Hollywood Dolls

Members of the W Club received notification of the following Monogram dolls and an accessory pack:

This doll is called Discreet. Integrity says that is is based upon last year's doll, Disclosure. They are calling this one a companion doll.  $99.

Discreet on Left; Disclosure on Right (Integrity Toys Images)

Magnificent is a Dressed Doll who is wearing the same gown as the 2010 convention Smoldering centerpiece. The colors are different. This doll retails for $160.
If you don't have this gown, I recommend it. It's quite beautiful the construction is wonderful.

"Magnificent" (Integrity Toys Images)

"Smoldering"

The Accessory Pack includes the resin bust, wig, hat, handbag, shoes and jewelry. Retail price $75. (!)

(Integrity Toys Images)

An interesting addition to the W Club email was the announcement that Integrity would have a booth at IDEX. Sounds like they are joining the world of doll manufacturers. Will there be surprises? Will the W Club get all the information before anyone attending IDEX?  This is going to be very interesting.

Are you going to pre-order any of the above offerings?  I made a decision two months ago that my Monogram collection was complete and unless something amazing came along, I wouldn't be adding new Monograms. I'm going to try to stick to that! I'll let you know how that goes. LOL.

I did treat myself to a new Cissy. It was an impulsive act and I blame it on my friend Ana whose shipping buddy I am. She had me order a bunch of stuff for her last week from Two Daydreamers which I did. I also browsed their excellent sales and unfortunately I did not escape unscathed. I ordered the 21" Vice Cissy. She had been residing on my wish list for almost one year. I know I will love her when she gets here but she needs a poodle instead of that whatever that dog is.

Vice Cissy ~ Madame Alexander / Jason Wu

The first centerpiece was at dinner on Thursday night. She is called Smoke Screen Dania Zarr. I thought it was Agnes as her hairstyle and makeup are very much like that of Firefly Agnes.

Smoke Screen Dania Zarr 2010

Integrity Photo (Exposure Adjusted by Author)

 This doll is styled in a way that's been used often on FR dolls this past year - multi-level, multi shaped and multi-styled pieces in mixed fabrics. It's not my favorite style. I don't see any grace there. I see mix and match and cute but not classy.

The Friday afternoon luncheon saw a lovely Poppy Parker "Shadow of a Smile" as the centerpiece.

Poppy Parker "Shadow of a Smile" 2010

Integrity Photo (Exposure Adjusted by Author)

I have been told that this gown is a black (dark blue?) version of the beautiful off-white "The Look of Love" fashion currently available at dealers. [Correction: The gown is deep purple and black.] Her adorable red hair and irresistible face made this a delightful centerpiece.

Integrity Photo

Friday evening we were treated to the sight of a gorgeous doll called "Provocatrice" Anja trapped inside a cage! She is extremely sought after by collectors. I wonder why. Could it be that she looks like a version of Veronique? Hmmm....why fix it if it ain't broke?
We love Veronique and she is going to be relegated to the base of the pyramid of Fashion Royalty. More on that hint from Jason later.
Is this red fabric with black lace the same as was used on the Agnes Giftset? I don't have Agnes here anymore so I can't compare.

From Agnes Giftset 2010

Successful Ascension 2009

"Provocatrice" Anja

Integrity Photo (Exposure Adjusted by Author)

Saturday afternoon's W Club Luncheon saw Elyse Jolie "Dark Swan" as the FR2 centerpiece. The last time Elyse was seen was as the convention souvenir doll in 2009. She was such a gorgeous doll, so well dressed that I haven't touched a hair on her head or a thread of her fashion.

Elyse Jolie "Blue Blood" 2009 Convention Souvenir Doll

That one had the regular Fashion Royalty body. The new one has been moved to the FR2 line.  She's wearing a little dress with a skirt which stands out due to a stiff crinoline. Her cropped jacket is double breasted. She comes with lace ankle socks, a brown rectangular handbag and very nice shoes which look better sans socks. All I can say is OY VEY.  Did anyone actually look at this doll's ridiculous hairstyle before letting it out of the gate? She sports a long, fat braid with frizzy ends. The top of her hair is center parted with one side out of the braid that's been cut shorter and curled. Did you get that?  This character went from sublime to ridiculous. There is no grace or class.  How does the train case styled, poopy-brown handbag fit in here? The FR2 have Barbie length eyelashes and underarm gripper stands.

