Happy Chinese New Year!

Today was Chinese New Year. My family celebrates this holiday as a way to honor the culture of my 2 daughters heritage. For those of you who do not know, I adopted my daughters from China in 1996 and in 2001. Today, we prepared Chinese stir fry for dinner. I also got out some of my special Chinese dolls and photographed them for the occasion. 

I traveled to China in 1997 to adopt my oldest daughter (Alyssa LiLan). She was from the Jiangxi Province. The Provincial Government gave all families adopting a commemorative plate. The single moms (I adopted as a single) were given a plate with a lady on it and the 2 parent families were given a plate with a view of a Bridge. The plate I received is in the center of the picture below. I purchased the Cloissoine teas sets in 2001 when I adopted my second daughter (Hannah KunRong).

Also while in China I purchased some Chinese gift dolls for them.

The doll in the middle is a Chinese actress doll that I purchase in 1997 when I adopted my oldest daughter. The Chinese officials all thought that she was so beautiful that she would be an actress! The other 2 dolls I bought in 2001 when I went to China to get my youngest daughter. I bought 1 doll for each daughter to have.

When I went to China in 2001 to adopt my youngest daughter, she was from the Yunnan Province. There are 56 minority groups in China, 26 of which reside in Yunnan. I wanted to bring all 26 dolls home, but could not find them all, but did bring these 2 minority dolls home with me.

I wanted my daughters to have dolls that looked like them to play with, so I was in search of Asian dolls. I have purchased many Asian dolls play line dolls, but today, I am focusing on the Chinese dolls I purchased for my collection. These dolls have been kept in their original clothing and bodies and are kept in my glass case where I keep my collector dolls.

The first up is a Yu Sai Wa Wa Chinese Princess doll, the center doll is an American Girl Girls of Many Lands Spring Pearl doll, and the last doll is a Yu Sai Wa Wa Long and Lovely doll. Yue Sai Wa Wa was developed by Yue Sai Kan so that Asian girls could have Asian dolls. I purchased mine from a Chinese import company called China Sprout. These dolls are now popular and available world wide from Amazon and can also be found on QVC and eBay. 

Now for some Chinese Barbie dolls. 1st is the 1998 Golden Qi-Pao Barbie, next is 2004 Silkstone Barbie Chinoiserie Red Moon, 3rd is 2005 Chinese New Year Barbie. The fan in the background I purchased in China in 2001.

These are all Barbie Chinese Princess and DOTW dolls. The first one is 1997 Chinese Empress Barbie, next is 2001 Princess of China and 3rd is 1994 Chinese Barbie doll.


I hope you have enjoyed my Chinese New Year presentation of doll! Here is wishing you all a Happy Chinese New Year. Gung Hay Fat Choi!

A Few More New Dolls

Yeah, I know I said I was gonna have to curtail my doll buying. But, I got a gift card from Amazon from my daughter and I had some Discovercard credits that I just had to use up on Amazon! So, of course, I spent them on some new dolls. Here is what I got:

The 3 Resort Style dolls - Summer, Grace and Barbie

These dolls all come in bathing suits with coverups and sandals. Barbie has a big hat. they all have articulated arms, but they have stiff legs with flat feet. 

Here they all are out of the box and dressed

Don't they look cute? I think I like Grace's outfit the best, but I also really like Summer's pants.

Here are their sandals

Sorry this picture is a bit blurry, but the sandals are all really cute too. Again, I like Grace's the best. I also think the little black ones that Barbie is wearing are really cute too.

Close up of Barbie

Closeup of Summer

Closeup of Grace

Check out the Blond in the back of Grace's hair

Next I got Princess Power Ken and Barbie Style Nikki

I was disappointed to see that Ken's outfit was all one piece. I like for him to have separates as it gives you more options. I do like his glasses, but they stick in the side of his head. I cut off the little barbs that held them in place. Since he has a completely stiff body, I don't plan to keep him, just his clothes and glasses.

And now, out of their boxes!

I like Nikki's outfit, but her hair is not the best. It is uneven and kind of snarled. I will probably give her a shampoo or maybe a boil perm and try to restyle it. Oh, she also came with a pair of little black boots.

