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Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Littlest Pet Shop Being Sued Over A Hamster?!?


So have you guys heard this? It seems an anchor from FOX is suing Hasbro over one of their Littlest Pet Shop toys. Harris Faulkner insists that the company made their hamster, named Harris Faulkner, in her likeness and is doing so as an insult to her, or at least, that's how she is taking it.

So upon looking at pictures of the two Harris Faulkner's next to each other, I can see how she would think the swoosh bangs and hair color would look like her likeness, but that's where the likeness ends for me. The hamster is yellow, had blues eyes, and oh yes, she's a hamster. I just think she might be seeing something that isn't there. I mean don't get me wrong, she could be right, and maybe someone at Hasbro is gunning after her, but a designer may have just come up with that name randomly or even heard the name somewhere and thought it would be a perfect name for their character. If you have toys with a first and last name you are going to be using someone's name out there somewhere.

However, if you do a Google search of Faulkner's name, she's the only person that comes up. So...perhaps Hasbro thought no one was looking and could slip this one by. It will be really interesting to see how this all turns out. If Hasbro really did use her likeness without permission, then she is totally entitled to something. I'm on the fence until more comes out about this. What do you think? Did Hasbro pull a fast one or Faulkner seeing things that aren't there? Let me know in the comments.

And I will talk to you lovelies in the next post. take care until then. Bye for now.

Love always,
Mickey ♥

Redressing Gooliope Jellington

So when I first heard about Gooliope, I knew I had to have her. I love large fashion dolls, and she was just too awesome not to have. I knew I would have issues clothing her, but I felt that was a bridge I'd cross after I got her. Once I had her, I went to the Monster High Arena forums to see what other Goo owners were dressing her up in. It's there I learned that she could fit Barbie clothes, at least the tops, because her upper part was based on Barbie. Awesome!!!

There was one dress that came to mind when I
thought of Goo, the freaking yellow bunny dress. I don't know why, but that dress was the perfect dress for her in my eyes. I tried to hold off on getting it, and even decided I didn't want it because the pattern didn't travel all the way around the back of the piece. However, I kept returning to thoughts of the dress whenever I looked at Goo, but I didn't want to pay some of the prices I was finding it for online, so I gave up on the idea and told myself I would just design some cute bunny fabric that looked similar and sew her a dress out of that. And I thought the need for the dress was over with. Nope, I was so wrong.

With the release of the other girls, and seeing owner pictures of them in cute Barbie clothes, I decided to just look and see what the price of the dress was again. I found one at awesome price and put it in the shopping cart, but then something else caught my eye. I found a deal where I could get the dress I wanted with another cute pink dress, and just for 2 dollars extra. What?!?!? Well, as I'm sure you already know, I was sold. Those babies went right into my shopping cart. When I got them, they looked so tiny, and I wondered if I could get them on Goo, but I was able to with patience and being gentle easing it on. The bunny one goes on a lot easier than the pink one. The pink one will be used for actual Barbie dolls, but the bunny one is Goo's.

I don't know why I felt she needed a bright yellow dress with
bunnies on it. I guess because I felt it would fit the yellow bits in her hair. The dress is stretchy so it fits her nicely. I never planned on it being a dress for her, but more of a long top. I want to make her pants to go under it. I think I will be looking for more Barbie stuff to see what would fit her nicely as a top. The lower parts won't fit, sadly, but uppers are fine. Which makes me sad, because I order some more clothes from that seller that has outfits I wanted for Goo as well, and it has awesome bottoms to it. I knew the jeans and shorts wouldn't fit, but I was hopeful for the skirt because some people have said some Barbie bottoms work. I guess I will find out today if they work. If not, it won't be a waste, I have other dolls it can fit. I'll post about that as soon as I get them.

And that's all for this post. I just wanted to show you guys and gals that the 17 inch dolls do have options. I wonder if the 28 inch dolls have options out there. I really want to get those girls. They look like so much fun. For now I will deal with my 5 ghouls, one I am still debating on if I should take her out of her box and customize or not. I'll introduce my other ghouls to you later. A lot of people were saying they preferred one over the other, and I didn't think I'd be one of them, but I found myself surprised to be saying the same thing as all of them. Can't wait to show you. Until then, I'm off. Take care until the next post everyone. Bye for now.

Love always,
Mickey ♥

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Just Cake

No really, it's just cake. I found these pictures on my computer of a cake that my sister and I baked. She loves Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and we had a marble cake in the pantry, and some left over candy and thought, why the heck not. So first I had to decide what shape to make this bad boy in. We decided on a sheet cake for some reason. I'm not really sure why now. I actually think it would have been better a double layer cake now. Hummm.

But as you can see, this looked super delicious straight out of the oven. How sad is it I can't even remember
how we made this. I believe it was a peanut butter cake that you mixed chocolate into. Wait, now that I see the picture, I know why the cake isn't a double layer cake, it was more of a cake bar kind of treat and we made it in a small pan. Ok, mystery solved.

