The Last of the Monogram Dolls?

This doll is called "Interlude." Her fashion (not the bodysuit) is called "Completist." Both were souvenirs from the recent IT convention.

Prior to that, it was announced that the Monogram line is retired. It's too bad because they were some of my favorite dolls. Their faces are beautiful. The line started to falter a bit when the so-called 'basic' dolls were released. Bemused, Envied and Passionate were pretty bad, all dressed the same except for the color, in a too short shirtwaist dress. Those followed shortly after a horrendous MFD exclusive called Exquisite. Her fashion was anything but.
But, when one looks back over the entire line, there are gorgeous suits and gowns and cocktail dresses. Perhaps the dolls were getting over-priced at $160. or did the company focus on the failure of that one season and decide that was it?

Another announcement coming out of the convention is that the designers will now use only 8 sculpts in the Fashion Royalty line: Veronique, Vanessa, Adele, Agnes, Kyori, Eugenia. Elise and Natalia. I think that was a fine decision as I didn't even know who most of the new characters were anyway. Also good, for me, is that I don't care much for the new sculpts of four of the eight (Vero, Van, Adele and Nat.) Their old sculpts were beautiful. But does this mean that Agnes will no longer be considered a special event doll? Who knows?

According to what I'm reading, NuFace will continue but will be on hiatus for a while. No Hommes?
What about Poppy Parker? Victoire Roux? Tulabelle and the giant Poppys?

Looks like IT is cutting the fat. The W Club has also eliminated a liaison, namely Luanne. I'm not so sure she "retired" on her own accord. I'm going to guess that Carol's sister is going to do the liason job now.

At every convention there are announcements of plans going forward. Most of them don't last more than one season in actual practice. Putting Jason's touch back in play did wonders for the convention line. Hopefully they won't forget that.

The IT Convention Collection Photos

While I'm waiting for the official Saturday night photos to be posted, I thought I'd post pictures of the convention collection for those who have not seen them yet.
These were optional purchase dolls. Attendees could order in advance, sight unseen, or buy one or all at the event.

It's hard to judge from these photos, but I think the winner out of this group is Natalia and the Veronique (if it is Veronique) in the white suit. The pose is hot! That suit is one of the outfits I'd like to get my hands on. The convention Natalia reminds me of the first ever Natalia, Cosmetic Takeover—the colors, the long wavy hair. Gorgeous. I think the original Natalia did not need a face lift at all. She was quite popular the way she was - with a little retained ethnicity.

The Adele is awfully under-dressed compared to the rest of the gals. She looks quite out of place. Agnes, meh. Nothing new there. The others are OK but not inspiring. At least they are not laughable which is a huge improvement over last year's bunch. Someone said "keep it simple" and that's what happened. It's all good.

Webinar Event Exclusive Agnes Mini Gift Set

At the end of the webinar on Saturday evening, all members of the W Club were offered the opportunity to purchase an exclusive Agnes Mini Gift Set.  She is being called "Truly Madly Deeply" and retails for $150. Deposits of $30 per set were taken at the time of ordering.
I'm not a huge fan of the ultra scowling Agnes although there  have been several versions that weren't that mean-looking. Currently in my collection I have the unique tan Agnes called "Firefly." She was an exclusive convention companion doll from Dolls in Oz, 2008.

Firefly Agness Redressed

TMD agnes is in a difficult gown. The design of the flared, trained peplum is not my taste.

It reminds me so much of other overly designed gowns, the first by Integrity for Gene Marshall (Madra is the model) and the second by Ashton Drake for Gene Marshall.

Jonquil Madra

My Favorite Bow Gene Marshall

Agnes also comes with an additional skirt and short-sleeved top:

The skirt is cute as are the shoes and handbag. The jacket's cuffs are a furry fabric. I wonder if this is the same fabric as Adele's wrap in a different color. Either way, it's odd.

 Doesn't Adele look Native American now?

The Winners, The Biggest Loser and The Sleeper

This is just a short post after a long, tiring weekend. Someone counted up and listed all the dolls that were available either for purchase and/or as convention gifts including helper gifts. That number came to 38.  I believe it may actually be 39 because there is a variation Eugenia giftset that I learned about a little while ago.
I have not seen the Dynamite Girls but they wouldn't be in the competition for my favorites anyway.
The winner is Evermore Vanessa with Exceptional Tatyana following as a close second. Next is Victoire Roux (pictured in the previous post) who is tied with Most Wanted Elise FR2. (I don't have an official picture of Elise that I can post and I'm not using anyone's pic without their permission so you will all have to wait to see what she looks like if you haven't already.)

I think I'm going to love the Eugenia giftset as well. Five out of 38 ain't bad. In prior years I would have kept most of the dolls I came home with. I'm quite relieved.


I think that Sunset Rave Ayumi's outfit is hot and it's a keeper. I never liked Ayumi's sculpt and still don't.

The outfits from the Adele and Veronique giftset are also going to be calling my home theirs.

