Madness + Art =

slight series of unfortunate events

2011-08-20T05:17:00.000-07:00

First my camera died.
Then i got stupid at my laptop.

But im still pulling creativity from the deep dark recesses of my mind. Doodles, letters, altered journals, letters, and even a charity doll for the Goodfellows.

Probably couldnt surpress creativity if i tried, not that i would really want to. GF doll is due in a few days, that'll be my weekend.

My own little excitement.

2011-05-02T00:25:00.000-07:00

Haven't said much here, hasn't been much to say.

Tomorrow though...things will be happening. A wonderful gift during tax season (Donna the Dell laptop) from Blake set this in motion. My computer table is now free of a computer. And it's a rather big table. And the kitchen table could definitely be used for kitchen things. And I'd love to rearrange the bedroom anyway. (Seriously. I adore rearranging rooms.)

The former computer table, which I believe was originally a kitchen table, will be the new craft table. It's easily 3 times bigger than the current craft table. My squees, can you hear them?

I've got the new bedroom layout planned in my head. No idea if everything will fit until I try it. Most likely I'll try on my own tomorrow while Blake's at work. While he is a quite a bit stronger than me and that would be appreciated for such a task, I'm fairly certain he'd nay say my choices. I'd prefer he come home to it DONE, than to hear his doubts and let them weasel into my stride.

It was Blake's suggestion, moving the craft things to the bedroom, actually. He asked if I was over the dolls. I said no, that I just hadn't done them lately. That I doubt I'll ever be over them. And I added that my history with art is one where the interest fades in and out. He suggested moving the space then. More room, better access, etc. And...hell yes, sir. Great idea!

2011-04-04T08:12:00.000-07:00

As much as I love creative endeavours, and I do, there's also some self-punishment going on in not allowing myself access to the crafting area. When I rearrange things to block the path to the table, and tell myself "All the laundry must be done before I can craft again," am I forcing myself to be productive, or yet again just putting more rules and punishments in the way? I think today I will break the rules, move the shit out of the way...and just create. I think I am allowed.

Sale, Sale, SALE!!!!

2011-03-15T08:42:00.000-07:00

We are having a Sale, over on our corner of Etsy. Please do be checking it out.

You may find these particular items of particular interest:
$13 Candy the cocktail waitress
$18 Rockin' Robin
$15 1920's Flapper Amelia

Right insane prices, I tell ya. Scoop 'em up while you can. Yeah?

little bits

2011-03-09T16:37:00.000-08:00

My camera battery decided to shit out on me right after I made good head way, so ... here is the picture from before the good head way...you can make of it what you will.

The story reveals itself.

2010-12-25T20:12:00.000-08:00

As a writer and a story teller, or more fitting - As a day dreamer primarily, I can't help but have a story for each doll I work on. They aren't just a media for some artistic expression. Nor are they just play time. They are the union of the two in a really fun way.

The lady above finally expressed her full story to me today. Well, maybe not even her full story, but enough of it to give me a ton of creative energy to get her worked on. I don't know if she'll be for sale, or for a shelf in my own home...but she's been my most time intensive project for the last few days.

Creatively speaking, I'm full of the ideas and having very little of the follow through. I've started about a million different things that could all be great in the end. I occasionally say that I'll go through my box of half finished dolls and just crank them all out to completion. Maybe someday I will do just that.

Yesterday alone I hacked up a wedding gown (real person sized) into a possible skirt for me, and for about 25 lbs of white satin for other things.

Some of that white satin is no longer white, and some of it is now on the lady shown above. It's her wedding day. She's marrying a man, a human man, in order to restore the peace between the humans and the fairies of the land. She exchanged her fairy body for a human body, losing all her magic. But she's still 100% fairy in her heart. She will bring peace and shimmer to the land.

In the works

2010-12-24T16:09:00.000-08:00

She's gonna be a nymph when she grows up.

She's in honor of my recent sexual peak.

Here we have the fairy version of The Little Mermaid. She gave up her fairyhood for to marry some human guy who could possibly be a prince of some amount of charm.

Just your average fairy lady. She's a project I'm taking my time on, and I still don't have a clearly defined end goal...but she'll guide me along the way, I'm sure.

It's a fairy family. Dad, mom, twin toddlers of both sexes, and a wee baby girl. They aren't started, except for the boy twin, who needed blue hair so that was handled.

