8/17/2013

Tonner Summer 2013 Launch Party

Penelope has made her debut. Robert read her long back story that tells of a young woman who has always sensed something different about herself. One day, something falls on her head (seriously) and she begins to remember past lives. Mixed in amongst the past lives are stories of tragically short love affairs and lives which ended too early.
This line of dolls is 16" tall. I think the retail price is $210. I'm really not positive about that as we paid a different price at the event.
The body is a totally new design. Robert told us about how he sculpted, eliminating straight lines.
Attendees were presented with "My Deja Vu" as the event souvenir.

Deja Vu has a glued on wig, brown eyes, applied lashes and beautifully screened, detailed and delicately painted facial features.
Her dress and shoes are very Cami-like. Nothing new there. This is probably her "modern fashion."

The companion doll is another story altogether. Her name is My Afternoon Stroll. Pictures say more than words so look at these:






Afternoon Stroll is even prettier than Deja Vu and her fashion is wonderfully detailed and constructed. The hem embroidery goes all around her skirt. Her large hat is so fashionable!
I'm pretty sure this is also a glued-on wig. She's got a gaggle of corkscrew curls at the back. Very Marie Antoinette. I like wigged dolls. They offer so many possibilities.
She comes with a boring pair of pearl dangle studs which I did not even bother to put on.
I am looking forward to redressing this gal. She's definitely finding a spot on the island.

More about the dolls - their head is bigger than normal. Why??? Why is this necessary? The dolls would have been perfect with a proportional sized head IMO. Why is the doll world obsessed with big headed dolls? Are we all going to wind up looking like Star Trek aliens?


I have a bone to pick with the Tonner Doll Company. Make some decent doll stands for goodness' sake.
A $100-$200++ doll should not come with a cheesy, non-adjustable saddle stand that can't even reach the doll's crotch. SHAME,  SHAME. You have been using the same crappy stand for years and no one likes it. "Stand up" and make a proper working stand for your gorgeous dolls.
Now that I got that out of my system, have I said recently how much I love Tonner's staff? They are just the friendliest, most helpful team of doll people ever. I even got help tearing apart my raffle tickets!
Little did I know that this staff member is really a witch (or is a man a warlock?) and cast an invisible spell on my tickets to that not a single one would be chosen.
The Hordes Enter the Room

17 comments:

  1. I do wish the head wasn't a size 6. This means Tyler Nu Mood wigs won't fit, or Penelope's wigs will be too big for the Nu Moods. As far as the body, is the same or smaller than Antoinette's? Then, there is the knee joint.........

    Pivot or marionette? I want to like this doll, and maybe I'll get a basic in the future, but in this economy, I can't see justifying another size wardrobe to keep track. This will require further study.

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    1. See Marcia's answer about the wigs below.

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  2. Oh, I love the Deja Vu sculpt and the historical fashion is just fabulous, but the prices sound like they are going to be out of range for most people. I agree with your opinion of the stands!!
    Rita in CA

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  3. Marcia of Facets by Marcia adds the following information about the wigs:

    Monique size 5/6 wigs are good on Deja Vu. I peeled off her wig and tried some on. Her head size is most similar to Pin-Up, but a little bit bigger (more bulbous in the back). I don't know if Nu-Mood wigs have any stretch to them, but they may work fine. Her head is much smaller than Evangeline's or Ellowyne's - definitely not a 6/7.

    Her wigs will be too large on JS Gene, but probably okay on the Daily Threads or other bald older Genes and Tyler. They'd probably benefit from some help to keep them from slipping, like the silicone wig caps or moleskin.

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  4. i like this doll and been watching pics of them today

    am i the only person to notice

    that the facemold reminds me of Popovy Sisters bjd doll

    and the hands of monster high , look very similar

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  5. Terri: I'm very interested in buying the Deja Vu "My Afternoon Stroll" doll. Were these dolls only available for purchase at the Tonner Store yesterday afternoon, or will they be available as part of the line. This doll is dressed in one of my favorite fashions from the last 20 years of the 18th century and I can always buy a saddle stand and find/make better earrings if so inclined. Cindy Abel(I get your email blog on new fashion dolls

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    Replies
    1. I have two extras - one is going on eBay and the other is listed on the Doll Show & Sell site. There will be a line of these dolls in different fashions. This particular one is a LE (as all will be) of somewhere in the 200's. I don't know where the rest will be sold but Tonner usually puts up the extras for sale. Of course, the earrings can be replaced. They will be on mine. I find the best stands for so many of these dolls is the old Tyler stand unless the shoes are very tall. The absolute best stands of all are Angelic Dreamz Jamieshow stands but they are expensive.

