Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
So here I am. And, here is Jessica.
She looks like she's been buried at the bottom of a gravel pit for gods knows how long. Still I believe, heart and soul, that she deserves a second chance.
Wow, was she folded up in a hide-a-bed all these years. The compression damage and distortions are very noticeable. Moving on,
Just a another image showing the distortion to her neck and flat left boob
In spite of being filthy dirty, bent, broken, ripped and torn, she seems in good spirits...
(I've many other pictures of her damaged areas which I will show later as I attempt the repairs... For now it's time for a bath).
Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
It's a start!
...
End of first night, Jessica in full traction, but need more bandages for this...
24hrs later, we have full compression bandages in place (still working on removing stains, my room has a faint aroma of various chemicals, should sleep well tonight. lol )
Time to call it a night. Rest well Jessica
(time to order some supplies. To be continued...)
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Still looking for ways to remove the staining from her "skin". I have tried most household cleaners, acetone, and mineral spirits. Her skin seems to be very resilient as I've stepped up to the harsher chemicals. These have lessened the stains but not removed them entirely. She also still has a fairly strong order of mildew which I'm hoping fades with time. She has a lot of exposed foam areas so I will be double checking that these areas are clean and mold-free before gluing her up.
I did order some supplies for the more serious repairs today. Mostly these have been tried and tested by other TDF members.
TAP Premium Liquid Latex Rubber (pint): URE-BOND® II Urethane Adhesive & EZ~Mix® 40 - One To One Liquid Brushable Urethane Rubber (both in pint sizes). All-in-all, probably about $150 in mats with shipping cost (I think she's worth it )
- von_Shredhead
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
So how are the Smith girls taking to their new "sister"? I hope they are nice to her.
Well Mr Smith ...I wish you much luck and good karma in restoring Jessica back to new-ish condition. She will make an awesome addition to your family!
Cheers,
Von and the girls
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Hi Von,von_Shredhead wrote:Howdy Mr Smith!! Just found Jessica's repair thread ... SWEET!!! I really like the "traction" idea for reshaping/remolding her body line ... I REALLY hope that it works out!!! She looks really good with the compression bandages applied ... like she has a new lease on life! Did Mike/itsme ever find a set of teeth for her? I know when Skillz was selling her, that Mike or itsme was going to attempt to find a set of teeth for her. Don't know what the end result was from that conversation.
So how are the Smith girls taking to their new "sister"? I hope they are nice to her.
Well Mr Smith ...I wish you much luck and good karma in restoring Jessica back to new-ish condition. She will make an awesome addition to your family!
Cheers,
Von and the girls
Smith girls are smitten with Jessica. They all want her happy and healthy, as do I! I don't know about the "traction" idea for reshaping/remolding her body line... you can really see her distortions, bent right arm, crooked neck, and deep crease her back, in some of the pictures above. I am guessing this is from being bent-up in storage for a long period of time. I do know that foam will hold a certain shape if under compression for long periods as is evident by her deformities. My hope is that I can reshape her core with a new "memory". If this doesn't work then I will look at more advance options (possibly adding some internal supports).
My other short term goal is getting her clean which is presenting a challenge (no wire bushes here ).
Next I've got a lot of gluing up to do (lucky I have your guide from Abby repair ). Left arm is nearly detached from her body. Her other wounds are really pretty superficial, split seams, etc., that do not extend into the foam core so should be much easier to repair. Supplies are on their way.
Then there is the boob job. She has gel boobs which are nice and soft, but need some added volume. I haven't really thought this through yet, maybe some kind of injection material, or a small incision below the breast to add some "stuffing".... not sure what that's going to be, any ideas come to mind?
She'll get eye upgrade, new wig, and new teeth. I haven't contacted Mike to see if I can get the teeth yet, but will do. If not I do have some other ideas for that as well. This is a slow project. Not really in a hurry or anything. I want to get her as right as I can. I will add updates as I can to this thread. As I said I really want it to be a journal of Jessica's recovery and hope others can find useful information here or contribute ideas to this tread. There are not a lot of C8T repair threads, yours aside, and I figure Jessica's road to recovery may help other dolls and their owners.
Thanks for the good wishes and good karma. I know Jessica appreciates it.
Tell the Von Bunch "Hi" for me and the girls.
