Shoot - I forgot to give this one a title !

 

Current Mood : Judgemental, maybe. 

 

Seriously slacked off today. Housework-wise, about all I did was take out trash and change the catbox, and get the can out to the curb. I have no idea why I was so lazy today !

 

But I pretty much finished the pink APF dress. Put in little white scrapbooking brads for buttons - luckily, the prongs are covered twice over by facings. Got the closures in, too. It still bags a bit, but it's not too bad. Tried to take a photo, but it didn't work well - the light color just throws the flash back, so I'll have to play with the camera and backgrounds a bit.

 

My poor Molly-car's battery was about drained somehow, so I opened up the garage to put her on a battery charger. Then had to find said battery charger. On doing that, I also found my copy of Crissy Doll and Her Friends, a great volume on those cool 70s growing-hair dolls. The poor book was caught up in a bathroom flooding incident, and Beloved Hubby tossed it into the laundry room closet to dry - and that was about three months ago. I forgot to get it out of there ! But, all's well that ends well. I cleaned and dried the covers and pages with an antibacterial wipe, just in case, then stuffed it under the printer, to weight it down for a while. It's nearly flat again, and the pages didn't stick together, so I'm happy. I'd just buy another, but it's out of print, and you know me, there's always something else I'd rather spend my cash on !

 

Today was interesting on In The Pink. The Barbie Fan Club members got early ‘sneak peeks' at the upcoming 2009 line, while the rest of us plebes tried to ignore the "OMG !" , "WTF?", and "BBQ !!" messages that stemmed from it. Later in the day, us straights got to see the goodies. My response was more ‘Whaaaa...? Well, more money for other things !' Here's the link, so you can form your own opinions -

 

http://www.barbiecollector.com/news/news/FALL2009line.aspx

 

IMhO, the ‘Generations of Dreams' dolls have a fun dress, but it really looks better on the AA doll - I don't like the Caucasian one at all - and the Christmas ones are just too ‘big pink dress' for me, even though the fabrics look nice. The Wicked Witch of the East was intriguing until I saw her. Anybody else have ‘Mommie Dearest' flashbacks ?  But I love her dress. If I was Brazilian, I'd be insulted by the DOTW Brazil Barbie - why does Mattel think they don't have much fabric there, and they really love to copy Native American elements ? I don't know what they were thinking on that one. Maybe I need to study Brazil to get it. My mind keeps showing me endless bureaucracy and guys with metallic wings, though (Brazil).

 

I similarly have no idea why all Mattel ‘Lucy' dolls have a ‘slapped with a wet trout' bug-eyed expression. With nearly every doll, Lucy's face is distorted in some way - bulging, staring eyes, tight, forced smile, pursed lips, or blacked-out teeth. I'm not even a big fan of Ms. Ball, but I kinda feel bad that all her dolls have a sort of freaked out appearance.

 

Aphrodite was getting much positive buzz, but that is one pale doll ! Does she double as a vampire extra in Twilight or something ? Apologies to all who love and adore her, but I got sudden flashes of ‘I've been in pageants all my life - and I made this dress from the ruffly dresses Momma bought when I was six !'. Well, you know me, I have all sorts of respect for dresses that ‘v' exactly equidistant from collar bone and bellybutton, under the bustline. Over-the-top makeup, too - no human could wear that shade of blue eye shadow. (further snark about waitress uniforms deleted - I don't want to hurt any nice waitress' feelings)

 

One ITP poster was infuriated that there were more repros. How many times did Mattel think we were gonna buy ‘Solo in the Spotlight' or ‘Wedding Day' anyway ? Well, I can understand the annoyance, but heck, I came to terms with the idea that Mattel doesn't make products for me years ago. If a new version of ‘Solo' or ‘Striped swimsuit on a blonde Ponytail' will sell now, why not ? After all, Mattel doesn't make jack off the folks selling their 1993 repros on eBay. They do make bank on the new dolls hitting TRU and Mal-Wart this month. They're just re-re-making what stirs memories, what's perpetually popular - or possibly even requested - during a landmark year for Barbie. Can't fault ‘em for trying to snag a new audience ! And shoot, if I don't buy it, someone else will, so the more the merrier, right ? More doll fans inevitably mean more dolls, and the chance that somewhere in ‘more' is ‘something I adore' ! So I'm not as upset as other fans are. But I can understand that, with the six million outfits Barbie's owned in her doll career, Mattel seems to want to only repro a double dozen or so, and it's frustrating. But that's why I sew ! Well, one of the reasons...

