View allAll Photos Tagged Kendoll
I was not an ordinary little boy who liked to play with action figures and toy cars in the sandbox. I got my first Barbie, Sweet 16, when I was 5 years old, and progressed to Malibu Barbie & Ken, Pretty Changes, and Superstar Barbie before selling them all off at a garage sale by the age of 10. The fact that my parents didn't bat an eye at their son playing with dolls was indeed a rare exception to the rule most boys would have encountered. I simply loved the escapist fantasy of these glamorous characters in their evening gowns going on James Bond-like adventures in their bright yellow plastic mobile home, since we couldn’t afford the A-frame Dreamhouse, back then. They were an outlet for my imagination, and I got to be the costume & set designer, hair stylist, screen writer and director, all in the confines of my small-town, Midwestern, middle-class, orange shag-rug-carpeted 1970s living room.
As an adult, I became a newspaper photographer, then moved to New York City where I attempted a career in editorial magazine photography, but quickly ditched the feast-or-mostly-famine lifestyle to become a photo assignment editor in celebrity entertainment for an international photo wire service. I also re-discovered Barbie and fell in love with the 35th anniversary retro reproductions of the very first #1 ponytail Barbie dolls from 1959, and I got a couple as novelties for my bookshelf. Soon what started as a whim grew into a collection that spilled over onto a second, then a third SHELF, and then a second, then a third entire BILLY BOOK CASE of shelves.
I love my BILLY BOOK CASES because they give the best bang for my buck (leaving more for me to spend on dolls), and they’ve been durable enough to survive two moves among three apartments. One “hack” I implemented was moving the fixed center shelf so that I could have five evenly spaced shelves that fit most of my 12-13” dolls, and the optional glass shelves allow even more head room while facilitating more light for viewing my collection. The optional doors save me countless hours I would otherwise spend dusting my girls, so that I can focus on photographing them instead for my Instagram & Twitter feeds @MyLifeInPlastic and MyLifeInPlastic.com. The most rewarding aspect of this work is that I found a way to return to photography, the passion that originally brought me to this city. Perhaps on a smaller physical scale than I might have originally envisioned, but with all the artistic freedom to follow my creative vision wherever it's tiny stilettoed plastic heels want to go.
For this story, I include a my miniature version of a OOAK 1:6 scale BILLY BOOK CASE filled with my micro-mini Barbie dolls, along with the offical IKEA HUSET doll furniture set, which perfectly replicates the favorite classic Klippan sofa, Lack table, Expedit shelving unit, Vago chair, rug and heart cushion in Barbie size.
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Michael Williams / MyLifeInPlastic.com
If you're like Diana and ever wondered, "Why the hell am I still with this guy?"
"Guys like me
We don't know how it feels
Absentee even closing the deal
But every player there's a payoff in the final reel
But never with guys like me
Cause guys like me
We look good at the gate
But you'll agree with the odds on the slate
and put your money on a bonafide heavyweight
and take it off guys like me
take it off guys like me
We pull you close but never really
looking warm but feeling chilly
you'll describe us as impassioned
when it's just a front we've fashioned
Cause guys like me
We all vow to become
clear and free of the fife and the drum
and block the circulation til we're all completely numb
let's hear it for guys, guys like me"
- Aimee Mann
Sweet, Shy and Smart...what is not to love about this geek-chic-hipster. He will tutor you in math, hook you up with the coolest playlist and he knows all of the best movies from indie to superhero. So, what are you gonna say when he asks you to homecoming?
;-)
Thanks to my sister for finding me the Twilight dolls at thrift store. She did find the original Bella doll with edward but I thought it looked just like any other barbie doll but with brown hair. So I looked for a doll that I thought would be a better bella in my opinion. So I picked barbie fashionista 188. What do you all think?
Like a lot of people, 2020 presented numerous challenges for me! There were lessons in those challenges and many opportunities to grow!
I wish you all good health and bountiful blessings in the coming years!
"Ken’s your private dancer
A dancer for money
He’ll do what you want him to do
Ken’s your private dancer
A dancer for money
And any old music will do…"
- Tina Turner
This old wagon is one of many at Birch Bay. Lauren & Keith took advantage of the surrounding for a photo shoot!
Miguel is a lot of things...but don't pigeonhole him as a "sidekick" or "the gay friend." While Miguel is cool with Barbie and adores the So in Style girls, he has his own crew of friends that he headlines. As for now, they will only be "supporting/recurring" characters in my photo stream, I would like to start introducing you all to Miguel's Friends...starting with Reilly Blue
Oy...still getting used to the new Flickr (I am sure this is an old statement by now), but just wanted to take a quick pic and share the new Ken fashions I found on a mid-day shopping lunch break (@ TRU).
The only items not included in this set are Dylan's shorts and sneakers. The gift/present has a removable top and inside is a Barbie necklace.
Tantric Lukas, COUNTER-CULTURE collection, 2018 Nu Face Collection, Integrity Toys. LE 725. Designed by Jessy Ayala.
Absolutely amazing guy, so handsome and photogenic. Gloss Declan has found a good rival. I am in love with this guy.
