bjd addicts writing prompt #2: dream dolls

I suppose this question would be a lot easier if I actually had a grail doll in mind! I am pretty much set on getting OR-doll Eris with a LittleMonica body, so realistically that would be my choice if I had enough funds. I guess I might go for F65 Siean if I had no limits on cash at all - after all my main issue with her was that I liked her, but not enough to pay that price. And then I'd send her off to Caroline or Andreja or HimiMO or some other face-up artist I couldn't normally afford. Only the best for the best!

❤ muramin

new favorite wig shop: licht bjd

This is going to be a photospam post and I apologize in advance. I recently discovered a shop called Licht BJD while trying to hunt down wigs for my future doll. I must say that I am completely in love with their craftsmanship and the attention to detail in these beautiful wigs! Licht has some lovely single-colored wigs as well, but I believe their forte really lies in multicolored wigs. I've put down some samples under the cut for your own viewing, as well as links if you'd like to purchase them. The low price is a bonus too!

L-038 in NewsHydrangea

L-190 in Berry

L-345 in Gumdrop

L-034NC in Siren Blue and Dream Pink

L-316 in Milk Pudding

 
❤ muramin

bjd addicts writing prompt #1 - the wait

Hey everyone! I'm going to give this BJD Addicts writing challenge a shot. I have way too much time and not enough stuff to do, so why not? :D

In general I find I like planning dolls when I don't have one on the way.

With my first doll Soyeon I was jumping all over the place being super excited because I'd just ordered my very first BJD. I kept checking the tracking number to see where my package was even though I did something pretty unconventional regarding shipping. At the time my dad frequented Korea for business trips, so I actually had FairyLand ship Soyeon to my dad's business address in Korea and asked one of his co-workers to hold onto her for me. I think waiting for my dad to come back from his business trip with my package added another month to my wait? I was still really new to the hobby then, so I tried to pass the time by focusing on my flute recitals and looking on eBay for clothes and accessories (to no avail, $20 for a doll outfit was ridiculously expensive for me at the time). It was rather sad when she arrived at my house because I had nothing to offer her... :/ but I was definitely jumping up and down when my dad walked in the front door with a huge blue Luts box.

I ordered Lenny off Mint on Card before they sent their pre-orders to Asleep Eidolon in June 2012. I had no idea how this whole pre-order business was going to work - I was given a rough estimate for date of arrival, but didn't receive much else in terms of tracking, so I actually had no idea where she was and when I would get her, only that she'd arrive at my doorstep sometime later in the year. This time around I bought a wig, 2 outfits, and pair of shoes as a basic set for her so she wouldn't have to come home with nothing laid out for her. I also browsed for artists to do her face-up,because I had a specific look in mind for her. After those first two weeks though, I just set myself to enjoying my last summer before college and trying make cash off various things to make up for her cost. I forced myself not to think about her arrival because... well... I just wouldn't get any answers about her whereabouts anyway! There wasn't really much I could do while waiting since I wasn't on DoA at the time, so I didn't have a market/community readily accessible to me, so I just tried to be patient.

❤ muramin

face-up materials!

Why hello everyone! I've gone about making silly decisions with my money before, but hopefully this is one that I won't be regretting. I've been playing around in the realm of Monster High repaints for a little over a month now, and I'm only just realizing how limited I am in materials. I don't even have acrylics aside from this old bottle of black paint from when I used to take art classes! I painted the eyes with pastels mixed with water, and it somehow miraculously worked out alright. If you've seen the Draculaura and Lagoona Blue(s) floating around my tumblr, you'll know what I mean.

 

I need a better lens. Seriously. Anyway, the reason why I picked up Monster High repaints is because I'm aiming to do BJD face-ups someday. Today I've decided to get myself a full set of proper face-up materials, including thinner brushes, ZM UV Cut, and Tamiya acrylics. The grand total comes to roughly $43 USD including shipping to my school, but I hope it's worth it! I'm going to have so much fun trying to figure out how thin I'll need to dilute my paint for eyelashes...

