Monster High = Product Placement

Ok, so I just got done reading the prologue, the first chapter, the second chapter, and the third chapter to Monster High (the novel based off those cute dolls everyone has been going crazy over), and can anyone say product placement?  No seriously, every few words were practically plugging a brand name.  The story and from what I could guess of the plot were cute, but the product placement just kept getting me.  Are teens so materialistic that they wouldn’t “get” a story without Gucci, Uggs, and Calvin Klein being mentioned?  Since when did characters in stories become so materialistic?  That was honestly a turn off for me, and I thought to myself would I let my son or daughter read this novel, if i had either of course?  And I believe I would let them read it, but I would worry if this would make them want more instead of appreciating what they have or what can be afforded.  I don’t know, maybe I am thinking to much into this.  I just don’t think the story needed all the product placement in it.  It’s a good story so far.

But it also makes me wonder why they released so much of the story.  Are they worried it won’t be good or accepted?  Perhaps this is a thing the author already did in the past.  Not sure, I will be investigating her blog some more and report back.  But it does make me wonder about other YA/MG authors and if they plug a lot of products.  It’s been some time since I read YA, but that will be changing soon as I am planning to hit the library some time in the next week or so to check some out for research for my writing.  But tell me, what do you think about product placement in stories?  I mean mentioning the characters are going to McDonalds, which I am sure will show up in the story somewhere, is one thing, but mentioning over 10 different products in maybe 30-40 pages worth of novel is a bit much.  And a lot of them got repeat mentions.  So it just makes me wonder how others feel about it.  Maybe I am just getting old…I am turning the big 3-2 in a little over a week after all.  *tear*  I wouldn’t have minded product placements if they were made up items like J.K. did in the land of Harry Potter.  This story could have done that with monsters being the main characters…I’m assuming.  I won’t say more on that, go read the chapters to get what I mean by that.

Ok peeps, I’m off.  I need some sleep.  I want to try some shopping tomorrow.  I’ve decided I am going to purchase Frankie and maybe one more doll tomorrow.  Not sure yet, but Frankie for sure.  I want to slowly collect them all like Pokémon.  ;-)  Also want to get some small knitting needles at 40% off…I wonder if they do coupon  from other store deal?  I’ll have to see about that.  And then I need to see if I can get some Halloween fabric.  I have some fabrics I want to show you guys too, maybe in a video.  They are getting wrinkled now because I was so frustrated over not being able to fix patterns that I just tossed them to the side, but I finally got one of the patterns I was working on to print out right so we are ready to rock!!!  So excited!!!  Ok, seriously need to go.  More later when I a more awake.  Bye for now.

Loves ya,
Mouse

Halloween Fabrics

Ok, so since the stores are so nicely telling us the end of the year is fast approaching…can you believe that…the fabric stores have been forming a love hate relationship with me.  Why?  Holiday fabrics of course.  And with Halloween coming up soon, I am on the hunt for some Halloween fabric, deals would be better, but I am willing to get some in scale fabric at full price and just get a 1/4th yard instead of full yard.

So I am haunting the Joann site, when did it just become Joann and instead of Joann Fabrics, and I found some nice Halloween themed ones.  Here are my picks for doll sewing.  Click here to be taken to the sale page on the Joann website if you are interested in purchasing  any of the fabric.  Oh and nope, don’t work for the place, just covet their fabric.  :-)

Ok, so I originally had 39 pieces picked out that I liked and I managed to cut those down to just 10 with one extra.  That was not an easy task.  So be sure to go to the sales page to see all the other nice Halloween fabrics they have for sale.   Here are the 10 I picked that I would love to make Blythe dresses with.

So of course we have pumpkins.  What is Halloween without them?

This fabric I really like with the trick-or-treaters and candy.  I think this would make a whimsical dress for Blythe.

Spiders that are cute and fabric that is pretty.  What’s not the love.

