Sunday, October 31, 2010

Save the date - November 3!

Barbie Basics No 5, Lea sculpt.
BarbieCollector.com is launching their new website on Wednesday, November 3, and will be offering shoppers some specials.

  • For 24 hours only, get 25% off all in stock items, from midnight 11/3 CT through 11:59PM CT. The discount will appear in your shopping cart.
  • Get a special gift when you purchase Barbie Basics or Christian Louboutin products.
  • Enter a chance to win the Barbie Collector Grand Re-Opening Sweepstakes 11/3-11/9. No purchase is necessary, nor will it increase your chances of winning, but you must be a legal US resident to enter.
Take a sneak peek of the new homepage here!

Saturday, October 30, 2010

The Alice Project, Day 37

Beatnik Blues Poppy Parker by Integrity Toys.
A mod Alice, or just mod? For day 37, I'm using Beatnik Blues Poppy Parker as my model. I think she's just a tad sweet for a true Beatnik girl, but I think she makes an excellent Alice. Well, maybe not excellent if you're into traditional Alices, but give me a break. This is day 37! I'm coming rapidly to a close of this project.

She's a sweet little doll, though. And you can see her in this group of 37 dolls--if you look closely. On the left, next to Aria.



Friday, October 29, 2010

2011 San Diego Comic Con Registration

Online registration for the 2011 San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) opens Monday, November 1st, at 9 am pacific time. Both four day and one day memberships will be available. All four day memberships with preview night are already sold out. Kids 11 and under are admitted free with paying adult.


Why attend Comic Con? Besides being a lot of fun, it's amazing the number of doll and doll-related vendors that are in attendance in the Exhibition Hall. This past year Mattel provided a sneak preview of five different collector Barbies from the 2011 line in addition to selling an exclusive color variant of Frankie Stein from their new Monster High play line. Jun Planning USA had a booth where they were selling their Comic Con exclusive Vampire Byul Lilith in addition to all of their regular line dolls at show special prices. Hobby Link Japan sold out of their Re-Ment stock on the first night. A local vendor was selling Jun Planning's J-Doll at incredibly low prices. Those are just a few examples.


Don't wait too long to purchase your membership. Each year "the Con" sells out earlier and earlier. The 2011 SDCC runs from July 21st to July 24th. I hope to see you there!

The Alice Project, Day 36

Manuheali’i Paradise Girl dressed in Jdoll makes a modern Alice.
Here is just a single photo of Blythe as Alice. She's an exclusive Blythe to CWC, and she's dressed in an outfit from J-Doll, Vass Sofias. I think she makes a very cute, modern version of Alice.

And the entire group of Alices (you may notice my girls' dolls have been redressed--I count myself lucky that they are even in the photo) all together are pictured below.



Thursday, October 28, 2010

The Alice Project, Day 35


 On day 35 of the Alice Project, I'm introducing Peak's Woods Sky as Pink Alice. She's another Asian BJD, and she's dressed in a pink and black polkadot cocktail dress (homemade and picked up at a doll club meet), a DollHeart apron (from Alice Underground), IMPLDoll shoes, Michele Hardy wig, and Dollzone glass eyes in red.

Really, all you need to make an Alice is an apron and a dress. And maybe the dress is optional.

Here are all the girls together.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Poppy Plays Dress-Up

I'm still working on trying to reduce my doll collection to a manageable size. For now that means gathering items, photographing them, and then listing them on eBay. I'm currently concentrating on parting with fashion doll clothing. However, I can never seem to manage to do any of this in a straight forward manner. Hence this post. Between stage 1, "Gathering" and stage 2, "Photographing", I seem to have snuck in stage 1.5, "Try the outfit on Summer Magic Poppy, take a picture, and then decide to keep the outfit."