So out of the pan we can see it in all it's glory. There is just something pretty about a cake before it gets frosted and decorated. It's so pretty. I can't explain it. I love the marbled look of this cake When I was making it I was worried I wouldn't get a pretty marbled look. Yes, we are just going to cover it with frosting and eat it, but that's not the point. LOL! I wanted it to look neat straight out of the pan. Nailed it!

Next came some chocolate frosting. I wonder what
this would have been like with peanut butter frosting instead of chocolate. I think we will have to try that next time we try this cake.

And finally came the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. We only had a handful of them, so we cut them up into pieces. It work, and you still tasted it when you ate your cake.

And that, ladies and gents, is my random post about cake. Just cake. LOL! I hope all of you are having an awesome day, filled with cake if possible, and I will talk to you all in my next post. Until then, take care. Bye for now.

Love always,
Mickey ♥

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Daiso Needle Felting Bunny Kit

So, once I'd gotten the felting bug, I bought several kits off of Amazon for relatively cheap. Several sets came from Daiso brand. I so wish there was a Daiso where I lived, but yay for those who do live near one and sell those items. Yes, I know, I am probably being ripped off, but...Daiso products!!! :-)

So one of the needle felting kits was the cute pink bunny you see here. I kind of think it's a he, even though he's pink. This little guy's face is just so adorable, and the packaging is super cute too. I just had to have it.

So when you open the package, you get the wool for the project, a felting needling, plastic eyes, and a chain to make this little guy into a key chain or you could just hang him on whatever you want. Right away, I noticed the wool in this set is way better than the wool in the Dimensions set I reviewed earlier. No icky debris to be seen, just nice pink wool. In the set you also get an instruction sheet that is in Japanese, and I want to say it was English on the reverse side. I know I didn't have trouble piecing him together, so there is either English on one side of the sheet or the pictures are very detailed and show you the steps well.




So, after much stabby stabby, this is what I got. Ok, so he's doesn't really look like the picture on the package. Ok, he doesn't look like it at all, besides the fact that he's pink, but I still adore him. Once again, I think the problem was that I used too much wool and tried to rush through this. Needle felting requires time and patience, and while I was taking my time, I so didn't want to stab myself, I still ended up with big ears and a wonky face. The face, I believe, is because I was trying to be precise and that caused me to keep felting and that changed the shape of my bunny. But even though he's kind of wonky, he's unique, and I love him. I would like to try this set again to see what kind of results I get now that I know what shape I am looking for, and I know to build up rather than just take a big hunk of wool and go at it.

Hummm, I think I need to name this guy. Hummm, I think...Fluffer McFluffybutt. Yep, perfect. LOL! I hope you guys like seeing my silly little guy. I have more to share, and this guy isn't even the worst one, if you can believe that. Let's just say, there's this dolphin and well...you'll have to stay tuned to see him. :-)

And on that note, I am off my lovelies. I have many things to do today, like take pictures of my 17inch girls to show you. I meant to take pictures when I got them, but I just haven't been up to it, nor had time, nor had a good place to take pictures. But you will see them soon in this space and I can't wait to share them with you. :-) Take care until my next post. Bye for now. :-)

Love always,
Mickey ♥

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Acrylic BJD Eyes On Amazon???

Ok, so in all fairness, these eyes are for dolls in general. Dollmaking to be percise. However, I was curious if these eyes could be used in my bjds, and decided to order some in a size 14mm for my Resinsoul doll. You get 4 random colors in the size you pick. Once I got them, I popped open my girl's head and put the new ones in. I am not sure if it's because I am fairly new to bjd ownership or if it truly was the eyes, but they can be a bit fiddly to put in, but once they are in they look awesome.

Now, please excuse my dry looking hands, the
awesomeness of thyroid issues and no amount of lotion helps (sigh), but these are the four colors I got. The send you four random colors. Mine are, I believe, light blue, blue (but they call it purple but me and my sister both say it's just blue), green, and grey. That light brown/tan one is the default eye that came in my Resinsoul, I just wanted to compare it to these new eyes. Very beautiful colors that just stand out when the light hits it just right. I thought, for a couple of bucks, and a little bit of a wait for it to ship from China, why not try them out. Here they all are so you can kind of see their color.







And here is my girl Mori, who happens to be a Mori Girl (so original, I know), with her new light blue eyes next to her default light brown/tan eyes. Sorry for the wonky eye, I thought it was in straight, but it wasn't. I swear it's an art to get those things looking straight. Big props to those of you who can manage that without issues.





I love the eyes in her, but it takes some work to get the eyes in. I think I'm not using enough eye putty and need to stop being afraid of using too much. Her eyes are currently sitting in her storage box with her, so I need to try getting them back in again...and try to see how to get the yellow off of her, that's another future post in the making.

