Custom painted My Little Pony's! I got three blanks, which is the most cost effective way to buy them on my budget. (available here: http://www.hasbrotoyshop.com/my-little-pony-decorate-your-own-pony?BR=704&ST=SO&PG=1 )
My daughter, who is 4 and has artistic opinions on EVERYTHING, is commissioning one pony. The 2nd will be my elaborate rosebush design. I've had a plan for this pony for several months now. I've sketched her out and she'll be covered head to toe in winding rose stems, leaves and blooms. I have the really tiny paintbrushes, I just need to take the time to draw it all out, and carefully paint within the design.
The third pony I'm holding in reserve for my next creative strike. Besides, it makes sense to finish the first couple before I try anything else. I also have a couple fake ponies (non Hasbro) to experiment on.
the real adventure so far has been in dying the hair. Fabric dye was too weak to really penetrate the synthetic, but I'm having better luck with food dye. I may also look into trying ink. I just have to find an ink that will coat without destroying the luster.
So I've been busy setting dye all day, and hopefully by the end of the hour I'll have two ponies with perfectly colored hair. It's really fun, very much like a hair salon painting on the dyes and letting them set over time.
There will be pictures when the projects are done.