Thursday 15 January 2015

The things I haven't blogged about


I'm trying to get back on track with my doll updates and there are many significant things that happened since my last meaningful post (October-ish). As it turns out, being more active on the crafting front leaves no time for blogging about all the crafting :) Or, supposing I can steal some precious sleeping time to blog (like I'm doing now), I still have to use up all the short winter daylight to take pictures, when I'd rather be working on doll projects or take care of stuff that require banks and shops to be open. Anyway, I'll talk about some of the things I managed to do and we'll figure out the order in which they need to posted on the blog. If you expect many pictures, sorry! I swear I took photos of everything but I have no idea where they are... So you don't feel like you've wasted your click coming here, up there ^ is a December pic of Tali the kitten who is now all big and healthy :)

The biggest highlight of the last two months was a j-doll purchase. One of the girls from the local doll "club" told me about some special offers on Pullip Style. We quickly gathered a big package, split the shipping, and only a week later, it arrived!


Hubby helped me choose the dolls. There were so many tempting deals, I kept changing my mind! I think our final selection was the best, and the only thing I regret (that was out of my control anyway) was that they didn't put up Andrassy Ave. earlier, she is available now but the other dolls I got are either absent or more expensive.
A very picture-heavy post is coming up, probably the next one :)

Another thing that happened early during my absence was shoe-related. Actually, there were three separate doll shoe events, two of which can be seen here:


I was experimenting with platform shoes for flat feet (middle), then I decided to enter one of Froggy's contests with more shoes made after her tutorials. Finally, a bulk order of knockoff MH shoes arrived, which provided me with a lot of blanks for shoe customs.

In the middle of the previous project, my friend and I came up with an idea for our forum. We set little challenges for the members to get more activity and get things done too. It hasn't caught on yet, but at least it's working out for the two of us. I broke out the big brush collection I had gathered and managed to do this paint-over/repaint and necklace:


I don't like the lips so I'll change them next time I'll repaint something. It felt good though. For the current challenge I'm sewing an outfit, the pattern is already tested, good luck me!

The necklace uses some nail art supplies. With the ones that arrived recently I have everything I need for making most types of doll jewellery ^^. I can't wait for the kitty to grow up, she's still too nosy and I have to carry my delicate crafting to mum's. That's a huge inconvenience because I always find that I'm missing something I didn't think of bringing, or something leaks in transit. So far jewellery tests are carried in my poorly lit bathroom, where I end up with crooked studs and bruised knees.

One unexpected surprise last month came from a friend. She secretly made an art doll and got it into a small exhibition, so of course I had to see it after finding out.


Art dolls aren't my cup of tea, but now I have someone to swap supplies with! Besides dolls, there were some pretty impressive miniatures. I'm glad I got to see everything in person.

There goes your diet

I guess that's it for the doll updates. Between the vet appointments and the holidays, it's a wonder that so many doll activities were squeezed in. I'll gather all the missing photos and work on separate posts for each subject. I also want to bring closure to some posts and projects I've had in drafts for many months. What would you like to hear most about?


Of course, I couldn't leave you hanging about the j-dolls. This is my whole group before one of them ended up with both hands busted through no fault of my own. I'll have to look for epoxy putty to rebuild the forearms, but this is a story for another post...

Peace (^^)~
The Black Kitty

14 comments:

  1. You're an enabler, mentioning the Pullip Style sale! Now I'm tempted.

    Adorable kitty! Both of the ones we have will play with a doll shoe on the floor, and one got into some of my wooly nylon serger thread and spread it all the way across my bedroom and out into the hall. I was just thankful she didn't try to eat it. Generally, they stay out of my stuff.

    I'm interested in the sewing project. I like seeing what other people sew for their dolls.

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    1. Hi Barb! Sorry about tempting you to get broke on Pullip Style... I thought j-dolls are easier to find in the USA as they sometimes appear in real stores.

      The kitty is super adorable and we love her to bits, but she's too young to be uninterested in small foreign objects. My parents' cat is the ideal crafting companion, I used to have a desk full of open seed bead containers and he stepped carefully between them on his way to the window :)

      I'll definitely post the result of the sewing project. The challenge is simply to use a pattern so I picked a MH outfit. I already sewed the skirt panels together. It's not super difficult and relies mostly on frills and embellishments. I hope to finish it by the end of the week.

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    2. The only brick-and-mortar store that I know J-Dolls have appeared is a place called Tuesday Morning, which carries overstock from other retailers. Its stock varies wildly from store to store, and I don't think I ever saw any dolls in mine. There might be some American retailers that carry them (too lazy to look at the moment) but it's the sale that is especially tempting. They rarely go on sale.

      I found a Barbie doll skate moved half way across the living room this morning. :)

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    3. Dolls are usually easier to find in the USA, either in physical stores or online, I hope you can get what you are looking for!
      I don't know anything about the Barbie skate though. Not a clue...

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  2. Your kitty sounds so cute. Have you posted a photo of her? I like the repaint. And thanks to you and toyboxphilosopher I have a J-Doll. I might get one more.

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    1. I'm flattered to be one of the people who influenced you to get a j-doll! Which is it? Which do you want to get next?
      The kitty IS cute! Yes, I have mentioned her before on the blog, at the beginning of this post: http://multicrafteral.blogspot.com/2014/10/updates-and-rant.html
      We are getting her a sister today :)

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    2. Sorry I didn't see your reply sooner. I'm afraid to get another Jdoll now because they're so fragile. I'm afraid I'll break them. I have an evil cat that plays with my dolls when I'm asleep.

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    3. I have one of those too! I wrapped the front of the doll shelf with wide scotch tape, sticky side out, and there have been fewer incidents :)

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  3. Hi Black Kitty, Luv the Barbie repaint!!!! I know what mean about blogging. Between the crafting and the photography, not to mention the writing and keeping up with everyone else in the dollosphere, it has a way of completely taking over your life if you let it! I don't collect art dolls, but they're still fun to look at other people's collections. The clothes in the last photo are exceptional! I also like your accessories and would like to get a closer look at those shoes you created!

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    1. Hi, April! The clothes in the last photo are the stock outfits of the j-dolls. The first two dolls on the left are in each other's clothes and the violin on the last one is a separate purchase. I think outfits are a big part of the j-dolls' appeal, that's why it took me so long to decide which ones to get :)
      I'll make a detailed post about the shoes, today we are going to get another kitten and I've been super stressed about it lately. If they get along fine, a new post will follow soon :)

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  4. Hi Blackkitty :) I can relate - I spent much of the summer making things instead of blogging, sometimes it has to be done ... I also struggle taking photos in the winter light, especially because I am still lazily using my iPad for photos which is horribly grainy in anything less than bright sunshine - roll on Summer!! I love your J-Dolls - I don't own any but I've always admired them. Maybe I'll get round to them one day ... I love your repaint too - the eyes are wonderful.

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    1. Thank you! I'll buy a new set of paints and change the mouth. The post on J-dolls is coming up - I'm swamped but the photos are done and I haven't forgotten about it. I never dreamed of having a J-doll, much less four, but once I put my mind to it, things happened :) But you have a wonderful collection too, your Leas in particular are exquisite!

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  5. Tali the kitten looks adorable.

    Congrats on your J-doll purchase and new forum topic. I remember visiting that site, Legendary, some years ago. I'm glad that the board is active ;-)

    Oh, I see there are Flickr photos of organized collections. Inspiration. Thanks for that link!

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    1. Tali is eating up all my free time but yes, she's the sweetest cat (almost 7 months now) I've ever known! Thank you for stopping by :)

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