This one I really found interesting when I thought of it as a dress.  You’d have to really look at the dress to catch everything, maybe pull back some folds of skirt to get the full picture.  I like the idea of having to look at the dress to take it all in.

Boo…what else can I say?  It fits and it’s cute.

A colorful Boo.  Same reason as above.

Candy!  What is Halloween without some treats with our tricks.  I think this fabric is very pretty with it’s vintage feel.

I am currently loving spotted fabric, especially if the spots are colorful.

Classic dots in a Halloween theme.

Same as above only reversed.  I could see some great mixing and matching with these two.

And something just because.  This is way to off scale for a Blythe dress but I would love this for myself.  Not sure what I’d make with it, but do you see the little witch mouse there?  So cute!!!  I may actually hunt this fabric down and get a yard of it, but only after I figure out what to make with it.  I kind of want to make myself something with it, but I don’t know what.  Very cute.  The dog and cat are cute also but the mouse obviously caught my eyes first.  :-)

I know some of these fabrics seem out of scale for Blythe, but I am thinking with her big head that the scale would kind of balance out and look ok.  And when I think of Blythe I mostly think of her as being cute and young so oversized on cute and young isn’t all that odd really so it still kind of works.  Seeing these fabrics really to make me realize I need to hit the fabric stores and soon to try to get a deal.  Maybe just get a yard of one fabric and use a coupon to get something off of it.  Will have to see.  Found a 50% off coupon for AC Moore.  Might head there and look at their fat quarters.  Maybe they will have something Halloweenish.  I’ll update you if I find anything.  That’s all for now.  I’m off to bed now since it’s 4:44am and I have to get up in a few hours.  Bye for now.

Loves ya,
Mouse

An “Uh huh…” moment.

So here lately I’ve been trying to sew up some Empire Dress made with the free Puchi Collective pattern.  I have not been able to make one for some reason.  I honestly felt so stupid because even beginner sewers were doing it without a problem.  I got so frustrated after my 4th try.  I’ve recently bought some beautiful fabric and I have beautiful fabric I bought over the past few years all ready to be made into cute and stylish clothing, but I couldn’t use it because I couldn’t figure out the pattern.  Then I remembered a small note that said to make sure the pattern printed at the size indicated.  It had a line on the pattern that you needed to measure to make sure it came out right.  You guessed it, I didn’t print the pattern out at the right size.  Ahhhhh!!!  :-(  I feel so stupid.  I always like to cut corners so I don’t have to futz with things, but now I have to go and try to figure out how to get my printer to print it in the proper size.  Guess I will be hitting Google for some answers.  Wish I had something to show you all, still working on the one project I started and have had to futz with because it wasn’t working together properly.  But I think I may start selling a line of interior design items for dolls.  I may not be able to make furniture like the lovely Smidge Girl, Corset Kitten, or Milk, but maybe I can make lovely items to accent those items.  Carpets anyone?  :-)  I’ll show you that soon I promise, just need to work out some kicks.  I’m kind of worried the carpet I am making will either rip me off or be expensive. It takes a good amount of time to make them and if I put the time in I would like to get paid for it, but I don’t want to charge to much.  This is also a part of selling things I hate, pricing.  But won’t worry about that for now.  Ok, I’m off, enjoy the rest of your weekend my lovelies.  And be good.

Loves ya,
Mouse

Bad Girl, Good Girl

Thought I’d share some tunes I am jamming to right now.  Enjoy.  :-)  Click the picture to be taken to the Youtube video of Miss A’s “Bad Girl, Good Girl” video.  Bye for now.