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Mike
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
This might work out if you give it enough time. When 'Tator first was unpacked, she was totally crunched up in the corner of her shipping box ... she was quite misshapen and extremely lumpy. I let her 'relax' in a totally prone position ... using Narcissus' storage tips. She has gradually 'straightened out' over the months that I've had her. She still has air pockets and empty bubbles of missing foam, but those are hidden pretty well when she is dressed. She's rather shy about being naked.Mr-Smith wrote:My hope is that I can reshape her core with a new "memory"
I hope that being wrapped like Jessica is will reshape her main core foam.
I don't think you will have any issues or trouble spots with re-gluing her arm ... the latex trick has so far proven to be durable. The split seams and minor tears will be easy-peasy. Probably already have done these repairs numerous times.
Boobs?? I have no clue on gel boob repairs ... maybe contact itsme through Mike and see if he can guide you??? I don't really know.
I look forward to Jessica's recovery journal! She'll be AWESOME!Mr-Smith wrote:She'll get eye upgrade, new wig, and new teeth. I haven't contacted Mike to see if I can get the teeth yet, but will do. If not I do have some other ideas for that as well. This is a slow project. Not really in a hurry or anything. I want to get her as right as I can. I will add updates as I can to this thread. As I said I really want it to be a journal of Jessica's recovery and hope others can find useful information here or contribute ideas to this tread. There are not a lot of C8T repair threads, yours aside, and I figure Jessica's road to recovery may help other dolls and their owners.
The girls say "Hi Jessica! We send our best wishes for your recovery." Roxy misses Lily somethin' fierce ... she wants to chat with her soooooooo bad. I think she has some gossip she wants to share with her best pen-pal.
Cheers,
Von
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Hi Mike thanks for checking on the teeth. You happen to find a set laying around let me know. I gladly pay for them. I do think Jessica is a unique and beautiful doll. Hope Skillz doesn't mind if I re-post one of his pictures of Jessica in her heyday. Not expecting to get her back to new, but this is a great shot.Candy8teen wrote:Hope you get back in shape. I will look for some teeth for her I seen some around. Jessica looks so nice with her teeth in.
Mike
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Cheers,
Von
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
She is much better off with you. Jessica's face has always been one of my favorites, because she reminds me of Veronica Lodge.
http://www.dollalbum.com/dollgallery/in ... ?cat=13590
And http://dollforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=40240
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Ahhhhhhh yessssssss ... Thank you Joe!! I had a faint feeling of recognition but could not for the life of me figure out "who" she reminded me of. (please, oh grammar nazi, forgive me for ending a sentence with a preposition - LOL)Joe Bin wrote: because she reminds me of Veronica Lodge.
Cheers,
Von
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"Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life."
Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Still looking for a way to clean her skin better. I've washed the repair areas multiple times with Acetone and not much change. The dirt and grim is in the very pores of her urethane skin and anything I've tried has had little effect in removing it. Acetone will clean the surface but won't "lift" the staining from her porous skin.
Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
Joe Bin, I had to look that one up. For the life of me I couldn't place her name. I do remember having a few Archie comics as a kid. I'm quite sure I squeezed one or two out for Veronica . If only I hadn't decided to keep her name Jessica, but she might have just picked up a new nicknamevon_Shredhead wrote:Ahhhhhhh yessssssss ... Thank you Joe!! I had a faint feeling of recognition but could not for the life of me figure out "who" she reminded me of. (please, oh grammar nazi, forgive me for ending a sentence with a preposition - LOL)Joe Bin wrote: because she reminds me of Veronica Lodge.
Cheers,
Von
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Re: Project Jessica, a journey of heart and soul.
I wish I knew of a way to remove these stains ... you have tried every method I have and have had the same results. TIP : DO NOT use bleach ... I tried this and the bleach grabbed every little bit of iron in my water and stained the skin something terrible ... have all kinds of dark, rusty stripes where the bleach/water/soap solution was used. Cannot get 'em out.
I wonder what would happen if one were to place the doll in direct sunlight ... like give her a "tanning session" so to speak ... if it would be even or end up blotchy? Mike/Ron??
Well Mr Smith, Project Jessica is getting off to a great start! May she live long and prosper!
Cheers,
Von
Nina's Thread - Doll Sweet 145cm
Lila's Thread - Doll Sweet 145cm
Heather's Thread - 4Woods Allure
Sativa's Thread - Virgin Rose Kelu
Naomi's Thread - 1AM WM125
"Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life."