The Year in Dolls - A 2011 Montage

So many dolls; so little time.
I just spent a few fun hours going through the doll stuff  that passed through my doors this past year. A fair amount of what is pictured went back out the same doors after I got bored, traded, or decided to 'reinvest' the funds. Some of what arrived isn't pictured probably because it hasn't even been photographed yet.
The original image is 5000 pixels square at 300dpi. This one is very reduced but if you click on it a larger version will open. Can you identify everything? Can you find Waldo?

On eBay: Doll Shoes & Boots

I've been hunting around (wasting my life) for the past few hours for stuff for my 12" dolls. It never ends. I started out on Etsy and wound up on eBay. Here's some stuff I thought you might find interesting.

MSD Size 1/4 BJD Shoes Doll Boots  Dollfie 1311 Sale

Yosd Shoes 1/6 Size BJD Doll Boots Yosd Dollfie BB 012

Pink is everywhere!

 

Snow Boots for Blythe / Pullip / 1/6 doll shoes - white

Blythe 1/6 Obitsu Momoko Doll Shoes Crocodile Boots

You know you want these for yourself.

[Sunny's World] 1/6 Shoes ( N023BB )

New Dollfie Yo SD Mary Jane 1/6 BJD Dolls Shoes Gold

I love these gold shoes. The bows come off for another look. 

Fashion Royalty dolls will not be able to wear these shoes mainly because the shoes are not arched but also because they would look ridiculous on a sophisticated fashion doll.

These shoes are mainly for Momoko, Obitsu, Blythe, Pullip, Yo-SD BJD, and I'm guessing Misaki will fit too. One seller gives the measurement of 'Inner Foot Length (Approx.): 1 3/4 inch (4.5cm).' The first pair of shoes is for a larger doll. Those are my favorites.

Go grab a doll and a ruler and check out the wonderful selection of shoes at seriously great prices.  These shoes are all coming from Asia-probably directly from the factories where they are made.  My eBay search was for 1/6 shoes in the Dolls & Bears category.

Just For Fun, a Composite

Click on the picture to see it full-sized. I took some of my old Misaki pictures and combined them with new ones. I like looking at pictures of dolls I have no longer or that I rarely play with.

Paranormal Misaki

Kill me now. I've started up with the Misakis again. I thought I kicked the habit a few years ago when I sold my entire collection. Sigh. I tell myself it's OK because I'm not pre-ordering and paying retail. I'm hunting for bargains and finding them. (It's a sickness.)

I removed Paranormal's hat because it hides her lovely hair. She is so pretty.

Since purchasing Red Rabbit Misaki, seen below in Go Home's outfit,  Paranormal Misaki, Pure Evil Misaki, Ye-Ye Amelie and Royal Amelie have joined the tribe.

Misaki dolls' feet are larger than Nu-Face/Fashion Royalty feet. I didn't want to force the red boots onto her. The shoes are a Volks' product.


Yes, these are point and shoot photos. My bad.

A Photoshoot: Misaki, Poppy, Monogram

I recently acquired a maimed Pure Evil Misaki doll for a good price. I'm a sucker for curly blonde hair. She lived for a while with her broken off forearm taped to the rest of her arm during which time I hunted down a matching body. Now while I wait for her original outfit to show up, she is trying out an Azone fashion entitled Ruban de fe`ee.  There's no evil here.

 

The Bergdorf Goodman Fashion Night Out doll has finally given up her suit for a more summer friendly ensemble. This doll is a delight to photograph. Her eyes are gorgeous.

Monogram Magnificent was all too happy to grab Bergdorf's suit. I've taken her braid-wrapped bun down and just kept the pony tail. More work will have to be done...but you can't see any of that anyway so why am I telling you?
The hat is by my friend Cisca from The Netherlands.

What are these dolls up to and what is the dog doing?

Caption this!

SouoL by Louos Fashions and Palm Beach Coral Silkstone Doll

Red Rabbit Misaki and Ayla (Soom's tan Aren) got new outfits from SouoL by Louos.

