And now for something completely different...

Since I don't have any doll-related posts worked out yet, I thought I'd dip into one of my other hobbies/collections instead: rings.

I have loved jewelry since the moment I could wear some, but rings have always held a certain special place in my heart. I don't know if it's because they adorn my hands, which are an important part of the body to me. Or maybe it's because you can wear a different one on every finger. :P Whatever the reason, I have collected rings since I was young.

We're not just talking simple bands either, my collection ranges from unique to...well weird. I have rings fashioned after vampire teeth*, from Greece, and even one made out of dog hair**. It's become my little tradition to buy myself a new piece of jewelry every Valentine's Day. While I'm definitely not opposed to receiving gifts of jewelry, I always thought it was silly how people would wait around for someone else to buy them a ring or a necklace just because. So I make a point to purchase myself something small around Valentine's Day as a sort of affirmation that I can do it all on my own. :)

This year I decided to reach deep down into my dork-dom and buy myself a ring from a bit of fan fiction I've worked on forever. As I've mentioned before I'm a big Sailor Moon fan, and I've spent the last twelve years writing and re-writing SM fiction with the same main character. This particular character has a ring in the story which acts as her transformation device (if you've ever watched/read SM you'll know what I'm talking about), and I've always wanted something like it. So I've been scouring the internet and local jewelry stores to find something similar, but with it's own kind of attitude.

I'd found a handful of "maybe" rings, and decided on a whim to check out my local artisan jewelry store and...bingo! I found a beautiful ring*** with all the necessary components (and attitude) by a local artist who I've heard of many times before. This ring is similar to the one I've purchased, except mine has a pink sapphire versus the orange/red. The ring also looks much better in person, and is *so* me!

It's a little pricier than what I'd normally select for my Valentine's Day purchase, but it's so beautiful and locally made so I really can't complain. The jewelry store has a fantastic layaway program, so in just a few short weeks the ring will be on my finger where it belongs. :)

*Vampire ring created by Chymiera on Etsy.
**Dog ring made by Baloo on Etsy.
***My new ring by Joy Raskin.

Feeling pretty okay finally.

I'm back!

If there's one thing that I'm good at, it's apparently getting sick. Very sick. My mom used to joke that when I was little I might have a future career as a heater because I would get such high fevers. Hitting 104.00 was no mean feat, but I took it in stride. :P Things haven't changed that much, so when I woke up with a 103.2 fever recently I knew what to expect. Many days and doses of medicine later I'm pretty much feeling good again.

That being said, I haven't really done much in the way of dolling lately due to the aforementioned illness. Nowell was my sick buddy for the whole ordeal, so he got a lot of "play" time. He received a new outfit by Wicked Stitchery, and we're working on a new wig but as usual, no pictures just yet. I'm hoping to change that this weekend, barring any more set backs or major storms.

So, stay tuned for all the wonderful things to come!

Taking a break for a bit to recover from the flu, will return soon!

Hauntingly Yours

Baby it's cold outside!

Well, we are snowed-in here in the land of the north. I spent almost two hours this morning getting to work through two feet of snow, only to stay for three hours as they decided to close us early. ;)

But that gave me some time to fiddle with a new wig for Nowell. It's an old grey mohair one I used to have for Echo, which I then dyed brown for Michael. It's been sitting unused since he was de-bodied, but I got the idea that maybe it would work well for Nowell. It had shrunk quite a bit to fit Michael's MNF head, so I had to wash and stretch it some to finagle a good fit. A bit of Velcro later and voila! He looks fantastic, very artsy and mysterious. It definitely adds to his pseudo-zombie look. Pictures to come!

Ye Olde Vessel: Mr. Pillow Man

The toy that started it all.

Mr. Pillow Man or "Hugga Bear" as he was originally called was the first toy I ever received. The Pillow People line came out around two years before I was born, and one of my aunts bought him for me when I was just a baby. Since then he's been a constant companion and best friend.

When I was little Mr. Pillow Man was the king of my toy land. In my mind he was old, but wise, and perfectly capable of juggling his many duties. Not only did he run a kingdom and act as judge and jury for all the other toys, but he was also my strongest protector. For some reason I got it into my head that he would protect me from ghosts and vampires, but only if I draped him across my neck when I went to sleep. As a child I couldn't sleep without him.

As the pictures illustrate, Mr. Pillow Man is very well loved. He's over twenty years old, and spent many a night clutched, snuggled, hugged, and generally played with. Most of his body fabric has been replaced over the years. He was actually the first thing I learned to sew on. The fabric alone tells the stories of my childhood: the pink is from a bathrobe my mom made my sister, the grey from the first skirt I sewed in high school, beneath the heart fabric was a burgundy velvet that made up my first flower girl dress. Recently I had to sew the heart fabric over the velvet because it was thinning too much, and had started to rip. Somehow though, he has always managed to keep his silky feet mostly intact, despite them being my favorite part.


