The Day After Pittsburgh and My Workshop Experience

The blog post title sounds like a disaster movie title. It is somewhat appropriate as I haven't even gone near my suitcases except to extract my toothbrush and a doll that was packed. My clothes may remain packed for a week. I'm not kidding. It  wasn't that long ago that I finished unpacking from the Nashville event in August.
This morning I've been busy doing sales transactions. I think I may have nipped a scam in the bud. There were two confusing transactions from China with multiple addresses and I couldn't figure out who was who. Last night I refunded one of the payments and today I refunded the other. I feel relieved.  I'm not going to name names but be careful if the name on the transaction doesn't match the Paypal name and address...especially if they don't tell you up front so you have time to check. That's a big red flag!
Right now I'm uploading two videos I shot during the dance party on Friday night. You will love them!
Quite by accident, one of the videos has the band performing Jump On It which is the same song I shot two years ago and which is up there to see.
I will of course post links when the uploads are complete.
Update on Video upload - it failed. The thing took more than three hours and then failed. UGH. If anyone knows how to upload a 5 minute recording (.mov) please let me know. I know how to use a camera but this file thing has me stumped.

I know you are all waiting for pictures and reviews. I am dying to get to that. What I've decided to do is to post all my pictures from the entire event at one link. Most of my pictures identify the people shown. If you see yourself or someone's picture and there is no identification, email me with the info. Try to identify the picture by number or grab it and send it to me with the info. I'm confused enough for all of us.

Picture link will be up later. Hang in there peeps.
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I signed up for 5 workshops: Rob's Poppy head hair styling, the Design-a-Doll workshop, Alain's fireplace workshop,  Steven Fraser's art workshop and Vaughn's out of the box workshop.
Rob was supremely well prepared with a print out and finished samples. He demonstrated carefully. Most of us watched as some worked along with him. There were enough supplies to create the hairstyle on the optional Poppy head which was sold for $25. to those signed up. The Poppy body to match was $25. in the store but $30 before class. Huh? There were loads of them in the store right up to the end of the convention. The heads, however, were only one to a customer. I can't believe the prices that the heads are fetching. It's like what happened with the Madra head from the Gene convention.

The Design A Doll room was arranged like a buffet. When you entered you picked up your nude dolls.  There were four available: one AA, one cocoa colored, two white. I chose the darker skinned dolls as I thought they were the prettiest.
Then you could choose two wigs for each doll. There was a good selection of wigs.
Arriving at the clothing selection area was a disappointment. There were a bunch of cheap-looking skirts that could be paired with cute blouses. There were two different colors of hoodies but no jeans to go with them. The clothes were very crappy as were the two optional clothing packs. I've seen much better at lower prices in Fashion Fever items. There were optional wig packs which were nice. I was told that other collectors weren't able to get them because they ran out. I bought one extra nude, rooted doll for $25. When I saw a doll that someone had put together earlier in the day, I couldn't believe the clothes she had gotten. I was very disappointed that the choices varied so much. It was definitely a WTF moment. I asked David Buttry about it later on and he explained that they had to hold back items for other collectors. What am I, chicken soup? What about those of us who had that segment of time? I would never sign up again to do this because it's not fair. David also told me that there were some clothes in the store I could buy. Really? The two crappy clothing packs and the cheap stuff is what was there. The good stuff was for other collectors apparently.
Matt Sutton was available to help put wigs on for us. He combed out the two Afro wigs I chose. That was a nice touch.