March 9 is National Barbie Day. Barbie and Ken are getting ready to go for a ride in Barbie’s pink convertible. 💗🌸🚘
I've had my eye on this leather ensamble for a few years now! I finally bit the bullet and purchased it!
Pascal is from Disney Princess Little Kingdom Royal Friends Collection. It was given to me by my sister.
"I don’t wanna be a bride
Apologies to your mother
But I can be your girl
And share this life with you
But I don’t wanna wear white
You know it’s too late for that
But can we keep the ever after?
Oh could it be...."
- Vanessa Carlton
Timothy stops by Jeffrey's table to wish him a happy birthday as wife and family look on.
This was a temporary country-themed diorama my sister and I created to honor this long-time doll from my collection (a 1985 or '86 Dream Glow Ken acquired the year he was released). Guests were required to "dress the part" in order to celebrate.
"There you go, walking by there
You are the apple of my eye
And I see you coming towards me and
I get this sweating butterflies and
You should know it
You've got to feel it
I'm in love with you for really
I have got to have you tonight
If you knew how cute you looked in your tight dress
And your high heels
Understand why I get caught up staring at you everytime
You pass me by I see your eyes
I feel your hair
I see you smile
I just wish that you could
See me too"
- R. Thicke
This might be one of my favorite Barbie lines of all time! I remember the day Dad took me out to a store to pick out a Barbie doll with my allowance money. I saw this collection and fell in love. "Free Willy" has always been my favorite film--ever since I was about two years old. I would stand in front of the television and dance to Michael Jackson's song from the movie with my stuffed whale, named Willy. The film gave me a deep rooted passion for marine life. I had an assortment of sea themed stuffed animals and figures. I dreamed of being a marine biologist, which was eventually dropped as I was terrified of swimming in dark waters. Nothing was more breathtaking or serene than watching Orca whales jump out of the water, swimming freely in the ocean. As I grew older, my love for the ocean never faded, and I still feel that same sense of peace and wonder when I see anything marine related.
I was very torn about which doll to get that day with Dad....Ken wasn't in contention though. I thought he was cool, don't get me wrong, but I wanted one of the girl dolls. Barbie herself was blonde, and in my eyes bland. But Kira looked like Princess Jasmine. Even though I found Kira to be the much more attractive doll, Barbie won the competition and came home. Why? For the simple fact that she was packaged with the Orca whale--my favorite animal (obviously, since I was such a "Free Wily" fan). When I was a little older, I named her Deenie. She was heavily played with and was called "Whale Barbie" in her early years (which admittedly I still sometimes slip up and call her). She'd often work with my other fave, Pet Doctor Barbie, at the dolly veterinary center. Of course, her job dealt with the sea critters. I have one very specific memory of playing with Deenie in my bedroom. I was dressing her up in a tacky clone outfit, as I had virtually no authentic Barbie clothes. Dad and Mom had errands to run, but I didn't want to leave since I was having too much fun with my Barbies. So they feigned leaving me alone, which prompted me to get up and look for them. As I dashed out the door to get into the van, I still had Deenie in tow. I'm not sure why, but that has always been one of my most vivid memories of her.
The Barbie in this photo is actually my second one (I have quite a few duplicates these days). I got her at the flea market years ago when I was still a kid, since I had balded "Deenie" my first Ocean Friends Barbie (who I still have, but isn't nearly as nice). I was very much starting to collect dolls by that age, and one of my main goals was finding "upgrades" of my childhood oldies. "Whale Barbie" was one of the first to get a doppelganger. I named her Carmen, and she was (and still is) the apple of my eye. Ironically, she has a distinctive face, as her eyes are not symmetrically place on her face. Instead they skew off slightly to one side. So I can easily pick her out of a lineup! I always wanted Kira, but I never got her growing up, despite it having been in the plans. I was easily distracted by other dolls I lusted for at the store. As Dad used to say, money burned a hole in my pocket, and I had trouble saving up for once specific item. I finally found my coveted Kira at the flea market in 2013, still sealed in her box. This was the perfect scenario. I had lost most of Deenie's cardboard accessories by this point, and her clothes were ragged. So I cherished getting to open a mint Kira.
By that point I already had two Ken dolls too--the first was nude, but regardless, Colleen and I still had to rescue him. After all, he was from the iconic Ocean Friends collection. The second, the guy in the photo, was loose but came with all his stuff. He was in a small container with other sea themed toys. I think he actually belonged to a little boy in his previous life, based on the surrounding toys and lack of dolls. Ironically, all three of these dolls came from the same flea market, over the span of a decade! Actually, all of my Ocean Friends dolls, except my store bought gal, came from said flea market. I adore each doll from this line, especially Kira. I'm so glad I ended up with another Kira from a bin of dolls! Had I not already encountered my formerly boxed lady, this Kira would have been a treasure to find (she still was, but not quite as climactic as it would have been if she was my first). She was in wonderful condition, still sporting her ensemble, sans tiny fixings. It's quite plain to see that this line must have sold well, based on the abundance of dolls you can find secondhand.