Italian Doll Convention 2011

 

On May 28 & 29, Milan, Italy will be the site of the Italian Doll Convention. The theme is the "Italian Way." One of the events invites participants to dress as their favorite Barbie and walk the catwalk.  My favorite rule says you are not allowed to  "think anything like I am too short/fat/shy/old to dress like a Barbie to do this." That sounds like so much fun. I hope someone videotapes it.

As part of the convention, twelve uber-talented doll artists have donated beautiful work to be auctioned off on eBay on May 15, 2011 with 100% of the proceeds going to the Fondazione Blu Onlus. They are (from left to right: Matt Sutton, Paul Pham-Numina Dolls, Ovaz,  Parrucca di Ilaria Mazzoni - Time of Dolls, ?, Parrucca di Ilaria Mazzoni - Time of Dolls, Matt Trujillo, Melissa Windham for Grant a Wish, Magia2000, Ninimomo, Fashion Doll Agency, Patrick Kon.

Click here to go to site.

Reinterpreted Runway Fashion from Superfrock

Thanks to George Gonzalez for pointing out this reinterpretation of a McQueen by Superfrock.

Alexander McQueen: Paris Fashion Week RTW 2009

Black Bird Society Fashion

 Birds do it, bees do it 

even Superfrock does it.

New Ellowyne Released "Timid Tan" with Free Shipping Now

Today Wilde Imagination released a new dressed Ellowyne doll called Timid Tan.  At first glance I thought she was a Basic Doll. She's quite ordinary compared to many dressed dolls. Her retail price is $135.00.

 To take advantage of the current promo for free shipping enter the code: SMILE13 for domestic orders and SMILE13INT for international orders.

She reminds me so much of "A Bon Voyage" who was a Hollywood Ahoy Convention (2009) doll. I like ABV better. Still available for $129.

Wilde Imagination  http://www.wildeimagination.com/c-2-dressed-dolls.aspx

In Search Of Sinister Circus "Back Stabber"

As if I need another doll....and yet I do. She is the Sinister Circus "Back Stabber"- LE 150.  She was the 2009 Modern Doll Collectors Convention (MDCC) Souvenir doll at the Tonner breakout event held in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

Someone must have one they don't want anymore. 

She has my favorite Supergirl sculpt and there is definitely a place for her in my collection.

Poop On ebay?

The seller prefaces all of his/her listings with the following disclaimer:

ALL ITEMS COME FROM GARAGE SALES, THRIFT STORES OR AUCTIONS. MY HOME IS SMOKE FREE AND PET FRIENDLY BUT I CANNOT SPEAK FOR WHERE THESE ITEM HAVE BEEN BEFORE. I TRY TO DESCRIBE ITEMS TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY BUT AM NOT AN EXPERT AND CONDITION IS SOMETIMES A MATTER OF OPINION. ANY ISSUES NOTICED WILL BE NOTED IN THE DESCRIPTION. I TEST ALL TOYS WITH BATTERY'S TO MAKE SURE THEY WORK SATISFACTORILY. BATTERIES ARE NOT ALWAYS INCLUDED. EVERYTHING SOLD IN AS IS CONDITION. PLEASE ASK QUESTIONS. 

Would you buy from this seller? She doesn't know where the stuff has been?
"Condition is sometimes a matter of opinion." Duh! So why bother asking questions when her opinion is going to be different because she's not an expert and knows nothing.  
I have seen this type of disclaimer quite often. One doll I purchased was yellowed either from age or cigarette smoke or a combination of both. The seller told me she didn't know if the previous owner was a smoker. I suppose her sense of smell and eyesight weren't working the day she described the doll as excellent condition.

If is looks like shit, smells like shit, chances are it's been somewhere specific. 

I have to say that the majority of eBay sellers are honest people. I've had 95% success with sellers and products.
You just have to be very careful, ask specific questions and be prepared to NOT bid if the response is not satisfactory. It's your money. Hang on to it.

