Vita Plastica

There was a time I could put my doll habit aside for months. When  not every single moment of my life was spent obsessing over the next story or project. This was before blogging. Now for every project, I pause and take a picture, I craft blog entries in my head and I can't wait to share XY or Z with you guys. The minute the project is done, I think of the next.  The audience adds a level of responsibility, accountability...and (self imposed) pressure. Sometimes I don't feel able to enjoy to my dolls because I know I'll have to report on what I'm doing.  For this and other reasons, I have come to a decision. So my dear friends, I take my leave of you. The blog will remain open, the website is still there and I'm still on Facebook and Tumblr (barely). Time to dedicate myself to some crafty kid related things.  Maybe even a kid craft blog so I can still get my writing in. Maybe I'll go to college. Help my dad garden in his golden years. Spend some money on m...

Oh this month has been crazy my friends. Family trips and dogs biting toddler noses, teething, colds and fevers and birthdays, Mother's Day and work! So that's my apology for being MIA. But I do still get my craft on during kiddie bedtime so I have lots to show you. Let's start with Electropop Dayle. When last you saw us, she had a weird straight section in the front of her hair: First I dipped her curly hair in boiling water to encourage some lengthening.Then I conditioned and combed every inch of it and braided it in tiny braids. Then braided those into bigger braids and so on. Then I boiled it again. It came out beautifully and surprisingly unfrizzy. Now for the front. I made some wrapped it up in some aluminum foil rollers:  But only got this: Then I used dolly rollers and only got some big ringlets. Then I remembered Kristl at How to Play With Barbies tutorial on making a "halo" or rotini curls. So I set to work. You can tell from the los...

Introducing Talloolah Wilde.     Hailing from 1930's Louisiana (but educated in New York and abroad). A stuck up mulatto who thinks highly of herself although everyone knows her mama was a whore and her grandmother killed a man in cold blood. She is always in the company of wealthy gentlemen callers. OR maybe she's not stuck up at all but they everyone thinks she is because she's so beautiful and mysterious. And maybe you'd be a whore too if you had no education or prospects. And if you had to raise not only your three children, but your younger brothers and sisters because your Mama's in jail and your daddy went home to his white family. And maybe some folks call it cold blood, but when a man is trying to take your home and your children away from you, you'll do just about anything you need to do to keep them safe. And just maybe gentlemen callers who want to take care of you are the only company you can get when everyone is jealous ...

This is one of those brain-organization posts that I have to put up to stop feeling so overwhelmed. So move along, nothing to see here. (but feel free to read and comment of course!) Too Many Dolls Okay you have your holy grail now, and paid 4 times the amount that you swore you would spend this year on a single doll purchase. No more (ish) dolls. Work now on your reroots and repaints if you feel the need for a new character. Grandville Housing Crisis Every new character wants a new house. Unused characters have fully furnished homes. The Fears have tiny rooms in an apartment building. Josephine has a huge house and only one room gets seen. It's time to make some adjustments. Three's a Crowd Twenty is even worse. B list characters end up in a drawer. Drawer gets opened by toddlers. Within an hour, B listers are D Listers. Put them back in the million doll boxes you keep because you're nuts. Props You only feel that you have too many accessories because they neve...

I'm so excited about this contest! Cat at Doll Affinity is holding a photo challenge! I love challenges. I never participate on Flickr though. I dunno, I don't spend much time there so it doesn't feel as personal as the blog family we have here.  I can't wait to see what you guys come up with!  And three weeks is a great deadline, even in a month as busy as my May. And hey, anything to keep me distracted from this doll wedding of mine, which will probably be in the fall. Maybe.  So if you don't follow Cat's blog, you should because she's awesome. And join the contest!  smooches, dani