Current Mood : Once again, amazed ! 

Spent on doll history : 31¢

Spent on fabric (sigh) : $1.01

Goss, what a day. Rain and thunderstorms, and I had dozens of errands to run in it. At least I checked the weather in time to get Molly-car's windows up. I completely forgot it was Dearest Son's turn to provide a class snack, so I had to get it all done early. Plus, there was a sort-of birthday party for DMIL at Gramma's house at noon. So I grabbed a shower, secured snacks and drinks, delivered them to the school, did Beloved Hubby's banking -  he's still sick - hit the thrift and picked up my expensive prescription. Luckily, I only need this $78. wonder every two months, and the other three I take every day are just $4. each.

I spent a whoppin' 31c, but I got something I kinda~sorta wanted for a long time. Read a lot of doll books and eBay auctions, and you see A Premier Product baggies, holding anything from Revlon doll clothes to Barbie shoes. Premier Doll Accessories, located in Brooklyn, NY, has been around a long time, but I can't find out much about the company. Several Premier items for sale have ‘40s-50s' in their descriptions, but the packaging isn't dated. Some of the ones I've seen listed as 50s have the same header card as mine, but the zip code is sort of a giveway - that wasn't established in the US ‘til the early 60s.

Premier is frequently described as a ‘jobber' - they didn't work for a doll or toy company. Rather, they made ‘aftermarket' products like doll shoes and jewelry to enhance dolls already for sale - or dolls in company catalogs. Their products were frequently sold to doll shops, catalog companies like Sears, and variety stores like Ben Franklin and TG&Y. Since they didn't have to worry about things that the doll manufacturers did, Premier's designs were frequently quite original and beautiful, and used materials that toy companies didn't. Check out http://crissyandbeth.com/Aftermarket.html and scroll down for some wild Crissy clothes made by Premier, in some fantastic fabrics !

I read that they went under in 1983, but that's about all I could find about them. In any case, today at the Thrift, I found a baggie with the never-opened black ankle-strap shoes inside, with three loose shoes in the baggie as well. They're too small for Leia and Jem, but they're also worn and frayed. So I'm gonna keep the unopened ones just as I found ‘em, and hang ‘em up in the Lab. I find that I'm really groovin' on the vintage packaging and graphic design. So, now I have some vintage Premier ! Doll history. I'll have scans up soon, promise !

It must've been Mystery Day for me, because the pink Barbie mailbox was gone when I got there. I asked around, and it turns out, yes, it was a ‘drop your used dolls off for charity' effort sponsored by Mattel. But, for some bizarre reason, it was Saturday only. I could have donated a dozen dolls, but darn if I knew about it, and ya'll know me, I haunt the Barbie aisle at least once a week over there ! Not to mention that the two store associates were still struggling to assemble the thing at 12:30 in the afternoon... 

Got home, and Beloved was tossing his cookies, he was that sick. So I begged off DMIL's get together and stayed home with him. My poor guy ! I got him into bed where he slept nonstop for four hours - and he'd gotten a good night's sleep last night. He felt better when he woke up, and he and Dearest are watching a movie while I type.

Oh, and I did get some inexpensive pink broadcloth I liked while I was at Mal-Wart. Half a yard should last me quite some time for the $1.01 I spent on it ! Tomorrow, I hope to sew...

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:43 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Sentimental

Kind of lazy, kind of busy Sunday. Never got to the sewing machine, but the more I can't sew, the more I wanna sew, ya know ? Besides, I don't really like the pale pink I've got planned and cut out for the dress I'm making. So, while I'm out tomorrow, I'm gonna scout around a bit. Gotta go out for one of my prescriptions - since I only need it every other month, it's not quite on the same schedule as the rest.

I'm also hoping those ladies finished assembling the ‘Barbie Recycling' mailbox, ‘cause I'll be smuggling in my camera to get a photo of it. Or whatever it was. I'm intensely curious about it.

We watched Toy Story 2 during dinner - so far, we've made three meals out of a rotisserie chicken, a great loaf of crusty bread, a can of baked beans, and some baked potatoes. Not bad for $8. ! One thing about the movie... it's nice that Wheezy the Penguin got fixed, that Andy's mom found another squeaker in the toybox to affect repairs. But has anyone noticed that you never see the toy shark again...?

Dearest Son's desk chair kept bumping my hip when I did laundry, so I moved some Office furniture around. Mostly a file cabinet and an end table. The cabinet's tucked away in an unused corner and that allowed his desk to get pushed up against the wall - lots more hip space ! I also went through the piles of papers scattered around, mostly handbills from Dearest's school, and completed assignments. Got all those organized. I still have stacks of scrap paper from last year ! Cut some up for notepaper, including the cut sheets I used for the pattern yesterday. I like to use the fancy-edge scissors I got for a quarter a piece at a yard sale, just for kicks. Cleaned off my desk, too. Now Dearest and Beloved Hubby's look bad (for a change !).

Next time I'm in the garage, I'll grab a set of bookends. DMIL gave us dozens - when the company she used to work for folded the tent, it was an office supply bonanza. It was three years before we had to buy envelopes. We still have enough binders to last for the next decade or so.

Also finally tackled my computer's doll photo files. There's over a thousand photos and images in that folder. Since that's normally where I store website images, you can imagine digging through ‘em all to find the one I want to post ! So I made a few new folders, combined a couple more, sorted through all of ‘em, and ditched a few dozen pictures. Now I can actually find stuff.

Beloved went out for a bit and came back with a surprise for me - a knockoff Fashion Plates toy ! He'd found it at the 7-11 across the street for $2.99. It's the Ja-Ru No. 3270 Pocket Travel Fashion Designer Color Sketch Kit, to be precise. It's about 5 inches by four inches, with a slide-around tray to store the double-sided green plates, rubbing crayon, and coloring pencils, all included. There's even ‘design tissues' in there, which is probably their fancy term for ‘paper'.

