Queen City Doll Club

On June 4th, we had the first meeting of our new doll club, the Queen City Doll Club.  We named it after our city of Charlotte, which is known as the Queen City. 

I had a really great time meeting with other people who love dolls as much as me.  It's so interesting to learn about other types of dolls and the appreciation people have for them.  For example, I was the only member present who did not own any Kish dolls!  Now I kind of want one...

Charter Members of the QCDC -- photo taken by Diana

If you live in the Charlotte area and would be interested in joining, please send me a message! We would love to have you.  We plan on having meetings at least every two months, and our goal is to get organized well enough to do some fun projects and activites together.  You can also find us on Facebook, so check us out!

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A New Technique

I have been absent from my blog for a little over a month now.  I have been extremely busy with the end of the school year, and I've been trying to spend less time on my computer to help control those impulse bids on eBay.  I have a lot of things to write about, so let's get started!

This weekend, Afner and I visited a different flea market than the one we normally patronize.  It was very successful.  I got a vintage bendable leg Francie for $1 (more to come on her later), and an adorable baby doll made in Spain that will be Nancy's new baby sister.  After the flea market, we hit up our usual thrift shops, and I got a BFC Ink doll.  I've been eyeballing them for awhile at Target now, especially since I have all the outfits, but I couldn't bring myself to shell out $20.  Thankfully, I got one at Value Village for $1.61.  Their pricing structure is really weird, I know.

Here she is, pretty disgusting.

Her hair required a lot of work.  It was full, and I mean FULL of black hairs that I can only assume came from the same animal who chewed off her thumb.  It disgusted me, but I got it all out.  Her next problem was the frizz:

Ready for an iron.

At the suggestion of my friend Diana, I tried a new technique.  She told me to use a damp washcloth on top of the hair, and then use an iron to help flatten and straighten the hair.  Well, that's exactly what I did.

A section of hair.

To use the iron, I took sections of the hair and then brushed them out over the ironing board.  Then I put a damp washcloth over the section of hair, and used the iron on the highest setting.

Make sure the washcloth covers the hair, because I can imagine how stinky melting hair is.

Iron!

I brushed each section between ironing to make things easier.

She looks like she's enjoying herself ;)

Even with iffy lighting and knock knees, I still think she's adorable.

I really liked the ironing method.  In the past, I've just used steam, but the actual iron really helped tame down the hair, especially in a case like this, where the hair is almost a total loss.







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Las Nancys Estan Aqui!!!!!!

I am so excited!!  After months of waiting, my Nancys are finally here!

Opening the box!! Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!

And a Nancy for my friend Diana

Look.  LOOK!!! It's in Euros!!!  I feel so...sophisticated.  These are the Communion Nancys.

Nancy Geisha.  I will name her Sayuri from one of my favorite books :)

And for goodness sakes, when I saw this "I Love Minnie" doll only sold in Spain, I had to buy it.  Because I love Minnie.  That's why.  She's so adorable with the cutest little freckles!  And she has zombie arms that stick straight out!

Howie is a one cat welcoming committee.  Welcome to the USA!

And it may seem weird, but the dolls have a really pleasant, unique smell.  I wonder if that's what Spain smells like.  I hope to find out soon!  I will of course, have new, better pics later, but I couldn't contain all this excitement for the time being :)

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Teacher Appreciation Week

This may be my first post not about dolls...

This week in the United States is Teacher Appreciation Week.  It's a week when (some) students show their appreciation for the hard work and dedication we teachers put into their educations.  Today, I got a really nice basket of goodies from one of my students:

Yummy Goodies (I've already eaten some of them).

Now don't get me wrong, one needs not give a gift in order to show a teacher that they are appreciated.  You can simply say, "Thanks."  Take the time this week to show or tell a special teacher that you appreciate them.  My favorite teacher in school was Mrs. A. Byrd, so Mrs. Byrd, if you're somewhere out there, I just want you to know you were deeply appreciated and I try to make my students feel cared for, just like you always made us feel in your class!

En Espanol:

Esta semana en los Estados Unidos es Agradecimiento a las Maestras.  Es una semana en la que los estudiantes mostraron las maestras que son apreciadas.

Hoy, una estudiante me dio una cesta de aperitivos.  No es necesario para dar regalos, puedes decir a la maestra "gracias" simplemente, pero es un gesto muy agradable. 

Mi maestra favorita de escuela fue Sra. Byrd, entonces, Sra. Byrd, gracias por enseñarme como ser una maestra muy carinosa y paciente.  Esta semana, dile a una maestra de lo mucho que la aprecias.

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Spring Break!

Spring break is finally here!  I did lots of fun stuff to celebrate, but most notably, I met a new friend and her gorgeous Nancy doll.  She also made my Nancy a matching outfit, which you can see below in the picture.  The blue trim looks sooooo good with the color of Nancy's eyes.  I just love it.  It is really, really well made, and she even has a tag inside.  Please visit her Etsy Shop and check out all her custom creations.

This is the photo I submitted for the Nancy Contest.

The Famosa Folks have been running a contest for 60's themed photos of Nancy dolls.  This is the photo I submitted, with the caption, "First there was Nancy, then there was a man on the moon..." (in Spanish, of course).  You can see my little Treasure wearing the new outfit that Diana made.  Just gorgeous!  My piernas flexibles is wearing a printed dress that I hastily (and wrecklessly) stitched together, and Francie is wearing a BFC Ink dress.  The girls are supposed to be watching the moon landing on tv.  I doubt very seriously that I will win, as there are lots of good other photos, but if I do, I sure hope I can find someone in Spain to ship the prize to.  That will be Afner's job.

Before all that fun stuff happened though, Afner and I took a trip thrifting through Charlotte.  I brought Nancy along and took some fun photos.  Here they are:

Nancy, outside ImaginON.

Standing in front of a brick fountain.

Nanczilla!!

Can you spot Nancy?

Me and Nancy inside the skull.

Nancy con un libro clasico.

Simplemente la mas bonita :)

I hope you've enjoyed these photos.  We certainly enjoyed taking them.  Stay tuned for news to come about new AG goodies!

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Farmhouse Bed for the Nancy Girls

Ever since I saw this, I knew I had to build one.  It was only a matter of time until I convinced my brother to cut the wood for me.  I feel okay doing everything except using that table saw. 

My brother, ready to be helpful.  I'm sorry ladies, he's taken.

Considering this was the first wooden thing I've ever built in my entire life, I was pretty darn proud of myself.  It didn't take too long.

A proud moment as the headboard was almost completed.

We finished putting the whole thing together and I brought it home. 

The naked bed.

Then, I made a mattress and pillow for the bed.  I luckily had some old ticking material from my Great-Grandmother's sewing materials that was perfect sized for a mattress.

Mattress and Pillow

Next, I added the super cute little quilt I bought in Costa Rica.  I didn't know how I would use it when I bought it, but I'm sure glad I had the foresight to do it.  I love this precious frog!

Adorable!

And finally, the girls get to try the bed out.  It turned out much larger than I anticipated.  Even though I read all the measurements and am a math teacher, etc.  The cool thing is, there is plenty of room for all 3 girls!

Umm...mom?  When are you going to get us some pajamas?

 

Night Night!

The bed was super easy and really quick to make.  The materials were also very cheap.  I highly recommend it.  I'm going to paint this one white at some point, but I was just so excited I had to share it immediately.  I hope you enjoyed!











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