Waiting...

It's not too often that I'm at a lack for words. But I sure have been this year!
Every time I think of something to post about, when it actually comes time to sit down & write, I can't think of a thing to say. ...and it's not even like I haven't been busy.
My renovations are finally drawing to a close. It's been 3 months. I hope to be able to sit in my kitchen again in another month. Amazing how such a little thing can manage to take so long.
I'm waiting for my toys to reach Kaisa in Finland so I can show them here. I'm in the middle of a memory trunk swap.
Here's something else I'm waiting for: Spring!!
See the temperature: ...that was the high today and yesterday. This morning at 8 am it was actually -25C / -13F and now the weatherman predicts 3 snow storms by this weekend.
Even the birds are fluffed up trying to keep warm.
But things aren't all doom & gloom. Here's some things that arrived in the mail todayDo you see what I see? A tiny moon, a little witch on her broomstick, chocolate mice, Harry Potter chocolate frogs. No? Well you will once I paint them.
Those little lovelies were sent by my friend Kat-the-Hat-Lady. Kat makes the greatest hats I've ever seen. From Alice in Wonderland to witches peaked hats and currently she has a line of fab pirates chapeaux. All that & she also finds time to write a mean blog. You can check it out by clicking on the link. Thanks so much Kat! Lovely to have you as a facebook friend.
Oh now that I think about it... maybe that's why I don't have much to say these days: too much time spent chatting online.

Successes but also Some Failures...

....been a while since I posted last.

Christmas was really hectic especially when you consider that my kitchen had to be emptied, was turned topsy turvy, and is still in the midst of renovations. If you've never experienced it, renovations are a bit like being pregnant. You can look forward to it. You're thrilled at the end of it all but by golly, while it's ongoing, it is a royal pain.
I never got my Christkindl market stall finished; it's packed away & I'll work at it again this Christmas. In fact it's been hard to get motivated and do anything. But I did....

I made this... It's commissioned & going to be used in a book.

I took Beginners Wigging. This involves a simple hair style called a wigging cross. Literally it means placing 2 hanks of hair, front to back and then side to side, on the dolls head to mimic the real life growth of hair.
I'd heard from a number of people that most beginners start off with too much hair. So I tried to avoid that...
...and ended up with a doll who has alopecia. This was also the first time I took the hair out of the package that I was able to smooth it ....and never again.
Once I brushed back the hair, it looked like a doll with a cap on. I was afraid to tie the hair back with a ribbon; so I loosely braided it. ....very crookedly as you can see, meaning to fix it the next morning.
Now all this time I had kept my doll under wraps because I figured right from the start that I wasn't going to be a superstar in the wigging world over night. I have a hard time styling my own hair!
Of course since glue doesn't stick to plastic wrap, the next morning I couldn't continue. My wig wouldn't sit on the wrapped head but I couldn't get it to sit properly on the bare head either. Thus ended my first wigging disaster ...errrr .....ummm attempt. My second attempt was even more disastrous and this is my third.
As far as I'm concerned it still looks like a cap and nowhere near anything resembling a hair style. However when I showed these photos ....only in order to properly ask questions, I was told I had passed and was now qualified to begin interim wigging. Imagine my total shock & amazement when I read that! What... that poor effort got me a pass??? I would have rated it an "F" rather than a "C-". I think subconsciously I must have expected to have to create a Louis XIV wig.
Take a tip from me: do NOT wig a doll at the same spot where you work with clay! I thought I had cleaned but every time I sit down to clay now, I'm finding blond viscose...

Making Doll Eyes

making doll glass eyes tutorial

polymer clay doll eye tutorial

bead doll eye turoial for cloth & clay dolls

The start of my 2011...

Hope everyone's New Years eve was a good one.

For me it seemed between rum & eggnog drinks, family stresses, kitchen renovations & large meals with family/friends, it's all contributed to an extremely fast weight gain
...of about 3lbs.
.....on top of the extra 5lbs that I couldn't seem to get rid of this year.
......on top of the extra 8lbs that I accumulated over the past several years.
I could barely get my never-before worn New Years Eve pants zipped up; my top was a loose one that ended just below my hips.

The arrangement was to meet the rest in our group at a local Chinese buffet restaurant. We've gone quite frequently; there's always more selection than you could ever sample. Or want to!
Back in our car & on our way to the dance, my zipper broke. No problem! My top covered it & the button held.

I drank nothing but water at the dance.
Of course what else would you do at a dance but dance! I must not have tried on the pants when I bought them; they were rather long & so I needed higher heels than normal ...either that or trip over the hems. Halfway through the evening, the spot on my tummy below that pant button, started burning.

The mix that the DJ played was horrible. Lucky for me!!

There was a meal served at 10:30. I really wasn't hungry and stuck to my water.

We were 6 couples in all who have known each other for many years; we had a lovely time. Ken really enjoyed himself. Usually he's my DD (designated driver) but last night we felt it better that I drive. Unfortunately the fog was so thick it was hard to see at times. All week, our weather has been warmer than normal & this morning we woke up to rain. Most of our snow has melted. We've set new warmth records. Predictions for this coming week, however, are for colder weather, flash freezes and lots of snow.

Last night I could barely get my shoes off, my feet were so swollen. This morning I still have a dark red bruise next to my bellybutton.

Monday, Ken and I, ...we both suffer from the same lack-of-willpower / eating-out-too-often affliction, ....start our new Smart-for-Life diet. For 15 days, we will eat only a small sensible dinner, drink 64oz of water and when the munchies hit, we're allowed to eat up to 6 of their cookies. Sounds great doesn't it? Daily caloric intake ranges from 800 to 1200 calories. Each cookie is a blend of amino acids, fiber, and vitamins that offers appetite suppression and reduces hunger cravings throughout the day. This diet specializes in a quick weight loss.
Two years ago we did the Isogenix diet for 9 days & lost 10 and 15 lbs respectively which in my case lasted for almost a year. I'm hoping this diet will work just as well.

Dieting seems to have become an obsession for most people. There's the Atkins diet, cabbage soup diet, high protein diet, gluten free and grapefruit diets, South Beach diet.... there are more diets than selections at yesterday's restaurant. Not for us, that old standby of plain old healthy eating!

...and that's the start to my new year. I've even found some really appetizing recipes to use with my cookies. Apparently I can make fruit cobblers or chocolate parfaits with them. All I have to figure out is where to buy calorie-free, fat-free marshmallow dips and chocolate syrup....