My 2016 New Year’s (Doll-related) Resolutions

• Stick to my fun money budget better.

I already made a budget plan for myself a while back, and in the beginning, I was doing great sticking to it… Then the holidays came, and Junie Moon released the information for their February Release Cherie Babette, and bad days at work make me want to shop. Since I already put the money down for the pre-order for Cherie Babette, I don’t anticipate any near-future doll purchases. My doll shelf is also filling up, and I’m trying to keep my collection to the one shelf.I also suffer from this sort of anxiety that if I don’t buy something I love when the opportunity arises (i.e. something I want becomes available and there is a limited quantity, or something I want is on sale), I’ll be missing out. Take the below items for example:

I’ve been searching forever for dark red converse shoes that fit Pure Neemo feet for Marshall Lee. I got both pairs for $3 total on eBay (they’re not the BEST in quality, but at least Marshall Lee is not barefoot and it only set me back a few bucks). I’m also a sucker for deer, foxes, and gingham, so I had to get this Plastic Fashion dress for my future new girl.

• Learn how to sew

This one seems a bit too ambitious for me. Maybe I’ll sign up for a sewing class first. I have so much fabric at home, but none of the skills to make tiny articles of clothing or work a sewing machine (which I also have… just gathering dust in my room). I don’t really have an excuse not to try >_<.

• Keep active in the Blythe hobby

I’m not sure what 2016 has in store for me, but I want to keep in mind to take the time to enjoy my doll family at least once a week by doing any of the following: Redress my girls, Do a photo challenge, Learn to sew, Learn to knit, Try new crochet patterns, Attend Blythe meets, and/or Blog.

My resolutions aren’t too tough! I just have to buckle down on the spending, and just keep practicing with the sewing.

Happy New Year everyone!

Rory, the Liccafied Blythe

 Tilt to the right.  Tilt to the left. Let’s all do the bobble-head. 

I finally decided who to do the body swap on! It was a toss up between Rory and Finley, but I’ve never taken Finley’s head apart before and I just got her back after being customized, that I was too afraid to accidentally ruin her faceup with unexpected prying. 

The body that Rory is on is Merry’s old body, which is a tilt neck Licca chan body. I actually wasn’t expecting her head to wobble so much, as it kind of lolls one side or the other. I definitely prefer the proportions of the Licca chan body over the stock Takara body. I believe the Licca Castle dolls have non-tilt neck bodies, as well as some of the older Licca chans, so hopefully I’ll procure a non-tilt neck body one day. For now, my other girls will stay on their stock Blythe bods. 

One thing I would change about the Licca chan bodies is their wide feet! The body is more slender than the stock Blythe body, yet their feet are bigger and unable to squeeze in a lot of the shoes I own that are meant for Blythe girls. 

Also, I am seriously considering changing about Rory is her scalp :-/. I really want a more flattering pink bobbed scalp for her. 

One more thing… I can’t believe 2015 is almost over D:. I am feeling the nostalgia already, big time. 

Happy Holidays, Welcome back, and Welcome home!

I’m excited to share the newest addition to my dolly shelf, as well as hail the return of my first Blythe, Finley! First, the new girl:

I am the proud owner of a Wendy Weekender! She is an FBL mold, and had been on my wishlist for some time. I’m partial to the color of her hair, and I’m excited to add a new face mold to my collection. I purchased her on an adoption group on Facebook as NRFB, and received her within a week. That was about three weeks ago, so she’s been sitting in my sister’s room until Christmas. Why, you may ask? ^^ Because my sister is my secret Santa, and when I guessed she might be, she offered to pay for my new girl as my gift.

I noticed that she has a blemish on her cheek, which I’m going to chalk up as a factory imperfection. It doesn’t bother me too much, because it didn’t muck up her blush and is only slightly noticeable in photos. Also… She was a steal.

So far, I really adore the color of Wendy Weekender’s hair in person. Her FBL face also seems a smidge more cherubic than my other girls (it might be in my imagination though). I also like her super loud stock, because it makes me think of how you think a child might dress with no parental supervision.

This Button Arcade dress is my new girl’s “welcome to the fold” dress :D. I’m thinking of naming her Reese. She definitely needs a hair spa.

Last but not least, Finley returned home right in time for Christmas! I left Finley with Chantilly Lace for customization while I was at Blythe Con Chicago, which was back in the middle of October. I was stoked when the mailman dropped Finley off earlier than expected, because the estimated delivery date was this Saturday.Her complexion is soooooo smooth and loooveeelyyyy.I put her in one of my Plastic Fashion dresses, and I think she looks super sweet. I’m so happy with how Finley turned out. The custom work is very clean, and Finley is so darn cute. I do feel like I have to get to know her again though, since she looks so drastically different now.Here is my updated Blythe collection!From left to right: Marina, Finley, Rory, Name TBA

XD Marina and Wendy Weekender look like sisters!

I hope everyone has an awesome holiday and weekend!

