Made To Move Barbie

My new Made To Move Barbie. She can move fairly well, but her forearms aren't as poseable as I thought they'd be....but they made her hands able to rotate fully from her wrist to compensate.

Like most most Barbies straight out of the box, her hair was ugly. It had a big bend in it and it didn't hang properly...so she had to have her hair re-set....which is easy. I just boiled the kettle, held her over the sink and poured recently boiled water over her hair. Be very careful not to get any on your hand!!! It's very hot!!!! Then I squeezed the excess out with a towel (gently, you don't want to scrunch her hair up) then gave her a gentle combing. There were uneven ends that I snipped off with sharp scissors. Now, when her hair is dry, she'll look great!

I also did the same with Teresa's hair. It had a flip style at the back I didn't care for, so now it's been straightened. I didn't pour any water on the top of her head though, because I liked how full it is!

Here the two gals are hanging around by my special tea pot until their hair is dry, then I'll take them to work to clutter up my desk! :)

Hawaiian Barbie

I made another thrift-store found doll into a Hawaiian Barbie.

 It took me way longer to finish this one than it should have, but I've been working steadily for the past couple years and haven't had the spare time to devote to doll customizing, like I used to.

 I used chainette fringe for her skirt, after experimenting with real grass etc. I bought another Barbie who had a perfect little Bikini and flower that I wanted, and put them on this doll. I made the lei by threading together the smallest silk flowers I could get my hands on.

 Here she is with some of the other girls of my collection.

And I just thought I'd snap a photo of my Mulan doll as she collects dust with the others. I keep them down in my basement now, until someday when I have a bigger house.

Toronto Toy & Doll Collector's Show

I went to the Toronto Toy & Doll Collectors Show yesterday in the hopes of finding some Barbie shoes, and my hopes were more than met! A lady was selling pairs of shoes and boots for only $1!!!! I was so thrilled! She had a whole box of them, paired together in tiny zip-locked bags. I ended up getting 10 pair. I was also able to replace my Hollywood Nails Barbie that I had (as shown in the photo below on the right) but my daughter destroyed as a toddler. I also saw a ton of other replacement dolls for ones I no longer have.....but I was short on money...or believe me, I would have come home with a few more. I even bought a tiny "Dawn" doll like one I used to have when I was little. The chameleon Beanie Baby in the above photo was purchased for my daughter to go with her Rapunzel costume I'm making her for next Hallowe'en. He was only $1 too! I couldn't believe some of the great deals at the show!

Fab Faces Find

Today I had the urge to seek out abandoned Barbies....at the local thrift store. I found one that had a "My Scene" face, but she had these weird buttons sticking out of her back....like the "vent ports" sticking out of the back of H.R. Giger's Alien.
Anyway, it seemed when I pressed the buttons, her face changed, like a little animatronic puppet. I couldn't see her very clearly because she was in a plastic bag with another doll. For $1.99 I felt I should get it. Here's how she looks now that I cleaned her up a bit and dressed her. Of course she was naked when I found her, and her hair was messy and it looked like someone had taken scissors to a part of it. Her hair is still wet in this photo because I used the boiling water method to style it....(so it's all flowing in the same direction.)


I'm going to take her to work and sit her on my desk. Since I work at an animation studio, I figure she'll fit in perfectly.
I did some research and discovered she was called Fab Faces Nolee. There were 4 in the series, made in 2006. I don't think they sold very well......mostly I'm sure because of the long buttons sticking out of her back.
The above photo by the way is one I found off the internet.....in which it is apparently VERY rare to find this doll...new in the box. I'm sure most of them are naked in Thrift Stores by now.
Below is a photo of the weird buttons.

Abandoned Barbie Project Photos

Every morning, on my way to work via the new bus route I have chosen, I've been passing this little theatre with a big store front window full of Barbies. This morning I brought my camera and got off the bus to photograph them.
I discovered they are a "found object" artpiece. It's called The Abandoned Barbie Project. I think it's fascinating! Enjoy the photos!

















I just learned more about the Abandoned Barbie Project here

More of my Collection

I was recently looking up "African American Barbies" and I was reminded of my "Asha" dolls. These dolls were made around 1994 as a series with 3 dolls in total wearing different African styled clothing. I was lucky to find all three in the same store, so I bought them all! I took them out of their boxes, which I sometimes wish I hadn't because their hair and outfits are dusty.

