Hustle and Bustle

... and so it begins again. Full of turkey and a chill in the air. I've been in retail my entire professional career, 16 years as a Visual Merchandiser, and I'm always excited to see the crowds poor in the doors and really get the Holiday mojo going. I am not however excited to be in the crowd. Having Black Friday off is a rare treat, but I sort of do miss seeing the excitement of the official kick off to the holidays. To pay tribute to all the people keeping the economy going, and giving me something to smile at I give you a Super Cool Doll House day in town. Belated Happy Thanksgiving! -enjoy

behind TJ are two of my newest models Viktor James and Collette

Hey there!

Ho there!

Power siblings Romain and Eugenia

Cape Henlopen

This passed weekend we got the heck out of dodge and went to the beach! Me and the real doll nerd packed up the car, the dog and a few dolls and headed down to the Delaware coast. My favorite beach is Cape Henlopen State Park. You can take your dog there. What would a Supercool getaway be without a few doll photos? -enjoy

World War Two era gun tower at Cape Henlopen.

At the base of the tower was an old rusted out door, perfect for a little shoot.

This is TRDN's Momoko.

I've decided that these two are my new travel dolls. Susie and Coe.

I wish I had taken a few more shots, but hey! I was on vacation : )

For more pics, visit my Flickr photostream! You'll see my doggie.

sooo....

... if one does not publish on the date one enters a post... the publish date will still be the day it is entered... not last edited... good to know... see below... I entered the text 9 days before, but did not publish with photos until later... is there a way to get around this?

Oh... the drama of it all....

I’m not a big fan of the theater but I’m a great fan of THEATER.

I love the concept of going to a darkened auditorium, and letting the actors transport me to another place… but the reality is, the whole thing bores me silly. Perhaps I’ve been and still am too poor to afford good theater, or maybe I’m a gen-x slacker who needs special effects and million dollar budgets in order to buy into the story presented. Possibly, somewhere out there, exist actors just waiting to impress me.

On the other hand there is THEATER, of life that is. You know the kind when you’re just minding your own business and you get a glimpse of someone's life... and you're all up in their cool aid? You can see the emotion between people, but you can just hear a bit and you can't read lips and you're like... What's that all about? No? just nosey ole me? … YOU KNOW WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT… THEATER!

Anyway… I’ve been inspired. I’d been looking for a sky background for my scenes. I’ve been using plexi with the blue protective film still attached. It’s worked, but they’re in small sections and the blue is starting to peel. So, I ordered blue window film and adhered it to a large piece of clear plexiglass. When I had it all set up, it reminded me of my high school’s auditorium and stage, a clean crisp canvas where students would dance, or sing or put on a play. Well here’s a nice little place for some doll Theater I thought. And here it is. - Enjoy

At the beach. First date? Proposal? Break up?

At the store. Frenemies? Sisters?

At a restaurant two tables away. Why's he nervous? Is she crying or laughing?

At the airport. Brother in-laws? Modern family?

On a city street. What?!

Memories of My Mother

If you've been a reader of this blog you'll know that in the fall of 2009 my mother had open heart surgery, twice. After that her recovery was slow but hopeful. She eventually made it home on July 2, 2010. My sisters, brother, dad and I were able to spend some real quality time with her. No hospital, no doctors, no nurses, just us. The powers that be had other plans for our family though. Mom passed away early one morning near Thanksgiving. We saw through the darkness and recognized we were blessed to have what time we had with her, and true to the season we were thankful. It's crazy that all happened six months ago. Some days life passes as if everything is fine, other days the enormity of it all can be crushing, I'm pretty sure that's normal : ) So here we are at Memorial Day weekend, I thought I'd share a bit of my life with you folks. -enjoy

Mom was a nurse, she wore nurse whites and school cap her entire professional life, no scrubs for her. She was just the right lady to have a funny little son, she helped him grow up to be a neat guy, if I do say so myself.

Mom was a fan of comfortable clothes, but when it was time to be dressed to the nines, she was very well heeled. She also made sure her kids looked great too.

She came to the U.S. from the Philippines in 1957, bringing with her a strong work ethic. She had no problem working and putting us to work.

Even if she wasn't part of the main action, she always made her presence felt. I think I miss this most of all.

Where's the Tardis

So I've entered the BBC's Where's the Tardis contest. The Tardis is from the sci-fi show "Doctor Who" and is the Doctor's spaceship/time machine. Tardis stands for time and relative dimension in space. FYI. Just thought you'd like to know. It's a rehash of a past entry, plus a new photo! If you're on Facebook, be sure to like my entry. I'll post the link below. I sort of didn't follow the norm. Seems everyone posted the outside of the spaceship, like they asked, but I entered one of my interiors. Oh well... as they say... send it up the flag pole and see who salutes. This is very fun for me. Enjoy!

Where's The Tardis

Happy Easter!!!!!

OH EM GEE... I haven't posted in five months... It's actually an improvement over my last break... lol. Last time I went six months... this was only five, so I've improved! Winning. Anyway, it's been a busy time for me. I've experienced a devastating loss, yet in that darkness a bit of light has peeked through. I'll share more on this later. Right now I'd like to wish everyone a joyous Easter, a time for remembrance, revitalization and rebirth. Peace! Enjoy.

I Need a Doctor!