The biggest loser of the convention was Brightness Calls Isha. What a disastrous face this doll has. She must be an error the factory made because I can't believe anyone would design such awful facial screening. After the last Isha that was so beautiful, someone had their eyes closed on this one. She looks like a kid who borrowed mommy's makeup and put most of it on all at once.

Vivid Impact Agnes is the sleeper of the Convention. She will go up in popularity once collectors start to work with her. The initial photos of her were really bad. Her facial coloring is wonderful and I don't even like Agnes. But I can see that those who like the morose version of Agnes, that this one is not to their taste. Well it appeals to the rest of us. Her hair needs styling but otherwise, she's a good-looking doll.

More to come.

Dollz in Oz Event Doll is a Fashion Royalty Agnes

Some of you may know that Agnes is not my favorite character due to the fact that she sports a serious scowl all the time. I'm not a fan of misery so why should my dolls look miserable? Lately, Agnes is looking a little happier and this Agnes looks downright non-committal. Actually I think she looks beautiful. She's been named "Regal Estate" Agnes. At first I thought it said Real Estate and I can picture her as a real estate agent. The suit reminds me of that from the 2009 Agnes Optic Verve Giftset below on the right (or the 2nd down depending on your monitor.) A little too much of a coincidence perhaps?

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The companion doll (an optional purchase) was a Monogram Doll called Magnetism. All I can say about this one is that the photographer did a fabulous job. The lighting and posing are excellent. The sculpt was screened with a closed mouth. The wig appears to be the 'default' low pony tail style with a side sweep of forehead covering hair. Or perhaps it is rolled under into a fancy bun. I can't tell. I like the frosted gold eyeshadow. Below on the right (or the 2nd down) is Dania Zarr in Optic Clash from the 2009 FR convention. It looks like there's a game of "Monkey See; Monkey Do" going on here. If a movie star wore any one of these gowns to a red carpet event, she'd be on the worst dressed list pretty fast.

Mattel's Silkstone Barbie "Stunning in the Spotlight"

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Pink and black and mermaid gowns are so yesterday. Tonner came up with modern and classy uses of pink and black in the first two outfits below created for Antoinette. The third, created for Tyler, works with the fabric to create interest.

Picture of the Week Award ~ March 21, 2010

I came across this picture on the W Club board and I thought it was so well done that it deserved to be featured this week. The photographer is Parisuthi Wasanasomsithi aka Paris W. The theme of the photo was the result of a challenge in a Flickr group called "Mad Men's Season Finale Wrap Party."

I sent several questions to Paris. Here are her responses:

Describe the photo.
- It was the final challenge for the "Fashion Royalty International Jetset Diva" contest on that Flickr group. The challenge is "Mad Men's season finale wrap party".

Explain how you did it briefly.

- Found this portrait of Don Draper that I thought I could work with (he's alone in the pic). - Then took a pic of my Diva (I chose Mini Livewire for this contest). - Then took a pic of Agnes with tissue in her hand. - Combined those three in Photoshop. Made them Duotone mode and added background and other elements (sparkles, wine glass, cigarette smoke, etc.)

Did you make changes to the original doll?

- Adding a running mascara on Agnes in Photoshop only.

What is she/he wearing? Wig?

- Mini Livewire is wearing "Kelly Girl" by Randall Craig, with jewelry from "Mon Cheri" by Dressmaker Details, and wig from Vero's Urban Antoinette. - Agnes is wearing "Together Again" by Randall Craig. Setting?
- I took pics of them with just plain white background and combined them all in a Photoshop.

Camera equipment and set-up used?

- Canon Ixus 80 IS and a table lamp. I don't have a studio/fancy equipments so have to make do with what I got.

Suggestions to other doll photographers?

- Mmmmm I'd say find your strength, work with what you got, and follow your imagination...
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The images were combined seamlessly into one photo. I'd say that Paris has definitely found her strength!

If you would like to see more of her work, click here for her Flickr photostream.

Congratulations, Paris, on the Picture of the Week Award!

The "Big Black Skirt"

I put together a mixture of fashion pieces to create a satisfying look for the black skirt from the Festive Decadence Agnes giftset. My model is a rerooted 'Girl of the Moment' Veronique.

The blouse and boots are from Night Warrior Vanessa, the cinch belt is from the 2009 Aerodynamic Vanessa basic doll, jewelry and skirt from the Agnes giftset.

Black Lace: The Third Mini-Gene Doll and Silver Zinger

Black Lace arrived yesterday and I couldn't wait to rip open the shipper to see if this one was as wonderful as the first two. I was not disappointed. Of course I don't see how this one should be the same price as the others because she doesn't really have an outfit...but...the lingerie she is wearing is very nicely made. The sheer peignoir drapes nicely. The teddy underneath fits beautifully. Her hair is neat, not frizzy, and well done.
The only thing I was wondering about was the beige bow in her hair. Did they run out of pink ribbon to match the ribbon trim on the fashion? Very strange.
I'm happy to have the three of them.

