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Home from Pittsburgh

Just got home and I'm trying to find out what is wrong with my laptop. Actually the laptop is fine. Firefox and AppleWorks are screwy. I suspect there is something wrong with my Wacom tablet pen. I just switched to the Wacom mouse and that is working fine. Very strange. Perhaps I don't have to go to the Apple store tomorrow with my computer after all. That would help.
I've been incredibly stressed since this happened as I've gotten so many purchase requests and I can't answer them except with the iPhone. My fingers are falling off from trying to text on the text-unfriendly phone.
But I think we're in business now that I've gotten this working.

Here is a picture of what's on my dining room table at the moment.
 Pretty neat, eh?

There was a little more but I haven't unpacked my suitcases yet.
I am in the midst of posting to my Show and Sell pages many items that I got. My collecting is heading in another direction. More will be revealed regarding that fact.

My next blog post will be a recap of the events of the 2010 Integrity Toys Convention.

Integrity Toys Dark Romance Convention 2010 part 4

Following the Dark Romance theme, Friday night's dinner encouraged guests to dress in their wildest Halloween creations to the theme of "Sea of Blood". As was to be expected, the attendees went all out and the costumes were fantastic as I could see in many flickr posts! Guests entering the ballroom were taken back by how spooky but fabulous the room looked. The centerpiece doll this time was another brand new character created just for this convention! Trapped inside an iron cage that looked like a coffin, Provocatrice Anja (pronounced An-yah) seemed to be reaching out to each guest at the table to release her from her prison (I know everyone would love to do that).


Anja is using the Simi sculpt from the Dark Hunters collection, so everyone who liked that one but did not warm up to a monster doll can enjoy this one. I still think she looks like Veronique. Each guest was given an autographed, special edition hardcover copy of Sherrilyn Kenyon's latest book "No Mercy" with a leather collector's box. They also received a gothic Dark Hunters doll chair.



Attendees were delighted to also receive the doll portion of their convention gift set; a gorgeous Agnes Von Weiss doll. She is platinum and in lovely underwear. She reminds me a lot of Dressing The Part Agnes. A raven one was the gift for those that helped teaching classes in workshops (thanks Uriah and well done!).


copyright Integrity Toys, Inc. and Intercap Merchant Partners, LLC 2010 and may not be reprinted or disseminated without express written permission.

Integrity Toys Dark Romance Convention 2010 part 3

The convention second day luncheon had guests privy to another incredible event, this time with Poppy Parker. As I mentioned in the previous post, she has become very popular with collectors and everyone was very pleased to see their favorite girl once again at each of the decorated tables. The centerpiece doll, Shadow of your Smile was a dark version of the Look of Love outfit on a redhead doll. I must say I do prefer this version than the original.



This year again Integrity gave to every attendee their very own Poppy Parker: Tears Go By was part of the event swag, a gorgeous doll who will be, as I read in reports from the show, part of next year's Poppy Parker Collection - I hope so because I really want this one! Actually found out that she is a convention exclusive. 


And here is a close up. As you can see, they have returned to styling the eyes as in the first Poppy Parker collection.


copyright Integrity Toys, Inc. and Intercap Merchant Partners, LLC 2010 and may not be reprinted or disseminated without express written permission.

Integrity Toys Dark Romance Convention 2010 part 2

In every Integrity convention there is a special collection made exclusively for it, available for purchase to the attendees. This year the interest was even higher as a new Fashion Royalty line called FR2 would debut. So let us see the dolls from the Dark Romance 2010 convention collection. First up from the new line, Always Polished Dasha FR2 Dressed Doll.


As I could see from photos of attendees posted on flickr (thanks to Shuga Shug, Terri, Juan and Mary T for their posts, tweets and photos that helped me get a great feel of the event), the new line has a body closer to BJD as far as the articulation is concerned. They are more poseable and flexible than the regular line gals, having a feel of the larger Avantguards dolls. Dasha's sculpt looks like a closed mouth Monogram sculpt. Her outfit is reminding me of old Ungaro Couture stuff, especially the print and the drape of the fabric. They said that this line will have characters that do not appear often in the storyline of Fashion Royalty, but more about that at a later post.



Next doll of the convention collection is Fine Romance Eugenia Perrin Frost Dressed Doll. She looks very different than previous Eugenia's, her face screening making her looks Frost-y indeed! Classic ball gown as outfit, I love the purple colour. Lovely jewellery again (I like the darkness of them) and small clutch bag as well.



The twins. Lilith and Eden, were very popular ever since appearing at their first convention. Now they have a new sculpt and they come again as a giftset: Wild at Heart Lillith and Eden Gift Set. Now they look more like Colette from their line (Nu Face), that to me means more cartoon-y, which is something I never liked in fashion dolls. The outfits looks interesting but their two-tone hair (and thin ponytail) means no styling flexibility (I wonder how will they look if someone tries to take down that ponytail). I also think that the reddish eyebrows of Eden do not look good with her purple grey eye-shadow but that's just me. I know many collectors loved the duo and the general reaction was very positive.



