As a dolly clothes maker, it’s so interesting to see the variety of skills, styles and techniques with which people are using to dress their girls. I must stalk Etsy on an hourly basis (cough, cough – every ten minutes more like) just to see what’s out there. So many crafters, so many beautiful things. Every now and the, however, something is an absolute standout favourite, usually because of its originality and flair. Today, for example, I stumbled upon this amazing inside-out dress and delighted in the gory details executed through the medium of craft. An icord intestine? Genius!!!
Further info about this amazing creation can be found here – I am in awe!!!
I got sent this video via email today and just wanted to share it. Personally, I think the cheesy soundtrack and sickly tagline at the end are somewhat unnecessary, but the contents of the video itself are awesome! Enjoy
So yesterday I introduced you to Bettina Batfink. Isn’t she gorgeous, sigh? Actually, within the Blythe world, Ultimate Tour (of which Bettina is one) is a bit of a Marmite girl – you either love her or hate her. Many people find her pouty little lips and chin blush somewhat objectionable, and many do not like the whole gothy thing she’s got going on. I, however, find all this fab. Anyone who knows me in real life will understand this – whilst I am not a fan of purple and black velvet; platform shoes with metal panels welded to the side; or dying my hair black, I do love images of skulls and bones, and really dig that whole dark Victoriana thing that there is. Think more Russell Brand than Marilyn Manson So for me, Bettina is perfect, with her little bat wing tattoos on her shoulders, bat hair accessories, skull eye chip and black pull charm. I love her so much!
However, there is one downside to her – the hair. Don’t get me wrong – in many ways it’s beautiful. It’s soft, long, silky and tame. But it’s in perma-pigtails. The way that her hair has been thatched for the full length of her head and along her fringe means that if you take her hair down, you risk losing the lovely neat thatch line that makes her piggy tails so pretty and, even worse, that her fringe is simply lost in her mass of hair Because of this, I decided to leave her hair in pigtails, which really doesn’t bother me as I’m a very lazy dolly hairstylist anyway. But it did mean that she couldn’t wear any hats, risking a cold noggin in the winter. Or did it?
After a bit of though and a play around with a few idea, I managed to come up with a hat pattern especially for pigtailed girls – you simply feed each pigtail through a hole in the hat and then put it on as normal! So inspired by Bettina, I have designed a range of OOAK Piggy Wig Hats, which happen to be for sale in my Etsy shop
I really enjoyed making these and I am sure that more will follow – and yes, any Blythe in pigtails can wear them so long as you style her hair in pigtails! As well as creating a new crochet pattern, I really enjoyed designing and stitching my unique felt motifs and am super pleased with the results. As ever, though, I have put the needs of the shop before my girls, so I really must make sure that I make a special hat just for Bettina that’s hers to keep forever
Hello? Is anybody there? I don’t blame you if you’ve given up on me, and decamped – I’d almost given up on me too! I can’t believe that it’s nearly two months since I last posted, and I certainly can’t believe what has happened over the past couple of months. As some of you may already know, life’s roller coaster has proven to be an incredibly white-knuckle experience in recent times, and I actually don’t think it’s possible to describe everything that’s gone on in one short post without downplaying the enormity of what John and I have experienced. I think bullet points may help with this.
- I have passed my PhD. I am Dr Fliss, yay!
- I have started a new post *miles* away from where I live, which isn’t actually an issue because of the powers of the internet and the possibility of home-working.
- John’s mum has had cancer. She discovered a lump in her breast, and two months (yes, it took that long for the NHS to get its act together) later had a mastectomy. The mastectomy worked and now she needs tablets for five years. (Obviously, it’s not been as straight forward as this bullet point implies, but in the interests of simplicity…)
- John has just handed his notice in – so long civil service! He’s going to train to be a doctor as salary from said new post is paying for our living costs – for SIX YEARS! Hence the title of the post (Again, this has been a convoluted journey – five years from the inception of the idea, to getting his place and to *finally* being financially able to take it up.)
- We are still selling our house. The housing market is dire and we’ve had to hack money off our asking price in a somewhat scary manner – the phrase ‘monopoly money’ says it all at the moment.
- We have found some properties we like in Sheffield, and would like to buy one asap.
Okay, I feel better for getting all that off my chest! I am sure that over coming posts I will talk a bit more about this all, but I just wanted to get it all out of the way so that I can resume normal blogging, in particular about craftiness and Blythe-iness!
Talking of which, say hello to the latest addition – Bettina Batfink. I’ll tell you more about her in my next post
So for me, Bettina is perfect, with her little bat wing tattoos on her shoulders, bat hair accessories, skull eye chip and black pull charm. I love her so much!
Because of this, I decided to leave her hair in pigtails, which really doesn’t bother me as I’m a very lazy dolly hairstylist anyway. But it did mean that she couldn’t wear any hats, risking a cold noggin in the winter. Or did it?