The first picture in this post is Poppy in a Barbie Fashion Fever strapless dress and an orange net top which I believe is also Fashion Fever. In the midst of this little photography session, it dawned on me that I've never tried Fashion Fever items on any Poppy. I think a lot of that is because I was stuck in storyline mode, i.e. outfits needed to support Poppy's story of being a young, wide-eyed, mid-Western girl transplanted to New York City in the early 60's. Fashion Fever outfits, however, reflect a more current trend in clothing. While it's not a perfect fit, I think it looks cute enough to keep. Poppy looks very fresh and summery in the outfit.

Next up were outfits taken from the America's Next Top Model (ANTM) dolls by MGA Entertainment. These outfits just barely fit Poppy. Apparently the ANTM dolls have a smaller bust than Poppy. If you look on my Flickr photostream you can see pictures of the back of the dresses. You can see where the white velcro doesn't completely match up. Of course, the fix to that is, just don't look at Poppy from the back! I have to say, I really love Poppy in the bathing suit. Although, once again, don't look at Poppy from the back. She shows a little more of her derriere than she'd like. So, the two dresses and one bathing suit from the ANTM dolls are also keepers.  Good grief, aren't I going to get rid of anything?!

Lastly, I tried some vintage Barbie on Poppy. Once again, what took me so long to try this line on her, especially given her storyline? Here Poppy models Sorority Meeting from 1962 - 1963 and Peachy Fleecy Coat from 1963. These items fit very nicely. The bust of the dress is a little large for Poppy, but not a show-stopper. The coat fits amazingly well and is not at all bulky even though Poppy is wearing two additional layers underneath. I realize the hat is on backwards, but it's a little misshapen and seems to fit better this way.  Also, I kind of like the little flourish of the cording showing in the front.  It adds a little more interest to the hat. Once again, two outfits that will not be leaving my house. I do have an immediate use for them though.  Once Halloween is over, I'll start work on a Thanksgiving display and I think Poppy would look adorable as a dinner guest in her new togs.

Peak's Woods news... really!

Yulli, Fairy of Color, normal skin. Photo property of Peak's Woods.
About ten days ago, while Peak's Woods was attending the LDoll Festival in France, I posted a message on the Inquire Board on their website in order to help me start planning next year's doll budget. Those of you who know me well also know I'm an obsessive Peak's Woods fan. I asked the following three questions and received answers recently.

Question:

I've seen several sleeping Peak's Woods dolls on DollHeart's website (Sleeping Yami and Sleeping Cue). Are these dolls still available to order, or will either be available again?*

Answer:
Yes, we used to have some sleeping version dolls for sale. But not anymore. I think those dolls will be possible for sale next year since we've been talking about that, too. :)
Question:

Without spoiling surprises, do you have plans or dates of new limited edition (especially tan versions) dolls for next year, and do you know how many you will be producing? (Just to help me budget a little better...)

Answer: 
Well... preparing LE or events for fans and customers are our such pleasures but even though we thought our plans through, we can't still put our finger on it like who will be the next tan doll. 
However, I can tell you that we have some projects for next month, Christmas, and New Year's Day.
Our newest FOC is almost ready to be shown to the public which we are so excited about.
And for the Merry Christmas, we will provide full set dolls each limited no more than three as Christmas presents.
And nothing changes and we stick to the plan with no problems, we will have LE with our newest doll and her wake up version as sisters.
Question:

Have you sold many Yulli dolls? I've searched all over for owner photos of her, but I can't seem to find any.

Answer: 
I think the reason that you can't find many pictures of Yulli must be that she's been adopted by mostly fans in Asia. And many of our fans are not that active online. :)
I don't know about you, but the Christmas/New Year special sounds like fun to me, as does the new FOC girl and her wake-up sister. I can't wait!

