Fashion Royalty "Female Icon" by Vasilen Milkov

Vasilen Milkov won, for a second time, the design competition held by Integrity Toys this year. He called his entry "Female Icon" Dasha d'Amboise.
The design was "voted upon by the W Club members and has gone through various adjustments to make it production ready while preserving the spirit of Vasilen's original design."
W Club members were able to begin ordering, with no limits, on April 29. The price for members is $150. It will go up to $160. to the general public.

The Story:

The elusive Dasha D'Amboise takes a break from her newfound movie career to make a rare appearance at her favorite designer's ultra-edgy fashion extravaganza. Wearing one of the most talked about looks of the House of Milkov, Dasha makes an entrance that everyone will remember!

Included:

• 12" fully articulated doll with rooted hair and hand-applied eyelashes;
• Delicately pleated, flowing one-piece dress;
• Luxurious tweed bolero;
• Couture hat and scarf;
• Opera length, fine mesh gloves;
• Thigh-high, high-shine, black patent leather boots;
• Contrasting leopard print purse with powder blue faux-fur appliqué;
• Oversized faux-emerald earrings;
• Three broaches;
• Red ankle boots;
• Two pairs of hands;
• Doll stand;

Special note about hairstyle: Please note that this hairstyle is designed to be a chignon. We cannot guarantee that the head will be fully rooted if you decide to take it down.

The Final W Club Exclusive Doll of 2018

The final W Club Doll of 2018 has been announced. She is called "Secret Garden" Eugenia Perrin-Frost and is a mini gift set.
The edition size will be determined by the number of member pre-orders IT receives.

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From the Promotional:

"Visiting her favorite fashion hot-spot for Couture Week, Eugenia Perrin-Frost has been invited to be the star model of an ultra-edgy secret photo session set in a long forgotten English garden. While the setting may seem gloomy to some, everyone from the stylist to the artistic director involved with the project agreed that this would be THE best spot to create the perfect mood for the gown being featured in the glossy magazine spread!Eugenia couldn't wait and as usual, she showed up for the shoot on time, looking as fresh faced and fantastic as ever!!

Included:

• 12.5" fully articulated doll with fully rooted hair and hand-applied eyelashes;

• Two pairs of hands (one with long nails and one with the regular manicure);

• Frothy, ruffled black tulle gown with a crinkle texture bodice, cinched at the waist by a narrow black ribbon belt;

• Tan trench coat dress with drape and belt detail on sides;

• Chocolate brown flocked hat with black grosgrain ribbon trim;

• Black tulle neck scarf;

• "Silver" cuff bracelet, chandelier earrings and statement ring with "diamond" and "pearl" accents;

• "Silver" necklace with nature-inspired "diamond" and "pearl" stone charms;

• Alternate pair of asymmetrical small charm earrings;

• "Metal" clutch with sculpted leaf detail and skull clasp;

• Pale nude "pearlized" faux-leather purse with quilted detail and "silver"/"diamond" flower charm;

• Black and tan faux "patent leather" boots with "silver" zipper closure;

• Black holographic glitter high heels with clear bead detail;

• Doll stand;

• Certificate of authenticity.

The doll pictured is a prototype. Final fabrics, colors and textures may vary slightly. For adult collectors ages 15 and up only."

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The text mentions that one extra pair of hands has long nails. That made me think of the dragon lady nails that several Kingdom Dolls come with. 

I love Eugenia's face and hair. She is a gorgeous doll. I like the hat, the shoes and the silver accessories. As far as the gown, it's a "been-there-done-that" style and another black tulle gown. In my crowded collection, there's only room for uniquely beautiful and/or different. This doll is beautiful but not so unique. 

The Best and The Rest: My Collection 2018

It goes without saying that life has a way with our hobby for which we don't always plan. I started out the year recovering from bilateral knee replacement surgery. Going up and down the staircases in my house was not my favorite activity. Then, somewhere around July, we were going to move. The first thing I packed was my dolls. Needless to say, we did not move so I had to unpack and I'm not quite done. I made the difficult decision to sell off my large Tiny Kitty collection. Tiny Kitty dolls were the ones that brought me to the 16" Tonner dolls and from there...well, you know how it goes. I must admit that this is not the first time I have begun to sell my TKs. This time I'm determined as there is no room and I don't keep dolls in boxes.
It's time to review what I've added to my doll collection during 2018.

