Miss G's Bs 3. . . . . . . .

So, What The Heck Is This All About?

photo chosen as a finalist in the CWC 2005 "Super Photogenic" contest

This group of websites began in April of 2003, when I discovered the neo Blythe dolls designed by the CWC Group (Junko Wong, instigator) and Takara (factory) from Japan. It all began when I was browsing a favorite neighborhood shop, Forty, Fifty, Sixty (Joe Bucchi & Ben Cassara, proprietors and writers for Barbie Bazaar/Haute Doll.) I didn't consider myself "a doll collector" by any means -- when I was younger I read a few books about doll collecting and it fascinated me, however a house fire when I was 14 where we lost all our belongings (and my burgeoning LP collection) put a damper in my desire to accumulate objects. As I looked with fondness at the displays of vintage Tammy and Pepper dolls from the 60s, I noticed a postcard on the counter, a photograph of a doll with a huge head and very big eyes. Well, I was smitten! The postcard identified the photographer as Gina Garan, and her site (and book) as This is Blythe.

I went a block away to Toy Tokyo where there happened to be the first widely released Blythe, Mondrian ("Parco," the actual first, was limited to 1000 and sells NRFB for over $1500 today.) Maybe it was the fact that the eyes staring forward at me were orange, maybe I just didn't "get it" yet -- but I put her down and said "boy she's cute but I would NEVER spend $60 on a DOLL." (Those famous last words provoke hilarity in Blythe fans who know what ensued.) What's sicko, is that I even saw Mondrian at FAO Schwarz a few weeks later, held her in my hands, and decided once again that $60 was too much. (I refer to my missing Mondrian in the story "Miss G's Heretix meet Corabelle, Sunday Best." BTW, NRFB Mondrian goes for about $500 now.)

So, there I was in April of '03. Despite the worldwide peace marches of 02/14/03, in which I walked in Manhattan, the war in Iraq had begun. Every day, with a knot in my stomach, I read the newspapers online for information. There was a paucity of it. I read The Guardian from the UK, I even tried with my limited French and German to read Le Monde and The Frankfurter Allgemeinschaft. But on the day they took down that statue of You Know Who (you know, the guy who was not involved in that horrible attack in 2001) I thought to myself, "we're never going to get any news now. They're going to say it's all over." I needed a diversion. That's when I remembered the postcard of that whimsical dolly.

For the next two weeks I devoured the chat and images of Blythe at the Blythe forum. When I looked at everyone's photography, I saw the true muse-like quality to Blythe, something not so apparent just from looking at her in the box. At the forum, I met some very helpful people, some of whom are friends and netpals to this day. The astute and hilarious Donnamyte ( who was profiled with Gina at BUST magazine's Summer 2004 story on Blythe) calls Blythe "plastic Prozac" and she's right. I began a new habit -- every morning for the past few years, while I drank my coffee, I alternated between The New York Times and other news sites, and the This Is Blythe forum. I quickly got myself to FAO Schwarz where they had another model of Blythe, Hollywood, and ordered a second, Disco Boogie, from an internet site shortly thereafter. I thought "well two dolls doesn't seem like such a crazy thing. . ." More famous last words. The sites document what came later.

If it hadn't been for the forum, I think I might have gotten one or two dolls, bought Gina's books, and that would be that. But being able to talk to other nutcases (strike that, I mean aficionados) opened up a whole new area of fun. As well, people encouraged me to post photos of my dollies to the site. I had always considered myself to be a terrible photographer of people, and only enjoyed taking vacation snaps of architectural details. But my new pals pointed out that Blythe is a perfect model, she doesn't move. And the advent of digital photography meant that I could take some pix, instantly look at them, and then revise my framing or lighting. This made all the difference to this novice. I bought an inexpensive digicam, and my new Apple iBook software allowed me to experiment with photo editing and posting photos to the web (this was before the days of Flickr or even Photobucket, and so the site was meant to be less a "real website" and more a repository of photos to be linked to the This is Blythe forum.) Thus, the pages are really written for fellow fans, I had no intention to show the site to anyone else. Sometimes the insider jokes (written or photographic) are so obtuse I can't imagine anyone else even remotely getting it!

