The Unconventional Macgyver

I don't think this is so unusual but I use white balloons as wig caps most of the time. I've been known to use flat wooden beads and pieces of wooden dowel as donuts inside some of the doll heads to add stability. I've tried making eyes out of glass cabochons, still working on that, made doll shoe bases out of cork, polymer, metal, anything that worked. Cut up children's clothing to make dresses for my girls and t-shirts for my boys, again not so unusual.

I've used aluminum foil to make doll sized reflectors, used green poster board as a green screen and fold out presentation boards as V-flats for doll photography. I've rigged doll sized soft boxes out of small desk lamps or work lights, a small pic frame and a white t-shirt. Any craft paper or piece of fabric in my bins is a backdrop for them pretty much. I've made doll furniture out of jewelry boxes and craft wood. Food and other things out of polymer.

I make my own doll jewelry the same way I make jewelry for people to sell at craft fairs and online. I'm just starting some lamp working classes to learn to make my own glass beads. I'm also taking metal working classes to learn how to work directly with silver, copper, bronze and brass. I want to make my own metal bits and bobs instead of buying them, upgrade my jewelry skills to be able to work fine metals. I'm doing that so I can do more with my jewelry, expand my business, go more upscale, but I'm pretty sure my dolls will benefit from the new skills at some point. :P

I was and am a huge MacGyver fan. Watching that show, it taught me to think outside the box and I don't think there is an area of my life, including my doll collection, where I don't operate from that perspective. The series DVD set, I own it, and still watch episodes regularly. There's actually a little photo of RDA in character as Mac on the cork board above my desk with a little piece of card under it that asks "What would MacGyver do?" and I have a little key chain that a buddy bought me on my keys that's the same. I do take duct tape, a pocket knife, and some chewing gum with me where ever I go and FYI, more than once doing so has saved my behind or that of someone I was with.

I'm a little ticked at the idea that they just green lighted a new MacGyver reboot series. The only hope that I have for it is that Winkler is producing. I just cannot see it working at all though without RDA. In my eyes he's simply irreplaceable as MacGyver. They want to bring on his grandson or something, have occasional cameos with "Grandpa Mac" that would work for me but I just don't want to see them calling him THE MacGyver.

 

The closest thing I can think of is that I've used decorative glass pebbles for eyes before. I've also used my giant Bristol board pad as a photo backdrop. That's about it, I'm not that clever.

 

When I wanted to attach a vinyl Obitsu head to a resin body, I used a metal washer as a neck donut.

I've used painters tape to keep eyelashes attached.

Metal hangers from Michaels made for American Girl size dolls work great for pulling s-hooks up through the head! They work even better than the stringing tool I had, and are always around when I'm changing my dolls.

 

I put a Dollfie Dream head on an Obitsu body. You can buy an adapter to keep the head from wobbling, but why spend the $25+ when you can use a long screw and a thick rubber band wrapped around the Obitsu neck piece? I know the rubber band will eventually dry out & crack, but rubber bands are so cheap (or free) and it works really well. The rubber gives enough friction to keep the head steady & give it good mobility.

 

I don't know if this counts, but when searching for a head puller tool on eBay, I came across knot rig pullers. They're for fishing, apparently, and they're tiny. But, it works! They're cheap, mine was only a few £. Gives a little bit of leverage when taking off tricky heads, and slightly easier than ribbon. At least for the head bit.