Loves ya,
Mouse

*Hops around like a little bunny.*

 

So I got a sweet gift in the mail today from one of the most wonderful men in the world.  :-)  This wonderful man bought my much coveted Barnes and Noble Nook…an ereader.  He had me crying and smiling at the same time.  Such a sweetheart and I don’t deserve to have such a wonderful person in my life, because he is too sweet.  *happy sigh*

In other news, bought some more fabric today (discounted remnants) and some snaps with 40 percent off the snaps at Hobby Lobby.  Loves discounts.  Oh and then I headed over to Kmart and just wanted to pass on the news that Monster High dolls are there.  Single dolls are 16.99 and the couple is 19.99.  I want to wait for the new dolls coming out…especially Ghoulia.  I just love her and I think she is the only one one I want to own…not that she’s the only one I want.  But I have so many dolls and I want to collect other ones still so I need to cut off somewhere.  I also want the new guy coming out with blue skin and flaming hair.  He looks too cool.  Not a fan of Duce so looking forward to having that guy and I hope he does come out.  Ok, well I am off to play with my Nook and relax a bit.  Went out shopping today in 100 degree heat and humidity so thick you could cut it with a knife so I am tired as heck.  I will catch up on comments and update you on some stuff I’ve been doing behind the scenes tomorrow.  Hope you all have a great evening.  Hugs to all and bye for now.

Loves ya,
Mouse

They must ship in a box of gold.

Ok, so I was just surfing the web and came across an auction on Ebay for a Toys R Us exclusive Stella Savannah Blythe doll, who seems to be of limited quantity, that has only an hour and some minutes left to her auction with a starting big quote of $.01.  I was like, why are there no bids with such a cool starting bid and only an hour to go.  Maybe they are waiting until the very end.  Well, I checked out the description and found out perhaps why the auction has no bids.  Check out the shipping.  This can’t be legal.  Maybe it is.  But it shouldn’t be.  And I think it’s very misleading of the seller, but it is up to the buyer to read everything in the description before buying.  But still.  Very naughty.  Oh well, just had to share with you all.  So what are you all up to tonight?

Loves ya,
Mouse

Video Girl

Hey guys, so it’s been a while.  I’ve been busy working on some stuff and just haven’t had time to blog.  My blog is currently going through some changes soon as well, so just been busy working on stuff.  But today was a slight break day and I found this video from one my fave Youtubers ijustine.  She did a video showing how she was invited to go around the Mattel factory and see how Video Girl Barbie was made.  Now I want one for some reason.  I know, stupid…but…still want one.  LOL!  But thought I’d show you the video because you might find some of the process interesting.  Enjoy and have a great weekend everyone!

 

Loves ya,
Mouse

Uh…say what?!?

Ok, I know this isn’t a doll post, but I HAD to post this.  So I was on Amazon with my close pal Kenny looking for Hello Kitty stuff, long story, and I found the oddest thing.  Sterling Silver Hello Kitty Earrings.

Now what is odd about these earrings?  Well first off, these earrings are $1,126.92.  No lying.  And sure I thought well maybe  it’s the quality of the earrings, but if you look at the picture you will see that one charm is different from the other.  One charm has a bigger face than the other.  The bows, nose, whiskers, eyes, even the hoop at the top are all different sizes.  These are simple craft store charms.  I pity the person who actually buys these items.  I have seen inflated prices on Amazon for sure, but umm…say what???  Ok, I just had to show you guys this.  I was in serious shock when I saw this.  Ok, if you have any thoughts on why these earrings are so expensive feel free to give me your thoughts.  Ok, off to bed…at 8 in the morning.  Ugh!!!  I need to get back no a normal schedule!!!  Bye for now kids.

Loves ya,
Mouse

So, the countdown has begun.

The countdown for what you ask?  In exactly one month I will be another year older. And honestly I am a little put off by it.  My life has not changed much in the almost 365 days since my last birthday.  And I so didn’t want or expect that to happen.  I expected myself to be much further in life than I am now and honestly I am just a mirror version of the gal from last year.  :-(

But I realized I still have a month.  30 days to change something or several somethings about myself.  And I am taking that opportunity and doing it.  I began exercising and “dieting” again today.  I am trying not to see it as a diet but a way of life.  So my new lifestyle began today.  Why does that sound so dirty to me.  Oh yeah…now I remember why.  Don’t ask.  Anyway, I was down some on the scale today which is cool.  Found a new diet site to try out call My Fitness Pal that my friend Jen told me about.  It’s pretty good.  I am originally on Spark People but I think the site is so full of bells and whistles and I just wanted something simple and My Fitness Pal is that, simple.  So yay for that.  But right now I am so tired from the exercise and “dieting” of course sucks when you are an emotional or boredom eater, but I also feel good and inspired and motivated to keep going.  So wish me luck.