I've reserved a spot for my future face-up shop already. Prices and policies are up, but it's probably going to take at least half a year before I decide my skills are good enough to open. When it does open though, I'll start by taking Monster High customs first. I'll probably open up some free BJD face-up slots to build my portfolio later, but that's a long way down the road.

❤ muramin

shell island dresses!

My goodness I am so glad I stumbled upon this Taobao shop! I have a weak spot for cute frilly dresses even though they're not really something I'd stuff Lenny's closet with (well... maybe one or two. For now). Shell Island has some pretty adorable stuff for both 1/3 and 1/6 size girls - and their latest dress has both sizes available! If you have an SD and a tiny girl you feel like dressing up, you can get them matching dresses :) Here's what I'm talking about:

This is the Sonatine Rose dress set, available for 1/3 and 1/6 size dolls. While you're at it, you should check out the rest of the shop too!

❤ muramin

etsy picks

One of my favorite things to do is browse Etsy for things I won't buy. I felt like making a list of some of the cute things I've seen for sale recently, so here they are!

Cheerful Totoro Hoodie by cyristinecreations on Etsy

 Cyristine's stuff is really adorable. If only this wasn't just for dolls! She's got a lot of colorful hoodies and tees in her store for every size ranging from tinies to SD's. And on a side note I really love her F60 Chloe Mitsuru. That blue hair is just... adorable!

sweet browny dress by Nomyens on Etsy

Some of you might already know Nomyens as a Thai face-up artist. I love her face-up work but I love her sewing work too! I actually partially modeled Lenny's red dress after this one. I don't have a sewing machine so I can't do any pintuck work though.

Sweet Dream Blue/White Set by TatianaBStudio on Etsy

Gosh I cannot even begin to express my love for this corset (and doll corsets in general)! It's unfortunate that TatianaB doesn't make these outfits for SD size, but I can still admire the work put into this outfit. I'm curious as to how the curvature around the hips works though, because Narae hips are definitely not that wide.

Miniature Macarons Heart Edgings by snowfern on Etsy

 Aaah I love snowfern's miniatures! She makes some really yummy looking stuff for 1/3 and 1/4 sizes and even has display boxes for all her delicious baked goods. I wonder how she does all the intricate icing. What are these miniatures even made of?

SD Rabbit flowers headband by kuloft on Etsy

Last but not least I thought I should add Kuloft's lacey floral animal headbands to this list. This one's a bunny headband for SD sizes, but there's Blythe and MSD headbands available in the shop too. Details look they're carved with lasers or something... I think half the time I spend on Etsy is probably dedicated to trying to figure out how these people manage to create these things, haha uvu

❤ muramin

oscar's mirror eyes

These lovely little glittery things have been popping up everywhere recently! First time I saw them was as a Christmas exclusive item on the LittleMonica site, now they're available for order on Bambicrony as well. And gosh do they sell out fast!

EDIT: I can't seem to link the images here. I've left the original website links below, though. Sorry for the lack of pictures!

 OSCAR 18mm Xmas eyes
OSCAR 14mm Pink Flake eyes

I'm really liking the use of crystals in the eyes... They give off this dreamy, glazed, surreal look when used on dolls. For $35, which is considerably cheaper than some of the other urethane eyes I've seen (say, from Enchanted Doll and Dollflower), these unique and limited-quantity eyes from Oscar's are a pretty good deal. Not sure if I want to try them out on Lenny though - I feel like they're a sort of thing I'd like to admire from afar :)

I sure would like to see what people can do with them though! They look interesting to me.

❤ muramin

boys

When I first started this hobby I thought I was an anomaly. From what I surmised from my research, everybody owned boy dolls! Droves of boy dolls! I saw at least 11 collectors with boy-only collections... and I felt really strange about myself. I only had one girl doll at the time, and I've kept that trend up until now even though the doll I have now isn't the same one that I entered this hobby with.

At some point I also think I declared I didn't like boy dolls and I would never get one. Whoops.

