tastes like umami spirit

Hi everyone! How have you been? I'm writing a quick post today to say that the Bikbik & Roro shop is going on a little hiatus -- I've gotten so busy with the other shop, it's been a challenge comfortably juggling the two (and the kids, and their schoolwork, and o yes! Jake! lol)!

So, ready-made items are ready-to-ship, but custom, made-to-order ones are dependent on what projects I'm working on at the time. The little girl you see at the top is my most recent custom -- her name is Sadie and I love her shy, sweet nature!

I'm so honoured that Sadie's been adopted and found her forever home. As some of you did email me asking for more details about the other "mystery" shop, let me tell you more about it now.

I named it Umami, because it was a word that jumped out at me from a magazine I saw lying open on the bathroom floor (I'm sorry it wasn't a more profound story lol). But the meaning of it, and even the sound, seemed just right to me.

In case you didn't know, umami is a Japanese loan word -- it means something like "pleasant savoury taste". It is the fifth taste, the other four being sweet, salty, sour and bitter. One tastes umami through receptors for glutamate, which scientists consider distinct from saltiness. Many of my favourite foods are umami-rich, including mushrooms, potatoes, soy, fish, and green tea.

I've come to think that my penchant for antiques, Victorian literature, vintage films and the like has influenced my style of Blythe. Some artists create distinctly babyish Blythes; others do sultry, or sulky, punk or goth. To a large extent I guess one can tell an artist's nature, style or culture from his or her work; my Blythes seem to be vintage-y and old worldly. I think I'd like to try punkish vamp at some point, though she will probably end up looking like a Victorian punkish vamp lol.

You can find UmamiBaby here on Etsy, and here on Flickr. People on my adoption mailing list get a sort of one-day heads-up on when a new girl is up for adoption, giving them the opportunity to reserve her before she's listed publicly in the shop. To get on the mailing list, you can just convo me on Etsy with your email addy, or email me directly at little.umiumi@gmail.com 

Have a lovely new week filled with child-like joy and wonder!