A Long Journey for Amber

The forth doll eluded me for a long time – about 18 months.  I finally found her on eBay in October 2014.  She came all the way from Rhode Island, USA.  It was a long journey for her to my home city of Edmonton.  When I first saw her auction and started bidding, it was on the first day of her ad.  I had to wait six days to find out if she would be mine.  I was so thankful when the bidding closed and no one else had scooped her from me.  She arrived in record time (27 October 2014) and I couldn't wait to open the box.  Her Mattel name was Courtney. 

What excited me most was she came with a couple outfits, some accessories and 3 pairs of sandal shoes.  Each of these items would assist me in creating patterns to make more clothes for them.  Sadly, she also suffers from Floppy Leg Syndrome (which I have now coined for these dolls).

While I waited for this doll to arrive, I started running names through my head.  I knew I had to see her before I could fully decide.  When she arrived and I had a good look at her, I decided to name her Amber (aka Yafoor).

Now here I must digress for a moment to tell you about how Amber got her nickname.  My son and I are big Minecraft game players.  He first introduced me to the game back in July of 2014 because he thought that, due to the building block nature of the game, it would be beneficial to me for planning and building my doll village.  I could create 3D buildings and arrange them through the elements of the game.  What a fantastic idea!

His introduction of the game was through a YouTube video and when he showed it to me, we laughed at the parody.  In the video satire, the donkey was named Yafoor.  My son and I joked about that donkey many times and when I had mentioned the last doll would be arriving any day now and I needed to name her, my son said I should name her Yafoor.  Yes, it was funny at the time but I was NOT about to do that. 

When she arrived, I texted him right away.  I told him her new name as Amber.  My son texted me back saying: (and I quote) “You realize that anytime you refer to her, I’ll refuse to acknowledge who you are talking about until you call her Yafoor.”  So now we call her Yafoor.

Introducing her to the others was so much fun.  My family of Teen Trend girls was now complete.

As always, let kindness and positive energy

fill your mind, body and soul.

Blessed Be, My Friends!

Finding Rowan

Back to the internet I went to find the next 2 dolls.  It did not prove fruitful at all and I despaired I would not complete the set.

One day (24 September 2014) as I was in the Goodwill thrift store (the same one I found Wiccah) I recognized a bare foot while sifting through the mound of dolls.  I pulled out the doll and thought “Is this a Teen Trend?”  Her hair was cut really short but I recognized that beautiful facial structure.  I pulled at her clothes and confirmed she was indeed, a Teen Trend.

I later learned Deondra was her Mattel name.  I was disappointed that her beautiful auburn hair was cut short but whoever cut it did a fairly good job.  I could live with it.  She cost me $3.00.  She came with a velour track suit, one sandal and a pair of sunglasses.

This doll would represent Fall and I named her Rowan – inspired by the Rowan tree.  Bringing Rowan home to meet Wiccah and Summer was exciting.  The sisters were slowly reuniting.

Since Rowan had short hair she became my model for making clothes and creating patterns.  It helps tremendously that I am able to create patterns easily for either sewing or crocheting (knitting is questionable).  If there are patterns out there for Teen Trends, I’ve yet to find them.  My only option was to get busy designing.

Rowan also travels with me when I go shopping or bargain hunting for things that will fit their house.  Again, the fact that her hair is short makes her ideal to pack around because I am not concerned her hair will get ruined.  Her only other affliction is that she has a bit of the floppy leg problem that Summer has.  This can be a real pain when fitting clothing on her while creating a pattern.  In the end, floppy legs are better than unruly hair so Rowan is ideal for my model and travel companion. 

I am so happy that she is a part of our growing little family.  Now to find the last one…

As always, let kindness and positive energy

fill your mind, body and soul.

Blessed Be, My Friends!