Runway Fashion Reinterpreted for Your Pleasure

From Christian LaCroix Spring/Summer 2008:

From the team at Integrity Toys 2011:

The redesign is missing all the subtlety and artistry of the original. In the LaCroix, the flow of color from bottom of the hot pink of the skirt up to the orange/red at the waist is perfection. The shoulder rose picks up the pastel of the tights. The tights themselves seem to be darker at the foot end and lighter as they go up. The hair ornament has all the colors seen in the gown. It all makes sense. The one splash of chartreuse is softened by the drape of the fabric used for the bow and it's placed to appear so that the bow is gathering the fabric instead of just stuck on top of the fabric.

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Click for Source

An Emperor who cares for nothing but his appearance and attire hires two tailors who promise him the finest suit of clothes from a fabric invisible to anyone who is unfit for his position or "just hopelessly stupid". The Emperor cannot see the cloth himself, but pretends that he can for fear of appearing unfit for his position or stupid; his ministers do the same. When the swindlers report that the suit is finished, they mime dressing him and the Emperor then marches in procession before his subjects, who play along with the pretense. Suddenly, a child in the crowd, too young to understand the desirability of keeping up the pretense, blurts out that the Emperor is wearing nothing at all and the cry is taken up by others. The Emperor cringes, suspecting the assertion is true, but holds himself up proudly and continues the procession.

Bild Lilly for Sale at Marl & B

This beautiful example of a Bild Lilly doll caught my eye today. I don't think I've seen one in such gorgeous condition. Marl is selling her for $4,200. I have no idea about the prices of these dolls but I do know that they are an important part of fashion doll history, particularly that of Barbie. 

Click on the picture to go to Marl & B Website

Excerpts from Wikipedia and miscellaneous sources about Bild Lilli and Barbie's origin follows. Clicking on any of the links will take you to Wikipedia.

The doll became so popular that she was exported to other countries, including the United States, where she was just called "Lilli". Some Lillis have been seen in original packaging dating from the 1950s for an English-speaking market labeled as "Lilli Marlene", after the famous song. Several toy companies (mainly in Hong Kong) started producing fashion dolls looking very similar to Lilli. These dolls are easy to distinguish because of their poor quality.But Lilli also inspired the production of another fashion doll of high quality who would soon outshine her: Barbie, produced by Mattel. Ruth Handler, one of the company's founders, bought some of the Lilli dolls when she was on a trip to Europe. Back home she reworked the design of the doll and re-named her Barbie, who debuted at the New York toy fair on March 9, 1959. Barbie had rooted hair and her shoes and earrings were not molded — apart from that she was a lookalike of Lilli. Barbie celebrated 50 years of continuous production in 2009.^[2]Louis Marx and Company acquired the rights to the Lilli doll from O&M Hausser and released it in America as the Miss Seventeen (doll) in 1961. Marx unsuccessfully attempted to sue Mattel for patent infringement.^[3]Also in Spain, Muñecas FEJ (Guillen y Vicedo) copied the moulds of Bild Lilli and made a very similar doll but with darker skin, white earrings and articulated waist. However, Spanish society was extremely conservative at that moment and were not ready for such "sexy" dolls. Mothers were not buying them for their daughters and the manufacturer had to retire them from the market.There are no books about the Lilli doll alone. 

Even though their whole Barbie success was based on this German original, Mattel's legal department made sure that using the name Bild Lilli as a book title or product name would infringe copyright laws. Mattel had discreetly bought up all and any patents and copyrights to Bild Lilli, while Marx Toys held some of them after the demise of this toy competitor. Unlike Barbie, Bild Lilli was produced for only eight years and never reached the importance of the American doll. By the time the creators and producers of the original Bild Lilli doll, O&M Hausser, realized that Mattel had duped them into selling off their intellectual property and distribution rights for ridiculously low lump sums, Barbie had already made Mattel such a successful and influential market leader that law suits were struck down in favor of the ever-growing American toy giant.

 Portraying the risqué misadventures of a tarty, sassy blonde "working girl" living life in the big city, Lilli was an oversexed fashionista who enjoyed keeping the company of rich men. While she did maintain a job as a secretary, she was definitely the type of girl who, like Holly Golightly in 1961's Breakfast at Tiffany's "got $50 to go to the powder room". Because of it's bawdy humor the cartoon was an immediate smash hit and became a weekly feature.

"I must insist that at least one of you stops following me!"

"Yes, I kissed him, but I didn't want him to get too serious so I stopped him after three."