After Juhl's release, I really don't know how I feel anymore. I have no immediate plans for him since I'm a little preoccupied with trying to save up cash for Polaire, but I think I'd like to have him in my collection someday. What is it that made me change my mind about not having boy dolls ever? I think it might be his expression and the fact that his nose isn't perfectly straight but I'm not actually sure myself. I need to stop making promises I can't keep.

❤ muramin

face-up favorites

I feel like I'm just going to be blogging about things I wish I had while I wait to be reunited with my doll at the end of this quarter (end of March! such a long wait...) Since Lenny's waiting in line for her face-up to get redone, I guess I'll just make a nice long list of face-up artists that I like. I'm trying to learn how to do face-up work by experimenting with Monster Highs, but I'm going to need a LOT of practice before I can reach a skill anywhere close to any of these people's...

Volks Lorina by c a r o l i n e* on Flickr

Viridian House: one of my all-time favorites, but something I'll never be able to afford. I remember seeing her MNF Shushu a long time ago on deviantArt and just being shocked that the Shushu sculpt could actually look that soft and beautiful. I especially love the heavy blushing, baby lips, and delicate hair strokes in the eyebrows.

chloe+sleeping by Rakeru Space on Flickr

Rakeru Sensei: I love her work, I really do. The soft features, light brushstrokes, and well-defined eye creases on her face-ups are really charming and work on a wide variety of faces. I feel like she has a very similar style to superstar face-up artist Andreja, but for a much lower price. She's based in Spain, which is a little intimidating for me since I'm afraid of customs, but I might commission her for my next doll's face-up.

Fairyland (mnf + feeple) by ::suite~ah on Flickr

MOtomi Polkka Field: momochu's skill is very evident in her work (she's worked with HimiMO Antiquity). I mean, look at all that intricate brushwork! Everything is gorgeous, from the well-defined eyebrows to the sharp little lower lashes. While I admire her technique, I'm not a huge fan of one of her "trademarks" - the dark line in the middle of the lip doesn't really quite fit in with what I'm looking for.

F60-Chloe by Xhanthi on Flickr

Jointed Love: Another one of my favorites! I originally wanted Xhanthi to paint Lenny's face-up, but the waiting lines were just so long... What I really like about Jointed Love face-ups is the individual character they give to the dolls. The technique is wonderful too, but what attracts me is the sort of a sweet but sassy feel the looks give off. 

So many choices! So little cash! What do?

I doubt anyone even reads my blog, but for those of you do, let me know your pick in the comments section below! :)

❤ muramin

ideas for polaire

After a 4-month long debate I think I've finally decided what I want for my next doll. Or rather, after two tumblr polls, asking all of my friends an unhealthy number of times, and a great deal of deliberation I've chosen Eris!

I've got a few qualms about her, namely the problem I have with her ears, and of course the problem that comes with dolls that only exist as heads - resin matching. The current version of Eris that's available has droopy ears that I'm not a huge fan of, but I think they're starting to grow on me. As for the resin matching problem, some kind DoA members have told me that OR-doll NS matches LittleMonica, Supia, and Spiritdoll well, so I've got a few choices. I'm planning on hybridizing with a LittleMonica small bust body though.

Now that I've decided on Eris, I'm going to have to change closet plans too... I had a full set of links for clothes that fit SD16 girls just in case I chose Siean, but I have to go find pretty corset dresses for "flatter" girls... I've listed a few of my ideas below.

 

Both these pretty dresses are made by ★Akatsuki☆ for Xaga-Doll, and I think they'll fit with Polaire's image pretty well :) I also found these really cute boots that apparently fit SD13 heel feet, which is absolutely perfect! Thinking of getting these in the red-brown color, since black and white are no longer in stock.

Now all that's left is getting enough cash for all of this. Oh boy...

 
❤ muramin

etsy shop up!

Hello everyone! I've finally set up my Etsy shop even though the link to it's been sitting on the sidebar for a few days already. I haven't listed much yet, but when I get more craft materials and a better handle on my schedule, I'll be adding much more to it.

