Rumor: The Magazine "Haute Doll" May Be Closing Down Production

If you go to the Haute Doll site and try to order a subscription or renew an existing one you will get the message "no products found."
Yesterday the unconfirmed statement that they were shutting down erupted on one of the doll boards and spread like wild fire. Later in the day, HD sent the message that they would be issuing a statement. They did not say when.
I'm rather surprised as I thought the last issue of Haute Doll was one of their best!
I know something went wrong recently with their ordering system during a big event and shortly after that they went on leave for a while.
In spite of the fact that I write for FDQ, I enjoyed most of what HD had to offer. The main focus of each publication is different.

Perhaps they were overextended with the amount of exclusives they took on. We may never know the underlying problem. Right now, we're just waiting for some explanation.

Some of their recent exclusives have been Sybarite: The Cross; Dolci Bambola Giftset and Peak's Woods Goldie.

 While I'm sure The Cross (LE 150) sold out even with it's $820. price tag, I don't know about the  LE60 Bambola for $510.  That's quite a specialized type of doll and I know of just one person who purchased one. The Peak's Wood doll (LE 40 @ $760-$810) is the latest and part of an entire collection of exclusives which included many fashions. When the ordering for those items opened up, that was when their system went haywire.

Previously they offered an exclusive Traveler Innoquii. This doll had to be practically given away she was so disliked. Ditto for the Valia Pivoine whose initial price point was ridiculous, was put on sale and then the W Club wound up having a 2 for 1 lottery on their leftover Valias. 

I always thought those two dolls resembled eachother. In a prior blog post, I parodied a Haute Doll cover which featured Innoqui with my version of Valia whom I named Innoquous.

Now she needs a cover.

Must be the new Abused Woman style.

The Beautiful Veronique Perrin Fashion Royalty Doll

I'm still adding Vero dolls to my collection. This "Close-Up" Veronique called Morning Frost was released in 2003. She was an edition of 1000 and originally sold for $29.99.

Recently I was lucky enough to pick up the head for $35. Fully dressed, a mint condition doll like this will go from $99-$125. After washing and restoring her hair to it's original beauty, I put the head on a tall FR body.

The replacement body I used was from one of my older dolls and was extremely wobbly at the waist and hips. While that can't actually be repaired, it can be controlled to a certain degree. I put pantyhose on the doll. That helps a great deal. A slim skirt is essential as it holds the legs together. 

The dress is a La Boutique as is the leather handbag. 

She's as good as new and as beautiful as any Fashion Royalty doll.

Alice Cullen ~ Twilight Character Figure ~ Dolls

Alice Cullen is my favorite character from the Twilight series of books and in the movies. She is also the latest addition from the Tonner Doll Company to their Twilight line of dolls.
 I think she is adorable with her "Ashley Greene Head Sculpt", 16" Ballerina bust Tyler convertible body, amber eyes, wigged hair and cameo skintone. She is wearing a reproduction of an outfit she wore in New Moon.  The retail price of Tonner's Alice is $139.99 and she is expected to ship in September, 2010.

Here is NECA's prototype of Alice. It was shown at the New York Toy Fair in 2009. I could not find this one for sale.

Here's another from NECA being sold at Amazon .com. I cannot locate a better photograph of this doll. She is obviously wearing the same costume as Tonner's doll.  This one is only 7" tall and is called Twilight "New Moon" Alice Cullen. Price at Amazon is $39.95.

Finally we have the Barbie Collector Twilight Saga "Eclipse" 11" Alice doll for $24.99. This doll will ship in August, 2010. This one has the cutest face and changing the shirt to white was a good idea. It would be an even better idea to make all the dolls with a pivotal body. A vampire has to move, doesn't she?

Which of these dolls is your favorite?