February 2019 – Clogs and Sneakers

February 27, 2019February 24, 2019

Listening to vinyl; the new way

I was itching to set up my old bedroom as a place where I could relax, read and listen to some good songs. A couple of years ago I bought a ‘Stir it Up’ turntable made by House of Marley. The company uses a production method that’s environmentally sound and made out recyclables. It’s always good to be aware how your stuff is produced and what a company does to help out the world a little.

I needed separate speakers as the turntable has no internal speakers. My boyfriend as a musician has a better ear for sound than I have, so I asked him for advise when I saw an affordable pair. My room is not big or ideal enough for the expensive ones. The 42W Edifier speakers were a great pick for my first set up, more than enough volume and good frequency response on the low and high end of the spectrum.

Finding a suitable cabinet for my vinyl collection and turntable was the hardest part. At the moment I have 79 records and the collection keeps growing, so I need to keep in mind to have room to spare for future purchases. It’s Record Store Day every year 😉

I’ve categorized my vinyl on genre. At the top left you see that my Electronic section is getting full. For now my dollies have a shelf of their own, in the future they might lose it.
And I need better cable management.

It’s set up quite nicely with some sweet sound coming from the speakers. A great place to relax and spin some records.

February 23, 2019February 20, 2019

Living abroad is fun

Due to various reasons I ended up working and living in Belfast, Northern Ireland for a few years and it was a real adventure. I landed a job in a call center and experienced a whole new culture and made loads of new friends. If you can make this leap abroad I recommend it.

Of course it wasn’t all peaches and cream. Finding a suitable flat was a challenge, but when you already have a job lined up getting a NI number (National Insurance) and
setting up a bank account is quite easy.

I keep getting memories about my time over there on my Facebook timeline, which moved me to write about living abroad.

Belfast had quite a troubled past until the ‘Good Friday Agreement’ which made steps in the peace process to end the dreadful period ‘the Troubles’. When I mentioned I had found a job there, people would ask me if it was safe there. I shrugged it off with the notion that if it wasn’t they wouldn’t bring people in.

To be honest, I wasn’t aware on how it was during the Troubles. I’ve seen the news which mostly was about the IRA bomb attacks in mainland UK, but Belfast was just a name in a song for me. Just like everyone, I know the words to ‘Bloody Sunday’ but never read into what happened that day. I knew absolutely nothing about the Troubles.

Living in Belfast made me aware what the conflict entailed. People shared their experiences with me and I was quite horrified that nothing was mentioned during my history classes. I made it my business to educate myself. As an outsider you tend to look at it very much in a black and white vision, but there were definitely so many grey areas during ‘the Troubles’. One thing is certain, a lot of people suffered. But despite all the suffering, the Norn-Iron (Northern Ireland) people managed to keep a positive attitude. No matter how bad shit gets, they throw a good dose of humour against it.

These days I am losing my grip on the Norn-Iron philosophy of ‘Calm yer tits’. I’ve been away from Belfast too long and keep getting worked up again over nothing. But you really learn to wind down yourself living in Belfast. The Dutch are conditioned to be on the clock (well I am). But Norn-Iron take it a step slower and seem to enjoy themselves more in life, even if their government is a bigger heap of shite then mine. Dutch politics is quite mellow compared to Stormont drama. I might write about it one day. 😉

I was lucky to call Belfast my home for 3,5 years. To be able to visit the many great national parks and monuments. To meet and make many great friends and best of all the craic we had. It was my home away from home and if life had a different destiny for me I would have still lived there even with the hassle of Brexit.

February 20, 2019February 19, 2019

Finding treasures while cleaning

I hadn’t touched the stuff behind the bulkheads for years, but I couldn’t ignore it any longer. It really needed a good clean out and I approached it with the philosophy: ‘If I didn’t miss it, I won’t keep it’.
It’s a good philosophy to have, because it helped me sort out a lot of old junk while I found some good treasures to keep.

I was hoping a lot of my old toys had survived the course of time, but sadly a lot of plastic had turned yellowish and sticky. Not something you want to give a second life at the charity shop. The pieces that I managed to salvage are going to make another child very happy.

Amid the stuff I am giving away, I found some treasures that I am going to keep.
I had been contemplating to buy a second hand Sindy on Ebay for a while now, not knowing I had one stashed away in the attic. I was overjoyed to find her on the bottom of a trash bag, but her state was very poor. Luckily the dirt wiped off easy and a good spa treatment of her hair gave back her shine and got rid of the stale smell. Scratch that one off my to-buy-list.