Busy all over Chez Insanity today !

 

Current Mood : Relaxed

 

OK. So today I got off my round rear and did dishes, took out trash, picked up the living room. And sewed ! Guess the new meds are working ! Just kidding, they're the same stuff I've been on for two years now. But compared to my absolute indolence yesterday, I was bursting with energy today.

 

The new dress was a little easier the second time around, and ironing the seams helped a bit. Even though I wrote down directions on how to do the collar after the first frustrating effort, I forgot precisely how I did it, and my own directions weren't much help. So I played with it for a few minutes, and remembered. Then wrote the directions again, completely this time, not just a scribbled note over the crossed out original instructions.

 

The thinner material worked better, but I still had some fitting issues. And compounding it was the idea that I wanted to start sewing for folks besides m'self. I swear, every time I try to make something for anyone but me, I have the worst time of it. I don't know if it's because I tense up or just amp up the perfection quest, but I can never relax and enjoy the process when I think the finished item might actually leave the house. About halfway through the bodice, I remarked that there's no way this screwed up mess would ever get past the threshold, and then it was easier. Hmpft.

 

Before I knew it, it was time to wait for the bus. Almost too late - I had to run for it ! Luckily my shoes and jacket were in the Lab, or I'd have had to hustle out there in my slippers and slightly torn t-shirt.

 

Dress still needs fastenings and the faux front buttons, but it looks OK - even with its rough start ! It's still not leaving Chez Insanity, though. And I learned/remembered a few things. One, solid colors are much less forgiving when it's time to rip out stitches or redo parts, especially light solid colors. It's much easier to hide stuff like that in prints ! Second, don't rush to judge an outfit-in-progress as bad until it's almost complete. I always like to try on a bodice before I add anything more to it. This one hangs terribly without the skirt ! I was so upset, thinking I'd really screwed it up. Where did these fabric ripples and sags come from ? Why did this look sooo bad ? Surprisingly, adding the skirt took up most of the slack and fit issues. I'm just glad I'm stubborn and don't give up easily, or today's effort would be in the Lab trash instead of on a doll.

 

Hopefully I'll finish it up tomorrow, and get a photo on the site. I know the terms of my little challenge is to use patterns I haven't already tried, but having two of something isn't such an awful thing ! And really, using this thin fabric makes a big difference. Not sure if I'll sew it again, though. I'm already ready to try something else.

When medicine drives you to drink...

 

Current Mood : Hoppin' mad at medicine

Spent on drinking vessels :  $6.35

 

Woke up at 3:30 this morning, and could not get back to sleep. That kind of set the tone for the day. Napped for two hours after Dearest Son boarded the school bus, and just could not motivate m'self for anything other than eating and basic hygiene. Urgh.

 

Went on an errand run with Beloved Hubby - I needed refills on all my blasted prescriptions, plus a new inhaler. That was a big chunk out of the budget ! Inhalers have gone ‘CFC Free', which is BS - it was proven eons ago that the propellant in them didn't harm the ozone. But it is a way for pharmaceutical companies to reclaim their medicine under copyright again - so my $15. inhaler is $42. now. You know, I'm all for profit, but charging three times as much for a cheaper means of delivery is just ridiculous. I'm seriously considering applying for Advair's free medicine program...

 

I was so bummed about it that Beloved made sure I had time over at the Mal-Wart Pink Aisle. Which is, of course, nearly cleaned out. I think they had two of the repro sets left, both of the 1959 doll. Nice to see it's selling well - I'm about over my Want of ‘em at this point. Working with Brenda (my flea market Bubblecut)  on the Aileen's Petite Fashions shirtdress and Beau (pronounced ‘boo', my second flea market Malibu Barbie) for Best Buy Friday reminded me of what dolls I'd have even less time with if I bought more new. So that's over with - thank Everything !