Electroshock Barb. I LOVE this doll. She was literally posed like that in the bin at the Value World. She's all woe is me, and dramatic about it even while being naked. So...that works for me, and will work for her once I find the time to make her proper electroshocked. :)

These are going to be Becky and Fizz from Coronation Street (which is my boyfriend's absolutely favorite British soap opera ever). They aren't started, but they will be soon. The man's bday is in late January, and since I need to give him a present...it might as well be a few hot miniature chicks that he's into.

This chick was completed AGES ago, and though it's embarrassing to admit, I hadn't put her up on etsy yet because my photo area was overflowing with bullshit...so yesterday I organized, and now she's up on etsy.

This girlie was of course made by Joy for me, she is my xmas prezzie, and I love her more than I thought it would ever be possible to love a doll.

And that's all I got to share at the moment. Craft on, guys.

Girl's Night Out!

2010-12-22T23:58:00.000-08:00

There was a freak show in town! How exciting, I'd always really wanted to go to one. The Siamese twins
really drew quite a crowd.

I wasn't entirely surprised to find that Amanda Palmer was first in line for this show...but I was thrilled to see her in real life!

Joy and I weren't cutting, but we did get a photo in front of the freaks at the freak show!

After the freak show we found ourselves at a club. Lot's a chicks, it may have been a lesbian club, but there was one skeevy dude hanging out by the jute box.

Joy and I danced together for a while.

But then Joy found a new dance partner.

So I started dancing with this chick, but she ended up being a little too hands on for my tastes.

Joy got a little extra crazy on the dance floor, and ended up doing a head dive into some chick's crotch.

The chick escorted Joy back to the safety of standing by me, lol.

Then Joy was like, "Dude I left my meds in the car," so she went to go take them.

She seemed more herself when she returned.

It really was a fun evening! Joy and I had a blast. This "Crazy Apey" is my Xmas prezzie from Joy. It is exactly what I wanted, and utterly perfect for me. So many hearts for Joy!

Fat Positive Doll?

2010-11-14T02:09:00.000-08:00

I just really want a plus-size doll. Well, more than one if I could get them easily. But I can't.

This is the first plus size doll I ever saw, and it's just a very insulting cartoon rendering. While my body may look like that, why's she gotta be in bed with food strewn around her? Why does there have to be some McDonald's crappy excuse for food within her reach?

I saw this image recently. I love it. Seriously, I would totally buy this doll. But I can't. I don't know if The Body shop actually does make this doll, but Matel made sure they won't be selling it in the U.S.

There were only 25 of these dolls made, and they didn't even have proportionate arms and legs, but I'd STILL love to have several of them at my fingertips. Unfortunately they ended up just being an artistic statement, which IS needed also, but they are not for sale.

In the 90's we were offered the "Happy to be Me" doll. But it didn't make a whole lot of money, so they stopped making it. Well, darlings...that doll is ugly, and also not even plus size, or "realistic" as they called it. All I can see is that she has a bigger head, not a pretty one either...and just a regular skinny body. Plus her clothes sucked (even by 90's standards), and why is the doll in the background dressed as Peg Bundy?

This was the only semi realistic plus size doll I could find.

This was also under the google search for "plus size doll". It's perhaps wide, I guess, but definitely not the sort of doll I'm looking for.

WHY can't I have a good plus size doll? I don't care if toy companies think that's a contradiction. I don't care about that at all. I currently care that plus size is a common size to be, and it's also completely under represented in the doll world.

I enjoy recreating Barbie dolls. I like the plastic canvas. But...I'm going to end up doing something drastic, I bet. Like creating a plus sized doll all on my own. Maybe it won't turn out well. Maybe it will. Maybe I'll make hundreds of them. Or just one.

I'm cheating on you

2010-11-09T23:19:00.000-08:00

Joy and I have a community going on Livejournal, where we are both posting our Barbie related entries. I didn't make any sort of decision to favor that place over this one...but that does seem to have happened, oops. I am going to try and keep this blog going...however just in case I fail miserable in that attempt you can find our other stuff HERE, it's also public.

In a weak attempt at cross-posting, here's what I've written about and shown over there... First I'll show you my completed things:

This is Roderick, his coat is removable, but the rest stays on at all times. He's a cross-dressing Victorian dude. His wife, Hattie, is also a cross-dresser. She'll be wearing a Victorian era man's suit...when I get around to doing that.

Here we have Amelia, a 1920's flapper, who is for sale on Etsy. I'm proud of this lady mostly because she was completed in 4 hours...that just doesn't happen for me with dolls usually, lol.

Rockin' Robin took a lot more time to finish, but I'm still pretty stoked that I did that, lol. She's in etsy now also.

Oh, also I completed a set of accessories, including: Fedora hat, Bow tie, and Purse....now on Etsy.

