Mood:  not sure

It's silly, but even though I'd already bid on it, I'm still at war with wanting that Barbie case. I know I want it, but it just seems so much, and I already have excess of everything. All I know is, I'm spending waaaaay too much time thinking about it. Lost the auction I bid on, but it's fine. I bought something else instead ! I both love and hate 'Buy It Now'. Beats waiting a week to see if I 'won' the right to buy it. To be honest, I'm getting tired of getting my hopes up over and over to get sniped at the last second. Tired of the BS on eBay. I know you've been there, too.

I've been reading old doll magazines. I have some that date back to the late 70s. Back when wanting a doll or a tiny accessory entailed placing an ad, sending SASEs for sales lists, or writing a longing article and hoping for a response. Long before auction sites and doll boards made it easy to find what you wanted, as long as you could pay for it. The world I used to know seems so different, almost foreign now. I remember almost buying a Timey Tell in sad shape - torn neck, dented-in face, faded legs - because I didn't know when I'd ever find another. Of course, this was back in 1992, the Internet was still three years away from being a major part of my life. The near-perfect one I have now was $10., including shipping, off eBay, purchased in 1998.  

I'm kind of on the hunt for some of my history, so I can rework it. Gonna find a Malibu Barbie - my first Barbie, a Christmas gift that infuriated my mother - and reroot her into a brunette. When I was a 70's kid, Barbie was blonde, and that was that. Always. Her 'with it' friends were never available at the TG & Y, so I never saw a brunette one. All mine, Ken and Skipper too, were blonde.

Of course, I'm brunette. And I longed for a doll - any doll ! - that looked a little more like me. Shoot, every doll I had, from Timey Tell to those decorative ones on the dresser, was blonde. Oh, wait, Crissy's a sort of red/brown haired doll, but she kept vanishing. Years after The Big Move, I found her moldering in a water-damaged box, and she disappeared again soon after. Found her again, but I haven't seen her since. The one I have now (rerooted as a brunette !) was found at a flea market. OK, so I didn't have a brunette Barbie as a kid. Princess Leia was darn near too late to my childhood, but she alone remains. All the blonde dolls went to new homes, and even today, when I clean up and donate dolls, it's easy to let the fair-haired ones go.

I sometimes think being an adult means deciding if what you wanted and didn't get as a kid still matters. And how to go about getting what your psyche kind of needs now. Yeah, in the grand scheme of things, the white case and the brunette Malibu don't matter. But in the tiny microcosm of one life, they do. I like to believe every life matters. Even if it's currently obsessed with 'Garfield', editing anime footage to music, or old doll boxes. Believe it or not, I often have real problems with connecting 'I matter' to 'What I want matters'.

I guess Beloved Hubby sensed my weird mood, because we went to the junk shop today. The place with two *huge* plastic tubs of Barbies and a mass of toys I loved to rummage through. Well, today was rather a disappointment. Almost no dolls - Barbie or otherwise - and the remote control car Dearest Son picked out, despite the 'Working' tag on it, doesn't. I did score some fabric - navy with multicolored stars, and a glittery 'night sky' piece - for 50c each.

Also found a book. Things To Make For Children was originally published in 1960. I held a revised fifth edition from 1975. Leafing through, I noted there were no doll clothes patterns, but there was the most amazing dollhouse...with a gorgeous Midge peeking from the fourth floor balcony patio ! Wow ! This was one cool dollhouse ! Hubby peeked over my shoulder, and said if I wanted it, he'd build it. So I know what I'm getting for Christmas ! :) That's about the soonest he'd have time. Yup, that book came home with us.  I'm still kinda cheesed about Son's car and their almost non-existant toy section, so I doubt we'll be going back this year.

Once back home, I cheap-serged the new fabric. All of it. Both new pieces, plus six more. (sigh) I really need to quit buying material ! Good news is, the navy with stars print has enough to make me a blouse. Coool ! Rest of the evening was uneventful....but I did leaf through a few more old magazines.