 

And I don't really even want to look at Barbie clothes. I haven't even opened the ones Joanne - of In The Pink fame - sent me. I tend to hold off opening things when I already feel... well, saturated. I'll hold off ‘til I need a pick-me-up, or I'm in a mood. And I'm sewing again, so why spend on more of that, either ? Playsets ? Don't make me giggle. There's nothing new or current that I want. I got one coming in the mail, and I'm bidding on another. Pass.

 

Found something, though. The last 50^th Anniversary travel mug. Beloved's been wanting me to have one of my own, for our errand runs and travels together. So we got it. So far, I've spent less than $10. in the big Barbie celebration - for a tote bag and an aluminum tumbler. But somebody's buying it all !

 

I scanned the official 50^th logo - it was part of the cup's packaging - before I tossed it. I prefer the one I did, but what the heck. It just seems an odd disconnect when Mattel produces all this nostalgic stuff, but wraps it with the new logo inside a big ‘50'. I'm not much on the new silhouette logo. It looks...like the skull of a Neanderthal with a very stiff ponytail sticking out the back. Ick.

 

The mug is pink, with aluminum accents and interior and a black plastic pop-off top, illustrated with drawings from the early catalogs. One side has the classic sidelong glance ponytail Barbie, the other has a blonde Bubblecut in Solo in the Spotlight, with the legend, "Fashion icons come and go / well, some go". It's actually quite cute. I've enjoyed having a glass that's mine ! 

 

Once home, I tried to get going on the APF Barbie Learns to Cook shirtdress 2.0, but again, just wasn't into it. I really should have done dishes, or at least laundry, but didn't do either. Hope I sleep tonight - I got too much work to do tomorrow !

Welcome to the cruelest month - now with Valentines !

 

Current Mood : Slightly whiny, for some reason. 

 

Well, we made it through the first month of '09 already. That was fast.

 

Yup, aside from ‘Best Buy Friday' doll images, you get DPrincess Valentines from now through next Saturday. Today's is from the set Beloved Hubby got me yesterday. I was surprised to learn it was produced exclusively for Mal-Wart by Industries for the Blind, Inc. The pencils have seven characters, but you lose at least one princess with each sharpen. New, you get (top to bottom) Cinderella, Ariel, Snow White, Belle, Mulan, Jasmine, and Aurora, each wearing an opulent tiara that's in character. The package contains 16 cards, four each of four designs, which always seems kinda cheap to me. I like to have at least six ! But seeing as how these were $2.50 with pencils - and many just-card sets are pushing $2. these days, I guess I can't whine much.

 

I tried several times today to start the pink APF Barbie Learns to Cook shirtdress, but it just wasn't there, ya know ? I didn't want to force it. So instead I mostly goofed the day away. Erased the ‘slit for the pencils' lines from two of the scanned Valentines, read online, toured a few sites, cheap-serged the Kerry Beary ‘TV' fabric for the laundry pile.

 

Kind of a slow, quiet, boring Sunday. I've enjoyed it heartily !

I got a box o' Valentines !

 

Current Mood : Lazy again !

Spent on my stuff : $2.57, for Valentines !

Current Image Notes : Goss, I love this. Too bad it's ‘Tarina Tarantino', so it's $35. for a no-gemstone keychain and $130. for the necklace !

 

Quiet day. Cleaned up the Lab from the mess that the shirtdress made, and prepped a pink version. It was oddly relaxing to iron out the wrinkled remnant. It really was a wad before - I didn't even feel good about cutting out the pattern until it was nice and flat. The pieces are drying from the customary Fray-Check application, and I hope to work on it tomorrow. It should go much easier this time !

 

While I was tidying up, I cleaned the not-Dancerella-but-Dancerina shoes I got from this month's flea market. Since they'd been taking up space on the sewing table, I went ahead and wiped down my much-abused sewing machine, too. I've actually worn a bit of a groove around the top thread spindle. Got all the tiny buttons picked up. Recycled the longer ‘strands' of yarn hair from a wrecked doll I'd picked apart for materials over a year ago - it'll tie up fabric bundles. I just hope I don't buy that much fabric !