Silver / Summer Comes Home

Searching the internet for another doll was not an easy task.  Most dolls for sale were not in my province or most of the ads were old and the doll sold long ago.  I was having no luck.  Everyday I went on Kijiji and scanned the doll section.  I even put up a want ad.

Then one day I got a hit.  The doll was in Grande Prairie, Alberta.  Since I worked for a company that had a branch in Grande Prairie, I asked my boss if I could get one of our drivers to bring the doll back for me when he did a round trip.  My boss told me he was going there so he would bring her back himself.  (a heartfelt thanks, Gordon!)

I wrote the woman with the ad and after about a week she responded that the doll was still available.  She was $5.00.  Within a week I had my new doll in my hands (23 April 2013).  It was Gabby.  I was so elated!  I brought her home and introduced Wiccah to her new sister.  I named her Silver.  Silver would represent Spring and Summer and Wiccah would represent Fall and Winter.  I figured I had this down pat. (grin)

   

Silver was in passable shape but her hair was straw-like and her legs had issues.  They were floppy and she couldn't sit very well.  She came with a box, outfit and shoes.  Immediately I started making her clothes too.  I decided I would make identical styled outfits but different colors.  And of course a bed.  They would share Wiccah’s current “house”.

The one thing I seemed to have difficulty with was calling Silver by her name.  I always called her Summer.  She was “Silver Summervale”, not “Summer Summervale”.  I couldn't seem to keep Silver’s name straight for the life of me!  Was this a sign? (grin)

My decision to have all four dolls changed things quite a bit.  When I finally had the fourth doll more than a year later, I made the decision to change Silver’s name to Summer and change their last name to Silvervale.  I’m getting a little ahead of myself but it now feels right and Summer is happy with her name change!  What a relief!

As always, let kindness and positive energy

fill your mind, body and soul.

Blessed Be, My Friends!

Wiccah Starts it All - Part 2

As is my way, I began to see what direction this doll would take as I held her in my hands.  She would represent the seasons for my belief system.  I would dress her accordingly and she would be displayed during spring, summer, fall and winter in a medieval type dress and accessories befitting the current season.  But first she needed a name.  That was easy.  It came to me right away and I had not used the name with my other dolls.  I named her Wiccah Summervale.

Now before I go further I must give you a brief background of my doll collecting.  I’ve mentioned I am a Barbie collector.  I have over 2300 dolls at the moment.  Each of my dolls has a name and no names are repeated.  They follow the alphabet – meaning that one doll has a name that starts with the letter “A” and then “B” etc.  When I get to “Z” I start over at “A” again.

I am building a doll village for my Barbie’s and intend to create a website to display my creation.  It’s a massive undertaking and I can only work on it in my spare time.  I intend to create running dioramas and have been working on the scripts for a few years.   

When I got Wiccah, some of my focus changed.  I was going through a troubled time in my life and used this doll to redirect my energies to more positive things.  If Wiccah was going to represent the seasons, she would have to sit on something.  I would make her a chair.  From the chair came a table, a table continued to a bed.  In no time I was building furniture and making her clothes, since she came with only the one outfit she was wearing.

This outfit was not the kind of clothes a goddess of the seasons would wear so I set them aside for now.  In my spare room I made a small block type room for her bedroom out of foamcore.  I had seen something similar on the internet for American Girl dolls while researching ideas for anything doll related.  Before long I made 4 rooms - bedroom, kitchen, living room, and bathroom.  (Posted here are only the two rooms I took pictures of)  Most of the furniture I had to make myself.  I did find some odd things in the thrift shops I could modify to fit Wiccah.  I thoroughly enjoyed making stuff for this doll and it helped me focus on getting through some really tough times.

One day, as Wiccah sat in her new bedroom, I thought she should have a friend or sister.  Little did I know how difficult it would be to find another doll like her.

But that is another tale for another day…

As always, let kindness and positive energy

fill your mind, body and soul.

Blessed Be, My Friends!