Dark Swan Elise FR2

Dark Swan Elise FR2

The Saturday night table centerpiece is my pick for the best doll of the lot. She is called "Smoldering" and is a dark-skinned Monogram doll. Her gown is absolutely magnificent and quite obviously designed by someone who knows how to drape fabric. It is two-tone and feels like brushed satin. Just gorgeous!!! This doll is classy and graceful and I'm so happy to have her in my collection.
I wish they would have done something with her hair besides chopping it into a short, style-less do. She definitely needs to be wigged.
Someone had started a thread on the W Club board questioning the absence of a dark-skinned doll from the Monogram line. And now we have one. I wonder if there will ever be a new Monogram sculpt. 


Jason's talk on Saturday night was enigmatic, as usual. What I got from what he did say was that there was going to be a restructuring of the Fashion Royalty line. The prices would go down. Veronique will appear in that restructured line. He said they would be "growing the brand," a big marketing expression. Whatever.
He stated that there would be a return to fine-tuned details, great accessories, shoes that look like real shoes, etc. He said this last year related to the Monogram line. Why is it coming back? Where did it go? What exactly do we have now?

Alain pranced around the ballroom with a microphone to get to those who wanted to ask Jason questions.

Drawings were held for those whose winning tickets were pulled. Actually, the drawings were held behind closed doors; the winners were announced. This year the tickets had to have names on them. You couldn't just rely on the anonymous numbers which are printed on the tickets. To avoid the appearance of impropriety in the future, all drawings should be in public in front of those who spent money on chances.  This is a pretty serious issue and should be addressed.
This is not to say that the staff has favorites or resentments. Ahem.  It just looks bad.


More will be revealed.

After yesterday's photo shoot, I sat down with the new stuff to figure out how I could rework things to make them wonderful. My favorite Monogram doll, LifeBall, was ready for a change. I put the suit on her and hunted through my stash for shoes, a handbag and jewelry. I think what I came up with is works with the suit. I put a pin through the top of the hat. I used one with a green head so it would show in the pictures. The pin is short and very slim and goes into the vinyl head without too much difficulty. I used the earrings that came with the set and a bracelet of black beads.





It was harder to make the dress on Extravagance look good so as a temporary measure, I put a stole over her shoulders. I suppose that is what the coat was for. :-(
I gave her a freshwater pearl choker which does not interfere with the fringe on the dress.  I wish I had a short white shrug instead of this gigantic stole. I wonder if there is a way to alter the dress to correct the poor fit.  Or maybe I need to make a shrug.




Some quick pics of Innoquii. She really looks her best without clothing!




..and Invisible Ink Ellowyne. She's kind of a big Ginny Doll with articulation. She's going to stay but I don't see more Ellowynes in my future. I would like some of her beautifully designed, fun fashions.  And, like I said before, I'm going to get her crazed cat.

I have had these two items for three days and have been sitting on this review for the same amount of time hoping that I would see something I didn't see at first and that my first impressions would change. It hasn't happened. I'm thinking: pretty but not without issues.
The suit is gorgeous. The fabric is a silky weave with a medium sheen that seems to have silver threads in amongst the off white and taupe. The jacket is wonderfully constructed with properly scaled buttons. Actual closures are hooks and eyes. But when the jacket is closed, the necklace won't lay flat on the doll. The necklace itself is awkward because if the component beads turn, getting them to all lay in the same direction is a nightmare. My necklace fell apart yesterday.
Jason has done a 180° turn from mini skirt to just below the knee with this one. I prefer somewhere in between and I wonder if the runway is showing skirts of this length. There is a bright lemon yellow shell under the jacket. The shoes with big red ribbon ties are awkward-looking. This girl is going to trip down the subway steps.



The handbag does not meet the design standards of prior FR handbags in any way. This bag could have come out of a Barbie collection.