So last year, when I took advantage of the Black Friday Sale at The Junky Spot, I got my cute and adorable
Hujoo Mouse. I decided to get her in white, and this year I plan to get one in Grey because I have plans for them to be sisters, one dark and one light. But that is a couple of months off, sadly. But that's ok, because I've yet to paint this beauty, but I loved the blue (purple...but really it's blue) eyes in her eyes, and I believe her sister will get either the grey or the light brown/tan default eyes from Mori. Not sure yet. But as you can see, the eyes fit in the Hujoo animal heads very nicely. I love how they fill up the eyes, because she is a mouse, so it's fitting. You may want a smaller iris, so go to a 12mm if these are just too big for your liking. Oh and if anyone one is wondering, my little mouse is wearing the Licca doll blue kimono. I bought it not really knowing who could wear it, and I had it for several years and then when I got my girl I tried it on her on a whim. Perfection. I think the color and the strawberries fits her perfectly. I think I want to stick to the fruit them for her, and maybe go in a sweet lolita and fairy kei fashion for her. So adorbs. I think when it comes to shoes I am not getting her any because she is a mouse, but clothes are ok with her. Don't ask me to explain my odd reasoning, I kind of see her like the mice from The Secret of NIMH movie, they wore clothes but not shoes. Which works for me because would you just look at those feet! Those are not going to be easy to find shoes for. LOL! But I'll be open to trying shoes on her just to see, but only if I find a good pair. So I look forward to making some cutesy fashions for her. Wait! How did this become a post about her fashion sense, especially since I haven't even introduced her to you yet. That's a post to come very soon. :-) For now, witness the awesomeness of the eyes. LOL!

So I have 2 pairs left from the set I got, which I plan to put one pair in my second Hujoo mouse I get, and the other in the second Resinsoul girl I get. Then I will be left with two default pair of eyes from the Bobobie girls, which means...well I'll just have to get two more dolls to use them. I am thinking a Hujoo cat, maybe two. I wish there was a male Hujoo mouse, I'm hoping that is coming down the pipeline soon. Fingers crossed. :-)

And that's about it for this post. I just wanted to share another option for those of you looking for eyes for your dolls. If you are on a budget or just getting into the hobby, you may want to consider checking out Amazon for eyes. You get 4 pairs for a decent price and they come in a variety of sizes on Amazon. I know I will buy again if I get another doll with an eye size I don't have. And of course I'll be sure to share those with you if that happens. :-) And on that note, I will talk to you lovely people later. Be good until next time we meet. Bye for now. :-)

Love always,
Mickey ♥

Monday, August 24, 2015

Happy Dance! Happy Dance! Get it! Get it! Get it!

You know it's Sunday in my house when you hear In The Kitchen With David on my tv. I like waking up and letting this lovable giant tell me how much I need some Temp-tations cookware to cook one of the many recipes in one of the many cookbooks he also suggests I need. And of course the day isn't complete without David giving us a Happy Dance. What is a Happy Dance, you ask? This is a Happy Dance.




Now you have been filled in about the Happy Dance. You can't help but smile, and maybe be tempted to join in, when David does a Happy Dance. So if you haven't noticed, David is a foodie, so good food is going to give him glee and get him spinning. So yesterday, as I watched David get down, I began to wonder to myself, what would make me happy dance, and it hit me.

I love crafting, especially cute things and things for dolls. When I make something for my dolls that works and ends up looking good, especially if it's something I don't really know how to do well, I do my own version of a happy dance. I'm so excited and happy for what I've created. For example, a couple of years ago when I went crazy and made several Blythe Empire Waist dresses, I couldn't figure it out for the life of me. It wasn't until I did some research and found an amazing tutorial by Cris Shida. She shows you a way to do it that the original patterns doesn't follow. The tutorial is in Portuguese, but the pictures are so clear that you can fully understand what she's demonstrating, you could also translate the whole website if you wanted. I started churning these things out no sooner I figured things out. And with each one I finished, I felt a glee and happiness inside. It was something I could celebrate in private, but after seeing David and his 'I don't even care' mentality on people watching him do his Foodie Happy Dance, I thought, why can't I be happy and free to share my happy dance too. So I've decided to.
http://cris-shida.blogspot.com/2008/06/tutorial-empire-dress.html


I want to share the dolls and toys I've found. I want to share the things I make, no matter if they end up how they are suppose to look or they end up like Snuffles The Mighty Hedgedog, or they end up a complete disaster. I never want to stifle my happiness or my 'dance' again. So more crafty craziness to come, along with my finds and deals and dolls and toys and whatever else I have to share. Like I said, I want this blog to become more lifestyle and include a bit of everything I love.  So coming up in the next few posts are things I have bought over the past year. I got some amazing deals on dolls and a playset that I am still in shock that I got at the price I did. So be sure to stay tuned for that.

