Blythe goals

My gang of Blythe dolls standing in a row atop my desk has really been a source of great joy for me the past several years. They truly make me happy when I look up at them, and it can be relaxing for me just to spend time looking at them.

It's fun for me to style them and take pictures of them too, but they often reflect my aesthetics and current color passions, so I derive strange joy from just having them standing around and also being really particular and fussy with the way I have each girl dressed.

When I go places, sometimes I sneak a girl with me like a talisman of strength, or just a friend. I like to have one standing or sitting by me when I'm crafting. I like to make little hats for them, so they give me something to do with my hands. If I didn't have dolls to make hats for... well, boxes of other things I've made are still sitting around in my room, so in my nightmarescape my room would look much more like an episode of Hoarders waiting to happen.

So Blythes for me are a creative outlet, and also like art/decor and comfort objects all at once. I don't consider myself a collector, even though by now they number enough to be considered a collection; I just think of them as my Blythe family and I have such an affection for each one. I even had a dream about Beatrix last night!

Anyway, even when I haven't changed half of them in a month (or sometimes several months if I really like the way they're dressed), I enjoy them literally every day. I want to indulge myself in some focus after a year of spending a lot of my free time writing, and not buying too many dolly duds or taking too many pictures. So I have a little list of "Blythe goals," or just things I'd really like to do in the coming year...

Easy:

• do ADAD for a month (I'm thinking February or March)
• find a charm for Mallow's pullstring
• buy some more tights, socks, and separates
• give Gavin and Mallow a spa day
• new family portrait to include Lamb!

Medium:

• sew another felt A-line dress
• knit another hat!
• finally, finally do a closet cleanout on Blythe Kingdom... why is this so hard??

Laughably Ambitious:

• really make my dumb DIY lightbox more usable
• make a little scale doll room/diorama
• get a faceup for Bonnet and possibly Gavin

I have no hard, fast goals -- besides very definitely picking a month to do ADAD and sticking to it, no matter how boring I feel my pictures are or if I'm totally nocturnal and have no light -- but lots of thoughts/shoulds!

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knit it and quit it!

Hooray, a dishrag? This is only the second knitted item I have ever successfully completed (sans weaving in and blocking, of course). It was pretty simple, but I still feel proud because I caught myself mid-mess up a few times and was able to carefully backtrack. I followed this video. I must admit, as I was finishing it up, I wasn't really sure what to do, whether I was supposed to still be Yarning Over, but it seems to be okay... so I'm proud of myself just for managing to finish!

Ah, knitting. I'll conquer you someday!

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not-too-lazy Sunday

I've been practicing knitting. I am eternally practicing without signs of marked improvement. I basically mess up everything I make, even just practice squares! But I just keep going and wind up with a ridgey, weird square... that I wrap into a bow and perch on the nearest, dearest Blythe!

I am knitting a dishcloth and am exactly halfway in now! I just wanted to get a picture of it before I start decreasing again and inevitably mess up (I won't mind, it hasn't taken very long to make so far). Let's be real, this is basically a bigger practice square. I've learned to Yarn Over! Which of course is basically 50% of what crocheting is, but which is still pretty cool, 'cause I've never done it with knitting before.

When knitting is going well, it is very satisfying. But for me, one tiny slip or misstep renders all the effort in vain. I must learn how to "tink" to repair my constant errors, which usually come when I have knitted instead of purled, or somehow messed up purling in another way...

I've really been enjoying my Blythes lately. I love my little family. Well, it's not so little anymore. I have no idea how I have nine Neos and a Middie!

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ruffled feathers

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Lamb spamb

I do believe University of Love is named Lamb, for her lamby curls and also her Gwen Stefanian vibe. This morning she got a little hot water treatment and her curls stayed fairly intact. I really had no idea what would happen with them. Her bangs look better, too, and they do this funny little curl! It's actually kind of cute, so I might just leave them like that for now!

Changing a new girl out of her stock for the first time always makes me kind of nervous. I need to go shopping for some Lamby duds!

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strawberry lip balms

Every year, winter seems to get rougher and rougher on my skin. In my immediate line of sight I have seven tubes/pots of lip balm, and three more in my purse. I have to have a tube handy wherever I go, or I will literally regret it, my lips will hurt so badly!

I used to favor tingly mint balms, so I have a couple of them hanging around, but my skin has become too sensitive for them. I keep medicated balms on hand as well, but it's official, strawberry has become my flavor of choice. Carmex is good if you don't mind that medicated tingle at odds with your strawberry flavoring. Bonne Bell is a waxy childhood classic that you can't outgrow. I was addicted to EOS balms for a while and also really like their creamy strawberry flavor, but the best in my opinion is Smith's Strawberry Lip Balm. I've had my pot for months and use it several times daily and I have still only used a bit of it.

Honestly, I do not really love the way I have to dip my finger into a pot, but it is the most moisturizing by far.

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fire and ice

Plummery makes it look practically warm outside. Nope! It's icy!

Currently I'm...

• listening to: a playlist called "90s Pain!!!"
• eating: toasted peanut butter and banana sandwiches -- so Elvis
• working on: three short stories (only one has a good prognosis, probably...)
• thinking about: what my UOL Blythe's name is!!
• watching: everything YouTube has to offer on the Antikythera mechanism

Happy Monday!

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University of WHAT

Today I decided to get all eight of my Neo-sized Blythes down from their shelf and re-dress them all!  (Middie Bonnet just watched with her head titled.) I had just done a bunch of work and was listening to music and unwinding and having a grand ol' time.

I had only a couple of them dressed when my mom asked me if I'd like to run out for coffee and a snack with her. So I left my girls on my bed and put my good ol' fox hat on.

When we opened the front door to leave, there was a package on the doorstep. I assumed it was for my sister and picked it up without thinking, then said as it occurred to me, "This is the size of a Blythe box." You know how you can definitely identify the box by size and weight after enough de-boxings? I just knew it was a Blythe box. I stared at my mother, wondering: Did I buy a Blythe and manage to forget? What have I done? Why did I do that? I'm so broke right now! I told her urgently, "I didn't buy a Blythe!" However, it was from Hong Kong and I felt really sure about the feel of the package. I was kind of on the verge of a panic attack about my finances and selective memory loss before I noticed it was addressed to my nickname rather than my billing name, which is a sure sign that a friend has sent me something.

We opened it and inside was University of Love.

"I bet you anything this is from L," I said. A couple of years ago I bought one of my best friends, L, her first Blythe. She had taken an interest in them after seeing mine and I was happy to have a friend I could talk doll shop with, so I bought her Cassiopeia Spice, and I loved being able to do that. I got some emotional deja vu from the surprise factor of it all and from the full circle moment feeling. "L knows exactly what I like."

"Isn't she a doll?" my mom asked.  "A doll who sends dolls!"

By the time I got back to my girls, I was carrying this box with a brand new girl in it and took a picture because I thought it was so strange that I was literally in a pile of Blythes already.

I have to say, I am really gobsmacked. L had told me my Christmas present was on its way but I blanked so hard until I saw my nickname on the box! I literally thought, "Oh my God, I bought her and blocked it out, didn't I??"

This gorgeous creature has fluffy, immensely curly hair (which badly needs a treatment, as per usual, but is happily knot-free) and interestingly has the same low gaze on her pink set of front-facing chips that Coco Collette does. I am so intimidated by her glamorous Gossip Girl-ian feel. It's crazy how different and unique every Blythe feels in person.

I wonder what her name will be? I wonder what kind of gal she is?? I'm so surprised I'm struck dumb and am staring at her respectfully from a distance! Never did I dream my day would go this way.

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