*Note: DollHeart is no longer a dealer of Peak's Woods dolls. To order these dolls, you must order them directly from Peak's Woods website now, or from a dealer who still has them in stock.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

10 Ways to subtly hint to your significant other that you'd like dolls for the holidays.

Peak's Woods Yulli. Photo property of Peak's Woods.
At one of our recent doll meets, I heard one of our regular attendees talking about how her husband had purchased her a particular doll--while it was on sale, even--as a birthday gift for her. Naturally, we were curious, and that has lead to today's top ten list.
  1. Open your web browser to the corresponding doll page during the promotional period, and walk away from the computer. Pointing your browser to the actual doll you'd like isn't a bad idea, either. Then casually remark, "Gee, honey, such-and-such is having a terrific sale today on this doll I've always wanted. It's nearly XX% off! It would make such a great birthday/anniversary/insert-your-holiday gift this year!"
  2. Does your doll dealer know you on a first name basis? (Oh, come on. I can't be the only one!) You might suggest she or he might send your significant other a short email message with gift suggestions.
  3. If that doesn't work, you might want to email him yourself.
  4. Talk enthusiastically about what you enjoy most about your collection, and specifically, what you'd like to add. For example, "Oh, Peak's Woods has had this wonderful sculpt in their line for a while, and I've been wanting to add her to my collection forever! She looks like a sister to my other girls, but she has an open-mouth sculpt, and she's just so lovely. And they often take a long time to order. Her name is Yulli--she's the model on a bunch of the wigs on their website. I think she's so sweet.... Do you have something in mind already for my birthday?"
  5. Make a Wish list on Amazon.com--they actually have a lot of dolls now! Froogle.com is another easy way to make a wish list as well. (Ask your other dealers if they will do a wish list for you as well, if you provide them with a list of your dream dolls and email addresses.)
  6. Don't forget to keep mentioning what you'd like for your birthday or the holidays. I can't state how important this is.
  7. Leave magazine clippings or catalog clippings of your grail dolls around the house, with a website link attached (handwritten, if must be).
  8. My experience--ask and you shall receive. So if you ask for a $20 doll, that's what he'll think you want. In my opinion, you should aim high. And have a variety of priced dolls and accessories on your list, just in case.
  9. Turn up the sweet factor. Clean up a little more, make his favorite foods, bat your eyelashes, hand over the remote more readily than usual--and since my daughter reads this blog, I'll stop right there. ;)
  10. Finally, comment on this blog (I'll be posting a wish list article soon) or post your wish list somewhere else online (Facebook is great, too), and make sure he sees it. Or just go for cash. That's a good alternative. (Honey, are you reading this post? I have to check sometimes, you know.)

Tonner Tuesday sale items

Evocative Antoinette™. Exclusive to TonnerDirect, limited
to 150. Photo property of Tonner Doll Company.
Four categories to share with you all this week, valid from 12-5 PM EST time today:

Several items are listed at limited quantities, so hurry for the ones listed exclusively to Tonner Direct. Good luck!

The Alice Project, Day 34

Dynamite Girl Aria, dressed as Alice.
For Day 34, we have Integrity Toys Dynamite Girl Aria dressed as an unconventional Alice. She's wearing a Momoko cotton blouse under a Mattel Birthstone Barbie (Aquamarine) lace dress and playline Barbie shoes (Fashion Fever).

I love this doll. I think she's very cool looking with her darker skin and blonde hair. I'd love to see an Aria with dark hair, too--it seems she's usually blonde.



Monday, October 25, 2010

10 Reasons you should follow netiquette on doll boards

  1. You might meet some of your online nemeses at doll conventions.
  2. You might meet some of your online nemeses at doll meets.
  3. It's hard to interpret "tone" online, and in writing, generally. To be on the safe side, if you think a message to you sounds negative, it's usually best to ignore it.
  4. It could be your message that sounds negative when you don't mean it to be.
  5. Just because they can't see you doesn't mean they can't find out who you are or where you live.
  6. Didn't your mother teach you the golden rule? Do unto others before they do you in! (Oh wait. Maybe I'm confusing the rule a little.)
  7. What if your children or grandchildren knew you just posted that?
  8. Is it really worth getting worked up over?
  9. It would be a very boring world if all doll collections/companies/dolls were exactly the same.
  10. If you post it on my blog, I might delete your comment. ;)

    The Alice Project, Day 33

    Mattel's version of Alice in Wonderland, a collector Barbie.
    Alice in Wonderland Barbie is a fun little doll by Mattel. I've actually put my doll's head on an Integrity Toys NuFace body to increase her posing ability, which was pretty easily done. Her dress is a one-piece number with lots of layers of satin, lamé and lace.

