Very Posh

When the Spice Girls dolls came out, my sister and I were in our late teens: young enough that playing with dolls was still something we wanted to do, but old enough that it "wasn't cool." When you're a huge dork like me and my sister were (sorry, Sharon, but you are/were), we were somewhere in the "I hate the Spice Girls" crowd and "I think I need every one of those dolls". These were troubling times, to say the least. I think I had a New Kids on the Block doll, and a guy from NSync (he was a marionette!), and the lot of them just had so many sexy times together, it's just not worth mentioning. Turns out, my sister had a bunch more "celebrity dolls", and we'll get to them later.

That brings us to today. We're both in our 30's now (barely), and playing with dolls is just not the same, even when pretending we're too good for it. It's gone from "let's pose them like they're in concert/at a photoshoot" to "I'm gonna take her face off and see what happens". And after 15 years of being in my mom's attic, Posh Spice doesn't look as put together as she once did. Her stiff hair's all loose and stupid looking. She's got on some other Barbie's dress (I recognize it, but couldn't tell you where it came from), and all her jewelry has been carefully removed. I don't know. I think she's seen better days.

Step 1: use acetone to remove factory paint

I could already tell this was going to be good. Look at that sculpt! It's beautiful! What the hell were those factory painters thinking slapping on that garish color like she was just some $5 "Fashion Doll". This is supposed to represent a real human being. The sculptor understood that.

Step 2: start painting

This is where the fun is. I like to find a photo that best captures the person and base my repaint after it. I take general coloring, eyebrow placement, lip shape, etc from it, and go to town. People always told me oil painting was hard, but I don't see it at all. So easy to blend and dab on with my teeny tiny paintbrush... downright relaxing.

Step 3: build on what you painted the day before

The pesky thing with oil paint is that you have to let it sit SO LONG to dry. A person like me wants to take the next 14 hours and finish it all in one sitting (and then never touch it again because I've burned myself out). That's what's hard about oil painting. Waiting. 

Step 4: Cut and style the hair

 Okay. A g-bob on an 11.5" fashion doll. It's a hard cut to do on a human being. It's hard on a doll, too. But dammit, look at that thing. Sure, I've got it secured with a clear elastic band (letting the water/hairspray mixture dry), but that is cute as a button. She's also got a nice profile.

Still working on getting her 100% finished. Not sure what kind of dress I'll put her in, since the original is long gone.

Should I put her up for sale?

EDIT: YES! I should put her up for sale. If you'd like to own this piece of awesome, check out her store page on Etsy!