Christian Dior's "New Look" Interpreted by Tom Logan from California

On February 12, 1947 Christian Dior had his first show.

The ultimate destination for a late-afternoon drink, the bar of the Hôtel Plaza Athénée inspires Christian Dior to design what would become his first show’s statement suit. Among the ninety looks in this audacious collection, the Bar has been the most adulated and reproduced in the fashion press since 1947. In a duo of sober colors, its architectural silhouette sets itself out as the New Look emblem, perfectly combining all the features of the new Corolle and En Huit lines. The construction of its ivory silk shantung jacket, with its snug collar and rounded peplums, is entrusted to Pierre Cardin, then premier of the atelier tailleur. He cuts with an almost mathematical rigor, with a multitude of darts and cutouts. Because what Christian Dior is seeking is to “slim down the body without losing the waist.” 

But during the first fittings on the model Tania, the peplums lie flat on her narrow hips. Some padding is necessary... The young tailor then has the brilliant idea of going to the local pharmacy to buy surgical cotton wool that he folds like an accordion to create the desired volume. And it works! The black pleated wool skirt requires almost twelve meters of fabric, not counting the tulle petticoats. And to give the design even more refinement Christian Dior revives a forgotten tradition by giving it a lining of three meters of percale and taffeta. After a hundred and fifty hours of work, the Bar is born. 

Having become a House reference, this legendary suit lends itself to endless reinterpretation. In all the other Christian Dior collections, one comes across the subtle curves of its silhouette, which affirms itself as the identifier of the Dior allure. The couturier’s successors have endlessly reinterpreted it, right up to Maria Grazia Chiuri, who revisits it seventy years later with a transparent skirt and a message t-shirt in her ready-to-wear spring-summer 2017 show. 

Bar Suit reproduction by Chris Stoeckel. 

Hat by Don Philipott. 

Enjoy! 

Tom in CA

Dolls Do Ralph Lauren

Collector Marty Jones posted the results of a project she did in which several of her dolls are fashioned after Ralph Lauren's runway models. Marty made two skirts, did some trimming and commissioned most of the rest of the fashions and accessories.

Isn't it wonderful to see how this avid and creative collector "plays" with her dolls?

The Lammily Doll

A new fashion doll has been created by Nickolay Lamm which is being touted as the "world's first normal sized doll."

Lammily, created by Nickolay Lamm

It is believed by many that the unrealistic proportions of today's Barbie dolls feeds the negative body image young girls have of themselves.  In my opinion, the media (Hollywood, television, fashion designers) is way more responsible for promoting stick-thinness as the standard to achieve.

In my early years of doll collecting I happened to purchase some of Tonner's Emme dolls and her fashions. However, I liked Tyler's proportions much better and soon sold the Emme items.

I'm not an overweight person but I grew up with the "you can't be too thin" mentality. Diets were a way of life along with diet pills in college and afterwards. I learned it from my mother. She didn't have Barbie dolls. Her generation of dolls were 'chubby-looking' things.

Madame Alexander (Composition) "McGuffey Anna" 1935

In the high fashion industry designers such as Jason Wu, for example, use half-dead, emaciated models to display their clothing.

Gianfranco Ferre model:

Hollow-eyed and gaunt, the skeletal model stalked down the runway at the Gianfranco Ferré fashion show in Milan last night wearing a dress cut in a deep V that revealed her protruding clavicle and flat chest.
A flurry of flashbulbs popped as photographers vied to get the best shot and the line of fashion editors sitting front row scribbled furiously on their notepads.
If ever there were a case of Emperor's New Clothes at fashion week, it was here.
Did any one of the assembled crowd really think this model - bony cleavage, dark circled eyes - looked good? Could they genuinely say that this image was aspirational? And ultimately, would the model do what must be her main purpose here: sell these clothes to other women?

