New Video and Danielle's House Gets a Remodel

I was supposed to be doing a video with Darius and Nikki, but the three of us had some issues.  I never force a story and they were just not cooperating.  Needless to say, I have so many stories in my head, I can always just move on and that is what I did.

So here is a story with, who else, Danielle and Roderick.  I didn't want to shoot the video with the kitchen the way it was, so I totally redesigned her home.  The layout will stay like this, but of course the decor and accessories will be updated and added to as time goes on.

This is the view from the dining area looking into the living room.

This is Grandma's Kitchen, but I closed off the table area. It was taking up too much space. I will be painting the countertop and sink.  I may replace that table with a smaller table.  Can't wait to finish that laundry room!

Without further ado, here is the video. Double-click to see it in full screen.

Note: I did not make the lasagne in this video. It was made by a local woman about 5 years ago. She made the best food, but she stopped doing it about 4 years ago.  I did make the ravioli, but that was a while ago, before I really knew what I was doing. 

Doll People Are The Greatest! Look at my new Goodies

A few months ago, I saw the cutest red haired, freckled face Tommy boy.  You can see him here.  I asked Blue_Winks who he was.  She promptly told me he was the little boy in the 3 piece international set.  A few weeks later she contacted me and told me she had an extra little boy and that she wanted me to have him.  Isn't that sweet? 

Well he arrived today, with a couple of surprises.

His name is Garrett.  He is named after his previous owner's son.

She also included the little Spanish girl from the set because she too was a duplicate.  Blue_Winks is a major collector of Kelly and Tommy dolls.  You can see them on her Flickr photostream.

This was a total surprise!  You guys know how much I love my Fashion Avenue.  Now I just have to figure out who will get this cute ensemble.

I will say it again, doll people are the greatest people in the world!

Dinner is Served! At Least for Darius and Nikki

It is getting more complicated to prepare for these video shoots.  Life was much simpler before I was making food.  Now if there is food anywhere in the scene, I am not satisfied unless I make it.  I'm going to have to do more bedroom and bathroom scenes, where there is no food involved.

I am preparing for a dinner date between Darius and Nikki.  Remember them? They are still here, doing their thing.  They haven't had a date in some time and Darius has planned a romantic dinner.  Being that they are part of the Elite group, we know they are not eating hamburgers and hot dogs.  So, I made them something special.  How about scallops and filet mignon?  I will not be showing a picture of the filet mignon here.  You will have to wait to see it in the video.  The meat turned out great, but I am not happy with the sauce.  I don't have what I need to make the kind of sauce that I want.  I will, however, show the scallops.

I have to work on my asparagus. Not bad for the first time. I had vowed not to make asparagus, but I couldn't think of any other high falutin' vegetable to compliment the scallops.

 

I am now off to think about shooting this Darius and Nikki video.  Wish me luck!

Not exactly Fried Chicken, but Still Tasty

I started off making fish sticks, but they were a little big.  So I converted them to mozzarella sticks.  This is perfectly fine since mozarella sticks was on the list of food to make.  Don't pay attention to the sauce I used,  It is a very old one that I pulled from my stash to take the picture.  I will have to make some new sauce to go with this ensemble.  It will come loose so they can be used for appetizers.  I hope to have this listed in Etsy within a couple of days with new sauce and new pictures.

Danielle is going to start putting on some pounds soon.  She has been eating quite a bit.



New Video: Morning at the Anderson Home

Whipped up a quick video today.  I haven't made any changes to the Anderson home yet, just in case you are looking to see some. 

New Blogger - Chynadoll Creations

As you know, occassionally I will feature new blogs from people I meet.  Today I am introducing you guys to Chynadoll Creations.  She is a very talented OOAK artist.  I met her through my Facebook fan page, and when I asked her if she had a blog or website, BAM, she had a blog up the very next day.  I was impressed, and I have been impressed with all of her posts thus far.

Here are a couple of pictures, I borrowed from her blog.  Hopefully she won't mind.  It's 4am in the morning, and I couldn't get an answer from her, so I decided to make an executive decision.  I don't think she will mind.  It's for a good cause.  As for the dolls, she does everything.  The repaint, the hair, the jewelry, the clothes, etc. 

This is a S.I.S. doll remake.  I am loving this jewelry.

This was a $3 thrift store doll.  You mean my thrift store dolls could look like this?

So hop on over to Chynadoll Creations, and pay her a visit

Mattel Gets Two Thumbs Up on the New Baby Playset

Today I received my 2 Barbie sets I ordered from Amazon.  I anxiously ripped open the Barbie I Can Be Baby Sitter playset.   This is one of the better sets that Mattel has done.  I give it two thumbs up.  There are a few downsides, but all in all, I love it.  If you read my initial post about this set, you know that I originally purchased the Caucausian version from my local Target.  I was supposed to be taking it back and exchanging it for a different set, but I've decided to keep it.  It is definitely worth having both sets.

Here are all the pieces of the set.

All the pieces are very well made.

The doll has articulated legs, but her arms are positioned so she can lift the baby, by pulling on the huge lever in her back. 

Aww, isn't that adorable. The head contraption is a little strange, though.

I love this little seat!

It opens from one side, just like the real thing.  It also has a button on top that makes the seat move side to side.

