Collecting Fashion Dolls by Terri Gold: Tropicalia

Showing posts with label Tropicalia. Show all posts

10/27/2012

The Best and the Worst of the Rest - Tropicalia

Four weeks after the Tropicalia convention ended, people who pre-ordered the convention collection began receiving their dolls. It was supposed to take only two weeks but the slow boat from China was extra slow this time.

The most popular of all the dolls were Eugenia and Agnes but they were not part of the convention collection. I loved Elyse more than any doll from the entire event. I liked the Vanessa but not her awful gown. I agree that Eugenia was gorgeous but her gown was a terrible fit. In fact, most of the clothes that had that particular bodice style were manufactured very poorly.

For me, the best doll out of the convention collection was Dasha.

Once I took off her trashy blue dress with its crooked velvet bow, combed out her hair and redressed her, she took on a new personna.

In my photo she is wearing an outfit by V John (dress and head wrap) and carrying an IT purse.

Adele is a beauty. But, again, the sewing of the bodice insert is very bad.

It was the same on Kyori's top. They pucker and don't lay right.

I also think that Natalia is gorgeous. Her hair color, skin and makeup are a fabulous combination.

But her outfit is a nightmare of color and texture. In my opinion it is unsophisticated and garish.

Poppy is cute but her outfits are 'ho-hum-where- have-we-seen-that-before?'

Let's just skip to the worst of the bunch - Veronique. Gone is the beautiful Veronique that enticed so many original Fashion Royalty fans to begin collecting these dolls.

What we have in this version is a paranoid-looking doll wearing a lab coat with a beaded belt over an ill-fitting pink and blue dress. This has to be the worst Vero ever produced - tasteless and laughable. Even Vero isn't smiling anymore.

What the heck happened to good taste and design? I can't understand how Jason would even want to be associated with most of this.

Perhaps if I take the attitude I used to have towards a roll of film, I can accept the degradation of the Fashion Royalty line. If you get one or two good pictures out of a roll of 36, you're doing well.

10/02/2012

Review of the Tropicalia Dolls

I wanted to review the dolls and fashions coming out of the Tropicalia convention earlier but I hesitated because the fashions are mostly so bad that it's confusing. Out of the 8-doll Convention collection, the worst are the outfits worn by Veronique and Kyori with close runners-up Adele, Natalia and Colette.

What is this outfit?

The color combinations, style mismatching, poor fit and generally cheap-looking appearance is mystifying. While the dolls themselves are not unattractive, the clothes are. I keep hearing "Who Let the Dogs Out?"
Dasha's dress looks flimsy and poorly constructed. What a waste.

The neat little fashions on the Poppy Parkers are fine. Victoire Roux' fashions are well conceived and presented. Although I'm not sure about the roses (?) on the gown. Anja's dress is so not weird that I wonder what happened. Even the two most beautiful of dolls, Vanessa and Eugenia, had dresses that were uncomfortable looking and without any high style.
The clear winner of the event is Escapism Elise Jolie. Although her dress is a little tortured it looks interesting and I think she is stunning. The FR2 shoe pack is very nicely designed.
The Imogen gift set is so crappy I don't even want to go there. Three skimpy dresses? Red and black?
Good grief.
This had to be the lamest bunch of convention fashions ever. Look back only a few years at the beautiful fashions and compare what came out of Orlando to what existed previously.

The names on the Saturday night dolls have been changed. Vanessa is now being called the give away doll and Imogen is the official convention doll.

Sigh.

10/01/2012

A Commercial from Our Sponsor

I am offering for sale several of the Tropicalia Convention Items. They are all listed on my Show & Sell pages. Here is the list of what is remaining at the current time as I have sold most of what I did not want to keep. Please note that if it is not listed here, I don't have it or I'm keeping it. You can find images to these items (except the chairs) in prior blog posts.

Tropicalia Imogen's 3 Dresses, Handbag, Bracelets
This offering is for the two red dresses, one black dress, red handbag and two gold metal bracelets that came with Imogen in the round giftset box. (Not included: ring and shoes.) If you would like the round giftset box in which this doll was packaged, add $25. to the total.
Price: $119. Plus Postage

OUTFIT from Vanessa Perrin Tropicalia Convention Doll
This is the gown that was provided for the Vanessa convention doll. All accessories that came with the gown (if any) will be included.
Price: $89 Plus Postage

Outfit Only Sweet Victory Natalia Fatalé
Price: $75. Plus Postage

Tropicalia Peak Season Kyori Sato
NRFB $150 NUDE $90 OUTFIT $60 I believe this is the first Kyori with a new sculpt. She has blonde hair and her outfit is just adorable.
Price: $150.

