Cleaning Up Molly

 I am working on fixing up Molly.

She was soooo dirty, I could see that with my naked eye.

I scrubbed her with Magic Eraser so hard that the eraser disintegrated. Dirty water was coming off of her as well.

I brushed and re-braided her hair.

She had glitter up her nose, so I had to literally use a Q tip to pick her nose and get it out.

The Q tip also helped removing make up from around her eye.

I think she could probably use another going over with Magic Eraser, but she's a lot better.

Her hair is in pretty good shape. It's a little dry at the end.

I dressed her in some clothes that I sewed myself. She's wearing Maryellen's saddle shoes.

Her glasses were from a different thrift store. They are a little too big for her and won't stay on on their own. I was able to use barrettes to fasten the glasses to her hair and help them stay on.

Her legs are very loose and need new elastic.

She's a newer doll than I thought. She had the dress from 1993 on, so I assumed she was Pleasant Company. However, she doesn't have an artist's mark, she doesn't have squishy vinyl. Her head says Pleasant Company and she has a small body tag. So I am guessing that she is a transitional doll.

Anyway, Molly is feeling better and looks much more like herself now!

Ruby Red Fashion Friends Pilgrim Bartholomew Part One

When I saw pictures of Ruby Red Fashion Friends Pilgrim Bartholomew, I laughed out loud, and thought, that's one doll I will never want, that beard is ridiculous!

I saw someone call him "Beardy Bart," which is perfect, really.

But there was a sale on him, and I really wanted a Luca mold, and I decided that maybe I could customize him into a girl.

I dampened the beard with rubbing alcohol, gripped it at the bottom, and pulled it off. That left glue and hair on the face. 

I used acetone nail polish to remove the glue. I washed the face after using acetone, as it can damage plastic. The acetone also removed the face paint on the lower face.

There is still a faint yellow line on the face. You could try micromesh to remove it, but I think I am going to count on covering it with a face up.

I plan to do a face up with very glam red lips and rosy cheeks, but it may be a while before I have a chance to buy the proper art supplies. I'm glad I don't have to do the eyebrows, those are my least favorite.

When the doll is done, it will be a girl. I am thinking of naming her Bertha. I think it's a pretty name, and it is similar to Bartholomew.

Winter is Coming

 Winter is coming...

Therefore my two Bitty Baby rescues are sunbathing in the back yard to get some zit cream treatment, while there's still sunshine.

Dolls and Zit Cream

 This is a picture from May that I never posted to the blog.

I was doing zit cream treatment for the secondhand dolls.

I covered any stains on the vinyl with zit cream and then Saran Wrap. The zit cream was over-the-counter 10% benzyl peroxide.

I covered their bodies with grocery bags if they weren't being treated, in case of birds or something.

Then I put the dolls out on the porch to soak in the sun.

I think I treated a total of seven dolls. I did GOTY Nicki, Josefina II, Isabelle, Mia, Angelica (JLY 26), Sophie (JLY 32) and Rachel (JLY 12.) 

It took several days of treatments. Each doll got 3-7 days. I replaced the zit cream if it totally dried up. Usually each application of zit cream lasted two days before drying up.

Some of the dolls have lost all of their stains. Some still need a bit more treatment. But it really works and they really look better!

I didn't take before and after pictures. It was overwhelming enough putting the dolls out each day, taking them in at night and checking progress.

I don't know what to do about Mia, who has pink staining around her eyebrows. Zit treatment on her would fade the eyebrows as well at the stain. I just treated her legs.

The Corolle baby doll you can see on the right didn't have any stains. I am trying to get rid of a persistent smell of cheap perfume, and hoped that sun exposure would help her. She has been soaked in baking powder, run though the washing machine, washed with vinegar and soaked in the sun, and she still smells. Originally she smelled like cigarettes and cheap perfume. Now she only smells like perfume, so I guess that's progress.

Removing Claudie's Painted Eyelashes

 I have removed Claudie's painted eyelashes. 

I kept her the way she comes from AG for a few months. But I really think she is cuter without the extra eyelashes, and I have no regrets.

Here she is before eyelash removal:

(the wet spot on her forehead is from a snowflake melting on her face)

And here she is after:

She is cute both ways! No judgement from me, you can keep your Claudie any way you like.

Here is my blog post on how to remove the eyelashes if you wish.