And now we can move onto things in the works...

1. Hattie, who will be Roderick's wife.

2. Is now Rockin' Robin.

3. Was Pole Dancing Penelope...don't know what she will be.

4. Was Lapdancing Lainey, is now dressed as an 80's Madonna wanna be.

5. Was gonna be a bartender, may be the first lady soon.

6. Dark Angel, gift.

7. Mother Nature.

8. Roderick.

9. Nun who will be spanking the...

10. school girl.

11. Steam punk chick, wearing an entirely different outfit now, gift.

12. Cyborg nanny.

13. Zombie Phil. requested.

14. Loubey, for a friend.

The reason I took this photo was that I was having a total doll drought. I only had one blank canvas/naked doll, and she turned into Rockin' Robin. Since then I've scored dolls from a couple thrift stores, and there are other dolls on the horizon...so I think I'll be alright.

Now if only I could just finish some of the dolls I've started.

Here are some other started projects, they're going places. I have ideas for them. I'd tell you about those ideas, but my sleeping pill started to kick in about 3 pictures ago...

Mother Nature.

2010-10-24T11:06:00.000-07:00

Although she's not quite done just yet, my pride in this piece is immense. The doll was originally acquired from a lot of weirdo dolls my mom bought from a garage sale for me. Fabulosity was in that same batch. Mother Nature and Fabulosity were both obviously FrankenBarbies. They had odd hands and legs that didn't always match, etc. But they came together nicely for the purposes I've given them. Mother Nature isn't even a Barbie doll, she's bigger, taller, wider. She needed a big role in life.

At first I was most inspired by the bronze leaf that I placed on her head. I thought she'd be an Autumn Goddess. But then she told me she's Mother Nature, not some seasonal Goddess, so I listened and adjusted the course. Plus making her Mother Nature really gave me the freedom to go crazy. Too much bling on the lady who creates such beautiful sights as rainbows, and such tragic happenings as tsunamis? No such thing as too much for this chick. I like her.

Laura's Living Room, Delivered.

2010-10-16T22:42:00.000-07:00

That's it, my first completed scene, and probably the one that will remain most meaningful to me.

Knowing how much this project meant not only to me, but to others, Joy knit the blanket for it.

The adult doll represents my late cousin Laura, the child doll her daughter Kathleen.

It was a lot harder to hand over this gift of love to its rightful owner than I thought it would be. But it is definitely where it belongs now.

Becky was all like, "Damn it, Fawn, I just put my make up on...you better not make me cry!" So I held off on the sentimental words, but the feeling was certainly there anyway.

A few family members spent some time checking it out.

But then the toy truck came, and things got much more interesting pretty quickly.

My cousin's front lawn was soon filled with toys donated by the kind hearted people of the world. And I don't think a better kid could have been the recipient of such greatness of human nature.

While the other kids dove in and out from the maze of toys and boxes and wonderfulness, our dear Kathleeny found a few toys and a new friend and sat down to play. Isn't that what it's all about, really?

Laura's Living Room

2010-10-15T06:32:00.000-07:00

This is the current state of the project I'm making for my cousin, Becky. It's called "Laura's Living Room," because I'm oh so creative

That little lady currently sitting on the couch is Kathleen Edward, Laura's only daughter...who has weirdly enough been seen quite often in the media recently. She's a good kid. Her mom was a good kid too.

This was the same scene on September 1st, after my first night devoted to it. I stopped working on it for a while...among other reasons because I didn't feel I could give the Laura doll the proper respect she deserves.

So I spent some time on the living room furniture and accessories yesterday morning. Then I spent a good amount of time on Kathleen...mostly her dress.

I think today, or tomorrow, I'll work on Laura's doll. I think it's going to be an emotional experience for me.

2010-10-12T09:20:00.000-07:00

TopHats is now a GentleWOman's club, FYI.

So you know I had Candy last week. She's been finished, but the photo shoot was without her drinks tray.

Last night Joy and I got to thinking on TopHats, and we realized that it's a gentlewoman's club. High class, frilly smut. The dancers are probably even in a union.

Meet Fairy Dan. He's the bouncer, and the only man allowed on the premises under normal circumstances. He's the brother of one of the dancers, and he's just one of the girls. He arrives at the same time as the nightly crew, and gets ready in the dressing room with the ladies.

Betsy is our bartender. She has a lot of work for me to do on her yet. I do have a vision for her though!

Penelope here is our current star of the show. She'll be doing tricks on the pole that you wish you could do.

Lainey isn't quite ready to hit the main stage, but she'll definitely give a lucky lady who happens to have a twenty dollar bill for her a song long lap dance.