I found this next doll about a year ago at a used clothing store. She has fabulous hair! She was a beach Barbie doll, because she has those big (normal) feet. (Ever notice how unnaturally tiny Barbie dolls' feet usually are?) I'm going to make her into some sort of Tribal Belly Dancer.

Speaking of great hair, this doll on the left has great and hard to find hair. A lot of African American dolls have straight hair, like the one on the right. The left doll had her hair pulled back tight into a "pony tail" kind of thing....but I wanted her to have more of an Afro. I have her wearing just a bathrobe right now until I decide what new clothing she should wear.

Bride of Frankenstein Barbie with Improved Dress

I haven't had any time for Barbies lately, but a little while ago I started redoing this one's dress.
I just use white Jersey Knit fabric and used a piece of card to support the shoulder pads.
I haven't sewn the hem or anything yet, but I felt that since Hallowe'en is fast approaching, I should post her.

Bride of Frankenstein Barbie

I have been fighting with this &*#%! satin to make her dress, but it's just not working. It's too stiff for this scale, so I'll have to try again with rayon or something, but at least she's mostly done.

Here she is without her dress. I wrapped her pretty much like a mummy, but I left the top of her chest bare to show off a big scar which I thought would be an interesting touch.

I mostly patterned her after the original Elsa Lanchester Bride of Frankenstein.

Since this doll had earring holes I gave her earrings. I tried to find something that looked machinery related. I wish I'd had little wristwatch cogs.....they would have been perfect, but these sort of do the trick.

I had a terrible time with the face paint. Rerooting, no problem, but trying to get the old face paint off with nail polish remover smudged it more than removed it. The doll on the right has the exact same face my "Bride" did before I went to work on her. The way I closed her mouth was by filling in her "teeth" with a waterproof glue. I manipulated it with a toothpick so it sat right while drying.
If I ever do a repaint again, I'll have to invest in an airbrush and better paint brushes.
Oh well, this was an experiment. Very fitting that I chose "Bride of Frankenstein" don't you think?

A Sneak Peek

Here is the next doll I will have completed. She still needs her dress, so I'm finishing that up. I will also show a "before" photo of her face.

Ukrainian Barbies

I didn't make these dolls, but I thought they were great, so I'm showing off their images. I originally came across them on a Ukrainian website that said they had been custom made for a fund raising event to benefit orphans. That was the only amount of English on the website, so I can't go into any more detail than that.
I'm posting these because I was going to try to make one of my own someday ....... someday....

Also, here's another doll that someone else beat me to...a Yulia Tymoshenko doll! I'd love to own this doll! But I don't.

Memories of Barbie

Here are the only images I could dig up of my early experiences with Barbies. This was in the 1970's and I only had one doll, but I was so thrilled to get a ten-speed bike for her and a horse one Christmas.

I've recently seen the original yellow ten-speed on eBay and I would have loved to have bought it....you know....for nostalgic purposes. Unfortunately, the Barbie I had didn't have bendable legs, so it was hard for her to sit on the horse. My sister was the one who had the Malibu Barbie who's legs were bendable.

BUT after searching the internet, I discovered that THIS was the doll I had. She's classified as a "Foreign" Barbie because she wasn't available in the States. She's officially a Malibu "Steffie". Wow, this one is selling for $195....I should have hung on to mine. Oh well.



I really loved that horse though.
Just look at that roomy corral that came with him! I think I ended up using the fence parts for hurdles for him to jump over.

The Barbie Runway Show

What kind of a Barbie enthusiast am I? I'd been virtually unaware of the Barbie Runway Show until today! It happened 2 weeks ago! Luckily, some nice people posted it on YouTube so I got to see it anyway. These were my favorites:

This dress was designed by a newer designer called "Three As Four":


I unfortunately couldn't find the name of this designer, but I thought it was cute and babydoll-ish and I LOVE the hat!


This pink corset-dress apparently weighed 25 lbs on its own! It was designed by "The Blonds".

This zebra striped outfit, inspired of course by the original Barbie doll's famous bathing suit, was made by "Patricia Field":

I love this sweater dress! I want to make a little one for one of my dolls. Its designer is "Twinkle":

These last two are gorgeous....and I believe "Tommy Hilfiger" was responsible for this 20's flapper meets Blade Runner creation. The clear cape is great!

Now, I shouldn't have been surprised, but this glittering extravaganza is the work of none other than "Bob Mackie". I should have known. I want to see Barbies available in all these outfits!