 

Boots are Azone. Jewelry is Integrity Toys. Projector is a vintage 8mm Revere from my distant past (my parents.)

 

This outfit came with short socks but I didn't have shoes that would fit over the socks. I added the jewelry. Wig by Tabloach.

I purchased the Palm Beach Coral Silkstone during the last BC.Com sale using my quarterly bonus and the discount provided by the sale, she came down from a ridiculous retail price of $150. to about $50. She was worth the wait. The fashion is made very well. In fact I was surprised that the coat fastens with a hook and eye! The pants and top use snaps. The fabric is a very nice quality the embellishment is done nicely.  It's really one of the nicest Silkies produced in the last two years.

 Open coat reveals cropped top and flared pants

The coral branch pattern continues all around the back of the coat.

She has an intricate hairstyle which, in my pictures, is still in it's net. I'm dangerous around Silkstone hair so I prefer not to remove the nets right away.

The doll is fetching $100 and up on eBay. 

News About Kazue and Tom of Toy & Goods Trading

It was confirmed this past week by a good friend of Kazue, that her husband is Tom of Toy & Goods Trading. That shop appears to be up and running.

Please note, if you order from them that they accept only Paypal. Do not pay with a balance, pay with a credit card through Paypal. That way even if Paypal denies your claim (if you have to make one) you can always turn to your credit card company and do a chargeback. Paypal hates that but you are protected.

I thought it was very, very strange that no one except the person who confirmed the information to collectors knew this. It's rather unusual for a husband and wife to have very similar but separate businesses in the same area. Perhaps Kazue  was trying to prove to Tom that she could do it better.

Some who regularly order from T&G Trading are understandably concerned that he might go under as well. All I can say is that if you have a major credit card, use it through Paypal. Get all your funds out of your account before ordering and use as your back up funding source a credit card - not a bank account.

Tom has the prettiest duo for sale. They are "Good Morning Amelie" and "Good Night Misaki" from the Secret Code Collection. His price is 32,600 yen for the set. That's $403.31 USD; 244.59 British Pounds; or 270.50 Euros.  They are also available separately but they look so pretty together.

Link to Toy& Goods Trading

Integrity Toys Japan - Misaki and Amelie´

W Club members were sent an email announcing a new website featuring Misaki and Amelie´. It is Integrity Toys Japan (which is not affiliated with the club.)  Most of it is in Japanese but the pictures of the dolls are wonderful. You can also see prices in Yen which can easily be converted to your own currency at Yahoo Finance or any of a number of sites offering conversion tables.

Integrity Toys Japan

Dollystyle Convention Featured Souvenir Dolls

The Dollystyle Convention just took place in Tokyo on November 21-22. Attendees were presented with a stunning Amelie (Misaki's friend) dressed all in pink. Her fashion is a a throw back to the first Misaki doll who was dressed similarly but all in black. Amelie is called "Tokyo A Go Go." The original Misaki was called "Tokyo Here We Go!"
There was also an uber-limited Tokyo Here We Go - Marui Misaki released when the Nippon line began. I wanted this doll for such a long time and then I stopped collecting Misaki. She was dressed all in white and only 100 were ever made. I still admire this doll.

The other doll took me by surprise and until I was able to secure one I was on pins and needles. She is called "Night Warrior" and has the Vanessa sculpt.
Registrants also received the following items. This partial list was posted by Robsdolls.

DollyStyle Tote Bag(The 1st two were great!)
DollyStyle Tumbler
DollyStyle Pen
ECO Cute Bag-gift from Bar-B
Mini Cosmetic bag-gift from PB Factory
Momoko Doll-Gift from Sekiguchi
Doll Stockings-Gift from Azone
Mini Doll or Blythe items-Gift from Toms Toys & Goods

The convention was sponsored by BIC Co., Ltd. owned by the wonderful Kazue.

After a While, They All Start To Look the Same

Maybe I'm imagining it.

