Secrets Abound in the Fashion Royalty World!

We just found out whose face mold is being retired but I can't tell until tomorrow. LOL. The W Club police would surely find out and I'd be in lots of trouble. Soooo...tune in on July 31 after 12 noon for the BIG announcement.

On the other hand, the Wu Convention packet that is coming in 2 months has finally been put on-line. They did the same thing last year and when the printed packet arrived, I never even opened it. There was no point. I think that the Toronto convention packet, perhaps because it was my first, was the nicest. I have already faxed in my class choices and my registration for the Avant Garde event. I have to sign up Bob as well for the AG event.
These are the opportunities at that event:

"Those who purchased the deluxe upgrade registration package will receive an Integrity convention store credit for the Royal Kitchen lunch included in that package The opportunity to win each centerpiece doll will be drawn at random during the event. The designation of the rights for the LiveWire and Eclectic dolls will be drawn at random during the event; all attendees will be granted, by random selection, rights for only one of either the LiveWire or Eclectic dolls as described above. Rights are not transferable and are only available to the paid attendee. Centerpieces will be paid for and taken home directly after the luncheon; the LiveWire and Eclectic dolls will be purchased from Integrity Toys later this fall."

The convention collection will consist of five individual dolls and one two-doll giftset.
There will be a new male, Takeo Mizutani. I am assuming he is the Asian male many have wanted.
Adele Makeda as The Muse, Luchia as Hopelessly Captivating, Giselle as Masterpiece Theatre and Agnes as Drama Behind the Drama. The giftset called Elements of Surprise will consist of two new Nu.Face characters named Lillith and Eden. I am excited about that set and the Giselle.

My guess for the convention doll is Eugenia. Perhaps I am hoping.

Purse of the Month Feature Article in FDQ

This article was one of my first and at the time the most ambitious one I had undertaken. I had already collected many of the POM's that had been issued but I was missing the equivalent of almost an entire year's worth. I put out the request to buy or borrow from the collectors out there and three trusting and generous souls mailed me several handbags so I could photograph them.
Clicking on each picture will enlarge it somewhat.

Joy Jarred: My FDQ Feature Article

This group of images is from the FDQ feature article I did for the theme entitled Accessories. I interviewed Joy Jarred and photographed her creations on my dolls. Joy is a doll herself and gave me the jewelry as a gift after the shoot.
Clicking on each image will enlarge the image but the text will not be large enough for most people to read. I will place the article text at the bottom of this post soon.

7-23-08 More Valia Adore

The mirrored boxes are from Pier One and the photo studio miniatures were given to those attending the Barbie Convention this year (2008). Butter yellow silk beaded bustier was custom made for me by Mio.

7-21-08 Some favorite images of Vanessa

7-20-08 Valia Adore

Two little production problems I found were lots of fly-away hairs everywhere and the ribbons that tie the shoes are too short. I took the ribbons out of the slots at the back of the ankle and just tied them around her ankles. The shoes look great without the ribbons. Her hair may tame a bit with a little gel or spray.
Warning - don't crease the dress. It's very hard to get the creases out. There is a faint line visible on the front of the dress above the knee. I was working on the shoes and folded the dress back to get it out of the way. MISTAKE. I had to remove the dress and attempted to steam press the crease. It's a little better.
I do believe that the biggest problem this doll has is her arms. They are too long from the elbow to the fingertips and the articulation, besides being non-existent at the wrists, is not very flexible.
The doll is beautiful and there's no doubt that she is the best of the three. The ensemble is delightful and fits beautifully. My hat box had a little scratch on it's face under the plastic straps that hold it into the box. It doesn't bother me. The jewelry is very pretty. It was attached to cardboard backing by a fiend and had to be snipped in many places to remove it.
If you are on the fence about her, I recommend her. I'm looking forward to redressing her and posing her in different ways.

