Mystery Mayhem - Has Cosma has lost her head?

It appears that something mysterious has happened to Makie Doll Cosma...

Her head has disappeared!!!

Nope, DEF not there

Where could it be??????

Hairy Maclary Scalps

Makielab were kind enough to send me a couple of samples to play with, one pre-drilled scalp and one pre-marked but not drilled scalp.  I've dyed the latter brown and those results will come later, but here is the pre-drilled attempt!

Here is the original scalp Makielab sent me

This was a test to see how well we could root a Makies skull cap.

With the size of the holes, I would not recommend this for saran hair. The holes would def need to be smaller and the holes would need to be closer together.

My experiment was using Mohair.  I bought a packet of yadeno-mohair from Retro dolls here in the UK for rooting Blythe at Blythecon last year.

I used a 1mm crochet hook, the mohair and a hair brush like this They are available from Retro Dolls but I already owned one.  A bowl of water is also needed as the hair needs to be wet to root

Sorry I don't have picture step by step instructions but this is what I did.

The strands were approx 16cm in length when I pulled them apart so I inserted them in the hole doubled, so the length wet was approx 8cm

I wet the strands and then pulled them out, squeezing excess water, then laying them down on a waterproof board and gently brushed them to start separating the strands. I then dunked them again and started separating the strands so I had wet strands approx 1-2 mm in diameter. I then squeezed out the excess water and repeated this until I had about a doz strands to start with. I found this useful as I had a varigated color combination in my Mohair so I wanted to mix the colors throughout evenly.

I started by sticking the crochet hook from under the skull cap and hooking it around the middle of the wet strand and pulled it through about 3/4 of the way so I could put a small knot in the end. Once knotted, I pulled the strand back out again. I repeated this process until I used all the desired holes I needed.

Here are the results

Looks nice with a cap on...

For you Duckie - HAHAHA!!:D:D:D

Back view with hat

Picture without the hat, You can see that it is a bit sparce on the top

The back doesn't look too bad

Top view

You can see some very sparce patches

The cap finished - front view

The cap finished - Back view

Underneath where I have knotted-

Length of the hair

So you can see from the pictures, it wasn't necessary to root all the back holes. I had done this previously on my first attempt at rooting shown here -Hair Root Tutorial - But the weight of the wool made it top heavy for the doll to stand.

The top two circular rows I think are fine but then the bottom two rows are too far apart hence causing gaping holes. I had to use thicker strands which kind of made it harder to knot in some cases to give a more even covering but I'd be able to use thinner strands if the spacing was better.

Conclusion. I think this is a great idea but for mohair we need -

A: I think the row spacing could use 7 rows instead of the 6 printed
B. The spacing of holes on the rows after row 1 & 2 need to be the same spacing apart as row 2.

For Saran or Kanekalon rooting the holes would need to be much closer together

I would also like to see a part line as well :) either on the right or left side popping in a couple more holes in between the rows for about 5 rows?

The eggs are nicely done!

We did it! Hubby and I together worked on the home made creme egg recipe and here are the results. It says it makes 15-20 eggs but we did manage 20 approx 20gram (without choc) eggs.
We coated some in white choc and some in dark cho, so here are the pix...

Ta DA!!!! creme eggs

A close up so you can see Yolk & White

The eggs are tested and get a seal of approval

The chicks all jump for joy!

Egg-actly what we need for Easter

My husband sent me this recipe (I know hint hint) that I am going to have a go at making. He found it on this website Food 52 which looks to require some further investigating.

Without further adieu

Home Made Creme Eggs

 While the process might seem a bit daunting, the reward far exceeds the effort for this classic spring treat that uses ingredients you can actually pronounce.

Makes 15 to 20 eggs

• 1/2 cup Lyle's golden syrup (or corn syrup)
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 drops orange blossom water (optional)
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds removed (optional)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 12 ounces dark chocolate (or bittersweet chips)

1. Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer that has been fitted with the paddle attachment (this can easily be done by hand or with a hand mixer). Add the golden syrup, salt, orange blossom water (if using), vanilla seeds, and vanilla extract. Mix on medium-low to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to make sure everything is mixed well.
2. Turn the mixer to low and slowly add the powdered sugar. Mix until completely smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
3. Place one third of the mixture into a small bowl and add enough yellow food color to obtain desired color.
4. Cover both bowls with plastic wrap and put into the freezer for at least 15 minutes. It is necessary that this mixture be very cold while you work with it.
5. When the sugar mixture is thoroughly chilled, remove from the freezer. Working quickly take about a half teaspoon of the “yolk” mixture and roll it into a ball. Continue forming your yolks.
6. Once the yolks are complete, place them on a plate or a sheet tray covered with parchment and then put that back into the freezer.
7. Now, measure a tablespoon of your “whites”, and then roll that into a ball. Continue until all the white portion of the sugar mixture is gone. If the whites are too soft to work with, place back into the freezer for a few minutes.
8. Remove the yolks from the freezer. Place a white in the palm of your hand and gently flatten a bit. Create an indent in the center to rest the yolk in. Place the yolk in the center of the white, then cover it up. Roll the white into an egg shape. If at any point the sugar mixture gets too soft, quickly put it back into the freezer.
9. Continue this process until all your eggs are complete. Return to the freezer. While your eggs are chilling, temper your chocolate (David Lebovitz has a great post on tempering chocolate). Or melt the chocolate in a microwave at 30 second intervals stirring very well in between. Add 1 tablespoon canola oil to the chocolate and stir well. This gives you a little more flexibility with the chocolate eliminating some of the need for precise tempering. You will not, however get as nice of a crack as you bite into the egg.
10. Working with one egg at a time, remove the egg from the freezer and stick a toothpick in it. Dip the egg into the chocolate and carefully let the excess chocolate drip off. Place the toothpick into something – like a potato perhaps – while the chocolate sets.
11. Place the chocolate-covered egg into the fridge for 10 minutes while the chocolate sets. Carefully remove the toothpick from the egg and cover up the small hole with a little bit of tempered chocolate.

Dyeing to meet you...

I've taken the plunge- Cosma is done and I am really pleased with the results. I settled on using #453 brown idye poly after doing experiments with other dyes, inks and natural organic methods. My aim was to have a nice even coating and a lovely rich color which Jacquard dye certainly achieved. The brilliant thing was that I was able to just use small amounts of the packaging to achieve the results. Because it is a premix powder that is added to water, it is possible in future to do mix powders and create a whole range of hues and colors. We used a previously dyed sample piece as a comparison color. Using the dye enhancer is optional too! Duckiemonster and the Welsh lab contingency were on hand to help!

So first of all, Cosma was put into a unconscious state so she could be disassembled

Good Luck Cosma!

The team is assembled, ready to help

Accounted and present!

Equipment is assembled

Gloves ON!

NOT like that Ted!

Ok, so they are a bit big for you- You're excused!

Parts are Washed in warm soapy Water

And left to dry a bit

Strawberry Twizzer anyone? Staple to any Scientist.

The dyeing process commences, preparing the dye.

Dye is added to the simmered water

 

Millie staying WELL away from the dye

Timer is set, We've decided a range of one and a half minutes to two for pieces should give the effect we want

Head goes in First..

The results, we are VERY pleased

The body is done!- We've decided to speed up the drying process with a cool, slow dryer

so we can see the if the dry results are what we want. The wet finish looks a bit darker.

Tea Break Time?

The hairdryer accidently moves course

You sexy Scientist Ted!

The Makie Cage is PERFECT for dyeing hands and small bits!

Parts are done!

Quality Control Inspects

Looks good to me!

Ready to assemble and re animate

DONE!

Teds New Duds!

Ted has expressed to me his annoyance that the girls (Cosma & Millie) have been getting all the attention and new clothes, glasses etc

So I have taken note and made Ted a new wig, and a couple of hoody tops (using makielab pattern) (which I hope will satisfy him for a little bit)

I must say, I can make children's hoodies with one arm tied behind my back and blindfolded (I used to make most of my boys clothes when they were small) but tackling these tiny hoodies was quite a feat.

We seem to have a bit of snow falling

It's a bit Chilly!

Ted showing off his Popobe bear hoodie

and the Ninja - You loose - orange hoodie

You know you fight a Ninja you are already lost to his stealth!!!

London Fashion Week comes to Manchester

London Fashion Week comes to Manchester

Dress, jewellery and wig by ME!
Goggles - Makielab
Shoes - Integrity
Model - Cosma - Makielab

We can't decide - Goggles

We call this Nyctophobia

or No goggles

Or perhaps Untamed ferocity

 

A Close up with Goggles

Either name I'm just FABULOUS

iDye my little eye something beginning with Jacquard

Ok, this is going to be a VERY picture heavy post, essentially I am going to narrate a step by step on experimenting with iDye polyester & nylon fabric dye. No Makies were harmed in this process and I felt due to the nature of the experiment for now, It wouldn't be a good idea for them to be present, since this is my first go.