Tis the season (to gift myself stuff)

I view Christmas as a great reason to splurge on myself ^^. I had two dresses sitting on my closet, one from Plastic Fashion and one from Button Arcade. I purchased the Plastic Fashion dress specifically for Marina, and I meant to wait until Christmas Eve or Christmas to try the dress on her… But I caved.     Marina’s style is lady-like, and a bit off-beat. I love the attention to detail on the dress, and the way the fabric pattern is carefully aligned. 

I’m saving the Button Arcade dress for my new Christmas girl ^^. 

I’ve also been crocheting some tiny underwear for my girls! Finley and Rory didn’t have any so I found a pattern and whipped a couple up.      I have them on a spare Licca chan body over a pair of scrap-quality underwear the doll came with. They’re bloomers! I found the pattern for these on Ravelry, and I made the following adjustments:

1. Used crochet thread 10
2. Used a 2mm hook
3. Crocheted 32 single crochet onto the elastic.
4. Skipped 15 instead of 14 when beginning the first leg hole, and double crochet 8 instead of 7.

I think the undies are really cute!

^^ I will have more doll stuff to share later! I am expecting Finley back today (Yayyyy!), in addition to my new Christmas girl (:o). 

This week on “Off the Shelf Life”…

Lol, Merry is okay. I stopped my cat before she knocked Merry over. It has to be jealousy though, because most of the time, the camera is pointed at her as opposed to my dolls. I put Merry in a Reve de Rui tunic top and Mini Jijo socks. Her shoes are her stock shoes, and I crocheted that scarf.I changed Rory into the stock Stella Savannah dress and blouse. The fox headband has been on her since I got back from Blythe Con in October.

I haven’t redressed Marina, because I’m waiting for Christmas! I ordered her very own dress by Plastic Fashion, and I’m waiting for Christmas to open it up and put it on her. ^^ Only five more days til the big day!

Stash busting

Behold! My WIP – a ripple blanket! Here is the pattern I’m using.

I’m quite happy with my progress with this blanket. It’s wide enough to cover a full sized bed, and when I’ve finished it, it should be big enough to cover the top of my bed. I’ve already worked through 2 partially used skeins, and I’m now working with a third skein. I’m pretty sure that the dark blue and the bright aqua blue I’m currently working with are Red Heart Super Saver yarns. I like using Red Heart Super Saver yarns for amigurumi because the yarn doesn’t stretch too much, and also they don’t get too fuzzy from being overhandled or overworked. I generally don’t like this yarn line for scarves or blankets though because I find the material itchy. I have seen some tutorials on how to soften this type of yarn with the use of a vinegar soak.

I’m really trying to work through my bin of yarn. It’s not so much that I’m trying to finish what I have to make way for new yarn, but that I’ve really accumulated a ton of yarn since I started crocheting. I find it kind of wild that it’s been about 2 years since I started crocheting, and I still find it very fun and rewarding to do. I feel a sense of pride being able to make clothes, accessories, or household items. This is a skill/hobby in which I can produce tangible goods that a majority of people in my life find value in, and the items often have utility.

😀 I think in my next post, I’ll share some photos of my yarn stash.

 

What does the fox say?

WA-PA-PA-PA-PA-PA-POWIs it terrible that I want that song to come back?

XD All the hats above are available in my etsy store.

In other news, I’m really freaking excited about the new release information for the Blythe Cherie Babette.
Number one. She’s an FBL. Number two. SHE’S TRANSLUCENT. WHAT? Number three. That kigurumi though. Number four. She has bobbed brown hair!

Oh man, if you guys only knew… XD I’m actually receiving a blythe doll for Christmas from my sister that is an FBL. I’ve been wanting to own an FBL, and a Translucent skin blythe… and now they’re coming out with a doll that is both! I’m also a big fan of the bobbed hairstyle ^^. It makes for very easy hat modeling. At the moment, Rory is my go-to girl for modeling hats, because of her no-fuss short hair cut.

I’m feeling a bit of a shift in my own doll collection. I don’t think I own that many dolls (right now, here’s the headcount: Marina (my Project Dollhouse custom girl), Finley (my Cadence Majorette who is currently with Chantilly Lace for customization), Rory (a factory girl that I customized), Rosaline (a TBL+ that I customized), Merry (my Licca chan), and Marshall Lee (a currently bald Azone/Obitsu hybrid that I’m customizing). But with plans for moving in the future, I don’t want to worry about transporting a ton of dolls with me. For this reason, I’m trying to keep my doll population controlled to a reasonable number. I’m feeling that as of late, I’m favoring stock dolls over custom ones, and certain customizers over girls I’ve customized.

I feel sad at the thought of letting any of my girls go, but as of now Rosaline is definitely looking to travel. In the future, I most likely will reshell her, as Rosaline is kind of an OC of mine XD (it feels weird to be using the term “reshell” since I’ve only heard it in the context of the BJD hobby).

Monday down. Only Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and half of Friday to go.

