Collection Showcase (and a finished product!)

Hello there!

Thank you all for being patient with me as I deal with that thing we call "life." Between family and friends and work...I have been busy!

First and foremost, the Beach Ball painting project is DONE!

I love it.

There are a few things I would have done differently. You'll notice that the dark blue panel is way larger than the other ones. It's the first one I did and that was the size I was going for but for some reason, it didn't work out that way.

Also, I wanted to keep original beach ball colors (blue, yellow, white, red.) But because I had so many panels, I needed to use all the colors I had (light green, glitter green)

Overall, I think it turned out great! It will be the perfect addition to my Barbie beach scene. (And once I go to Hawaii I can grab more sand for that setup.) Maybe by then I will be the proud new owner of a Barbie pool! I'm still looking around for one!

And now that this project is done, I can again fixate on the "Benny" doll project. Yay! Can't wait to get him finished.

And today I wanted to post a doll from my childhood collection. At the beginning I mentioned family. My husbands cousin, wife, and children came over last weekend. (Would that make their kids my 2nd cousins?) Two adorable little girls, 7 and 11. We went into my Barbie room to pick out a Disney movie and of course, their eyes were glued right to the Barbie shelves.

The littlest proclaimed: "You even have one in a wheelchair!" (Becky)

The older girl: It looks like she is wearing Pajamas! (Funky in Philly Fashion Avenue)

Both: Which one has the shortest hair? (They voted this one which is probably true.) I had to cut the already cut hair to fit the wig on.

Both: Which one has the longest hair?

Which brings me to my Collection Showcase. Both their eyes fixated on this doll.

The super fabulous Totally Hair Barbie. I got this doll brand new when I was a kid and she is one of my top 5 favorite dolls of all time. 

Now she by no means has the longest hair of any doll I have (That would be Jewel Hair Mermaid Teresa) but because she is positioned at the end of my shelf, they saw the hair and immediately voted this one to be the longest. And of course, had to touch it as well. Because, this long hair just begs to be touched right?

I never ever ever brushed her hair. I never wanted the crimps to fade or for it to frizz. So she always had the perfect hair with a light pick here and there and is still as perfect as the day I got her.

She always had the same bangs because I used to style mine like that believe it or not! Don't you love the sweet face?

The cool thing you received with this doll is your very own bottle of Dep styling gel for you and Barbie!

She also came with some different colored rubber bands, and another couple of hair accessories which is in one of my boxes somewhere. I'll post them when I can dig them out. I remember one is a long pink piece of fabric with a wire in it with some ribbon curls on the end. So super cute.

Look, I found a picture of it on google!

katesnyder.blogspot.com

I love her. She is so beautiful. And you can't say no to that mod print mini dress!

So friends, do you have Totally Hair Barbie? Do you love her as much as I do? Let me know in the comments!

I am hoping to have more of the Benny sewing project up soon. We'll see how the days go!

Until then!

I'm here...really!

Hi Friends!

I apologize for the lack of posting lately. Again, that thing we all know as "LIFE" gets in the way!

But I will be back in a couple of days with a new post. Stay tuned and thanks for reading my blog!

Cheers!

Christmas Treasures #5

Here they are. The last two Christmas treasures I got.

These dolls are really dressed for spring and summer. Considering we got dumped on with over 2 feet of snow over the weekend, taking a look at these dolls gives me a mind boost.

The lovely dressed for spring, Pretty in Plaid Barbie.

She has the sweetest face. I love ponytail Barbies.

And we have this beautiful doll dressed and ready for summer fun!

Pearl Beach Barbie. Again, another sweet face. I love the "pearls" on the suit!

But take a look at her suit. Then at the back of the box. 

Mattel did another switch-a-roo. Kira is wearing the suit that Barbie has on. I actually like Kira's suit better than the one Barbie has on in this picture. Does anyone have the Kira? Is she indeed wearing the same style but in pink? In all honesty, I think I like Christie's suit the best! :)

So these are the last two that I had under my Christmas tree. I do have one other surprise to show but that will have to wait until next time!

I would also like to announce that I am almost finished with the beach ball painting project! I can't wait to show you. I think it is coming along together pretty good!

Until then!

Christmas Treasure #4

Now that the sun is actually shining I don't have a problem posting about snowflakes again. :) It's still cold but it makes it bearable when the sun is out and the sky is blue.

A few of you guessed correctly about what my little painting project will be. It is going to be a beach ball!

Here's a couple more pics of the progress.

After the white I started with the red. It's looking pretty good so far.

Just a little bit ago I finished the yellow section. We'll see how it turns out. I should be done with the project by my next post. Can't wait to see the finished product!

