Little Boys and Puppy Dog Tales

Here are my little boys, they call themselves the Thunderbird Gang, heaven only knows why.

On the left we have Raven (IpleHouse BID Serca ~ Special Real Skin).

Raven is a very keen sportsman and footballer.

When he is older, he hopes to play football professionally and win a huge trophy.

With all his enthusiastic ambition, I have no doubt he'll succeed.

In the middle is Finch (Doll-Zone Choco ~ White Skin).

Finch is a shy boy, who adores animals and hopes to become a veterinarian.
He loves dogs in particular and somehow manages to find all the strays.
He's constantly telling me "this one just followed me home", expecting me to believe him.
We find homes for most of them, but when Finch brought Gilbert home we allowed him to stay.

And on the right, riding Gina's Vesper, is Wren (IpleHouse BID Peekaboo ~ Light Brown Skin).
Wren is a little on the quiet side and a bit of a nerd, who is studying hard to become an excellent mathematician.
Wren also has a natural curiosity that sometimes gets him into trouble.
His goal in life is to become a nuclear scientist.

Finch is my favourite of the three, possibly because he has a kind heart and a soft spot for animals.

Here he is speaking with Emmaline, (DollsBeWithYou Pomegranate ~ Normal Skin) who also loves animals.

She is the only girl who is allowed to pat Gilbert. Finch is quite possessive with his little dog, after all Gilbert is his best friend in all the world and is his constant companion.

-oOo-

All four are fully jointed Asian Ball Jointed Dolls, which are 26cm (10.24 inches) tall.

Raven and Finch arrived mid 2014, then Wren arrived two years later.

A Post for Linda

Linda asked about the size of the bunny and dog that Thea had made me, so as the saying goes "a picture is worth a thousand words" . . . and a few pictures are even better. :)

This is Fleur, my little French Bulldog. She is thirteen inches tall from the tip of her ears to her toes when she's standing.

This is the little card that came with her.

You can see the difference in their sizes now, Flossy is about 4.5 inches tall.

There is so much detail in Thea's work, everything is meticulously done. I really wish she was still making and selling her creations on her website, they are so adorable.

Ancelina Experiments

Hello there! My name is Ancelina. I'm a Fairyland LittleFee Bisou BJD in natural resin.

Today I'd like to introduce you to my friend who is a very pink, well dressed bunny.

I call her Flossy and she was made in the Netherlands by Thea, from Milly Me Designs.

She usually sits on a softly cushioned oval box, accompanied by a tiny duck and posy of flowers.

But today she was a little sad and needed a cuddle. Mum and I love her dearly.

Flossy likes to watch me as I practice Tai Chi in the purple garden
(it's my favourite place, I love anything purple).

Mum and I experimented with our photography today, do you think we did good?

Now a few words from mum ~

Ancelina is excited by change, adventure and is able to make constructive use of freedom.

She tends to be an optimistic, energetic and intelligent person who makes friends easily.

At times, despite her innocent look, she may become restless and rebellious.

Violet's New Dress

I made this dress and jumper some time back, actually I made several this style, but they were shorter and looked great on my Gotz dolls. This one always looked too long on them and it sat in my clothing box just waiting for the right doll to come along.

For some unkown reason, I had never thought of trying it on Violet until this morning, she loves it and I think it suits her perfectly. Now she has a change of clothes, she doesn't have to wear her raincoat or trousers anymore.

Violet is my one and only Zwerganese Junior designed by Nicole Marschollek-Menzner, for her 2016 collection and who arrived to me in July 2017. She is known as an Artist Doll, but I have her listed amongst my play dolls . . . I may have to revise that list sometime.

Details:
Size 50cm / 19.7 inches.
​Full vinyl doll made of phthalate-free material which is harmless to health.
Five joints for mobility.
Hand-painted face.
Wig.
Real leather shoes.
High-quality clothing,
Packed in high quality cloth bag.
Made in Germany.

What on Earth Possessed Me to Browse?

I saw these dolls on a French site yesterday and thought how their faces reminded me of the Dianna Effner Little Darlings. However, these dolls are fully jointed, in stock and available for US$129.99 plus any relevant taxes/shipping, from their own website: Ruby Red Fashion Friends.

Little Darling #3 and RRFF Bella

Now should you be lucky enough to live in USA, you can actually purchase them from F.A.O Schwarz for just US$100 plus any relevant taxes, but with FREE shipping on orders over $100. I don't know why there is such a big difference between the prices, but it really p****d me off because F.A.O don't offer international shipping!!

Bella has green eyes.

Sara has light blue eyes.

Hanna has deep brown eyes.

There's not a lot of information on the website, but their facebook page show them shipping from Nashville, Tennessee. The dolls are 14.5" tall, and articulated at the head, elbow, knee and hip. It doesn't tell you what they are made of, but reviewers have stated "flexible", so I am assuming vinyl.

If you get time check them out, they actually have a short fashion show on the website.

Who Came Home in 2019?

There were very few additions to my collection of BJD's and play dolls in 2019.

Only two BJD's ~ Lucy Locket (Liz Frost Willowmenia arrived in Nov.) and Buttons the Tailor (Fairyland Pukifee Jude arrived in Dec.), which you have seen recently, bringing my total BJD collection to 85.

And just three play dolls ~ Annie Rose (a Vestida de Azul Paulina), JR (a Zapf Jolina) who is fully articulated but not actually a BJD and Camille (Corolle Les Cheries). These all arrived in September, which meant the playdolls rose to 45. Hopefully, this will be narrowed down quite a bit this year, as I plan to keep mostly the smaller sizes . . . 14" and under.