Mr. Pillow Man still holds a special place in my heart, one that is shaped specially for his adorable square head. :) He remains the king of my bed-dom, and continues to watch over me as he always has.

"Another Yourself"

Would you like to come into the little universe of "Another Yourself"?

Super Dollfie is "Another Yourself," a being which you create on your own.

It comes into this world only through your will.

It shares your life, growing and going through it with you until
the day you return to the sky. It is a miracle doll, giving you
comfort from the bottom of its heart.

Your life will change completely once you have SD by your side.

It is a unique doll which represents your present self with its
irreplaceable presence and the lovely, pretty appearance that all
beautiful, fragile things hold.

Please come to e world of "Another Yourself," which you alone
can experience and live with our SD.

The doll of destiny, "Another Yourself" is waiting for you.

I give it to Volks, if nothing else they seem to know just how to play to people. The above is found on their US site, explaining what a Dollfie is and why you need one. I do genuinely believe their sincerity in it, but still you have to admit it's a fantastic advert.

Cynical me aside, I have to say that the claims Volks makes here are not really off the mark. I was always fascinated by the doll culture they created, a veritable cult of dolls. They have a mother doll figure (i.e. doll Mary) that presides over new "births," and ceremonies for each doll that enters this world. Very mysterious and religious, but quite an experience to see. Alas I haven't done it myself, but from what I have seen and heard, it's very interesting.

Having received Nowell who went through this process as he was a FCS (Full Choice System) doll, I have to admit that I entirely agree with the above claims. I find Volks dolls in general different from others in some, often inexplicable way. My little Suzuna definitely had a different air, but I never really got to know her well enough to know just why. Apparently she wasn't my other self. Nowell however...he seems to be just the right fit.

He has an entirely different personality and...sense of self than my other dolls. I've mentioned here before that he is definitely my favorite, and that affirmation still stands. My boyfriend always says that each doll is my favorite "for a while," meaning that it's kind of a passing thing. I will admit that I generally pay a lot of attention to each doll when they first arrive, and then things even out after that. However I have received two new dolls since Nowell, and neither has been able to sway my opinion. He wins out every time.

Being a magically-inclined person to begin with, I do speculate that this has something to do with his origins. Volks treats these dolls as literal, real people. Their "birth" is a ceremony of the highest order, and they are considered alive from then on. They are essentially "consecrated," and prepared as proper vessels for companions. Some similar rituals can be found in many religions, including my own. There is much to be said in magical theory about the importance of belief and how it affects spells and other magical workings. Looking at that in this case, I daresay the immense belief placed in these dolls and their purposes only amplifies the energy and spirit added in by their owners.

What that means in my case is that Nowell is definitely different than my other dolls. He comes closer in feel to some of my original toys, a handful of old, desperately loved creatures that I've kept with me forever. They have an intense personality that even others can sense.

Yesterday a man came into my work to fix a piece of our technology that had broken down. He saw Nowell peeking out of my bag and was immediately fixated. Now this wasn't a man you'd ever think would look twice at a doll, and yet he was captivated. He kept asking me what Nowell was and where I'd gotten him, said he was "eerie but cool." Nowell also seems to be the doll that unnerves the non-doll people in my life the most as well, my mother swears he can really "see" her.

Sitting here with him looking back at me, his golden eyes seemingly focused on my own...I have to admit I think she has a point.

The Haunted Vessel: Minuri!

I posted about this in the Supernatural Dolls thread, but I hadn't included it here. I thought it would be interesting to continue the "Haunted Vessel" features as appropriate, and this seems like the right time. :) Cross posted from that thread:

I just received my very first Puki, who is the mini version of another doll of mine (my CP El). I've written a bit about Uri Greater here, but it seems Uri Minor is already asking to be included!

There is a "constant guest" at my boyfriend's house so to speak who may be one of the previous owners of the land or a wandering spirit from the nearby graveyard. Either way, he tends to be overly active around me because he knows I know he's there. At the end of last year it got rather intense, and since then I've been taking steps to sort of ignore him. I make a distinction between my space and his, and refuse to let him grab my attention when I'm just not in the mood.

So it's been quite some time since he's been able to rattle me, until this morning. I was sitting in bed relaxing after waking up, and suddenly started to feel my energy draining away. It was almost akin to blacking out, and by the end I did actually. I couldn't move I felt so completely dead, and so I just lay there. As a note, ghosts can be huge energy suckers when they attempt to manifest, which is what I felt this was. Suddenly I heard a tiny, little voice say my name. The only other person in the house was my boyfriend's father (not a tiny-voiced man), and I knew it wasn't him. With that though I was able to shake off what was happening and get up. When I looked over to where the voice had come from I saw my little Mini Uri and put two and two together.