Closeup of Nikki

Closeup of Ken -- His clothes are not very high quality.

I also got a Barbie Style Grace!

Close up of Grace. I think she has a very pretty face

Barbie Style Grace has the full articulation including the jointed ankles. Since I wanted Resort Style Grace to be able to wear her sandals and have full articulation, I gave her this Grace's body. I had a Baby Phat Grace available as a donor, so Barbie Style Grace got that body. Here she is!

Barbie Style Grace with Baby Phat Grace Body

Here is Resort Style Grace with Barbie Style Grace's body

I really like Resort Style Grace with this body. I also love her hair. She may be my favorite Grace now!

I do have a few of the new Fashionistas on backorder from Barbiecollector.com. Starting last year, I stocked up on articulated bodies, so I will be able to give the new Fashionistas articulated bodies when they arrive.

Well, that is it for now! 

Thanks for stopping by. I love getting your comments!

Introducing . . . the Carters!

A while back, I showed you all a picture of my Society Hound Barbie who has been renamed Penelope Elizabeth Winthrop Carter. I teased a little of what her story would be about - some mystery, some tragedy. I am still working on the dios for the first story, but I thought I would introduce her family and give you all a little background so as to set up the first episode of her story! Here she is with her children:

From L to R: Eldest son Charles Herbert Carter (25), Penelope Elizabeth Winthrop Carter, Callum Michael Carter (21), Danielle Theresa Carter (23)

Penelope is the eldest daughter of Elizabeth Anne Winthrop and Herbert Michael Winthrop who are a very wealthy and prestigious family in Hanaly Corners. They were the principals of a large conglomerate of companies dealing in commercial real estate, manufacturing and financial services. Their company, Winthrop Enterprises was a major employer in Hanaly Corners. They also have another daughter and son. The Winthrops are pictured below:

Front Row, L to R: Herbert Michael Winthrop, Elizabeth Anne Winthrop
Back Row, L to R: Penelope (48), Roger Herbert Winthrop (40), Annabelle Josephine Winthop Bloom (45)

The Carters were another very wealthy family in Hanaly Corners. They were the principals of a large firm that specialized in Engineering, Architectural Design and Technology. Carter Design & Technology Corporation was also a very large employer in Hanaly Corners.

The Carters have 2 sons and 2 daughters:

Seated L to R: Samuel Elliot Carter II, Helena Boatwright Carter
Standing L to R: Charlotte Mary Carter (40), Samuel Elliot Carter III (53), Phillip Coleman Carter (50), Felicity Georgia Carter (35) (Note: this photo was taken 2 years ago, but I am showing their current ages)

In 1984, Mr. Carter and Mr. Winthrop, who were friends, started talking about a merger that would combine their companies into the single largest employer in Hanaly Corners and set the stage for expansion along both national and international lines. As part of the merger discussions, the two men had decided that having their two eldest children married would seal the deal. They set about "introducing" Penelope and Sam Jr. Throughout their courtship, they were strongly urged by their parents that their marriage would be in the best interest of both families. Two years later, Sam and Penelope "sealed the deal" and were married in an extravagant affair that all of the high society members of Hanaly Corners attended. The companies merged and became Carter-Winthrop Enterprises, Inc.

Penelope and Sam had become very good friends during their courtship. While they knew that their marriage had been arranged by their parents, they made the best of things and knew that they would be expected to produce heirs. Penelope became pregnant within the first year, however, she miscarried the child. What she discovered during this time was that Sam was a very caring and attentive man. He grieved the loss of the child with her and this drew them closer together. He did everything he could to comfort her and to make her feel wanted. Soon, she realized that she really was in love with him and he saw her as his fragile, precious princess and knew that he was hopelessly in love with her. In time, she was again pregnant and during this pregnancy, he watched her closely and they were blessed with their first child. They were so happy and excited that there first born was a son! Charles Herbert Carter. 2 years later, Danielle Theresa Carter was born and 2 years after that, they gave birth to another son, Callum Michael Carter. 10 years ago, both the senior Samuel Carter and Herbert Winthrop retired leaving Samuel Elliot Carter III as the President and CEO of the company as he had been groomed to be. Many of the family members are also executives in the company and both Charles and Danielle hold positions with the company. 