7-20-08 My Favorite Furry Doll

7-19-08 Valia Adore Arrives

The mailman just delivered Valia Adore. Of course I immediately ripped into the packaging and opened Valia's 'luxury doll' box and I am pleased. She's quite pretty as a brunette in her deep rose and black dress. I was undecided before about whether or not I'd debox but I will take her out. I'd love to know why the coat is wrapped like a bouquet. The original Valia had her lingerie wrapped similarly and I thought it was so the lingerie would not destroy the minds of young children, God forbid they saw a doll with lingerie in the same box they would all become sinners or worse, but now I don't think that was the reason. Anyone have an idea? Perhaps it was to make opening the package more fun. The act of pulling open a bow could cause waves of pleasure to course through your body.

ORGANIZATIONAL NOTE

All the posts prior to this one were transferred from my previous blog. There is no way I know of to edit the Blog Archive to show different dates so they all appear to have been created in June or July of 2008. The actual dates of writing each entry is in most of the titles.....just in case you were wondering.

6-20-08 Giselle

This dress came very close to being shortened until Giselle tried it on. She looks fabulous in green.
I think this is just about the prettiest and most delicate-looking of all the dolls issued by Integrity in the past two years. She is supposed to be Agnes' sister and the resemblance is easy to see. However, this one is much softer looking.

6-19-08 Most Desired Eugenia

Many dolls have shipped since my last entry. I will begin with Most Desired Eugenia because IMO she is the most perfect Eugenia to date. She is even better now than she appeared to be at FAO in February!

The pictures attached to this post show her redressed in a little white dress from SL Doll Fashion. Her lips, her hair and everything else about her put her at the top of my "I love that doll" list.

MD comes dressed in a big blue gown that is embellished with tubular beads of the same color. It's a stunning gown but could be worn by a pregnant doll. It's got pockets - here we go again with the pockets. All in all, it's magnificent but would be hard to wear in reality. She came with panties and a garter belt and stockings and the strangest shoes. They're not bad for a suit or other outfit but they are clunky and so not formal I wonder who made the decision to pair them with this doll and gown. Haute couture my foot. I will have to enclose a picture eventually.

The quality control on this issue was excellent. I did break an earring removing it from the card upon which it was sewn to last a lifetime. I was able to crazy glue it back together. Her hair is a fine quality and styled neatly. Her eyes are not wonky. Her lips are magnificent. I love her!

And if you're looking for one, I've got an extra NRFB! (Not any more as of 7/19/08)

High Tide Vanessa

This is odd. As Integrity raises the prices on their dolls every few months, the secondary market for older Fashion Royalty dolls gets larger with lower prices. Hmmm. If one doesn't mind being a year behind or in some cases, 3 months, one can amass a very nice collection at lower than retail. It sure wasn't like that when I started. High Tide Vanessa, a gorgeous doll, is selling for $80 NRFB! Oh well. At least the AFL's are holding their own. Really, that is the only Vanessa that is being treated as a discard.

These images show High Tide Vanessa dressed in the gown from the recently released FAO Natalia giftset. The snood was made by Marguerite (MarC).

6-18-08 Theatre de la Mode

Quickie pic of one of the TDLMs in the temporary showcase. I'm working on getting the outfits matched up with the best dolls.

6-10-08 Ovaz Gown; Theatre de la Mode Collection; Chic Escape

I don't like the red background. I'm going to have to shoot this again. Too much competition with the doll and the dress. Premiere Lana Turner doll from Fashion Royalty. Fabulous black ruffled gown by Ovaz.

Here is Chic Escape wearing the same gown. Chic has been rerooted and for now will have straight hair. This gal has such an extreme side glance that it dictates how she must be photographed.

____________________________________________
My collection of Theatre de la Mode dolls is growing by leaps and bounds. I have all the ones I really want except for two. One I may win on eBay in a day or two. The other remains elusive but she will come. The 4 separate outfits I purchased from Jim are now being worn by other more appropriate dolls than the ones they would have come on. I have not photographed them yet. I am working on settings in my mind and they're not ready.

Of all the ones I have only the UFDC's C'est la Fete was disappointing because the doll is rather unattractive. I put the outfit on a faceless AA Tonner doll and it looks so much better!

Longchamp Fleuri is now on Ghost of Christmas Past and is wildly amazing. Le Petit Noir is on Gene "Hello Hollywood" who has been given an articulated body. She is a gorgeous doll and looks amazing in black. The construction of the gown called C'est Parfait is poor. I have to secure a few beads and press it out. It was cut slightly off grain and twists to one side. I used to find defects like this in so many of Tonner's outfits. This was disappointing. But the doll herself looks good and I love the netted hat.