Today I'll be doing some work on the club, and arranging the crew, as well as doing some other finishing touches.

Candy - Cocktail Waitress of TopHat, a Gentleman's Club.

2010-10-06T22:14:00.000-07:00

Gonna be honest here, I came very near to just abandoning this doll adventure. I have been annoyingly busy lately, and art is taking a ~~back seat~~ trunk to the rest of life. But damn it, it's FUN. And I like fun.

So at Joy's this afternoon I finally came around to playing with a doll. I decided to start a new one and see if I could get her done by the end of the night. I couldn't, but I came close.

I wasn't sure what to do with this doll after I chose her from the stock. A few ideas rolled around in my head, and I ran with a few for short periods of time, but as you can clearly see now...

She's a cocktail waitress at a strip-club.

This cabinet will be TopHats, a gentleman's club. Obviously some renovations need to be done, since it used to be a gymboree or some shit, but once it's painted...ooh wee!

I think that the outside of the club will be black, the inside mirrors and black. The top shelf will have a stage, and a few eager customers, the bottom shelf will have a bar.

Between working on the TopHat and the other attendees, I'll be finishing Candy, and she'll be on etsy soon.

Wouldn't you love a stein of your favorite pale ale delivered to you from this hottie?

Although I lost my path, Joy never did. She's been quite busy, check it out.

S'more art therapy in the name of love...

2010-09-09T21:22:00.000-07:00

Alright kids, I'd like you to meet the beginning of my Dark Angel.

This is just part of something I'm putting together for my special lady, Linda.

This doll has fought with me tooth and nail. During Wednesday's Barbie session I kept telling Joy that this doll is being a total pain in the ass. Because she was.

There is not a single idea that I had that came to pass. She thwarted my every effort, and did her own thing. I refuse to take any credit for making this doll who she came to be...even though I'm the one with the stained fingers and super-glued neck. (Don't ask.)

I completely failed to get any sort of "before" pic at all...but I think this doll probably planned that too. She's sorta evil like that.

This is the very first photo I have of her, and she's clearly already dressed. I think the only things I hadn't yet tackled with her were make-up and jewelry.

So I did her make-up and jewelry, as seen here. (Also if you squint you can see Joy on the other side of the table, in deep thought over her Barbie's needs.)

In the end this lady will eventually live in a shadow box with other pieces of art that are of deep meaning. For now, she lives on the craft table.

dark angel

2010-09-09T17:13:00.000-07:00

I'm currently at my "day job"...either working hard, or hardly working, depending on your personal opinions on the definition of the word "working," heh.

Yesterday though ... Yesterday was a day in which I was able to devote most of my personal time to Barbies. Cue singing angels. :)

Speaking of Angels...Yesterday's project was Dark Angel. She's wonderful, and she's for my girlfriend...who is also my dark angel-sorta. :) I'll share pix later tonight when I'm at home and not hardly working at my day job.

Fly By Update

2010-09-03T22:13:00.000-07:00

There have been 2 major Barbieing sessions since my last post here. Unfortunately for this blog I'm either actually playing with Barbies or working my day job.

I've always known that Joy had a deep desire to have her own original Midge. It was no secret to anyone who ever listens to her talk, lol. But what I didn't know was how truly thankful and happy she'd be about actually getting one. When I presented her with a box full of gifts she went straight to the Midge, and held her lovingly for a long time. She became forklempt, and had a moment. I'm sorta stupid happy that I was able to be the person to hand it to her. :P

The first session resulted in this to the left. That's my representation of my late cousin Laura and her dear daughter Kathleen. They aren't nearly finished, barely started even. But man...that couch was a total PITA to create!

That same session resulted in Timilee's finishing her Barbie-Opus. She is proud. :)

The last Barbie session ended up being completely Art Therapy for me. These two little versions of my beloved boyfriend were my way of working out some things, handling shit...getting shit done. It's all good. It was a long and emotional process. But it helped me more than I even dared dream it would. The one on the left I've named "Good Blake." The one on the right is "Bad Blake."

And that's actual Blake, throwing "Bad Blake" away forever.

Alls well that ends well, eh?

Where the magic happens - Home Version.

2010-08-30T11:38:00.000-07:00

While I very much would have loved to have accomplished some actual arting today...when I walked over to my craft area it was in utter disarray. There was absolutely no organization happening. So - I took a deep breath, and dug in. It took 2 entire hours, man. But viola! We have organization! Everything has a place and is in it's place. *angel's singing*

I guess the actual fun will happen tomorrow during craft hour(s) at Joy's magic Barbie world. I can't fucking wait. *smile*

Barbie score to beat all.