The name alone conjures up endless possibilities for this doll. But Scarlet Woman Adèle Makéda® Dressed Doll leaves me in the cold. The facial screening is too harsh, the hairdo is indifferent, the dress a rehash of Alexander McQueen's last collection and the shoes look like they belong more to a flirty summer outfit than this puffy gown. This kind of dress also need more outré jewellery. Major disappointment for one of my favourite characters.


My other favourite FR character is Kyori. And this version of her was, for me, a major dissapointment as well. Out of the Blue Kyori Sato® Dressed Doll looks more Caucasian than ever, a Kyori so subdued she could be any model out there. Where is the fierce competitor we came to love and cherish? I love the outfit, it looks so nicely tailored and the colour is gorgeous. Her cuffs are the best in the collection but the matching gladiator shoes have been done to death and look boring. Also something more interesting for the head than a net wrap would be ideal - something like a spider perhaps, to keep up with the Halloween theme?


Everyone was expecting the new male character that was scheduled to appear in the collection, as we all knew that Baroness Agnes Von Weiss was invited by him to hold Giselle's show in his castle. So imagine the dissapointmet to see that Night Vision Count Adrian Von Lamberg Dressed Figure is just a rehash of the Asian Takeo Misutani doll sculpt. A blond Takeo that looks more Eurotrash than all of Ibiza can muster in a season. I would have preferred a more mature male doll in his place and more elegantly dressed.


The real star of this collection (and as it seems of the hwole convention as well) was Poppy Parker. Her popularity seems to go up from release to new release and her fans and collectors multiplying. Ask Any Girl Poppy Parker Gift Set  pleased eveyrone and gave us another gorgeous addition to the Poppy roster. You can see her wearing the tweed suit above, and her gorgeous dress with brown details below.


And if that was not enough, she also has a pair of separates! Check them out:


Simply gorgeous!  So what do you think of the convention collection? Did it match your expectations? More dolls to come in the next posts.

copyright Integrity Toys, Inc. and Intercap Merchant Partners, LLC 2010 and may not be reprinted or disseminated without express written permission.

Integrity Toys Dark Romance Convention 2010 part 1

Every year Integrity Toys and Jason Wu hold an event for their dedicated collectors of fashion dolls. This year was not exception. The convention took place in Pittsburgh again  from the 28th till the 30th of October! The title of this year's event was Dark Romance and of course it fit perfectly with Halloween. 



As the doors opened for the first official event on Thursday night, guests walked into a ballroom that definitely was one made up for a Halloween event. Each guest found the first part of the doll gift set they would be building up like last year, a gorgeous fashion, waiting for them as they sat down.  Another gift for all attendees was a fabulous new Fashion Royalty doll named Hourglass Kesenia. The new FR character is one of Baroness Agnes' (who is supposedly the host of the event) models. So here she is:


Kesenia is based on one of the face moulds (The Contessa) for the Brides Of Dracula series of dolls made by IT for Ashton Drake. Here is a close up:


The Thursday night dinner centerpiece was a huge crowd favorite, Dania Zarr as Smoke Screen. She was standing on a web-like structure with a dead fashion victim skeleton caught up in it - great idea. Here is the doll, which looks a lot like last year's Silver Zinger Agnes.



Dania looks great and I am sure she will be much sought after by collectors. I love her screening and the outfit looks great too. The jewellery is gorgeous although she could have had a bracelet as well. As far as I can see the shoes are great too! More dolls from the convention on the next post.

copyright Integrity Toys, Inc. and Intercap Merchant Partners, LLC 2010 and may not be reprinted or disseminated without express written permission.

Pittsburgh Convention - Friday

I'm sitting here eating candy corn and trying to decide if I should just go to bed or post because it was such a full day that I'm exhausted. But before I write more about the dolls and workshops, I want to say that my table mates are the best. They have all been generous with the gifts exchanged. I'm so happy to see Teri and Laura again. In addition, it's been so much fun to get to see, in the flesh, the new collector friends I've made this year. Who would have thought that as I get older, my friends are getting younger? They are beautiful, lively and fun people who add a vibrant dimension to my collecting.
A big difference at this convention is the food. It's as someone new has taken over the kitchen or our hosts are paying more for better food and service. The difference is like day and night.

Gotta go to sleep. One picture of my centerpiece from tonight.

Who is this doll?

"Imitation of Life" White and Blue Gown





This gown has been on my to-do list for years. When another Gene collector asked me if I was planning on making this costume from the Lana Turner film "Imitation of Life" I decided to move it up the list and take a break from making "Rear Window" costumes. It is made of silk chiffon, which wasn't too hard to work with.





