of
William
the Bloody
Awful Poet
A doll's story
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of William the Bloody Awful Poet A doll's story |
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William started his
life in the Navy (l), but he was soon stripped of his old identity and
left with nothing but a modesty sock (r)
This GI Joe was purchased at Target for $6.00. It has the "Alpha" face and aquamarine-colored eyes. The scalp has painted hair. |
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The suit comes from the "My Fair Lady" Barbie and Ken collection. Look for Ken as Henry Higgins on ebay. The doll and suit usually go in the $35.00 range. If you want to try to make your own
suit, go here
for an $8.50 pattern.
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Because the hands are larger than
Ken's, you will need to open the seam to get them through the sleeve and
then slip-stitch it closed on the doll.
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The wig is called a "Mini Bebe."
You can order it here.
To attach it to the scalp, use Rubber
Cement rather than regular glue, which could eventually degrade the plastic.
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With the wig in place, William is all ready to go -- or is he? Now we know what he would have looked like if he had been hanging with Warren Beatty in the '70s. |
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It's back to the barber shop for
William for a little trim. I tried to do a boil perm on the hair to give
it some curl, but this synthetic wig wouldn't hold it.
Since the eyes were a little too green, I bought a blue paint marker at Wal-Mart and then applied the blue with a toothpick. If you get a doll with brown eyes, you can use an Exacto knife to scrape the brown away and apply the blue. Make sure you buy paint that is safe for plastic. You don't want the ink to leach into the plastic. |
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| Next come the finishing touches.
You might be able to find doll glasses in a hobby/craft store. I saw a
pair in Hobby Lobby, but those were just a bent piece of wire. I made my
own using jewelry wire and jeweler's pliers. Both can be purchased at Wal-Mart
for around $5, and there's plenty of wire left over for other projects.
The rubber boots that came with the doll can be cut down to resemble shoes. Ken's feet are way smaller, so the shoes that come with the Henry Higgins suit don't fit. I bought the stand at Hobby Lobby for $2.77. The writing tablet and pencil came from the miniature section of the Hobby Lobby for around $2. The pencil was converted into a pen through the use of black electrical tape wrapped around it and then a silver marker was used to color the tip and end. A toothpick will also work. I used the BAPS logo design for the base, and while I was at Shore Leave in July, asked James Marsters to sign it. This was covered with clear self-adhesive vinyl to preserve it for the ages.
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William the Bloody Awful Poet is
now ready for display. If only he could come up with a word that rhymes
with "effulgent"!
Ken is a a tad taller than G.I.Joe, so the suit is a little baggy. But I think that works for William because he has that disheveled look. I also will eventually replace the tie so that it is is closer to the color in "Fool for Love." All in all, I am pleased with the results. Now, I have a little poet to keep me company when I'm working on something for BAPS. I think my heart may grow a bulge in it! If you decide to make your own William the BAP, email me a picture. I'd love to see it. -- Alane I've grown accustomed to the trace
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