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2042345/Gaunt-model-shocks-Gianfranco-Ferr-Milan-fashion-show.html#ixzz2vgtPriWs

These designers have been known to claim that the clothes 'hang better' on stick figures. Seriously? I'm not saying that the clothes aren't gorgeous but when I see Mrs. Obama wearing a Jason Wu that was shown on a runway by a stick figure woman, Mrs. Obama and the fashion don't look as good.  Of course she's had the dress custom altered to suit her because FLOTUS has a normal body. She would look ridiculous (and inappropriate) in the dress on the right.  So why do I want to look like the model on the right? Sigh.

We are exposed to these bodies as the height of beauty and fashion when they are nothing but starving reflections of women.

I'm always amazed at how most models and movie stars looked in the 1940's through the 1960's. They had thighs and waists and arms.

Women Cast Members from the TV series Mad Men

We're not talking Botticelli babes here, just normal healthy women.

The Three Graces by Sandro Botticelli

Would I buy a Lammily Doll? Maybe, for a little cousin of mine, but not for my collection. It wouldn't fit in. Would you?

Read more: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/03/normal-barbie-doll-with-average-female-body-is-coming-to-life/284212/

Review of Jason Wu's Fashion Night Out Doll #2

 My dolls finally arrived yesterday and were speed deboxed. You've probably all seen pictures and since I don't really have the time, I won't be photographing her anytime soon. The above picture is from combined IT promo images. The doll looks exactly like her promotional images.

I am looking forward to seeing this new FR2 sculpt painted differently as this one is not my taste although it's done very well. I've seen her with her hair taken out of the pony tail and she softens up nicely.

The white handbag is a little work of art with wonderful details and a little zipper inside. You can't see the shoulder strap in the photo below but it's there. The shoes are perfectly constructed in that the doll can stand on her own - balanced! And the shopping bag is a cute touch. She does not come with any jewelry.

The pants have working inset pockets, a teensy zipper fly and fit very well. They are an excellent weight fabric for this type of doll garment. The blouse is another little work of art. First of all it's fully lined. There are tiny darts, pleats and decorative sewn details down the front and along the back and a sheer double organza collar. The cuffs have a metal hook & eye closure.  (Someone has to make miniature hook & eye closures one of these days so they can be in better scale with doll clothes. There has to be another way.) 

If you get a chance to examine this blouse, it's a treat. Most human shirts don't have this much detail. This is classic Fashion Royalty excellence.

The only downfall of this ensemble is the sweater/sweatshirt. The weight of the fabric is wrong. It just doesn't lay properly and certainly doesn't flatter the doll in any way. The real life outfit is gorgeous and the sweater is the star. See below. Apparently in this case, the design could not be translated well for a doll. But I certainly give them an A for effort. As I said, there's not a stitch of careless construction in this ensemble. I wonder if the sweater would work on a flat-chested, slimmer doll.

Do I think she is worth $150? Compared to the other FR2 dolls, she was $25. less. If you love the face and the outfit, then the answer is a definite yes.

At this point the only way to get the doll is from other collectors directly or on eBay. Bergdorf's sold out shortly after they were posted.

You may be interested in seeing these images from Nordstrom's & Neiman Marcus' websites showing the real life Jason Wu garments upon which the doll's ensemble was based.

Jason Wu Lace Trim Wool Sweatshirt $1195.00

Jason Wu Organza Trim Silk Blouse $930.00

Jason Wu Satin Piped Tuxedo Pants $795.00

Double layer organza collar detail.

Leather Crossbody Tote $1995.

Too Close For Comfort?

We've seen over and over again how doll designers use runway fashions for inspiration. We've also seen some outright copies. This one is the latter.

Wunderkind Spring 2011 RTW

Go Home, IFDC Convention Souvenir Doll

Wunderkind's Spring 2011 RTW show took place on October 6, 2010 in Paris. That's a 10 month time span to have a doll ready for an early July, 2011 convention. It almost took that long for me to get a replacement head for a doll! Snark, snark.


Have a look at the entire Wunderkind show.  It's wonderful.  I'd like a few more of these fashions for my dolls! Not this one, however.