NEWS - ZOMBIE PREPAREDNESS KIT SELLS FOR $24,000

Zombie preparedness kit sells for $24,000



Posted on July 30, 2012 by Starr Keshet

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So you've watched Romero's Day of the Dead, read World War Z twice and are waiting for the third season of The Walking Dead. Clearly, you are prepared for the zombie apocalypse. Or are you?



When it comes to ravenous zombies, we all know you can't be too prepared.  So if you have an extra $24,000 to shell out on a preparedness kit, Optics Planet's Z.E.R.O. just might be what are you 

Short for Zombie Extermination, Research and Operations, the kit claims to offer everything you need to survive the advent of the undead hordes, like basic first aid equipment, batteries and a solar panel.



Z.E.R.O. also offers a cache of scientific equipment for amateur researchers hoping to cure walkers and inoculate survivors, including syringes, beakers and a microscope. 



What about weapons?

 Well, you won't be disappointed. Yes, Z.E.R.O. is equipped with a very respectable zombie killing arsenal, boasting a custom holographic sight and biohazard reticle, a specially designed  combat knife, tactical gloves with ridged knuckles and an OPMOD Battle Mug.

"We have a lot of stuff already that are related to zombies, and we thought it would be fun to put together a collection of all that stuff," Optics Planet rep Brian Weiss told CBS Atlanta.


"We wanted to raise awareness of what could people need in a survival situation, like with the weather we've been having lately... We want to get people thinking about what they could use."

ONESIE DRESS-TUTORIAL

The Onesie Dress, a tutorial 

 It is the perfect little dress for a little girl, and is pretty simple to make.

Here is a tutorial:

None of these instructions need to be followed exactly, just fyi.
They are more like suggestions.

 Step 1. Gather your supplies.
You will need:
a onesie, any size
1/3 yard fabric for dress
less than 1/4 yard fabric for ruffle (really just a 3 inch wide strip), optional
1/8 inch wide elastic, length depends on size of onesie
(I needed 15 inches for my size 3-6 month onesie.)

*****
Step 2. Wash and dry onesie and fabric.

*****

 Step 3. Measure the onesie.
Put your measuring tape straight across the front, directly under the sleeves.
(My onesie measured 7.5 inches across.)

 Then measure the length, starting about where you measured the width.
(Mine was 9.5 inches.)

*****

 tep 4. Cut (or rip, as I prefer) the fabric.

For the dress:
You will need a long rectangle.
Take the first measurement from Step 3 (7.5 in) and multiply it by 4 (30 in).
This is the length of the rectangle.
The width is the second measurement from Step 3 (9.5 in), minus about 2 inches if you plan on adding a ruffle (7.5-ish).
Rip a piece of fabric to size.
(I prefer ripping because it is fast and accurate.)

For the ruffle:
Take the length of the rectangle for the dress (30 in) and multiply it by 1.5 (45 in).
This is the length of your ruffle.
The width can vary, but I find 3 inches (it will be 2 inches when finished) to be a good size.
Rip a piece of fabric to size.

Press torn edges.

*****

Step 5. Sew side seams together on dress and ruffle.
(I prefer a 1/2 inch seam allowance, but anything will work.)

Press.

*****

Now finish the top edge of the dress and the bottom edge of the ruffle
by turning the rough edge under about 1/4 inch, and then again, and stitching.
(If you chose not to add a ruffle, you would finish both edges of the dress.)

 *****

Step 6. Gather the ruffle and attach to dress.
After gathering, pin the ruffle to the dress, right sides together, matching side seams, and making sure to spread the gather evenly.
Sew in place.
(This step is a kind of a pain.)
Finish the rough edge inside with a zig zag stitch.
(This keeps it from raveling and just looks nicer.
Also, this is when I dream of owning a serger.)
*****

Step 7. Topstitch
This will make the ruffle lie flat and pretty.
It also looks more official this way.

