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The escaped puppet jester of death has eyes!

The escaped puppet jester of death has eyes! published on No Comments on The escaped puppet jester of death has eyes!

Fritillaria has eyes! I made these with do-it-yourself 16mm acrylic BJD eye supplies [backs and lenses] from Megannart on Etsy. I measured the iris well diameter and created black circles to size in Photoshop Elements, adding white royalty-free Grim Reaper images on top. I then printed them out, cut them out, placed them in the iris wells, then snapped the lens caps on. Then, since Fritillaria is a marionette who damaged herself when she jumped her strings, I went outside and smashed one of her eyes with a hammer. Continue reading The escaped puppet jester of death has eyes!

NERDS Show, Lowell, MA, 03/05/2016: transactions and evaluation

NERDS Show, Lowell, MA, 03/05/2016: transactions and evaluation published on No Comments on NERDS Show, Lowell, MA, 03/05/2016: transactions and evaluation

I attended the NERDS Show to meet fellow doll fans and new dolls. I hoped that I would sell some stuff, preferably enough to break even, and maybe find some doll stuff to buy, but I didn’t really expect to. I was therefore happily surprised to a) offload some stuff I didn’t want and b) acquire some stuff that I did.

 

In terms of riddances, I sold a Sleeping Elf/Tinybear Bon Bon [$125.00] and a fur wig [$5.00]. I got rid of a pair of Dikadoll jointed hands in a sale [$30.00] + partial trade [wig]. That was more than enough to cover the expense of table and room rental [$35.00], and I even got a small chunk of change to put toward taxes.

 

In terms of acquisitions, I picked up two freebies: a leotard and a sparkly overskirt. The second will work for Isabel, but the first may not be adequately modifiable for her, though it will certainly fit a narrower 1:6 scale doll. No pictures.

 

I took pictures of my more exciting acquisitions.

 

Continue reading NERDS Show, Lowell, MA, 03/05/2016: transactions and evaluation

Better eyes x1, better hair x2 — slow going with doll restyling

Better eyes x1, better hair x2 — slow going with doll restyling published on No Comments on Better eyes x1, better hair x2 — slow going with doll restyling

I’m getting some 16mm low-dome Captured in Glass glass eyes for Thalia. They have white whites, black irises, and white pupils [ET2]. I would prefer black whites, black irises, and white pupils, but CiG doesn’t sell them.

 

My Takara Cy Girl Cutey Honey, last seen shorn of her brittle factory rooted red hair [back in April!], has on order a size 4 Monique wig, style Pinky [chin-length bubble bob with bangs], in a violently bright red. Now I either need to fix her sword, which broke at the VTDL meetup where I decided to remove her original hair, or get her a new one — preferable made of actual metal, so it has less chance of snapping.

 

I have discovered the intoxicating glories of dollyhair.com, from which I will eventually buy hair for Timonium’s spiky, Jarethian hair. The proprietor offers so many types of hair in so many colors that I hope to obtain some free samples of the various dark reds to see which would work best for Timonium. He has the tips of his ears painted a color that looks very close to that of dried or scabbed-over blood, so I want the same for his hair.

 

I remember that my original concept for Timonium included splatters on his feet and legs, as if he had been walking through gore. I also remember that I never did this because, for some reason, I was unsure about how to accomplish this. Now, though, the process seems so self-evident — I should clearly just coat his legs with a few layers of matte sealant for a base, mix up some paint, and make a mess like I usually do.

 

I realize that I haven’t decided what to do for Fritillaria’s eyes. I kind of like the idea of pinpoint pupils and huge irises dominated by red and white hypno spirals, but I really should mock that up first…

 

It’s that easy to make eyes?!

It’s that easy to make eyes?! published on No Comments on It’s that easy to make eyes?!

Helene has a Tumblr post up on making eyeballs with polymer clay and clear gloss. Irises can either be painted onto the eyes or printed on computer paper and then glued. I have so much polymer clay, so much paint and so much gloss that I can try this tutorial with supplies I already have. I even have a dedicated toaster for polymer clay projects. [I got it when I thought I was going to sculpt heads.] Why should I buy eyes again?! 😀

This entry was originally posted at http://modernwizard.dreamwidth.org/1684865.html. You can comment here, but I’d prefer it if you’d comment on my DW using OpenID.

DD-Anne eyes part 1: for Jamisia

DD-Anne eyes part 1: for Jamisia published on No Comments on DD-Anne eyes part 1: for Jamisia

My first shipment of DD-Anne eyes from Kattunge finally came aujourd'hui, after taking a detour to Scarborough, Maine, apparently to go leaf peeping. >:( I swapped out Jamisia's 6mm shitty blue acrylic Glibs for 8mm awesome blue glass DD-Annes.