This gown was relatively easy to make compared to my latest projects. The hardest thing was finding the right shade of blue for the sash.



The sash can be worn in several different ways.




The jewelry was a gift from Jennifer and Katherine O' Hare, that I received at the "Hollywood Ahoy" convention in 2009. It is perfect.



I watched the gown scene many times in the movie. In the first shots, the sash is a dark teal color, but then later it looks blue, like in the above photo. I found this blue silk chiffon in Seattle this past Summer. Almost every time I leave Whidbey Island, I try to hit a fabric store or two. My three sons love fabric stores, and by love I mean I have to bribe them with candy, toys, and gum.







Distant Venus is my beautiful model.


Pittsburgh on Thursday - Day 1 Convention - Part 2

There was a violin player and a piano player during the cocktail hour. It was very nice. When the dining room was ready we entered to booming loud music and found our table. The centerpiece at first looked like Agnes but turned out to be Dania with an updo reminiscent of Firefly Agnes.

She was holding a spider web in which a "fashion victim" was caught - apparently some time ago. The skeleton was dressed in RuPaul's jeans and a Kio wig. The shirt is a mystery.
Dania was wearing a very pretty black lacey dress with a shadow striped black fitted jacket which looked great once the big bow belt was removed. Her shoe/boots were pretty cool with a see-through area. Three people got to buy one of the centerpiece dolls. One of them got the skeleton web thingie as well.
The service was excellent with very well trained solicitous staff. I was quite impressed. There was no loud music during dinner so conversation was possible and we were able to meet eachother and have nice chats over dinner.
Spicy pumpkin soup was the appetizer. It was delicious but I couldn't eat it due to the heat of the spices. Dinner itself was two big chicken breasts with a large portobello mushroom cap and squash covered with melted cheese and a little sauce. A big clump of rice was underneath the chicken.
After dinner some of the people who found the hidden keys got to play "What's behind door #X?" Mike Basala won a comped 3 day stay at the hotel. The second person won the 4 original Dressmaker Details outfits and the third person won a snuggie. It was very funny.
We got a doll whose story line is that she is a model. Her name is Kesenia. I do not think she will be very popular with that mouth.

What do you think of her?

Hourglass Kesenia

We received the first part of our giftset, a lovely piece of lingerie.

And now I must go to bed as I am scheduled for four workshops followed by the Dynamite Girl workshop - all in one day.
Yikes.

Pittsburgh on Thursday - Day 1 Convention

When I go home I'm going to have to go to a rest home.

Registration was a breeze. We got a nice big empty FR box and hopefully it will be finished with the new Veronique. The box does not say FR2. It is a regular FR white box.

Many of us camped in the lobby outside of the salesroom like a bunch of addicts. When they opened the doors a cheer went up which could probably be heard where ever you are. The salesroom had Azone in one corner, MFD and Kio items in another corner, Steven Fraser's Dressmaker Details on a long table on one side and the rest was filled with the new dolls. There were some older dolls being sold but not as many as I expected. The best items were the sealed grab bags which ranged in price from $15 to $60. These were at the register and they were worth more than the price for sure.  At the check out counter were tubs of plastic shoes and Barbiesque solid black sunglasses that were free for the taking.

Everyone was wondering what FR2 would be. So far it's a doll whose facial expression says, "No you didn't!" or "You have to be kidding." Kyori is very pretty. The Twin giftset was surprising with the new sculpt. They do not look at all like Lillith and Eden! Their hair is very cute with streaks of color. They will be popular. Poppy's clothes from the giftset are adorable. The new Poppy has the nicer original eye screening. The Count looks like a count  - dark and brooding. Adele looks like Adele from the past. Eugenia is pretty in a big purple gown. I will have to examine the dolls better to give a more detailed appraisal. At first glance the collection is OK with something for every taste. There is little ethnic variation. Perhaps the centerpieces will provide the WOW factor. One can hope.

Are we going to get Vanessa? I'm guessing Agnes will make her appearance tonight.

This is the stuff I got today. Picture was taken in the sunlight coming through my window.

This is a mixture of doll items for 1/6 and 1/4 scale. The things in the upper left were registration bag swag items. I traded a nude Monogram doll that I already owned for all of the Kyori giftset clothes - gown, suit and sequin dress. The Flight Kyori and her accessories were a grab bag item for $35. Dressmaker Details 1/4 scale dresses without shoes were $5. Can you believe it? The dresses with shoes were only $10. I paid as much at $7. a pair for the shoes in those bags.
It's difficult to see but on the right is a pair of George's new shoes for the 16 inch gals. Those are going to be fun. The beautiful blue and pink dress in the lower right is also an Angelic Dreamz item from the JamieShow dolls. I was happy to get it separately. I loved it the first time I saw it but it was on a doll. I purchased a Poppy body for $20. There were bargains to be had.