    You can see a few more photos of this doll on Flickr, plus below in the group of 33 Alices.


    Sunday, October 24, 2010

    New Liv Dolls, finally!

    Sorry I haven't posted for a while. I wanted to wait until I got some new Liv dolls, but I didn't know it would be this long. I'll try to post about other dolls, too. I recently got some dolls from one of our writers. So watch for that one!

    The first one shown here is Daniela in her Moonlight Dance costume. The label says they are only at Target, but they are really hard to find. When I got Daniela they only had her, Katie, and Alexis. No Sophie, even though they are Target exclusives. I tried searching them on Amazon but nothing was found.
    She has a short layer of dark hair and a long layer of blonde hair. Her dress looks like a sleeveless dress with a one shoulder blouse underneath. I don't know for sure, because I still haven't opened her. You may or may not be able to see her earrings. They are sideways on the right side and gold.

    Another Liv doll I finally got (to complete my collection of one of each sculpt) was Hayden. She came with a plaid jacket, butterfly net, a magnifying glass, a bunny, and a butterfly journal. She has little tiny braids in the front of her hair. But now that I've got her, I want to get the rest of the Back To Nature dolls.    

    But this time, no cat went up to sniff either of these dolls. I guess that good because I don't want cat fur all over them! I saw the back to school Hayden but I liked this one better.

    10 Reasons you should consider playline items for your collection

    Dynamite Girl Feelin' Fierce Dani surrounded by Barbie playline furniture and accessories, and a Rement tea cup.
    1. The price is right. You can't go wrong with a $15 Barbie play set for your diorama display.
    2. Interchangeability: Did you know Liv doll clothes (nice quality) will fit Model Muse Barbies, for example?
    3. Accessories: Check out the purses included with Moxie Teens!
    4. Variety: Every girl needs a variety of clothing, shoes and accessories. Sort your dolls' wardrobe by color, and you'll be surprised what outfits you can put together!
    5. Thrift stores and garage sales: You're much more likely to find playline dolls here than collector dolls. Don't snub them--check them out, see if sanding or painting them would fix them up to your liking and style.
    6. Vintage Barbies were all playline dolls at one time!
    7. You never know what sorts of tiny items will be in that play set.
    8. Playline stuff is a lot of fun to play with--plus, you can pass it (or unused items) on to younger collectors when you're finished with it.
    9. If you break it, it's not a big deal.
    10. You'll have more money to spend on dolls!

    The Alice Project, Day 32

    Plush Alice doll by Cimmerii. She's just so sweet!
    I bought this Alice from Cimmi Cumes, the artist who creates exclusive plushies and dolls at the website Cimmerii, where you can see more of her work. I think she's just adorable. The gallery hosted a Go Ask Alice show last year--an Alice-themed event, which I think was a fantastic idea. This doll was one of the show dolls. My girls trade off sleeping with this lovely girl.

    Here she is in the group photo, where my own dolls are giving her some much deserved love.

    Saturday, October 23, 2010

    10 Reasons you should attend a doll convention

    1. You'll have a lot of fun.
    2. You'll meet new people who love dolls and get out of your comfort zone.
    3. If you're not crazy about the convention doll, you can sell it to help cover your costs.
    4. It's worth it for the experience and the vacation.
    5. Two words: sales room!
    6. The workshops are a great time to increase your knowledge base and skill set. Even those of us who are less creative can learn photography skills and styling tips from the experts.
    7. Take your chances and enter a doll into one of the competitions--the prizes are great, and you'll have a great time.
    8. You can meet people you've only met on message forums and email lists. It's cool to put screen names with faces.
    9. Lots of door prizes and goodie bags will make it worth your while.
    10. That cleaning thing I mentioned earlier--well, it will be off your mind for at least a weekend. Isn't that worth it alone??

