http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs a multi-author blog about dolls Mon, 25 Jan 2010 00:27:44 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The concept behind a shopping service, or an auction proxy, is simple. Import shops are plentiful, but most only carry things which are guaranteed to sell well. You'll never have a problem locating Naruto pencil cases, but vintage or niche items are too often another story. These ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2010/01/23/shopping-services-and-auction-proxies/ The Momoko that Rou Rou collaborated on is definitely one of my favourites, with her light freckles, fresh clean face and dark ponytail: Rou Rou have twice collaborated with Petworks on Odeco and Nikki, creating very detailed and unusual outfits. Not like 'doll clothes', they seem to be real clothes ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2010/01/21/third-odeco-nikkirou-rou-collaboration/ Then we saw the first out-of-box pics. Jeepers. Many of us have become used to trimming uneven fringes, but on a limited edition doll, this kind of crazy wonky cut seems outrageous. Her make up is nice enough, but as pastel and predictably bland as many of ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/12/29/oh-the-disappointment-part-2/ Check out this dolly styling. I'm particularly taken with the miniature version of Gaga's Kermit the frog dress. The original: Which celebrities influence your dolly fashion choices, WPWD? http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/12/24/lady-gaga-inspired-doll-couture/ I absolutely love this hair. I don't normally like blonde dolls, but this platinum shade is so stunningly Dusty Springfield-esque and the style is perfect. The lip colour is also a shade I wouldn't normally like, but it's very 60s combined with that hair. Totally mod. The really ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/24/mod-me-up/ I'm not one for the blondes generally, and her make up gives the soft and subtle look that has become pretty standard of late. The hair is a lovely shade though, and the extra-thick fringe is really growing on me. It's the outfit that I really love this time though. ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/18/ice-rune-icelandic-cutie/ According to Blythe's official news page, Ribonetta Wish will not be available outside Japan because of regional licensing agreements. Fans outside Japan will have to compete for her on eBay. I predict a riot! http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/18/oh-the-disappointment/ Its birthday themed, in pink and green, and full of tasty treats With beautiful donated prizes that’ll sweep you off your feet Come on over to Adelaide, you’ll have an awesome time And even though its in June, the weather should be fine* In a gorgeous old town hall, we’ll set up all the ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/16/national-blythe-meet-2010/ We've waited a long time for this one! I hope we don't have to wait much longer for news of the rumoured platinum-haired Paris.... News at Blythedoll.com. http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/13/will-you-will-entering-the-lottery/ I'm loving the super-straight hair and the perfect fringe, but the colours just aren't working for me. The cheeks and lips are just too pinky, and the hair is a touch bubblegum in shade, like a lighter version of Dainty Biscuit. It does look a little softer in ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/13/blythe-stella-savannah-promo-photos/ http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/12/preview-of-odeco-and-nikki-releases-for-2010/ She has HK bows in her eyes: She has a pink stand and pullring, and I think they might be pinky eyelids too? She has a bow over one pigtail, just like Hello Kitty's bow and a new type of shoe. We all love mary janes, right? She has bright bright orangey ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/11/05/hello-kitty-blythe-official-pics-released/ I have been a regular visitor to Saki Yamashita's website for quite some time. Her soft toys, doll clothes and customised dolls have a charming and quite distinctive style. When CWC announced a collaboration with her I was extremely overexcited. The outfit turned out to be a ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/10/27/new-blythe-rbl-excitement/ For the first time, I'm absolutely crazy about Odeco. The colours of her hair, eyes and make up are great together, and great with her blue and lilac outfit. Nikki's colouring looks a little harsh against the soft fluffy clothing, but I'm willing to bet she'll be cute ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/10/15/pom-pom-hat-odeco-nikki/ Blythedoll.com calls "Ribonetta Wish" a dream collaboration and I expect many Blythe fans are seconding that - the Blythe-focussed forums certainly seem to be alive with excitement. Out in time for Xmas, there may well be fighting in the streets over these dolls, limited to 3000. Personally, I'm praying for ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/10/09/blythe-meets-hello-kitty/ Fortunately, 80s Strawberry Shortcake dolls aren't in short supply, so if you have one with messy hair a new 'do is a definitely an option.  