 

Played with stands for a bit - I still want the Mad doll stands, but they're still closed. In the meanwhile, I have plenty to choose from ! Also played with my new ‘mountain'. It'll work fine with the dolls, especially if I can find a good backdrop for it. I think I have some ‘blue sky' scrapbook paper.

 

Did the weekly grocery shopping - and Beloved Hubby picked up the Disney Princess Valentines I wanted, while I was getting the cat food. He even got the right ones, the set that came with pencils, for $2.50. I'd talked about getting them, just for the sixteen pencils. Goss, I am such a sucker for stuff like that. In any case, with the sets I bought on 90% off markdown last year, you can guess what you'll be seeing in February - when it's not Best Buy Friday.

 

And then I messed around online for a while. Found two fun videos for you !

 

I'm not gonna ruin this one by describing it too much. But it's 30 seconds of fun you'll probably share with whoever's nearby !

 

http://www.stupidvideos.com/video/stunts/Barbie_Car_Snow_Donuts/#170083

 

This one I can describe. Last year, before my first cell phone met an unfortunate demise in the washing machine - something I'm still paranoid about with my latest phone - Beloved Hubby programmed its ring tone to Aqua's somewhat annoying "Barbie Girl". He then set my password, something I in my ultimate laziness, had failed to do... so I couldn't change it. When the phone met its watery death, he jokingly said I'd done it on purpose, since I had no other way of ditching that dadratted ring tone.

 

All that has very little to do with this video. But even I have to admit, with my history against the little ditty, that it sounds much better when done by a cello quartet.

 

http://www.stupidvideos.com/video/song_dance/Classical_Barbie_Girl/

 

Hope your day was great - and that you had time to just whiz some of it away.

Welcome to Best Buy Friday !

 

Current Mood : Happy and excited

 

Spent on doll props / decor :  $1.39

Spent on fabric : $1.06

 

Welcome to the first Best Buy Friday ! I figure I'll tell ya all about the fashion du jour in the first paragraph, then get on with the rest of the uselessness !  So let's pretend this paragraph isn't here, and we'll start BBF !

 

I know, I said I wasn't gonna itch m'self too much over putting the ‘right' doll in the ‘right' Best Buy with the ‘right' accessories, but this is one of my personal favorites, one I actually owned, along with a Malibu Barbie, so I went with it. This is 1977's #9620, a long dress of mint green flower-patterned jacquard paired with a white tie-back halter top. The neckline and waistline are edged in tiny lace, and a wee black bow really set this one off.  It came with no accessories, but a similar fashion for Skipper was released at the same time. This Best Buy is fresh and cool - and rarely forgettable by any child who owned it.

 

This Malibu is my second flea market find, and the beneficiary of a body swap. If you can see it, the yellow thread by her right ear is the very same one that held her sunglasses on, over thirty years ago. I just can't bring myself to clip it off. An interesting aside - I fret about my darts not matching when I make doll clothes. These darts are waaaay off. The left one is much longer than the right - about 3/8 ths of an inch off ! But it's still a lovely dress from a nearly forgotten time.

 

Things sort of got back to normal - Beloved Hubby just had clean-up on his current job, so he wasn't bustin' butt past midnight tonight, thank Everything. Roads were clear enough for school to resume, too. So I sewed buttons and snaps on the Barbie Learns to Cook dress I made yesterday, and posted images on the main site home page and on In the Pink. But they didn't get the ‘work in progress' photo !

 

It got a lot of complements, and the first non-blog ‘do you sell your stuff ?' question I've ever received, so that was nice. I enjoyed the ego boost. And a few other doll sewists mentioned their problems with APFs, so it's great to know it isn't just me. Still have to work on my closures, they look like crud. Anyway... I'll most likely redo this dress next week, so I can see what it looks like in pretty fabric. Although I have to agree with you, Mandy, it looks somehow sophisticated in the unbleached muslin. Sort of tweedy and with a bit of texture to it.

 

Beloved got a bit bored once the job was done, and he's been looking for a nice coat, so it didn't take much to talk him into a trip to the local thrift. It's been weeks since I went ! But I didn't miss much. Amazingly, most of their Barbies are gone, but the Cinderella with the light-up feet was still there. Nothing new, really.

