davidd's A DOLL A DAY 2023

Alliecat wrote:  I can't imagine taking time to do dolly pix in the middle of most of my chores.

You sound like the guy I've been working on the carpentry project with -- totally focussed on the task at hand with little tolerance for dilly-dallying. If I don't dilly-dally while working on tasks or chores, I get so depressed I can hardly stand it, and I find myself slowing waaaayyyy down and actually being less productive and when I'm goofing off. I guess I'm prolly one of those hyperactive kids (energy-wise, I'm an absolute slug, so maybe not) who needs constant stimulation, like fidget spinners and bouncy ball chairs to help me remain on-task.

CatDragonStorm wrote:I have only been slightly tempted by Draculaura, but not really the other new monster high dolls.

Some of the "special edition" sets that have been issued through the Mattel Online Store have been amazingly cool, but apparently you have to be some kind of "insider" to get in on those releases. I've read that they all sell out within minutes of becoming available and the prices immediately triple or more on the secondary market. I can't be bothered hassling with that.

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24 October - A Doll A Day 2023


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Some of the best bargains for doll, action figure, and diorama accessories are the pink plastic playsets marketed under the "Gloria" brand on eBay.

I was looking for a 1/6-scale side table recently, and the entire Gloria Fireplace Play Set was priced at less than a single vintage Barbie table.

Usually I purchase these things, then they end up sitting in a closet or in storage for a year or two... or longer. Today I decided to try to break that pattern. Rather than setting these boxes aside "until I have the time" to look at them, I figured I'd invest a few minutes and do what I needed to do with them... which was basically to shoot them with a couple coats of spray paint so they'd look less pink.

Of course "a few minutes" became an hour or more, because some of the pieces (assemble yourself) needed a dab of glue to be sturdy, and washing new plastic pieces with dishwashing soap often results in better paint adhesion.

Anyway, I opened up the boxes, put most of the pieces together, and got started on the painting.

Which is totally unlike me; I shoulda left 'em in the box for a few more years.

27 October - A Doll A Day 2023:

It's time for Janie and Triv to pack away the tipi tent for the winter:


"Take it down? What do you mean, take it down? Didn't we just put it up?"

"That was six months ago already. Winter is almost here! Time to put things away!"

"Winter? What do you mean, winter? Summer just started!"

"That was six months ago, too."

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"First we need to untie all the liners!"

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"You can reach it!"

"No, I can't!"

"Do it anyway!"

"I knew you'd say that!"

"'Cuz I know you can reach it!"

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"So, uhmm... Janie? D'ya think maybe we could finish this up tomorrow?"

28 October - A Doll A Day 2023:

Triv and Janie finish taking down the canvas tipi. There were quite a few steps involved. If you care to see more you can find additional photos on Flickr. Here are the major points of the process:

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davidd wrote:
You sound like the guy I've been working on the carpentry project with -- totally focussed on the task at hand with little tolerance for dilly-dallying.

Well, in my case, it's so hard to get up motivation to Get Sh*t Done in the first place, that the temptation to pause a job to do dolly photos would mean it would quite likely not get done at all. If I get a wee bit of momentum I've gotta keep it going.

The smart doll photos are always fun. They really should have an ongoing DIY blog or something.
Looking forward to seeing whatever set the furniture ends up in.

I think it's so cool you have your own tipi! I'm with Alliecat though, if I stopped to take doll photos I would never get anything done... mind you my dolls are more the hindering type than the helping.

Oh, I should have taken some doll photos yesterday when I was trimming the bushes!

I tried to get the Monster High Nightmare Before Christmas set, but nothing doing. Frustrating but I'm not paying scalper prices.

TrueFan wrote:Oh, I should have taken some doll photos yesterday when I was trimming the bushes!

You should have sent your Smart Dolls outside to trim the bushes while you sat inside with a refreshing beverage and a camera to document their endeavors.

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29 October - A Doll A Day 2023:


(g)Nat and Addie pry apart random planks and decaying lumber


(g)Nat: "How long as this old insulation been sitting under the house?"