2010-08-30T01:07:00.000-07:00

I have this cousin, Becky. She's fabulous.

A while back I begged of her that if she came across any Barbies or usable craft supplies for Barbies to hook me up. I specifically sought her out on this one because she's totally Jimmy on the spot with everything. Seriously - you name it and she has it in one of her garages or basements. Literally, once I was joking that I'd love to get hold of some of those plastic yard pink flamingos to spruce up the front of my apartment where I don't even have yard. 10 minutes later she handed me 2 pink flamings. This sort of thing happens with her all day every day...so when I need something I seek Becky's stash first. haha.

However, something unfortunate happened...Becky's first view of my "art" was the zombie victim, Midnight Snack.

So apparently this isn't art to my darling Becky. She had the false impression that this is all I do with the Barbies though...she seriously believed that I was just mutilating and defacing them. And since she has grand kids she figured the Barbies would be much more appreciated with them.

So anyway, my mom (Becky's 2 houses down neighbor) called me last night and put Becky on the phone. Becky was in the process of throwing together a fantastic shish kabob BBQ and wanted me to come for that. I was reluctant, so she bribed me with Barbies. She said she'd give me about 20 Barbie dolls. Uh...yes please. So I headed her way almost immediately.

The best part of the evening wasn't the delicious food, it actually wasn't even the supply score. The very big highlight of the evening for me was show and tell, and when Becky said, "Wow, you really are an artist." Thank you! I ended up doing show and tell for about 3 hours with various people, haha. But it was fun. And anytime someone new was there someone already there was like, "Show them your Barbies!" Okay, I will! :P

That is most of the dolls she gave me, I removed a few for different purposes already...but Hello Nurse! Awesome.

I've actually already got some of them with their designated purposes.

And Barbies were the very least of the score, truly! This shelf/cabinet is so utterly perfect. I don't even know what it'll be yet...but it will be wonderful. Almost everything I've been stressing over not having for certain projects she ended up handing over to me in bulk. Glory be. Thank you, Becky.

This was one of those magical items, believe it or not. Joy has been talking about her love of Midge for...ever. I actually didn't even know what Midge looked like until Joy told me in depth how wonderful she thought Midge was. So when Becky handed me this original Midge, the Joy lights lit up. (I don't actually know what version of Midge this is, but she looks old. :P) So yeah this is Joy's. I put her in a case of just for Joy special items. She's at the top, in all her (slightly deformed looking) glory. Happy Barbieing to Joy! *smile*

This photo I titled "bellbottom grr" because it is. I spent about 2 hours making that one bell bottom jean leg, and it's not done. It still needed trim and funk. Then in the bag of barbie clothes was a real pair of actual Mattel Barbie bell bottom jeans. Even with rips and frays. *sigh* Okay, that two hours of my life wasn't wasted, entirely...it was a learning experience and now I know it can be done. Yet I'm still gonna remove it and put the real ones on her! haha.

These two dolls are going to end up being in a scene for Becky. Either a shadow box or a shelf, depending...most likely some sort of shadow box. They represent my late cousin that died early, Laura, and her young daughter Kathleen who lives with the same ailment that stole Laura from us. When I was sharing my idea for this with Becky I told her that she could either keep it, or put it in a fundraiser raffle. She said she'll definitely keep it. I like that.

Let's get Spunky

2010-08-28T00:12:00.000-07:00

And for the final flavor of the evening...my day's progress!

My initial goal for the day was to finish Fabulosity. Apparently though that just was not destined to happen tonight. I made about 10 minutes worth of progress on her before getting both fed up and inspired by something else entirely.

But y'know what...Even if I haven't finished one stupid Barbie yet, I'm making great strides on many. I have a feeling that I'll end up finishing tons of these little ladies in a whirlwind of a few days, lol.

And, as Joy stated, that's how the best ideas hit...when you're busy with something else. hehe.

Off to the back of this pic is Noley, Joy's middle kid. He was hard at work on helping me with some pesky Barbie shoes.

This is the project that took over my world where the diva left off. She's all cozily belted in to my vintage 80's Cabbage Patch suit case, for her ride home.

Since my boyfriend is deeply asleep in the area where Barbie photo studio is...Her close ups will have to wait till tomorrow, or later. But take it from me, she's wonderful.

Ain't gonna lie though...she did fight me every step of the way...and she still has a lot of work for me to do yet. I don't know what her name is yet, but I'm nicknaming her "Spunky" for now. It works.