 

That's not to say we didn't find anything. Since school was out, we had Dearest Son with us, knew he'd find something, and he did - a great Matchbox-car size town, with stores and tiny signs. Just like his momma, he loves miniature prop stuff. He snagged a bagload for just $3.50, and I know it was at least $15. originally.

 

And, happily, Beloved found a super-nice warm jacket. With lots of inside pockets - including one that detaches and has a neck cord ! - and it barely looks worn at all. The fit is nice, too - it looks great on him. For some reason, the winter stuff was half-price ! He was happy I'd talked him into going. Not every day you get a nice heavy Giordano jacket for less than five bucks !

 

That's not to say I didn't find a few things - but I spent the least of all of ‘em ! I bought a mountain - no kidding, a plastic mountain that's probably also Matchbox-car sized, but may be cute in some doll photos - for 79c. Found some fabric, too. A package of unopened cross-stitch Aida in 14-pt size for 59c, and ¾ of a yard of a print I sort of have to explain. Few years ago, Keary Beary came out with a line of vintage-inspired fabrics, available at Hancock Fabrics. I seized on the ‘radio' print for obvious reasons, and made a shirt from it that gets complements every time I wear it. The matching pants I made are just too busy. Made Fiero a shirt from the cutaway, too. Well, this was ¾ of a yard of a very similar ‘television' print - for 39c. Had to have it ! Not sure if there's enough for a shirt front yet, but it's worth a shot !

 

Also snagged one of the 50c grab-bags for the cute little Ariel purse inside. It sort of resembles that diary-blank book I bought last year or so ago. It reads ‘the world was made for dancing', and it's in lovely shades of green. Also included in the bag were two party favor bags, with pencils, erasers, candy, and small toys. Dearest gladly relieved me of everything but the pencils. And the purse is now hanging from the nail suspending the Little Mermaid luggage/wall art in the Lab. So, good finds for everyone. For less than $12., total.

 

Goofed off for the rest of the night. Happy Friday,  ya'll ! 

Kind of a mixed-bag effort, really...

 

Current Mood : Tired but happy

 

Well, today's sewing led me to one inescapable conclusion regarding Aileen's Petite Fashions. She made great patterns for over 250 vintage and original Barbie clothes that come pretty close to the initial inspiration - but she can't write directions for skit. If I read her directions correctly for today's experiment, and followed the ‘sew here' lines drawn on the pattern pieces, I'd have sewn the necklines to each other, giving the doll no way to put the darn thing on. I got so confused and frustrated, I looked up a similar design in the Barbie in Japan book and did it their way. And got a decent result, if I do say so m'self. The skirt part was also confusing, so I just tossed the directions and did it how I liked. Phew.

 

And what I don't get is that I can follow directions on commercial patterns. I do pretty well with patterns that aren't even in a language I understand - so far, I've done so with Swedish, German, and Japanese. But I am at a complete loss with APFs. She either leaves out steps that are obvious to her, but not me, or her choice of words simply do not make sense to me. I probably do the same things when I write directions, and that's why it takes me forever to do so. I probably over-think it. So I take lots of photos of the work in progress, hoping that'll answer questions.

 

Another thing that bugs me about them - all the photos accompanying the APFs are taken from Mattel catalogs, doll reference books, or of the actual dress she's copied. Never one of her finished work from her actual pattern. That bugs me. I won't buy patterns if there's not a photo of the finished item. I know what it's supposed to look like - show me what yours does look like !

 

And I have no way of knowing if anyone else has the same issues. The few times I've complained about Modern Art, the In The Pink board members suggested that I write the current rights-and-patterns owner for help. Um, the new owner is basically reprinting a few at a time, adding a color photo, and putting ‘em on eBay. It's comforting that the photo accompanying Modern Art had a really bad collar - the same part I was having trouble with ! So I doubt there's any help waiting for me there.

 

I really can't whine much, since I didn't pay for the pattern collection , all of it was given to me. But now I know to read over the directions - then ditch ‘em. Or write corrections as I go.

