looks very cute on Maya!

  
    Emily wanted to try on another outfit, and she saw a top that she really liked, with a much more normal pair of shorts! I think she chose well.

The last outfit was modeled by the same doll as the first outfit, Destiny. The blue of the dress matches her eyes really nicely! I bought two of this dress, one to give away, and I chose the stretchy one with the larger print over the smaller print made out of cotton. I think it's interesting that there's a variation in fabric!

    I did buy a few other Sparkle Girlz outfits, but I may not keep them, so I left them on the card. It was a big haul, and my dolls should be very happy and feel quite spoiled for a long time! They got their Christmas early!

December Musings

It has been a busy month here in 1/6 L.A., as well as 1/1 *location redacted*! I have been selling off a lot of my old, stored toys on eBay. It is sad to see them go, but also a good feeling to know that they will no longer be stuck in storage and will be going to homes that want them. I like thinking of the buyer being excited to get my toy in the mail. Plus, it gave me some extra money for Christmas shopping, shipping Christmas presents (wow, so costly!), and even a bit left over for some fun stuff for myself! Yay, new dolls!

I may have gone slightly overboard with the Barbie shopping, but I am not sure how much of it will be for me and how much of it will be additional gifts. There were a few that have been on my wishlist for quite a while, and I thought, well why not? They make me smile, and I can use all the smiles I can get! It's also funny collecting something where I can buy a pretty decent doll for $15. I am used to collecting things that cost three times that, at least! It's easy to go overboard! Especially with all of the new variety in dolls and clothing options!

The clothes I had for my barbies growing up were so strange, and not normal person clothes. They didn't fit very well, except the handmade clothes, and tended to be bright, neon colors! I've worked very hard recently to find basic items like T-shirts and regular pants for my dolls, but it is definitely a challenge. I guess Barbie lives most of her life in ball gowns and minidresses! I wish I was better at sewing!

I did sew this odd top for Stacie. The collar is stretchy and can be worn as pictured, or with the collar stretched down over both her shoulders. She is wearing a matching hair tie.

    Shopping is really fun, and I maybe spent too much this month, but I can't wait to open the packages and share them! I love how my doll collection is turning out so far!

The Doll Aisle

I did a very short video of some of the dolls for sale at the "local" store an hour away. It's my first video of this sort and my cellphone is not a fancy iphone or anything, so it is not the best. There is also no audio. But I think it turned out ok for my first time. Next time, I may get braver and try to get better details and captions.

Surprise Arrival

This weekend, my latest toy purchase arrived from eBay, a fold-up Barbie Dream barn that I found for $8 (including shipping!). I may do a review on it later. The barn is nice enough, and will work well for the purpose I bought it for...but along with it came a doll.

    



She is not the original doll that came with the set. Her clothes, however, are. To be honest, I might have paid the $8 just for the adorable outfit!

But the doll is adorable, too. "Anya" has bright red lips, green eyes, and sparkles in her hair. I love her face sculpt! She has minor chew marks on her fingers, but it doesn't seem to affect her too badly.
   

The clothing didn't really fit her look, to me. She seems carefree, the kind of person who puts her troubles firmly behind her, a dreamer. Her new outfit seems to fit her better.

Melody has (somewhat creepily) staked her claim.

"Hi, we're going to be great friends!"

Welcome Echo

I have dramatically slowed down on my purchasing of dolls, now that my current population has risen to an acceptably high level. However, as with all of my collections, there are sometimes exceptional pieces that I wish to add. I have been curious about Liv dolls for several years, but never bought one when they were in stores. Their eyes and interchangeable wigs appealed to me (as well as, of course, the many joints. I am as always a sucker for articulation). Finally, I have one in my hands, and I love her! As I have recently been re-watching the series Dollhouse on Netflix, I couldn't resist a fairly blatant series reference. Therefore, say hello to my new doll, Echo!

Enjoying a moment in the sun

 I think she is beautiful, and feels very well-made. Not cheap and easily broken. I am annoyed that her right hand does not turn all the way around like her left one does. Her eyes have a lovely depth to them, though her expression is overall rather vacant (hence the name). Her hair is a tad unruly, but it is very soft and nice, and I do not want to damage it. She came wearing just a checked shirt, so I put one of my recent Sparkle Girls finds on her. It fits almost perfectly! I'm not keen on the light pink makeup. The only other thing is that next to my other 1/6 people, her head looks huge.

Overall, I am quite happy with her, and I don't feel that she will be the last Liv doll who joins my collection.

A Few Updates

A brief moment in between storms

My doll time has gotten shorter as work gets very busy during the summer, and the next few months are going to be very busy indeed. We finally put in an offer on some property and it is exciting to think that soon I will have a place to put my little cabin-house! I've been living in a travel trailer for over a year, now, and it will be wonderful to have more space for myself and dolls and all of my projects. I am looking forward to it, and also hoping that the funds will come together. The property is definitely a fixer-upper (but that is kind of fun, too, seeing something so ugly turn into something beautiful!).

I did get around to doing Celeste's head swap onto a Made to Move body. The other body's neck was broken, so I temporarily glued the head on just so I wouldn't have a creepy body and head floating around the trailer. Oddly enough, Celeste's head is a great match (not perfect, but close enough) for the MtM but she is a little too pale for Celeste's old body.

























I also found Celeste a non-pink outfit for her chosen profession. It's a bit large for her, but that can be fixed. I love the reflective tape! Yep, she wants to be a firefighter.

Melody claimed a bunch of clothes from a Wal-Mart shopping spree, plus she begged me to buy her some black stockings. They're a little too short for the outfit, but I don't think Melody cares. She loves clothes and I love shopping for her. I think she might wind up being the most spoiled doll, closet-wise. It's funny how her funky personality just clicked.

Sam finally made it inside the house, by bringing food.

The dark blob is a hungry dog

I have also been attempting to make clothes. These are a few of my works. I don't work from patterns, so they generally turn out a bit...interesting.

Odd little shirt in progress, this is what happens when I make clothes while watching Deep Space Nine.

Stretchy "snakeskin" skirt

Not quite finished yet, just playing with an idea

This was a window dressing at one time. Now it is a sun dress.

I am also still gathering things, slowly, for building the nightclub. My fun funds got seriously depleted this month...but they will recover, I hope!