This Jacquard  dye is a special dye is specifically used for dyeing synthetic fabric. It states in the packaging that it could be done using the boiling and non boiling method. I kind of created my own method as I went along :P I will point out that at no time did I need a rolling boil and there was just a little smell, like you were burning plastic on a flame but it did not permeate the room or the rest of the house!

Step 1 - I bought myself this morning from Tescos a 24cm stockpot stainless steel pan with lid (£12.99) and stainless steel slot spoon £2.50) - I felt this essential as the dye says don't use the same pots that you use for cooking. Because of my time limitations, I just bought new but you could buy from a Charity Shop.

Please excuse my dirty stove top  My son's had used it the night before and I didn't clean it before starting

Step 2, I gathered the following 'ingredients' as such

Assorted Makie bits
a pan lined with foil
Dye
scissors (to open the dye & intensifier)
slotted spoon
plastic cup
Gloves (rubber or latex - already on my hands when I took the pix :O)
pomegranate for snacking (optional)
wooden coffee stirring stick (not shown) or unused chopstick leftover from Sushi takeaway.
Stockpot - stainless steel (It also suggests you can use enamel)
Some paper towel for drying.


Step 2
Fill the pot with some hot water- I put in about 4 inches worth - Place on stove top



Step 3

Place about 1/4 teaspoon of the dye powder  into the plastic pot and add a little hot water  and stir until mixed.





Step 4

Add some Makie bits to the water in the pot. Turn on the cooker to heat the water. I then added the dye liquid to the water in the pot. I stirred a bit then added a small squirt of the intensifier. Just before boiling point (steam coming up) I covered the pot and let it sit, stiring periodically. (pomegranate - NOM!)







Step 5 - This is the part you go Holistic. It's all up to you how dark you want your Makie to be so you will have to watch the coloring as it goes along. I do suggest you buy some bits, and use a timer and experiment with shades before you commit to doing your Makie

After about 10 mins of stewing- the results so far





I also decided to try dipping some bits in for different lengths of time, so this one is about 3 mins. I also decided as the water started cooling, I would start up the cooker again and gently add some heat, again so it just reaches just before boiling point then switch off again







Step 6
I decided after about 15 mins it was a lovely brown that I liked so I removed the bits with a slotted spoon- word of advice- count how many bits you put in and make sure you get that many out- it's hard to tell with the dark colored water LOL



Step 7
Rinse the pieces under cold water thoroughly



You can see that the temp (in Fahrenheit) is about 168 which is almost about 3/4 way to boiling point- It seems that you can keep it at approx this temp (give and take a few degrees) that it is perfect for dyeing Makies and hopefully won't cause shrinkage. I'm hoping the lab can do more testing to confirm that. I just covered the bottom of my thermometer with plastic wrap to stop contamination.





I thought well, while I am testing, I would see if pieces of another color could be dyed too.
If you go back to one of my earlier experiments, I used a water based artist ink and painted it on the bit (watered down) This is one of the bits. The first pieces was watered down and painted on. The 2nd piece was the ink directly being dropped onto the nylon piece itself





This was the bit that had the ink directly put onto it- After about 3 mins in the dye bath



Here are all the bits I experimented with, all done- They were all rinsed under water and this is how they turned out. Please note that they are a bit darker as they are still wet.
This picture is under inside lighting

These next few pictures are daylight outside






Take note of these two pieces- they were the ones that had some existing ink coloring on them. The one with the non watered ink came out splotchy tho the lighter colored ink panel (watered down ink) actually came out fine so we could almost say you could dye over an existing lighter hue.



I also wanted to test if the coloring rubbed off. When I have colored fabrics in the past, the colors have run or bled  a little when washed. I did rub a bit against a paper towel (while still damp) and there was just a touch of color, so I decided it would need a wash!

Test piece- before washing



Placed in cup of warm water- you can see that some of the color bleeds a fraction





The package suggests you wash your fabric in mild detergent so I thought what the heck, I would try using some fairy dish washing liquid. So I added a smidgen, agitated it a bit






After rinsing, you can see the color didn't change after washing in detergent, so I am happy with that



Had to hang out the Laundry- so out they went onto the line for half an hour too!



Time for that nice Chai Tea Latte that hubby made from scratch for me! (and a bit of a kit kat chunky- NOM!)


Part 2 - the results to come whilst I make a Quiche for dinner first (OMG)