I haven't opened it yet, as I wanna get lots of photos. And I just wanna look at it. That was so thoughtful of Beloved, that I don't want to rip it apart yet. I'm so silly and sentimental sometimes !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:43 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Wheeeee !

Spent on Dolls : $3.

Spent on Sewing : $1.90  (sigh)

I swear, every time I pontificate on ‘it's time to use what I got, not spend more money', invariably I go buy more stuff. Even more fabric ! I must be the world's biggest hypocrite...

Beloved Hubby either never really recovered from our ‘Fun With Flu' October, or he's caught another cold. So he was home today, and I was off to Mal-Wart to refill our generic Robitussin and decongestant stockpiles. What the heck, some folks make sure they got plenty of chicken noodle soup and pantry foods when cold weather approaches, I make sure we got plenty of cough and cold meds, ‘cause when we get sick, no one has the energy to go shopping. And I also took stock of our soups - and got two more cans of Vegetable Beef and chicken stock.

But on the way, I passed a yard sale... Well, no, I didn't pass it... I pulled in and soon had an armload of goodies. A ‘Cabbage Patch Kids Pop Star Stage' caught my eye immediately. Almost Barbie-scale, it has lights and sounds, and can play music via A/V port, and the CPK signage easily reverted to a vivid purple. It's mostly purple, with some star design stickers. It was designed to work with specialized miniature CPK figures, but a slight boost to the poles, and it'd easily accommodate my dolls. Came with two drums, cymbals, and fake speaker props.

From there, I found a pink Barbie china cabinet - it has a mirrored back, with ‘glass' rose-etched doors that open. Kind of ‘A' shaped. I'd say it was part of the "Sweet Roses" line, it's even dated 1987, but I can't find an in-box example. Once it's painted something other than pink, it'll be even better.

Found a Barbie pool - it's about like the infant pools you'd find at Dollar Tree - and a Happy Family baby clothes ‘store' shelf unit that will be soo easy to convert to any other store I'd like to make. I also found the Krissy castle ‘bedroom' from 2003's ‘Barbie and Krissy Princess Palace Playset', but none of the other props. Looks cute with the Disney ‘Musical Princess' dolls ! Three bucks for the lot. Wow.

From there, I stopped in a Dollar General - haven't been there in a while. They had some Barbie fairy dolls, but nothing else new from Mattel. They've got their own line of princess and vanity dolls for $10. - the vanity was a bit too kiddy for me (it even lit up), but the doll was actually kind of cute, and the dress looked nice. Remember the Disney Princess Christmas gift tag stickers I scanned last year ? There's a whole new set out this year, and I bought one. In fact, starting Dec. 01, I'll be doing a DPrincess holiday sticker every day. More later on that. Anyway, they also had Tinkerbell gift tag stickers and Christmas cards, so if you like the Disney Girls, you may wanna check your local DolGen.

Used up a few quarters to wash off my beloved Molly-car. The recycling place had a lake-like mud puddle, and it dalmationed my car hood yesterday. I felt bad that she looked so dirty, so I gave her a quick wash. Funny how the three minutes of time I bought went much faster than my watch said they did...

Then it was on to Mal-Wart. Got the meds we'll need for the near future and had a look around. The Halloween stuff was on final markdown, everything was a dollar or less, even the costumes. I scored a box of fruit snacks (36 bags for a buck !), a star necklace (50c), and four rubber duckies - dressed as a pumpkin, a pirate, a witch, and a cat - for 24c each. The witch is, of course, mine, and the pirate went to Beloved. The other two got tucked away for Dearest Son's stocking. He's gonna love that cat one ! I shared my idea when someone asked what price they scanned as (I always scan sale stuff), and when I left, several folks were going through the duckie boxes. I figure they didn't have them in stock for much longer !

Poked around Toys a bit, although I was pretty well plaything-sated at that point. Found a little catalog in a cardboard Barbie display, so I should be scanning that one soon, but it's mostly identical to the one I got and scanned from TRU earlier this year. I'll scan the pages that are different, though, for  you.

I also saw something unusual. Two ladies were struggling to assemble a fuchsia-pink box with the Barbie logo all over it. It resembled a mailbox, and oddly, the yet-unfinished sides seemed to indicate that it was the place to recycle old Barbie dolls ! Huh. I may go over tomorrow - I forgot a few groceries - with a camera. If this is so, I want a photo of it. I wonder why Mattel (and clearly, it was licensed) is setting up abandoned Barbie drop boxes. And why now...

From there, I toured the fabric section and found a remnant I liked - yes, it was a princess print, just throw something at me already. After yesterday's success with PDorrie clothes, I thought it'd make a cute dress. And it fit the theme of my other self-indulgent purchases from the Christmas section. A package of 80 holiday Disney Princess stickers (12 actual character stickers repeated twice, the rest are ornaments, snowflakes, and arabesques) and a pack of similar multi-character pencils. What can I say besides I'm a sucker who's been wanting those for a while. There were similar treats for Cars and Tinkerbell. Ornaments, tin lockers, tin boxes, stickers, pencils, notepads, stockings. While part of me berates my purchases, I'm kinda proud of me for not glomming on to more of it !

Decided that, if I was gonna fight this crowd at the registers for what I was already buying, I may as well get the grocery shopping over with, too. Was gonna get Dearest a new pair of larger sweatpants ($5.), but instead, found a long-sleeved shirt with matching pants for $7. on markdown, so he has that instead. He's growing so fast, his wardrobe can barely keep up ! May have to hem the pants a bit, though.

Oh, and I forgot to tell you - Big Lots has those Kari Mitchell sets again this year. It's a decent knock-off doll with five very nice outfits, all in a color theme. Blue, black, and rose this year. Last year, they were $12., but I forgot to see what they were this year. The clothes are pretty nice for the price !