Here are the two dolls I put together in the stuff I could scrounge up. The shrug on one of the dolls is from an extra pack. The  jeans, handbag and brown shoes also were in that pack with the patterned blouse. They would have been cute in 60's dresses with those Afros.
I'm sure if David Buttry had his way, there would have been enough of the nice stuff for everyone. It's too bad that didn't happen.
Steven Fraser's class was very relaxing and laid back. He talked about how anything could be art. Some of us did little paintings or used colored pencils to draw. We were given a package of die cut paper frames that are often used in scrapbooking.
Alain Tremblay and Jakki Peters held a session in which Alain displayed a stained glass mantel and electrified fire screen that could be ordered for $80 plus shipping. Jakki talked about re-purposing plastic items and remodeling styrofoam for diorama purposes. We were given a set of sturdy templates for building our own mantels from foam board.
The most interesting session was the one with Vaughn. There was an optional doll to purchase which really had nothing at all to do with the session. Vaughn hinted that she was inspired by Lady Gaga. I didn't see it but many did. What do I know?
We got to ask him questions about everything from design to creation to shipping to naming and more.
He is a really a down-to-earth, open man who comes across very honest and sincere.
There's no dog-and-pony show there. He talked about going back and forth to the factory in China to train the workers - over and over again. He talked about how things are interpreted differently and may cause production problems. It was a great session and it made me see certain things in a different light.
Apparently Vaughn was aware of my dislike for unbalanced shoes. They're reading the blog.  That's a good thing for the most part, but I do catch hostility. An attitude change from some of the Integrity people was quite obvious to me.  Maybe I don't spend enough money buying Integrity products. Hmmmm.

Other IDEX Highlights and Reviews

DRESSMAKER DETAILS

On Saturday, before the doors were open to the public, I was chatting with Steven Fraser of Dressmaker Details. As you may know, DD now has two lines of fashions. The new line is called Pink Label Paks. They are simply designed and less expensive than the regular fashions. Take a look at this and tell me which line you think it belongs in.

Strolling Along $45.

Believe it or not, it's a Pink Label Pak. I want one. The style is a timeless sheath with a matching swing coat. The fabric looks like silk but isn't. I do want to see how the coat fits over the dress collar. That could be a problem but the sheath by itself with the gold lining and gold shoes are winners! The sheath is available in mauve without a coat for $25.

Here is a fashion from the regular fashion line.

Mon Cheri $85

A doll can never have too many red dresses or too many sparkly rhinestone bracelets!

Steven showed me his wonderful sketchbook. What a treat it was to chat with him about his work.

How about this fabulous black evening coat? Perfect for the opera, isn't it?

Swing Coat $25.

Two poorly behaved gals are seen here fighting over dresses.

For more information about Dressmaker Details, check out their website.

MADAME ALEXANDER CISSY

My Cissy collection consists of five dolls and a few extra outfits. They're all modern Cissy dolls. I mention this because I don't have a connection to the look of vintage Cissy dolls that so many do. I've been a lurking member of the most active Cissy group, however, and from what I've read, 90% of the collectors are very disappointed in the face paint of the new Cissy dolls. The beautifully designed Jason Wu fashions on these dolls were well received but the eye makeup was not. The combination of babyish body and face shape does not do well with runway makeup. I sure would love the clothes!

Envy Cissy 21" LE 200 $349.95

Jason is debuting new Cissy collections this year. In additional to wonderful designs with a 50’s flair and an exquisite make-up palette, Jason has provided these, the 21” Cissys, with newly engineered jointing which includes a concealed shoulder joint, an elbow joint with a 45 degree bend and the most inspired touch of all – adding ball jointed wrists with removable hands which bend and are removable for endless dressing possibilities.

You’ll be green with ENVY when you see this new design by Jason Wu. It, a navy taffeta swing coat with a shawl collar and black belt, is worn over a short-sleeved emerald green, silk dupioni, sheath with a peg skirt. It looks marvelous on 21” Cissy with her black bun and blue eyes. Her face paint looks perfect beneath her fox ‘fur’, pom pom hat that has an attached black net veil which covers the forehead and adds drama to the eyes. A rhinestone necklace, silver, bow shaped earrings and black gloves that reach her elbow, add accents and additional style. As does Envy’s black, platform heels with a black crisscrossed ribbon detail and nude pantyhose. She comes with a martini glass, which you’ll Envy too.

Vice Cissy 21" LE 200 $349.95

21 inch tall Vice Cissy is made of vinyl and shows off her hourglass silhouette wearing a cobalt blue wiggle dress with 3-quarter length sleeves and a black belt. She also wears black matinee gloves, a straw hat and golden jewelry. Fishnet stockings, peep-toe shoes and sunglasses are the finishing touches to her fashionable ensemble. Wearing a jeweled collar is her little black dog, kept close by her side on a golden leash. Vice Cissy is a 2010 edition from Madame Alexander's Couture Collection.