Through another bag I was reunited with my teddies once again. The squeaker of the golden one didn’t work any more but I managed to make their coats look like brand new again.
I received these teddies more than two decades ago and they will get a prominent spot in my display cabinet.

I’m not done with the attic yet, but you need to go with small steps, not giant leaps.

February 16, 2019February 16, 2019

New arrival: my first Smart Doll

My Smart Doll Cherry was only held hostage for one day at the Dutch customs, which is a miracle. They can hold a parcel up to 4 weeks but she was processed quickly. So it took her little over a week to get from Japan to my house. My mother was so sweet to pick her up from the pick-up point and pay the ransom. The custom fees were €75 this time, which is not bad considering I paid almost €300 for my Dollfie Dream a couple of years ago. The penalty you have to pay for spending your money outside of the Netherlands. TAX IT!

The funny thing with receiving parcels, my cat’s curiosity is activated and he stuck his big fat nose in my unboxing. I had to stop him from attacking the items I received with the doll. Anything that has threads attached = cat attack.

My girl was carefully bubble-wrapped in the iconic ‘Keep calm and carry a Smartdoll’ bag together with a box of apparel. The extra things I ordered (because I didn’t want to go overboard with spending) were a telescope stand and some leggings to protect her from staining her legs. To my surprise I received a second free telescope stand as a gift. A little card refers you to a ‘welcome’ website where you learn everything about your doll and how to handle her. I had a general idea on what apparel she would receive, but the set is quite lovely. Greenish jeans with a white v-neck and brown ankle boots.

Cherry is nicer in person than on photos. I didn’t even notice that she had light lipstick/gloss and it really suits her. The hardest part left is finding her a name. I kinda hoped I had thought of one during her transit, but life caught up with me and kept me busy.

I am surprised how light she is, I think she weighs less than my Dollfie which is also a vinyl doll. Can’t wait to have photo shoots with her, but first she needs a name and a story.

February 13, 2019February 15, 2019

Reika, the Shrine Maiden

In January I saw a shrine maiden outfit pop up on AmiAmi and thought this was perfect for Reika. Compared to Fuyumi, Reika doesn’t have a different outfit besides her default clothing she was shipped with. So it was time for me to get her the outfit.

The quality of outfits made by Azone always blows me away. Very delicate stitching and high-quality fabric. The dolly hobby is an expensive hobby because all manufacturers hold up high quality standards. You always get your money’s worth.

Buying this outfit also helps me develop her background story a bit. She is following in her mother’s footsteps as a miko and is highly skilled in sacred cleansing.

There are still a few accessories I need to make for her including socks, sandals and a gohei (a wooden wand with two zigzagging paper streamers). But she is looking really adorable already.

February 9, 2019February 9, 2019

Planning a new doll

In the past I just bought dolls (ball jointed) on a whim. Which resulted on having several on the way and at the same time selling dolls I’ve lost interest in.
I bought dolls which had fantasy parts like dragon wings or bird feet which ended up being very impractical for me. I like taking the dolls out on walks and take photos of them. Dolls with huge parts just didn’t work out as a carry on.

My wishes have grown smaller in the past. I don’t feel the need to buy when browsing through the vendors’ websites. But there are a few dolls that are on my list that I will get one day: a Lillycat girl, a Fairyland Minifee and a Smart Doll.

Since November I’ve been debating with myself which one of the girls I would want to have. It’s tough to make a decision when you like a lot but can’t have all of them.
After three months I’ve narrowed it down to two molds and at the moment I am leaning towards Cherry, she is a seasonal limited. When I saw that one after the other was vanishing from the list, I feared I wasn’t able to nab her up if I waited too long. So I placed my order on Tuesday the 5th. I was surprised to wake up to a shipping notice the next day.

I know they have several dolls in stock but I didn’t expect her to ship the very next day.
Now the waiting game started. Shipping from Japan is not bad, usually takes a few days to get to the Netherlands. Dutch Customs is usually the killer. In busy periods they can take up to a month to process your parcel. OUCH!

At the moment I am keeping her wig and eyes like this. Her cherry coloured eyes look quite lovely in photos and I want to see them in real life before I make a decision. I have a box with glass eyes for my other bjd’s and after ending up with over 30 pairs of eyes I don’t want to go crazy on the anime eyes this time.

When buying a doll from Smart Doll you get the option to add a set of clothes for only 10.000 Yen extra which is a steal. Buying these items separately you will pay double the price.
Because Cherry is made from vinyl, she is prone to staining which is a nightmare. I had a lot of issues with staining on my Dollfie Dream Saber Alter. I was prepared this time so I also purchased anti-stain leggings for under her jeans and have a pattern for a bodysuit if I get darker clothing for her.