They also had a fairly decent kitchen set, too. I thought about it, but decided that I liked the ‘TV Chef' Barbie playset more. Since the price is the same, I'll snag that one maybe next week or the week after.

I didn't quite sew today, but I got the material cut out for a pretty little dress. It's a Japanese pattern, so wish me luck ! The ballerina fabric didn't quite work with the skirt part, so I'm going to use blue and pink layers instead. Just wish I had a darker pink. What I have is too light. (sigh) But I hope to get it sewn up tomorrow !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:43 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Pretty !

Spent on dolls today : $3.

Spent on sewing today : $2.68

Spent on something pretty : $2.39

Sorry for the change in scheduled photos, but I'm really proud of altering Princess Dorrie's ‘new' clothes ! Believe it or not, they're ‘Battat Dolls' separates, intended for the Target American Girl clones - that are much bigger than the LDP Belle I used for PDorrie. I found them, and a pair of black velvet clogs that fit Timey and Dottie, at a yard sale today for $2., and just couldn't resist.

I knew they were too big, but I also knew I could alter them, and that the green blouse would look sooo good on her. So I took off the side pocket and took in the side seams until the shorts fit. Took maybe 20 minutes. Another ten took in the sides of the blouse maybe another quarter-inch on each side. I wanted to keep it a bit baggy, ‘cause I like baggy. Eventually, I'll make a belt to hide the new side seams going through the waistband, but even as-is, it doesn't look bad at all. I may redo the crotch seam, it's a bit low for her, but it looks OK when she sits. If I sew it too tight, she won't be able to sit !

I had a truly busy day. I got to sleep in ‘til 7am, and from then on, it was go, go, go ! DFIL picked up Dearest Son a few minutes early - I was still getting dressed, in fact ! - but he was ready to go already, and I got a quick kiss before Dearest headed off. The Parent/Teacher conference went well, Dearest is doing OK in all his subjects, he's just behind in reading, and he already has tutors with that.

Met ‘Bee', the folder-counter supervisor, as she was waiting for her conference, and we chatted for over a half-hour. She's at a loss for Pink Lady, too, but as it turns out, PL's going through a lot. While I'm not sure how it relates to the ability to count papers, it is something the charitable will keep in mind - so I'll try. We talked a lot about personal info that isn't mine to share, but it was nice to chat and feel connected.

Dropped off the soda cans. Wow, the price of aluminum has dropped ! I've heard of companies with warehouses of scrap metals that now aren't worth the price of hauling out to be recycled, so they're stuck. I just didn't apply it to my little micro-economy.

I was so close to TRU, I stopped in. And spent maybe 20 minutes. They really didn't have anything that Mal-Wart didn't - and they were more expensive, too. Barnes & Noble was a doll magazine washout. All they had was Doll Reader, and it was bagged up with Marie Osmond's Christmas Memories, a magazine I had zero interest in. And, since the bag kept me from leafing through Doll Reader, I didn't buy it. There's other things for me to spend $6. on !

Like the Michael's Crafts further down the strip. I spent nearly a whole whoppin' big $5. there, on a package of foam stickers - Halloween markdowns - in heart shapes with wings and candelabras. I couldn't resist the ‘Wicked'-labeled black hearts ! So, for 89c, it went into the cart. I also got a beautiful acrylic star ornament, 30% off, that looks like a star-shaped soap bubble. It's already hanging outside my Lab. $1.39.

And I blew $2.50 (!) on a piece of fabric. With tiny ballerinas on it. It'll probably show up tomorrow as a Barbie-scale dress, with the leftover bits going on a PDorrie shirt. It's silly, but it was so charming, I just had to have it. Like I need more fabric around here !

They also have a papier mache dress form I'd like to experiment a bit with. A bit high, though, at $6.99. But I got a 50% off coupon with my receipt, so I may be going back for it soon !

From there, I hit a couple yard sales - scored a ‘Wedding Day Midge' gown skirt, the pink bridesmaid dress, a Ken flannel shirt, a pair of glow-in-the-dark Barbie shorts, a lemon-themed and scented dress, and a Fashion Fever skirt and blouse, and the window from one Barbie house or another, all for a buck. The window will probably appear in a foamcore backdrop soon. Also a lovely pastel necklace of stone beads. It's heavy, but so pretty ! I feel pretty wearing it. Also, just a buck.

I also saw Aunt while I was out and about, and we chatted a while. I told her how much we were enjoying the blankets, and that Dearest really loves his ATM bank. Uncle's doing well, she was waiting for an appointment of his to end. It was so nice to see her !

Came home, and Beloved Hubby was already here - and we've spent the rest of the evening doing misc. fun things while watching Law & Order DVD episodes. I wish we could find more seasons of it - I've always enjoyed the original and Criminal Intent. Just wish we could find more.

Not sure if I'm going out tomorrow or not. Never did get to Hobby Lobby, but I was gonna buy a dollhouse window with the current 40% off coupon. And I found a Barbie house window today, for just a dime. So I may stay home and sew. I really enjoyed my sewing time today, thinking back... plus, I got new ballerina fabric to play with !

Hope your day gave you something to play with - or something pretty ! Preferably both !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:42 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Happy !

Current Image Notes : Tonight, you get Aurora, Sleeping Beauty herself. We're halfway done with these lovelies, so I hope you enjoy them !

What a nice day today was ! Beloved Hubby was home, and we lazed the day away, chatting and enjoying our various hobbies. It was a grand way to recover from yesterday's school fracas and last night's power outage.

