Showing posts with label resin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label resin. Show all posts

12/16/2020

Introducing "Lam, Dalat Holiday" by Aquatalis

 I've posted many photos of my 16" BJDs dressed in fashions by Aquatalis and now, there is a doll from them. 

Lam is a 16-1/2" resin BJD gift set in a limited edition of 15.  In her first iteration, introduced in October 2020, she is on holiday in Vietnam at a place called Dalat. The gift set consists of three distinct fashions and accessories as you can see below.

Photo by Aquatalis

This is her back story:

Dalat is one of the most beautiful destinations of Vietnam, which is located 4,900ft above sea level, known as a gift of nature since it has four seasons in a day, yes in a day! You can have the spring in the morning, summer in the noon, autumn in the afternoon and winter at night. Doesn't it sound wonderful? Dalat is also where Lam was born, so she decided to go back to her hometown with fashions and excited to transfer her feelings to you all. The first place that Lam visited is the King Palace of Dalat, she chose the classic brocade suit set to reappear the image of Nam Phuong - the last and the most beautiful, fashionable Empress Consort of Nguyen Dynasty - Vietnam back in the 40s. This set was made by our very talented best friend, Hoàng Anh Khôi, who is also well known for making classic style garments for fashion dolls, he used the blue shade brocade with golden thread flower to create the royal feeling for Lam, comes together with golden tone accessories to complete the look, that also matches perfectly to the context of King Palace and the cold weather of Dalat. Lam is deeply in love with that place and she's played the Queen role very well with power in the eyes but still remains the elegance.

Pham Anh Quan's photographs show her visiting three places dressed in one of the fashions each time.




The cost of the gift set was $1230  ($1080 + $150.) including EMS shipping from Viet Nam to the United States. It arrived several days after sending the payment which was really nice. I don't like having to pay for doll weeks (or longer) in advance. IMO, sellers should not get the total payment until the doll is actually ready to ship. 

I have dressed her in each outfit and wig (and several other wigs) and photographed her in everything and here is my opinion. 

Lam has a very pretty face. Her makeup is perfect. Her applied lashes are even. I loved the fact that her earring holes were large enough for most of my doll earrings. 

The clothes fit very well. There was no struggle to close any item and there were no awkward hems or clumps of fabric. Her shoes stayed on when I moved her.



Her necklace closes by tying ribbons. I do prefer a hook closure but this was fine. 


The wigs were carefully made, hard-cap type. I had trouble with the long wig as far as placing it on her head properly. I have to work on that. It's the reason that I don't have a photo of her wearing it.


The wigs shown below were made for Kingdom Dolls (except the last one.) Not all KD wigs fit properly. It depends on the wig itself. Lam's head is a bit smaller. I have an IT AvantGuard wig that fits her. 










Her lingerie:


Her suit:


Lam comes with two sets of hands and changing paddles. Hooks were not attached to the hands and should have beeen. I took the hooks off the paddles and put them on one pair of hands and used the extra pair of hooks for the other set of hands. Unfortunately, they fall off when the hands are not on the doll. It's kind of a balancing act to change the hands. I'm sure that is something that will be fixed in future dolls. 

Her hand-on-hip pose is easy to do and her holding hand works as you can see above. I pinned her hat on as I wanted it to tilt and the wig had a lot of height itself so the hat could not sit the way I wanted it to sit. 

Comparison to two other resin BJDs in my collection:
 
Size:
Lam is taller by a full half inch than Kingdom Doll. She is the same 16-1/2" tall as the Superdoll Sybarite.
For this photo, I made sure that each doll's foot surface was even with the others.
Note the differences in shoulder height, length from knee to hip, length of neck and the shape of the calf and the ankle. 



Kingdom Doll's body is beautifully refined and proportional. They have improved and made changes often. The finish is matte. The blushing is appropriate. Their joints work well. Occasionally, the arms are snappy and do not hold position. Nothing is perfect.
The Sybarite body is a joke. It is possibly the most unattractive resin body currently on the market. The blushing is ridiculous - look at the knee joints and around the breasts. Seriously? However, they have sold tons of dolls probably because of the fabulous clothes, makeup and hair. 

Lam's body needs some refinement and I'm sure they will be working on the body as time goes by. One change I'd like to see is to make the calf and ankle more shapely. 
The joints work very well except for one area - the knees. When bending the knees, I had to manipulate the center joint by hand. It will probably loosen up with a bit of time. 
The rest of her body is very shapely and slim.  It's an excellent doll for the first.



Her feet are wider than KD's but the soft, as opposed to the resin hi-arch KD shoes, will fit her. I haven't tried the Superdoll shoes but there may be some that fit. All three of my comparison dolls have a very high arch.

I think there's a great market for Lam amongst those who tend to prefer a more conservative-looking resin doll. Think of the first 10 years of Tyler Wentworth and friends...toned-down make-up, classic clothing, no see-through fabrics - a girl you'd take home to Mother. 

I recommend trying to purchase one of Aquatalis' dolls if you can. The reception for Lam was excellent. She was sold out very quickly. The second iteration is already sold out. Keep an eye out for their announcements on Facebook. 

Phạm Anh Quân 


11/01/2018

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




10/24/2016

Superdoll's 2016 "Glamour Ghoul" Event in London

I was able to cobble together a review of the recently held Superdoll event with text by Izzy and photos from Superdoll, Izzy, Sherryl Buchler, Gerri aka Aquabluerose and John aka dollster.