The Best

An interesting turn of events was my buying several of Integrity Toy's 12" dolls.  I had cut back almost entirely for quite a while but IT really brought it to Fashion Royalty this past year.

Eugenia Modernist was a 2018 W Club Membership Registration Upgrade Doll. This doll is stunning with her dark skin tone and sleek light blue mini dress with matching round handbag. Her open-toed silver thigh-high boots and silver accessories made her a perfect doll to add to the tribe.

I wasn't going to go for her but every time I looked at her picture, I loved her more and more: 

Elise Jolie "Perfume Blond" W Club 10th Anniversary by Jason Wu Doll.  She was quite pricey as she came with a full-sized bottle of Jason Wu perfume which I don't particularly care for. I tried it at a department store. She also comes with a miniature of the perfume bottle which I love. Her pastel peach, sparkle-embellished gown is one of Jason's creations as well. I was able to sell the real perfume and so brought the total down somewhat.

Isha Kalpana Narayan "Divinity" W Club Doll was irresistible to me because of all her jewelry accessories and the pretty style of her lace and tulle dress. I think the henna designs on her forearms and hands are a beautiful accent.

"Hot To The Touch" Bellamy Blue is an Industry Line doll. I don't collect guy dolls any longer (or so I say) but when I saw this one's fashions, I caved.  I'm still on the fence about keeping him and that's why I don't have a free-standing photo of him.

Victoire Roux's "Divine Evening" fashion was added. It fits my Monogram dolls perfectly and it's not black.

It's close to impossible for me to choose the best of Kingdom Doll 2018. I love all of them.  I can't choose a favorite. The Seren giftset, The Eden Atelier doll and Vanbrugh are all gorgeous.  Seren came with several outfits and many accessories and props. Eden's gown and wig are truly miniature works of art. Vanbrugh is a classic stunner. She looks amazing in every wig and every style I put on her.

Seren

Eden

Vanbrugh

The Kingdom Doll Convention Dolls all had the newly redesigned body. Like most conventions, there is a souvenir doll and often an optional companion doll. In Scotland, our souvenir doll was Rosalind "The Red Queen." She has dimples and is so cute.

There were two companion dolls. Attendees had to decide in advance, without seeing her,  if they wanted the white or the black. We were told that their outfits were the same but their effect would be very different. Normally I'd go with black but I decided to let fate decide for me as I knew both would be fabulous. The black sold out and I am happy to say that I was thrilled with Raphaella, The White Queen. This gal has freckles and a very youthful vibe. That was unexpected.

This gorgeous doll was a surprise gift from Kingdom Doll to the attendees. Her name is Realm.

Another Kingdom Doll I added to my collection prior to the convention last year was Electra. In this photo, my skeleton is playing with her. She is about to lose her patience. Electra was the first doll released with the new body.

Kingdom Dolls are my favorite dolls.

Fashions from other sources deserve special mention in my "Best of" category.  I purchased 7 outfits from Aquatalis, a company in Vietnam you can find on Etsy. Two haven't arrived yet. of the other 5, one stands out. They call it Chandos. It is embroidered all over with flowers and leaves. Nimue models.

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This one hurts to write about because she was not an inexpensive doll and I had very high expectations of this company. The doll is Dominion Doll's new 12" creation, Aura.  Before I buy another, I will make sure the following has been taken care of.
First of all, her earring holes are too small for any of my earrings (and I have hundreds of pairs) to fit. It's a fairly minor issue if I wanted to get out my jeweler's drill and fix it but do I? I'm not about to send her back to Russia for such a minor issue.
The major issue is that her ankles do not support the weight of her upper body. I recall having this issue with the early Numina dolls. The joints are always going their own way when I try posing her standing normally and this is unacceptable. I'm going to have to wire them.

However, she is gorgeous but she does need better engineering. Ease of posing a doll is very, very important to me.

I have spoken with a collector friend and apparently, her Dominion doll does not have this issue. Hmmm.

I'm going to try her in a lighter-weight fashion such as slacks or simple sheaths. That could make a difference. But still...

