When Hasbro came out with Blythe as a babysitter in the LPS toy line, some people were apprehensive about it. After all, there was already a Petite-sized Blythe and she was not associated with small animals! But after a while, people began to accept the LPS Petite. Not only was she easily accessible through major toy retailers and department stores, it also opened up the opportunity for Hasbro to put out things like stationary and bags with Blythe on it.

Source: The Hub – Littlest Pet Shop gallery

With the new Littlest Pet Shop cartoon (airs Saturdays on The Hub), Hasbro has yet again redefined what Blythe looks like in order to better have the doll match the cartoon character, Blythe Baxter. Blythe is a girl who lives above a pet shop and she hits her head and then realizes that she can speak to (and understand) the animals. If you haven’t seen the show yet, you can find clips on The Hub’s website and watch full episodes on Saturdays on The Hub.

Are you a fan of the Littlest Pet Shop show?

I’ve come to realize that my dolls have odd pets, compared to other Blythes.

Mollie and Moxie share a caribou.

Primrose has a pocket Tyrannosaurus rex.

Does your Blythe have a pet?

In addition to my Blythe dolls, I collect doll shoes, doll clothing and cute dolly-sized miniatures (on a lesser scale though). But besides Blythe-related things, I do have other collections that sometimes don’t make appearances online. Some of it takes up more room than Blythe things, some of it takes up less room – but pretty much all of it is less expensive than my love for Blythe:

• Olympic mascot items (I started with the 2008 Summer Olympics that took place in Beijing)
• Coins (especially quarters, as I find that they’re the most interesting)
• Buttons (in big ol’ glass jars that are nice to look at)
• Stamps (one of my longest-running collections and I’ve collected stamps from many different countries so far)

What other things do you collect besides Blythe (and Blythe-related things)?

I get negative comments about my dolls, like I’m sure other people in the Blythe community get. I get negative comments from some family members, random strangers, people who think that the internet allows them a sense of anonymity because they’re not “really” speaking out loud. It’s not a generally “accepted” hobby, I’ve found. For some reason, it’s more acceptable to spend money on other things (like booze, clothing, shoes, etc. – not that there’s anything wrong with spending money on these things – I have to say that as I spend money on all three) – but it’s more acceptable to spend money on things like that. Why, I have no idea. But that’s really not the point of me writing this (There’s supposed to be a point to this blog? Oh yes, Blythe!) as I’m supposed to be talking about how I deal with the negative comments about my Blythe dolls.

I try to think the best of people (I really, really do), but sometimes it’s hard – especially when people are trying to bring you down or goad you into an argument about how your dolls are ugly, weird, a waste of money, etc. I try to remind myself that people must not have very interesting lives if they get their kicks from insulting things owned and enjoyed by others. Because, really, they can’t be very interesting if they need to get their amusement at the expense of others. Let’s remember that, and feel pity for the boring people who need to hold onto petty little things to make themselves feel better.

How do you cope with the negative comments regarding Blythe?

I do very minor customizations on my dolls – I’ve definitely posted before that I’m chicken about doing ‘big’ changes to my own dolls. Which means that most of my dolls are stock or mostly stock. However, the little changes that I am willing to do include changing of the eye chips. I’m a big fan of the hot glue stick method, as illustrated here:

I light a candle and use it to melt the end of a hot glue stick. Once the glue is nice and transparent, I stick it to the eyechip (as centered as possible). Once it cools, I will either pull the chip or twist-and-pull. Sometimes it takes many tries before the chip comes out, but when it does, you do need to remember to remove the dried glue in the eye socket.

Tip! If you pull the chips out when the head of the doll is open, you can avoid getting hot glue on the doll’s stock eyelashes (if you’re looking to keep them).

Most of the eyechips that I’ve used so far have been Brainworm or CoolCat – I get the ones that most resemble the look of the stock chips (with the lines). I’ve also gotten a pair or two of handpainted chips (most likely done on the smooth/plain clear chips. I use water soluble white glue (that dries clear) – do not use something like ‘superglue’ or ‘Gorilla glue’ as it’s NOT good for the plastic and you won’t be able to remove the chips afterwards!

What kind of eyechips do you prefer on your Blythes? (Stock, Brainworm, CoolCat, another brand, handpainted, resin with sprinkles/glitter/sequins?)