It's a strange feeling tonight being really happy after a truly wonderful conventionand a little sad that it is all over and we've already waved so many friends goodbye. 
The Glamour Ghoul week started with lots of people enjoying salon appointments: beautiful couture Made in London outfits, special headskin wigs, studio painted Gen_X dolls and previews of some upcoming production items.....including TU, the next in the current AW collection and the one Val queried below. 
The first "official unofficial happening" was the Thursday night get together held in a hotel near the salon. This had the theme "Witch's Heart" after a Halloween cocktail which is the same colours as the gorgeous first prize in the draw at the end of the evening: a specially enhanced and wigged version of Oxide wearing a OOAK salon gown. Conventioneers also received goody bags with miniatures, customized candy and postcards together with a "paper doll" of Oxide - we received three more to cover the Kinky collection during the event.

Most people spent Friday either shopping or visiting one of the many available exhibitions - The Vulgar at the Barbican Arts Centre was the most popular! This included some fabulous fashions by designers like John Galliano, Christian Dior and Pam Hogg: the Jazz Age at the Fashion and Textile Museum also had some beautiful dresses. 
On Friday evening we all assembled for The Howling: cocktails and a Chalk White exhibit at The Hospital Club in Covent Garden. Don't ask me about the drinks, the venue, the music, the canapes......I only had eyes for the dolls! (The company was pretty good too though!). 
The collection was called Screaming Dervish and was totally incredible - but far too exciting to discuss properly in an event report! 
Once we had our breath back, Charles and Desmond presented the first of our event dolls, a Gen_X Beauty called Magic with raven hair and a red and neutral dress - and stunning two tone red and dark brows! 


She was accompanied by a set of glittering headphones and cell phone and the next "paper doll". 
Then came the exciting news that Magic had a sister who was an edition of just 30 and available as a companion optional purchase the next day at the salon! 
Trillion is a really pretty colour variation with a blonde and pink palette...just lovely


After Saturday's additional salon shopping excursion it was time to start>>
preparing for the Ice Morgue Ball held at St Ermins Hotel in Westminster. The staff did a fabulous job welcoming us and not batting an eyelid at some of the rather....ahem...unusual and extreme costumes that were sported at this costume ball (though they did request quite a few photographs!). After enjoying cocktails in the beautiful Balcony Bar...all white stucco friezes and beautiful curved rails....whilst we watched the new arrivals negotiating the staircase in towering heels or mummy wrappings or masses of white tulle....we made our way to The Cloisters, a beautiful spacious room with high cornices and amazing details. 
Through a fog of dry ice clouds the staff assisted us with finding our places at a huge dining table adorned with myriad candelabras....and five gorgeous dolls dressed in gowns resembling the mummy's wrappings slowly revolving in front of our astonished eyes. 
Each place setting had a gold box containing a set of five pairs of shoes, a sybarite luggage tag shaped like a miniature doll, a set of postcards and the final "paper doll" together with chocolates and badges. 
Saturday Centerpiece Doll
After a delicious dinner of smoked salmon, tender beef and a champagne and strawberry dessert, we all savoured our coffee whilst Charles and Desmond collected our prize draw tickets and awarded the stunning centerpieces to five lucky winners. I'm thrilled to say my husband was one of them!!!!! The excitement continued with the best costume competition, loudly voted upon by all the attendees! 
Then came the high point: the unveiling of the convention doll - or should I say defrosting? For the first of the new generation 4.5 resin sybarites, Venus clone 800, was presented encased in a shimmering ice sculpture....maybe to stop us overheating as we stared at her beautiful face! Anunnaq is absolutely perfect - the most amazing make up and outfit!!!! There are pictures on superdoll's Facebook page for those who haven't seen her and I know there will be lots more as soon as collectors arrive home and get chance to play! 
Anunnaq, Resin Gen 4.5, Venus Clone 800
We celebrated her arrival with dancing, partying,talking, planning.......before finally leaving with words of see you in Paris or see you in New Orleans....already looking forward to our next sybarite events! 
__________________________________

All the dolls except Anunnaq were the vinyl Gen X type. Izzy reported that between 40-50 were in attendance. I asked her about Salon Appointments.
The exclusive salon items are sold most frequently via salon appointments - some items made in the London studio may be sold online but then would normally be described as studio pieces rather than salon exclusives. 
There are salon items produced throughout the year and it is possible to make an appointment at any time of year (subject of course to Charles or Desmond being available) but there is a greater selection of items specifically made for the convention collections. 
As well as the chance to purchase these exclusive fashions there may often be the chance to see a preview of a forthcoming production item or something unique from Superdoll's private collection - you never really know what you will find to see! 
The last two USA Superdoll conventions have included a "trunk sale" - effectively a traveling salon. 

9/24/2016

Kingdom and Kinsman - Two New Faces

Two new faces have debuted and collectors are going gaga over both of them.
This is the face of Draig (but not the actual doll) who will be released some time in October.



She has the most intriguing Asian sculpt I've ever seen. I love her in both versions above as a blonde and as a brunette. A new hand sculpt with "Stiletto Nails" will come with Draig. I cannot wait to see her!

The Kinsman has undergone dramatic changes. This is Lancelot in (almost) all his glory. You are seeing a comparison shot between him and Garrick. He is a highly refined version and I like him. I wonder if he will be able to wear other male dolls' clothes. That would be a bonus.

 


No specific information regarding prices or exact release dates has been issued.