Before I forget, there's a final coda to the Candy Corn Incident. While I left a note for the Homeroom Parent and Dearest Son's teacher to keep any leftovers, including the felt, as I was tired of looking at ‘em, they came home with Dearest Tuesday. (sigh) At least there was only one candy corn piece left - I'd sent 21 for a 17-member class. I soon found that the Resources Manager could use the felt, so I'll drop it off Friday. I'll be in the area for a Parent/Teacher meeting anyway.

Yesterday at school, I heard over and over how cute everyone thought those things were. The librarians told me Dearest's class had been waving them around during the costume parade, showing them off. One of Dearest's tutors voiced surprise that they weren't commercially made - she thought someone had bought them. And I'll soon be on the receiving end of some upholstery and craft fabrics - my co-volunteer at Book Fair has been trying to ditch them for months. And you know me, I can't turn down freebies. So, it all works out, and I'm not ole bitter me about it anymore. Long as the kids liked ‘em, I'm good.

I had a luscious day of cleaning the lab, getting felt and notions put away, sorting through new goodies, and finding places for some scattered stuff. It was so much fun. I can now sew in the Lab if I want ! Who knows, I just might. DFIL has tomorrow off, and he's picking up Dearest early, because Dearest is also off tomorrow. About the only plans I have are touring Big Lots and Hobby Lobby after the P/T conference, it's been a while since I was in that area. Gotta drop off soda cans, too, so why not ? Not very many yard sales this week, which is fine - I'm rapidly running out of spaces for stuff anyway. Time to use and enjoy, instead of hoard.

That said, I still wanna go shopping ! (grin)

I'm having fun with the miniature Disney Princess photos. I know they're only a decade or so old, but it amazes me how well they look when I find ‘em. There's the usual hair snarl, but the facial paint has been good, and the bodies on the ones I have are like new. Further research reveals Musical Fairy Godmother and Mary Poppins dolls, too, and Princes Charming, Philip, Aladdin, and Beast. About the only Princesses I don't have are Ariel and Pocahontas, and really, I've yet to see an Ariel, I just figure there has to be one or two. Still, it's not something I'm gonna haunt eBay over. They'll come my way, or not. Heck, I haven't even finished cleaning all of ‘em up yet - I don't need more !

I may split my upcoming ‘free' time - I want to sew, but I also want to get at least one of these reroots started. But I'm looking at the calendar - more volunteer work coming up, some family obligations, holidays, and Veteran's Day... I'm not sure I really have any free time !

So I'd best go enjoy ! Hope your day was fun, too !

Posted by dorriebelle at 9:17 PM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:41 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Mild frustration, abating quickly. Our power's back on, and I don't hafta deal with Pink Lady for a whole month !

Current Image Notes : This is either 'bubble' or 'perfume' Princess Jasmine. I can tell from the correct shoes - all the rest have wedge feet - and the hole between her shoulders. She's wearing an altered Cinderella wedding gown (it should have long sleeves), but I think she's lovely.

Well, that was exciting. I'd just finished telling ya'll that we were in a hailstorm when the power went out. Well, shoot. Not what I had planned for the evening ! But we were OK - thanks to last year's ice storm wake-up call, we had lanterns and candles ready to go. So we cuddled up with the new blankets Aunt and Uncle gave us, and took turns reading one of Dearest Son's new books. Two hours later, the power was back, Dearest'd been asleep for over an hour, and everything was good. I'd already sent Beloved Hubby to bed, but since the lanterns run on kerosene and we had candles, someone had to stay awake, just in case. Dearest can't sleep in a dark room, so... I took first watch. I'd had a heckuva day I needed to decompress and repack in my mind...

So, OK, here's the ultimately meaningless deal. Last year, I did a volunteer turn as a folder counter at Dearest's school. For some reason, the Board of Ed. OK's a few hundred solicits during the school year, and these handbills - for Parks & Recreation, for church group festivals, for Little League, for museum days, for karate classes, you name it, it's been sent home - have to be distributed to the teachers, who stuff ‘em in weekly folders. Most of ours end up as scrap paper, colored craft paper, or used for pattern print-outs if one side is blank. I get at least a ream a year of this crap.

In any case, the office ladies showed me how to do it, in a way that everyone's used to, and it's fast and easy. I can do about eight to ten solicits for a nearly 500 student school in less than two hours, filed, collated, done. I'm the fastest, most accurate counter they have. No brag, they've told me so. I came in one week a month, on the busiest week, and everyone was happy. While I hated sorting commercial solicits, it was something that really helped out, so I did it, got it done, and got outta there.

Can you see it coming ? Evidently, I was also the only dependable one, because this year there's four people doing this every week, and as a consequence, no one knows what anyone's doing - and I'm the only one with last year experience. (heavy sigh) I arrived today to find some odd woman we'll call Pink Lady spreading papers all over the office floor. Why ? No one knew. We had a big huge counter in the resource room to do counting, and I never used a tenth of that space. Having papers all in the office space looked bad, was in everybody's way, and no one could tell what she was doing. When asked, she said she had a system, and that no one could disturb it.

OK. So. I'm not the supervisor here. I find her, and basically ask, ‘OMG, WTF ?' and she's at a bigger loss than I am. Pink Lady's been at it since 8am (!) and no one can tell what she's doing or how she's doing it. Just that she has paper everywhere and that it's some system that only makes sense to her. She also takes breaks about every 20 minutes and walks into her son's classroom, for some reason.

I am beyond understanding. I just know I can't do my work because Pink Lady's got it half-azzed done, and she can't even explain what she has done or what needs doing. The office ladies are beyond pizzed because their office looks like a paper-strewn shack, the supervisor doesn't know what to do with her, Pink Lady gets affronted every time someone tries to figure out what she's doing, and her son is now glued to her side. No school for him today, evidently. He even lied about hitting his head - um, I saw him, he was in the middle of the hallway, walking along fine until he spied Pink Lady Momma. Then he bellowed like a fire truck that he'd hit his head ( on air ?) and screamed bloody murder. He actually rolled around on the floor. And he's older than Dearest, who's always slightly embarrassed whenever his Momma's at his school. Bizarre.