So what's interesting about each photo? Yeah, because the photography is mostly about what we call Blythe Love, this ain't no photography site. (I often jokingly call it "outsider art" to my friends.) If I have two photos, one where it may be blurry but Blythe's face has a cuter expression, I'll pick that one. Often the perspective is incorrect with my props but I think that's kind of comical. . .after all, if Blythe has a cell phone, which do you match, her hand or her head? Sometimes I've created a "set" for Blythe, other times you see her nestled in amongst the bookshelves and tchotchkes. Nowadays there are some really cute home furnishings which fit Blythe, but I don't know if it is my childhood love for the series of books The Borrowers or what, but I'd rather have a closet clothes rack made out of Tinker Toys than a realistic one made out of plastic any day. Sometimes the photos are meant to show clothing and shoes -- in the early days of Blythe production there weren't very many shoes or clothes which fit her; there were her own Takara things, vintage Skipper, and some toy store doll things which could be altered. People were just beginning to sell their outfits for Blythe. I myself had sewn as a teenager but found out when trying to make my own things, that sewing for dolly size is way more difficult! But still, I enjoy making things now and then. It's a very fulfilling craft hobby, making things for Blythe, because you can be finished knitting a scarf for her in an hour (whereas I'm looking at a half-knitted mere headband for myself which was there since last Winter.) Some photos or stories are an excuse to thank a friend for a gift they sent for Blythe. . .it's all meant with a DIY punk ethos, just as a sharing, not to say that I think anything presented meets the quality of the people who I've mentioned below in the Links section. As a migraineur (I'll be posting a page of "Blythe Migraine Art" soon I hope!) I'm sometimes just not able to redo a photo shoot which came out funky in some way. I've just made the best of what happened, and tried to share some Blythe Fun with my fellow addicts I mean fans.

As to my writing, I'd just like to add, that one of the great things about the Blythe forum was and is that there are so many people from different countries, many of whom do not have English as their first language or may have cultural differences (and often the writing within is cognizant of that.) Gina has asked us to rate our material as "PG" when we post to the forum, as the Blythe license-holder, Hasbro, is primarily a toy company for children (even though Blythe is not sold as a child's toy.) So I haven't cut loose with transgressiveness. I like to keep it kawaii (I visited Japan in the early 90s and loved their sense of all things cute.)

As of this writing, September 2007, I haven't been to Faux York in 23 months, so my photos are less interesting from that perspective. But it just isn't the same city I once knew, and sure, I never did live in the New York of "The Sweet Smell of Success," still, if you look at the depictions in Downtown 81, to "Wigstock," to "Gypsy 83," -- I don't recognize it anymore. But, never say never.

Do I own the vintage Kenner Blythe? No, but thanks for asking. I know that one day I'll be in a Salvation Army, I'll thrust my arm into a moldy and disgusting garbage bag of mangy plush toys, and I'll feel a grapefruit-sized head on a tiny body. And then, she will be mine. (addendum, December 2007. Yup, I did it. EvilBay. She didn't cost a dollar, but she's worth every penny.)

in summation, as to my general attitude to what's presented on the site:
"I like it but I wish there was more singing and dancing,"
said by Little Edie Beale, after viewing the Maysles' documentary film "Grey Gardens," to Scott Frankle (composer of the subsequent Broadway musical) as quoted in Lula Magazine.

yours in Blythe Love,
Miss Gretchen (I was first dubbed this by drag queens, later, kindergarteners. Now by courtly Southerners.)

winner of the monthly Blythe Art Gallery contest

my outfit from the TIB FRUiTs contests, as photographed by Gina, on the cover of the 2006 calendar

Links

The Godmother of Blythe, The Originator, Author of This is Blythe, photographer Gina Garan and her original prints, as well as her books This is Blythe and Blythe Style:
This is Blythe Shop

Tiffany Bauer, recently featured in Haute Doll magazine, is a professional photographer who also makes couture-level doll outfits, both cute and rockin' fashion forward, at her boutique SqueakyMonkey. Her Blythe house is a marvel and was featured in the website for ApartmentTherapy.com:
Squeaky Monkey

Tiffany has teamed up with French rock journalist Isabelle Chelley, AKA "The Rock Chick Martha Stewart of Paris" and author of Dictionnaire des chansons de Nirvana and the text to photographer Travis Hutchison's book Worship, about the club scene at New York's Pyramid club and beyond, to bring us Dolly Culture magazine. Isabelle is not only a consummate journalist but the best writer about Blythe out there:
Dolly Culture Manifesto

Christina Gordon is a printmaker and textile artist who designs and produces Blythe outfit sets which are works of art in themselves. Expect to see an exhibit of these dolly outfits one day in the Museum of Modern Art. Promise.
Jam Fancy

She is part of PuchiCollective, who design and produce custom Blythes with a high level of artistry and craft. Her compadres are artists Paulkaiju and Melissa Cabral:
PuchiCollective

Amazing custom dolls, in concept, execution, and artistry by LisaMarie:
BlytheStudio

The astounding collective from Japan:
Theater Alfort

Tess at Bon Bon Blythe was a real inspiration to me when I first found out about Blythe. She is not only an amazing restorer of the vintage Kenner Blythe (along with her associate Yatabazah at Hey Little Girl) but makes cute and quirky outfits for Blythe, and has hilarious photostories (fumettis) in the section called ""Capers, Adventures & Escapades."
Bon Bon Salon

The Hey Little Girl site is chockablock full of Blythe history as well.
Hey Little Girl