Time for Pretty Dolls

I like pretty dolls. They appeal to my desire to see myself as forever young and beautiful.
Currently, my only Ellowyne, "Gilded Gloom", gets the feminine treatment in "Ruffled Up."

Avantguard "On Edge" is a fairly recent purchase. I sold off all of my Avantguards as I was disgusted with their bodies. I did love the Goldmine sculpt, however, and when I saw this doll for a very fair price I hit the buy-it-now button.
The body is crappy, wiggly, too thin and unstable. Am I making myself clear? Could be one of the reasons they were discontinued. The other reasons, well that's for another post.
Anyway, along comes Tulabelle with her giant head and her 'pick me up by my lips' mouth.
Body switching ensues and voilà! We have a beautiful doll. In the pictures, the fashion is from Yeti to Wear. The shoes are JamieShow. The wig is by Patta.

Yes, she is standing on her own, thanks to the solid joints of this body and the well-made JamieShow shoes.

A girl can't have enough furs, lace and jewelry.

Enjoying My Dolls

One of my favorite gowns on a favorite doll, Inro. The fashion is from Tonner's Hypnotic Antoinette. I love when fashions from different dolls are interchangeable. Wig by Ilaria.

Here is Jamieshow Ling Lan wearing a Doll Peddlar Exclusive by Ficondoll called Baram2. Wig by Cheryl Wood.

This is what it looks like with all it's pieces...lots of options.

Leonie got a gift from Cheryl Wood of an edgy blonde wig. It suits her well. She is wearing Miss G Black's fashion. Ficon dolls have wobbly legs and although I try, I cannot pose her without a stand.

I sold all of my Avantguard dolls months ago due to loose joint issues and discoloration issues. I really didn't think I'd buy another but I wanted the shoes from On Edge. Don't tell me you never bought a doll to get a pair of shoes! Actually it's the first time I did it and I'm glad. I like this sculpt and always have. She is wearing her own wig (which was a nightmare to put on) and her own clothes. The glasses are Horseman/Urban Vita.

I'm currently in the middle of reorganizing my doll room which wasn't too organized to begin with. These things take time. :-)

"Soon there’ll just be feathers and the quiet of the fall " (Icarus Wind)

I didn't think I'd be able to get a picture of No Exaggeration without using her stand. Difficulty with vertical posing is the quality I dislike the most about the Avantguard dolls. But I did manage to get her to balance using a piece of armature wire. I liked the look of the brick wall which I had originally intended to crop. She is wearing the new Avantguard separate outfit called "Fashion Fuel." The beautiful animal print shoes are a mile high. I put them on her feet before the dressing began to see how they fit. I would not have been able to get them on over the included tights easily and I like easy. I didn't want to risk damaging the fishnet tights or the shoes. Underneath the jacket is a LBD. The leatherette gloves are elbow length and go on easily. The suit is nicer in person than in the promo photos. Unfortunately the wig is awful. Integrity must give up making wigs that are not either stick straight or tightly styled and tied. The quality of the saran (I'm assuming it's saran) is over-worked. The wig arrived style-less and/or distorted from packaging. Trying to style it was unsuccessful. I was very careful with the wig and still the results were horrid. The wig she's wearing is not the one from the set.

Icarus On The Runway
I don't understand why one of the new AGs "On Edge" is also sporting a little black dress. Seriously, I do not get this outfit at all. The shoes are the same as the ones we got in the December 2009 wig and shoe set. And what's with the hot pink feather wings?

Image Property of Integrity Toys

How many little black dresses and gigantic black shoes do these dolls need? She reminds me of one of my 10" Cissettes - feathers - black/pink combo - over-the-top, etc.
I need subtle. Enough with the in-your-face stuff. Jason's recent runway collection was subtle and gorgeous. There was no black and pink and no feathers.

The Lament For Icarus, by Herbert James Draper

What Were They Thinking? Part II

I let this image sink in for two days before I wrote this post. When I first received the email containing the pictures of this new Avant Guard doll, Hot Trot, I thought of the Inferno Vita doll with her fire orange streaked hair and black eyes. The more I looked at this doll, the worse she gets. I've said it before, these dolls have ugly knees. The shape of this gown accentuates her knees. It's just awful. I might like it better if the hem were the length of the front of the gown and even all around. It's an awkward, unbalanced design and it's not pretty. What happened to pretty? What's going on with the ties on the shoes? What is hidden behind the front leg?The other 2010 Avant Guard doll is called On Edge. She has the Goldmine sculpt which I like better than the closed mouth. I like the short black wig and I think she is very pretty. The feather cape is ... well I can't find the words. The bust of the dress looks like it doesn't fit properly but that could be the photo. The shoes are the same ones that came in the accessory set from last month! So it's just another AG with bright blue eyeshadow and red lips. I like the gloves if that makes a difference.
These dolls could have been called Feathers, Over and Under. Whatever. I will probably put my money somewhere else.
Both: Retail Price $220. Edition size 400.