I’ve preordered an Azone outfit from AmiAmi which is more of a classical girl style but I am still searching for her look and of course a name.

February 6, 2019February 2, 2019

Shopping for vinyl – week 05

I’m blessed with three vinyl shops in my hometown but the one I visit pretty often is Maestro’s Records. With a nice selection of vinyls, new and second hand, together with a coffee corner it is a great place to waste your time on a dreary wet day. And if you are in the mood to hear some live music, they often have DJ’s spinning some tunes there.

Today I obtained Arcade Fire – The Suburbs and Ghost in the Shell – OST.

Arcade Fire – The Suburbs.
I haven’t heard a song yet from the 3rd studio album of Arcade Fire. Win Butler (frontman) intended it to be listened to in one sitting, an ode to life and looking back to the past. After reading a review about it in OOR magazine I believe I can relate to this album as I am also in my thirties and often tend to look back on my youth with a hint of melancholy. You can say that this album was bought on a whim.
I fell in love with Arcade Fire when I heard their song ‘Everything Now’ during my delivery rounds. I would just sit in my van for a couple of minutes with the song blasting from the shitty speakers.

Ghost in the Shell OST
Ghost in the Shell was one of the first anime’s I’ve seen in my life. The BBC would broadcast them on an ungodly hour because they had themes of violence and angst.
The story blew me away with subjects like cyber-terrorism, what is left of the human self when placed in a machine and does an AI have the right to live free when it becomes self-aware.
‘Making of Cyborg’ is the iconic opening of Ghost in the Shell and I have it on vinyl now. My neighbours are going to enjoy this, not!

February 2, 2019January 29, 2019

Music was my first love

Music has always been a part of my life. It relaxes me, picks me up when I am down. But it will also enhance the negative feelings when listening to the wrong type at the wrong time.

Scientists say that you develop your music taste from when you are 14 until you are 24. During your puberty everything you experience is extremely important to you and you form an attachment to it.

I call this half true because if you follow this rule to the letter it means that you cannot love new types of music when you are beyond your puberty. Till this very day I keep accumulating new sounds onto my playlist. But then again they might be a new song following an old formula.

When I was young my dad would watch ‘Tour of Duty’, a heavily romanticized series about the Vietnam war. I know for sure the real war was a 1000 times more horrifying than depicted on TV. Songs like ‘I heard it through the grapevine’, ‘Paint it black’ and ‘Reach out I’ll be there’ bring me back to when I was watching the series with my dad. These songs also were added to my playlist for life.

Around the same time I discovered MTV. I was in awe with the cool music videos made by bands and artists. A few videos stuck with me like ‘Radio Gaga’ by Queen and ‘Jeanny’ by Falco. I discovered then that my taste in music was quite broad. And because I was glued to the TV during the 80’s and 90’s I still amaze my boyfriend when we play ‘Guess the song’ with my large mind catalog of songs. He also claims that I only love cheesy music.

When you go to high school you fall into the trap of boy bands. Even I wasn’t immune for it. My choice of poison at that time was Take That. My poor aunt and mother were dragged to a concert with me. Too bad you could barely hear them over the screaming girls. It was a phase that didn’t stick with me. I can’t enjoy Take That songs anymore while I do enjoy the current repertoire of Robbie Williams. He matured as did I.

Around 1995-1997 I discovered two completely different directions in music that are still with me now. Daft Punk and Rammstein. Electronic versus progressive metal. ‘Around the World’ had a pretty rhythmic video with a robotic voice. Enter my love for robots here. While Rammstein had this awesome video for ‘Du riechst so gut’ with wolves and gothic ballroom dancers. And that one for my love for the occult and supernatural.
I had the honor to see Daft Punk perform live in 2007, while I still need to see Rammstein one day. Let’s hope they don’t split up any time soon.

From that time, way beyond 24, I kept discovering old and new gems that fall in a lot of categories like Röyksopp (electronic music), Electric Six (rock, punk, new wave, garage), Bloody Beetroots (electronic dance music), 5 Seconds of Summer (pop rock), Macklemore (rap), Arcade Fire (indie rock), Nephew (rock), Stromae (hip hop, electronic music), Kraftwerk (electronic music), Major Lazer (electronic dance music), Mumford & Sons (folk rock), Simon and Garfunkel (folk rock), Four Tops (soul, r&b), Hot Chocolate (funk, soul) and many more.

Now that I look at this list I see a lot of the same categories pop up. So while I think it’s different and a broad taste in music, it often is the same genre with a new jacket. Who knew, the scientists did have a point.