Well, you know me - the Army tried to teach me diplomacy, but it just didn't graft. I told her point-blank that we weren't supposed to count in the office, and that the way they liked it done was ‘this way'. She said she had her own way and that no one told her about not using the office. Um, I heard both our ‘supervisor' and Ms. A. tell her to take it to the Resource Room, and that's where the handouts are stored, but she muttered and whined about her system. I said that her system probably worked for her, but it was confusing to everyone else who'd done it ‘this way' for the last six or eight years. Bear in mind, she did NOT volunteer for this last year, so I have no idea where this system of hers came from. When I asked, even she could not explain her system. WTF ?!

Well, my lack of diplomacy didn't work either, because I finished my work in less than an hour, and at 2pm, she was still working on her ankle-deep paper piles all over the office floor. Also, for the first time ever, there weren't enough of some of the handbills. Um, normally there's at least 50 extra of each one. We ended up making more copies rather than go through what she'd already done. While it ranked to use up more resources, it was much easier and less time consuming than going through that mess of hers.

So. What's gonna happen next week, and next month, when it's my turn again ? Well, the office ladies have already decided this will not be repeated. So they're holding most of the work for me and the supervisor. Pink Lady will get one or two sets, but that's it, and she will be told to stay in the Resource Room. We'll see. I saw her again at Book Fair - that was my second volunteer task today - and her son got her to buy $48. worth of stuff, mostly toys and three $4. books. I noted how well he'd recovered from what had to be almost a concussive head injury, and I could tell from the stink-eye expression he gave me that he was aware that I knew the truth. Sometimes, I really have to be reminded what a treasure Dearest is...

I got to see him at Book Fair, and we got the Disney Pixar story collection he wanted, along with a Clone Wars last-minute find. Saw one of the books his teacher selected, and it was just beautiful. So his class now has Maybe, My Baby. I also found a book about hospital Emergency Rooms, the doctors and specialists, equipment and diagnoses, and it was on the discount table, so I snagged it and donated it to the library. I can be so generous, because I get a book credit for volunteering.

About the only doll time I had today was thumbing through the various Barbie and the Diamond Castle books. (sigh) Nothing I wanted... but I at least got a short nap before dinner.

Tomorrow, I clean house and have fun. I think I earned some ‘me' time !

PS - Sorry Tues. and Wed. entries are late. I didn't have time - or electricity ! -  to take the photos until today (Thursday) ! Once this is up, I'll start work on today's !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:41 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Warm and snuggly - with my new blanket !

Current Image Notes : For today, and the next five days, I thought I'd photograph those six-inch dolls I got from the flea market, the Disney Musical Princesses. We start with my first one, Snow, who came in a lot I got a LDP in off eBay. I need to make her a hair ribbon... The Cinderella carriage behind this week's girls also came from the flea, I have no idea what doll it goes to. But it's sure pretty !  

Busy, busy day. Election Day here in the States - polls were backed up early, in sharp contrast to the previous voter apathy that normally illustrated our political process. Numbers are still coming in, so we'll see what we got in the morning. I'm still tired and a bit weak, and I somehow feel I'll get more out of an additional sleep hour than I will more political analysis and predicting. And digital graphics - although those are tempting...

Beloved Hubby was home part of the day, so I ran errands with him. Once Dearest Son was home, we all headed up to Aunt and Uncle's. Not sure if this is how it goes with other families, but whenever somebody updates something like furniture, if the old stuff is still in good shape, the word goes out over the grapevine until someone can use it. In this case, they got new kitchen chairs, and offered out the older ones. And, lucky us, we were the only ones in the market for such.

I have to confess, we bought a simple, cheap table and chair set after we moved. And it pretty much self-destructed within a year. We were figuring out what to do next - we didn't have the Shop at the time - when Beloved found a nice table and chair set out on the curb. We snagged it, but those chairs were rough. I mean, literally. Like a dog had chewed on the lowest rungs. They were strong enough to support my bulk when I needed to change a light bulb, but they looked awful. I'd actually found and bought a chair cover pattern at the thrift, intending to use it for them. It just seemed like a bit of a waste, though, buying $30. worth of fabric to cover $5. worth of chair. So it never got done.

And now, we have really nice chairs... that are better than our table. ‘S OK, Beloved's already designing a new table for us, which is something he's always wanted to try. Not sure what'll happen to the old chairs, they're so crappy, I hate to curb ‘em. I may stash one in the garage, and one in the Shop, for when I'm hanging around with Beloved. And curb the other two during Fall Clean Up days.

But the best part was visiting. Uncle's health isn't the greatest, and neither is Aunt's. But we all stay busy, and sometimes a phonecall is all we can manage, to stay in touch. So it felt wonderful to just sit and talk a while. They had an ATM-style bank for Dearest, which he loves... and I may hook it once in a while for doll photos, it's about the right size ! They also sent us home with several blankets they'd received but didn't want, and one was Dearest's, he made that clear before we left ! He's cuddled up to it in bed, right now.

I often make the senior members of the family simple gifts, usually using fleece. I've done lap blankets, bed jackets, pet toys, and scarves before. Uncle mentioned he'd love some mittens, and those are easy. I'd extend the gauntlet part, so bare wrists wouldn't be exposed to cold, and I'd add a Velcro strap at the wrists. Many diabetics have issues with elastic, I've read. I also yard-saled a pattern for scuff-type slippers, and those are easy, too. So, I'd best start lookin' around for some fleece sales !