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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Mood:  happy

Something amazing happened. Called to resolve a problem - finally ! Shoulda taken care of this almost three weeks ago ! - only to find out that the situation's completely over. All's taken care of, and if anything isn't, all I have to do is mail out a copy of a letter. I can't say too much without getting too personal, but it involved a huge financial outlay on top of everything else. Now it doesn't. I'm so relieved, I'm dizzy. Hadn't realized how much it was affecting me until it was over. Beloved Hubby's jublilant, too.

Haven't sewn today either, or did Rio's lightbox pattern repro. Mostly wandered around the house in a daze. Dearest Son earned the trophy he's been working towards, so went out to get it today. Our local awards shop is the best in the world ! And he's so proud.

Not much going on in dolls today. Sorry. Heck, Fiona's still in her issue dress ! I'm just so happy...I almost want a nap !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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Mood:  cool

I keep thinking it's Sunday, because yesterday was such a wonderful day ! Like a Saturday, because Beloved Hubby was home. Doin' some laundry, but not much else. Despite the repellant spray, I got mosquito-bit numerous times, and I think the patch of several clustered on my wrist has gotten infected. Trying not to scratch more.

Tried various shoes on Fiona. Ken shoes work best on her flat slightly-larger-than-Leia's feet. They're about Jem size, just flat instead of arched. Conversely, Jem and Leia, who can also wear Ken shoes, can wear Fiona's, they just look a bit big on them. So I don't need to dash out and buy doll shoes again. Whew !

Put a bid on that Barbie case I want to put up in the Studio. Why do I always want the rare one ? I always get sniped on 'em because I hate to pay $20. for something I had in the 70s, when the 1962 Midge case was less expensive.

Beloved Hubby added new lightbulbs in the Studio overhead light for me. I'm too short, even with the stepstool, to reach it. Hmmm. Now that I can see better, there's a lot I need to do in there...

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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Mood:  happy

What a grand and glorious day ! We all slept in, went shopping, and played all day, eating lots of junk food along the hours. Wheee ! While we didn't see fireworks, we got to celebrate fireflies in the backard, and that was even better.

In today's top news, I got a new doll ! I put her back twice, but she somehow ended up in the cart anyway. I'm now the proud owner of a Shrek Princesses 'Fiona' doll. And she's a lot cooler than her box might indicate. If you'd like to read a 'to her skivvies' review, check it out here  -

https://dorriebelle.tripod.com/id39.html

As Beloved Hubby surmised, I wouldn't want a fashion Fiona doll. I wanted an Ogress Fiona doll ! He knows me too well. Since the box didn't show the mask in actual use, I figured it'd look like crap. Plus, how do you disguise her not-green hands and feet ? Well, MGA found a way. Hard to believe those are the same guys who bring us Bratz, in all their permutations. Or should that be simply 'mutations' ?

In any case, Fiona is a fantastic doll, and I had great fun taking photos and creating the review page. It's been a while since I got to do that.

He also insisted that I get a cutting of some fabric I fell in love with. I couldn't help it, it's too perfect for Elphie ! Black cotton with cats shaped in white outlines. It'll probably become a fluffy sundress, although it'd be cool as a slinky sleeveless shift, too. Now I just have to cheap-serge it and get it washed.

Beloved Hubby and Dearest Son picked out a pair of shoes for me, and I love 'em. Little ballerina flats in navy blue with white polka dots. I feel so feminie and springlike in them. Today wasn't my birthday, but I made out like a bandit ! Our cat Tuna got a new flea collar - it's the only collar she'll wear, so I write our phone number on it with a Sharpie. Just in case.

We ate and played and relaxed together. Rented Reno 911: The Movie and Garfield 2 from the Redbox, loafed on the sofa with chips. Had a picnic with McD's for dinner. And I got to write up a review on my new doll.

With all of that joy and peace, who needs fireworks ? :)

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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Mood:  bright

There's a new photo up on the Home page ! Just a fun one I took of Aylene using a bunch of Dollar Tree stuff. Just about everything but she and her shoes came from DTree.

The poster and the foamcore board it's glue-sticked to is DTree. I sprayed it with Krylon Matte Finish ($3. for a whole lasts-forever can at Mal-Wart) so it wouldn't bounce camera flash. The 'wood' floor is self-stick linoleum tiles - ours sells 'em for $9. a box, or $1. for a pack of three. Takes two and a half to cover the long side of another piece of foamcore. The uncovered opposite edge can tuck under the scene you're setting, or get painted or covered with carpet. Or covered with more linoleum, if you like !