And on that note, I am off again my lovelies. I hope today has reached all of you well. Enjoy the day, even though it is Monday and you are having to get back to the grind. Remember to take some time for you today to play, craft, design, or just relax. And I will see you lovelies in the next blog post. Take care until then. Bye for now. :-)

Love always,
Mickey ♥

Sunday, August 23, 2015

The Day Senpai Noticed Me, and The Reinvention of Me

So as you know, my birthday was back on the 9th of this month, and my sister was trying to decide what to get me as a present. She then suddenly came to me and told me I wasn't allowed to look on our parents' Amazon Prime account, we use it get our stuff in two days woot woot, and so I promised not to. She said my birthday present would be a few days late. I wasn't sure why, but I just shrugged and said ok. I thought it was sweet she was getting me anything, so I just carried on with my life. Well the eleventh came and so did the mailman with my present. My sister woke me up and basically demanded I open my present right then and there. Ummmm...ok. The package was thin and tall like a book. I closed my eyes and opened it, wanting to drag out the suspense a little longer. When I opened the package I found a hardcover book. I felt the cover to see if I could tell what it was by the embossing. My sister was having none of that and demanded I look at it, bossy little thing there. So I finally opened my eyes and then proceeded to have a mini geeky freak out.


What?!? She got me Felicia Day's book!!! Ahhhhhhh!!! I wanted this book so badly, but I didn't know when it was coming out, and I knew I would get it eventually. I had no idea my sister would get it for me. Come to find out, several people considered getting it for me, but weren't sure if I'd want it. My sister was a nervous wreck thinking I'd hate the book. LOL! Silly goose. :-)

After the initial shock of getting the book, You're Never Weird On The Internet (almost), I dove in and read a little bit each day. By the 19th I finally read the last page and may or may not have gotten a bit weepy. This book spoke to me in so many ways. I grew up not thinking to highly of myself and thinking everything I did was basically crap, especially when I compared it to other people who were doing similar things. Yes dollieh and crafty people, I was basing my self worth on things you were doing that I could not do. That was a big reason why I had to leave Facebook behind...um...I have a post about that coming up. Anyway, the depression and self hatred got worse when I got older and I've discovered it had a lot to do with my thyroid that is still wonky, but in reading Felicia's book, I learned I wasn't alone. She suffers with anxiety too and it affected her life much like mine has affected mine. The social anxiety that I sometimes suffer is not unique to me either, and I just learned so much by reading about Felicia's life. It truly felt like a pep talk we were having one on one. I truly didn't want the book to end because I felt like I was learning so much about myself as I learned about her.

I don't want to say to much about the book because I truly want to encourage you to go out there and buy it for yourself. Perhaps your library has it and if it doesn't, please try to get them to purchase a few copies because I think anyone suffering with self doubt will walk away from this book with a clearer understanding of themselves and realize it's ok to be who you are. It's ok to love dolls, gaming, comics, crafting, etc. It's ok to love to cosplay as your favorite Star Trek or Star Wars character. It's ok to be passionate about things. Never let anyone make you feel like less because of who you are. If someone does try to do that, that's because they are less of a person and you should not pay them any mind. Perhaps they have something going on in their lives that causes them to find happiness in making others feel bad too. Just forget them and move on and be your awesome self.

The book also showed me that I too was guilty was judging someone and not really knowing them or their situation. No, I don't know Felicia directly, but from what I saw online, I made some assumptions and questioned some things that she did. Now after reading her book, I realize, you truly should not assume you know what is going on in a person's life just from how they look and act on the outside. Things that I felt jealous over and things I wondered why she did them, were all not as I assumed them to be. So, if you are one who likes to judge, think about it before you do, because you never know what is going on in a person's life, and just because they look 'fine' doesn't meant they truly are. So stop and think before you act.

I wish I had discovered this earlier in life. I think I would have enjoyed life way more. But I know it now, I am finding that happiness is slowly returning to my life and I am slowly returning to what I love. I'm addicted to Guild Wars 2 and playing it more and more each day. Which reminds me, I need to go do some farming. I am trying to build a back piece called Mawdrey II and I need to get some foxfire clusters. Then I think I will catch up on some gaming channels, Dashiegames is currently my favorite, and after that I will start another book to read. I'm done being someone else to try to please the masses. From now on, I am just going to be me. I am reinventing myself to become the person I've always wanted to be.

I think while I am working on becoming me, I will try to shed the old me completely and work backwards to her. So I am going to use my nickname that my friends and family call me to match my new persona. If you want to call me Michelle, please feel free to, but I will be calling myself Mickey, but I'll of course answer to both. :-) It's time to be a happier and healthier me, and I can't wait to discover exactly who that person is.

So if you are in need of a pep talk yourself, or you love gaming and geeky stuff, or you love Geek and Sundry, or you just love that quirky red-head who starred in Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Eureka, Supernatural, The Guild, and Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long, go out there and purchase this awesome book. You will have a good read, a good laugh, maybe a few tears, and a new geeky friend for life. :-)

Oh, and I pulled myself out of my comfort zone and tweeted Felicia to let her know I really enjoyed her book. She favorited my tweet. Senpai noticed me!!! Achievement unlocked! Now I really want to meet Felicia in person. Maybe one day. Fingers crossed. :-)

And on that note, I am going to go my lovely readers. I hope you leave my blog today feeling a little bit better about yourself. Always know you are awesome, no matter who you are. Never let anyone make you feel bad for being who you truly are. Always be true to yourself and never talk down to yourself. Trust me, there are enough haters in the world to talk crap about you without you adding to the mix. Big hugs to all of you and I will talk to you all very soon. Bye for now. :-)

Love always,
Mickey ♥

Saturday, August 22, 2015

Let Me Introduce You To My Hedgedog. Wait? What?

