Kingdom Doll 2018 MONARCHY Convention, Edinburgh, Scotland

Edinburgh, Scotland was the site of Kingdom Doll's "Monarchy" Convention. From October 12 through October 14, 2018, seventy-five doll lovers met at the DoubleTree by Hilton, most of us from other countries, to celebrate with each other.
My husband and I made a 10-day vacation around this event, many pictures of which are on my regular FaceBook page.  https://www.facebook.com/terri.gold.3?ref=bookmarks.  (Beware, you will have to wade through many political and other posts to find these photos.)
Photos from the actual convention events are posted on my Fans of Kingdom Doll FB page and the Monarchy page. You would have to be a member to see them.

Friday:
The first event took place from 10:30 AM - 4:00 PM during which time we were treated to a talk by Patricia Henry on photography. I can listen to her 'lectures' over and over again. She is so informative and funny. Everyone in the audience, no matter their photographic skill level, was able to take away hints to improve their photos.

We got to see the companion dolls and take the one we ordered.

Ravenna (left) and Raphaella

We had a buffet lunch in the hotel restaurant and returned to the convention space for more fun.
We voted on the competition entries which were amazing and very numerous.

During the mid-day break, the competition entries were set up. They were extremely impressive as you can see in this video:

We viewed the silent auction dolls and bids were taken.

Tribal Belgae OOAK 

Artemesia OOAK

We were introduced to the new 12" Monarchs. These little beauties are fully jointed 12" resin dolls. They will be sold dressed in copies of 16" Elgin's gown. They have their own website: www.kdmonarchs.com.

Kingdom Doll Photo 

The first Monarch to be released this December is La Scala Georgiana dressed in red silk. The second Monarch will be released sometime in 2019.

Finally, the shopping began.

Saturday 7:00 PM — Late:

Attendees arrived at the ballroom laden with gifts for other attendees and ran about distributing them. We oohed and aahed over the centerpiece hoping to be one of the ones lucky enough to have the opportunity to purchase her.  After dinner, we received our convention souvenir, Rosalind of Durham which some are calling The Red Queen. She has a new sculpt, complete with dimples, called Canti. I don't know who took the first photo but it does show Rosalind in her original wig with her crown. I took the second photo of her wearing a different wig.

The centerpiece doll LE 12 is called Raven. She has the Dumnonii sculpt.

The evening went on into the wee hours with dancing and partying.


Sunday 1:00 to 4:00

Afternoon tea was served and then a presentation with a whisky tasting took place. Since half of the collectors at our table are non-drinkers, we had a good time trying to get the others to drink more. The Scottish presenter was delightful and funny. I learned one little fact and it is that only true Scot's whisky can be spelled without the e.

The centerpiece is called Reign of Durham LE 8 .

Reign of Durham photographed by Machelle Dubriel

Her sculpt is the same as Rosalind's. Her gown is a black version of the Red Queen's while her fur epaulets are a pink version.

A big surprise of the event was our gift from Kingdom Doll which was a doll. She is called Realm. She came nude. Here are some photos I took of her when we got home. She's dressed in one of the optional purchase dresses which is part of a larger outfit.

More shopping opportunities finished off the afternoon with goodbyes and hugs and kisses.

Random photos I took once I arrived back home.

VanBrugh got to wear a British flag pin and carry a bagpipe when we came home.

Optional fashions available. Defense of the Realm was available for pre-order.

Blue Safari (Above) Defense of the Realm (below)

The Hamish Bag Set and There's A Snake in Your Sporran

Slay Another Day 

Holyrood Sapphire and Garnet Outfits

Tonner's Raven

The one convention doll I purchased, Raven, arrived today. Like most furry, feathered creatures, she sheds. Her box had bits and pieces of this and that floating around. What I thought was a headpiece is actually part of her hair caught up and left with the ends sticking out. That hairdo will come down and she will have a full head of curly hair. In person her eye shading is darker than her promos. She reminds me of a mixture of two earlier Tonner dolls I've had, Suzette and the Ghost of Christmas Past.

 The tail of her costume is wired so it can be curled upward. Her shoes have a row of faux fur at the back and down the heel. Its not showing up in the pictures but her tights are shiny black. I think the interpretation of Raven-ness was done exceedingly well. She is ready for Halloween or a POE-try reading event.

A few other new things...

This is an Integrity FR16 dress being worn by Grace. It was too large for her in the upper back so I pinned about an inch.  The wig is by Cheryl Wood. I love the purse! The outfit comes with a ring and matching stud (yellow rhinestone) earrings, a yellow/black enamel cuff bracelet and black shoes.

Poor Leonie. I haven't given this new doll more than a few minutes of my time. She will have to wait a bit longer for some good styling and photos.

Last but not least in any way is Talc. I love this doll. She got to try on another new Ficon outfit that reminds me of a tutu. The jewelry is Superfrock; wig by Cheryl Wood.