To cash in on the success of the comic character, BILD released an 11 1/2" Lilli novelty doll in 1955, aimed at adult male readers and sold them in bars and smoke shops as an erotic gag gift. Since the dolls produced up until this point were babies or toddlers marketed to girls, a doll with a voluptuous figure sold to men as a sexualized plaything was quite titillating.

A smaller 7 1/2" version of Lilli was also produced and could be playfully dangled from the rear view mirror of a car, on a little included swing. Who needs a mudflap girl when you can have a three-dimensional "sex pet"?  The promotional material touted her lifestyle as "always discreet," and that her sexy wardrobe made her "the star of every bar"!

 

Not originally intended for children, little girls fell in love with the dolls.  A high quality wardrobe was produced featuring the fashions trends of the 50's such as tight sweaters, capri pants, pencil skirts, party outfits, cotton swing skirts, nightwear and traditional German dresses.

Although the design was tweaked, side by side Lilli and the original Barbie are nearly identical!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason Wu On Your Nails?

Seen on CND (Creative Nail Design) Website. Click on the image to see more.

OVAZ' New Fashion Show Now Open

Click on the image to see the fashion show. It's a winner!

Clearance Sale at Cherished Friends New Jersey Store

The Cherished Friends New Jersey store is not just about baby dolls! Check it out for yourself and see the wide variety of fashion and character dolls they carry. I was surprised myself! I regularly check the main PA store for sales/clearance. Today I happened to click on the NJ store and the first things that caught my eye were the Jason Wu Cissy dolls. I did get my Vice Cissy at a very good price a few months ago but $199.99 is extremely good. Envy and Vice are both being sold at that price. I get the feeling that Jason Wu and Madame Alexander will not be collaborating on dolls again anytime soon.

Envy   SRP...$349.95...Sale $199.99

The unattractive Alex Signature Collection dolls styled by Jason are also on sale for $99. each. Paris isn't as unattractive as Alex but there was no reason to alter their appearance in the first place. IMNSHO


The supremely ugly and ill-designed Vita Inferno is reduced from  SRP...$160...Sale Price...$79.99.
Don't debox if you buy one. Her odd-looking sister in turquoise, Vita Aqua Bella, is also reduced. 

Anyway...check out the sale. There might be something you want like Tonner's Strider, Ranger of the North. This is a pretty hot-looking male doll on the 17" Matt O'Neill body. I've seen him in person and I would add him to my collection. His outfit is detailed and very cool. I wish I could find The Tenth Dr. Who somewhere on sale. I'm waiting for him.

$149.99 - Sale Price $89.99

You know you want her.   SRP $149.99 . . . Sale Price $79.99

Jessica Rabbit  17" Athletic Body

Tonner's Reinterpreted Runway Fashions for Dolls

I don't know if the Tonner Doll Co. was the first to use the term 'reimagination' when it came to dolls but it is entirely appropriate. In these cases, however, the imagination did not originate with the doll company.

Fall 2008 Christian Lacroix              Symphonic  Antoinettte

A collector posted a link to a blog called The Haute Couture Doll which has these images of Tonner dolls dressed in fashions inspired by couture runway designs.

Fall 2008 Jean Paul Gaultier                                           Emphatic Antoinette

              Dior                                             Creole Romance  American Model

 ? Ungaro                                          C'est Magnifique  Tyler (2005)

Birds do it, bees do it, even educated fleas do it.

Hedgehogs Practicing Reproduction

Opinions on Doll Body Size Diversity

I posted a question on Prego today asking what the benefits or drawbacks would be to having dolls such as the Numina, Ficon, Deva, Sybarite, JamieShow, etc. with similar body measurements.

POLICE 100MM  ~ Christian Louboutin

I have copied some of the responses here anonymously but you can go to Prego and see the answers for yourself if you desire.

I am not often tempted to share clothing. The thing that I enjoy most about dolls is their character and personality. I enjoy the fact that each doll has a unique face, style of painting, and personality, and they all appeal to different audiences/budgets/tastes. That means, for me, I am seldom tempted by redressing in another doll's outfits, because I love each girl to have her very own set of things. Even my Sybarites tend not to share, and there are some dresses that are "for Eaton" some "for Peep". some "for Toxica" etc. I do not like to see the lines blurred and all the dolls dressed in the same thing. 