Hey all! It's been a while. I've been busy working on some hobbies and haven't had much time to blog. However, speaking of hobbies, I thought it was time for me to share with you all one of my new favorite hobbies. Needle felting!!!


Now these pictures are from last year, and I have sadly worked through all my sets, but I plan to get more around the holiday time to do. Right now I just have too much on my plate, but I wanted to share my first silly attempts.

So the first set I purchased was the Dimensions Hedgehog Needle Felt Character Kit. I read everywhere that it would be easy, so I thought 'why not', and I ordered it. This is what it looked like fresh out of the package. He was too cute to pass up.

Well, after I got everything laid out and started
looking at things, I began to think this wasn't going to go so smoothly as I thought. I had read in the comments on Amazon that the set had some rust colored debris in the wool, and some said they didn't have that, so I took a chance on it. When I opened my wool, I was sad to see mine had the debris, but I decided to go ahead and do the set. I figured once it was all together you wouldn't notice it. So this is what I got in the package. The reason I got this set is because you got everything you needed to complete the set, which I felt was a plus. So you get a felting needle, you have to use felting needles because they have barbs on them that help entangle the wool. You get a bag of wool that is 'suppose' to complete the full project...more on that later. You get the thread to create the mouth and lines on the hedgehog. You get black plastic eyes, I believe you get four just in case you lose one. And the little white mat is your felting mat. Then of course you get the instructions. I was ready to start.

So, I started with the body first, and I think this is where I really felt this set was going to let me down. I did as the instructions said, but I never ended up with a body that said I should. I was suppose to felt until the body was firm and formed the shape suggested in the instructions. I got the length but not the width. I thought maybe after I got the brown on it would look different. Not so much. In all fairness to myself, this was one of my first attempts at doing needle felting, I believe I did this one last or second to last out of my sets. I think what I learned was to be more sparing with the wool, you don't have to use everything given to you. Instead of a hedgehog, I got a hedgedog. Hummmm....well...he is cute. Maybe even cuter than the hedgehog. LOL!

So, would I recommend this set? Yes and no. First of all, the rust particles on the wool were just disgusting. I felt that the wool was not properly cleaned. It made the finished product look dirty to me. However, besides the particles, perhaps if I had
more experience I would have been able to get a better shaped hedgehog. I wouldn't follow the instructions given to me about the size. I feel that the body would have turned out better following the picture for sizing rather than the instructions suggestions. A lot of the wool used in the legs could have gone to the body. I would use less wool than what I did use because those ears are massive and I didn't have any left over for the nose so I had to felt some black in for the nose. I would also take more time to form things and build up rather than grab a hunk of wool and go at it. Now, if you have more experience with needle felting I say go for it, but if you are new to it, I would say get something with less colors and pieces to deal with. Something that has more big pieces to connect together would be better too. There are some sets by Dimensions that I want to try, like their fox, and I honestly want to get this set again and try it again. So that may be a future post on me trying to get a hedgehog to form from the set.. Until then, I have Snuffles The Mighty Hedgedog...I came up with that just now, it's a working name in progress. LOL!

So tell me, have you tried needle felting before? Do you like it? I like it. It's fun to do. I had to wuss out and get finger and thumb guards. I have 'stabbed' myself with the needle, but the guards got the pokes instead of me. What can I say? I don't like pain, and I sure as heck don't want a barbed needle poking into my finger. Sure you can do it without them and just protect your fingers by how you position the wool and always know where your fingers are, but I just felt safer with the guards. Never be embarrassed by protecting yourself while crafting people. :-) If you have pictures of your needle felting crafts feel free to link to them below, I'd love to see them. I have pictures of my other sets I did that I will post about later. Spoiler alert, they all suffered a similar fate to Snuffles The Mighty Hedgedog, you'll want to check back for those gems. LOL! And on that note, I will talk to you awesome people later. Take care until then. Bye for now. :-)

Love always,
Michelle

Sunday, August 9, 2015

Birthday Wishes (And Cake!) From The Google



Google has informed me that I've done it again guys. I'm another sexy year older. :-) I'll be taking gifts, cake, and ice-cream all day, should anyone decide to drop one by. ;-) Hope you all are well on my special day. I'm off to get ready for my day. :-)

Love always,
Michelle

Thursday, August 6, 2015

Mattel 2013 Halloween Barbie - Bewitched and Bejeweled

So a couple of days ago I was blog hopping, in my attempt to get back into the doll community and reconnect with people I loved to watch, and I popped into "A Bit of Aubrey's Mind". The recent blog post at that time was about the Mattel 2015 Halloween Barbie - Moonlight Halloween. I'd been considering picking this one up for myself, but knowing how Mattel doesn't like to continue fabric designs around the back of the outfits, I wasn't sure if I wanted to get her any more. The blog post helped me make up my mind, I won't get her unless I can get her on super discount like I did the 2013 Halloween Barbie. However, the 2015 Barbie is super cute and if you are considering getting her, be sure to check out the blog post here to read a really informative review on her. She's a cute doll, but I just want the design front and back...yeah...I'm spoiled. ;-)

