Pissed and Makeup

I'm still pissed that a lot of the dark-skinned doll are not sold in local stores. I have to resort to buying buying these African dolls from China since they are the most cost effective way of providing articulation for my other dolls.

The main reason why I bought another set of articulated African doll is to rebody my repainted Fairytopia doll. It's not a perfect match but it's acceptable. Since the online store increased the shipping fee, I decided to get an extra body to save on shipping fee. These naked dolls cost cheaper than the clothed ones so it kinda evens out. I don't want their original clothing anyways.

While I'm glad the doll on the left turned out the way it did, I can't say the same for the other. I recently finished watching Glow on Netflix and was inspired to do 80s makeup. It didn't turn out well. I might erase the face and try again later.

In the mood for nothing

That means relax. There is no consequence in not painting a new doll face. There is no hurry to sew the next dress. There is no obligation to update the social media. There certainly is no need to buy the next doll.

I took my time finding the right gold paint for the gladiator sandal. I wasn't able to find one, actually. And it's okay. I'll just make my own. Every time I get the chance to say, "I'll just make my own," I don't mean disappointment from the unavailability of anything. I mean I can. I mean I have the power. So I mixed my own gold paint. 

And don't get me started on the jumpsuit, because I won't. I have the power, remember? I don't mean the buying power. I mean having no debts to pay with explanations.

It took a while before this set was complete, And now that it's done, it's nothing.

Worry Goals

I'm a big worry wart and I want to make fun of my worrying. I decided to make a doll look like she is worried. We have enough dolls that look happy or pissed anyways.





I initially had another character in mind for this purple haired doll but then I thought she can be the worrier for now. I like that she looks fun with her purple hair but she has these inner struggles. And her smile looks contrived as if she's trying to convince everyone that she's okay. Cute yes?

Bibbidi

I was finally able to squeeze into my busy schedule the repainting (and shrinking) of the clone Cinderella head.

Sweet

I have three reasons why I bought The Barbie Look Sweet Tea doll. For starters, it has a more sensible price compared to most model muse dolls being sold locally. This doll is priced PhP2100. Nude Barbie Basics dolls are priced at least PhP1500, more if the doll is using a popular mold. The additional PhP600 is a small price to pay for the additional value–the articulation of the doll, clothes and accessories. 

The doll is made in Indonesia. That's another good reason to buy. I guess this reason doesn't make sense if you don't live in a country where the territory is being challenged by China.

The most common reason for buying this doll, and for some it's the only reason, is the head mold used. The new mold has been made more accessible. The Karl head mold was previously used in hard-to-get dolls and by hard-to-get, I don't mean high-quality. 

Although there are enough reasons to buy this doll, I don't like it as it is. I decided to make the eyes smaller. I also softened the curls of the hair. This strikes a good balance between my taste and her original character.

A sweet to sultry transformation can be seen in the photo above, but with certain styling, she can still can be sweet and simple. That's how I like my models, versatile.

Your life is purchased by chance so you can dance.

*The title of this entry is a line from "Song" by Carlomar Arcangel Daoana.

The little redemption it takes.

*The title of this entry is a line from "Allegory of The White Handkerchief" by Allan Justo Pastrana.

Be tender despite everything.

*The title of this entry is a line from "The Half of It" by Mookie Katigbak-Lacuesta.

Over Shrunken

I'm no head shrinking expert. I'm not trying to get others experimenting on head shrinking. I don't like giving advices regarding head shrinking because I don't want to be blamed if it didn't turn out as planned. I have gotten less desireable results like these heads that ended up smaller than the "normal" sized head. By "normal", I mean the collector sized heads.

My Goddess

Next to the Lea/Kayla face mold, the Goddess mold is my 2nd favorite. Here are my top 5 dolls from my collection using the Goddess mold. At least, they are the top 5 for now.



The middle and right most heads were shrunken but the middle head shrunk more. Head shrinking is more like cooking than baking. The middle doll's cheeks looks less chubby compared to the plump faces of the rest. I made the eyes of the middle doll smaller, from the previous entry, since she has a slightly smaller face.

Ice cream doesn't stand a chance

The only other doll that is interesting in this lineup, aside from Team Glam (16) is the Ice Cream Romper (17). I don't have many dolls with burgundy hair. The mint glasses and romper are cute, too. The rest of the dolls are either meh or looks similar to a doll I already have.