Well that’s all I wanted to talk about on this Merry Unbirthday, and I will update tomorrow, this time doll stuff.  I promise this time.  Just been busy trying to get back on track with things.  I think for me to fully do that I will need to completely unplug for a week or so.  I am planning to get as much online stuff I need to get done this weekend so on Monday I can take a week unplug and get other things done that I need to get done.  Oh my goodness what will I do without the net?  LOL!  I’ll manage somehow.  Ok, bye kiddies, be good.

Loves ya,
Mouse

DO NOT always listen to what your mother says.

Hey kiddies!  So today I had an “experience”…with this stuff:

*Runs to shut blog door.* Now hold up there!  I’m not about to go into something disgusting, I promise.  Now just sit down and let me finish my tale.  *waits*  Comfy?  Good.  Now where was I?  Oh yes, my experience.  So with a recent trip to the doctor for my mom, she found out that her cholesterol was in the red, very bad news.  So she decided not to get on pills and try fixing it with diet alone.  So she is on this healthy kick.  Well she and I were talking and I told her how we need more fiber in our diets for the health benefits.  Well she picked up Metamucil today, after having read that you can sprinkle it over your food instead of drink it.  Now it was at this point I kind of did a wrinkle face because I’ve had Metamucil before and if you don’t mix with enough water, it becomes like jelly.  But she read an article, that I assumed was by Dr. Oz because he’s her new guru now.  So I trusted her.

So she had yogurt for lunch, and she sprinkled some Metamucil on it.  It didn’t turn to jelly and it tasted ok.  Made it more fruity.  Ok, I thought, I’ll try some on my oatmeal that I want to make.  Now, this oatmeal was new to me.  My mom bought because it was healthier and I was craving to try it.  To make it creamy you have to cook it 20 minutes then let it cool for 2.  This means you have to stay close by the stove or it will cook over.  Ok, so I sat there, stirring every few minutes for 20 minutes.  Put raisins in, and it looked pretty good.   Yeah, looks can be so deceiving .

First of all, the cups I used to measure the water were for dry measurements instead of liquid.  So I didn’t have enough water.  Which meant my oatmeal was thick and sticky.  I thought I was making one serving according to my mom, but when I read the package it was two, so now I have a big bowl of sticky and thick oatmeal.  That’s ok, just add some water…still sticky but I can deal.  Well then I sprinkle the rounded teaspoon of Metamucil the package calls for and I stir it in.  Now this is the point where I start rethinking it again.  On the package I remembered it stressing that you needed to drink it right away so the fiber wouldn’t jell up on you.  But it was fine in the yogurt, so surely it will be fine on oatmeal.  And heck, my mom said you could put it on food, and I assumed Dr. Oz was the one who told her, so it’s fine.  Yeah…by the time I crossed the 3 feet from the counter to the table my oatmeal looked like a jello mold of oatmeal, raisins, and Metamucil.

I looked at it thinking, “Now come on now.  You are not five years old.  Man…err woman up and eat this.  It’s healthy for you,” yeah I was giving myself a “grown-up” pep talk.  So with my mom sitting there waiting to see my response, I dug my spoon in and pulled out a big gooey pile of slimy oatmeal, that she insisted was normal.  No people, this was not normal.  Remember when you were a kid and you got those balls of slime out of the machines that were at the front of each store as you were heading out?  Then you got home and played with it and sometimes dropped it onto ground and it got sand and other debris in it?  Yeah, that is what this stuff looked like, only worse…I had to eat it.  Ugh!  So I put the spoon to my mouth, quite ready to do it in.  But as it got closer to my mouth I cringed and just bit off the amount on the tip of the spoon, quickly chewed and swallowed.  Now it didn’t taste bad, just the texture was gross.  My mom was “proud of me” and encouraged me to eat more.  *whimper*  Ok, so I tried another spoonful.  Nibble and swallow.  Now at this point I’m starting to feel a little sick.  I can’t get the thoughts of slime out of my mind.  This is about the time my gag reflex started kicking in.  Yep, not pretty.  No, I never got sick, but I didn’t think I could finish.