Two year ago, Sam took off on a private jet with his Director of Manufacturing to look at a site in Mexico. There was a terrible storm and the flight never arrived at its destination. It fell off of the radar and to date, there has been no trace found of this ill-fated flight or its passengers.

I hope you are intrigued by this introduction! We will pick up this story with a family meeting to discuss matters of Sam's disappearance! Stay tuned.

A New Year, A New Dryer!

2014 ended with a bang! Well, actually a fire. On New Year's Eve, my oldest daughter was home while my youngest and I were out getting last minute things for our family gathering which was to take place at our house on January 2nd. She had to work on New Year's Day in the morning, so she was washing her uniform. She put it in the dryer (of course) and shortly after it started, she heard a clunking noise. She ran down to the laundry room only to discover that the dryer had caught on fire! She called me frantically (we had just arrived at the store). She told me that flames were coming out of the back! I told her to call the fire department and get the heck out of the house! I then jumping back in my car and we raced home! She was worried that she would lose her uniform for work, so she had pulled out the dryer, and took her clothes out. Since she turned it off, the flame also stopped. She did call the fire department, and of course, they told her the same thing I did - - - get out of the house. By the time we arrived home, she was totally freaked out and crying. The fireman arrived shortly after I did. The flame was out, but they could see that the fire was not caused by lint, but by the bearing in the motor. They assured her that she absolutely did the right thing and that her quick thinking saved our home. The firemen removed the dryer from the house in case it was still smoldering. Since it was a holiday, we did contact the insurance company, but they did not come out until the Tuesday January 6 only to tell use that because of my daughter's quick thinking, there wasn't enough damage to cover my deductible. So all we had to do was get a new dryer! It arrived yesterday. Because of New Year's sales, we were able to get a nicer one than the old one. Here it is:

I love it! It is a new Whirlpool Duet steam dryer. Because we were without a dryer for the last week and a half, we were unable to do laundry, so I have been doing laundry yesterday and today. It is so much nicer than my old unit that I now wish we could have also gotten the companion washer. Oh well, maybe later! 

We had a great holiday with my family. It was nice to see everyone, but I was also glad when everything settled down. With all of the excitement, I did not get much of a chance for any doll related stuff, but I did get some other new dolls after Christmas which I will share in my next post.

I am just happy that the fire was minor, no one was hurt and the firemen were really cute! 

We did have a lovely Christmas. My daughters got me a serger for Christmas. I was pleasantly surprised. I hope to work on some new doll clothes very soon. I am looking forward to working on doll related things this year and have started working on rooms for my new story involving my Society Hound Barbie who is now Penelope Elizabeth Winthrop Carter. Her husband disappeared 2 years ago. She had 3 adult children, one brother and one sister. Their family owns a major hi tech company which employs a lot of the people in Hanaly Corners. I am working on sets for the first installment of their story. I hope you will all enjoy it!

I am looking forward to 2015 and all the new dolly related things I have planned. Here is hoping that 2015 brings all of you good health and happiness and more dollies of course!

A Very Merry and Belated Christmas!

Where does the time go? I cannot believe that Christmas is over and tomorrow is New Year's Eve. I have been working hard on getting my house ready for Christmas and have been doing a lot of doll rebodying. My family (my brother and sisters and some of their kids) are all coming to our house this weekend for our family gathering.

Here are a few Christmas pictures of my home decor:

I ordered dolls from Amazon when they released the new 2015 Style dolls.  Here are a few photos of those.

And lastly but not leastly, I have been going through some of the dolls in my glass case and have realized that some of those girls wanted a little air. So, I have taken some of them out and they have been given new bodies and new fashions and are being acclimated with the other residents of Hanaly Corners. Here are some pictures of their transformation. I started with my Goddesses! For more, go to my Flickr account.

Clothing Alternatives for Lammily Doll

While I did order some outfits for my Lammily doll (now Katie), I just could not leave her in those shorts! Just too cold here in Michigan.  So I looked through some of my action figure clothes to see if I could find her something else to wear. I had this brown knit dress from Triad. And, since I didn't think it would look good with her tennis shoes, I tried some low heeled pumps from Triad and low and behold, they fit her!