Picture of the Week Award ~ July 26, 2009

This week's Picture of the Week Award goes to James Griffen also known as ParadiseBlue and more recently Dolls Gone Wild!

James created Anti Social Misaki's windswept look by brushing her hair and pulling her hoodie up. The fabulous composition brings the viewer's eye to the doll's face over and over. I found myself following the sweep of the hair and returning to the face via the zipper.

James told me that he always played with dolls. He was an only child raised by his dad who let him have Barbie dolls. His father did not consider them to be girl's toys. He said that his dad thought "they were just little figures interacting...a sort of life skills tool."

If you would like to see more of James' excellent pictures you can find many at this link:

http://www.thedollpage2.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=417

Congratulations, James!

Poppy Parker

Integrity Toys introduced a surprise doll on Saturday, February 21, 2009 at the W Event. Her name is Poppy Parker. The back story takes place in the 1960's in the life of a teenager from the midwest who moves to the Big Apple to pursue a career as a fashion model.

Poppy has a new sculpt and uses the Nippon Misaki body.

The photos that follow are courtesy Integrity Toys. The first four are dressed dolls. The last two are fashions.

Portrait in Black Poppy Parker $85.00 LE 700

The Reluctant Debutant Poppy Parker $89.00 LE 700

Summer Magic Poppy Parker $70.00 LE 700

Pillow Talk Poppy Parker $70.00 LE 700

Three Hour Tour Fashion $55.00 LE 500

Poetry in Motion Fashion $55.00 LE 500

I think this line of dolls has broad appeal for several reasons. The price is right, the doll is completely articulated and the facial screening is conservative. So conservative, in fact, that if I were told that this was a new Robert Tonner line, I would have believed it.

Here is a photo I took of one of my Tonner Tiny Kitty dolls wearing a fashion from Tonner's 2008 line. Doesn't it look familiar?

When I commented on the similarity to one of the designers I was met with a blank stare.

As an aside, the furniture and accessories for IT's Poppy Parker photographs were created by Maryann Roy.

Nu.Fantasy Wild Wolf Kumi Giftset

This has been an overwhelmingly abundant month for dolls arriving at my door. One of the most eagerly awaited ones, the Japanese Exclusive "Wild Wolf" Kumi Doll, arrived yesterday. Although this delightful little thing has a Misaki body, she is not part of the Misaki line. This is a new line called Nu.Fantasy.

The giftset consists of the doll, a dress, a skirt, a cape with a removable harness-type thing, two handbags, tall boots, heels, gloves, fishnet tights, and doll stand. I don't know if the fur on the cape is real. If it's not, it's a very good fake. Everything in the set works together except for the handbag with the two buckles. It doesn't have any fantasy about it at all. I would have preferred some far out jewelry to another ordinary black bag. The other bag is adorable. It's a little cube with metallic embellishments including a lock. I love it. I haven't tried the pumps on her so I don't know how that's going to work as she has the Misaki flat foot. She will be able to wear all of Azone's 1/6 scale shoes and boots.

The packaging was kind of nice so I photographed it. The inner box was encased in a semi transparent sleeve which was printed with a forest graphic. I used it as a backdrop for some of Kumi's initial shots.

Kumi is currently drying after undergoing a bit of a trim and boil straightening of her hair. I found that her bangs were too long and a bit uneven and her eyelashes (rooted) were hiding her eyes from view. So....I thinned the very edges of the bangs and shortened the eyelashes and tomorrow she will get back into her wonderful outfit for more pictures.

Yuri arrived today as well. She, too, has been altered although much more drastically. Her hair is now short all around, not just on the sides.

My recommendation: start saving now. The price is going up. The W Club sold a few to lucky lottery winners for $275 plus shipping. I got this one for $300. plus shipping from Canada. They're selling now on eBay for more than $350. They are irresistible and the clothes are delightful. On the CDCMHS (Compulsive Doll Collector Must-Have Scale) they score a (High) 5 out of 5.