Tropicalia Dinner Event Doll - Anja
Beautiful long brunette wavy hair. Purple dress. Tan skin. NRFB from Thursday night dinner.
Price: $139. Plus Postage

If you are interested, please email me with your zip code or country. Emails get faster response as opposed to PM's. International shipping must go via Priority Mail which is trackable. Most items will have to be insured as that protects both of us. Please note: I do not put items on hold without a substantial deposit. I do add the Paypal fee into the shipping quote. However, if you can make *t for the items and I will invoice with exact postage and Paypal fees (....) as soon as the items arrive.

9/30/2012

Tropicalia: Final Act

The official photos and titles of the last three dolls have been released by Integrity Toys, clearing up some confusion - I think.
Apparently, according to her title, Imogen is not the convention souvenir doll. She was the Welcome Kit Gift Set. Someone screwed that up in it's distribution as the welcome kits usually are doled out piece by piece.

Fame by Frame
Imogen Dressed Doll Welcome Kit Gift Set
2012 Tropicalia Convention Exclusive

Eugenia is a gorgeous doll with a less than stellar gown.

High Profile
Eugenia Perrin Frost Dressed Doll
2012 Tropicalia Convention Exclusive Table Centerpiece

Vanessa is the convention doll. She is a new sculpt. Back to the open mouth and closer to the original than the last two incarnations which were not popular among most long time collectors. The gown was given out with the registration (welcome?) kit. Vanessa was distributed in a baggie! Who is running this show these days? Who cares. I'm glad that someone had the good sense to make a real Vanessa again and to make her the convention doll. She deserves it. That's my story and I'm sticking with it.

High Point
Vanessa Perrin Official Convention Doll
2012 Tropicalia Convention Exclusive

______________________

I'm off to attend the last function of the Jamieshow Convention in a few minutes. We're doing brunch at a gallery where George's photography is currently being featured. I'll be back in PA later today. Back to the packed dolls and showcases waiting for their empty spaces to fill up. Four more cases are on their way from Ikea. I was busy before. Now I'm going to be ridiculously occupied.

9/29/2012

The dessert looked delicious.

Still on the topic of Tropicalia 2012:
I'm trying to figure this out. The convention souvenir doll came in a round box with two red dresses and it's Imogen.
The dinner centerpiece was a gorgeous tan Eugenia.
Where did Vanessa fit into this? Someone posted that she is the doll that goes into the red dress that was in the box presented at registration. Imogen trumps Vanessa? Not in my world.
So, I saw a picture of Vanessa and she is looking like the original Vanessa we know and love. That's a good thing. After all, if collectors want the original doll, give it to them. That always made sense. Make a different sculpt and call it something else.
Personally I am pretty confused by all the sculpt switches and I do not see the marketing value of this behavior. More is not always better.
I'm hoping that I can see the professional images from IT soon.

_____________

Some of you may realize that this weekend I have been blogging from Canandaigua, NY, while attending the "Prohibition" Jamieshow event. I had a great time and will be writing it up for FDQ. I will, however, post images here at some time next week.
We were a small group of 22 collectors and it was an excellent opportunity to get to know people on more than just a cursory basis. It was like the experience I had when I attended Sandra Stillwell's event in Nashville a while back. Small conventions and doll events are very different from large conventions. We spent a lot of time with George and Tim of Angelic Dreamz. We got to know two of their employees as well.
More to be revealed.

Tropicalia Part 2

Several more dolls have made an appearance at the Fashion Royalty convention as it unfolded.

At the FR16 Tea breakout event the following doll was the centerpiece:

"Sheen Siren" Elsa Dressed Doll
2012 Tropicalia Convention Exclusive Table Centerpiece Doll

There were a multitude of dolls available at the designer workshops. I think they go by letter. I do not have Integrity Toys official pictures of them but they might show up eventually. According to some collectors all or most sport sculpts previously used. I can't tell one from the other anymore.

Today was the W Club breakout event. The centerpiece was a gorgeous Elise Jolie. So far she is my favorite doll of the entire convention and I am happy to say that I will be getting her. Everyone was given an FR2 shoe pack.

Escapism Elise Jolie™ FR: Squared Dressed Doll
2012 Troplicalia Convention Exclusive Table Centerpiece

Shoe Win 12" FR2 Doll Shoe Pack
2012 Tropicalia Convention Exclusive Table Giveaway

There was also a companion doll which was Victoire Roux. I'm guessing that many in attendance would have preferred the second doll to be another FR2. I would have. But that's because I like the FR2 dolls. However, many collectors do not collect the FR2 due to the price. This Victoire is tan and she is cute.