Step 8. Attach the elastic.

Remember when you measured across the front of the onesie way back in step 3?
You need that measurement again (7.5 in) times two (15 in).
Cut the elastic this length.
Position the elastic on the wrong side of the fabric, just under the finished edge, and sew it on, pulling tight to stretch it as you go.
(I like to mark the halfway point of the elastic and the dress with some pins. I try to match these up as I am sewing so the elastic will be even throughout the dress.)
*****

 

 Step 9. Attach the dress to the onesie.
Pin the dress to the onesie, making sure the top edge is straight.

 Sew in place.
I use a small zig zag stitch directly over the elastic.
Take your time on this step, and make sure the onesie is flat underneath.

*****

Different dress depicted from tutorial. same technique used to achieve this look.

 Step 10. Give to a pretty baby girl.

 

 This dress leaves a lot of room for embellishment, if that is your thing.
Piping, ric rac, ribbon, etc. would all dress it up a bit.

 

All measurements can be approximated, because a gathered dress leaves a lot of room for error.
 

TEA DYING OLD ONSIES - TUTORIAL

Tea Dying Old Onesies

Baby Ruth is our 3rd child and the poor girl is destined to wear more than her fair share of hand-me-downs. Like this pile of onesies...already worn by one brother and one sister...not as bright as they used to be...and even a little stained...

 But instead of making her wear them all dingy and sad I wanted to make them over into something I would actually want to put Ruth in. Finally I decided that the best solution would be dye. And I set about to revive an old love of mine----the tea dye.

 Tea dying is easy I just follow these simple steps:

#1. Get your garment wet. (I just ran mine under some warm water and then wrung out the excess.)

#2. Submerge your garment in a warm tea bath. (I just boiled water in a pot on the stove, added several Lipton tea packets, let simmer until my water turned a nice deep shade of brown and then let it cool down before adding the clothing.)
#3. Let your garment sit in the bath until you get the color you desire. (Actually I let mine get a little darker to compensate for the rinse to follow.)
#4. Rinse your garment until the water runs clear.
#5. Dry in the drier to set the color.

 Once I was finished with that process I started adding things like lace and buttons to the onesies to make them a little more girly. (They really didn't need anything added, I forgot how much I love anything tea dyed, but I couldn't help myself and out came the trim bin.)

 It was a simple, old fashioned project but I kind of love it. (And I always like the idea of giving something old new life again.) Now I just need Ruth to get big enough to wear them.

WHAT BROUGHT ME TO THE DARK SIDE!

i had been tossing the idea around for a while about trying my hand at more than just free form, or custom reborns, my idea was to try out ZOMBIES.

i had looked online and searched through images, and ebay, and every corner of the net that i could think to do and use as a launching pad for mu idea, and i was surprised to find that very little is done in this area.

i have had commnunication with another Gothic Reborn Artist, named Lacey Michelle from LaceyMichelleStudios.com and had left a comment on one of her dolls pictures she posted up. lacey Michelle specializes in Vampire children and babies, so i was telling her i was considering getting into the field, didnt want to do vampires, because she was the master (in MY opinion) of that area, but i was thinking of trying my hand at Zombies.

and she came back with a return comment of (parapharsing) " you shoudl totally do that michelle! i get asled once a week to make a zombie and i have to turn them all down becasue i dont do that as a doll. "

got me to thinking.

at my best i can command 300.00 a doll, on the cheap side...at my best? well...that can be anything, really.

theres 52 weeks in a year. lets say i do get 1 request a week to make a doll...at 300.00.
52x 300.00 = 15,600 for 1 year. and all im doing is painting kits, and putting them together!  thats not to bad a pay scale. and..i really enjoy it too!

so, basically i can, when im doing my best work (which will come in time) do a marginal income, and for doing something i enjoy which is making these dolls.

so i had made the choice.

