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You are here: Home / Archives for Blythe dolls

Saturday

February 11, 2023 at 9:55 am by Claudia

First, the really good news. Our friend Adrian, who is suffering from heart failure, was officially approved for a heart transplant. He’s in a hospital in Los Angeles, and all candidates for a heart transplant have to go through days and days of testing, after which the data is gathered and analyzed. The final step is to present it to a committee/group of experts (I think there around 40 of them) who then decide whether to approve the transplant. Adrian was approved. I don’t know where he is in the queue, but I do know there are people ahead of him.

Lots of prayers going on around here.

And now to my fun world:

Lucy is modeling new suspender pants from one of my favorite customizers and designers – Dakawaii Dolls. Naoka lives in Japan. I love, love, love her dolls but, unless someone puts a stack of money in my hands, I can’t afford them. They’re exquisitely done and in a style that no one else has. She put this pair of pants up for sale on Etsy and I decided to buy them. And I don’t know how she does it, but she doesn’t charge for shipping and the package arrives very quickly. Naoka’s clothing style is sort of slouchy and casual. My only other piece of her clothing is that gray, hooded coat that I love so much.

Lucy is the perfect girl for this kind of look. Isn’t she cute in this?

Do you know that when Lucy arrived in the mail, her head was not connected to her body? I’m not kidding you. I couldn’t believe my eyes! I wrote to her customizer immediately and she was shocked. She even showed me photos of her in the box that she had taken right before she sent her out in the mail. Suddenly, I had to figure out how to get the head back on and her neck joint was one I wasn’t familiar with. In fact, I hadn’t changed any neck joints yet, nor had I opened a head. I worked and worked on it, screamed more than a few times, and finally got it attached, though it was always a bit wobbly. Eventually, when I started replacing neck joints on some other girls, I changed Lucy’s out, as well. It works so much better now.

Back to the unattached head. I have to believe that it was opened up in customs. Did they think she was filled with contraband of some kind? There’s no way it just came apart, as the head was screwed shut. I think they took her apart and then didn’t know how to put her back together again. Definitely the strangest thing that’s happened in this hobby. Lucy hails from Ukraine.

I changed Imogen into overalls and thought it just might be the time for a small group photo.

They look like they’re about to get into some mischief. Imogen, especially, looks guilty. And that Bertie, with his little beret! What is he thinking?

Backstage:

I use a few different methods to prop up the girls, but a good old-fashioned wooden skewer works best on the wood floors and picnic table on the porch – also on our little stretch of sidewalk. I insert the pointed end into the crack between the planks. Best of all, I’ve had a bag of these skewers in my kitchen drawer for years, so it’s free. For more complicated poses, I use some implements made for Blythes. Next time I use one, I’ll show it to you.

I’ll slowly be redressing all of the dolls over the next several days, so you’ll get more photos.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

Filed Under: Blythe dolls 23 Comments

Harper Day

February 8, 2023 at 9:07 am by Claudia

My girls always cheer me up, so I took some photos of Harper yesterday.

A Valentines Day theme.

A little closer. Look at the beautiful details: the subtle purple around the inner corner of the eyes, the beautifully drawn eyebrows, slight pinkness on the end of the nose and on the eyebrows, and my favorite – the little veins in the cheeks.

Harper was customized by Ferro Doll and to me, there is no one better. While I’d love to collect lots more Blythes, the reality is that I can’t. But one more Ferro? Absolutely, if I can get the style I want. Elena does a version of the doll with a head of curls and intense eyes/eyebrows. That’s the kind of girl I want. But she doesn’t take requests or commissions. I’ve let her know my interest but that’s all I can do.

And just to give you idea of her size against the real size of our home:

Yesterday was Harper Day.

Nothing else to report. I’m deep cleaning the bathroom in preparation for re-caulking the tub, but today I’m wrestling with a stye in my left eye, so I’m taking it easy. I remember that I had a stye on the very last day of filming on Spoiler Alert, too.

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, Harper 22 Comments

Just What I Needed

February 5, 2023 at 8:58 am by Claudia

What a week it has been. Actually, three  weeks.

Our dear friend Adrian is now on the heart transplant list. For some reason (we had a bad connection so we lost this bit of info) the insertion of the machine to help his heart pump is not considered the best idea for him now. We had a long talk with him the other day from his hospital room. I hope we can speak to him today, as well.

I’m still shocked about the show I was involved with not moving to Broadway. The cast had received notices that contracts were coming and that it was a done deal. There is so much disappointment among cast members – and me. I’m in a conflicted position on this one because I know the reason why it didn’t move forward and it involved someone I know and love, so I understand both sides of the story. But, on a personal level, I lost out on income I was counting on. So I understand, but I feel a little anger, as well.

So yesterday, I attended a zoom meeting hosted by an online Blythe friend. Her guests were the two women, mother and daughter, behind the account Play From Your Heart. They make the most whimsical hats and accessories for Blythes and I’ve long been an admirer. They live in Germany. Hearing their backstory was inspiring. They were speaking to us from their studio, surrounded by their magical creations, and I was so grateful to be there. So grateful. I needed some magic and whimsy. And I got it. I thanked them for that, briefly mentioning it had been a tough couple of weeks, and the opportunity to play, to visit with people who are creative and charming, and also to be with like-minded Blythe lovers – well it was just what the doctor ordered. I almost didn’t go, but I ended up logging on at the last minute.

Wren attended because she is wearing one of their creations. The beret.

I want to buy a couple of their wonderful hats for Blythe dolls but will have to save up for those. The reason Wren (and Lily) get to share this little hat is because it’s smaller and less expensive. I love it.

Anyway, I desperately need an escape these days and the girls and their world provides that for me.

I’ve considered selling Wren and Lily because we could use the money. But every time I look at them, I see those beautiful faces, the worried look on Wren’s face that reminds me so much of me as a little girl, and I can’t. Yesterday, as I was telling Don about the zoom meeting, I was holding Wren. He took her in his hands and said how much he loved her face and eyes. Then he held Lily. And then he whispered, “Don’t tell the other girls, but these two are my favorites.” I told him I had been considering selling them. “You need to put that idea out of your head,” he said.

So that’s that. At least, for now.

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: bjd dolls, Blythe dolls, wren 20 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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