I found one with a big bald patch on ebay for a few dollars and thought I'd give mohair a go. The first stage is to ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/09/30/strawberry-shortcake-mofro/ Still, I hadn't seen one of them in real life, so I remained intrigued from a distance for a year or two before getting really sucked in to the marvelous world of Momoko. It was the 'Wake up' Momoko range that did it - a small range of dolls ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/09/29/why-i-love-momoko/ Just as pop culture mavens recover from the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett, news hits that the world's most beloved big-headed doll is facing an untimely demise as well. It all started when the proprietor of an online store dealing in Blythes announced that her Japanese supplier would ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/06/27/death-of-a-disco-boogier/ There's no denying that she's pretty, and that I could swear that bag she's carrying is a little Hermes Birkin, but the general mood seems to be that of quiet disappointment. She just doesn't seem special enough and, with a new face mould having just been released, I don't ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/06/19/blythe-anniversary-doll-2009/ As ever, the first step is to choose your victim. This was an easy one for me this time as my gorgeous black Nikki, Rocky, had stock eyes that I thought were much too dark for her: I'd also bought a 'Monster' Odeco because I loved her pink hair and bone-white ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/05/13/changing-eyes-for-odeco-nikki/ Manga artist Araki first became a favorite with BJD collectors when he collaborated with Volks to create the Unoss doll. Later, rather than continuing to produce dolls in conjunction with Volks, Araki began his own BJD company, Alchemic Lab. Alchemic Lab makes the hugely popular Unoa dolls. ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/05/08/coming-soon-new-dolls-from-alchemic-lab/ As we bubbled with excitement over our incoming Teenies, and admired the luminous French resin of the blue elf, my friend said: “I don't know. I'm just getting so tired of everything cool being limited! All the interesting dolls are limited editions. You have to scrape ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/05/01/bjds-the-love-hate-of-limiteds/ Broken record alert: One more time, please work in a ventilated area, and wear a mask or respirator to prevent inhalation of resin dust. Whether suwarrico cuts are included from the manufacturer, or added by a doll's owner, posing a doll the surwarrico sitting position sometimes takes a little fiddling. ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/04/07/bjd-thigh-modifications-pt-3-widening-string-slots/ Once again, I'll remind you to use care when sanding or drilling your resin doll. Work in a well-ventilated area, and wear a respirator or mask. Your lungs will thank you! If you're not sure what suwarrico, or “cute sit”, or “cute sitting” is, it basically means kneeling, with ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/04/01/bjd-thigh-modifications-pt-2-adding-suwarrico-cuts/ Before getting to it, please remember to use safety when drilling or sanding resin.  Resin dust is a toxic substance.  You don't want it in your lungs.  Work in a well ventilated area, and always wear a proper respirator or mask to prevent inhaling dust and shavings. This first modification was ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/03/29/minor-joint-modifications-pt1/ The monthly doll for March is called Cuprit: Black Frost.  Based purely on teaser photo speculation, Cuprit appears to be a dark, female companion to last December's MD, Heliot.  Cuprit is also expected to be part of Soom's Super Gem line, which would put her size at approximately 65cm tall. The ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/03/27/teaser-photo-released-for-sooms-new-monthly-doll/ And they look great! EBLs have white eyeballs too, but for some reason when the SBL was introduced, so were slightly yellow-ish eyeballs.  The answer?  