Continue reading DD-Anne eyes part 1: for Jamisia

Lucian’s new eyeballs

Lucian’s new eyeballs published on 1 Comment on Lucian’s new eyeballs

Well, the two pairs of DD-Anne eyes from Kattunge took a sudden detour to Scarborough, Maine, for inscrutable reasons, so I'm not sure how they're supposed to arrive by today. In any case, I threw out Lucian's default piece-of-shit eyes and replaced them with Ginevra's light-catching eyes. Default piece-of-shit eyes:
Continue reading Lucian’s new eyeballs

No more murky eyeballs

No more murky eyeballs published on No Comments on No more murky eyeballs

Finding the best eyes for my BJDs involves the consideration of more factors than non-doll-related people probably guess. In no particular order, here are my considerations.

Size. Will they fill the eye sockets without leaving gaps? Will the irises make the doll look younger [if larger] or older [if smaller]?

Material. Eyes can be made from urethane, glass, silicone or acrylic. Each material has its pros and cons, as well as price variations. I tend to go with cheap glass.

Color. Is the color visible in the doll's eyes? Is it accurate to the character?

Dome height. High-dome eyes have definite bulbous lenses over the iris areas, which means that the irises and pupils sit further back in the doll's eye sockets. Low-dome eyes bring the irises and pupils closer to the lids. I prefer low-domes because high-domes tend to create too many shadows.

Reflectivity. Do the eyes eat light or reflect light?

Price.

I'm currently frustrated by my lack of appropriate eyes for my 1:6ers. For some reason, I have way too many pairs of 6mm blue acrylics that photograph like mud. I really want to swap them out for highly reflective eyes in light colors.

Jamisia currently has a pair of said muddy blues. Anyway, she needs better eyes. She'd look great in 8mm light violet eyes, even if I have to remove some of her hair in order to install them.

Mellifer does not have the muddy blues, but he does have pretty dark brown 8mms that don't fit his character. He'd look great in 8mm light yellows, and I need to remove his muddy wig anyway.

I think Lucian might need some new eyes too. He has 6mm browns [I think], and they just photograph like black holes all the time. 🙁 I should try swapping in Ginevra's 8mm silvers to see what they look like in his head.

Then Ginevra would need new eyes! I think she'd look good in 8mm light pink or red. Ooooooh…

DD-Anne sells cheap factory second glass eyes in 8mm.

Ooooh, I also see that the maroon 4-inch wig she sells is just the type I seek for Mellifer!

Too bad I have shit for money right now and can't buy anything.

My Jareth: eyeball references

My Jareth: eyeball references published on No Comments on My Jareth: eyeball references

I just heard that Enchanted Doll is doing Unique Eyes, which means not just custom colors or combinations or pupil sizes/colors, but eyes to your specs. Jareth may get his 14mm, low-dome, blue grey, regular pupil, urethane eyes after all. Well, that's assuming that ED can approximate my iris patterns. Really big pictures of my left eyeball below.
Continue reading My Jareth: eyeball references

I only have eyes for you

I only have eyes for you published on No Comments on I only have eyes for you

Still dithering about appropriate eyeballs for Jareth. Apparently no one makes custom glass OR silicone OR urethane eyes in the exact specs I want. So I'm going with low-domes from Captured in Glass. One pair is $10.38. Airmail shipping for one order is $6.00. Here are my possibilities.

Continue reading I only have eyes for you

The August Project: testing eyes and wigs

The August Project: testing eyes and wigs published on No Comments on The August Project: testing eyes and wigs

The seller liked August's open-eyed head, but I am fonder of her winking head, which I'll be using. Here's August with a wine-colored fur wig and an acrylic eye [unknown size] of green with a brown center. She came with both the wig and the eye. For some reason I'm thinking that the eye is 16mm???
Continue reading The August Project: testing eyes and wigs

Repent of the purple shadows! [aka hair and eyes for Frank]

Repent of the purple shadows! [aka hair and eyes for Frank] published on 1 Comment on Repent of the purple shadows! [aka hair and eyes for Frank]

EDIT: Picture now visible. Global Dolls “Candy” wig, dark brown, WRONG STYLE [= horrid ringlets], size 9-10: $8.65. Global Dolls “Carolina” wig, dark brown, RIGHT STYLE [= mohair curls], size 9-10: $25.90 [!! — blame it on the mohair]. Kemper glass eyes, brown, Karl brand, 16mm: $14.18. Finally giving Frank his eyes and hair: priceless. There are things money can’t buy. If it’s purchasable and doll-related, though, go to Audrey’s Dolls for a wide variety of supplies at deep discount.

Frank borrowed Jareth’s body for some quick photos this evening. Continue reading Repent of the purple shadows! [aka hair and eyes for Frank]

Paperweight eyes = lack of catchlights.

Paperweight eyes = lack of catchlights. published on No Comments on Paperweight eyes = lack of catchlights.

I used to think that I took poor photographs because I could never get Zephque’s or Sardonix’ eyes to catch light. Then I learned about doll eyeballs just now and discovered that it was the fault of their eye shapes, not me. Continue reading Paperweight eyes = lack of catchlights.

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