Mary "Stormer" Phillips: Secretary
Then again, it would probably help if she weren't wearing "Sophisticated Lady".
But of my limited Jem fashions it was the only one that nobody else was already wearing.
I bought this lady on eBay for cheap and knew she had some problems, including that hair. I just didn't know how bad it would be. Her wonderful curls are gone, replaced by straight, frizzy bristles that feel more like a Brillo pad than doll hair. But even that isn't too major; frizz and curl loss are fixable, after all. But check out that haircut -- hardly the look of a rockstar, and there's the added bonus of some oddness going on with the bangs. Cut doll hair is much less fixable than frizz and curl loss. That hair ain't gonna grow back. Well, unless you count a re-root as hair growing back, but I've never done one and am not sure I'm ready to start. Bottom line: cut hair ruins the beauty and value of these wonderful creations called dolls. I mentioned in a comment on the other blog that I consider dolls art, and I mean that. So the next time your kid wants to express their creativity, take the doll out of their hands and hand them some paper and crayons. If that doesn't work and they're still hankering to do some hair cuttin', let 'em cut their own hair. Sure, it may look stupid, but at least it'll grow back. It may even teach them a lesson. (It's probably a good thing I don't have kids, huh?)
Okay, with that off my chest, let's take a closer look at Stormer. Like I said, even without the haircut she would not be considered perfect, or anywhere near it. She has a bit of rub on her right eyebrow. She also has a couple very small spots on her upper forehead that look suspiciously like mold. And lastly, her right elbow won't hold positions. So yeah, she's a bit banged up you could say.
Now onto the good stuff. Her faceup, aside from the eyebrow rub, is perfect. High color, everything's there, she looks beautiful! Besides the elbow everything else on her body works. All her joints hold position and her waist isn't too loose. There aren't any stains or discolorations on her body.
I decided my first course of action would be a boil wash. Since the hair was already straight I didn't have to worry about her losing her curl. I mostly wanted to get rid of at least some of that frizz, but I also needed to kill that possible mold on her forehead. Oh, warning: doll nudity ahead. (I know some people are weird about that.)
Stormer shows off the pot that will contain the boiling water she'll be sticking her head in.
She looks pretty calm, all things considered.
High color face! Woo-hoo!
And no crazy body stains -- another woo-hoo!
Stormer's not looking so calm anymore.
There's definitely some concern on that face.
Then I did some constant combing while the hair was wet to help with the de-frizzing process, and to try to reset the hair. I actually kinda like the mullet thing she had going on while her hair was wet. It kind of gave her back her Misfits vibe, and certainly fits the era in which she was released.
She only looks mildly traumatized after what she's now calling "that crazy-ass boiling incident".
I love this face so much!
Rock that mullet, girl!
Seriously, she's totally pulling off the mullet look. It's kinda awesome, you gotta admit!
After it had dried I was disappointed to see it had only reset a little. But the texture is definitely better. It doesn't really show up well in the pics but it's noticeably softer and less frizzy. I'm confident I killed the mold, but I'm gonna need some Oxy to get rid of the stains. Stormer is still a "work in progress", but I'm confident I can get her back in great shape. Even with the dodgy haircut I like this girl a lot. How can you not like a gal loaded with as much personality as Stormer?
Here she is post boil wash, hair completely dry. Hmm, I'm feeling mixed.
The texture is definitely softer, though.
It's a bit less "Brillo Pad", as well.
Um, Sophisticated Lady?
The spiky bangs are in keeping with the other Misfits dolls, at least.
I'll have to find another fashion that's more fitting of her unique personality.
This and the next picture are my favorites of the "after" shots.
You may not be perfect but I love you anyway, Stormer!
While working on Stormer I listened to a few Stuff You Missed In History Class podcasts. I love their show; it's very professional and they always make even the most mundane-seeming of historic topics interesting. Check them out here.
Til next time!
It's cool to see you getting into the dolls of your childhood. The nostalgia of them is really awesome. Jem is a bit before my time, though.
ReplyDeleteIt sucks about the hair, but at least you have her. I remember having a Sparkle Beach Barbie (I had to Google 90's beach Barbies) doll when I was young; I think she was a christmas present? I loved her & her sparkly blue bikini. That is until one day when I came home from school & found blonde hair on the carpet... My younger sister had given her a haircut, like really short. I was SO upset.
I'm Googling 1990's Barbie dolls as I write this, and now I've been bitten by the nostalgia bug. hehehe
Oh, the memories...
She's a cool enough doll that I can look past her imperfections and just enjoy her. The Jem dolls were really unique and very much a "moment in time"; they definitely couldn't have existed in any other time than the mid-80's! That's such a big part of the appeal for me. Nostalgia for that time and the innocence it holds for me. Of course, I was also into She-Ra and a ton of other doll lines from that time that I don't collect now, so I do think there's something particularly special about the Jem dolls.
