Bath Time!

Trina, Honey and Bee all jumped in the tub together!  (Kairi's fish tank is on the top shelf in the background).

-- Kairi

Doll Playground

I built a doll playground for my dolls using the My Froggy Stuff video (http://www.youtube.com/user/MyFroggyStuff?feature=g-all-u).  I think it is super fun, and would recommend it as a fun craft!

-- Kairi

New pet!

This weekend we tried a great idea I found on Pinterest for a doll-sized aquarium!  You use a paperclip holder as the tank, small rocks/sand, a small plastic plant to decorate and a small fish charm as the tank inhabitant!  I bought Quick-Water (it makes the fake water used with silk plants) from Hobby Lobby to make my tank look full of water (without worrying about real water spilling) but Kairi didn't use that, so she can move her fish around and play with it.  The instructions are at http://miniaturemaker.blogspot.jp/2009/04/dollhouse-aquarium_01.html and even include directions to add a light to the top (which we opted out of).  The top of my paperclip holder was pretty tall, and I didn't like the look, so I took it off, and finished the edge with some good-old duck tape.

Below are a few pictures of my dolls investigating their new pet (we'll post pictures of Kairi's in the next post).  Kaya is really enthralled by the fish!

- Janet

Nemo!

Doodling

This is Strawberina drawing on her new clipboard, made by Kairi.  She also has a pencil made out of a toothpick.  She is having much fun!

- Kairi

Doll Makeup

This is my doll makeup.  I got it from a video on My Froggy Stuff (http://www.youtube.com/user/MyFroggyStuff).  I made nail polish, lipstick, eye shadow, cotton balls, perfume and mascara.

-- Kairi

Eye Shadow

Nail Polish

Lipstick

Mascara

Cotton Balls

Perfume

New Doll!

This is my doll I made.  I made her from cardboard and ducktape.

She had a friend over.

The dolls come into her fitness class.

I made them yoga mats, barbells and a trampoline.  I got the idea from a video on My Froggy Stuff (myfroggystuff.blogspot.com).  Now, they are doing yoga:

And now they are lifting weights:

And now they are jumping on the trampoline!

And now they are getting ready to leave:

-- Kairi

Xenis Doll Kit

A few months ago I learned about the Xenis Doll Making Kit, and decided to try one.  Marlene Xenis and her daughters make gorgeous wooden dolls carved from hardwood-- you can see some of their work at The Toy Shoppe (www.thetoyshoppe.com).  In 2010 they created a kit doll that is fully carved, but not painted.  The doll is 11" tall, and fully jointed, and comes with underwear and a wig.  She also comes with painting instructions and pictures to help paint the face, which I desperately needed, being a complete novice at painting faces!  The instructions were well written, and the materials list helped, but I was still a bit nervous about doing this.

I first removed the head from the body following the instructions.  This requires quite a bit of strength, as the spring holding the head to the body is very strong.  That head is definitely not going to be wobbly.  Then I used the enclosed templates to draw the eyes and lips on the head with pencil (see below).

Then the poor doll head sat untouched for two months.  I had to work up the courage to do this.  :)  Yesterday, I decided to take the leap, and if all else failed, I could sand off the paint and start over!  Below are a few more pictures.

Ta daa!  I finished, and although it's obvious that I don't have a steady hand, at least it won't scare small children.  Ha!  Relieved that that was over, and excited to have a new doll (finally!) I grabbed the body and tried to put the head back on.  Except, somewhere in the last few months, the steel pin in the top of the head that holds the spring in place had fallen out!  Argh!  I searched all over, could not find it.  So I improvised: I took a small nail and trimmed it to fit-- luckily, it worked!  Below is a picture of my handiwork:

 And here she is with her wig on:

 The lips were awfully dark, so I pulled out the paints and did some more work.  Much better:

This kit was very neat, and I would recommend it.  It is pretty spendy ($249), but it is a high-quality, hand-carved wooden doll, which are much more expensive than my usual vinyl dolls.  It was fun to paint a doll face, something I have never done before.  And she looks cute in Bleuette's clothes!

-- Janet