NEO CISSY DOLLS 16"

L'Enfant Terrible LE 200 $134.99

This new fashion doll, as designed by Jason, features a nostalgic Elise sculpt, re-interpreted with a brand new, fully ball jointed body with endless posing possibilities. There are 15 joints in all including neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, bust, hips, knees, ankles, and waist.16” L’Enfant Terrible, a NeoCissy with green eyes, bright red hair in a side-parted ponytail and black nails, has an incredibly daring look. She is presented here in an ensemble that combines a bra-top bodice that has a black fishnet neckline and sleeves with a short black taffeta mini-skirt which is trimmed with black horsehair. Adding additional drama and finishing L’Enfant Terrible’s look is silver rhinestone earrings, black undies with attached garters and black stockings, bright green open-toed booties that have platform heels and a black feathered eye patch that is trimmed with jet caviar beads.

Blu Belle Cissy LE 200 $134.99

16” Blu Belle, a NeoCissy with blue eyes, a large, side-parted, blue Afro and black nails, wears a very chic black taffeta, dropped waist, mini dress. The bodice has a peach ribbon detail stitched to look like a corset and an overlay of ruched, black net with white, flocked, mini polka dots. A strap of the netting extends over one shoulder and the pleated, mini- skirt of the dress has a matching overlay of the same net. Blu Belle’s "‘je ne sais quoi" look is finished by nude pantyhose, orange vinyl, platform sandals, that are accented by orange suede rosettes on the middle strap, silver rhinestone stud earrings and a lacy black eye mask that comes with sticky dots to adhere the mask to the face.

Let the images speak for themselves. I thought the Neo Cissy dolls looked far worse in person than they look in the pictures.

Dressmaker Details - More Isn't Always Better

When Stephen Fraser began designing for the 11 - 12 inch crowd, he stated that his fashions would be similar to those his wife might wear. I took that to mean they would be classic designs, not overdone or gaudy. There have been many fashions that fulfilled that description that were lovely and simple and enhanced the appearance of the dolls. Some of them were a bit dowdy-looking because of the colors used; many of them had fitting issues and most of them included accessories that looked cheap.
I have avoided buying any DD fashions first hand for the last two years. Those that I did buy were sold to others not long after arriving in my collection. On impulse I purchased a new outfit at the Wu Convention recently. This is called Kalyna. According to Wikipedia, Kalyna is a highbush cranberry plant found in East Central Alberta Canada. It's flowers are white and the red fruits which look like cranberries are edible.
OK...so now I know why the outfit was called Kalyna - it's red. It has white flowers in the spring and bright red edible berries in the fall. The stole is white. That's where the outfit's sense ends.
It looked really cute on the model at the show table. I needed more red clothes for my holiday doll picture.
I put it on one of my prettiest dolls and took it off an hour later. This image is from the Dressmaker Details website and it's a great picture! I love the white couch and the 'painting' behind it.

The first thing I did when I took it out of it's package was to remove the small ribbon bow which holds a tear drop shaped rhinestone at the bust line. It just didn't make sense with all that other jewelry. It comes with thigh high panty hose which never stay up so I just left them in the box. The necklace is over-scaled for these dolls. I may put it on one of my 16 inch gals The earrings have an odd aurora borealis bead between the stud and the dangle; I removed it. It was at that point that I realized that things were added to the ensemble just to have more stuff. More isn't always better and it doesn't make up for a lack of fine design. The little white gloves and cheap-looking stole were useless. The silver clutch bag has sparkly ornamentation on the flap. Meh.
And then we have the shoes. At least they fit.
I am spoiled by the haute couture of Jason Wu's fashions. When other companies charge similar prices to those of Integrity Toys, I have come to expect similar quality and I am disappointed.
Can you guess how much this outfit cost? I feel like such a jerk. It was $85.00. I know. Stop laughing.