Dogs, walks, prams.

A couple of weekends ago we had the RCPCA Million Paws Walk.  I took my fur babies along and a friend from work came with me to help.  She looked after Bo.  Pretty much carried her the whole day purely and simply because she is cute and cuddly.

What I love about the million paws walk is the chance to get some new outfits for my two girls.  Tess has recently been shaved and we have had some cold nights.  For the sake of me keeping my bed sheets at night I needed to get her a new sleeping jacket.  In the end I got three outfits. 

Tess with cute angel wings.  She does have a halo but it blends in with her fur.  At one stage I was carrying her (she is so heavy), and I was wishing for Red Bull to make her wings work.

Bo ended up in a cute Aussie traditional surf life saving outfit.  This is her minus the cap.

This photo shows the cap and the fact that she did walk a little way.

Considering we were walking along the river and many dogs wanted to cool off, Bo diligently reminded them that they had to swim between the flags.

This is Tess at the end of the day in her new sleep jacket.  She was exhausted.  It was a big day for her.

Considering Bo was carried most of the way due to tiny legs (and my friends need for hugs) and that both are 11 years old and Tess barely made it through the day, I decided to go hunting for dog prams.  Yes your read correctly.

After a week of hunting I realised that the best one to get that would fit both my dogs would cost around $300 including shipping.  This was not an option but I still needed something.  They both love getting out and about but eventually one or both will be carried.

I decided to look on gumtree and came across a pram going for $50, barely been used.  So what if it was meant for a human child.  My dogs are my kids.  Therefore I have now claimed the title of crazy dog lady.

Early morning trial of the new pram.

Don't they look cute.  Thinking of making them bibs and bonnets for the next RSPCA Walk.  LOL

Crazy dog lady signing off.  :)



Blythe Customisation Part 5

Wow, wefted hair.  Takes a while to stitch on but I am sure it is far less time than doing each strand by the loop.  It took 3 nights of sitting in front of my favourite TV shows to get the hair stitched.  I followed the basic instructions for the Cool Cat Website. 

To finish off the wefted hair, you need to cut a small hole in the scalp and pus some of the hair through.  Click on the above link to Cool Cat if you are not sure what I mean.  Anyway they suggest a 10-15cm piece.  I think I used double that and I am glad because I think the weft layers underneath would still have shown.  They also suggested sewing the weft layers 1cm apart but I did it a bit narrower than that.

Once all the hair is in, you have to attach it back to the hard section of the scalp.  Oh my.  When I read that this model head (radiant Blythe) was difficult to re-attach, they weren't kidding.  For two nights I tried to get the soft rubber scalp to push back into its hard casing.  In doing so I almost tore off the hair I had stitched on.  Finally, out of desperation and only 1 of 3 phalanges inserted, I went to the bathroom and poured powder onto it.  After much pushing I finally got it in.  YAY!  I was really getting worried there for a second.

Ok so now that is done I have to set the hair.  Remember there is a bit in the centre that is shoved through a hole and is sticking up like a fountain.  The instructions I read said to gather the hair in an elastic band and iron it in place (iron on low with a cloth over top).  That sound easy, NOT!  The fountain section of hair had it's own mind and wouldn't stay where I wanted it to go.  Doing it while holding onto the hair was not easy either.  I needed two hands to hold the hair in place and another to old the scalp.

All of a sudden I had a brain wave, or brain splash as one of my high school teachers used to say.  There in the room with me, was a tall tube of fabric.  It was the perfect width to rest the scalp on.  I was then able to hold the hair in place withe the lacky band so much more easily. 

After I ironed the hair I covered it with the plastic that you find on the new dolls to keep their hair in place.  I am going to keep it like this until the weekend, just to make sure it stays the way I want it.  After that I will finally put her all back together, and then proceed with a hair cut.  oooooh it is so exciting.

I have added some photos below just in case you are going to customise your own doll.  I like to think they are a nice addition to the visual instruction on the Cool Cat website.

I recently purchased a Simply Mango Blythe doll.  She arrived today and I am going to customise her and see how I go at selling it.  I already know what theme I am going with.  Stay tuned.

Donations Please

In January next year I am heading back to Cambodia as a volunteer on a Medical team organised by the ICC.  No I won't be giving injections but I will be helping out in whatever way I can. 

I am also hoping to raise $1-2000 to assist the orphanage that we will be visiting. Not all the kids that go there are orphans.  Some have been removed from their home due to violent situations; they are at risk of child prostitution, or that their parents simply can not feed and clothe them.

On the right hand side of my blog you will see a link to my fundraising page.  Please help as much as you can.

Below are some photos I took from around Phnom Penh when I was there a couple of years ago.

An entrance to a children's day care

These people live here

 This little boy was just leaving a school that has been set up for children who scavenge on the Tip

This little girl also works on the tip.  I look at this photo and wonder what life has done to her in the past 2 years.  I hope that she has not been sold into child prostitution.

Good News

I managed to get the eye mechanism of my Blythe doll working.  It helps if you put the back of the head on that way when you pull the string it is being pulled in the right direction.  All I have to do now is

• finish her hair and style it
• put her together
• make her outfit (that is depended on if/when I can get the pattern for the outfit that I love).

More photos will come once the hair is done and she is put together.  I will not be selling this one, but I have ordered another doll to customise and I may sell her. 