The Crimson gown is a wonderful fabric and drapes beautifully. The headdress is very, very odd. I love Fleurs de Mal. So chic and simple - but not the wild feather tall hat. That is so cool. I adore Framboise and it's glamorous tailored embellished fabulousness. My favorite is Reflet d'Argent.

The color, the sparkling embellishment, the hair, the jewelry...it's a keeper.
This is the second time I have Ensemble Sport. I appreciate her so much more now than the first time around. My tastes have changed so much.

4-21-08 Luchia

The girls are cringing in their showcases. I have pulled 8 Fashion Royalty dolls to sell! Addicted Luchia & Dress Me Luchia. I am not in love with that sculpt. I tried but it's not working. Behind Velvet Ropes Natalia. I like her but it's time she moves on. Flirtatious Veronique. That was a tough decision. She is so gorgeous but I'm overloaded with the early Veros and I have enough of them. Redhead Close-Up Veronique from the original dolls. This is my third one. Talking Drama Adele and Bodacious Adele. Both gorgeous as well but I have to make room for the new dolls. And....Miami Vice Kyori. If she doesn't sell, I won't be upset. Two are sold. We'll see about the rest.

Today the NuFace gals arrived along with the fashion. I have already sold Ayumi as I don't like her at all. Erin and Colette are just adorable. They have lots of play potential. This Erin is very pretty and very hard-looking at the same time. I like it.
Au revoir, Luchia.

4-17-08 Haute Doll Photoshoot

I just received the latest issue of Haute Doll Magazine, (June 2008). I was pleasantly surprised to see my photographs of the Jennifer Sue clothing line on several pages along with Shuang's promotional text. Shuang provided me with the poses she wanted and of course the clothes.

Picture overload this month as the FDQ Summer Glamour issue also carries an article and photography I created.

This blog entry contains several pictures which can be seen in HD.
























My take on the clothes: trendy, fun, inexpensively priced and somewhat irregular (Mattel) quality. I loved the belts, hats, knit leggings and high socks. The knit dresses and off shoulder tops are very useful and slip right on. The silver and gold "Mary Jane" platform shoes are way too large and must be worn with socks or they would fall right off. I found the quality of the boots to be poor. The zippers were irregularly placed and the finishing was not nice. The corset-belts are cute but there is too much string on the front and some should be cut off for it to look better. The same goes for the ties on the boots that have ties. I prefer these clothes on the Model Behavior dolls as opposed to the Fashion Royalty dolls although the fit would be the same except for the bustline.

I do recommend purchasing the knit pieces , pleated skirts and belts. Oh yes...I love the berets. They are just adorable!
______________________
...The following is an email I received from Shuang Huang on 7-23-08:

"Hi Terri,
How are you? I happend to see your blog, and surprised to find the following lines:

I found the quality of the boots to be poor. The zippers were irregularly placed and the finishing was not nice. The corset-belts are cute but there is too much string on the front and some should be cut off for it to look better

I'd like to tell you, that's not true. I have told you the boots I sent to you just for photography purpose(I ran out of boots at that moment, and I had to meet the magazine deadline, boots were the bad choice under the condition of no choice), I got a few defective products and I didn't sell them. Also, the boots you got are the first time the manufactuer used zippers for 12 inch girl boots, and I found the problems and have discussed this with the factory. The second time released zipper boots become very high quality, you don't find the same problem anymore. The zipper boots I am selling to customers now got no complains at all, I have sold many boots and shoes, if there are problems, I would get many bad feedback and returning. As matter of fact, many of my customers are comeback customers. I don't know how many people read your blog, but it's quite misleading, and I hope you can correst these comments.
By the way, you are saying my clothings are mattle quality, you mean playline Barbie dolls, I think that's misleading again. I have brought some Barbie, the fabric they are using is polyester or not 100% cotton. My cotton fabric are all 100% cotton and brought from an local fabric store near my home (more than $10 per yard), and mailed to manufacturers.
Thanks. Again, thank you for your nice photos.
Shuang"

4-16-08 Lana

Lana Turner as seen through the eyes of Jason Wu. At first I didn't like her. She came with her hair very tightly rolled in an awkward style. Once I relaxed it, she took on a very glamorous air.