ETA: So this post has been written for a while, but I hadn't published it yet for some reason. Perhaps this was the reason why. I saw that The Dude With Dolls posted a video about the Target exclusive 2015 Halloween Barbie doll. Her dress is a orange color instead of purple. The box has a different look that focuses more on pumpkins and there is no maze on the back for Blissa to romp through. Also, this girl has orange streaks instead of purple. She also doesn't have a broom with her, I know, upsetting. The design still doesn't go around the back, so she is a nope for me too, but it was fun see a different look for her. I so have to design some cat fabric like that one day. :-) Take a look at the video below to see this pretty girl.


So this made me think of the pictures I took about two years ago of the 2013 doll that I got for around 5
dollars at the time. I thought the dress and color combos were pretty and thought it would make for a cute Halloween outfit for my 27cm Bobobie doll, so I ordered her and waited for her to show up.

When she showed up, I was first excited by the box art, so magical. This doll really made me think of the show Bewitched, especially the theme song. The little witch riding on her broom leaving a sparkly trail in her wake especially brought that tingly jingle to mind. Don't believe me? Here, have a looksie.


See what I mean now? I so love Bewitched, and after searching for the theme song, it lead me to Amazon,
and now I so want the complete series on dvd along with "I Dream of Jeanie", but I digress. Back on track, this doll seems to be highly based on Samantha's version of a witch, which (see what I did there? ah? ah? anyone?) I'm not really seeing besides the box art. On the back of the box you can see they kept up with the sparkly theme, and even that cat gives me a feel of Bewitched because Samantha turns into one during the theme song. Yes, I know, it's reaching, but hey, is it really that far off? There's a little game for you to play, helping Blissa through the maze. And this just donned on me, I just not noticed that Blissa's name has one cursive "S" and one print "S", just like it was on 2015 doll's box. Also, it seems Blissa likes to get lost around Halloween time, because she went through a maze in 2013 and 2015. Interesting. Feel free to try to get Blissa home.

Couldn't figure it out? I've helped you out with that. You're welcome. ;-)


Opening the box and taking her out, you can see the awesome background behind her. I almost didn't want
to take her out because I liked the background so much. It's very Bewitched meets It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, but alas, she had to come out. I wanted that dress. As you can see here, the only thing "extra" you get with this doll is a cardboard broom. How nice of Mattel to give her that. ;-) What can you expect with a pretty basic doll?

I took her out of the box with her broom and ummm, that broom is not really in scale here. I mean, granted, she is suppose to ride on that sucker, and I'd rather have a lot of sitting room rather than just barely enough room to sit, especially flying high in the sky. So, on to the outfit, I love the pattern on the skirt part of the dress, but I really wish that the trademark Barbie head had been left out. I know, it's the logo, but still. There are also cute bats in the pattern, so I guess that makes up for it. The glitter top part of the dress is a pretty purple-pink, with a small black ribbon in the center of the dress to act as a belt. A black boa/wrap that easily slides up and down her arms is a nice addition to the outfit. To complete the outfit you get black thigh high boots that were also a thing in 2012 and 2014 but lost out for the 2015 doll, a black necklace, and black hat all made from the same shiney plastic it seems. And that's it when it comes to the outfit.

Barbie's face is pretty generic with her smiley face, blue eyes, and
blonde hair. The nice thing about her hair are the purple streaks in them that go great with the purple in her outfit. It's only in the front of her head, but it's still a nice touch to give her a different look from just your average Barbie doll. It's interesting to note that the 2015 doll also has a generic smiley face, blue eyes, and purple streaks in her hair, though it seems to be of a slightly darker tone. So it looks like 2013 and 2015 were a slight rinse and repeat design, much like 2012 and 2014 were a rinse and repeat on the pink theme. You can also see that her buckle on her hat has an expected Barbie "B" on it. The necklace is in kind of a spiderweb shape which helps add on to the Halloween theme, I thought that was creative.

Here's some picspam of this lovely girl.








 

Like I said, I wanted this doll to steal the dress for my 27cm for my Bobobie girl Leia. I thought it would be perfect for her for Halloween. The dress is really cute on her, but it doesn't fit her perfectly because she's a flat bust doll, however the rest of the fit is nice on her.

I think this will look really cute as a Halloween outfit, but I am
wondering if i will have to unpick the breast area and resew it to be a little less defined for breasts. Or do I try to sew something up to stuff the chest area? I'm not sure. It just is a little off for me.

As you can see here, there is a bit of gap in between her body and the fabric. So I am thinking on how to adjust that. I really think just unpicking the thread and resewing it a little less defined would work for me, but it might leave more of  gap, which I might be able to live with. Not sure. I'll try to make it happen before Halloween this year so I can share my results with you all.