My good friend Ovaz sent me Silver Zinger's outfit as a Christmas gift. Doll collectors are a great bunch of people! I changed the belt and altered the earrings which were too long. It's a great outfit. Aren't the shoes terrific? These shoes have the opposite issue from the usual issue. The platform is too high for the heels. So we're still looking for the shoe that will stand on it's own thereby enabling the doll to pose in a natural way.

W Club Exclusive Doll #2

The second 2009 W Club doll has been announced. It is called Agnes Von Weiss "Festive Decadence."
For the first time Agnes will be produced in the pale skin tone that was used only once on Tatyana. This is a mini giftset that comes with two skirts, three tops, shoes, belt, handbag and jewelry. I have extracted several of the parts of the giftset from multiple images to show them together here.

In the following picture you can see the second skirt and the belt. I love the ruffles and the rosettes but I'm not a fan of the umbrella shaped above the knee length skirt.

This is a gorgeous Agnes who is not sporting her usual sour face. The price of this doll is $145. and it is only available to W Club members.

Images in this post are the property of Integrity Toys.

Pictures of the Week ~ October 11, 2009

With so many wonderful images of the new Fashion Royalty dolls being posted this week, it was too difficult to pick just one. Therefore I have chosen two images to feature as Picture of the Week.

From Christina Goodison also known as Shuga Shug, comes this fierce portrait of Elise Jolie the convention souvenir doll. Christina used a Sony Alpha DSLR A200 camera with a Minolta lens in macro mode for this shot. She uses a Mystudio 20 Tabletop Photo Studio Kit. The face is perfectly focused and the body is not. It draws the eye to the steely gaze of Ms. Jolie. You can see more of Christina's fantastic convention coverage at this link.


Next up is this amazing creation from Rob Redden also known as Uriah. Originally Dressing the Part Agnes, Rob created his own vision of the doll by completely rerooting and repainting. The photo was intended to show the jewelry Rob created to give as gifts at the convention. I love the way her hair flows out around her head. This is one of my favorite of Rob's pictures ever!

Iconic Convention Report for Thursday Night

The table doll was Agnes dressed in a version of Red Zinger's suit but in shades of gray. This Agnes has dark hair in a long, low pony tail. She has side glancing eyes and a fierce gaze.
As table gifts, attendees received the first part of their surprise giftset - a blue dress with accessories and one of the new playline dolls - ITBE Chic.

Photos above are from Integrity Toys.

Mel Odom was the speaker at dinner. He showed images of a new mini-Gene. There is no official photo yet. She is based on Hello Hollywood, Hello. My photo below is the original 16 inch HHH.

2008 - My Favorite 12" Dolls from Integrity Toys

I have pulled a few pictures of my favorite 2008 dolls from Integrity Toys.
Up first are the two Australian Agnes Convention Dolls: High Gloss and Firefly. HG is wearing a lovely OOAK dress made by Jan Good (Canada). She calls it "South Seas Adventure." Necklace is a Tonner item. Firefly is wearing her original outfit.

The Eugenias were drop dead gorgeous! The first below is the W Club doll Going Public. She is wearing a dress from the Kyori Atelier giftset. Second is Most Desired Eugenia. She came in a big blue gown. She is wearing a dress by Ovaz. And in the red dress is Fine Jewel Eugenia who was one of the table dolls at the convention. I have heard that she is selling for more than $500. She is an amazing-looking doll.

Three Vanessas were available this year, Color Therapy, Metal Maven and Shirred Not Shaken. The latter, not dressed in her original dress,  did not make the cut although I have restyled her odd hairdo and she is somewhat attractive.
Color Therapy below is wearing a lingerie outfit from the 2005 Toronto convention called My Precious. The shoes, bag and jewelry are from other outfits. She is not a very popular doll probably due to her huge, thick head of red hair and squinty-looking eyes. I think she's dramatic. Metal Maven is wearing one of Natalia's dresses.

There was one Isha release this year and it was a spectacular dressed doll called Purple Pose. In this picture she is seen looking at one of my tiny red poodle figurines.

From the Hollywood Royalty Line I have chosen this Basic Lana doll known as Iconic as my favorite. It was a little hard to get used to her because she does not have an aggressive palette and over the top features like the Fashion Royalty dolls. She is lovely. She is shown wearing an Ovaz gown.

The Muse Adele, available at this past convention, is one of the most beautiful Adeles of all. Her hair is flocked and her screening is perfection. She is wearing Concerto in M Agnes' black gown from the Baltimore convention (with a different belt) and the faux fur shrug, red gloves and earrings from her own outfit. Necklace is from another outfit.

Erin and Colette, the new Nu-Face dolls are just so perfect that I haven't even redressed them. I adore them!

The delicate-looking blonde below is Eden. She is a new character who was introduced as part of a two- doll set along with a character called Lillith. The set was called Elements of Surprise.  I'd love to see more of this pretty doll.

Last, but in no way least, is Kumi. This gift set blows me away every time I look at it. The clothes she came with and her face are amazing.

It's a good thing to love your dolls! Here's to a new year filled with more spectacular little faces and wonderful outfits. Happy New Year to all my readers.