Stupid is as stupid does.

2010-08-27T23:57:00.000-07:00

This was one of those moments where Joy had my camera for some reason and I got to seeing the humor in ... everything, and this is apparently what I actually look like while laughing my ass off. Oh dear. Remind me not to laugh in public again? hahaha.

So when Joy saw this picture on the little LCD window of the camera, she knew, just knew that it was deletion bound once I got hold of it. But because it was some sort of magical moment for us, she had to take drastic measures...

Yes, my friends, Joy loves me enough to take a durpy durp photo of herself, just so that I won't delete the one of myself. Uh...after sharing this picture with the world at large -

I feel the need to remind you that this is a gorgeous woman that really does clean up well. Laughing my butt off, but not quite to the level of the picture above...

Originially I joked that these pix were bound for the super secret friend file, and then I further joked that the girls would know when I was mad at them because these photos could then be easily seen on the world wide web. But y'know what? It's fun, the night was fun, the company was fun, the friends were fun...and for the most part the Barbies were fun. (Except for when they were being little plastic meanieheads.)

And yo, Timilee was present, and no one is immune to my bad photo taking skillz...

I had been trying to catch TimTim in the act of (I think...) beating herself over the head with a beligerant Barbie...but the camera would NOT take the pic, and when it did it was totally after the fact and this was a surprise! shot. haha. It definitely works. :P

We now have a Mascot!

2010-08-27T23:40:00.000-07:00

Meet Stewart, or Stewie, or any other Stew like name you can think of on the fly. He's gonna hafta be the Barbie Nights mascot. He's wonderful!

Stewbert is about 5 or 6 weeks old. He is cuddly and playful, and fun, and loves a good nap! He's one of the kittens I was hoping Joy would keep, and by a total fluke of fate - he was left behind for all to love. He's quite a member of the Joy family now, everyone has their Stewie moments, even guests. hehe.

Stewman was adopted by the mama kitty...he was birthed by her sister, right after she had a litter...so she took over feeding and caring for him instantly. It was a match made in heaven.

This was a total picturefail, but has a small story. hehe. He was nursing, and it was a-freaking-dorable, so I whipped out my camera and tried to capture the moment...but as soon as mama kitty saw me looking at her she ran over to play and get some lovin's, and Stewie is all, "Maaaaaahm, I'm eating!" lolol

Also: Stewie is a pocket kitty too.

Workin' hard or hardly workin'?

2010-08-27T23:33:00.000-07:00

This is Timilee's work in progress. My OCD art-perfectionism is totally rubbing off on the girls, Timilee won't settle on anything to do with this doll. It will be her Barbie-Opus (thus far), because it is wonderful and magical...and you don't get another photo until it's done. :P I had to sneak this pic while she was wandering...haha.

This is a pic of my work in progress, Timilee's work in progress behind her, and Joy in the background doing some hard work in progress on her dolly.

Catty Bitches Cafe

2010-08-27T23:20:00.000-07:00

Joycat on left, Apeycat on right.

Joy and I sat down for one of our very first Barbieing sessions with the loose idea of making a Barbie related coffee shop. (That may still happen when we stop getting completely side tracked!) And Shaun, Joy's loving husband, was home from work as we started getting catty. So as the three of us sat around the kitchen table smoking, Joy and I hard at work on Barbies and bitching, Shaun etched out this masterpiece. He was joining the fun and making a point...haha. It's become a frequent reminder of the fun Joy and I have together - and also that I need to occasionally keep my bitchiness in check. Noted! hahaha. So the "Catty Bitches Cafe" is one of our thangs now. :)

But then, we do occasionally get some actual work done! This here is Joy hard at work on some important detail or another. I don't think she even know the camera was pointed at her...so this is really working mode. lol.

This, however, is Joy showing off the fruit of her labors.

And in this one, can't you just see the (well deserved) pride on her face?

This one of me (Apey) on the other hand...completely posed for. hahaha, I mean...I did make it look like I was doing what I had been doing before picture time came about, but still - total pose.

This pic of me initially got vetoed due to the presence of 15 chins, but here's a link anywho. :P

We have so much fun together, that Joy of mine and me. She's been there for me through so fucking much, man, you don't even know.

Like seriously - These people are family to me. That's Joy and her kids, and if I had a family portrait with the Shaunta too, I'd have used that instead. For some strange reason her kids are the only children on earth (other than my very own sister) that loved me from the get-go. (Really - Children tend to hate me with a weird passion. lolol)

Joy though, man, she is my soul baring sister. She's mothered me, and daughtered me, and therapied me, and therapisted me. She's been there for everyfuckingthing I've been through in the last 7 fucking years. She has helped me in truly magical ways. A life without Joy is a life I don't wanna embrace, man. For real. I mean, c'mon...would you want to pass up the opportunity to have this sort of fun? Not I, said the brown cow.