... here I am, with my tail between my legs... I know, I know... haven't been very active on the blog scene, but alas I'm here now ha HA! It's been six long months since I've produced anything, no real reason why, perhaps just a bit of malaise. BUT... revel in the dark as it makes the light so much more joyous or whatever... lol.

Anyway, came down with a nasty cold(thanks TRDN), and have been out of commission for a few days. As I lay in my chair watching TV, this diorama was giving me the evil eye as it's been languishing on the shop table for literally months. So, I got my little paint brush out and gave it a good dusting, added a few details and started clicking away the digital camera. I got a little inspiration for this this past Saturday when BBC America played the entire Series 5 of the modern Doctor Who.. and with this dumb cold, I sure could use a Doctor!

I was hoping to have made a tiny Tardis police box by now, but here we are. Enjoy

Flying the Tardis! SZhooVA...SZhooVA...SZhooVA!

Sonic Screw Driver!

Companions Suzie and Poe

What would the Tardis be without The Doctor?

It's bigger on the inside!

In case you were wondering: Suzie's wig: made by TRDN, Poe: A GI Joe Clone head on a Flava's body, Tardis Console: a pie dish, with a bud vase, and all kinds of doo dads hot glued on, lighting is from IKEA from assorted times, floor: IKEA shelf liner, coat rack: Gloria, painted, Chairs: off of ebay, and all kinds of things, but those are the unique things!

For more pics visit my Flickr site.

Eat your Cake and Have it Too... Isha (and Kiana) Take the Cake

Hey look at me... two months and two posts! Still been busy spending time with my mom as she continues her recovery. I was able to knock this up though. Here I get to show off some Re-Ment pieces I bought over the winter holiday. Additionally TRDN ooak'd the little wedding cake on the table. Here's a cute little bakery that Isha and Kiana wandered into one day. Perhaps Isha was celebrating Mother's Day. Isha can be very secretive about her personal life though, so who knows.... actually who cares, they're dolls, HA! -enjoy

oooooo, cake!

Visit my Flickr account for more photos!

April Showers....

... so I'm stuck in the house on this glorious rainy day, and I thought, hey don't I have a blog? Sure I do and why don't I get my lazy me in gear and take a picture or two... I hope my visitors and 63 fans haven't given up on me! 2010 has been a year of blessings so far. My mom is slowly getting better, I've started a new career path and I've decided to pare down my belongings to the essentials. Very hard to do when collecting teeny tiny doll things is your hobby of choice. Anyway, this door and outfit were some of my Christmas presents from the Real Doll Nerd! Just a little fashion photography to get me back in the saddle. The door is from the Buyers Choice collection of accessories, and the gown is classic Oscar de la Renta from the 80's. Just one photo for now...-Enjoy!

Happy New Year(late)/ It Runs In the Family

HI Everyone! Today, I finally feel like the Holidays are over, I guess I'm a month behind. My mom's doing much better and is making a slow recovery, but it's still a recovery! I've been spending a lot of my free time with her, so no time for blogging! Anyway, my sister hosted a really enjoyable Christmas lunch. I took some pics of her decorations. I thought these might brighten everyone's day, now that we're in the deepest darkest part of winter. As you can see, the love of dolls run in the family. Enjoy!

Snowflake suite.

Assorted Christmas Cuties

Reindeer Games

Gingerbread Cookie Coup

Babes in candyland

Please visit my Flickr photo stream for more of these holiday pics.

P.S. I just crossed my year anniversary of blogging! More than 6,000 hits! Thanks for everyone's support.

Festival of Light

Happy happy everybody! I can't believe my last entry was way back in October. Since then, my mother's health has been critical. A second open heart surgery and lots of prayers later, she's finally on the mend!

I put together these photos to celebrate and honor Hanukkah and the winter solstice. Enjoy!

Don't Be Scurred

I couldn't let Halloween pass without a post! Back in the summer, I had a really great idea for a month of Halloween posts, but it didn't happen like I'd hoped. I was gladly giving my spare time and energy helping my mom recuperate. She's doing better by the way : )

I did have time to whip these photos together. Enjoy.

Death by fabulous: TJ bites it Lady Gaga style, via a chandelier (click image for a larger view)

Dan, I won't be ignored....

Guess who?

Putting on her face for a night out....

Hope it's not too dark!

Slow Progress is Still Progress!

Whew! It was a challenging September for me personally; my family and I saw our mother through open heart surgery. She survived the surgery, and recovery is slow, but she is recovering. I titled this post as it relates to my little master suite, but I realize it's also very appropriate with regard to my mom.

Here are some pics of the progress so far, just a little ways to go now. Hopefully that sentiment carries through to other parts of my life. Get well soon Mommy. Enjoy.

Isha and Pierre, the first dolls who came to live at the Super Cool Doll House settle into their new room.

Stay tuned for more details!

Slowly But Surely

... so I've been able to slowly work on my latest room. Here is a preliminary picture of the space... pretty good if I do say so myself : ) This will be the master suite at the Super Cool Doll House.

-enjoy!

p.s. I may be a little short on posts this month... I'll be spending time with family.

New Room a Comin'

So I've been quite the sloppy blogger lately. I usually try to post at least once a week, but this past August, I've found myself busying myself with enjoyable yet mindless pursuits. I have found time to build a new room, I just have to get to the finishing touches. Here's a picture of the progress so far. Hope I have something SuperCool to show you next week!