Wiccah Starts it All

Part 1

This blog is dedicated to my four Teen Trend Dolls.  Wiccah, Summer, Rowan, and Amber (also known as Yafoor (an inside joke which I will reveal later). 

It has taken me nearly two years to acquire all four dolls.  I vaguely remember seeing them in Toys R Us many years ago, but since they were not the type of doll I had interest in at that time, I never looked beyond barely a glance.

Then one day (14 March 2013 to be exact) I was at my local Goodwill Thrift Store searching for Barbie’s I didn't already have when I saw this large doll with terribly ratty hair. 

I picked her up and admired how pretty she was - even looking like the ragamuffin in this picture. But I put her back to continue my Barbie search. Strangely I kept going back to pick her up and admire her again.

One thing I know about myself is when something draws me to pick it up three times, I know it is supposed to come home with me.  She was priced at $3.00 and home with me she went.

Initially I thought my year old grand daughter would enjoy playing with her when she got older and could care for her responsibly.  Since I am a doll collector, I want to teach Torrie to treat her dolls with respect to maintain their beauty and value.  Once Torrie was older  I believed she would simply love this doll.

At home I put all the dolls I bought aside to be cleaned when I had time.  When the day came to cleaning them and recording them in my database I looked at this large doll again.  As I examined her I noticed that her arms and legs were elastic jointed.  I wasn't sure what I thought of that.  This would be my first experience with this type of doll.

I removed her clothes and bathed her, taking note of her complete design.  After her hair was combed and slightly trimmed I realized this doll was simply beautiful.  But who was she?  I saw she was made by Mattel.  Parked in front of my laptop I measured her height and typed into Google “Mattel 17 inch doll”.  Instantly her picture came up.  She was Mattel’s Teen Trends - Kianna. 

As per all the dolls that come into my home, whoever they were when created by the doll manufacturer faded away and they adopted a new life with me.  This doll was no different.  She would get a new name, a new personality and become part of my doll world.  Yes, she was much larger but I began to see a future for her.  Since her body design was not conducive to toddlers, giving her to my grand daughter Torrie was out.  She would stay with me – and I welcomed her with open arms.

As always, let kindness and positive energy

fill your mind, body and soul.

Blessed Be, My Friends!

What You’ll Find on This Blog

Below is a summary of what you’ll find on this blog to help you navigate through the labels.  Of course, more will be added and changes will happen as the blog progresses.  However at this time, this is the list of planned blog entries!

The Sisters:

Under this label (UTL) will be the posts on my Teen Trends dolls which I call: The Sisters, The Silvervale Sisters, My Girls, Mattel Teen Trends Dolls, TTD, etc.  Here you will learn information about the dolls themselves anywhere from how I got started to changes made with the dolls in terms of re-rooting their hair, changing features, etc.

The Silvervale Homestead:

UTL will be the posts on the girl’s Doll House and diorama scenes.  These posts will be on how I build and set up their house as well as different dioramas I have planned.  Also you'll find in this section featured items which are truly fun details that really tie a scene together.

Magic and Mayhem – The Life and Times of the Silvervale Sisters:

UTL chronicles the life and times of the girls as they go through life as young teen witches alone in a big world.  This is intended to be a fun parody of lessons learned from a dolls’ point of view of life experiences. As a fiction writer I really enjoy the idea of creating something both written and visual that my granddaughter will have fun following along.

Magic and Mayhem –  Behind the Scenes:

UTL will be information on scene and diorama creation and setup.  Lots of work goes into setting up a scene and writing the scripts and sometimes funny things happen as it goes along that are too priceless not to share.

Troubles:

UTL will be the posts on things that are troublesome.  These include problems anywhere from the doll’s design flaws and how to combat them, to disasters of the furry kind (aka my kittens). 

Growing Pains:

UTL will be the posts on changes to the sisters, the blog, etc and news about new things going on and how it affects my journey through creating the lives for the Silvervale Sisters.