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The Rest

I have already written about how disappointed I was with the Outlander Dolls, Jamie and Claire Fraser. Claire was one of the most unattractive dolls that Tonner has ever produced IMO.  I gave that doll a lot of chances and nothing made her look good. She did not look at all like the actress who plays the role of Claire. Not a wee bit. The face and body of this doll are huge. Her clothes and shoes are way too large for Tyler or for any other doll I own. Both had to go.   

 

As far as Jamie, he has an attractive sculpt. The jury is out on whether or not he looks like the TV Jamie. His hair came in a dorky style. I washed and restyled it, sold his outfit and redressed him. Not great but he's staying.

 

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All in all, it was a very good year. I love my collection and enjoy gazing at each doll. My dolls live a great fantasy life with the finest fashions, jewelry, hairdos and accessories. They don't get wrinkles, gain weight or get sick. They always look wonderful and they get to have things like tiny liquor bottles filled with real Scottish whisky!

Integrity Toys' 2018 Collection

On Saturday, August 25, 2018, the Integrity Toys' 2018 collection was revealed via live online event. I had a bit of trouble connecting at first as I was traveling out of state and I didn't realize that I had to change a setting on my phone.
The collection consisted of dolls in the following lines: The Industry, Nu.Face, East 59th and Fashion Royalty. I'm not going to list every detail of every doll in every line as collectors can find all of this on-line at some dealers' sites even though many are sold out. Cherished Friends keeps sold out dolls listed (so you can see what you missed. Heh.)

The Industry line "Lovesick Collection" consists of 3 females and one male doll.

One stands far out from the rest. He's called "Hot to the Touch" and the character's name is Bellamy Blue.

Everything about him is extraordinary for a 1/6 scale doll from his edgy rooted and flocked silver hair to the layered garments (printed t-shirt, embroidered button-down shirt, parka, jeans) to his combat boots, messenger bag and jewelry. This is a fantastic doll that uses the newer Homme 1.5 body which disassembles.
Edition size is 725 and he sold out lightning fast at $130.

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The Nu.Face "Counter-Culture" Collection designed by Jessy Ayala is definitely a new look for IT dolls. They are described as "dark and edgy, artistically defiant and inspired by the alternative scene." The back story states that they are going to be an "integral part of what could be called the most controversial music video of all time!"
From top to bottom they are called: Tantric aka Lukas Maverik, Beyond This Planet aka Violane Perrin, The Awakening aka Annik Vandale, Supernova aka Colette Duranger and Nirvana aka Dominique Makeda.
These dolls retail at $150.

One interesting fact is that Violane Perrin's sculpt was that of Vanessa 2.0.

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The East 59th Collection's female dolls have a 50's vibe. I like the fashions more than the dolls themselves. Most come with additional fashion pieces and props. It appears that everyone on East 59th likes to drink. 

The dolls retail for $135.

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Fashion Royalty "Sacred Lotus" Collection designed by Jessy Ayala.

I was very impressed with this collection. Each doll is lovely. The fashions are pretty and the jewelry is super. If the main focus of my collection were Fashion Royalty, I'd have to have a few of these girls, namely Isha, Vanessa and Natalia. 

 Isha is outstanding. She's entitled "Divinity." She does look divine. Of course, she was sold out very fast. 

Vanessa Perrin Mini-giftset ($175.) will be sold via IT Direct lottery. I'm going to try for her. She is beautiful! Her skin tone is called Dark A-tone; hair is soft ebony. She's called "Serenity."

Natalia Fatale aka "Resurgence" retails at $155. Her edition size is 950. Sculpt is Natalia 2.0.

 Kyori Sato aka "Karma" appears to be dressed in a very modern version of a sari.
I preferred her original, more Asian sculpt. She's was made too much like the rest of the narrow-nosed, "white" eyed girls. I actually find this doll to be on the rather boring and not up to par with the rest of this collection. $155. retail.

Tatyana Alexandrova aka "Goddess" is wearing a stunning red fashion with equally beautiful jewelry. While not one of my favorite sculpts, she looks gorgeous here. $155. retail.

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Finally, the exclusive event doll, Agnes Von Weiss aka "Devotion." Every membership was guaranteed the right to pre-order this doll.
I wish she had been chosen to wear Tatyana's red outfit. It's so much more interesting than this black sheath and shoulder throw (not sure what it's called officially.)
Her henna designs are beautiful. Her jewelry is striking.
$155.

What were your favorites? Did you manage to lock in the pre-orders you wanted?