Blythe Customisation Part 4

Amelie is coming along nicely.  Yes that is going to be the name of my ice queen.  I named her after a character in a series of books I am reading.  In the book she is the Queen Vampire, sounds nasty but she isn't really.  I perceive her as being a character that will do anything she can to save those close to her.  Sometimes it means sacrifices of the heart and doing things that others disagree with.  In her world, in order to keep safe those that she loves, she has to keep them at arms length and hide her emotions.  Through all her trials, she is calm  and cool.  Hence she has earned the nickname Ice Queen buy those who do not understand her.  Anyway the name is the only thing this Blythe and the books character have in common. 

At the moment I am stitching on the hair.  Even with weft hair it is taking forever.  I am also having issues with her eye mechanism.  At first I put I put the mechanism together incorrectly.  Even referring to my photos that I took during the dismantling stage, I was unable to figure out what was wrong and why her eyes weren't changing.

Finally decided to google the eye mechanism and found the blog Blythelovesme with really good, clear images of the mechanism.  It helped me to realise what I had done wrong.  I do think I may have damaged it a little though as the eyes still don't quite want to work, even though everything is in the correct place.  They work once and then something slips.  Think I stretched the bit I had wrong.

Here she is in broad daylight (see she isn't a Vampire) with her eyes closed.  Her face is completely finished though I am wondering how I could gloss up her lips.

Due to having to pull her apart again I have a little damage to the make up.  I am not too worried about it though.  This one is not going to be for sale.  I am learning to always keep my first.  They are an inspiration and a good learning tool.

Dark blue eye chips

Light blue eye chips.  These were my favourite on their own but they tend to disappear in the amongst the blue makeup.

Purple eye chips

These silver eye chips are now my favourites

A close up of the dominates.

 Back to the hair now.  Oh I hope her eye mechanism works properly.



Running!!!

When I was in primary school I was always the last one chosen for anything involving running.  Being short and chunky and kinda looking like I would do a better job as an elephants foot didn't help.  It seems strange that now, at age 39 and much much heavier, that I get this sudden urge to run.  Not run away, just run. 

I have taken to running around the back yard for the last couple of nights.  Ok let me rephrase that, it is running for me, to the average person it is probably a fast walk.  In fact my dog barely gets to trotting speed as she "runs" beside me.  At least it gets me moving, puffing and sweating.  I can't do it continuously so I run a lap and then walk and so on.  I do it for about 20 minutes with short breaks to do some weights and give my legs a rest.

So what does my body think about this?  My mind imagines my feet would moving my body like it was as light as a feather.  Instead they move it like they are chained to gravity and it is too stubborn to let go. My lungs complain bitterly and can't believe that I would do such a thing.  They are joined by my lower back muscles, which, if personified, would be dole bludgers that never get off the couch.  Yet strangely enough, I am enjoying it.  Who would have thought!

Just a quick catch up with the Blythe doll customisation: eyelids are painted and new eyelashes are in; face make up is coming along nicely (or as nice as you can get if it's not airbrushed on); and the scalp is finally dry so I can start stitching the hair on this weekend.  If I get a little too freaked about cutting the hair, I might finally introduce myself to my neighbour, she is a hair dresser.  Hmmm I could with a haircut myself.  Photos soon.

Oh its Friday tomorrow!!  :)

Blythe Customisation Part 3

Who would have guessed that I would have time to sit and do some more on my Blythe doll today.  I suppose I can thank Transperth for that.  Due to an "incident" when it came time for me to get home, the trains weren't working. 

The train driver told us we were stuck at the platform and it may be quicker to walk.  Our stop was the next stop where we changed trains, so a friend and I decided to take the driver's advice.

Unbeknown to us, there was detours on the foot path which led a lot of us walkers to cross roads that normally don't get crossed by pedestrians let alone at peak hour traffic time.  It was a good 30 minute walk in the fresh air which really only delayed me getting home by 20 minutes - in the meantime, another friend who had elected to stay on the train, got home at her normal time.

All I can say is that with all the "incidences" of trains not working and some walking required, along with escalators not working and therefore needing the stairs, I must remember to thank transperth when I win the biggest weight loss of the year award.

Anyway it meant that when I got home I didn't really need to exercise because I had already done it, so I could sit down and have some fun.

Back to my Blythe doll - tonight I touched up the eye chips and glued them into the eyeballs (so proud of my eye chips).  I also sprayed the scalp with Mr Super Clear and then used a liquid chalk to add the colour I wanted.  I will spray it again once the chalk is dry.

For the eye makeup I have a specific design in mind so you are getting a sneak peak.  I started out with dry chalk and didn't like the density it gave.  It was too light in some areas and too dark in others.  It just wasn't going anywhere.  Eventually I made a stencil out of post it notes, stuck them to her face and then used the same liquid chalk I used on the scalp to add her eye makeup. 

Liquid chalk is supposed to be fast drying but today it was doing anything but.  I had a horrible feeling that it just wasn't going to work and thought I would have to hand paint instead (dreading bush streaks).  I eventually tried drying with the hairdryer and that seems to have worked.  YAY! :)  With the face though, I had sanded it so I didn't use Mr Super Clear on it.  I will spray it on once it is dry to help seal it.  By the way, the makeup looks a lot more shinier in this photo than it does in real life.  It is actually quite matt.

I almost forgot, I have carved a smile into her mouth as well. 

If the scalp has finished drying by tomorrow, I may just have to start stitching the hair.  OMG I am getting sooooo excited about how she will turn out.  It may be a while before I photograph her in full finished beauty as I am waiting for Awsumgal to find the pattern she designed for one of her beauties.