Ours has several linoleum patterns, but keep your eye for scale open. There's two other designs I like, one of which will probably end up on the other side of this piece of foamcore. Haven't decided if I'm going with the white faux marble or the jade green faux marble. I like having variety in my flooring ! The leftover half-piece will probably get stuck to a doll stand, for 'instant' photo opportunities. Or I'll let it 'hang around' for a while.

Her chair is a Dollar Tree photo frame. Those sold out fast, and I wish I'd bought more. The star-sprinkled dress is from DTree's "Summer Cruzin' " dolls, and fits her smaller-than-Barbie body well. Her magazine is cut from a subscription card, and her shoes are from a Fashion Fever clothes multipack I bought a few months ago.

Sad thing is, I've had the linoleum and foamcore since March ! Tile was sitting around so long, it started to curve, so I weighted it down with doll clothes boxes. And forgot where it was. Not sure why I didn't use them the day I bought 'em, but at least I finally did.

Helped Beloved Hubby with the lawn mowing - mostly picking up tree branches and wire flags from the gas company. Same gas co. that dug up our front yard in the middle of the rain monsoon, piled the mud around in strange hills and valleys, then left. You should see me push the trash can to the curb, it's almost a comedy routine. Especially when we get more rain and the hills turn back to mud and the valleys become lakes.

Anyway, one of those aggravating 'We Buy Houses' plastic signs had blown off a utility pole, and I snagged it. It'll be a great way to support two more Dollar Tree poster backdrops ! Score ! That's a buck saved since I won't need to buy another piece of foamcore board. It's the little things...

Oh, and Beloved Hubby has the Fourth off ! All right !!

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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Mood:  a-ok

Lazy, slow, boring Monday. Didn't even get the lightbox out of the closet for Rio's pattern, much less get near the sewing machine. Unless you count vacuuming and general after-weekend house tidying, I didn't get squat done today. Not sure why, but I think I'm going to take this week off sewing and do other things. I seem to sew best when I don't do it every day anyway.

It was a nice day, though. Got to help Beloved Hubby on a job in his Shop, played with Dearest Son for a while, puttered a bit in the Studio. Rain seems to have moved on for today, although clouds still circle. Not sure if we have any plans for the Glorious Fourth, but whatever we do, there'll be junk food and us, and that's the best.

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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Mood:  celebratory

Scanning is done ! Over the course of 30 hours - that included sleep, cooking, grocery shopping, housework, watching our new DVD, Meatballs - I got all three patterns scanned, cleaned, and backed up. Whew ! Glad I won't have to do that again !

But I don't learn easy - spent a bit of time afterwards looking up Jem and Darci patterns. Turns out that Simplicity 8333 and 6363 are identical, same clothes for the same dolls. Just the envelope layout is different. So if you're looking for patterns for those dolls, too, you can always buy which one is best for the cash. And it proves to me that the big pattern companies don't always use the same number for the same set. From my two minutes of Google research, #6363 came out in 1983, #8333 in '87.    

I must be out of my mind for even looking, though. Last thing I need is more patterns - I still have scads I haven't touched. And if I buy it, I gotta scan it. That's not too difficult with Barbie-size. It's those todder dolls' patterns that'll kill ya ! : ) Still, I got a lot I haven't enjoyed yet. I think I'll wait a bit before chasing more.

Looked in the Pink Aisle during a grocery run. Nothing new at our Mal-Wart. I still wanna see those Birthstone dolls, but it looks like I'll have to visit TRU for 'em. Since Dearest Son's off from school this week, it looks like it'll be maybe next weekend. Not sure about them. They use my favorite head mold, but they look more 'My Scene' than 'Steffie'. Plus I have no use for that dog prop.

