Redressing: Domina, Fidele and Veroniques

We all have had  the experience of finding the perfect outfit for a doll. When that happens to me, I don't want to redress her. I love looking at my dolls. It gives me joy. When a new fashion arrives it sometimes takes a while to decide who will undergo the change.  Such a problem. :-)

Last week I experienced a redressing frenzy; the ensuing photo shoot resulted.

Domina models"Etoile" which I was able to get at the recent Superdoll sale for half the original price. This fashion comes with a pretty neckpiece which is not shown in my photo.

Fidele is modeling Madra's "Devil May Care" costume. This was produced by Ashton Drake in 2000.
Her shoes are from a Gen X 12-pair shoe pack. They fit the resin dolls very well.

Finally, a 2005 Fashion Royalty Veronique known as "Foreign Affair" who has been switched to an FR2 body models a mini dress by Huckleberry Jackson.

My rerooted, rebodied "Body Double" Veronique models "Perfect Reign" Tatyana's gown in front of the tree. I give a great deal of credit to anyone who was able to put on the elbow length lace gloves. I gave up after about a minute.

My Collection: The Best of 2014

For this post, I basically showcase my own collection and some of what I have added this past year.  I've made some wonderful purchases, some so-so-average buys and a few mistakes.  My goal was to limit the adding of 12" dolls and concentrate on high-quality resin BJD 1/4 scale dolls, fashions and wigs

Resin BJDs accounted for nearly 1/2 of my expenditures. Integrity Toys got about 1/4 of the total. The rest went to Gene (and a convention), Tonner and another assorted dolly miscellany.

In looking back I could have eliminated everything Gene-related except for two custom fashions made by Matisse, Madra's dogs and an older Ashton-Drake Violet outfit (shown below.)  I'm just not into Gene any longer. I have sold all my Jamieshow Gene (and Madra, Violet) dolls except for one. They are lovely but not where I want to be.

JS Madra in AD Violet "Special Appearance"

The worst eBay purchase was several pairs of shoes from paul_zhangby and Zhang_young, whom I assume is the same seller, which purported to fit Sybarites. They don't come close. Many of their products claim to fit a wide range of dolls who have different-sized feet. What was I thinking to trust this type of advertising? He's still listing doll shoes like this: Brand New Pumps/Shoes /16" Doll Sybarite V3 JamieShow /Ficon /NUMINA /AG. Don't believe it! His shoes are gorgeous and edgy but won't do any good if you can't use them.


Most of the dolls on this 2014 list were discussed on my blog when I got them and not all of them are actually new releases, but they are new to my collection.

I'll begin with my first and only (so far) Deva Doll, Angelo. He has blown away all the competition from the rest of the big guys who live here. I'll let the photograph do the talking as he's already been introduced in prior posts. His face was painted by Chewin who also designed the fashion and wig.

Brunel from Kingdom Dolls hasn't been here very long and I want to play with her. It's a problem when I have too many 'new' dolls. No doll gets the time it deserves.  She is perfect.

Poor Angelo has been trying to date her but she's not having any of it.

Ficon Bonita in a Cheryl Wood wig.
I have quite a few wigs made by the talented Ms. Wood but this is my absolute favorite!
Bonita is a gorgeous doll with great posing ability.

I added two gorgeous Sybarites this past year and several Superdoll outfits.

-a repaint of Dionysis by Yian.  (Chewin wig)

-Fidele wearing Bitter Fern. I removed the pink bow which was at the waist. 

The outfit from Langtry and Madra's Dogs (Ashton-Drake) modeled by Toxica.

The outfit from Masque modeled by Neurotica. Mohair wig by Ilaria.

The outfit from Gateau modeled by Domina.

I never tire of looking at my Sybarites and their gorgeous fashions.

Moving over to Integrity Toys, their FR16 dolls, at first, didn't impress me. Once I started collecting their outfits however, the dolls began to grow on me. Their bodies pose beautifully.
This is Tyler head on a Tulabelle body wearing a FR16 Platinum Society. It's a favorite.

As far as their 12" dolls issued during the year, nothing made the cut except three from the convention.

Going off the track here for Gloss' "Evening Siren" Ayumi who is such an improvement over the original Ayumi I felt it deserved mention and images from her spotty past. :-)
It's a fact that the face-up makes or breaks the sculpt.

This is the After:

Here are the Befores:

If at first you don't succeed...

I always felt that Natalia's original and more ethnic sculpt was beautiful and should have been preserved.  She was gorgeous.  The "refreshed" sculpt looked just like all the other dolls with their pointy little noses and pucker lips. They're OK but this Natalia was special. "Femme du Monde" 2006.

However, Grandiose Natalia was a surprise. I actually like her a lot and added her to my collection. What is it about this particular doll? It's not the pointy eyebrows. She's just stunning.

And then there's Elise. She has become my favorite FR sculpt. I've given up on Vanessa and although two were added to my collection this year, they are not favorites.

In the following photo, one of the 2014 convention centerpieces, Elise Jolie "Intrigue," is shown with Adrian Von Lamberg "Night Vision" from the 2010 Dark Romance Collection. That was the last FR convention I attended and I had him at that time but I was not collecting male dolls. That changed this year as I sought to add some special Hommes to the tribe.

About two months ago I swapped with someone for an Avantguard which had been repainted. It was pretty awful once I saw it in person. My dear friend, Vin Trapani, rescued this doll from a dark drawer with his inspired re-repaint.
She is currently on a Tulabelle body and looking great.

Memorable 1/6 scale fashions:

Poppy "Glamorous Darling" and "IT Girl" adorn one of my mini Avantguard dolls and a Monogram doll.