Removing Painted Eyelashes

 I knew that when I got Maritza and Makena, I would want to remove their painted eyelashes. These have been a sore spot with me ever since Nanea, and I particularly dislike the ones on the World By Us dolls.

Luckily, I saw a post on a forum about using "Windsor & Newton - Brush Cleaner & Restorer" to remove markings from doll vinyl. I bought it at Joann. It cost $8, but I was able to use a 50% off coupon. The cleaner was in a locked case at the store I went to, and I had to get an employee to unlock it so I could buy it.

I used this on the dolls with a toothbrush, so I could control where the fluid went.

I used a dry paper towel to wipe their faces clean after removing any sections of face paint.

I was able to use this successfully on Maritza, Makena and Corinne.

I like all three doll much better this way! I think it looks best on Makena in particular. It makes her look older.

Funnily, one of my friends misunderstood me and thought I was removing their eyebrows.

She said she thought that this was a bad idea, but she was going to support me anyway. I agree, it would have been a bad idea! Although I wish that Maritza's eyebrows were slightly higher on her forehead.

Usually, when I get a new doll, I enjoy them a bit as they come before I make any changes.

 But I knew that this was a change that I wanted, and I am very happy with it.

Thrift Store Find: Just Like You 12

 I scored at the thrift store!

Last week they has a Just Like You #12 on sale for $50. I made heart eyes at her, but left her there because she didn't add much diversity to my collection.

I already have Tenney, who also has blonde hair and brown eyes.

This week, she got marked down to $25, which I couldn't pass up.

As soon as I got her out in the parking lot, I apologized to her for leaving her there for a week.

Judging from her outfit, she's from 2002- 2004.

She needed a lot of cleaning, both her limbs and her clothes. This picture is actually before she was cleaned up, but after I brushed her hair. The marks are small and only noticeable close up.

I scrubbed her with a magic eraser and washed her clothes with OxyClean. They are drying now.

She has one mark on her leg that I can't get off with magic eraser. I will try using zit cream to take it off.

She also needs her legs restrung.

I am going to call her Rachel.

She came into my life just in time for Valentine's Day. I loved pre-loved dolls, and I am happy to give Rachel a new home.

Introducing Caitlin

 I never posted Caitlin!

Caitlin is a Kaya doll whom I rescued from Goodwill.

Her hair was badly chopped in the back, although it took me a while to notice how bad it was.

You can see pictures of  what she looked like when I got her in this post.

I got her a Chrissa look-alike wig. She is very happy now that she has a better haircut.

And here is a picture of her together with Mara.

She's a cutie!

Yes, I really love the Kaya mold. Kaya has such a sweet face.

Caroline's Hair

 I did a boil perm on Caroline!

I found these curlers at Goodwill for $2, so I was excited to improve Caroline's curls.

She looks so much better She still has some flyaway hairs, but her hair is set in recognizable curls.

This was so fast and easy, and such and improvement! I am really happy.

Now here's a picture of what she looked like in process.

Don't look if you don't want to see a headless doll.

Thrift Store Fun!

 On Thursday, I found, not one, but two American girl dolls at the thrift store.

One was American Girl # 26, and the  other was Kaya with a hair cut.

This post includes a picture of a doll head without its body.

Rebecca's Spa Day

 Well, Rebecca was one of the AG dolls that I was never going to buy. I'm just not a big Josefina face mold fan.

I was re-reading Frances Hodgeson Burnett's A Little Princess a few years ago, and I thought about customizing Sara's doll Emily. And Rebecca is pretty close to the book version of Emily. I don't remember what she looks like in the movies, I always prefer the books.

So I decided if I could find a really cheap Rebecca, I would have a go at customizing her.

I found this Rebecca for $30. She was naked, I already had this dress because I loved it so much.

She needed some attention.

I did not take any before pictures. It was late, and I was eager to get started.

I sprayed her hair with braid spray, brushed it out curl by curl, and finger curled it. This made a huge improvement!

I used magic eraser to clean all the marks off her face. She had a lot of little pink marker marks.

I then used non-acetone nail polish to remove the nail polish on her fingers and toes.

She still has pink marker in two places. There is pink marker on her ears, which is hidden by pierces ears. And she has pink marker on her fingernails, which was under the fingernail polish.

I am pretty sure that this is the same pink marker that was on her face, but because it's in a crevice, I haven't had luck removing it with the magic eraser. I also wonder if somehow being under the nail polish sort of sealed it on.