Was thinking of sewing this evening, but I'm kind of 'dolled out' for now. I did get Rio's new clothes pattern all printed out. It's from a German magazine, and in Europe, they tend to cram all the pieces on one page. Like you see in Burda magazines. So I get to use the lightbox Beloved Hubby made me ! Or print it out seven times. It's in German, of course, but it looks fairly easy. I have one Barbie pattern from the exchange group that's in four languages - French, Spanish, German, and what's possibly Flemish. It's not a multi-language one, though. It was printed in four magazines, identical layout. Probably the same magazine, but I have no way of knowing. It's just neat to see it written up differently each time.

Hope you had a good weekend ! My birth-month is July, so I'm happy ! There's always a reason to be happy if ya look around. Sometimes, though, ya just don't wanna look around. I'm glad today, I do !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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Mood:  down

Today, I started the long-put-off task of rescanning those three toddler-doll patterns I bought back in February or sometime. I love those 99c pattern sales, but I'm also glad there's nothing I want now. I'd ironed them flat, then, once the original scans were done, carefully folded them so the pattern number/letter showed, and ironed them again. It's one way to get them back into the envelope without much fuss. With that done, I figured the rescan would go much faster, since the cut out and iron stuff was done already.

Urggh. I've stood at the scanner longer than I want you to know about, and I'm barely halfway done. Beware the patterns that are three sizes in one envelope. Sure, it only has twelve pieces...but that's actually twelve times three. And since one of the sizes is huge, you'll have to scan it in sections - there was one I had to scan six times to get the whole thing. 

You'd think scanning wouldn't take long. Slap it on the scanner bed, hit the button, and save it, on to the next one. I admit, I used to do it that way. But then I got in a pattern exchange group and started noticing how others did it, and I wanted mine to look nice, too. I also wanted to use as little printer ink as possible when it was time to actually sew something.

So I made sure there was a 'this is 1 inch' ruler or mark on there, to verify it prints at the right size. And I started 'bleaching' a pattern until it was just black outline and text. No colors to bleed those expensive color cartridges. Then I got rid of the French and Spanish - it's nice to know that a sleeve is 'manga' elsewhere, and I'm probably rude for removing them. But it makes the pattern look so much cleaner, it's less confusing at first glance, and that makes it more likely to actually be used sometime.

Here's an example : Photo removed due to space limitations.

The one on your left is fresh from the scanner. It gets cropped, to make sure it'll fit on a single page of printout, then it gets 'bleached', and the stuff I don't need gets erased, in PaintShopPro. I often have to erase stray marks, pattern folds, and random dots, too, and I'm getting better at redrawing lines that didn't scan well. It's easy to see the lines I drew here !

It's a lot of effort, and it gets old and tired fast. But to me, it's worth it. The pattern looks a lot less confusing at first glance, it's much easier to read, and it uses a lot less ink. I even found a way to do most of the bleaching while it's scanning, thanks to settings in the Brother printer - and I can even save those settings, thanks to 'custom buttons', so I don't have to reset 'em on every piece. So I even learned something on this go-round.

It just ranks that I'm only halfway done, and my eyes are blurry. I close the top to the scanner, of course, but cropping, erasing, and renaming does take it out of ya. And here's something you might find funny - I am so paranoid about losing these scans again that I've already backed up what I did onto a CD. You'd think I'd wait 'til tomorrow, when I'll finish if it destroys me, to burn a backup but I just couldn't walk away until I verified that all this work was stored away from the hard drive. It's kind of a waste, because I'll just burn another when all this is over, but if it lets me rest, it's worth it.

Frankly, if I had to scan these three patterns again, I'd probably toss 'em out the window and into the lake that used to be our front yard !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Saturday, 30 April 2011 6:38 PM CDT

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Mood:  bright

Wheeee ! Finished Jem's outfit, and it's posted on the main site. Lots of problems with it - armholes were too tight, bust is too tight, skirt is too loose. So I've tweaked the measurements and printed out a new pattern that looks to be about right. I'll probably sew it again soon. But the one I finished fits, if both too tight and too loose at the same time, so I'll keep it. And I defy anybody to sew for her without hearing the theme song in his/her head. It's been three hours since I finished the sewing, and I just posted the picture, but it's still rattling around. (humming) Jem is my name, no one else is the same...