It's time to post my second to last Christmas treasure. It is my last doll involving snowflakes. She's a beauty.

Most of you already know by now that my mom gets me the holiday Barbie every year. I am just LOVING this 25th anniversary edition.

Even better? Her box is friendly. Just undo the tab at the top and I get to take some clean boxed but deboxed photos!

So obviously the best feature of this dress is the die-cut snowflakes. They cross her body sash like then cascade down the front of her dress. It's so beautiful.

I love how they started the snowflakes up at the shoulder then came down. It's so elegant. Cute simple hairstyle but unfortunately she does not have any real eyelashes.

A close-up shot of the snowflakes show how intricate they are.

Her skirt is stuffed with tissue to keep it's shape and she comes with a clear doll stand. I am just loving her!!

There is a little blurb on the back of the box:

"A wintry world of silvery snowflakes, family, friends, and lots of love: this wonderful time of the year has inspired Barbie for 25 years! Now, she celebrates this dazzling season, bringing you holiday greetings of peace, love, and joy. 2013 Holiday Barbie doll commemorates this silver anniversary dressed in a festive, shimmery gown."

It is indeed festive and shimmery. I love the silver gowns the best I think. This one will have to go in my favorites. The die-cut snowflakes really do it for me. She truly is a beautiful doll.

What do you think of the 25th anniversary Holiday Barbie? Did any of you get her for Christmas?

Until next time!

A Mini-Project

I want to wait a little bit before I get into my final doll involving snowflakes. It's been SO cold here. Foggy and icky. Just plain COLD!

So let's think of something...a little warmer shall we?

While my husband was out in the alley behind our house he brought me something he found.

This is actually a big fear of mine, leaving an ornament on the tree when it goes out to the trash. I don't have to worry so much as my tree is artificial and goes into a box every year but you should see me when I take down the tree. It's a serious process when I get to the end of the undecorating. I all but climb up the tree to make sure all the ornaments are off. Anyone else the same way? Please don't let me be the only one who stresses themselves out about this. ;)

Unfortunately my tree has nothing to do with the color brown. It's a bunch of green, red, purple, blue, silver, gold and everything in between. But no brown. This poor guy would have stuck out like a sore thumb had I put him on the tree.

Until I got a little idea.

It involves a few supplies.

A little tape

A little paint

Okay, a LOT of paint

A perfect blue wedge

Onto the next color

Definitely not finished yet by any means but it will be a perfect prop for these dolls that I am going to show next. Anyone figured out yet what it will be?

It's definitely a mini-project. The Benny doll has been put on hold because I have not had time to dig out the sewing machine. But mini-projects are always welcomed. :)

I have some FAB-U-LOUS beach dolls. I have featured some of them here in this blog.

The most beautiful (Steffie face!) Wet-n-Wild Teresa and Wet-n-Wild Skipper. As I've mentioned many times before. Wet-n-Wild Teresa is one of my top 5 most favorite dolls I own.

Next I have Sun Sensations Jazzie wearing a Splash n' Color Skipper swimsuit and the glasses from Beach Blast Miko.

The lovely Palm Beach Teresa and Princess Merliah from A Mermaid Tale. Turtle is so cute no?

The most awesome Cali Girl Christie wearing her own shirt and Cali Girl Lea's swimsuit underneath.

And, of course, my most favorite swim doll of all. She is perfect because she was my moms.

Since I have some swimsuit dolls and some beach furniture, I was thinking of doing a little set up with these dolls. I need a pool though!

So, any more guesses at what the Christmas "ball" prop will be?

Stay tuned! More pics to come!

Christmas Treasure #3

Totally unrelated to Barbie, anyone watching the last week of football?

We've already got the Broncos in the Super Bowl, now it's up to the 49ers and the Seahawks. I live in Central Oregon so I'm right in the middle of Seattle and San Francisco so I get a lot of back and forth between friends. But we shall see. However it's a perfect time to blog since I really don't care who wins. Ha!

Last time we saw the most beautiful PJ wearing a winter Fashion Avenue wedding dress, complete with snowflakes!

I mentioned that this post would also feature snowflakes.

I present to you...."Snowflake" herself!

This is a collector edition classic ballet doll. I believe that my dad picked her up for me at one of the booths at the antique store where he has his own booth set up at. That's a very lucky gig, he gets to be at the store to change out his inventory and he gets to see all the new stuff the other vendors bring it. Fantastical!

Her box is a little beat up however she has a very friendly box allowing for deboxed pictures!