While I'm not entirely sure what I do for Joy, what I gifts I have given her over the years...I'll totally share here what she's done for me. She showed me the humor in life. It's that simple, and that immensely important. When I have been at my most tragic crisis moments of life, Joy was there to say, "Har har. That's funny because..." And omg, dudes, that's the best gift ANYONE could have ever given me. Honestly. She has always been a firm beam in my support system since we first started chatting 8 or 9 years ago in AIM. And even in the beginning she'd hear me out, admit the credibility to my claims, then make me laugh about them.

I told her tonight during Barbieing hour, and I'll now tell the world - Joy saved my life. That probably sounds all dramatic, but it's true.

Wish in one hand and shit in the other...

2010-08-27T00:32:00.000-07:00

Apey - Now with a wish list. Well that was fun, almost like shopping...but I don't get anything in the end. lol

Accessories are love.

2010-08-26T20:50:00.000-07:00

Or, more accurately: Creating Barbie sized accessories is a labor of love.

From Left to Right:

Messenger Bag. This was my first attempted accessory, and it got me hooked. Oddly...the dolly I created it for didn't want it in the end. So this piece doesn't have a lady yet.

Lunchbox purse: This was created for the prom dolly, seen second from the left in that pic. I even put a few bits inside this purse to give it a little weight and jangle.

Purple round purse: This one started as a hair do-dad for humans. lol. It was sort of a hard sacrifice, but this purse really wanted to be created. I'm glad I did it, because it turned out almost as good as my vision for it was.

The baby on the left is just there to show what I started with. Joy scored a bag of babies at some crafty store. The one in blue is the baby boy for my half and half "My journey through motherhood" dolly. If you'd like a view with the triggery aborted baby in it, click this.

Other accessories I've tackled, and even finished are hats, mostly. I am so in-love with making Barbie sized hats! lol. I am one easily pleased broad.

"Diva" doesn't even begin to cover it...

2010-08-26T20:37:00.000-07:00

This to the right was Fabulosity as she was when I began her this evening. Dollies now have a Photo Studio...Let's just hope that my evil cat doesn't decide the studio needs to come falling down. The power of duct tape and poster board only goes so far, lol. I may end up utilizing some glue...but I'm sure that would somehow effect our security deposit if I used it on the wall. :P

I tried to start this lady's wig...but the extra hair was still wet, so I messed with it a bit, and moved the band so it could dry hopefully by tomorrow. I tried to make her some shoes, and made a tiny bit of progress in that. I did manage to work on a hat for her which is drying, and put her earrings on her earlobes. I'm mad at her right now. She's beyond a diva, she's a bitch. I guess fighting with my dollies is part of the fun?

So as you can see she now at least has her earrings in place. That was an interesting process involving 3 different kinds of tape and 2 different kinds of glue until I found what worked. Oh, Fabulosity, you wench.

Also please take a moment to appreciate the "feather" boa that I made a few nights back. It has layers of fun. More layers than Shrek, an onion, and a parfait put together!

My hopes for tomorrow are that I can make the wig and hat come together, and that I can do SOMETHING with her gloves. She didn't even have hands when I found her. She does now...but they ain't purty. lol. So more fighting with this gal on the morrow.

Facebook Group

2010-08-25T15:49:00.000-07:00

Now in a handy dandy open-membership facebook group!

Join and be merry :)

Barter System - FTW!

2010-08-25T15:12:00.000-07:00

CraigsList ad...

Alright kids, the time has come. Have you always and forever wanted your very own custom dolly? The Barbie Bitches are in need of supplies. Let's trade! Your old crafting items you don't even use or want taking up space any more for your very own custom order dolly! Win/Win!

Needed Items:
BARBIE & bratz dolls - in any condition (even bald!)
Ken dolls, G.I. Joes, Army men...Boy dolls of barbie sizes
Cloth of all varieties (especially black)
Clothing dye ... especially black
Ribbon & lace
shoe boxes (the bigger the better)
small boxes
markers, sharpies, gel pens
poster board, card stock
embroidery thread, regular thread in any colors
clay, sculpey
nail polish in any color (even when it's old and separating it can be used!)
nail decals
craft paint of any variety
Indian ink
Picture frames of any size and condition
AA Batteries for my camera that eats them like they're going out of style

So...whatcha want? Let's make a deal. :)

Zombie World

2010-08-25T02:41:00.000-07:00

The chick on the left of the picture is a zombie. She was a doctor working in a busy emergency room when the outbreak hit.

