Audrey and the bluebells

On the May Day Monday holiday, I went for a walk in Ravenscraig Park in Kirkcaldy. It’s my favourite time of year to go walking there, because there are masses of bluebells in bloom.

Last year I took self-portraits with the bluebells, but this year I decided to do something different and take some doll photos. Luckily Audrey was already dressed in this outfit that looked perfect with the flowers.

I took some more photos down at the beach too.

Sunday self-portraits: Photobooth!

One of the best things about BlytheCon UK was the free photobooth! I used it a couple of times on my own and a couple of times with my new pal Steph! There were loads of props to use, and even doll-sized hats!

Dolls in dresses

After BlytheCon UK 2016 was over, it was time to get the dolls into their new outfits! It took a while to decide who would get to wear what. Here's hoping that this time they don't stay in the same outfits for three years!

Enid is keeping her prize-winning Mini-me outfit on for now, although she did get to wear the new waistcoat since it matches!

Zoe's got the little knitted top I won in the raffle.

This outfit is perfect on my little French girl Audrey!

Jemima is keeping her tartan hat on for now, but has a new outfit to go with it.

Sakura was the lucky one who got to wear the blue birdies dress first!

This outfit goes really well with Saffron's colours.

My nature-loving girl Mariel was the obvious choice for the fox jumper!

Sunday self-portraits: Mini-Me!

I've been showing you some photos from BlytheCon UK 2016 this week, and these are some really fun ones! Because I won the Mini-Me competition!

The idea of the Mini-Me competition was to bring along a doll dressed like yourself. This appealed to me, because it was my reason for getting interested in Blythe dolls in the first place, seeing one that looked just like me!

But since buying that doll, my hair has changed in length and colour! So, just a week before BCUK, I changed my mind about which doll I was going to take, and then decided to give her a bit of a makeover!

Once Enid had her lips carved and some new makeup, it was time to decide on the outfit. I looked through my own wardrobe and my fabric, and found a t-shirt and some fabric that I'd always thought looked similar. I sewed a t-shirt for Enid, then tried to think of what to wear with the t-shirt. I wanted something cute and doll-like, so I went for my red cord dungaree dress (a charity shop find a year or two ago, that has now come into fashion!).

I sewed the matching doll dress from red felt, adding a pocket and some stitching in the same places as the real dress, and some sequins in place of the buttons. Then I dressed her in tights and shoes that were similar in colour to some I had in human size! I added a red bead necklace to match one I had, and decorated a large hair slide for myself using Sharpie markers, to match a small one that I put in Enid's hair.

I also quickly made a matching outfit for one of my Petites, so that my mini-me had her own mini-me (unfortunately I didn't have one with matching hair!).

I think the main thing that won the prize for me, though, was the fact my dress had a pocket on the front where I could carry Enid around with me! This meant that lots of people saw us in our matching outfits!

Eventually the time came for all the mini-me contestants to get up on stage. There were some great outfits, especially the girl I was speaking to who had a broken leg and had made a matching stookie and crutches for her doll! You can see the video here.

The votes were counted, and in the end there were only one or two votes between the top two contestants. I was delighted to be the winner! I won a human-sized BCUK t-shirt, a Blythe-sized one which should arrive soon, and a mini shopping trolley!

I think the most amusing part of the day was after I'd been using the photo booth, and I nearly walked away with a red feathery head-dress on. The guy running the photo booth reminded me I was wearing it, and said he didn't want me to walk away with it on and get embarrassed. I replied, "I'm a grown woman walking around with a doll dressed like me - I don't think there's any embarrassment factor!"

BlytheCon UK 2016 purchases and prizes

I came home from BlytheCon UK with loads of stuff! There were some bits and pieces in the goodie bag, I bought loads, and I won a couple of things too!

Two of my favourite stalls were close together in the hall - Dutch Blythe Fashion and WoolyRockers, and I spent most of my money at those two stalls! They were quite reasonably priced, and I love the style of the clothes. The little pink crocheted top and hair flowers were a raffle prize, and I also won the BCUK t-shirt and the mini shopping trolley in the mini-me competition (which I'll tell you all about soon!).

I fell in love with the blue birdies dress, but didn't think I'd be able to afford it after buying loads of other stuff. But when I counted up my money to see what I could afford instead, I realised I had just enough! I only had 50p left over, and that was when I discovered a stall right in the corner with some great bargains, so I was able to spend my 50p on a leather waistcoat!

BlytheCon UK 2016 Fashion design competition

One of the parts of BlytheCon UK I really enjoy is the fashion design competition. I love making outfits for my dolls, and it's fun to display one of my creations in the competition.

The brief was to create an outfit that was mostly or completely tartan. I used a pastel tartan fabric from an old dress, as the only other tartan I had was ribbon. I made a basic dress then added lots of details - lace edging, ric rac braid, and a cameo on the dress, a matching tartan hat, an apron embroidered with heather, a felt bag with a thistle embroidered on it, a felt cover for the base of the stand, and the finishing touch, made at the last minute, was her pet Nessie!

I was pleased that this time the outfit did not have to be displayed on a headless doll, as that doesn't really show the clothes at their best! But I did have to display it on a different doll from the one it was designed for, because it had to be a stock doll. But I think it looked just as good on Jemima as it did on Sakura.

The competition entries this time were housed on a table in a separate room from the main hall, which at first meant I felt that some people may miss them, but I think eventually most people had been through there.

The entries for the competition were all amazing. I didn't win the competition, but I was consoled by the fact that the vote was very close (only one or two votes in it). And I certainly had a lot of lovely comments about my doll's outfit, and especially her pet Nessie!