Thankfully, though the temperature remained at 27 degrees for several hours, everything in the garden seems to have survived the sudden cold. It’s raining a bit this morning and I was all set to clear some of the beds. I’ll have to wait until this afternoon.

Just after I left you on Monday, Don left for his eye appointment, so I decided it was a good time to do the face up on another ‘Bunny’ doll head from Little Keiko Dolls. The body that I needed was due to arrive later in the day. I worked on the face up in the studio for a few hours,  occasionally donning a mask and goggles to go outside when I needed to spray her with sealant.

Then I had to wait several hours for UPS to deliver the OB 22 body.

Consequently, her hair color is different in every photo because the light kept changing. But it’s really a silvery blonde.

The body was attached, an outfit chosen, and then – it was late in the day – I ran around the house trying to find a good place for a photo op. I had to play with the color in this one because it’s a “late afternoon sun in the studio” photo. Her eyes are brown, but they look darker here.

Don and I chose a name: Willow.

And finally, on the next day:

All four of the girls together on the church pew.

Gilly, on the far left, and Ruby, on the far right, are Landoudou dolls from Landazz Doll.

Greta and Willow, the girls in the center, are from Little Keiko Dolls.

I did all of the face ups except for Ruby’s.

I’m getting better at it, though I’m far from a professional. But it’s fun, it’s creative, and it’s less expensive, to boot! There are definitely flaws, but since they’re for me, it’s no big deal.

These smaller-head dolls are so charming. I really love them. I had an pre-order ready to go for another Landoudou doll head but it was going to cost $60 to ship her from China. So I’m going to hold off until things get better.

Speaking of which, I vowed not to start the latest Louise Penny (It’s been here for 6 months) until he was no longer in office. But I realized that I’d already read the other Susan Hill that I had on hand, so I gave in. I’m going to take my time,

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

I’m still on a little bit of a high after my latest artistic endeavor.

Let me explain:

I won a blank doll’s head in a giveaway on Instagram. It’s one of the dolls, “Freesia,” designed by Little Keiko dolls. They are BJD (ball jointed) dolls made of resin. This particular line of dolls is very popular among Blythe aficionados. I was thrilled to win and knew I would have to find someone to do a faceup – the painting and sometimes carving of the face. In this case, there wouldn’t have to be any carving. Just painting.

The head arrived here on September 19th.

I had been slowly collecting the materials required for a face up: pastels, watercolor pencils, white gloves, Mr. Super Clear – a sealing spray, a mask and goggles for using Mr. Super Clear, which is quite toxic, Magic Erasers, foam wedges, paint brushes, and makeup brushes. I gathered all of it because I had been pondering doing the faceup myself and a good friend on my feed gave me a list of what I’d need.

But I was very fearful, so I was about to have the face up done by a wonderful artist (recommended to me by my friend, Gwen.) But, after our initial conversation, she didn’t get back to me when I asked for a price quote. To be honest, money is very, very tight, and that’s why I was thinking of doing it myself. I finally wrote to her and thanked her and said I was going to do the face up. Turns out she’s going through a painful divorce and there’s too much on her plate. So the universe seemed to be saying “Do it!”

So, I started in on the project on Monday. I finished yesterday. Every little step I took was scary. I was so afraid I would screw it up. And it’s not perfect, but since she’s my doll and I’m not selling her, it doesn’t matter.

Here’s the blank head. (I’m not using the eyelids.)

At the end of my first day, here is where I was:

Every layer of work has to be sealed with Mr. Super Clear. You spray MSC over the blank head. Then, you start with the base – in this case, a flesh-colored pastel and then the cheeks and lips. More MSC. (I sprayed outdoors.)

Then you add more layers; the area around the eyes, the eyebrows, and other additions to create the final look. Then, two final coats of MSC. I purchased the eyes and the wig from Little Keiko. I attached eyelashes (which was very tricky – it’s much easier on a Blythe) and inserted the eyes, secured the wig, swore a lot, and – drum roll – here is Jessie!

I can’t tell you how tickled I am about the way she turned out! She’s on the same body I use for my Blythes, so she can wear Blythe clothes. Of course, Don was cheering me on and was seriously stunned by the final look.

I did this! I customized a doll!

One side benefit was that I was so engrossed that I barely thought of the clown show of cabinet nominees.

My birthday is tomorrow. I’m going to be 72. Trying something new at this age can be a bit frightening. But I pushed myself and this sweet girl emerged from all of the worry and trepidation. On my first try!

I think it’s the perfect birthday gift for myself.

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.