This dress was created by V.Jhon. It is modeled by Tropicalia Vanessa.

So there you have it.

I haven't determined my goals with doll collecting for 2015. What I do know is that I spend way too much time where they are concerned. I want to put together a book showcasing my black and white NYC-era photography. That will take a long, dedicated piece of time.

I've had so much fun with dolls and doll people over the last decade or so but I have to bring back the joy that my creativity gave me and let it out of its holding cell.

Nelson, Domina and Plum

Today is a good day to show you some new additions to my collection.
First up is Kingdom Doll's Nelson. She is the newest 16" resin BJD to hit the doll scene. 
Here are several prelimary (iPhone) images of her. (Actually all the images on this page are iPhone images.)
Nelson is wearing the full length black sequin Sybarite gown from the Basique Black Giftset and a random blonde wig. Neckpiece is a Tonner product. Her ears are pierced but are quite small and the matching earrings do not fit. She has a well-defined sculpt which will photograph beautifully once I get her down into my studio. Her resin feels wonderfully smooth and her joints are neither kicky nor loose. I am going to enjoy this doll for a long time.

My Sybarite "Domina" decided that she wanted to wear "Gateau's fashion. She wears it very well.  So often the Sybarite shoes are a pain to put on, especially over hosiery, but these were made properly to my delight. I love this ensemble.

 In the first photo of Domina, her lovely pink nipple was positioned at the opening of the silver parts of the bodice. Photoshop came to the rescue. Did I ever admit something about my pictures? If you see me using special effects it's most often because the picture sucked. I take a lot of pictures of my subjects from all angles and with the lighting moved around. However, when I use the phone, I have much less control of the results compared to when I use my professional equipment. That's when Photoshops filters other than sharpening and exposure come out to play. Even then, the idea is to make it look as if you meant it to be that way in the first place.
Ahhh, the tricks we evil Photoshoppers play. I prefer to get it right in the camera anyway.

Two adorable vinyl BJDs have come to live here. They are Ai Ball Jointed Dolls from Jun Planning, the same company that makes Pullips.
Here is their description:

Precious and posable, personable and perfectly palm-sized, each 12.5cm (about 5 inches) doll in Jun Planning's Ball Jointed Doll Ai series has been created with care and is exquisitely detailed, complete with wigged hair that can be removed if you choose, and inset eyes that can be repositioned from within using putty.  Packaged in a sturdy gift box designed to keep safe in travels.

 My first was Lagrus.

The left shows how she comes packaged in ther padded box. I added eyelashes and enhanced her coloring a bit.  On the right, she is wearing a short blonde wig. I used different putty than what she came with. Actually I use moldable silicone earplugs that come in a multi-package available at CVS and I'm sure at most other drugstores.

 My second Ai came today. She is "Plum." I haven't taken her out of her package yet.

I think she's even cuter than Lagrus.

These tiny dolls are fun impulse buys and would also make great gifts for doll friends of all ages. Their price ranges from $29 (so I've heard but have never seen) to much higher from the rip-off artists. I paid the normal going rate of about $34.99 with free shipping on eBay. For that price, these are great bargains and a fun introduction to the tiny BJD. The quality is very nice. They pose better than Amelia Thimble. Their vinyl is nicer than her resin! I don't have Amelia anymore so I can't compare their clothes to see if they can share.
Amelia is only 4" tall. A basic doll like this costs $175. You do the math.

Happy Hunting!

Three BJDs Get Camera Time

In between decorating for the holidays and ordering stuff on-line I managed to get some picture taking done...finally!

First up is Jamieshow Alejandro. I need a really cool wig for him but for now, he's bald and still looks pretty good. He is my only male BJD and probably will always be the only one. His jacket and jeans are Jamieshow items as are the shoes.  I might need another outfit or two...

Next...Domina. This doll is just gorgeous. She is wearing Rosa Gloriosa, a SybMonde exclusive fashion. I have de-wigged all of my Sybarites but Domina is staying original. I think she is just perfect.

Last we have Neurotica. She is wearing Meeow. I forgot the name of the wig but it was a gift from a lovely friend in Portugal.

Meeow is a very strange and wonderful outfit but doesn't fit the new body perfectly. I think that in parts, it will be better than all together as it is now. The sweater has to go.

At Last - Photos

The camera is unpacked but the lights are not. I'm not quite sure where they are as there are still about 200 closed boxes. Sigh.

Sybarite Domina, Champ Pac Accessory

I deboxed Domina last night and absolutely love her. She is stunning. From her hair to her neutral face palette to her animal print stockings, she's a winner in every way. I must get her a whip.

The workmanship on the shoes is not perfect. There seems to be glue mixed with paint in certain areas. You can see smudging of the black onto the tan in this image. So she isn't perfect but she's as close as it gets.

My Champ Pac was finally released from customs in New York. That was the first experience I ever had with a parcel being held in customs. I'm wondering if it had something to do with the Olympics being held in London and the security surrounding the events. I wonder if all parcels shipped out of London were held longer than usual at their destinations? Odd.

 The contents of the Pac is a collection of fun items: five shorts, two sequin tube tops, sheer gloves, two "shocking" colored wigs, winged pumps, a space blanket, champagne and best of all, four pairs of expressive hands. I could do without a few of the items but the hands were the important part of the Pac to me. The tube tops can be combined with other fashions so they will be useful and the wigs can certainly be used for fun shots. Anyone want a space blanket? I read that these mylar blankets are used by some athletes to keep the body warm. That makes sense.

Another shot of Neurotica in repose on my kitchen island.