More later. Gotta walk the dog.

Pittsburgh - The Day Before the Convention

I am so tired! Bob, Rudy and I had a very pleasant day out. We had lunch outside at the Hard Rock Cafe where there is a cool fountain that is timed to music. The weather was amazing for this time of year in the northeast.
(You can click on any picture in my blog to see it enlarged.)




We navigated the insane streets and signs of Pittsburgh with the help of a GPS that was often wrong. Ugh.
Back at the hotel the cocktail party began at 5PM. Tickets were $35. to attend. Each person got an ITBE doll in a white terry cloth robe. The servers were also wearing terry cloth robes which was kind of strange...like they were invited to a pajama party that no one else knew about.


The snacks were very good - crackers, bread sticks, flatbreads, cheeses, spreads, raw vegetables, dried fruit, nuts. There was a piano player. I met people with whom I had become friends on-line and had never met in person.  It was very nice.

Then it was off to the room sales which were in full swing by this time. One seller had brought a suitcase full of nude FR, NuFace and other dolls which were flying out as fast as she could unpack them! It was unbelievable.
I know this is a bad photograph but it gives you an idea of what one encountered in her room. This was after lots of shopping had been done already.


I did manage to force myself to buy a Reluctant Debutante Poppy. LOL. I'd been looking for one for a while.

Other sellers had OOAK fashions and dolls, furniture, Barbies, and pretty much every doll related item under the sun.  I have some more pictures but there's not enough time or energy to post everything tonight. Part of the time I had Rudy with me. He has never received more attention. Imagine you are a 10 pound dog surrounded by frenzied doll collectors who are shrieking and approaching you with arms out. Actually, Rudy handled it quite well. When he had enough he wanted me to pick him up and get him out of there. He's such a great dog.
Rob and Rudy


Dolls in Designer Fashions

Matt Trujillo with one of his creations.

Finally, my new Poppy, sort of dressed in one of my two new "Doves" outfits that a friend delivered for me.


There will be other photos I will post after the convention. Stay tuned.

Woodstock to Pittsburgh - Tuesday October 26, 2010

We left home at about 11 AM. Now we have a large SUV and it was loaded. Hubby asks, what are we going to do with the dolls you bring home? I didn't even think of that.
The ride was about 7.5 hours long with two stops, a few naps and some silliness with the iPhone camera. Rudy was a little trooper as usual when we travel. Check in was smooth although there was a line. I recommend that anyone checking in use the kiosks to save time waiting on line.
We settled in, unpacked and went to eat. At about 10PM I took Rudy to visit Kazue and Denise T.'s room. That put me right in the mood. Kazue was unpacking some OOAK Blythes. They are gorgeous. The elusive Marui Misaki was on display along with Momoko and many Misakis I had never seen. They are so delightful.
I was not going to buy a thing tonight but walked out with the Red Rabbit Misaki. As part of the "Misaki Madness" she was on sale for $99. Sold! It didn't take me long to make that decision. I have wanted her ever since I saw her.

For those that are not familiar with the doll, this is Integrity's picture of her. 

We're off to a good start.

My Favorite Two Tonner Dolls

Although I'm busy getting ready to leave for Pittsburgh today, these two were just aching for a photo shoot. The female doll is the 16" Comicon Supergirl Exclusive and the male is Jeremy Voss. Supergirl is wearing a new fashion from the "Gowns by Anne Harper" line called Venus Rising. Voss is wearing Simon Chase's tuxedo.
I love these two dolls. I very rarely pair up dolls or make up life stories for my vinyls but these two are now married.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.





Tonner Photo

Venus Rising is a lovely and ultra romantic fashion. The drapey shoulder things attach by slipping the doll's arm through an elastic circle on the underside of the rosettes. The fabric is filmy and wonderful! I was surprised by the glitter, yes girls and boys, glitter, on the rosettes. That is really cheap and non-imaginative on a fashion that retails for $114.99 There is a close-up of that detail on the Tonner site but I didn't pay attention apparently. Glitter comes off on everything and stays everywhere and no matter how long or hard you clean and vacuum, there will be glitter. It will be on your nose and your butt and on your dolls' black clothes. Glitter also snags hosiery. It belongs in sleep-away camp and that's about it.
Please, Robert, ditch the glitter.

..........

And now I'm off to pack for the FR convention. This should be an interesting one with 422 in attendance, there are bound to be some traffic jams and other surprises.  Keep watching for reports although with all the excellent photographers out there vying to post their images before anyone else does, I won't be shooting as many photos as usual. There will be many to see.  I will go for quality not quantity (if possible as I'm taking the point and shoot and not my studio camera.)

Ciao...Hasta la vista...A tout a l'heure...Toodle loo...A presto...Sampai jumpa lagi...Tα λέμε σύντομα