The only thing I currently have in my shop is a customized espresso cup and plate set with hearts... I currently have a few in stock that I've already finished painting (with the exception of the plates, which I've left open to my clients to customize with their own text). I don't quite know where I'm going with this shop business yet, but hopefully I'll get a better handle of it soon.

sample image with "cafe amaretto" on the plate!

I am by no means a professional. Please note that I've painted the ceramic ware with nail lacquer and I do not intend for these gift sets to be anything more than decoration. u_u

❤ muramin

january wishlist

This is kind of a personal thing I'm starting to help me keep track of shops I like and inspiration for any outfits I try to recreate in the future. I wouldn't consider this a wishlist in the most conventional sense, since I probably won't be getting any of these clothes in the future... but they're good for reference.

One of the people I really admire is the proprietor of Atelier O'clockworks on Etsy. Her clothes capture the mori girl style perfectly, from the materials she uses to the kinds of clothing she produces. I can only hope that someday I'll be as good of a seamstress as her :(

  

CLOVER series blouse, cardigan, country dress by O'clockworks on Etsy

Another shop I really love is Applebin from Korea. They do accept international orders, but having to pull out a translator for every item I want is pretty troublesome. Plus there's the issue of international shipping. I've got reasons to love them though - everything in store is really, really cute! I'd definitely wear them if they came in human size.

SG11, WG03, SG04 from Apple Bin

This doesn't include all of the things I"ve bookmarked on Taobao. I'm going to have to work hard this year. :(

❤ muramin

i'm a fairy godmother!

I finally managed to drag one of my friends into the BJD hobby! Honestly, I'm surprised I was even able to convince him to like dolls in the first place... But then again, he didn't resist when I tried to get him into PoupeeGirl either, and he's a serial Poupee dresser now. It started with me sending him pictures of MNF Chloes, and then me spamming him with pictures of pretty much every Chloe imaginable, and then him telling me he loved Chloes and that he wanted one. Unfortunately, neither of us is willing to shell out the cash for a Fairyland doll.

Luckily I've found an alternative!

We've decided on a mini-size doll as a starter, an Asleep Eidolon Aure to be exact!

 

We don't know what her name is going to be yet, and we don't know exactly what kind of character she's going to have, but we'll think of something soon. :) I'm going to be a fairy godmother for this girl and find faceup shops and all sorts of clothes and accessories for her.

Cheers! 

❤ muramin

doll plans for 2013

This year was already off to a pretty bad start when I ruined Lenny's faceup right before January. She's currently getting her face redone and hopefully she'll be back with me by February :(
In the meantime I've decided to think about my doll plans for the rest of this year, including plans for a new doll! I probably won't be able to save up enough money for her by the end of this year, but I sure can dream, can't I...

My current dilemma is choosing between OR-doll Eris and Fairyland Siean, both which are well over $600 with shipping included. With Eris there's the problem of finding a good body to match the resin, and whether not she can pull of the glamorous corset looks I'm planning to try with her. Under recommendation of a fellow DoA member I'm aiming for the new LittleMonica B body with small bust. And then there's Siean. She looks quite a bit more mature, which is more of what I'm going for, but there's the problem of her height, bust size, and price. What do I do??

F65 Siean, Ann by maselanka on Flickr

OR-doll Eris, Wiara 4 by Lialnifri on Flickr

❤ muramin

new year, new dress ☆

Hello everyone! Happy new year and long time no post u_u

I didn't quite get around to making flower wreaths like I originally planned because I actually decided to pick up Monster High repaints over the break. I did, however, finish Lenny's new dress though. 

I based it off a free pattern from Doll-Candy and made modifications accordingly. The collar is detachable, sleeves have cuffs, measurements have been adjusted to fit an SD-sized body, and everything is hand-sewn because I don't have a sewing machine. It's alright for a first try, I suppose... The only real problem I have with it is that it's made from a woolen material, so it sheds little red fibers all over the place.

Lenny under the Christmas tree

Christmas gifts! I bought the other dress off the DoA marketplace. A tiny tad loose, but I'll fix it.

❤ muramin