...it's almost like I won the lottery!

Today I was lucky enough to meet with a retired teacher and dollmaker. He suffers from a little dementia, and a little hard of hearing...ok..back story. A fellow OTS asked if I would be interested in doing some elder care for her father. Now, I'm not a nurse, or particularly like older people (not that I dislike them)...just not into elder care or any care...taking care of myself is more than a full time job in and of itself. So, after serious thought, I declined. Well, come to find out...HE MAKES DOLLS!!! I kind of put this back in my mind under the category..."hmmmm?" Fast forward to these BJD that I'm trying to figure out, banging my head against any soft surface (I'm not into self harm) and sure enough, out flies the filed elder care out of the "hmmmm" file. So, today we met. What great FUN!!! So many smiles, so much laughter, it was like coming home. I just loved it, and they seemed to enjoy having my sponge brain at the willing. One of the many things that struck me as "ahhh, the mother-ship" was that we were discussing something around the kitchen table, various items surrounded us: a peanut butter jar, a towel with my body pieces strewn, a pile of doll joints, a stack of papers, and when Carol needed a fine pointing object she reached into the coffee mug that held various items and pulled out a capped scalpel....AHHHHH!
Needless to say, I'm looking forward to spending time with my new friends and giving the daughter a break. I've indeed won the lottery!
Smiles to All,
Brenda

slowly but...not surely

This may look like I've not gotten very far...I've been fixing things like...the abdominal area, adding breasts...and trying to figure out how in the world all of this goes together. I've found a sight that has helped me a bit on the steps, but isn't very detailed. (Boy, I really wish I read Japanese!) Obviously, I'm not going to complete this perfectly, the leg joints aren't the way the are suppose to be, the doll isn't able to get to a full right angle...things like that...how deep the balls should go into the joints...how do the feet and hands get balled and then how does the hook work????..among other things of frustration....YET...it is coming along, and that I am extremely pleased with!!(what's the saying? Rome wasn't built in a day) : )
Smiles to All,

Brenda

...new news!

Today I opened my email to find a letter from Lucy, she has made a dozen dolls to send in to the project. BUT, she didn't stop there. She looked around for a magazine to be an outlet for them. She found one! This is what she wrote:
"Sew News has decided to make them their 2012 charity initiative! What this means is during the entire 2012 year Sew News will have a spot about your charity as well as the template for my dolls in EVERY issue of the year as well as a constant initiative on their blog, facebook, and twitter sites. "
Of course, I've accepted this generous offer, I can only hope that we will be flooded with Comfort Dolls!!! This is a picture of the dolls that she has made and is making the template for...

One thing that I do think is extremely important with this acceptance is that we make sure that everyone realizes that there is no one "correct" Comfort Doll. These gals were made from Lucy's heart and she is willing to share with us to help others that may be blocked for ideas. Remember that wherever your heart takes you, it is yours to follow.

I am so excited to have this great outlet for our Project. Thanks to everyone.

Smiles to All, Brenda

...these boots were made for walking

A few more guests stopped by on Saturday. These gals came all the way from Wyoming. Thank you so much Charleen for your wonderful contribution! What I really love (besides the imagination, creativity and impeccable craftsmanship) about some of these gals is that they have boots on. All I can think of the lyrics " these boots are made for walking", and the wonderful courage that these women have.

...my basket runneth over



Well, the ladies, and a few bugs, thanks Beveryly Torres of the Kindred Sisters Gathering Post, had a very busy day. First, the meet and greet. Everyone came out of their bags and packages and mixed together getting better aquianted. (Chrisine Amaryllis, your dolls are incredibly cordial, so they did all the hostess work). Next, they paired off with their traveling partners. The photos will show who hooked up with who and their destination:



#79 Family Crisis Center Terre Haute, IN



#80 North Central Indiana Rural Crisis Center in Rensselear, IN



#81 The Stepping Stone Shelter Michigan City, IN



#82 The Caring Place in Valparaiso, IN


 <>  #83 Haven of Rest Ministries in Akron, OH <>

#84 Family Service of Central Indiana in Lebanon, IN

 

After all their running about and pairing up, and then getting all their Comfort Doll tags, into the envelopes they went, all settled in for their flight, even if one flight was in their current city. For good luck, Ollie gave them all one last hug.
Smiles to All,

Brenda







...look who stopped by

I came home on Saturday to this mysterious box. I can't explain the feeling of anticipation and curiosity that overcomes me when I see a package marked "Comfort Doll ".  These little gals are who greeted me upon opening. As you can see on the second photo, Cathy backed each with some really fun fabric! These CD's were made by Cathy Holzer of Davenport Iowa. Giant thanks Cathy. My basket has gotten full again so it's time for me to get to work and get these wonderful dolls to their new loving homes.
I hope everyone is enjoying their first month of 2011, make it a good one, you deserve it!
Smiles to All,
Brenda
(aarrrrgh...blogger is having issues with uploading pics...so, I'll try again later...huh...now it's like you have a package waiting on your doorstep waiting to be opened too...feel the anticipation?)

check out these eyes!

I was lucky enough to happen upon this post by Marin Lenz. She shared how she makes "glass" like eyes. So, I gave it a whirl....all I can say is HOW COOL! and of course a giant THANKS. These are my first set of eyes to use in an unknown doll somewhere down the line. Please take the time to check out Marin's blog and her wonderful work!
Smiles to All
Brenda