    The Alice Project, Day 31

    Tonner Doll's Alice Kingsleigh, from Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.
    For day 31, I'm using the best photos I have of this doll, Alice Kingsleigh. She's a Tonner Doll, from the Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland collection, and she stands 16" tall. She's wearing a pale blue dress with a chiffon overlay, black embroidery at the hem, tiny buttons on the front and crochet trim at the neckline, a petticoat, striped stockings, white boots, blue and white fingerless gloves, and a gold necklace with a red gem.

    See more photos of her on Flickr.


    Friday, October 22, 2010

    Diamond Barbie sets a new record price.

    Stefano Canturi Barbie, a one-of-a-kind doll sold at auction in New York for $302,500 to an anonymous bidder. The doll is wearing a black strapless evening gown with a choker with a one carat square-cut pink diamond, per the article from the BBC.

    $17,091 was the previous record for a Barbie auction.

    Canturi is an Australian jewelry designer, and his goal was to accent the doll's "modern yet timeless style." The proceeds of the sale will be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

    Check out the full story, and an AP photo of the doll, on the BBC's website.

    10 Reasons you should attend a doll club

    1. You'll see many different types of dolls in person.
    2. You might discover a new brand type of doll to collect yourself.
    3. You'll learn something new each meeting (including the club rules).
    4. You'll meet new people who have something in common with you, even if it's only collecting dolls.
    5. Most doll collectors are delighted to meet other doll collectors--and I've found they are very nice people.
    6. You'll discover other doll-related sales, workshops, conventions and shows in your area.
    7. It's a great way to step out of your comfort zone.
    8. Two words: sales and swaps!
    9. You might meet a customizer, older collector, or someone who sews who is willing to share their knowledge with you.
    10. Chances are, you'll meet someone who is saner than you, and someone who is nuttier than you!

    The Alice Project, Day 30

    Secret by Goodreau Doll, wearing a DollHeart wig and a OOAK outfit by Michele Hardy.
    Day 30 has arrived. A month of Alice dolls! This is Goodreau Doll's resin Secret. She is an American ball-jointed doll, and stands about 17" tall. She is wearing a wig by DollHeart, shoes by JennyGrey, and a one-of-a-kind Alice outfit designed by Michele Hardy.

    You can see a close-up of her on my Flickr photostream.

    I even am managing to keep up with the group photo so far. If you click on the photo, it should direct you to a larger image. (The girls are getting a little overwhelming.)


    Thursday, October 21, 2010

    Chill Factor Dynamite Girls

    Well, my girls finally arrived yesterday and I quickly whipped them out of their boxes and into the light to photograph.  All 3 girls are super cute, the clothing is very well made (jackets are lined and they have cute tiny button details!), the faux fur is nice and the mittens go on and off very easily.  The 3 girls in this collection are (L-R) Aria, Eltin and Neve (new character). 

    If you've never bought a Dynamite Girl before, these might be the ones to start with!  They also come with a new stand that you can use as a straddle stand or the kind that fits up under the armpits.  This is a welome change to the old stands.  Plus these girls have the new knees, which makes them a tad taller than they were previously, so they needed some upgraded stands.







    A Little Halloween Display

    Display with Flash

    For quite a few years I've been meaning to set up a Halloween doll display. Each year I'd find new items to include, but I'd never quite manage to get it all together. That changed this year. As part of my goal to rein in my collecting, instead of buying more items this year, I hunted throughout my house for all the goodies I've been amassing over the years. Once I found everything, I put together the above display.

    This display is dedicated to items in the playscale size, also known as 1:6 scale. Included are Halloween Barbies, Halloween Kellys and one Tommy, the Lucy and Ethel Martians from Lucy is Envious, and various Halloween decorations. While the first Halloween Barbie came out in 1997 as a Barbie and Kelly gift set, I didn't start collecting the Halloween Barbies until 2001. Every year since 2001 is represented in this display with the exception of 2005.  I'm not sure what happened that year to keep me from buying the Halloween Barbies, or maybe I did buy them and they're still lost in my house somewhere.  There's a truly scary thought!