The chick on the right is "Midnight Snack" which Dr. Zombie is dragging around for later.

Obviously they both need clothing, and to be properly abused. Then their final resting place will be a shadow box.

She can't help but be so damn fabulous!

2010-08-25T02:24:00.000-07:00

Fabulosity!

That's this Drag Queen's name thus far. She's what I did with my Tuesday night. I'm pretty much head over heels in love with her.

By day Fabulosity goes by Stan, and works in accounting. But by night she struts down the runway in heels so high most models couldn't wear 'em.

The majority of her dress is complete. Her gloves and accessories require more attention. Then I'll move on to her wig...and we'll see how that turns out.

Spoiler alert! She's takin' home the crown!

The act of Art Therapy

2010-08-25T02:01:00.000-07:00

Ample Warning: At the bottom of this post I'm going to put a link to a photo of this same Barbie pictured below, but with her other accessory that may very well be a TRIGGER to some people. The "accessory" is a tiny plastic version of an aborted fetus. So if you do not want to see it, if it will stir any of the many negative emotions in you...don't click.

"My Journey Through Motherhood"
This lady is a half and half deal. She's not nearly done, but on her way. Her right half, or the one on the left of the photo is the mother I wanted to someday be. The other side is: Reality.

Mom I wanted to someday be: Is wearing a gorgeous sundress, has naturally red hair (as do I), and is holding a beautiful baby boy. (Unfortunately my dying camera didn't feel like featuring the baby very well.) This is who I wanted to be during my TTC (trying to conceive) Clomid phase of life.

Reality: Clothes I would actually wear, and some of which I already own. Dyed black hair, as I'm currently rocking. I'm infertile, doctor confirmed. When I found out about my infertility I was ... relieved. Since I was a small child my biggest dream in life was to be a mother to adopted children. The whole quest to breed was for my now ex-husband. I still think that someday I may possibly adopt or foster children, but I can tell you surely it won't be in the next decade. So if by some completely accidental improbability I were to fall pregnant - it would be terminated. I've never been pregnant to date, and I'm hoping to make that a life long accomplishment yet. I do love children. I love talking to them and playing with them and then handing them back to their parents.

In any case here's the link to the other picture that you were warned about: Same dolly with triggery baby.

This lady will someday most likely live in a shadowbox, which is another goal of mine...let's master the shadow box!

Welcome to the wonderful world of Barbie modifications...

2010-08-25T00:35:00.000-07:00

Stupid Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Mattel (the company who makes Barbie dolls).

The image to the left is not by me and very sadly also not for sale. My BFF is Joy, and Joy has been telling me how wonderful Barbies are for about 7 years now. I'm finally listening. Joy has completed roughly 50 modified Barbies. She's a pro. I'm a newb. I made this blog so that if you'd like to join me on this journey...it's here for all of us. *smiles*

Eventually I'll be adding my Barbie creations to my etsy store, which I've never used yet. The etsy thing was set up originally for me to sell Dotee dolls and bits and bobs...but the more into Barbies I get, the more I'm thinking that I've finally found my craft-calling. It is absolutely no exaggeration to say that I've tried most crafts.

Back in a different life time I had a house with a 3rd bedroom that was the "Craft Room." I had a sewing table set up, scrap-booking stations, beads of every shape and size for jewelry making and such. I tried it all...but nothing really stuck. But when I started the Barbie mods I realized that I could seriously utilize every other craft. And y'know what? I'm in HEAVEN with this shit.

This pic is of my first 4 projects. They're still all at that level of completion, even though I've been doing this craft thing on the regular for little over a month.

From Left to Right:

1. She is an experiment in hair. She was purchased with very little hair to begin with, so I tugged all the rest of it out and started to sew her scalp with some fancy pants embroidery thread. I'm loving it, she's got a lot of work yet to go...but headed in the right direction.

2. So far she's loosely my "Prom Barbie" wearing my ideal prom dress, if I happened to have Barbie's body when I was prom age, which I didn't. If I can finish her in time she will be an xmas gift for my Aunt who was a huge part of my teen years, and my idol then. :)

3. Mom's Hippie Barbie. She'll be mom's xmas prezzie when she's done.

4. This was my very first attempt at Barbie modifications. I was so ridiculously proud of her skirt...which I spent over an hour creating. But...I don't think she's meant to be so very pink anymore. She has good tattoos though...so I'll strip her and use her for something else, eventually.