I have never seen The Nutcracker and in regards to dolls, only have seen the Sugar Plum Fairy. Snowflake is also very pretty, dressed appropriately in white and pale blue.

She is a newer body style doll and has a very sweet face. As always, we love the real eyelashes.

She has the cutest snowflakes on her bodice and I love the trim used for the straps, top and bottom of the bodice. And of course, the glittery sleeves!

The back of the box has a great picture of the doll as well as a little excerpt talking about The Nutcracker.

"Experience the wonder and charm of Tchaikovsky's beloved ballet, THE NUTCRACKER with Barbie doll as Snowflake.

The story takes place on Christmas Eve and centers around young Clara, who dreams that she saves her toy nutcracker from the evil clutches of the Mouse King. The nutcracker turns into a handsome prince, who takes Clara to a magical land filled with sugar plum fairies and confectionery delights. As they enter this enchanted kingdom, shimmering snowflakes come to life and dance in their honor.

Barbie doll as Snowflake reflects the splendor of the dancing snow in her shimmering tutu of soft satin and tulle. Glittering snowflakes decorate her bodice while sheer, iridescent tights and delicate blue toe shoes complete her lustrous look. A silvery tiara adorns her beautiful cluster of blond curls.


The Classic Ballet Series features classic ballets that come to life with Barbie. Your Barbie doll as Snowflake has specifically designed legs so you may pose her in actual first through fifth ballet positions for play or display."

I have decided that these dolls with tattered boxes will most definitely have to come out. As much as I love having dolls in their boxes (unless their dresses or hair are messed up then it kills me not taking them out) this doll I think I'm going to keep in the box. The backdrop is too cute to not use. However when I get to display her, I think I'll just keep her tacked onto the cardboard. I love it too much to take her off of it.


This doll even comes with a certificate of authenticity. Unlike the box this piece is in pristine condition.

Side note - I have another doll in a tattered box and have just decided to take her out of the box. But that's for a later post :) You can read my original post about her here!

What do you think of Snowflake? Do you have her or any other dolls from the Classic Ballet Series? Love hearing from you in the comments!

The next post also features snowflakes! Stay tuned!!

Christmas Treasure #2

Greetings!

Today I am going to show you another treasure I got for Christmas.

I don't know how you all are regarding "in the box" or "out of the box" but with fashions, for me, they are always out of the box. When I got this I exclaimed "I can't wait to get this on a doll!" And my mom said "I knew you would say that" :) She knows me too well.

But how cute is this? We see a lot of Bride Barbie's with short sleeves or strapless gowns but (for me anyway) I have not come across a whole ton of winter bride fashions.

The snowflake? So cute!

So now the challenge is which doll to put it on? I have a bride doll but she is the newer body type. Fashion Avenue is definitely made for the old body type so I had to choose one from the doll box.

Here she is!

The most beautiful Sweet Roses PJ!

I do have her original outfit so I might switch her out someday but for now, she will be the most perfect winter bride ever!

Poor PJ has a broken neck but that did not deter me from giving her the hair treatment she most desperately needed. Those curls don't do well under neglect! However my hubby did make some kind of comment about their being a doll head sans body on the bathroom counter. :)

We also got a new camera for Christmas so this was the perfect time to give it a whirl with my doll photos. Here is PJ all ready for her photo shoot!

She is so pretty. The crushed velvet skirt is perfect!

The outfit is MUCH better out of the box, don't you think? I do have to say this was a challenge to get on the doll. The sleeves wrapped in faux fur made a tight fit for the hands. Her thumb kept getting caught. Then while I was fiddling with getting her hands in the dress, the velcro on the top got stuck to the satin and snagged it a little. (grumble) This definitely is a "leave it on the doll" type of dress.

But again, the snowflake is so adorable on this dress!

Dolls with broken necks are so hard to position. I had to fix the head so it looked like she had a neck while not displaying the cracks. I think it turned out okay! Besides, who can't fall in love with the Steffie mold PJ dolls?

The bouquet also has that adorable snowflake.

I love when shoes have a little detail. For a bride doll I would hope they would! A cute bow adds well to the overall elegance.

The veil needed a little fixing. It was hard to get it to stay on the head and then after being in a box all these years, it kind of stuck out at an odd angle. She sat on my desk for a couple of days so the tulle could mold to her head. Looks okay now!

I just love her in this dress. So so pretty.

And the pictures definitely turned out better too, do you think so?

Any of you have this outfit? Which doll did you put it on? Share comments and/or pics in the comments section!

My next couple of posts will feature snowflake dolls and maybe, just maybe, might have another bride doll. ;)

Until next time!