Reviews: Fashion Explorer Vanessa and Poppy Fashions

Fashion Explorer Vanessa is one of the three optional 2014 W Club upgrade dolls and the only one I ordered. Apparently I can't shake the Vanessa addiction completely. She was $130 plus postage.

Let me deal with the sculpt first. She's described as having the Vanessa 3.0 sculpt. I'm still struggling to figure out what the 2.0 sculpt was. It seems that there were several other attempts at a new Vanessa sculpt between DC and now. Half this...half that...I don't get it. 


Could it have been Dress Code Vanessa?

Go back to the original Vanessa.

Make the rest of us happy. 

We don't care if you're bored.

Anyway, the new gal is a pretty doll. There have been many complaints about the screening difference between the left and right eyes. I see it when I look very closely but it doesn't bother me. Her hair, which is long in the back in a beautiful wrapped pony tail, is offset by the boring side curl and an ultra high forehead. A different hairstyle would do wonders.

She is styled awkwardly.
The fashion consists of a boxy, ill-fitting ultra suede top over a sheer mesh bodysuit. The skirt is, as you can see, is a wrap mini in light blue. This is supposed to be a fashion doll and I don't think she ranks up there as well dressed or worth $130.
This is the first time I've seen the revised FR2 body. It's a good body with firm joints. The elbow joints on this doll squeak! 

Her accessories are a huge brown handbag, super tall boots in the same brown, cheap looking sunglasses, irrelevant silver colored bracelets and pin ball studs.

W Club dolls should be the 

very best 

of what's available 

for so many reasons.

Here she shows off her assets:

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I purchased two fashions from the recently offered three dressed IFDC Poppy Parker dolls. Since I do not collect Poppy dolls, I was hoping that some of my flatter chested dolls would be able to wear them. Success.

This lavender confection comes from a doll called Glamorous Darling. It fits my Monogram Exaggeration perfectly - including the shoes. I am so happy that Poppy has grown up to have normal fashion feet! I hate the articulated ankle on that doll.

The gown is very pretty. The person that sold it to me made the mistake of folding the tulle so it's not draping properly - yet. It will. I'm not going near it with heat. (Been there, done that. Not good.)

Anyway, the only thing wrong with this ensemble is the GLITTER. Sequins would have been sufficient.  Glitter is Mattel's gig. 

Please, no more glitter.

Above is my Mini Avantguard doll, Aphrodisiac, modeling IT Girl. The skirt is a bit loose in the hip area but it doesn't affect the appearance. I wasn't able to get the jewelry or the sunglasses with the ensemble so I added Knife Edge bracelets and IT earrings from some other doll. The earrings came with a bracelet that was way too large for Aphro so I'm thinking they were from a 16" doll. At this point, I have no idea what goes with what and I don't care either.

I removed the bow that was attached to the bodice. It wouldn't lay straight and stuck out too far.

I'm very pleased with both fashions.

Wilde's First-Ever Virtual Factory Sale

Are we excited yet? 

I bought my first Evangeline at a real factory sale and I was hooked for a while. (It was the old body's awful posing that did me in.) Now I have just one new Evangeline with a bunch of outfits and one Ellowyne. And that's it. Not that I don't look often.

I'd love a Sad Sally just because she is so adorable. I have never held one so I don't know how well she poses. But...I have learned how to wire my dolls so that problem will go away - maybe.

This doll is a basic and retails for $250. She's 7" tall - or should I say 7" short? Resin BJD, changeable eyes and wig. I have a feeling that I won't be able to get one on sale if they even have any for sale. Sigh.

If this were an outfit, I'd buy it for my beautiful Ello, but it's a dressed doll and I don't want another doll.

Great Depression Ellowyne $135.15 (End of edition Special)

Perhaps someone reading this will do a split with me???


Looking for an outfit for my Evangeline, this looked good at first.

Candlelight at Night (Outfit Only) $110.

Harking back to a topic I've covered before, here is one of the reasons manufacturers should not use glitter:

Click on the image to enlarge it and tell me what those sparkling dots are on her black dress. Yep. It's glitter on the dress.  It is probably on the doll, the photographer, his work table and everywhere else. Ugh. The shoes are described as silver glittery. Why doesn't the description say the robe has applied glitter? Because no one wants it. Here is the description from the website:

Featuring a long black dress of shantung trimmed in tulle beneath a glowing robe of sheer fabric and sequins with matching tulle trim and shantung sleeve cuffs, this ensemble is sure to light up any dark and dreary night! The outfit is complete with matching black hat garnished with feathers and tulle ribbons at the back, and a soft veil. Silver glittery shoes finish the look. Splendid for those night vigils! LE 350

This post started out as an announcement about the virtual factory sale and turned into a rant about glitter.  In any event, I think there will be chaos on the ordering site. So many people will be trying to buy stuff that the server will become paralyzed. That's been my experience with these virtual factory sales no matter who the manufacturer is. They just don't have enough band width. 