Not much doll time this week, I'm afraid. I haven't had time to clean up the Lab yet ! And tomorrow's my volunteer day at Dearest's school. I swear, I stick my head up from the hole I'm in, and there's a ring of folks waiting for me ! J

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:41 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Pleased  

Spent on dolls :  $5.13

Spent on eBay speculating :  $3.21

Spent on sewing :  27c

It's hard for me to believe it's November. Dearest Son has this Friday off, and nearly the whole Thanksgiving week off, and I have Book Fair, Wednesday folders, Veteran's Day to attend. Glad it's a short school month !

Got to hit the thrift today when I went - gasp ! - grocery shopping. Yes, that which was completely beyond me one short week ago is already a done deal. I confess, I was a bit lightheaded, but I put that down to ‘recovery' and kept on going. Found a brand-new poets' shirt pattern in my size first thing... I really gotta sew something that I don't whine about for a week !

I'm still amazed by this, but I found another Tomy Fashion Plates set, nearly complete ! This one had all the original and ‘More Fashion Plates' sets, plus the crayon rubbing tool and three extra crayons. Wow. I debated a bit, and bought it. I needed the crayons for my set, and I can always sell the spare, to repay all I've spent this weekend ! The set I got today is only missing the coloring pencils, the directions, and the boxes. Last time I looked, a similar set went for over $50. on eBay, so I may sell this one there, too.

Nothing else new in toys, or books, or clothes. So I poked around those kids' grab bags they sell, and found two - one had a cute Flounder and another had a Happy Meal Alice in Wonderland figurine ! It's really rare to find Alice stuff, so I snapped both bags up, for my LDPs. Dearest Son scored several toys from the bags, too, so it was a good dollar spent ! As is usual with the grab bags, at least 50% - usually more- of the toys get donated right back there.

Last but not least, it was time to check the Barbie bins. Those are right by the register, and a good dig tends to put me in the way of other customers, so I usually wait for a good time to hunker down and hunt. No new dolls, but I found a pretty Best Buy-era sundress in one clothing bag, and a springtime dress with rabbits on it in another. Shinobu is very fond of rabbits. So I bought both $1.99 bags.

At the bottom of one bin was an odd sort of Barbie size dress form/ clothing hanger. It had a rose-bedecked oval head with a sort of clothes-hanger shoulders beneath. From there, it tapers to a simple pole that snaps into a matching base. Whole thing is gold-colored, and the only marking simply reads ‘China'. Well, you know how I am about dress forms ! It wasn't marked, so they charged me 29c, and everyone was happy.

Went through the Barbie clothing bags in the parking lot. In addition to the rabbit dress and the sundress, I got a generic burgundy mermaid tail, a one-shouldered gold gown with a gold and white skirt overlay, a very battered color-change Pocahontas dress, the sweater from 1999's ‘Tree Trimming Barbie' (needs shoulder repair), a pair of tan cargo shorts, a blue Fashion Fever-type blouse with a butterfly charm sewn to it, a small scrap of brown fur, and a tiny black and plaid Kelly dress. The fur had some invisible strap pieces sewn to it, but I have no idea what it was for.

I put away my new goodies and got groceries. Had fun walking through the leftover markdown Halloween stuff - our Mal-Wart got stuck with lots of costumes ! They also had many, many Disney Princess treat pails, but I wasn't surprised. The iridescent pink plastic is nearly an optical insult, and even I couldn't look straight at a shelfload of ‘em. Talk about yer eye-sear ! Since the tasty, elusive Popcorn Ball Box was on sale, I got two. We have 36 - well, 34  - popcorn balls to last us ‘til December, when they expire. C'mon over for a snack, anytime !

I also took the time to waft through Toys. I'd meant to tell ya'll that we got the new Christmas Toys R Us catalog, but we were dirt-sick when it arrived, and handed it straight to Dearest. Eventually, I got a peek, and found that the Bratz World house sets - the vanity and cabinets with dolls ones - had been marked down from $25. to $17. The furniture looks nice, but many reviewers at the website weren't impressed - drawers don't open, the armoire doesn't have a back, very thin plastic and poor detail painting, etc. I was more concerned that, since the toy is on a cardboard platform in the packaging, it'd be hard to assure scale for a Barbie, but I confess, I'm not that interested anymore. If you are, check out your Mal-Wart, ‘cause ours marked theirs down to $17. as well.

I found myself taking a closer look at Mattel's High School Musical 3 playsets. While I could give a fig for HSM and Hannah Montana (PlayAlong Toys), I will occasionally scope their stuff for my dolls ! Most of the new HSM  stuff is recast from My Scene sets, but both Sharpay's closet and Gabriella's bedroom sets look great !

Sharpay's Fashion Frenzy Closet -

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10099414

Loungin' Around Gabriella's Bedroom -

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3155352&clickid=body_rv_txt

Pretty nice - and not much pink ! Both sets were in our M-W today for $30. But if you'd rather use TRU, they may still price-match (the two stores I worked for did, but that was over a decade ago), and they offer a free kids' cheerleading dress with any $40. Hannah Montana or HSM purchase. Even if you don't know anyone who'd want the dress, it'd still be a great gift via Toys for Tots ! Along with the catalog, TRU sent us a $10. off any $100. purchase - I doubt we'll use that this year ! - and a coupon for a free $10. gift card with a $75. purchase. Guess we are a ‘Best Guest of TRU', I figured it was marketing backwash. (snortgiggle)

Oh, and one other note - the cool-to-me Hannah Montana house is also available at M-W. It's $150. there, and lacks the doll. At TRU, it's $130. with a store-exclusive doll. At least until the sale is over on 11/22/08, when it reverts to $160. Might be worth a peek if you're looking for new doll real estate that's not the same-old. Dunno how series-accurate it is, ‘cause we don't have TV. Just so you early-birds know - and can budget accordingly ! M'self, if it weren't for lucky finds at yard sales, my dolls'd be living like they did when I was a kid. In Chez Cardboard, with Kleenex curtains and paint-can-lid seating ! 