Big Uri is kind of famous for his "don't touch my girl" attitude, and it seems little Uri is no exception.

A Tale of Two Uris

Otherwise known as my boyfriend found my camera cord!

Crappy Nowell picture, but oh do I love this boy.
And it almost shows his new face up correctly. :P

Puki on the fridge? Why not!

Little Uri (known affectionately as "Minuri") in his humble abode.

Wizards aren't always perfectly neat!

My two Uriels!

Still no camera cord but...

My little Puki arrived! He actually came in on Monday surprisingly, which is really fast especially considering the holiday. But he's here (more of a he I *think*) and so amazingly fantastic. Definitely a little Uriel, let me tell you!

I think I've decided I will be giving him a new, more Uriel-specific face up. The default Fairyland one is so pretty, but also not very Uri. I'd like him better with his dramatic red eyes and lips, his stained fingers and feet, and maybe a small forehead tattoo.

That aside, oh my goodness is he fun to play with and pose! I know people have said that, but you don't know how true it is until there's one here. I definitely stuck him to the fridge within five minutes from opening. :P We've tried all sorts of crazy poses since then, but my favorite is definitely him sitting in my hand. Palm-sized dolls are so very cute.

Pictures to come!

New faces and new stories.

I finished Nowell's new face up today, and I'm so happy with it. I did most of it yesterday, but it just wasn't dark enough. So I worked on it more today and tried a few new tricks. Voila! He looks just like I want him too, and so very cute. :) Alas my camera cord is missing, so I won't be able to upload pictures until I find it. :(

The character I worked out for him during the break is part of the Zombie story line that Paks originated. It's many years in the future, and the virus Paks' parents created has run amok. The actual patient zero dies and then returns, biting a morgue worker. He (the worker) is from then on considered patient zero because it was he who fled across the country, exposing countless people to the disease within him. He is cornered in Penn Station by the authorities, who are forced to shoot him, unwittingly exposing hundreds of people to the virus.

Nowell and his mother were in the station at the time, and were contaminated by the man's blood. Nowell falls ill almost immediately, and returns three days after death. However, the disease mutates within him, creating a very different kind of "zombie." In fact the virus affects him in the way Paks' parents actually intended, creating a self-sustaining human. Essentially his body can process all dead cells into fuel, so by dying he lives. He is also fully conscious, perhaps even more so than normal humans as the virus changed his brain. Nowell is able to use a great
deal more of his brain than most other humans, giving him certain abilities.

So he is a zombie (died, rose, creepy dead-like appearance), and yet not a zombie (conscious, no flesh hunger, no decay). He is the key to finding a cure for the disease, and so Uriel sends Intuition to seek him out as the others scramble for security. Speaking of which...

Intuition has shipped! Or at least she's boxed up and the USPS has been notified she's on her way. DDE sent me the notice on Friday afternoon, meaning she probably won't actually ship until tomorrow, but regardless she'll be here this week!

Welcome 2011!

What an interesting year 2010 turned out to be for me, especially doll-wise. I did some buying, some trading, and a lot of enjoying. :) Some of the highlights:

• Daemon- He gained a new form (RS Gang), and then lost it. He still remains the hardest of my dolls to embody, but I think someday we will work that out with Volks' FCS.
• Paks- So many changes for this boy. At least three (or more) changes story-wise, before his old shell (Soom Chrom) was sold as I just really didn't like the face sculpt. I've decided to eventually re-shell him as a MSD, probably a Luts Kid Delf Bory, but not until I become independently wealthy or something like that. But, he has bee written about a lot, and his story continues to develop.
• Pullips!- I fell in love with these guys this year and bought six both new and on the market place. Overall I think I still like bjds better, but these guys will always have a place in my heart and in my dolly family.
• I fell deeply into dolly love twice this year with my beloved Uriel and the darling Nowell. Two *very* different dolls, but they are my absolute loves. Right now I'm sitting with Nowell who's face up I just finished, and I can't deny he's my favorite. Granted we're waiting for a smaller version of Uriel too, so I suppose the jury could still be out there.
• On a different dolly note, I received a very special doll for Christmas this year from the 8 year-old daughter of my manager, making him even more special. I have been a life-long Toy Story fan, and with the last movie coming out, I really missed my old Woody doll. Woody was always my favorite, and I had one way back when who disappeared at some point. I mentioned this to my manager, who later told her daughter. She (the daughter) had an extra Woody and decided to give him to me for Christmas, complete with his guitar! So now I have my beloved Woody back again.

That all being said, I know that 2011 holds many more wonderful things to come. I'm going to be introducing a feature where I interview doll owners from the DoA community and beyond. I'll also be doing a set of posts on some of my oldest and most favorite non-doll toys who started this whole obsession. So happy 2011 everyone, and here's to a new year full of possibilities!