But there you have it, 2013's Halloween Barbie doll. She's a cutie if you want her for the doll. She truly is, in my eyes, a basic doll. I don't have her here with me right now, but if my mind serves me right, she has hard legs with no joints, so she's limited on positions and poses. I think this doll was mostly made for her dress really. They tried to make her look less generic with the purple streaks in her hair, but she truly is just more of a display for the outfit. If you want to collect Halloween Barbies to display in their boxes, then I highly recommend her. If you want to get her for a child to play with, she's perfect for that too, kids will work around the lack of bendy knees. If you want her for photostories and or any kind of cool posing, I'd give her a pass. She's just not really made for that.

She's currently around 13 bucks on Amazon, but keep watching or surf around and you might be able to find her cheaper. I know this will sound snobby, but when you can get an articulated doll for the same or cheaper, I'm very picky when it comes to a doll with generic articulation and will only purchase if they are nicely priced and have a cute outfit and accessories. I got this girl at an awesome price, but I don't know if I would have if she were higher priced. My collecting habits have changed over the years and now I prefer a certain body before I will consider bringing a doll home. I only buy display dolls if they have the "complete package" for me, awesome doll with awesome box art. I have a lot of dolls like that and I plan to get some more in the future but not many because I feel I can't truly enjoy them behind their plastic windows, but that's just me.

If you like the less articulation for a more pleasing look, then go for this girl. I like dolls like that too, and if I was more into keeping them mint in box for displaying, I would have more of them, but I'm now to the point that I want to play and tinker, so it'll be a special doll or outfit that gets past my pickiness and makes it home with less articulation. It's funny how our likes and dislikes change over time. Guess that's how we grow as people and collectors. :-)

And on that weird and derpy note, I will talk to you lovelies later. I hope all is well with you, and that you find that treasured doll, no matter how much articulation they have, on your next shopping trip. ;-) Talk to you all in the next post. Be good until then. Bye for now.

Love always,
Michelle

Monday, August 3, 2015

Music Monday

Because, why not? Enjoy.


New post coming tomorrow. Take care until then. Bye for now. :-)

Love always,
Michelle

Thursday, July 16, 2015

My Wishful Thinking Wishlist and Why I'm Not Playing K'Nex With Someone Special

It happened when I saw Iris Clops pop up in my suggestions today. I have wanted Iris since I heard about her, but even more so when I learned about her "I Love Fashion" doll. It first started with a random picture that lead to an auction that was taken down quickly. They showed her off in all her glory. I was hooked, but the rumor was, it was fake. *sigh* So I let that dream go. However, as time went by, more and more sightings started coming out and then doll Youtubers started talking about her and sharing her and then Mattel let us know, it wasn't a fake and she could be ours very soon. Flash forward to today, I find out she's a Toys R Us exclusive and we'd have to hit the aisles to try to get her. Something tells me she's rare, and hard to find. I'm not willing to pay scalper prices or fight for her, so the dream sadly ends here. I'm still hopefully I can get her on Amazon for a decent price, sometimes I get lucky like that. We'll see. Fingers crossed. And hey, it is my birthday next month, and people are already asking me what I want. :-D

From there, though, things just got worse. The next thing that
caught my eye was Wydowna Spider and her "I Love Fashion" doll. I actually wanted this doll before I knew about the one for Iris. Wydowna is just such an interesting doll, being a spider and all, and I am so not a fan of spiders, but she's a cutie. Her clothes are cool, she gets a good amount of them along with shoes, and I love the way she looks. The only thing keeping me from getting her is that loud blue lipstick on her. Sure, I could repaint them, but I just don't think I could do her justice, and it would bother me to change the doll. But I do so love her, especially her widow's peak.

Next on the list is Monster High Ghoul Fair Scarah Screams. I love Scarah Screams. For some reason she reminds me on Winona Ryder from around the Beetlejuice days. She's Lydia Deetz and she's of sound mind. You ask her, she's answering, yes she loves that man of hers. LOL! I think that's why she appeals to me so much. Her white eyes, dark hair, pale skin, a perfect emo goth in the making, or just a misunderstood ghoul, take your pick. I have two of this lovely lady, her "I Love Fashion" doll and her "Freaky Fusion" doll. The "Freaky Fusion" doll, I have plans to customize her. I don't know if I am keeping her. I am really happy with the first Scarah I have, so I can easily pass on others. That is why I am passing on the fair one. She's cute, I love the yellow in her hair, and the outfit is super cute, but I think I will hold off. If I find a good deal on her, during Black Friday or something, then I will get her.