I want to sell all of my 16" Disney Animator dolls, unfortunately I'll probably have to let them go for much less than I paid for them, which is a disappointment, especially as I went to the trouble of knitting them all new outfits (although I did sell one doll last year, it wasn't an Animator).

However, my fashion doll collection had a huge influx from Integrity Toys. Between January and October there were ten arrivals, four of which were Poppy Parkers, bringing the IT total to 12. I also pre-ordered a two doll gift set which will arrive in April this year, so I'm not sure if that counts as a 2019 or a 2020 purchase.

Of course there have been some clothing changes with this lot, which I might add, will change again in the not too distant future . . . well at least I have plans, but right at this moment very little motivation. Nevertheless, as soon as I can get my butt into gear and begin sewing again, I promise the changes will be awesome.

As my grand total has reached 142 (which is far more dolls than I thought I would ever own), I have no plans for any additions this year (apart from those on pre-order) and I shall endeavour to reduce this amount down to 130 by the end of 2020. Wish me luck! I think I'm going to need it. :)

Rain!

Yes, finally the heavens opened up yesterday and dampened things down in the fire ravaged areas of our continent. Hopefully it's enough to stop new fires forming, but it is a double-edged sword, as there are warnings of lightening strikes and the potential for flash flooding, particularly in the burnt-out areas of NSW and Victoria, which are now vulnerable to landslips and trees coming down.

 Australia’s horror bushfire season has so far burnt through more than ten million hectares of land, killed twenty eight people and destroyed thousands of homes nationwide.

However, on a more positive note, this is the first morning in some time, where I've actually been able to breath in air instead of smoke! So it's time to get on with things and bring some form of normality back to my blog. 😊

But first, a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has donated to the Bush Fire Appeal, WWF and WIRES and those who continue to support those in need.

-oOo-

My PukiFees, Macaron and Biscotti, thought today would be a good day for a bike ride.

Hope you are all enjoying a good day. :)

Adopt a Koala

URGENT APPEAL: Across the country, over 8.4 million hectares of Australian land has been burned to the ground. That’s more than the Amazon and Californian fires combined. Over 900 million animals have lost their lives, and 480 million animals have been killed by fire in NSW alone, including thousands of koalas, kangaroos, wallabies, birds and other iconic wildlife. Your support is urgently needed to care for injured wildlife and restore their homes.

ABC NEWS

If you would like to make a single donation or adopt a koala, please click on this link WWF and it will take you to the World for Wildlife Fund.

WWF is one of Australia’s most trusted conservation organisations. Their work would not be possible without financial support from our community. If you would like to help them, please make a donation, or adopt a koala. Thank you!

If you cannot afford to donate, please spread the word by posting messages on your blogs.

WIRES (NSW Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service Inc.) ARE ACCEPTING DONATIONS VIA PAY PAL, CLICK HERE IF YOU WISH TO HELP RESCUE THESE ANIMALS.

Bushfire Disaster Appeal

THE AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER

PLEASE NOTE: I AM RE-POSTING THIS FROM THE BENDIGO BANK WEBSITE

100% of all donations will be directed to communities in need.

This bushfire event is far from over and we are committed to supporting all communities impacted across Australia.

Bendigo Bank has partnered with The Salvation Army, to establish an appeal with 100% of donated funds going directly to communities in need.

The appeal will be conducted by the bank’s charitable arm, Community Enterprise Foundation™, and funds raised will be used in a range of locally identified charitable areas to provide relief and recovery in the fire affected areas.

Donations can be made at any Bendigo Bank branch or online at Community Enterprise Foundation.

If you are living outside Australia and would like to donate, please email Community Enterprise Foundation at: foundation.mailbox@bendigoadelaide.com.au and we will assist with your donation.

All donations of $2 or more are tax deductible and donors will be provided with a tax receipt through the Foundation.

NEWS.COM.AU

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank is an Australian financial institution, operating primarily in retail banking. The company was formed by the merger of Bendigo Bank and Adelaide Bank in November 2007. Before the merger, Bendigo Bank delivered its products and services through almost 900 outlets Australia-wide, including more than 160 company owned branches, 220 community owned Community Bank branches of Bendigo Bank, 100 agencies and 400 Elders outlets. The bank's branches are primarily in Victoria and Queensland. The merged bank now has over 400 branches, including 25 that came with the merger of Adelaide Bank.

-oOo-

I'm currently taking a little break, but will be back to catch up on your blogs soon.

Happy New Year!

Fireworks were shot from 22 city rooftops to herald in the new year in Melbourne.

As you can see from this news photo there were crowds of people everywhere . . . and we were nowhere to be seen. Hubby and I spent the evening with friends at the Victorian Jazz Club, Clayton RSL, where we enjoyed a lovely three course meal and more than a couple of glasses of wine, while listening and dancing to Shimona and the Cats Pyjamas.
It was a fabulous night! :)

-oOo-

Now to what's been happening in the studio.

Buttons the tailor received his custom clothes for Christmas, courtesy of Gugu Moda, and I made him the white apron with a little pocket to store his scissors in. He wanted to show you the sign which will be mounted on the outside wall of his shop. I'm pretty pleased with the way it turned out.

I also completed crocheting the little clown's hat. As you can see, these two have become friends.

And the shop furniture is finished. I gave each of the  pieces a base coat, then a coat of crimson red, and a coat of beige, before rubbing it back with sandpaper to give it a worn look.

I then added a final coat of matt sealer and it was all done and dusted!

I also ruled lines on the table top to make it appear like it was made from planks, rather than being a solid piece of wood.

I think it looks like old furniture that has been painted several times before,

so hopefully it appears to everyone else, like it's been knocked about through years of hard work.

I have had little motivation to do much else, but I did manage to book and pay for our airplane tickets for our London/Paris trip later in the year. Now it's time to catch up on some blog reading. :)