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Question of the Week: Favourite stock doll?

Written on February 28, 2011 at 12:00 pm by Michelle
Filed under: Question of the Week

I make it no secret that one of my favourite stock dolls is Margaret Meets Ladybug. I love her daisy pullcharm, her three sets of special eyechips, her coloured eyelids and the fact that she’s one of those ‘special’ EBL Blythes that came with some SBL parts. I think she’s fantastic and there’s not a thing I would change about her. She even came in one of the cutest boxes I had ever seen (it looks like a little house!).

There’s a few Blythes thatĀ  I think don’t need anything changed about them. Some Blythes just look so beautiful in their boxes and in their stock outfits. But there are some dolls that I feel really benefit for little changes, even if it’s just a few chip changes or maybe a haircut (not done by me though, don’t worry!).

What is your favourite stock doll? What makes her special to you?

Smidge House Sofa Giveaway: The Winner!

Written on February 27, 2011 at 12:00 pm by Michelle
Filed under: Giveaway with tags: , ,

smidge house

Thank you so much to Carmen of Smidge House for sponsoring another fantastic giveaway here at BlytheLife.com. There were a lot of entries (87 in total!).

Thank you so much to everyone who commented, tweeted, followed and blogged their entries!

Now I’m sure you’re all wondering who won that great sofa and those two absolutely adorable cushions (I wish I had cushions like that for *me*!).

And the winner is…

Click to read more of this entry.

Community Corner!

Written on February 25, 2011 at 12:00 pm by Michelle
Filed under: News with tags:


Image from sxc.hu user hoefi.

New to BlytheLife.com is the Community Corner!

If you have news that you want to share with the community, you can share that news right here on BlytheLife.com. Dedicated to being a website for the doll community, BlytheLife.com is opening up for people to submit their very own ‘press releases’ onto the website.

Examples of things that you might want to announce on BlytheLife.com include:

  • Your new doll-related blog
  • A new Blythe forum
  • A new Blythe website
  • Anything related to Blythe/dolls!

All you need to do is email the blurb that you wish to have published on BlytheLife.com to blythelife@gmail.com.

The text should be sent in either the body of the email or in a Word document. Please check your grammer and spelling before submitting your file. Include any appropriate links to be used and images with the blurb.

Please note, submission will not guarantee publication. If you want to make sure that your submission will be published prior to writing it, please contact Michelle at blythelife@gmail.com to find out if it’s an appropriate publication.

Blythe On A Budget: Free Programs

Written on February 23, 2011 at 12:00 pm by Michelle
Filed under: Article with tags:

Programs that people like to use to make their lives easier can be expensive. Off the top of my head, I know that I use some programs that most others would consider to be expensive (eg. Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Office) but there’s a lot of programs that are available for free that are not pirated.

This post is not a jab towards those who used paid-for programs. I myself absolutely love Adobe Photoshop and I love my Microsoft programs but it’s always good to be aware of free alternatives out there. Computer programs can be expensive and why would you want to spend money on programs when you could be buying new dolls…?

Please note that BlytheLife.com does not take responsibility for anything that may occur to your computer after downloading the programs – please ensure that the program(s) are compatible with your computer and you should always run regular virus-checks on your computer.

GIMP – alternative to Photoshop
For photo editing needs, I prefer to use Adobe Photoshop and I try to keep up with the updates between versions. I know that this is a very expensive program. A completely free option is GIMP, which is a decent stand-in for Photoshop. GIMP stands for The GNU Image Manipulation Program and while it is a huge program with a lot of capabilities, many people write tutorials geared towards Adobe Photoshop, so it shouldn’t come to a shock to you if you cannot use the tutorials directly (some wording changes between programs and the menus are set up differently).

GIMP can run on some UNIX computers, Microsoft Windows (up to Vista) and Mac OS X. There are other system requirements that you will need to read about on the GIMP website prior to downloading.

Calc – alternative to Excel
Instead of using Microsoft Excel for keeping track of all that dolly spending (because we really should be keeping track of expenses – plus it’s a great way to know how much you paid for something if you’re considering selling the item), you can use the Open Office equivalent, Calc. There are some differences between the two programs, including how the formulas are entered but you can find help online to figure out how to get used to these changes. It’s a good alternative for those not wanting to spend money on Microsoft Office.

Open Office (all of their Microsoft Office equivalent programs) can work on Microsoft Office (from Windows 2000 to Windows 7), Solaris, Linux, Mac OS X. There are some other system requirements that you will need to read on the Open Office website before you download.

Free anti-virus programs
There are many anti-virus programs out there and many of them are popular (and required paid subscriptions for active coverage). With so many choices, it can be difficult to figure out what’s the right fit for your computer. And with that in mind, it’s always a good idea to read testimonials online and see what others think about it. Some paid-for anti-virus programs can be fairly inexpensive (~$20 for a few years worth of subscription), so it really falls down to what you need in a program. Some programs are a fantastic deal for their price, especially if you can find them when they’re on sale. A paid-for program that often comes up for sale is Kaspersky.

It’s always a great idea to keep your anti-virus program active, people are always coming up with new ways to attack others and steal their information. As Blythe hobbyists, I know a fair number of us do transactions online (for buying new dolls or doll clothes or even supplies for customizing or crafting new things). So with that in mind, and I know that many people want to spend their money on things they love (like Blythe!) instead of expensive computer programs. Many companies that produce free anti-virus programs do so for personal use only.

Spotlight On: Melbourne Doll Market

Written on February 22, 2011 at 12:00 pm by Michelle
Filed under: Article with tags:

The Melbourne Doll Market is the brainchild of Natalie, who took it upon herself last year to make the idea of a local doll market come true. The premise is a lot like a crafts fair, vendors purchase the use of tables, the public comes in and buys things. But the important thing is that it’s all dolls, all the time. There’s even areas for you to hang out with your friends, take photos, grab some refreshments (tea and coffee) and just have a fun time.

The first Melbourne Doll Market was held on September 25th, 2010 and they strive to have one about every 5 months (the next one is occurring this upcoming Saturday February 26th!). What’s great about it, if you’re local, is that not only can you buy dollsĀ  (like Blythe, Momoko, ball-jointed dolls (BJDs) and more!) is that you can also find accessories for the dolls there. For those interested in vintage Skipper clothing, there will be some there as well!

It does cost money to get in the door if you’re looking to buy. For the market that is being held on February 26th 2011, proceeds from ticket sales will be going to benefit the Australian Red Cross Victorian Flood Appeals. Which is so incredibly great as they not only will they have a lot of fun, they’ll also get to help others in their country!

The great thing about the Melbourne Doll Market is that it’s a great excuse to go out and hang out with your friends and take photos with each other doing silly doll hobbyist things. It’s also a great way for sellers, new and old, to get themselves out there and meet some potential new customers.

The door prize for February 26th, 2011 (this upcoming Saturday!) will be a custom Prima Dolly London (pictured above), who was customized by Natalie/pixelkitty. The doll comes in clothing from ChuThings and shows from Jemgirl. If you’re interested in attending the Melbourne Doll Market, please check out their website! Their website has a lot more information (including a list of vendors!) and has directions on how to get to their venue. The market on Saturday will be held from 11am to 4pm on Saturday.

Have you attended the Melbourne Doll Market yet? If not, why? And if you have attended the doll market, how was it? My inquiring mind wants to know!

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