Trade Estelle - *SOLD*

Sunday, January 17, 2010



I have been going back and forth with Estelle, but I definitely want to trade her...so someone please trade me. :)

My Estelle kit is *BRAND NEW* and untouched. She is made of Real Effect's new, neutral vinyl. Here is a list of kits I would trade for:

Vienna by Andrea Arcello
Kellie Ann by Romie Strydom
Andie by Dawn Donofrio
Bella by Maribel Villanova
Bonnie by Maribel Villanova
Michelle by Evelina Wosnjuk
Vivien by Evelina Wosnjuk
Noe by Evelina Wosnjuk
Nina by Gudrun Legler
Rebecca by Reva Schick
Lulu by Adrie Stoete
Rose by Adrie Stoete
Noelle by Adrie Stoete
Ava Raine by Laura Tuzio-Ross
Megan by Heike Kolpin
Ella Rose by Vikki Ebbeling
Barbara by Adrie Stoete
Luna by Jannie de Lange
Valentina by Gudrun Legler
Kylin by Laura Tuzio-Ross

Xoxo,
BN

Slumberland Mohair on eBay- *SOLD*

Tuesday, January 05, 2010



I listed 1.5 ounces of brand new mohair from Slumberland Nursery on eBay. I can ship worldwide! Here is the link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300384189058

And also an Estelle kit:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300383491925&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT

Xoxo,
BN

It's Snowing...Yay

Saturday, December 19, 2009

There aren't many things I hate more than snow. This unwelcome East Coast blizzard is driving me crazy. I can’t believe I am going to be stuck indoors all day long with my dogs. My daughter is staying the weekend with my sister, brother in-law and nephew.

I was hoping my mohair would arrive so I can start rooting Estelle, but I doubt the mail lady is gonna show up when there is already five inches of snow smothering the streets. I am not really in a painting mood, but I guess I could finish up with Jazzy and my Trinity kit. Okay enough whining about the white stuff, lol.

Speaking of kits, Andrea Arcello announced two new kits yesterday! I just love the little girl, Niah. I think she would look great with a light tan. *wink*



I purchased the Le Top outfit pictured below for my Estelle reborn. I have to search for the coordinating blanket and hat. I decided against using bright colors for Estelle's photo shoot. I am going for a nursery theme this time around and all of my props have light pastel colors. Wish me luck with this. It has been almost four years since I decorated a nursery....haha


Le Top Baby 'Primrose' Dress & Legging - $40.00


Le Top Baby 'Primrose' Dress & Legging - $40.00

I decided to root my Trinity kit with afro kinky human hair. Trinity's skin tone turned out a light/medium golden brown, and the black hair I already have is too dark for her. I am planning to order some deep brown hair later today.



It will be a while before I can go downtown to the beauty supply store for human hair. If anyone else is looking for kinky human hair, the girls at the natural hair care forum I belong to recommended the online beauty supply store linked below. I have never ordered from them, so I will do some digging to find out if they are legit. I will post an update later on.

http://www.hisandher.com/Coiled_Afro_Kinky-list.aspx

Okay, I am off to start painting now. Happy Holidays, everyone!

Xoxo,
BN


Update:

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

I placed an order with hisandher.com and it has shipped out. I will post a review of the hair when it arrives.

Xoxo,
BN

Nikon D70

Friday, December 04, 2009



Ok, so I bought a Nikon D70. I didn’t have any luck camera shopping on Black Friday. Best Buy was such a waste of time! LOL

The Nikon D70 is an older model. I got mine used for $229.00. A few photographers at a forum gave me some advice: “Purchasing a bunch of expensive equipment will not make you a better photographer. It is the photographer, not the camera.”

I really needed that advice. I will admit that I sought out expensive SLR’s during 2009 (like the $2,700 Canon 5D Mark II) to improve my photography. I really need to practice more to improve, not spend unnecessary money.