Rio fits Ken clothes, so I won't need to measure him. I'll probably pick out and print a Ken pattern this weekend, and start on it Sunday or Monday. Tomorrow I'm scanning patterns - the three I already scanned, but lost during the lightning strike. I'll have to do them all at once, because I won't neglect backing 'em up this time !

Speaking of patterns, I've been informed that there is at least one Jem and two Darci patterns out there. Jem and Darci were both made by Hasbro, and are mostly the same, save for Darci has a slightly narrower pelvis and marginally bigger feet. So I'm not sure if they patterns would be interchangeable. Guess it depends a lot on that all-important 'hip ease' ! Simplicity 8281 comes in two sizes, one for Barbie, one for Jem, and Simplicity 6363 says 'one size' on the envelope, so I'm not sure on that one. McCall's 8181 shows Darci photographs on the cover, with Barbie on the back, so they're probably separate patterns. Of course, I don't have any of these, so I may have to add them to the list...when we have money !  

For now, though, I have plenty of patterns to try and miles (if not parsecs !) of fabrics to use trying ! But it's approaching Friday night, they guys want my company, and I got a bag of chips calling my name. And it's still **@%$  raining. (sigh) Our backyard looks like a Brazillian rain forest. Our sunflowers are all stalk. And my patterns are still limp...

PS - Sorry for all the updates. My font went wonky, and I kept trying to put it back where it was...if I could just figure out what it was before ! Looks like it's OK now, thank Everything !

Posted by dorriebelle at 3:35 PM CDT

Updated: Friday, 29 June 2007 3:59 PM CDT

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Mood:  irritated

...because I'm certainly *&%@ing sick of it. It's getting ridiculous. And sewing's becoming gradually more difficult. The paper I print patterns on is limp from all the humidity, and they tear easily. Everything feels wet, and it's even affecting the sewing machine. About the only good thing I can think about it is that our power bill's low because we don't need air conditioning. But it is ridiculous that it's only 75 degrees in the middle of summer. I don't know how folks in Seattle do it...

I'm working on a Jem outfit - a cute little 2 piece sundress from Doll Shop Deluxe, cut from a stuff-a-bag-for-a-buck yard sale denim jumper. The outfit is listed under 'dresses' in DSD, but I've never heard of two-piece dresses before. Just 'skirt and blouse', separates, even if it is made from the same material. But it's not like LivingSoft conferred with me about it !

I'd be done already - it's not a very complicated outfit - but the eight darts took up what time I had to sew. There's actually ten darts, but the ones on the blouse back are so narrow, I'm skipping 'em. The skirt will go together in a blink, but the top doesn't have facings, it's all hems. While it's easy to sew a straight stitch line where the hem goes and fold it, pin it, and sew it from there, Barbie-size hems around armholes and necklines worry me. Especially since I'm not using blend-in thread - I'm going with orange. So every mis-stitch will show.

Plus I'm still tweaking DSD. That basically means that there's a good chance all this effort won't fit when I'm finished. The hips on Synergy's outfit were a bit too tight, so I changed the measurements. I could just add 'hip ease', but I'd rather have something that fits, without me having to remember to add it each time. And I haven't used DSD for anything but a skirt. So this really is an untried pattern - with untried measurements ! Talk about your challenges !

The Fray-Check is still hangin' in there. It may be five more outfits before it's done. And I already have a stockpile of more. Hancock Fabrics had a buy-one-get-one specially marked package that was 50% off during a sale. So I have four more bottles. I doubt I'll have to buy any more F-C for the next decade or so.

 After Jem's outfit's done, I get to make something for Rio, her boyfriend. Not sure if I'll have to measure him for DSD, he seems to fit Ken clothes well. Which is odd - Jem's 12.5 inches tall, closer to 13" if you count it from her tiptoes instead of her heels, and she can't wear many of Barbie's clothes. Rio is also 12.5 with his hair squished down (he looks taller 'cause it's so fluffy), but even Ken pants fit without looking any more high-water on him than they do on standard Kens. Shirts come up a bit short, though, so I guess his torso is longer, but his legs aren't.

Well, time to go figure out more Mysteries Of The Universe. Stay dry ! I wish we could...growlmutterwhine

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

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