This hat is a soft 60's Poor Boy cap style with an attached tulle veil. The promotional photos make it look beret-like but one has to pin the center down to get the roundness out of it. Does it not look navy blue in the Integrity photo? I wonder if it is because the coat from the Escapade set is navy blue. (Note: I just read that not only is the beret navy but the handbag is supposedly the same color. )

Promotional Image by Integrity Toys

It's a very large hat for a wig that looks better without anything on top of it. The hat will not stay on the wig as shown above without some type of pinning. In my picture at the top of the page, the Mini Avantguard who is wearing the hat is bald and the hat sits on her head nicely. Putting it on over that wig didn't look good.


Below is the Extravagance promo and my image side by side. In this case the promo pic is better than mine.  I was getting really fed up with these items by this time and it was not a fun photo shoot. I couldn't wait to get it over with.

The doll is lovely but her hair was a mess. She comes in a tri-color dress that would be fabulous if the shoulder/upper bust area fit properly.  The pattern needed to be altered to correct the fit. Not acceptable.  Designers wouldn't allow a model on the runway to wear a dress that fit like this. 

I absolutely love the shoes. The little clutch is cute but strange. 

The hat is a stiffened bowl shaped base with attached tulle and feathers. A big stitch that holds the tulle to the hat goes right through to the front of the hat. The jewelry is cute. It doesn't lay properly on the fringe of the dress' neckline, however.


And now, the question of the day is, "Why is this doll wearing a navy blue coat? Why does the promotional photo show the coat over her shoulders and not over the dress? Where is the belt in the promo picture?



And who shot JR?

My ever patient and often tolerant husband put up with endless doll chatter today in the car to and from Marcia Friend's home for her annual barbeque.

Then he sat through several more hours of doll talk.
"Who is that? When did you get her? What is she wearing? Does it stain? She came with that? I want one. What convention? Will these shoes fit? How much was it? Why did they schedule the conventions for the same weekend? I have one of those. You sold it? 1500 Barbies?" And on and on.
 If I put myself in his place, I think I'd die of boredom or go mad. But the food was very good. The weather was gorgeous and some of us acted like crazed fools when they let us loose on the free table. So that had to be good for a laugh.  Rudy accompanied us and he loved the attention.

I don't collect Ellowyne, right? So I bought an Ellowyne. What else is new? Doll collecting is as rational as the weather.

Invisible Ink Ellowyne

This is Invisible Ink Ellowyne. The photograph is Tonner's. My doll's hair is nicer than the promo pictures which do not do her justice. What really sold me on the doll was the bargain price of $80. and these shoes:


Aren't they adorable?

Now I have to get Sybil.

 And I love Sybil's carrying case, too.  This is how it starts. Let one new doll line in and the dominoes start to fall. Resistance is futile. I've been hunting the Wilde site for the last hour deciding what I would buy if I were buying. There are so many cute outfits and several on sale. Hmmm.


There were lots of door prizes given out, many contributed by other collectors and by Tonner Doll. I was lucky enough to win the "Dancing on A Cloud" Tonner fashion. I will try dying it as I already have one


It has been quite a week. On one day Jason Wu's "Fashion's Night Out" Poppy arrived along with Traveler Innoquii

Traveler Innoquii

and the Monogram dressed doll, Extravagance, who is not without issues. The Monogram fashion, Escapade and wig set also arrived.

A doll that costs $150 (or $50 for that matter) should not have hair that looks like this out of the box.
Apparently, the factory worker who messed up hair before is still employed and still messing up doll hair for a living.
I have taken the 'style' down and washed the gunk out. Her hair is rooted thinly (which isn't a bad thing) so if I want to keep the hair down, more will have to be added.

I will do more thorough reviews with photographs of Extravagance, Escapade, Innoquii and Ellowyne, too. Soon.

Tune in again.

By the time this post is published (it's on automatic) I will be in Nashville, Tennessee for the Golden Age of Doll Couture event.  Members of the W Club get these announcements and are asked to wait until a specific time and day before sharing the information. So, this is being written on Tuesday evening and publication is on time delay.
The dressed doll is called "Extravagance." It is a limited edition of 300 with a SRP of $150.




The fashion is called "Escapade." LE 300. SRP $99.


I'm looking at it like a gift set. One doll and two complete outfits with a wig, nice accessories and very pretty clothes for $249. A little lingerie would have been a bonus but when I see it as a gift set, the price becomes more reasonable.