 

Anyway... there it is, and it turned out OK, even if it did get frustrating. I still have to put in closures, but it looks like Dearest Son has school tomorrow, so there'll be little to no time for that tonight. Besides, I get to look forward to putting ‘em in tomorrow, then adding a photo to the main site. I just wanted to brag a bit here, first. There's numerous problems - the collar doesn't match on each side, the back facings keep popping up, the sleeves don't look good, and the waist is still a bit low - but I've had bigger sewing disasters, that's fer sure !

 

I also get to kick off ‘Best Buy Friday' tomorrow. Even with the ice and snow, this week just flew by ! And I got a lot done. I really like this New Year's Resolution ! Sewing's like any other art form - sew, draw, paint, crochet as much as you can, and if you can stay with it, you'll begin to get good at it ! Chuck Jones said as much in his autobiography Chuck Amuck, and I find it to be more true with every passing year. Of course, I should be much better at this point, but I'm happy with what I can do - and know there's a lot more I can still learn !

More stuff done that I shoulda done last year...

 

Current Mood : Cabin fever strikes - and I'm out of potato chips !

Current Image Notes : Don't own this - but ain't it cool ?!

Spent on eBay win : $13.50

 

Well, guess who didn't have to shower tonight, either ? Yup, Dearest Son is home again tomorrow, even though the roads around here are good - and we were pretty low on the list for plowing. Oh, well, safety first. We got out in it today, and it wasn't bad at all. Which is good, because we're nearly out of junk food ! I'm actually getting sick of popcorn.

 

Got my latest eBay win paid for - gosh, PayPal took forever to credit my account ! Hopefully the seller isn't too cross with me, but just in case, I paid for insurance. I rarely do that. And since the funds were in my PP account, they went to the seller's account instantly, no waiting around. At least I have that going for me. Hopefully he'll ship this week, so maybe next week, I can show you my new setup !

 

Spent a chunk of the day online. Found an interesting doll pattern loaning library, for only $15. a year. I could borrow two patterns a month (well, copies of the patterns), and most of what they have, I don't. It was intriguing - until I saw the shipping fees. Yikes. I found about 20 or so patterns I'd kinda~sorta like to have, but I'd end up shelling about $40. to get them. Facts are, for $15., or even $25., I'd be glad to participate, and I have lots I could contribute. But none of ‘em - or even all of ‘em together - were that essential. For $2. each, it's still not bad, but seriously, there's lots I'd rather have over more patterns I probably won't use for quite some time, if ever.

 

From there, I do what I always have, when I realize I don't need more - I drift through what I have. I've been sort of wanting to make a shirtwaist. You know, a full-skirted dress that has a button-front blouse and turn-down collar. I had several in my college years, and loved them, because I felt good in them. So of course, I wanna make doll versions !

 

And, of course, it turned out that I have several patterns for those. I chose Aileen's Petite Fashions # 118, a copy of Barbie Learns to Cook. I loved the styling and detail, and hope to have at least one satisfying success with an APF pattern. I still sort of resent my ongoing failures with her Modern Art copy, #135. Much as I'd love to jump right in with some of that great new fabric I bought last week, previous experience demands that I work with less important-to-me material. If the pattern works out, it'll look like a cross between two of Lucille Ball's dresses - a housedress from everyday and her Paris burlap gown ! Yup, I'm gonna use up some unbleached thin muslin - wish me luck ! It's all cut out, and as soon as this is posted, it'll get Fray-Checked. And you know how I am with half-done stuff - it bugs me ‘til it's done.

 

While in the Lab, I figured I'd be more comfy in pajama pants over jeans. Then I remembered I had a big ole split seam down one leg. Well, no time like tonight to get stuff done ! Got the split resewn and cheap-serged, and while I had ‘em up on the machine - with matching thread loaded up - I hemmed them up a bit. Sometimes my foot would get caught in the ‘bell' of the hem, while I was walking. Shortening them up a bit would prevent that. So it's done.