Next is the 2015 SDCC Monster High Valentine and Whisp dolls. In all honesty, I
just want Valentine, he's a hottie. Whisp is pretty and all, but I don't really have any feeling for her. Sorry Whisp lovers out there, she's just not my bag baby. But Valentine, he's so suave and awesome looking. He reminds me of a character I want to put into my doll comic one day, though he's a bad guy, not sure if Valentine is a bad guy or not. I'll have to find out. But alas, I'll have to hope they make another doll of him for cheaper. He's a bit pricey for me with his lovely lady in their exclusive set. Fingers crossed that our paths will cross again. *dreamy sigh*

The next dolls are along the same theme, I only want the boy. The Monster High Boo York, Boo York Comet-Crossed Couple Cleo de Nile and Deuce Gorgon doll pack. I only want Deuce in the set. I don't know, I've never been big on Cleo. In fact, I only have one Cleo and that was so I could steal her hands for my Howleen Wolf doll. Cleo will be customized. I don't know why I don't like her that much, the character is funny enough, but I just don't like the doll too much. But I have always wanted a Deuce, and this one is just so handsomely cool looking. Perhaps I'll get the set, keep him, and pass her on. Or perhaps I'll just wait for another doll of him that appeals to me like this one does. Only time will tell. Now, pardon me as I do some quick Deuce picspam just to show you how handsome this beautiful boy is.


The next doll(s) are the Monster High Great Scarrier Reef Peri and Pearl dolls. When I saw these ladies, I couldn't help but think that Mattel was taking notes from customizers on making a two-headed doll. This doll is so awesome and I loved the idea of a two-headed doll. I really want to know the story of these two girls. I so need to get back into watching the Monster High shorts and movies. Now the only down side to these girls is the fact that they are a water monster with a tail. There isn't much to work with with a doll that has a tail. They'd mostly be for display and as my collecting habits have changed, I don't collect dolls that will merely sit around to be on display. So sadly I'll have to just look at owners pictures of these lovelies when they come out. :-(

Now this next doll I MUST have. She's just so
freaking adorable. The Monster High Monster Exchange Program Isi doll. Seriously? So awesome! Look at the ears, the horns, the face-up, the clothes!!! She's so freaking awesome!!! The only reason I won't get this girl is if I can't afford her when she is released or she's hard to get. Fingers crossed tight I can make this girl mine.

This next girl, the Monster High Monster Exchange Program Kjersti doll, isn't necessarily a "must-have" girl, but she sure is a "must-see" girl. There's sadly only a blurry photo (image found here on maplesyrup44's instagrram) and cartoon pictures on the sales page for her, but she looks adorable and she's on the little sister body. She may possibly be a "must-have" after I see her. Even through the blurr, she just looks so cute.

The next two are Ever After High dolls. The first one
I am in love with is Ever After High Melody Piper. She looks so funky and reminds me of the skaters from the Jet Set Radio game, look down below at the video to learn more about the game. She looks like she's ready to grab Porter Geiss's spray paints and some skates and go for it! I am not big into Ever After High dolls, but this girl is awesomeeee!!! Humm, how many times am I going to use that word in this post. Anyone keeping count? That would be awesome. :-D And can I say, I am loving that Mattle is doing more body art on dolls. I always felt that parents being against it was silly. Her leg art looks amazinggggg!




The next doll is another 2015 SDCC Exclusive, the Mattel Ever After High Raven Queen doll. This doll looks so deliciously evil in her outfit. She looks like she is ready to take you down with a powerful spell. From what I remember, she doesn't want to be evil, but she is seriously giving it to me in this doll. Very nice. But again, I'll have to enjoy the owner pictures of her because yeah, so not going to try affording her. Sooo out of my price range, but she is still so...awesome. :-) Count anyone?

Ok, last one. This one doesn't seem to have an
Amazon sale page, but I saw him on the Monster High Arena (image found here). It's Finnegan Wake. Yes, he's a water monster, but he's in a wheelchair. Meaning he's mobile and in style! Ahhhhh!!! I want this guy so much. He looks so rad and is ready to hang ten with the best of them. I am not sure if he is coming out later this year or early next year. I may or may not get him. He's just so interesting and I can't wait to see real life pictures of him. Come home to me Finnegan! Come home to me!!!

And that brings my list to an end. I know, sad faces all around, but I just had to share with you all my wishful thinking list. I know if I get anyone off this list, it'll probably be about 2 or 3 of them. Which isn't bad by any means at all. And of course if I get any, you guys will be the first to know. :-)

So the Amazon sale was a bust today. There was a deluxe set of Ever After High dolls and a Boo York, Boo York doll and playset, and both were just a few bucks off, so I didn't get any dolls. There was one thing being offered a few dollars cheaper, a K'nex set with 750 pieces. I've always been curious about this toy and wanted to try making some videos with someone building things, but dangit all, by the time my computer acknowledged my click, they were gone. Like literally in one minute all were snatched up and waiting list was full. Another minute later and they were all bought. *pouty face* Oh well, there will probably be a good sale around the holidays, so I can wait and try to get it again. So yes, I left a sale with my money firmly in my pocket. Oh well, I got the new Sims 4 game pack yesterday, so that makes me feel better. I also plan to get some patterns this week or weekend, fingers crossed. If not, they will go on sale again in two weeks, so I can wait. Amazon, you let me down. *sigh* LOL!

And on that note, I am off my lovelies. I will talk to you all in the next post. Be good until then. Take care. Bye for now.

Love always,
Michelle