Keep your expectations low and you won't be disappointed. If you get to buy something at a price you like, that's great!

Good luck, everyone.

March 24, 2014. At approximately 12:10 PM EDT

This link will become active when the sale begins:
http://www.wildeimagination.com/content/virtual-factory-sale

 

Can Velcro be Far Behind?

Tonner released a few of his 2014 dolls today and the first Tiny Kitty ever to have applied eyelashes is wearing a gown made from pink glitter stretch knit with stretch glitter gloves.

Seriously?

What is this? Kindergarten Barbie? 

I'm not buying it and that's that. 

Don't put glitter in or on fashion doll clothes and expect discriminating collectors to shell out money for them. Who would make such a stupid decision? I don't give a damn that it's cheaper to make. It's not coming in my house.

Good luck selling a $179.99 list price doll that is covered in glitter - lashes or not.

I believe this is the end of my Tiny Kitty doll collection. Thank you TDC for keeping my money out of your pocket.

Nothing to Buy at Barbie Collector.Com

Three emails arrived from BC.Com yesterday. The first announced a free shipping offer.  The second was also about the free shipping and "Think Spring." The last came in near midnight and offered 20% off on Valentine's Day.  So I go over there, thinking I'll find something on which to spend my first quarterly $20. bonus only to find that the item which has a remotely attractive chance of coming here is a $75, unarticulated Barbie doll wearing a Zuhair Murad gown. $75.00? It's the designer name one is paying for.

I put it in my shopping cart and the $75. goes down to $55. but shipping is additional. WTF? It turns out that one must spend a minimum of $75. to get the free shipping. Isn't that a new thing? 
I did not order it.

I went back again later when I saw there was the new "Fiorella" Silkstone. I apologize to those who like her but this is one of the worst Silkstones ever. Fiorella is the definition of a hot mess. She looks like she got dressed in a thrift store with pieces thrown together from a shower curtain, a Spanish dancer, a street walker and a Cupie doll. What possessed the designer (Robert Best) to top it all  off with two cutesie bows in her hair? He must be losing it.

Her face is boring. That straight hairline is never my favorite and her hairstyle will never arrive like that IRL. This would definitely be throwing away $50. which is her price. Fiorella means little flower in Italian. Big mistake is more like it.

I wanted to spend money. I really did. I could always buy $75 worth of flimsy Barbie t-shirts. Nah.

I just figured out how to get the Zuhair Murad Doll and the free shipping without buying useless stuff. Well, maybe a little  useless. If I order three notecard sets @$15. each,  it brings my order up to $120. After the 20% off and my $20 bonus the total comes to $76.  Much better. I will use the notecards as gifts. It's a set of twelve 4"x6" folded cards with matching envelopes. I can freak out my Sybarite friends.

By my calculations, the Zuhair doll ultimately comes to $44. I'll sell the nude doll for about $15 and I'll  have a lovely gown. I just hope it's not covered in glitter. I'd better go take a look before I press the check out button. Ugh.

Oh crap. Look at this detail. It is glitter. I don't do glitter.

Why do I feel compelled to buy something when there's a sale? I saved money by not buying anything at all.

Barbie Loves Glitter GLAM VAC & Doll

Mattel has me on their mailing list and insisted that I check out their sale (again.) These are the items that caught my eye:

If you saw a doll named Glam and Vac, what would you imagine? I just had to see the glamorous Barbie that also vacuumed. I thought, hmm...now this is real life. Mattel is getting with the program. WRONG.
The vac is a tool you get in the package to clean up your messy glitter after you glue it to Barbie's outfit.

Girls can glitterize Barbie doll's outfits and accessories! Just choose a sticker and apply it to the surface of the item you want to decorate. Pick a glitter color (pink or purple) and use the scoop tool to pour glitter over the sticker. Then press the gem button on the Glitter Glam Vac to clean up the excess glitter and store it in the gem top. So glitter-rific and fun!

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So let's say you don't want the all that loose and dreaded glitter in your home but you must have a Barbie Loves Glitter Hair Doll. It comes with "fabulous glitter mascara to color Barbie doll's hair." I envision a creative child also coloring the family dog's fur.  I don't think the VAC would work on that.

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But the weirdest item of all is the Barbie Doll'd Up Nails Digital Nail Printer.  It doesn't work with a Mac system so I'm safe.

Here is the description of what it does:
"There's so much stylin' fun at your fingertips with this digital nail printer! Now, both girls and their moms can get creative with their manicures. Simply select from 1,000+ adorable nail designs, choose the color, size the image to fit the nail, and print. Voila... your own custom manicure, at home! You can even upload your own photos to print and wear on nails for the most unique manicure of all."

I'm guessing you have to stick your fingers in one at a time. And it's reduced to $149.99. If you buy it on sale you pay only $119.99. 

I can think of all sorts of unique uses for this toy.