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| 18-inch Calista by MGA Entertainment has a copyright year of 2010 |
"What a mess!" regarding the hair, was my immediate thought upon finding 18-inch Calista by MGA Entertainment in the large doll, stuffed animal bin at the local thrift store. Her sweet face seemed to plead, "Take me with you." So I brought her home in hopes that her mane could be tamed.
Below are additional before picture of the hair (again, what a mess!).
Calista's prior owner gave her multiple tattoos that I hoped were not permanent!
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| Creative (?) leg art -- not shown is another mark on the back of one leg. |
I tackled the hair by washing it and slathering on lots of conditioner that I left on for a few hours before the detangling process began. Due to the inferior quality of the hair fibers MGA Entertainment used, it was impossible to smooth out the ends after detangling, one small section at a time. I opted to give Calista a fat ponytail, the ends of which are held together with four additional black ponytail holders.
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| This is as tame as it gets for now. At a future time I might attempt a boil perm, but for now, the ponytail must do. |
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| No more tattoos, almost. |
Fortunately, most of the ankle and leg art was done with washable markers. I was able to remove all with the exception of one mark on the back of one leg and a small dot elsewhere (not shown).
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| After the refresh, Calista posed with Calista #1, whose copyright year is 2009. The two dolls have different neck markings and the number that appears on their painted-on panties differs as well. The thrift store doll, who is missing her glasses, is clearly the second edition. The 2009 doll was redressed shortly after arrival in a Friends 2B Made doll ensemble and red canvas clogs that came with a Magic Attic doll fashion. |
Wearing what appeared to be original clothes, I found shoes to match Calista #2's red top (which is a little large at the shoulders). The found shoes were not a perfect fit; therefore, a total redress was in order.
After the redress original Calista's BFF, Kimberly, joined the girls for a picture.
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| Calista #2 wears Calista #1's extra fashion; #1 is dressed in a Friends 2B Made ensemble, and Kimberly wears Calista's original fashion. Their shoes were all made for Magic Attic dolls. |
The three girls entered/returned to their display area. Calista #2 asks, "Can you find me?"
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| Where's Calista #2? |
dbg
Great rescue! I think the thrift store Calista was trying to grow dreadlocks.
ReplyDeleteLoved the dreadlock comment! Creating dreadlocs for her, at least in the ponytail section might be a better option than a boil perm. :-)
Deletedbg
You did an amazing job with Calista.
ReplyDeleteThanks, MDW!
Deletedbg
I rather like the fat ponytail... but dreads would be really cool, as well as practical.
ReplyDeleteI like the fat ponytail, too. I style or rather comb my hair like this on "bad hair days, I don't feel like being bothered with it." Or sometimes after shampooing to allow some of the curls to relax as it dries, I'll pull it back in a ponytail and wrap the bands around the ponytail.
Deletedbg
She cleaned up beautifully - nice work!
ReplyDeleteThank you jSarie!
Deletedbg
Man, just looking at her hair made my scalp feel tender headed. She looks as though she much prefers the more tamed do.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Muff. I can almost still hear her saying, "Ouch, ouch, ouch," each time I detangled a section.
DeleteIt was as painful for me as it could have been for her.
dbg
When I saw her I thought of Eloise in the movie Black Or White. Yeah, my scalp hurt just looking at her hair. You worked it out! Work being the key word! Congrats.
ReplyDelete"Work" definitely is the key word, Ms. Leo. My arms and wrists were sore afterward -- I think I strained some already sore chest muscles in the process, with all that pulling.
DeleteI haven't seen Black and White. Will catch it on DVD in about three months. According to my brother, it is a good movie.
dbg
Her face is so stinking cute, she could look good in any hairstyle :) She's definitely one of the prettiest in the whole BFC Ink doll line! :)
ReplyDeleteShe does have a pretty face, Farrah Lily. So sweet.
Deletedbg
Good thing she is a doll! She would of been screaming as you tried to comb out that mess! You did an awesome job of cleaning her up and redressing her. So where's Waldo . . .er, I mean Calista! (I did pick her out, BTW!) ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Phyllis.
DeleteIn order to squeeze Calista into that crammed doll space, I had to move some dolls around, straighten some postures, and turn some heads so most faces would be captured in the photo. There's always room for one more doll.
dbg
That's what my hair looked like last year when my right arm decided not to work for about 5 or so months. I sure wish you had been here to comb it. You did another fabulous job . She is really cute. I almost bought a new 18" doll a few days ago. Since I plan on sewing some outfits, I figured I needed a new doll. Came to my senses real quick and put her back. I am limited to 10 dolls this year. Not sure I want to waste one of those purchases on an 18"
ReplyDeleteSay it ain't so, Vanessa! Say is ain't so. I know your hair couldn't have possibly looked as bad as Calista's. I would have gladly hooked you up.
DeleteDo you plan to sew and sell clothing for 18-inch dolls? That would be wonderful. There's definitely a market for them.
dbg
Sadly it is so, and I lost quite a bit of hair when I was finally able to comb it. Wouldn't have been so bad if my hairdresser of the past 14 years hadn't relocated to another state.
DeleteI used to sell 18" doll clothes years ago and I'm thinking about doing it again. It's a better way to use up some of this material I have.
I think I have a model that you can use (an 18-inch doll). She'll be nude, but she'll work. Will send her soon.
Deletedbg
I appreciate the offer, but just like all fashion dolls aren't built the same, 18" dolls aren't built the same either. If I sew for them, I think I am going to focus on American Girl and one of the other popular ones.
DeleteThis one has the same body style as AG Girls, but I will keep her here.
Deletedbg
I think she has one of the cutest faces. I know she is so happy to have her hair done. All she needed was love and now she surrounded by lots of it.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Brini. She is definitely receiving love here.
Deletedbg
You did an awesome job on her hair! I didn't think it was manageable in the first pics of her. I was amazed when I saw the end result. I like her big ponytail. It looks very cute and reminds me of the good ol' days. I would have rescued her from the thrift store too regardless of her hair. :-) For some reason I immediately thought of India Arie song "I am not my hair".
ReplyDeleteLOL! I love that India Arie song, GG. Calista was and is definitely not her hair. She is so much more! Interestingly, even though she was very preloved, her knee joints are more sturdy that the one I purchased new in box. Maybe MGA Entertainment made the joints better the 2nd time around or maybe my 1st Calista's stringing was always loose. I am glad I rescued #2.
Deletedbg
I love BFC Calista. I think I have 1 or 2 of her along with a couple of her friends. I love what you did with her hair and the dreads sound like a cute idea. Somehow I've managed to have a small collection of 18 dolls. I have to pull them out for a blog entry.
ReplyDeleteI would love to see a blog post of your 18-inch dolls. In addition to the Madame Alexander and American Girl 18-inch dolls, I have managed to add quite a few as well, even though I keep saying I don't collect the larger dolls. Actually a better statement from me is that I buy what I like. The smaller ones take up less space, but if I see a larger doll that appeals to me and the price is right, she's (or he's) coming "home."
Deletedbg
dbg
Wow...you sure rescued Calista....happy that you were able to provide her the attention. She has a very nice face for an 18 inch doll. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, MGD!
Deletedbg
What a pretty face! Very appealing head sculpt, sweet and natural in her expression. I've never seen her before. Always something new to discover here.
ReplyDeleteThe BFC, Ink dolls do have the sweetest faces.
Deletedbg
I love the was you rescue these dolls.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Lady Rose!
Deletedbg