Addie: "Oh, maybe eight years or so."

(g)Nat: "Any particular reason?"

Addie: "I think it was one of those 'it might be useful for something someday maybe.' scenarios."


The first of three loads to the dump to dispose of insulation and fencing material

Where are Triv and Janie, resting up?

I don't think those poor girls ever get a rest!
If we ever see them in nice dresses at a party we won't recognize them

Alliecat wrote:I don't think those poor girls ever get a rest!
If we ever see them in nice dresses at a party we won't recognize them  

This has occurred to me too. I hope their Christmas bonus is huge!

CatDragonStorm wrote:

Alliecat wrote:I don't think those poor girls ever get a rest!
If we ever see them in nice dresses at a party we won't recognize them  

This has occurred to me too. I hope their Christmas bonus is huge!

Addie has a pirate dress!

I wish I'd purchased more of those dresses at the time. Altho' at the time they seemed expensive; compared to today's prices for Smart Doll outfits that are not nearly as nice,  they were a bargain. There was a brown one (like Addie's), an orange and white one, and, briefly, a red one.

The tall boots that Addie wears with her pirate costume were discontinued as well, and I've never seen a pair come up on the secondary market. Smart Doll shoes that cost as much as the "tall boots" used to are made of one-piece molded vinyl now, like "playline" doll shoes, rather than being made of "real shoe materials" and "just like real shoes but in miniature."

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30 October - A Doll A Day 2023:

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So lower-quality mass-production has hit smart doll accessories too?

The maintenance doesn't ever end, does it

Alliecat wrote:So lower-quality mass-production has hit smart doll accessories too?

The maintenance doesn't ever end, does it?

Yes.
No.

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31 October - A Doll A Day 2023:


Finally!

And Smart doll shoes are SO expensive. So so so expensive.

1 November - A Doll A Day 2023:

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Bratz Selfie-Snaps Yasmin gets ready to hit the The Mother Road once again! See y'all in Albuquerque... or Texarkana... or Mobile... or Daytona Beach! Or wherever and whenever we have Internet service again!

Oh enjoy your journeys. Lovely picture with the sunset behind her

Safe travels!
I am not jealous of you escaping the cold. Nope, not at all.
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A DOLL A DAY 2023 - CATCHING UP AGAIN

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* Possibly the final season in Florida. Gonna have to do some serious financial calculatin' over the winter. Maintaining a "second home" is turning out to be more expensive than initially anticipated.

I look forward to hearing if the mangrove pod grows. CAN you grow them indoors?? The seagull in the background watching Yasmin is a cute addition to the photo.

Is renting the place out when you're not there an option? I guess lots of people do this, if "House Hunters" is to be believed. I'm not sure I'd like doing that, and you'd need a reliable property manager.
Was recently listening to someone rhapsodize about the benefits of "cold plunge" therapy -- tanks, showers, or, the ocean! Will you be running down to the beach for a dip to start the day?

Alliecat wrote:I look forward to hearing if the mangrove pod grows.  CAN you grow them indoors??  

I successfully sprouted mangrove pods when I lived in Hawaii. At times I had a pail full of them by the back door.

I found one, just one, mangrove pod on the beach in Florida last March. I kept it in a soda bottle and took it to Utah. Finally, toward the end of summer, in August or September, it began to put out a tiny shoot. I've now brought it back to Florida.

I looked in to renting the house. The management company I consulted wanted a lot of upgrades and repairs in order to even consider representing the house: new washer and dryer, new roof on the back deck, new doors -- repairs that would easily have amounted to twenty-thousand dollars or more. While the house is adequate for an owner to live in, it's apparently not nice enough to rent to some crack-heads who will trash the place.

I suspect that most of us who do not rent are living in houses that would be considered substandard or inadequate for rental purposes.

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8 November - A Doll A Day 2023:

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9 November - A Doll A Day 2023:

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ocean time oooohhhhh.......

10 November - A Doll A Day 2023:
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