created the Doll page on facebook.
http://www.facebook.com/UndeadRebornNursery

and saw a post on one of the reborn threads scroll through my facebook main page, that was someone asking about where anyone know of where to get any demon/zombie dolls at.

i mentioned i had just decided to do this area, and we got to talking.

she said, sight unseen, shed want me to make her one. (i had never made one..it was an idea at this point)
so, i knew id have to get a kit.
i really like the TORY kit as a zombie, she has this 'look' about her, and went to go order it, and it wasnt available.

so, i had to get SOPHIE instead. i like her too, she has the ability to suck her thumbs, and its kinda creepy to see a zombie eating thier own flesh, lol
so, i purchased her.

she arrived 3 days later and i started my quest of reborning my 1st Zombie doll.
susequently, the next day TORY shows back up online for purchase, and while i could i ordered her as well.

in the meantime as im posting pics of Sophies progress, this one individual who said shed buy off of me, was falling in love with Sophie.

Tory took a longer time to get to me, thankfully i follow my kits progress in the mail system online, and it was noted that Tory took an adventure to Florida...so she came a couple of days later than she should have.
shes here now, and i have started her as well..

so, if your into the Horror dolls, and like reborns, and are interested in seeing if i can make a business of this art, continue to follow my progress...

im having a blast!
Michelle

ARTICLE - 'A DEMON TODDLER IN A BLACK CRIB WAS ALWAYS MY FANTASY' : THE WOMAN WITH 500 LIFE-LIKE HORROR DOLLS THAT SHE TREATS LIKE REAL BABIES

'A demon toddler in a black crib was always my fantasy': The woman with 500 life-like horror dolls that she treats like real babies

By Olivia Fleming
PUBLISHED:17 July 2012

An eccentric doll collector with 500 life-like plastic babies, who she looks after as if they were living; changing their clothes, washing their hair and taking them to the park, has unveiled a sinister side to her collection.
Showing off the blood stained horror toys in her Staten Island apartment, 33-year-old Marilyn Mansfield says she is happiest among her collection of Krypt Kiddies and Living Dead Dolls.
The married mother of three never leaves the house without one of her dolls, which are so sought after by collectors they are valued up to $2,500 each -  an overall collection worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Mrs Mansfield said she first fell in love with the idea of horror dolls by watching the infamous 1980's Hollywood slasher movie, Chucky, starring a homicidal doll of the same name.

'I have always loved Chucky dolls,' admited Marilyn. 'To have a demon baby in a black crib, that was always my fantasy.'
Mrs Mansfeild is so devoted to her dolls that she has turned her hobby into a business, and now creates her own horror dolls, selling them to customers for up to $300.

The doll collector is also obsessed with dolls designed to be as close to real babies as possibly - called 'reborners'.

She also creates 'portrait babies' which are crafted to look like her customer's children.
'I would say a lot more work goes into making a doll look life-like and real than goes into making a scary-looking doll,' she said.
'I find it more challenging to make them look realistic.'
Mrs Mansfield said she has mixed reactions when she takes the dolls out in public and often elicits shocks from strangers who come to coo at one of her 'babies'.

'I take them out with me and my family in a car seat and in a stroller. I don't do it for attention, it just makes me feel very content, and if someone thinks the doll is real or asks me questions, I'm always sure to tell them it's only a doll.
'One woman who saw one of the dolls in a store recently said: "Your baby looks a little pale. Is he OK?" She touched him and screamed when she found out it was a doll.'
Mrs Mansfield, who has featured on the TLC show My Collection Obsession, said that her children are not jealous of the playthings.
Her seven-year-old son has his own doll collection and her 12-year-old daughter helps her mother change and wash the dolls.

She said that her husband has no interest in the dolls, but has grown used to their large 'family'.

'Holding these dolls is so calming and relaxing - the experience is very absorbing,' she said.
'When your own kids are babies, it's a special time. Having a reborn doll is like having that all of the time.'