(sigh) So much to want... so much I already bloody have !

And, as promised, there's ‘before' and ‘now' images of Dancerella. She's being oxy-treated right now - and for Tari (hi, and welcome !), I'll explain it a bit. Vinyl dolls have such nice faces... but they're prone to pick up and store every sort of odd thing in their ‘skin', especially when they're stored in an attic or garage for a few decades. Pen ink, dirt, makeup, carbon paper, ink from the box or newspaper - I've seen it all. If the doll didn't have it before she was boxed up, she had it on re-emergence.

Long time ago, I read on some Barbie forums that acne medicine - with active ingredient  benzoyl peroxide 10% (like Oxy 10, but it doesn't have to be a name brand) preferably - heavily applied and left to dry could draw out some of the worst offenders, like ink and makeup. I had to try it, because I already had some dolls who needed it. ‘Cause, let's face it, a lovely doll with a wrecked face is a heartbreaker !

I learned of two methods, the ‘slap it on and toss the doll in a closet for six months' one and the ‘put the doll in direct sunlight, and apply, remove and reapply it every hour for as long as it takes' one. To be honest, I couldn't tell that reapplying it did much of a job. So I combined the two. I slather it on thick, being careful to not get it where there's paint - it'll lift paint off, too - and leave the doll in the sun from a window. I usually cover up hair so it won't bleach, but otherwise it's bare doll and acne cream ! About once or twice a week, I remove the dried-up stuff with a wet washcloth and reapply.

As an example, about a month ago, I scored a gorgeous star-cap earring Jem. With both outfits and shoes, even ! But for some reason, the thrift had wrapped her bright pink and blonde hair over her face. Once home, I saw why - carbon paper had marred her chin, her lips, her left cheek, and her nose. Arrrgh. She was otherwise almost perfect ! So, after a week or so, I started treating her, hiding her pretty hair in a discarded Dearest sock, and letting her rest on a Kleenex box under my window. It's been about three weeks since her first treatment, and the ink's nearly gone. There's so little left, it's maddening !

In contrast, two ink marks on a Charmin' Chatty's face faded to three smaller lines, but even after two months of similar treatment, the ink's not completely gone. I've heard that Remove-Zit, from Twin Pines of Maine, does a really good job removing ink from vinyl, but it's expensive and only available via mail order, so I haven't tried it. If you're curious, you can read about ‘em at http://www.twinpines.com/?VT=G9i_PF4uUFFojIi_aQ2iimfFDmdCLgK7wM_7OF4uUFe8OG_e

I even tried bleach on a junker doll, based on a recommendation in an old issue of National Doll Reader, and it didn't do squat. And I really wouldn't urge anyone else to try it - who wants to apply a caustic agent to a doll's face ? (shudder)

So, for now, I'm using good ole Mal-Wart Oxy-10. The name brand even comes with a skintone tint, but I've never messed with it. Be sure to practice on some not-important dolls first - and know that my advice is worth what I charge for it - nothing  !

I got dinner and a load of laundry done, which is less than I wanted, but more than I did last week. So life is goooood ! Hope yours is going well as we begin November...

Posted by dorriebelle at 10:10 PM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:41 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Happily playful

Hope you enjoyed yesterday's image of my latest Ballerina Barbie ! She's in a My Scene tub in the Swan Lake Castle bathroom. Think I've mixed enough eras and lines ? Somewhere, a Mattel exec probably has a headache... Her hair is cut so short, all I could do was pull it into a tuft of a ponytail and bun it a bit in the back. Reroot !

One day soon, I'm gonna replace the Castle's built-in vanity image (a sticker of Barbie) with a real mirror. Ya can buy the plastic reflective stuff at auto repair places. We had some left from Molly-chan's repair - she came with a missing side mirror - and I carefully stored it for just this project. But then Beloved Hubby needed it when someone hit his truck, shattering the side mirror. So I'll need to buy more... or use tinfoil !

I haven't named either doll yet. My first Ballerina, a FrankenDolly from two sources in two states, is ‘Joy'. I had one of the 1975 originals, all the girls in the neighborhood got her for Christmas that year. It was more fun than you might think, for us all to have the same doll ! I loved her graceful hands, and how her arms went out to the sides a bit, not just up and down. I thought there was a big rubber band inside her shoulders, and it turned out, I wasn't far wrong ! It's just a solid cable instead of a loop. Part of me still wants the red and white ‘Aurora' ballet costume that was sold back then for her...

Hard to believe that I had no idea what a ‘Steffie' face was back then. Even until just a couple years ago, I still didn't, just knew that when I found that face, I'd buy it, every time. If the Birthstone girls hadn't been so swaybacked and overpuckered, I'd probably have bought them one at a time until I had ‘em all.

And today, here's my latest Malibu, who also hasn't told me her name yet. Her hair is much more sparse in reality, for some reason, the camera just loves it here ! She's perched on the upstairs bedroom's bed. It's attached to the castle, and folds up to a cheval mirror and a stand that spin. I need to fix the belt on her jumper - the red vinyl's peeled up on one side. Another reason I wish they'd just use ribbon instead of vinyl on doll clothes...

Quiet day, so I got zero housework and lots of fun stuff done. Got Dancerella's first oxy treatment underway. And Jem is so, sooo close to being done, it was frustrating to see the tiny traces remaining. But I gave her another treatment, too. Sooner or later, they'll both have their last treatment, I just have to be patient.

Did some research on the Musical Princesses, too. They're kinda~sorta the same size as Dawn, Family Corners, and Barbie Mini Kingdom dolls, so finding patterns for sale wasn't difficult. There was one commercial one, but the folks who sell it have uniformly deleted the manufacturer and number. Go figure. Still, one seller uses the correct pattern number for her system, so it didn't take long to find that it's McCalls 2970. There's also at least three kitchen-table type pattern makers out there who have some Dawn stuff. But you know me, I'm cheap and lazy. I soon found some free downloads, so it'll be a bit before I need to measure one for Doll Shop Deluxe. Or make my own. I read that reducing Barbie patterns to 54% works well, too. So I got loads of options.