    OK, I have a confession.  I fibbed at the beginning of this post. I actually did buy something this year...the Kellys and the Tommy. While putting the display together, I realized I didn't have any of the costumed kid dolls. What is Halloween without the trick-or-treating kids? For these I resorted to eBay. I found some great deals on these dolls by buying the ones sold in groups. While some sellers will only list one doll in an auction, other sellers will group several together. Even after combining my bid price with shipping cost, I still paid less than original retail on each doll.

    The props were a lot of fun to discover. The Mummy's Mansion sign in front of the Target Exlcusive "Halloween Fortune" came from Michael's. I don't remember the price on the sign, but I do remember it was on sale. That's one thing I love about Michael's; they'll put special occasion merchandise on sale even before the special occasion! The tiny skulls are from Target and came in packages of 30. I believe they retailed for around $5.00. The different headstones and gargoyles came from several different stores, Target, Michael's, or Big Lots, and each retailed for less than $2.00. If you look closely at the "Beware of the Black Widow" headstone you will notice a little spider sticker.  She's from a Halloween sticker set from Michael's.  I've scattered the other pieces from the set around the display. The two pumpkins came from a six pack I purchased for $2.99, also from Michael's. They're great because they are not decorated for Halloween. I'll be able to use them again in a Thanksgiving display. The tiny handled pumpkin in front of the little Genie Kelly is a cupcake topper from my childhood.

    I'm really happy that I finally set up a special occasion display. As much as I enjoy discovering all these neat things in the stores each year, I think I might have had more fun arranging them and rearranging them until I had them just the way I wanted. Now to start thinking about my Thanksgiving display!

    1961 Flocked Hair Ken Doll, Stock #750


    Barbie's boyfriend Ken was introduced in 1961 and, for the first year, had "flocked" hair (fuzzy headed). This hair flocking easily rubbed off so Mattel changed Ken to a molded hair model in 1962. The hair colors available that first year were blonde, brunette, and a rare brownette color. Ken had blue forward-glancing eyes, mauve lips, and brown eyebrows.


    He was made of hard plastic with a hollow torso marked: Ken T.M./Pats. Pend./c. MCMLX/by Mattel, Inc. He was dressed in bathing trunks, sandals, and sometimes a red and white beach jacket. The trunks were a solid red knit or red cotton with a white stripe up the sides, solid red cotton. The sandals are cork with a red vinyl strap. Other accessories included a fashion booklet, black wire stand, blue foil wrist tag, and a yellow towel (not found with all Ken dolls).


    The box liner is in two pieces and is made of cardboard. The box top graphics consist of drawings of Ken in several of his early outfits including Saturday Date, Campus Hero, Tuxedo, Dreamboat, In Training, Terry Togs, Sleeper Set, and Casuals. There are also three drawings of Barbie doll in Enchanted Evening, Friday Night Date, and a coral swimsuit. Note that the black and white trunks depicted on Ken were never produced. Earlier boxes show the black and white trunks, later boxes depict Ken in red trunks. Boxes may or may not be marked as to hair color.


    My flocked hair Ken came with his original store receipt from Grant's department store for $1.88 and was purchased on September 14, 1961. If you'd like to add a flocked hair Ken doll to your collection today it will set you back a bit more at about $20 for a nude Ken to approximately $175 for a boxed Ken with all the accessories.

    The Alice Project, Day 29

    For the entrance into week five of the Alice Project, I'm introducing Momoko. This girl is a one-of-a-kind doll--Sweet Poodle, only with a different hairstyle. I think she's adorable.

    She's wearing a modern Alice outfit by MegannArt that I found on Etsy. She makes nice quality clothing for Momoko, Blythe and Pullip for very reasonable prices. I highly recommend her.

    Momoko is wearing her own outfit's pantaloons underneath, and shoes from FR.Nippon's Posh by Integrity Toys.

    Group photo, day 29 of the Alice Project.

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