A DOLL DONATION

I watch very little television and when I do actually sit down to watch a show or news, it's on a PBS channel.  This has been true for years as television fare seemed to become more inane and more violent..  And then there was Comcast, whose "lineup" skillfully kicked the good and useful channels from the group one could afford.  The Public Broadcasting Stations, on the other hand, operate mostly on donations from the viewers.  Their auctions of donated goods and services are quite profitable and I always felt guilty that I couldn't afford to make a donation.  But now I can.

When I contacted the local PBS station (via their email) I got an almost immediate reply with a request for my phone number.  Almost minutes after I emailed my phone number, I received a call from a person who accepted and organized auction donations.  She assured me they would love to have a doll to auction, but felt their November auction would be the best time to auction a doll since it was so close to Christmas.  I wasn't aware the station held more than one auction and quickly agreed that a doll would surely bring a higher bid at Christmas time.

Then I started to consider which dolls I would willingly part with.  I love my two Gypsies but they could possibly fetch a very good price if offered as a pair.  The Bride doll would probably go easily as would the Mardi Gras and perhaps the Falconer.  I couldn't see the Circus even being considered.
The large dolls, Fairy Queen, Witch and Masquerade, should bring at least 25% more than the smaller ones.  So here I am, trying to think for the judges.  Not good

Instead, I must check each doll for any needed repairs, find their back stories - I hope I still have them on file, and make a "birth certificate" for each doll, all before November.

DOLL COLLECTING, THE BUSINESS OF

About this time last year, my sister attended the doll and teddy bear show in Asheville, NC.  While there, she purchased a year's subscription for me to Haute Doll and DOLL, a two for one show special.  They're great magazines and I love all the great costumes, the dramatic photos, even the paper dolls and patterns for clothes.  But for all their glamour, the dolls themselves turn me off because of their visible "poseable" joints.  So I was delighted to find a 100% silicone, fully poseable, 16" Janette Lamont doll in the current issue of Haute Doll.  She had not one visible joint although she did have an unnatural hank of hair which seems to be common among the doll makers.

A second silicone skin doll by Phicen was even more flexible with beautifully articulated facial features, and natural looking hair.  Her wrist joints are visible but are nothing more than a seam line.  Comparing her two photos, I'm guessing her fingers have a full range of individual motion.   The only drawback with these dolls is that their soft skin makes them more difficult to dress than their hard skinned cousins.

SUMMER DOLDRUMS

Hurricane season is upon us.  Even here in north Florida, that means viscious heat, daily afternoon thunderstorms - and bugs.  Mosquitos, for sure, fleas, and gnats, called no-see'ums here in the south.  And with all those bugs, spiders, which serve as a sort of creepy insect control.  I much prefer our little green anoles (lizards) and pretty little tree frogs who sing all night long.

By this time of the year, the avid gardeners have harvested most of their spring garden and are taking a breather, preparing for the cool weather crops.  And then, there's the citrus, getting ripe in time for the holidays.  

Which reminds me that Stella Skelly  (read sexy bones)  hangs in the closet waiting for the cups of her black and orange bustiere  to be adjusted.   Making her black stockings - I've not yet decided if they'll be net - and her very high heeled shoes are going to pose a brand new set of problems.  The stockings, especially.  I'm going to try to have her ready for ADQ's March deadline for their 2016 fall (Halloween) issue.