Sick again, as ususal. :(

I feel like I've been out of commission forever, even though it's only been a week or so. I caught some virus last Monday, and it wouldn't go away. Then I started developing some odd symptoms, namely my throat becoming so swollen that it's almost closed up. And the "tonsils from hell" as my nurse put it. Found out that I'm apparently allergic to the virus that I caught, hence the throat swelling.

Joy.

So I'm on meds and lots of ibuprofen until I can get this all under control. Wish me luck!

Yay crazy doll people!

I've been sicker in the last few weeks than I have been in a while, so pardon my lack of updates. I'm finally up and moving around today, although slowly per doctor's orders, and I had some fun news to share.

I happened to meet a woman the other day through my work, and she mentioned that she belonged to a local doll club. I asked what kind of dolls and we talked briefly about mine before she made an appointment for later in the week.

She came today with another member who showed me a beautiful Sybarite (fancy French ball jointed dolls made of special resin), and we talked shop as it were. They've invited me to come to their monthly meetings, and eventually become a full member! I guess they don't currently have a lot of participation from bjd owners, so this would be a fun opportunity from everyone.

Gabe was my mascot today (as I just finished his millionth face up), and he was such a smiley little monster. I swear, he's not as much of a spoiled brat as he comes off looking... Or maybe he is. :P

An excerpt

I love when I have a character in writing or otherwise who comes through strongly. Bits and pieces of their storyline suddenly appear as if they were there all along. Gabriel is this kind of character to a fault, and this is a piece I wrote maybe a minute or so after I figured out his name. It has to do with when he told his parents he had become a vampire.

"Mama broke every piece of glass in the house that day. Even the decorative plates she had lined up in little rows in her sitting room. Father had to purchase a china set from the merchant down the street just so that they would have something to eat off of that night. Neither he nor mama ever spoke of it again, but that was the last time she called me by my given name. From the breaking of the glass, I was Gabriel."

He's no pinhead!

Just got my order in from Denver Doll Emporium for a new wig and silicone wig cap for Gabe. The wig cap is just right, but unfortunately they sent the wrong size wig. :( Instead of the 7-8 he needs they sent a 6-7. I've just e-mailed them about it so we'll see what happens. They're always a pleasure to deal with, so I imagine it will all be resolved soon.

Productivity without proof.

I'm feeling oddly productive lately, though I don't really have any pictures to show for it. ;) My camera is somewhere safe, so safe in fact that I'm not quite sure where it is. However I will find it soon as I'd love to share some pictures of my new projects.

I made Gabe a necklace last night with some very tiny sterling silver chain and some small gemstones in settings. I can't stand jewelry that is out of scale, but these pieces were perfect.

I also found him a carry case that works for his character and for my future steampunk costumes with him. It's a small wooden suitcase with leather handles and metal hook latches. The sides of the case are covered in old map print, and it's the perfect size to fit him and some padding. I've already started getting pieces together to customize it, but I'll leave the details a mystery for now. It has to do with his character which I'm still working on developing. :)

Sometimes...

...you have to admit you're lost before you can find your way.

I was in the midst of writing a post yesterday about how I was giving up on finding my Arashi a name, when something struck me. Arashi is described as an angel or "tenshi" by Volks specifically. My mind wandered and I thought, could he be Tenshi? Angel? No and no, but how about an angelic name...?

Gabriel.

And in an instant, everything came together. Here was Gabriel, or Gabe for short. My snarky, sarcastic, and not at all brooding vampire boy. The character I'd been both writing about and dancing around for weeks. I actually have quite a bit of dialogue and several scenes written about him, but even that didn't spark the name. Regardless, he now has a name that we both like, and I don't feel so weird. :)

New face!

Decided to redo Arashi's face up tonight. I love the first one I did, but it just doesn't work with his two new pretty wigs. :P To art!

Camera fixed!

Well my plan was to update with some new pictures of Arashi in his new wigs and eyes which both came in yesterday. However, it seems my phone camera is dead, or something similar. So since my real camera is at home, I'll have to wait until later to show you all how lovely he looks in his new duds.

Speaking of his new duds, I must say that these new eyes are absolutely stunning. They are essentially his "default" eyes, 16mm Volks cadet blue with black lines. I say "default" because while these are the eyes that any Arashi originally came with, I don't really know the history of this particular pair. There was at least one other limited Volks doll that came with these same eyes, so they could very well have been theirs. Regardless, the eyes are beautiful!

And of course as usual the wigs from Spite&Malice were perfect. Better than perfect really, they're awesome. :)

Update

I feel like there should be another post here somewhere that I made last week... Oh well.

Work has me held captive as we move into our busiest season, so I haven't had a lot of extra time. I have been doing some sewing to relax after work, but no pictures yet. Arashi (name still pending) has some new shirts and a funky wig, and I'm working on something a bit more medieval for him as well. Or steampunk, not really sure what direction it's going in yet.