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  6. I do adore this doll but I don't adore a new higher price tag, Tonners were in my price range but this is pushing out of it, I think my love for a new pretty face will probably make me get her, even if I have to wait for a sale. Her whimsical/bored/dreamy expression is adorable to me, her story is cute, I love both of her outfits too. I guess I am so used to Evie that her head did not look that huge to me lol, though I see it is a little big. I also don't like child and I prefer woman to teen dolls, and she is young but I think she has hooked me.

    I agree on the stands. After getting a FR16 with her awesome stand I bought a few more of those stands on ebay, but they are hard to find. Those are the only stands I find acceptable for Evie, Ellow, Tonners, all 16". Slim saddle so your girls don't have a mysterious lump in their skirt, and totally adjustable (Ell stands are decent & sturdy but shoes can change heights dramatically as we all know!) Why doesn't IT sell just stands? Do they and I missed it? Do I need to write to them?

    I have several Nu-Moods but I don't have anything but other Tonner girls to try them on. The wigs have a little stretch but don't seem SUPER stretchy.

    I also don't get the giant head trends, yet my main dolls are Evangeline who is so beautiful and her head is not that huge, with a side of giant headed gothy Ellowynes, and I have many Tonners, and a bunch of Monster Highs (and spattering of everything). I skipped Maudlynne Macabre, who is cute & gothy but the head is TOO big.

    There was a pic of Patience with Evie, Ellow, Sad Sally, & Amelia surrounding her and her head is as big as all 4 combined lol

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  7. More: The hands are replaceable with Tyler's hands.

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  8. I, too, tend to prefer a more naturalistic scale than we see in the big headed, big eyed dolls. Patience is cute, I like her, but I won't be buying her. There is really no niche in my collection for her. And I don't want to start an additional niche for a lot of reasons.
    That said, these new Tonners are lovely. But if they don't look like they belong in the same world with Tyler or Antoinette... I won't be adding them.

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  9. With rare exception, there is nothing I "want" that Tonner is producing lately. These prices are rent money in my penurious world. I don't understand $200+ for a doll or $80+ for a doll outfit. Sorry!

    I am learning to re-love what I have and make do. "What you can't do
    with--do without."

    Like RT personally but his pricepoints are beyond my level. And lately what
    he's manufacturing seems destined to be on the Clearance tables eventually. (James Dean, the Memphis set, Warm Bodies...the list goes on.)

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  10. I actually love the new line but only one thing bothers me from first sight...the eyes are verrrry wide set which gives her sort of a odd look - almost elfish or other worldly?

    The hair and costumes look beautiful!!

    I wish I didn't care for it cuz now I'm going to WANT(NEED) one!
    lol
    Thanks for sharing the info!!!
    :)
    V.

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  11. Just an addendum to the last post...I still really like the line, but is anyone reminded of the 1970 Barbra Streisand film, "On a Clear Day" or was this discussed? Maybe I missed it. ;)

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_a_Clear_Day_You_Can_See_Forever_(film)
    Anyway - after reading the premise of the new line of dolls a bit more closely - the idea/film resonated (like past life resonance).
    lol
    ;)

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  12. I ended up getting Stroll. I think the images here enabled me more than I'd like to admit. :) It's interesting that she definitely has a Monster High profile - put her in silhouette and you'd think you had a MH doll.

    The historical costumes this year have honestly left me very cold - strange overly saturated easter egg shade pastels with 'granny undies lace' and lampshade trim. Stroll, however, really bucked the trend - no pastels, no fake satin - a muslin kind of feel. I hope the next DejaVus look nothing like the Gatsby, Belle Epoch convention dolls, or American model fashions released this year.

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    Replies
    1. Congratulations on getting the doll.
      The more I play with her, the more I like her. You are correct about the fabrics - they are different. Really nicely made, too.

      Terri

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  13. A very interesting new back story, much more interesting to me than those of RT's "high fashion" lines (Tyler, Antoinette, Cami and Jon, etc...). I probably won't get her unless (or until?) the prices go down. This is a totally different facial sculpt for Tonner. In fact, it reminds me of the IT 16-in Poppy Parker face. Not sure if that was intentional on RT's part. I LOVE RT--I've met him, and he's such a lovely guy, with oodles of talent, but am sort of mystified at the number of doll lines he releases. So many of them are hit-and-miss, and the unpopular ones end up drastically reduced in price. Not only that, this devalues the collectibility of the dolls. How can that be good for Tonner's company in the long run? I do hope he will consider manufacturing fewer lines, with smaller editions.

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  14. TNT_ Creations9/4/14, 1:05 PM

    I recently purchased a Changing Mood Deja Vu doll directly from the Tonner Company. She is gorgeous. I've noticed a lot of dolls on Ebay are higher in price than buying directly from Tonner. The company has Deja Vu Basics for $99.00. Check it out!

    ReplyDelete

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