It's just kind of funny. I bought the Barbie Mini Kingdom ‘dress shop' set on markdown, for the pink dress form. Turns out, it's the right scale for the Musical DPs, too. I was considering donating it ! You'll get their photos this week. But tomorrow is Dancerella's day !

Didn't spend much time in the Lab today. It's still pretty wrecked from the 'Candy Corn Incident'. Felt and notions everywhere ! So I got a cleanup ahead of me. So much to do, now that I'm nearly healthy and not sleeping or too weak to move much !

 I'm actually going to bed early, in hopes I can do a tenth of it all. Hope your day was good !

Posted by dorriebelle at 10:44 PM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:40 PM CDT

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Current Mood : Happy and darn near healthy !

Spent on dolls today : $9.

Thanks, everyone, for comforting me about those darn candy corn things yesterday. You're right, a couple of the kids probably enjoyed them later, and that's what I should focus on. As if to underscore your words, I looked down this morning to see Jack, our all-black kitten, apply himself totally to rubbing and fighting the one Dearest Son brought home. He's borne it off into the living room, where he alternately naps on it and tries to tear it up !

After a nice long night of sleep, everything looks better, especially when you have friendly words to read ! I got up at 11 (!) this morning, and had a light breakfast with Beloved - then I was off to the flea market again. What the heck, I wanted to see if the one seller had found any more dolls. There actually were several yard sales today, but while I felt much better, I didn't feel like dragging all over the city in search of ‘em.

Seller didn't have much new, but she did sell me a stuffed Barbie dragon for $1., a Cabbage Patch Kids doll swimsuit for 50c, two Cars toys for Dearest Son for another dollar, and the cardboard box liner from the very first Mattel Beauty and the Beast Belle doll - with the blue ‘village' dress and apron and ‘lipstick' still attached, 50c. The very first Belle doll that appeared when the movie hit theaters had a hairstyle with bangs, and came with a ‘Kissing Barbie'-like cylinder inkpad that colored her lips. The packaging read, "Belle's kiss is magic ! Her magical lipstick leaves a little ‘kiss' on his cheek !", if I remember correctly. The next year's release had a more film-accurate hairstyle - and the lip ink was completely deleted. Can you tell I had the first release doll ? (grin)

A couple more sellers were there today. Oh, and the pink Dream House got sold. I'm sure someone's very happy with it ! One new booth had some big-box Barbies, but you know me, I'm not much into ballgown ‘collector' dolls. Instead, I snagged the ‘30^th Anniversary' Barbie magazine, the one that comes with a doll dress, for $5. Kind of funny, since Babs is 50 next year ! I also bought... another doll. But this one was special. She was a heavily stained Dancerella, and she just plain needed me ! I know, I made a big deal about wanting her slightly older and much taller predecessor, Dancerina, but this brunette beauty seemed to be waiting for me. $2. , and I couldn't wait to start work on her !

It was a busy day at the Fairgrounds. In addition to the Flea, there was a craft show and a Walgreens-sponsored health screening. I drifted through the craft show, but unless I wanted candles, flagstones, or personalized music, there wasn't anything there I couldn't make myself. Although it was nice to watch that big BabyLock embroidery machine at work ! Wish I knew where they found some of that fabric, there were many designs I'd have loved to have a half-yard of, but maybe it's for the best I don't ! Lots of jewelry, some of it was gorgeous, but I always forget to wear what I already have.

Decided to do the health screening - because afterwards, ya got a bagload of freebies ! Found out my blood pressure is normal, my glucose is good, my cholesterol is low, and so is my bone density...  not much, but a bit. I gotta tackle more dairy. Oh, and I'm fat. Somehow, I forgot to tell the pre-screener, but they caught me anyway. And now I have enough Tylenol samples to keep Molly-car prepared for the next six months. Dearest scored a Cars lollipop and two Crayola markers from the bag, and there were several sample-size snacks and coupons. I was glad to get updated glucose and cholesterol numbers - I worry about diabetes, and it's been a while since I had my chol taken. 

Called  Beloved - by now, I'd been at the Fairgrounds for two hours, and I didn't want him to worry. Picked up a drive-through McLunch on the way home, and the cashier admired my pretty Dancerella. She'd had one as a kid ! I asked, ‘Would you like to hold her ?' and she stretched out her hands enthusiastically. What the heck, we were waiting on fries anyway. She played with her and pirouetted her around expertly, then handed her back when chow was ready. "I'm gonna find mine this weekend !" she told me.

Ahhh, doll love, doll memories. They can make even strangers share a happy interlude.

After lunch, I got to work on Dancerella. Research showed her hair had clearly been cut, but I liked the short style, so it was OK with me. I took down and rebraided the front pieces to hide numerous empty hair plugs, and trimmed it up a bit. A lot of whatever was staining her face came off, but she's still gonna need oxy treatment. The tape residue on her chest came right off, and her legs were nice and clean under the tights. Believe it or not, one of my old National Doll World magazines has a pattern for her leotard and tutu, even her shoes, so she's good. I even have it scanned already, from where I was hoping it'd fit a Little Disney Princess.

For now, though, she's wearing the CPK swimsuit I bought today, and it's really tight on her... but cute as anything ! I need to throw the tutu and the swimsuit in the laundry soon. You get her photo tomorrow - I bought enough stuff this weekend to have a new photo every day until the middle of next week ! So, happy November !

PS to Michelle - hope you're feeling better, too !

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CDT

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 11:40 PM CDT

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