Blythe Meet Fun

I attended a Blythe meet today! Prepare yourself for sooo many colors! And so many customs!
I took Rory with me today. ^^ The hat was a gift from one of the attendees at the meet!
😀 I made those muffins! They’re banana muffins, and completely fool-proof. I’m actually relatively proud of them.
 I think the girl above is a Mab Graves girl, but I may be wrong. I think the girl above is a Liquirizia custom.
 Ahhhh. A kenner beauty!
 A Mondrian (BL)! So cute! I had a grab-bag of hats for all the attendees, as a little holiday gift ^^. The hat this girl is wearing was crocheted by me.
 A Bad Rabbit custom girl.
So Christmas-y :3.

Something I found very funny and such a coincidence – there was a BJD meet also being hosted at the same public space we were in! The BJD group  had a lot of members, and occupied three of the tables right next to ours.I couldn’t resist, and had to go over there to take some photos of their dolls. Some of the BJDs were huuuugeee.

Anddd back to blythes – The girl below has a thermal reroot, and her hair turns blue when warmed up!
 We also went to the Mark Ryden Dodecahedron exhibit at a nearby gallery.


 I don’t know much about art, but I really enjoyed the art gallery. Mark Ryden’s pieces are visually stunning, and they all have this ethereal, but dark quality to them.

9 Months of Blythe

This post will be kind of a “Things I’ve learned” rambling entry. The month of December usually puts me in a weird mood, with the holidays, and the whole saying goodbye to 2015, and having to adjust to the year being 2016 (adjust, meaning I have to remember to date things as 2016, even though my hand (out of muscle memory) demands I write 2015… is this just me?). I wanted to reminisce and talk about the things I’ve learned, and maybe how the doll hobby has affected my life, so here goes!

I feel like, with every new doll I acquire, I’m learning more about myself as a collector. Here are some of the major things I’ll be taking away this year, as my ninth month of collecting and 2015 comes to a close.

• I wish I had done more research and splurged a bit more on a blythe I really wanted rather than only considering the more economical options. I kept my budget to $140, which at the time I thought was being generous. I wasn’t sure if I would like being in the Blythe hobby, so I didn’t want to invest so much money on a single doll. I guess this says a lot about hindsight, and I think I was trying to be practical. Nowadays, $140 for a doll doesn’t seem all that outrageous.

• I prefer the Takara Blythe stock body over the jointed Azone or Sweetiiger body for Blythes. The jointed limbs aren’t very good at supporting a blythe doll’s big head. I haven’t tried a Licca body on my blythe dolls because I can’t decide which one to try it on.

• I’m too much of a perfectionist, and way too hypercritical of myself to be customizing dolls regularly. I am also lacking in patience. All of these character traits lead to a stressful customizing experience.
• I like Middies, but I don’t like having separate wardrobes. All my dolls are sisters, they must be able to share! … Just kidding. But seriously, I don’t see myself purchasing a doll that isn’t able to wear 1/6 scale clothes.
• Sometimes, the Pinterest gods smile upon me and I’m able to create new dos worthy to be #hairspiration.

• I’m (currently) not up to the task of being a diligent BJD owner. I think the thing with BJDs is that there’s just too much going on – there’s the stringing, interchangeable eyes, wigs, the fact that the resin will yellow, the option to suede. Simply put, I’m not cut out to be a bjd owner.

My wallet’s empty stomach aside, I’m glad to have discovered the doll hobby. I’ve made a handful of friends and met a ton of nice people because of this shared love of Blythe dolls and miniature things. I wouldn’t have thought it, but Blythe dolls get me out of the house for photography, attending meets, and even out of the state to attend my first Blythe Con. My dolls offer a creative outlet for me in crocheting, occasionally sewing, and blogging, and these things bring me joy (or atleast a reprieve from my anxiety).

Here’s to another year in the doll hobby ^^. I wish everyone happy holiday hauling, and may all your dolly hopes come to fruition! (/end cheeziness).

A long overdue outfit change

I haven’t found much motivation to redress my girls in a while. I felt a sort of defeat when I looked through my boxes of Blythe clothes and thought a few times “THEY HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR!” I also haven’t been happy with Rory and Rosaline’s outfits these past couple of weeks, which I think played a huge part in the thoughts I’ve had recently – that Rosaline is a bit lacking in cuteness compared to my other dolls and that Rory is forever having a bad hair day. 

I finally forced myself to do a bit of decluttering in my Blythe wardrobe (I’m getting rid of 11 pieces), and I redressed my three girls.  I’m happiest with Marina’s outfit ^^. She wins best dressed this time around as well. She is wearing a white blouse (I think it’s the stock blouse from Cute and Curuous), the Les Jeunette stock pinafore dress and shoes, and a pair of white socks. Simple and cute! Rosaline looks MUCH better in this outfit than the grey knit dress she was wearing before (which made her look super bulky). Rosaline is wearing Samedi Marche stock polka dot top, Zinotchika stock boots (I think), a MINIJIJO tutu, and a bear-eared headband.  I feel like Rory always needs a hat or hair accessory >_< . Rory is wearing a knitted top I won in a Blythe Life giveaway, pants from C’mon Dolly, pink converse shoes from Simply Guava stock, and a knitted fox -eared headband I bought at Blythe con.   A group shot!

Ahhhh, so much better.