I might try using benzoyl peroxide on them, but these don't actually bother me much.

Overall, she has cleaned up very nicely so far. I want to eye swap her with light blue eyes to make her Emily. Emily is described as having blue-grey eyes, so I decided light blue will be closest.

I just need to find the courage to try this!

The only reason I am considering it is because Josefina molds are the easiest ones to eye swap. Jess molds are the hardest to eye swap.

We will see what happens.

A Little Princess was published in 1905, so Emily's wardrobe would be closest to Samantha's. I am thinking of still giving her some of Rebecca's dresses, like the one she is wearing.

Thrift Store Find: Mattel Felicity

 I have been very lucky at the thrift store lately.

I heard that thrift stores are getting a lot of donations as people are cleaning their houses, having been stuck inside them so long.

Be that as it may, this weekend I found a Felicity at the thrift store for $12.00.

Her hair was messy, although not really tangled.

She had marks all over her.

Her elastic is loose.

Her worst flaw is that she is missing eyelashes on one eye.

She also has this white, chalky substance all over her face and hairline.

So I went to work on her. 

I cleaned her with water and a toothpick, then rubbing alcohol, and the magic eraser

The magic eraser made the most difference, but it did not remove all marks. 

The mark that bugs me the most is a pink dot on her chin.

Here she is after my cleaning efforts:

She looks a lot better. I was even able to rescue one of her pin curls.

The missing eyelashes are pretty noticeable to me, even in pictures, but more so in person.

She's definitely a Mattel Felicity with laser green eyes.

I haven't decided what to do with her, and luckily there is no rush. I am still looking for the perfect wig for thrift store find Miranda.

I really don't care for the laser eyes, even if she had all her eyelashes. Maybe I will try an eye swap at long last. 

There can be no lower stakes project than a $12 thrift store doll, especially when nothing would ever make me replace my original Felicity.

I just hesitate to do anything that could damage a doll. This doll is a mess, but she has been loved, and that does make her special.

My other thrift store find this weekend was four small Wedgwood plates for $4 each. I really am having a streak of ridiculous luck.

Saving Samantha

Both of my Samanthas have had missing limbs for at least two years now.

You may be wondering, why do I have two Samanthas?

Samantha number one is a Pleasant Company doll that I got on ebay when I was in grad school.

She was my third AG, and a childhood dream.

More than a childhood dream, I did not dare dream for more than the two dolls I had, Felicity and Anne.

Then I got the second Samantha, also on ebay, more recently, as part of a plan to give each of my cousin's daughters an AG doll when they are old enough. The girls in question are still a bit young for this and I am not sure how/ if I want to do this.

Amway, the Pleasant Company Samantha, which I had already worked on once, lost both arms and a leg, and the second Samantha lost a leg. Plus her remaining limbs were wobbly.

Call it The Curse of the Two Samanthas. It could be a Nancy Drew mystery.

Dolly First Aid

What do you do when your photo session goes wrong?

Right after I took this picture, Laura fell in the creek, face forward.

Removing Toe Nail Polish from Dolls

So the next step that I needed in fixing up my garage sale finds, Kaya and Julie, was removing the nail polish from their toes.

For this, I needed two items: a toothbrush and non-acetone nail polish remover.

It was a simple procedure: I took off their clothes and scrubbed the toes with nail polish remover, using the toothbrush.

Kaya's Beauty Treatment

My Future Custom Kaya's hair was definitely a mess when I got her. It's been cut in the back, just at the nape of the neck, and although you can hardly see it, this gives me the impetuous that I need to re-wig her.

She's the doll on the left, and she needs help.

What I hope to find is an Ivy wig or one that looks like it. This may be hard to find.
The closest  wig that I have found is Monique's China Doll wig, and it needs to be cut shorter.

In the meanwhile, I don't want Kaya sitting around looking like a cast member of Annie.

I also felt that since this wig already has problems, it is perfect for experimentation.

So I boiled her hair.

Zombie Dolls- the fine art of doll restoration

Warning: there are no actual zombies in this post.

There are, however, nude dolls in pieces.

Saturday was my first time experiencing doll restoration, under the extremely friendly guidance of mcooper.

I wanted to document the process to help others. I didn't get as many photos as I should have, and I don't necessarily know all of the technical terms. But here goes!