The D70 is a good unit to practice with. I bought a 50mm 1.4 to go with it. Everything should arrive next Wednesday or Thursday, so I can finally get some shots of my Estelle! I finished painting her last night and I am ready to root her hair. Her skin tone turned out nicely. It is very close to my daughter’s fair AA skin tone. I think I finally found a formula for the skin tone I have been desperately trying to achieve since last year. Raw Sienna is the ticket! I wrote down every little thing I did to Estelle. I will post everything soon.

Xoxo,
BN

Update:

BH sent me an email to say the camera is actually out of stock and issued me a refund. :( I do not know what I am going to get now....I guess I will wait for another to come up. I have a lens on the way though. Yippeee. lol

Gudrun Legler's new sleeping baby!

Friday, November 27, 2009







His name is Nico and he is a must have for me. His hands and feet are sheer, realistic perfection! Gudrun's limbs are some of the best I have ever seen! I think Nico will make the perfect Hispanic reborn. ♥

Speaking of Hispanic reborns...

My Hispanic Estelle is coming along nicely. I was intimidated by Real Effect's new vinyl color at first, but once I got going with the thin washes of Raw Sienna, everything worked out. I am painting Estelle's nails, palms and soles today. I hope to post a picture of her soon. I am still SLR-less...I am hoping to get a good deal today (Black Friday) at Best Buy.

About Custom Orders and Pricing for 2010

Off topic: I have received a few inquires through eBay about custom orders, so I am going to post the information here for those interested. Yes, I do accept custom orders for reborn dolls. I am working on a new adoption fee schedule for 2010.

To give an idea of what the new schedule will look like:

The current adoption fees will be adjusted upward to cover the rising costs of materials. A high-end gift assortment will be added to the standard layette of 2009, and the kit painting service will be discontinued. When the new schedule is ready, I will post it here for potential mommies, along with contact information and availability.

I am unable to respond to lots of emails due to time constraints, which is why I do not display contact information here at the blog. Happy holidays, everyone!

Xoxo,
BN

Blank Estelle kit on eBay- *SOLD*

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

My sister and I listed her Estelle kit on eBay. I was going to give her a painting lesson while I painted my Estelle, but she changed her mind. *rolls eyes* lol

Here is a link:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300370894372

Xoxo,
BN

What's Next?

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Yippeee! I will be working on a sister for Kaji Kentaro next. I have my "artsy thinking cap" on since the mama is giving me full artistic control.

The new baby will be based on the Estelle kit by Evelina Wosnjuk. I LOVE that particular kit. I am so excited to have the chance to work on her. Her nose and fun expression just melt my heart.

I have seen several medium/dark AA Estelle reborns. They are all totally adorable, but being a "think outside of the box" type of girl, I have a strong need to be unique.

I am considering transforming Estelle into a Latina baby! I created a Hispanic reborn from a pre-darkened doll way back in 2005 [when Genesis paints were virtually unknown to the reborning community].

Painting Hispanic skin tones using Genesis paints could be a challenge for me because I have focused on deeper brown skin tones for so many years. Deeper brown skin tones take much longer to paint than lighter tones because they require more layers of paint. I am accustomed to painting around 15 base layers. When I paint less than 15 layers, I feel as if I haven’t done enough work, and I start to panic. I always add more layers to satisfy my paranoia, and always end up with a darker baby. LOL

Well, this time I am going to break that old habit, I promise! A reborn artist friend suggested that I use lighter brown colors on my palette. That way I can add the 15 layers without worrying about the baby darkening too quickly. That could definitely work. Thanks for the tip, SA!

I may not be able to post many progress shots of Estelle because I will be trying out different cameras. I sold my Nikon D60. It did not have an autofocus feature for my 50mm lens so I decided it wasn’t worth keeping around. I will be trying another Nikon soon….most likely the Nikon D90. Hopefully I can post a few shots along with some color information.

Thanks for reading!

Xoxo,
BN