Front view of Triad dress & shoes. A little low cut, but I think a pretty good fit.

Side view of Triad dress & shoes. I think the length is good and it fits her curves nicely!

Back view of Triad dress and shoes. She even looks good from behind!

Next up I tried on some action figure jeans I got from OJIT. The ladies jeans would not come over her butt, so I tried on the men's jeans! They worked. Then I put on Ken's blue turtleneck sweater. The results:

It took a little bit to pull them up and I had to work a bit to snap them (kind of like my own jeans!). The are a little long, so I folded to bottom to make "cuffs". 

Here is the side view. BTW, I bend her legs 1 click and she could stand on her own at long enough to take these pictures!

And finally, the back view!. Not bad! Oh, she cannot sit in these jeans unless you unsnap them, but this at least gives her something else to wear.

What do you guys think?!

Dolls, Dolls and More Dolls! (Part 3)

This is part 3 of my buying frenzy! When you document it like this, it does make you realize that you may have gone a little overboard. At least I still paid all my bills! So next in my photo reveal is some new guys. Never can have enough of those, at least that is what my girls have been telling me (my dolly girls, not my daughters!).

OK, yes I know, I already introduced Tenzin. He is here for height comparison (and cuz he is so darn handsome!). Next I ordered a Paul Walker head sculpt from eBay. I also found a COOMODEL taller body on eBay. It is a really nice body. It almost makes him as tall as FR hommes!. I have been wanting the Pop Life Ken for quite a while now, however, I could not justify what people were asking for him on eBay and Amazon. Then I found this guy, nude for under $100. He is new, just undressed. I think I found some nice looking clothes for him and he looks pretty dapper! Last but not least, I also ordered a custom Jay Chou head. I had order 2 of the COOMODEL tall bodies, but they send me one regular body instead. I was going to return it, but they refunded half the price of what I paid for it, so I kept it for Jay. All in all, I think this body suits him.

I also got a few new ladies!

I got 3 J-dolls, the Herve Leger Barbie and 2 Twilight dolls. I have shown you the red headed Barbie Red Carpet doll before, but I got a new outfit for her from a Barbie Style 2-dolls pack from Costco, and I wanted you to see the new threads!

The J-Dolls actually arrived in September, but since I haven't shown them before, I am including them. From L to R: Galeries St. Hubert, Marche Jun Planning and Friedrichstrasse.

Herve Leger Barbie is next. I rebodied her on the Blond Pop-Life Barbie body. I think this doll is just beautiful and I love the clothes she came with. She was on sale, plus I used my December Barbie Collector coupon! She will definitely be in the upper class or model class of Hanaly Corners.

Twilight Bella (pre-vampire), and Victoria.  They came together. I rebodied Bella on a 2013 Barbie Glam Style body and Victoria is on a Dynamite girl pale body.

Pop Life Ken has been teamed up with the redheaded Barbie Red Carpet doll and the Marche Jun Planning J-Doll to make up a family. I am still working on their back story.

Paul Walker has been teamed up with the Costco Summer from the doll package (she is rebodied) and Joshua from "Lovely Little Babies" on eBay to make the Walker family.

Baby Joshua is made by the same lady that made Phoenix in Miranda Z's One Sixth Avenue blog. She does a wonderful job! I don't think he will be my last baby from her.

So far, Jay Chou is unattached, but he is thinking about asking Victoria out.

He then spots this J-doll and thinks she is also a very pretty girl. I guess he kinda likes redheads! Hmm, Jay, you better put a suit on if you are gonna ask her out!

I almost forgot about these 2 gals. Society Hound Barbie (she is rebodied on an Elvis Barbie body) and Dynamite Girls London Calling Dani. These 2 are mother and daughter.

Society Hound Barbie loves her dog! Especially since the disappearance of her husband. I am sure there is an interesting story to tell about that. I will let you know when I come up with a storyline for them!

Jay did a double take when he saw Dani in the room -- "Oh, another lady for me to ask out. I think I am gonna like it here in Hanaly Corners!"

Hope you all enjoyed this! I look forward to your comments. Thanks for stopping by.