This is where my mom was like “Fine, just toss it.”  I told her I’d try some more, and then she goes into how she didn’t tell me to put it on there.  I told her no but she didn’t discourage me.  She said well it’s just what I read from that book that’s coming to me.  This is where I stop and look at her.  Ok, so let me fill you in.  On this new health kick she’s on she decided to purchase some books on how to lower cholesterol and on better eating.  One of the books in an excerpt on Amazon listed the 10 things you should have every day.  One of the things she “THINKS” said to sprinkle Metamucil onto your food.  My mouth dropped.  I asked her “You are following the advice you got from an Amazon book excerpt?!?”  She gave me that “hehe” look and said “Well, it said the it was the top ten things you must have every day and I thought it said you could sprinkle it in food.”  Now this is where I drop my spoon on top of my mush, because it was to jelled at this point for it to fall into it.  I told her I thought she got her advice from Dr. Oz, whom I mildly trust his advice, and she sheepishly said no.  At this point she laughs and remembers she needs to go out into the garage freezer to get chicken for tonight’s dinner.  This is the point I walk over the trash can and toss the jellied oatmeal into it and wash out my bowl. She comes in and I tell her I have just had a long and interesting experience.  And she said she was glad I had that experience and lesson learned.  Oh I’ll say lesson learned.  Unless I get the information straight from the source, I am going to think twice about following the healthy suggestions of my mother and I will listen to my own instinct about things.  22 minutes of cooking down the drain and I still didn’t have breakfast.  My sister had a Klondike bar for breakfast and I scoffed at her for not eating something healthy.  Yeah, I grabbed one and headed to my room.  Ahhh, the breakfast of champions.  Be good kids and don’t always listen to your mother.

Loves ya,
Mouse

Eclipse

Yep, I watched it.  It’s a guilty pleasure, what can I say?  Ok, so one thing bothering me is the fact that the vampires are killed by breaking them like fine china and then burning them.  Umm…yeah that was just kind of stupid to me.  But whatevs.  Now I won’t give too much of a review on this movie since it’s still new.  I will say I heard it is closer to the book than previous movies, have not read it yet so I can’t say for sure.  When I finally do read it I will let you know.

The movie tied up a lot of loose ends and now we are kind of left with “and they lived happily ever after”, but of course there is another movie that will change that.  Watching the movie makes me want to get back to reading so I can find out what happens.  Very excited to find out.  Let me say that while the writing is not all that and some of the things in the books seems kind of hokey, if you take all that away and just look at the plot it is rather interesting.  But this is Stephenie Meyer’s pretend world that she invited us into, so who are we to say it’s wrong.  I know if I ever get published that people will say the same about my pretend world so I try not to be to cruel when talking about other’s. 

But back to the movie, it starts with a “scary” death, then we meet up with the lovebirds.  All is well with them until oh noes Alice sees something.  Then it’s all about saving and protecting Bella. Then uh-oh, love triangle!  Who didn’t see that coming?!?  Then a fight ensues.  Ahhh!  The the day is saved and Bella lives to tempt and tease Edward and Jacob another day.  Oh yeah and Edward and Bella are getting married.  What?  I had to drop some spoiler didn’t I?  :-)

Ok, I need to stop watching movies and go to bed.  I’m thinking when I wake up I will watch Toy Story 3.  I heard it was super sad at the end.  I’m up for a good cry.  :-)  Ok, bye for now kids.  Be good.

Loves ya,
Mouse