 

Then, I set about reclaiming the denim and elastic from the panties I cut off yesterday's  altered denim skirt project. Yeah, my insane recycling gene has manifest itself again. I'm saving the corrugated cardboard boxes as we empty them, for some obscure organization project, printed the pattern on recycled flyers from Dearest's school, saved the scale-verifying rulers printed on ‘em next to the printer, for my own scanning, in a recycled mini plastic zipper bag, using tape I'd already used to mark a seam allowance on the sewing machine, stored all the empty Kleenex ^TM boxes saved for another project in the newly-emptied eBay sales bin, and reclaimed two ‘Ice Breakers' mint containers for another doll seating project. Had leftovers for lunch. I'm nuts, I admit it.

 

Hope you're staying warm, and aren't going crazy !

Things always improve after some fun doll time !

 

Current Mood : Grateful we haven't lost power. And relaxed. 

Current Image Notes : Lacey, on your left, is wearing the 'new' infant denim skirt, Gracie is wearing the newly altered shorts set, and Casey got a 'new' Asian blouse today ! Tomorrow, they get winter clothes, but I had to take a photo of their lastest wardrobe acquisitions ! 

 

We're snowed in ! No school for Dearest Son today or tomorrow, and smaller vehicles are having serious trouble making it up ‘our' hill. We got about two inches of snow on top of a quarter-inch of ice... and my big ole butt hasn't even been outside to take out trash. Beloved Hubby's been busily at work in the Shop, and Dearest has been out in it three or four times, coming in to warm his hands at the sink. Thanks to several fleece remnants, he hasn't been without a warm, dry scarf !

 

With everyone at home, I made a big bacon, egg, and biscuit breakfast. That felt good - I never have time and family together to do that very often ! And it got my mind off the eBay mess, which is nearly resolved. Lunch was lots of hot soup, and we had a nice hearty dinner of sausages and cheese potatoes. My kitchen is a disaster !

 

Well, as mentioned, the eBay mess has resolved itself. My seller said all the ‘Free Shipping' sales were set by accident (all twelve of ‘em ?), but they'd honor the auction page. So they just charged me handling. I kinda feel bad, like I'm taking advantage, but part of me knows that ‘Free Shipping' isn't a default, so... I'm sure someone'll take something out of my hide once I start selling all this crap at my desk ! It's gotta wait, though - eBay takes their cut out of a credit card, and ours goes to Checking. I'm not even gonna get into how little is in that account right now...

 

Anyway, I let myself wallow for a while, then got bored. While going through the Bin o' Stuff to Sell on eBay, I found a few things I ended up keeping. Two small Kaiser-type doll stands - where did they come from ? I'm clueless. Adjusted, they'll work with that vintage Skipper I found at the thrift store last year, and also the six-inch Disney Musical  Princess dolls. So I kept ‘em.

 

A Dollar General bag held several split-ring keychains. Oh, cool ! I forgot about them - they were from a bunch of keychain shoes I bought last Spring. The shoes fit Mia and Cia (Crissy family doll, and a Playmates ‘Cinderelly's Surprise' doll), so I bought several pair. Pulled down the Box o' Craft Crap to add them to the bag of split-ring keychains, and took inventory. Sweet - there's exactly 24 ! Unless I decide to make more this year, I have enough for Christmas '09 school gifts already. Yaaay !

 

Also in the Bin was a peach toddler blouse, in a clearly Asian-inspired style. I'd first reached for it at the yard sale because of the fabric, but once I held it, I hoped it'd fit the My Size Barbie girls. For a quarter, why not ? Held up to Gracie, I decided it was too big, and in the bin it went. Well, I was bored, so... I tried it on Casey - and it fits beautifully. There's a slipped snap I have to fix, but otherwise, it's perfect.

 

I'm glad I tried it ! Because to do so, I had to undress her from the 2T Spring short set I'd obtained from another yard sale - and it was held on her with hair clips. Shameful ! So I decided to fit it correctly, then change her clothes. It didn't take long to take some of the elastic out of the shorts and raise the crotch seam a bit, then fold over the blouse's button back and add Velcro for a better fit. Saved the buttons for the button jar !

