D'Laura learns to skateboard, Krys tries on wigs, and introducing... Briony!

On her way out to try skateboarding again, D'Laura is startled to run into her cousin-once-removed, Briony Shapira Barwari. Though close in age, they didn't see much of each other as children, since Briony's large family lived in another state and only showed up every few years to camp in the back yard.

It's a sure thing, though, that Briony knows how to skateboard. Briony always knows how to do anything dangerous.

"Briony, I'd forgotten your head was so... ROUND."

Briony is, of course, Ever After High's Briar Beauty, and I'm pretty sure she's Getting Fairest, which means she made it to the Park and Swap in less than a year, possibly while she's still in some retail stores.

"Here, I'll show you. This is really simple."

I'd started the morning by going to what were supposed to be a splendiferous Dollar Tree and Ross up in Sunnyslope. Both were in fact substandard, to the point that Ross had no Yasmin. The motion of the southbound bus was sufficiently soothing that I stayed on it all the way to downtown and took the train to the Park & Swap to look at fakies.

Fakies at the swap mart turn out to be more expensive than the Barbies they're knocking off! The flea-market-style vendor from whom I got Krys had nothing of interest (but is clearly cleaning out every Goodwill in the state for plastic dollhouses). Another vendor had Briar Beauty for less than the price of a fake, so here she is. (And yes, I've got to find a better spot to do photos -- all my windows face south, so there's never not back light.)

"Now let's see you do it."

"I'm gliding! I'm a sk8tr grrrrl!"

Briony sort of got to come home because I was so surprised that she's not the whiter shade of pale that I associate with EAH. Also, D'Laura was feeling lonely, now that Cleo is spending all her time with Cousin Hattie.

Briony: "I totally want her dress."
D'Laura: "Look! A squirrel!"

While they're at the spa having their hair boil-washed, Krys shows up to pick up her wig.

"Have you seen any wigs around here?"

Krys also is feeling lonely, since Alexis works so hard and manages to exude so much disapproval of Krys' lack of direction. She decides to impress Briony by trying on other gals' wigs.

In the extra Katie wig, Krys looks serious and grown-up.

"Mr. Trump, I'm here for my job interview."

The effect of borrowing Hayden's wig is more Nicki Minaj.

"Jump in my hoopty hoopty hoop, I own that."

"OMG, girl, no. Just no."

In her own normal wig, she looks normal.

"A little windblown?"

"That is sooooo much more you."

The plan was then a purposeful afternoon of making dresses.

So my sewing machine broke -- as in, pieces that should be attached to other pieces are not attached, and there's no sign of a widget to re-attach them.

Now, my sewing machine is at least 30 years old, bought on Craig's List missing its attachments, and generally neglected, so it's not surprising that it hates me. I'm also pretty sure that repair costs would be more than its street value, if only because anybody who works by the hour for less than this machine's street value is flipping burgers, not doing skilled repair work. Plus, it weighs more than the cat, and while it wriggles less and won't meow, I don't especially want to haul that kind of weight around on buses.

So I'm now pricing sewing machines at Walmart because Walmart is a place that is on bus lines, is open past 5 p.m. every day, and puts its stock online -- none of which is done by locally owned shops.

D'Laura: "I finally got a dress. But I think it needs straps or a belt or something."
Briony: "I stole the rose dress. That's really all I care about."

D'Laura and Briony are not getting sewn-in waistlines in their dresses because their similar hair coloring means I want them to share clothes, but while D'Laura has the figure of somebody who needs a sandwich, Briony has the shape of a person who got the sandwich and finished maybe half of it. So they don't wear the same waist size.

"Oh well, at least we got out and did stuff."

Meanwhile, it's none too certain whether Alexis will approve of Krys hanging around with Briony. While Briony's good-hearted and never gets in any real trouble, her recklessness and tendency to head out on any available adventure may not sit well with responsible, focused Alexis.