DeleteGood luck and have fun looking up your childhood toys, Felicity! :) Just be careful -- nostalgia can turn into a very deep rabbit hole! I know only all too well... ;)
Oh, don't worry about me. Monster High has made other dolls look weird to me. Haha.
DeleteLike Barbie and Bratz, for example, look like blow-up sex dolls. XD
And I thought MH dolls looked strange at first, with their exaggerated proportions & back curvature.
It's not like I can afford to collect a bunch of different doll lines, anyways.
Even before MH came along the Bratz dolls looked like blow-up dolls to me lol. I was really surprised the first time I held an MH doll in my hand. I was amazed at the lightness (I was afraid I would break her in half if I so much as looked at her too hard lol), and the severely arched back seemed soo odd. I think it's safe to say I've gotten used to them now!
DeleteOh god, I forgot to mention. If your wash her hair, brush the fringe/bangs down & hold in place with an elastic band, the fringe should lie a little flatter.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip! I'm actually thinking of doing another boil wash then running ice water over it to help it reset. I'm not completely sure how things will go for this doll's hair -- it definitely has a mind of it's own.
DeleteHi there! I'm a relatively new MH collector, and I was thrilled to discover your Voicething blog! (Which, btw, is the title a reference to the Goldfrapp song? I LOVE the Headfirst album.) Anyways, I was even more excited to see this blog (the Sequel), because I also love Jem and collect them as well. Technically, I collected them in the past (early 2000's, which was a good time to pursue them, pricewise). I established a pretty decent Jem collection, and since discovering MH, my attention is now more focused on them. Jem has always been very special to me, because as a boy growing up in the 80's, I wasn't allowed to own them (which only added to their mystique and cultivated a more intense desire to acquire them). Now, after becoming immersed in the MH world, I find that I actually prefer them to Jem (which I never would've imagined being possible!). Actually, I still prefer many of the Jem fashions and their authentic 80's style. However, the MH doll bodies and features are much more appealing to me. If I could just combine the two...
ReplyDeleteAnyways, sorry for the long-winded intro, but I wanted to suggest that perhaps your Stormer doll is a good candidate for a boil PERM. The original doll has pretty tight curls anyways, so she would *hopefully* come to resemble her original state. I don't know about those bangs... I'd defer to Felicity's suggestion on those. You may want to apply heavy styling gel first though since the bangs are so short and not rooted forward and down. I've wrapped heads tightly with saran wrap and allowed them to sit for several days, and that helps flatten the hair as well. I recently did a loose boil perm on my 2nd wave Lagoona, and her hair looks SOO much better now! I was weary at first, but I'm much happier with her now. I also did a tight boil perm on my DDG Operetta, and although it helped, I didn't wrap some of the curls in the proper direction (... it was my first time). However, those frizzy ends are now hidden deep inside of those tight curls, so she ultimately looks much more appealing.
Apologies again for the lengthy message, but none of my real-life friends share my love for MH or Jem. Keep the informative reviews coming... I appreciate how thoroughly you explore the dolls and their accessories – it gives me a better idea as to which ones I'd like for my own collection and which ones I can pass on.
Hi Eric! Glad you like the blogs! Good eye -- I did get the name from the Goldfrapp song! I'm a huge 'Frapp nut lol! I love Head First too, I think it's a really underrated album. Tbh I actually like it just as much as Supernature.
DeleteDo you ever take pics of your Jem collection? I love seeing other people's collections! Have you gotten any of the new Integrity dolls? It's funny you mention combining MH and Jem. A friend and I were talking about that just a few days ago, deciding which MH dolls we would use if we ever did them as Jem customs. I can't remember exactly what all we came up with, but we chose Ghoulia as Stormer and Frankie as Video.
No worries about your comment, I love hearing from readers whatever the length of the post! I'm glad you're getting some use out of the reviews. :D Things are kind of at a stand still at the moment -- I'm waiting for more of the new dolls to actually come out!
Sorry for blowing up your blog right now, but I'm traveling, so it's a convenient time for me to message. :) Speaking of which, I was in LA, and of course, I had to pay a visit to Mattel headquarters and their official store. Unfortunately, they didn't have any of the new dolls, just Scaris, Dance Class and DDG. Honestly, it was a bit underwhelming, but still exciting to see where the creativity happens!
ReplyDeleteI haven't taken many photos of my Jem collection yet, but I did post one of a custom outfit that I made for Pizzazz. You can see it on my Tumblr:
http://myneitherworld.tumblr.com/search/Pizzazz
No worries, Eric! :) How was LA? I've only been once, back in 2009, and thought it was a fascinating city but didn't entirely love it. I do, however, love SF! Did you go to the headquarters in El Segundo? They used to be in Hawthorne forever ago. I'm surprised they didn't have the new stuff, but like you say, how cool to be at the epicenter of MH (and Barbie)!
DeleteI love your Pizzazz! And great work on the outfit! Not just saying that, seriously, amazing craftsmanship there!