The playpen also has some nice features.  The bottom of the playpen is adjustable. It can be put at the bottom of the pen or about halfway up. 

I guess this is just a container to hold the baby powder or other accessories.

This is NOT the bottle that came with the baby. The bottle that came with this set looks like a 2 liter soda bottle. I misplaced it during the picture taking, so I can't show it to you.  I will have to find it, in order to test out the "drinking and wetting" scenario. Yes, this baby can wet the diaper, once she drinks water.  The diaper actually turns color to make it appear like it is wet.  Once dry, it turns back to normal.  I think this is why the baby's head does not move, which originally was a downfall for me, but I can live with this.

So I know the baby looks really scary at this point with the open mouth, etc.  But, I warmed up to her after realizing how well made she was.  I will definitely have to find her a pacifier to put in her mouth to make her look a little more normal.

This baby has very soft arms and legs, which are flexible.  Not sure how they did this, but it's really nice to see.  As you can see, she can look like she is crawling.  I like that this baby is older than an infant, but not quite a toddler.

Here she is hanging on to Julian.  She is able to hold some nice poses.

Julian would make a wonderful brother to a little sister.

Joseph wanted to meet her.

Julian felt it was time she got in her seat. He was ready to go play with his toys.

"Good job, Julian".

This is the Mattel Krissy doll.  I just wanted you guys to see that she too could fit in the new seat.

She can hold her ba ba with a little help. I dressed her in a Krissy outfit.  I have lots of little clothes that can fit her.

Looks like she may be chewing on the nipple. She is probably teething. 

I need to find her some parents real soon.  She needs to be in the mix.

There are so many possibilities with this new little gem. To have a crawling baby that can get into all kinds of trouble, will be so much fun to work with.

Yeah, Mattel.  You got this one right!

I Got the Cornbread Right on the First Try

 Last night I made cornbread....for the dolls.  This was my first attempt and I think it turned out pretty well.  This will be one of the choices on the "Southern Style" menu.   By the way, I have already started the new doll food website.  It is not live yet, but I have added some food items that will be available for sale.  This will be added to the list.   

Umm, umm, good.

Nice and golden on the top.

And perfectly browned on the bottom.

Danielle, is asking the question I have been asking myself.  Fried chicken is hopefully coming soon.  Once my brain figures that out, it is on, like butter popcorn!  Or better yet, buttered cornbread.

Barbie Collector Sale and Barbie Basics 2.5

Did you guys know that Barbie Collector.com is having a sale?  The more you buy, the more you save.  Buy at least $50 and save $15.  I just ordered my Barbie Basics 2.5 doll and accessory pack.

Finally the doll I wanted, was wearing the outfit I wanted.  I ended up ordering 2 of her so that I could get to my $50.  Not to mention, I will be able to use her body.  They are still priced at $19.95.

There are 2 accessory packs.  This is the second one.  The first one only has shoes and jewelry.  They are both only $14.95

I didn't get any of the other Basic 2.5 dolls, but doesn't this one remind you of Kim Kardashian?   Maybe it's just me.

Sharing a Pair of my Limbe Doll Sandals

David Anderson got a new sweatsuit a couple of weeks ago.  For those of you who don't know, he owns his own gym. You can check out his gym in this video. So everytime I see a cute sweatsuit, I usually buy it with him in mind.  I put it on him yesterday for the first time, getting him prepared for the new story.  I was going to put some tennis shoes on him,  but  remembered, I don't really have any white ones.  I decided to look in my birthday package of limbe doll sandals that arrived last week.  There are custom made sandals for the Power Team guys and the LIV dolls.  I really think my Stacey dolls and Only Heart girls will be sporting those LIV doll sandals.  I already tried them on Nicole, and they fit perfectly.  All of the sandals are so adorable!

Here is the cute sweatsuit.  It is blue, red, and white.

Can you believe there was a pair of matching sandals in my bag?!  I know I couldn't!  I must still be living right, because the blessings just continue to flow.

He will wear these to work and switch to his tennis shoes that he keeps in his locker there.

limbe dolls has created a really nice tutorial for these wonderful sandals.  I accidentally saw it seconds after it posted to YouTube, which was seconds before she could mark it private.  Tell me it wasn't meant for me to see that tutorial and know that it was sitting out there in limbo in limbe doll land!  She had to have known that I would tell you guys about it.  The tutorial is very well written, and she makes these super easy to make.  This is where I would ordinarily post the link to the tutorial, but she is keeping it under wraps until September.  I am sure if enough people ask, she may post it earlier.  Power to the people!  Don't tell her I said anything about this.  I will post the rest of my cute sandals, closer to the time the tutorial will be released.  No reason to continue torturing you guys.

I am starting to believe this guy enjoys his clothes.  He is always posing with some outfit on.  None of my other guys ever do that.  Poor Leslie, she too is sporting a new dress from Yuko Stevens (etsy), a popular designer in the fashion doll world. You don't see her seeking out camera time.  She is always just doing her motherly duties.

Special thank you to limbe dolls for the beautiful gift.  You are truly a blessing.  I am paying it forward, with the intent to pay it backwards soon, as well.  By the way, Shantavia snatched the card for artwork in her studio.  The colors are perfect.