Most people I saw with burgundy hair usually has a strong personality but doll 17 doesn't seem to have that. She just needs a makeover. She's a little bolder now after head shrinking, a repaint and some hair styling. She's gonna melt some ice cream!

70ish Hair

I wanted the top part of the head to be slick while rest nappy. I also wanted to show her face completely so the hair was held in place by tying it with a thread above the ears.



She just looks so sweet now. She looked sultry in the previous entry. See how much a hairstyle can do?



The new outfit for her will be started next week. Meanwhile, another fashionista is getting a makeover.

I Woke Up Like This

Even if there seems to be an unofficial embargo on the sales of dark-skinned Barbie Fashionista (and Made to Move) dolls locally, we still get to enjoy partial diversity. Hurray with sarcasm! But seriously, I commend certain dolls in the line up, one of which is the Glam Team Barbie doll with the Asha face mold. This is reminiscent of the doll dubbed as the albino Desiree from last year. They express the same experimentation on skin color not usually used on certain face molds. Carlyle Nuera, the designer of the two dolls, already did it with OOAK dolls at 2015 Madrid Fashion Doll Convention. It was nice to see a repeat of that idea in a more accessible level. This could lead to more unusual dolls like dark-skinned Raquelle and Ryan, but with the unofficial embargo on the sales of dark-skinned dolls locally, I have to jump through hoops to get one. With my numerous dolls that already satisfy me, I don't feel like exerting extra effort to get a new doll. It has to be available in local toy stores or else I won't buy.

I'd like to believe that the Barbie Fashionista line promotes diversity and being different even if I usually find Mattel insincere (as discussed in my earlier blog entries). Given that this Glam Team doll is ubiquitous, I want to give my doll a certain difference from other Glam Team dolls. She had a dental extraction, head shrinking and a full repaint.

I wanted her eyebrows to be almost faint. I wanted the eye makeup very light but I don't want the attention to be taken away from the eyes so the full lips should be muted. Would you believe her if she says, "I woke up like this"?

I'm satisfied with this no make-up make-up look. The repaint is done, for now. I'm still figuring out the hair style I want for her and her character. She's giving me a fairy vibe, though, or least she looks like that she's not from anywhere I know.

30

Colored Heidi Ott Dolls

Another Color of Satisfaction

Some time last year (or was it 2 years ago?), I found a dark-skinned 12-inch Original Action Figure Body. I got it from Divisoria unboxed. It was missing the additional neck pegs and the closed fist hands. I had no doll head that match the skin tone so the body was left in storage. I realized that my chances of finding a head for this body for a good price is impossible so last weekend, I went ahead and painted an action figure head to match the color of the body. 

The Color of Satisfaction

If you were raised in the Philippines, there's a good chance that you were conditioned to think that dark skin is ugly. Skin whitening products are one of the best selling beauty products here.  "Nognog" is a local word similar to "nigger" and is used as a derogatory word to describe one of a current presidential candidate without raising a debate on political correctness. This is my reality and I don't want it in my deluded doll world.

One thing I've learned from collecting dolls is that beauty comes in different shades and color. I knew it the moment I saw a photo of the Princess of South Africa. I instantly felt the need to have her, so I did. But her playability is limited. She had limited clothing options with an older busty body. She cannot do many poses. She eventually was kept in storage.

Athletic Doll

I don't have a tall Asian doll yet. What I do have is an athletic Asian doll (left-most in the photo above). See those arms? Her body is from another doll line. The guessing game starts now.

If I were designing Barbie dolls for Wonder Woman, Misty Copeland or Abby Wambach, I will make  the body look more athletic. Well, that is if I want to promote athleticism and a healthy lifestyle. If I'm just in it for the money, I can just use any thin body. Doll collectors have impressive imagination so let them imagine that those dolls are athletic enough.

Rachel

I learned from fellow hobbyists that the petite dolls are about the current Skipper's height, which is shorter than the teen Skipper dolls. Susie isn't my first petite, Rachel is.

Since there is no assurance that the new bodies will land locally and since I have a headless Skipper body lying around and a shrunken Raquelle head, too, I might as well make my own petite.

Another mouth shut

but with something



to say.