Spraypaint. Once you've opened your doll's head (Puchicollective tutes are the best to find out how) and removed her eyechips, you can spray her eyes with white ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/03/21/whitening-blythe-eyeballs/ I didn't really have a clue as to how customising was done with a regular small-headed doll, so I was straight off to my fave Momoko Flickr group to ask for advice. The lovely ladies there pointed me at the odd tutorial. It turns out that there are ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/03/03/adventures-in-momoko-customising/ Friendly Freckles A few people already have this girly. She is one for fans of the more "natural" style of Blythe. If I were to get one, I think I'd give her an Irish name. It's something about the flaming ginger locks and freckly skin, just like Nicole Kidman used to ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/02/07/blythe-release-round-up/ Firstly, there's the limited edition set: I absolutely love this Nikki!  I've been hoping for a Nikki with pale eyes and these ones are sparkly and green and delightful.  Also, her colouring is beautiful and I just love her blushy pink cheeks.  I find Odeco a little dull though and that ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/01/30/petworks-odeco-nikki-new-releases/ Basically, the bigger your crochet hook, the chunkier mohair curls your finished doll with have.  I tend to go for small hooks to get skinny separated curls.  The following image shows a scalp being rerooted with a 0.6mm hook: This scalp is being rerooted with a 0.75mm hook: The final look on ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2009/01/08/rerooting-blythe-with-mohair-no-1-choosing-your-crochet-hook/ 1. Take a pair of scissors and cut the hair short, preferably half a centimetre or less. 2. Turn the scalp inside out. 3. Use tweezers to pull the loops of hair out of the scalp.  If you take breaks during the process, turn the scalp right-side-out between hair-pulling sessions.  Leaving it ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/12/15/preparing-your-blythe-scalp-for-rerooting/ The latest batch of prima dollies They're a bit of a mixed bag, these ones.  Ashlet has never been a favourite with me (ADG-alike lippie - bleurgh!), but the new centre-parted hair with a fringe on Ashletina looks very cute. Aubrey, on the other hand, has always been a favourite with me.  ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/12/04/socks-officially-knocked-off/ http://www.morganannie.etsy.com Our first Christmas crafter is Morgan. Specialising in 1950s style party frocks, Morgan’s creations incorporate traditional Christmas colour schemes of red, green and white, and are embellished with lace, buttons and darling little belts. Dresses cost between $10.00 and $14.50, and will put even the most sombre Blythe in a ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/11/27/what-to-wear-this-christmas/ 1. Go buy some glue sticks (the kind used in glue guns), a lighter and some craft glue. I'm using Mod Podge, but any craft glue that dries clear, such as gem glue, will do the job. Don't be tempted to use super glue - I tried ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/11/22/changing-your-blythes-eye-colours-without-opening-her-head/ I followed instructions I found on the internet, and in particular looked at other Blythe lightboxes for inspiration (well in particular, Robots for Magnolia, who takes beautiful photos!). It's really easy, and you can really make it to suit your needs. Ok here goes. Since I already made one yesterday, but ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/11/10/diy-lightbox-image-heavy/ 1.  Choose your hapless victim.  I've chosen an SBL Blythe, a Feel the Sky, for her extra-pale complexion: 2.  Give her hair a good tug all around the hairline to see if there are any areas where the scalp can be persuaded to come away from the head: 3.  I found a ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/11/02/scalping-your-blythe-doll/ 1. Take your already hemmed sleeve and sew an 'easing' stitch along the top of the shoulder. This is a stitch that is loose enough that it will allow you to pull on it afterwards to gather the top of the sleeve. You acheive this by adjusting the stitch length ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/10/28/sleeve-tutorial/ http://collectdolls.about.com/od/dollcollectingresources/tp/collectingandeconomy.htm I had a good read and decided to share some tips mentioned. Not sure if there will be ten, so let’s not count. · Stop looking forward, start looking in!!! Love what you have! With Blythe, I HAVE to see them in front of me at all times. If I find ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/10/18/dolly-buying-in-tough-economic-times/ Here's a product from Cleabella called "Room With a View". It's a magnetic scene system to display and photograph 1:4 or 1:6 (playscale) dolls. A starter kit includes metallic folding background walls, a fabric floor rug and your first set of magnetic 'mix-and-match wallpaper' panels. You can then add ... http://www.weplaywithdolls.net/blogs/2008/10/13/dollhouse-diy-magnetic-playscale-diaorama/