 

With that done, my attention was drawn to a 12-mos. denim skirt I'd gotten from one of the last yard sales of ‘08. Like the Chinese blouse, I had hopes it'd fit the MSBs, but I knew it'd need some tailoring. I loved the pleats ! Well, it was much too big in the waist, and the built-in underwear was in the way. Tried adding elastic to the waist front - it was already elasticized in the back - but that didn't work. Taking in enough from the sides meant it was too tight to slide off and on, and it looked odd. Putting in a zipper or other back closure was nearly impossible with the skirt's pleats. So I cut the panties off, and took in some at the side seams, enough for it to slide off and on, but not very tight. She'll probably need to wear a tucked-in shirt and a belt with it ! But, heck, it'd been hanging around since November - at least now, it's hanging on a doll ! You can get good practice in alterations with an MSB or three, and a couple of good yard sales.

 

As you can see, MSBs don't really take an age-based size - they have 4T and 6mos. sizes in their closet ! I really have to keep myself from buying them used kid clothes, because they always require fittings and adjustments. And I kinda hate buying what real kids could use. So I wait ‘til I'm nearly done at a yard sale before I go through kids' clothing, or don't go near it at all. Unless it's green, nautical, or Asian. I'm a sucker for those. 

 

So, while I didn't actually make anything, I did make some stuff over ! I think that counts towards my resolution of sewing at least once a week. I just need to sew some doll clothes already ! Hmm... I wonder what I'll be doing tomorrow, with Beloved and Dearest home...

 

I find that things always look better after some fun doll time ! 

So now, even eBay is against me...

 

Current Mood : Miffed

 

Currently ‘enjoying' a small ice storm - it'll continue through tomorrow and be gone by Wednesday, but it's not that bad right now. The ice looks so pretty in the late afternoon sun...

 

For kicks today, I scanned a page from a Mattel-issued repro art book. I used to love to look at the Ad Builder books at the newspaper office when I was a kid. There was an endless array of images for everything ! Any ad or announcement ever created, there was an image perfect for it in one of those big books. So, when I saw a repro art book from Mattel on eBay, going for just a buck and shipping, dated 1984, I just had to have it. And I won ! Seventy-four pages of line art for Barbie, Poochie, Masters of the Universe, and Hot Wheels toys - just looking at it made me happy. And a bit buzzed on the remembered smell of ink and rubber cement and other chemicals. I had big plans for it on my website... then we moved. Twice. And I forgot, so it didn't take long for it to be just another no-name-on-the-spine book on the shelves.

 

Went digging for it yesterday, and decided to share the ‘Personal Appearance' layout with In The Pink and you. It's really cool, I think. The one up there is a small version - the original size is huge ! Over 1.5Mb. But if you'd like your own copy of the original scale, you can find it here - https://dorriebelle.tripod.com/dolls_of_my_life/reproart.jpg . Usual things, same as before, left click to bring it up full-sized, right to save.

 

With the weather that skiddy - numerous accidents this morning - once Beloved Hubby was home, he stayed home. Watched a few episodes of Wonderfalls and the last of his A-Team. And watched the auctions I bid on. (sigh) I should have known...

 

I won the small one, lost the big. That's fine. What's making me sigh, and think I didn't win at all and should just save my money and wait for yard sale season and start wearing shirts with ‘*&^% eBay' on ‘em is the fact that the auction page had ‘Free Shipping' splashed all over it. So did all their doll-based auctions - free Parcel Post shipping. So, when I got the invoice and saw I'd been charged for it anyway, I wrote a very nice note reminding the seller what the auction page said, and that I was aware of the $2. handling fee (*&^%), so I would like a corrected invoice with the right total, please.

 

Of course, there's been no response. And it's been three hours since I wrote, five since the auction closed. I have a feeling they've received several notes like mine, so I tried to be nice, but I'm starting to feel ripped off and led on. (sigh) You'd think they'd check their auctions, or shut down the remaining ones as soon as the first complaint came through, but there are still several ongoing auctions, all with the same ‘Free Shipping' on ‘em. I'm starting to think no one wants my money, as hard as it is for me to spend it this week...

 

I mean, shoot, by the time PayPal credits my account with the cash I transferred Friday (for some reason, it takes four or five business days), I won't have much need of it, and I'll want to transfer it back to Checking ! It's crap like this that makes people leery of eBay, but they don't seem to care about it, and the sellers just keep being jerks. Not all sellers. But I've been ripped off twice, and this may be #3, and even I learn after a while.