New Fashions:

UTL will be posts on new fashions I bought for the girls in stores, from another crafter, or doll sales, on line, etc.  All these are things I did not make myself.

Handcrafted Fashions:

UTL will be posts on new fashions I made either by sewing, knitting, crocheting, or crafting in another way.

New Fashion Accessories:

UTL will be posts on fashion accessories I bought in stores, from another crafter or doll sale and on line etc.  Again these will not be items I made.

Handcrafted Fashion Accessories:

UTL will be posts on fashion accessories I made for the girls.  Items are jewelry, shoes, boots, hair accessories, hats, belts, etc.  

New Furniture:

UTL will be posts on new furniture I bought brand new, from thrift stores, craft sales, on line, etc.

Handcrafted Furniture:

UTL will be posts on furniture I made myself, or furniture I modified to fit the dolls.

New Accessories:

UTL will be posts on accessories for the dolls that are not fashion related.  These are accessories for their house, their dioramas and so on.  These are bought new, found in thrift stores, craft sales, etc.

Handcrafted Accessories:

UTL will be posts on accessories for their home or dioramas I made myself, or modified to fit the girls.  This could be items I've repainted, modified size, etc.

Fantastic Finds:

UTL will be posts on those one of a kind things unique or exciting because they were a challenge to acquire.

Fun Finds:

UTL will be posts on items I find that could be incorporated into the girl’s house or dioramas.  These are simple things that are fun to add and which I found in dept stores, thrift stores, garage sales, dollar stores, flea markets, etc.

How To…:

UTL will be posts on how I made some of the things in the Handcrafted Posts so that you can make your own for your dolls.  I try to be as detailed as I can in both description and pictures.  Also if clarification is needed, you can email me and I’ll explain more effectively.

Tools:

UTL will be posts on the tools I use to make the furniture, accessories, and buildings.  Some of these will trickle from my Barbie Village but all are tools I couldn't live without.

Crafting Supplies:

UTL will be posts on craft supplies I use to make furniture, accessories, fashions and buildings for all aspects of my doll collecting.

For Sale:

UTL will be posts on items I have for sale or will custom make for your doll.

As always, let kindness and positive energy

fill your mind, body and soul.

Blessed Be, My Friends!

Welcome! Welcome! Welcome!

The Silvervale Sisters

Featuring Mattel Teen Trend Fashion Dolls

I am finally on the track to Teen Trend Doll madness!  I love these dolls!  I’m a late bloomer but bloom I did and what I found in these beautiful dolls is such enjoyment!  Who can’t love something that makes you feel so happy?

My only regret is that I didn’t see their potential until now!  Well, that’s not quite accurate.  14 March 2013 is when it all began for me.  A slow beginning but we all have to start somewhere, don’t we?

Let me introduce myself.  My name is Shazara.  I am an avid Barbie collector.  I’ve been collecting Barbie’s my entire life.  At this time of writing I believe I have just over 2300 dolls.  I designed and began to build a Barbie village many years ago - and it’s a never ending project, I assure you!

Through my years of collecting, making and modifying furniture, accessories and the buildings (which I call blocks) I’ve amassed a huge amount of Barbie stuff.  I've also created personalities and lives for all the dolls which are to inhabit the Barbie village.  This entire project is a huge undertaking and one day I hope to have a website devoted to my village.

After more than 35 years of Barbie, I needed a bit of a break.  I still hunted down treasures to add to my Barbie village, but I was not active with the dolls as much.  Trust me when I say I needed that break! (grin)

Into my life came Mattel’s Teen Trends dolls and now I am very proud to introduce my girls in order of the photo below….Rowan, Amber, Summer and Wiccah Silvervale.

I hope you have some fun as you journey with me through the amazing world of doll collecting and my humble personal collection.

What are we waiting for!  Let’s get started!

Let kindness and positive energy

fill your mind, body and soul.

Blessed Be, My Friends!