4-12-08 Starring Agnes

This year the OZ Convention in Australia featured two Agnes dolls. The convention doll High Gloss is pictured here. The companion doll, Firefly Agnes, has not had the pleasure of meeting my camera yet.

This doll arrives in an outfit that Captain Kirk would have liked. It is definitely spacey, sparkly and over-the-top. Although it made quite a dramatic appearance at first, I sold it ASAP. I would have liked to keep the jewelry but the buyer wanted it.

I dressed Agnes in Mio's custom made corset and IFR Eugenia's extra skirt. I had a wonderful time posing her with high gloss items - mirrored boxes, gold columns and a big gold metal shell. The reflection from the mirrored box added interest to the background - a fortuitous happening that I like alot.

This doll is definitely not for the faint of heart. Her eye makeup is very heavy-handed. However there is less of the misery about her in this version and so she is the second Agnes I am keeping in my collection. Firefly is the third and you will see why in my next post.
Here's High Gloss!

4-7-08 Valia Photo Contest

The W Club recently held a photography contest. For each membership one was permitted to post 3 entries. The contestants were supposed to follow these instructions:
"We want you to photograph Valia to capture her unique mood and essence......

Our panel of esteemed judges will select one winner from those photos posted based on who we feel best captures the essence of Valia and which photo best personifies what she is all about."
My initial thought was to photograph the doll laying amidst a pile of $100. bills. She was $350. retail. I was fortunate enough to get a FDQ contributor discount.

Anyway, I knew I wouldn't be able to get away with that concept so I decided to go with the luxurious concept. I used my old racoon coat as a backdrop but that was too fussy.




I fooled around with making a vintage photo as Valia did remind me of a doll from the past.


I liked it but in my opinion, the judges were looking for marketable images, not creative ones.
OMG Did I say that????
Here comes the marketable image - not creative at all - but it shows her face and dress and it's a 'nice' picture.



Here is the picture that earned me the right to save money on the next Valia I buy. The judges had such a hard time choosing that they created a second place prize for me. The prize was $100. off my next Valia purchase.



This was my Theatre de la Mode concept entry. My entries actually did have essence and concept. They weren't just pretty pictures.



I realize and I knew all along that the reason for the contest was to sell Valia by getting people to look at pretty pictures. Very few people entered but many commented because there was a prize for looking and posting anything about any picture.

Once I took off her fussy outfit, I started to enjoy myself!






I thought this was a winner. I still do.




Not only did most of my entries have a creative concept behind them, they showed how varied Valia could be.

For my final picture I decided to go where I knew no one else would dare go. I used the tag on the back of the Valia doll and titled this picture, "Do Not Remove Tag Under Penalty of Law" I thought it was a riot. I knew it would not be a winning photo and thought long and hard before including it amongst my six entries. But I decided to be true to myself.

At that moment, being true to myself was more important than winning. I had fun and it showed in this image. My dolls are fun. I am not working for Integrity or any other doll company and I can show my dolls in whatever way I wish. As a photographer with an intellect, a talent and a sense of humor I succeeded in this contest.
I eliminated some of the marketable images in order to include images that expressed my essence!




For a finale I will state my review of Valia (not as a fashion concept because I don't see a new fashion concept at all) but just as a doll. The best part of this doll is between her neck and feet. She has a very pretty body and it feels good in the hand. The joints are made very, very well. They are sueded and hold poses. She has lovely proportions. On the negative side: the hair is very thin and the rooting pattern is not high quality. The wrists should have been jointed. The jewelry is attached to the card with stronger thread than it is strung with. My necklace went to pieces before it was even removed from it's backing and the bracelet fell apart while she was wearing it. One earring was soldered so thickly that it stood away from her ear visibly. The gown, although beautifully made, is over-the-top for her delicate proportions. The lace is too large. Her shoes are too big and are plastic. The garters do not close over the tops of the stockings. At $350. a lack of quality control is not acceptable. I believe this doll is overpriced by at least $150.

Raison d'etre?