I have shrunk my collection because of the many different sizes. keeping wigs and clothing for all was getting very difficult. 

I think all of them and all other 15.5-16" dolls should have the same measurements as Gene--so my Girls can wear ALL their clothes.

I would love for all of them to be able to share clothing.

I guess it would be easier on the budget, but I think it would be boring. I love seeing the other dolls that I don't collect. They each have something of their own and I like and appreciate them even if I don't own them.

What is your opinion. What would you like?

Now, for a few moments of comic relief and pet therapy, 

I present Rudy wearing his version of Princess Beatrice's hat.

Pink Week Sale at Barbie Collector 5/5/11 — 5/9/11

BC.Com announced the beginning of a new sale called Pink Week. Here's a little promo text:

You get three ways to save during Pink Week:

1. More than 100 dolls and accessories have been newly discounted - as much as 50% off.
2. More than 40 already-reduced items have been discounted even more.
3. During Pink Week, you get an additional 15% off those fabulous Special Offer Shelf deals!

For example you can get three sheets of wrapping paper for $10, regularly $15. (Ribbon not included.) Once you add it to your shopping cart, an additional 15% comes off bringing the cost to $8.50. 

The last style of Barbie wrapping paper came with nice pink ribbon and actually looked like Barbie wrapping paper. This is nice but is not doll related at all except to those who are familiar with this new trying-to-be-iconic look.

If you've been holding off ordering the ridiculously over-priced (at $150.) Palm Beach Coral Silkstone, she now comes to $63.75 with this sale. If you can find a free shipping code or want to use your quarterly bonus, your deal is even sweeter. I may actually get her after all.

Or perhaps I will waste $8.50 on Goldie.

Are you going to buy something?

OVAZ Presents DEVAS FASHION SHOW 5/7/11

OVAZ OOAK Designs
The Art of the One of a Kind Creation

WWW.OVAZDESIGNS.COM

Digital Photography Tips from around the Web

There are innumerable resources on the internet to help collectors take better doll photos. I'm going to start posting links or copies. The first few posts will be about lighting mainly  because most of the mis-information I am hearing concerns lighting.
Some of this information will be good and some may be useless to you.  Take what you need and leave the rest.

How To Use Your Camera's Flash for the Perfect Digital Photography by M.Mark

 It takes time and experience to learn how to control your digital camera's flash and shoot the perfect digital photography, but it's definitely worth waiting and trying because it's so rewarding! After all a picture worth a thousand words! I hope you will like and benefit from these flash tips for the perfect digital photography!

You have to take full control of your digital camera's flash. Why? Because digital cameras and their build-in software are pre-programmed and make a few assumptions.

For example:
There are sensors inside your camera that measure the percentage of illumination in the scene at which your camera points. If the sensors measure low illumination then your flash will fire. That is because your camera is pre-programmed with the assumption that flash will improve the photograph in a low-illumination environment. On the other hand in a high-illumination environment the flash will not fire because the camera will assume it's not necessary. After all it's dark out there!

The issue with these assumptions is that there are certain situations when you want an opposite result.

For example there are times when you want to shoot the perfect digital photography in a low-illumination environment without using the flash. e.g. when you are in a dark room with a candle burning and no other light sources. If that's the case you need to be really steady for the photograph to be sharp. You may want to use a tripod to achieve better results. If you do it right you will have a perfect digital photography with beautiful warm orange/red colors. Remember that the straight light coming from the flash gives a cold commercial look to your photographs. That could be ok in some cases but not in all cases.. You should decide whether to use flash, not your camera.

But what happens when working in Bright Light, high-illumination environments?

Then, the flash will not fire! Of course that saves battery-power but what are the results of your perfect digital photography? You definitely don't want to lose in quality right?

Imagine when you want to take the perfect digital photography of a person wearing a hat and the sun is overhead in the sky shining.. Then you will notice that the person's face will be in dark shadow because of the hat! But even if there's no hat, you will usually see shadows under the chin or under the person's eyes. So what you should do is fill those small shadows with light using your camera's flash!

Again, YOU should decide whether to use flash or not, and not your camera. YOU should take control of your camera's flash.

Today's digital cameras have five basic flash settings:

- Setting #1:
Automatic Flash: This is where your camera is pre-programmed to make assumptions depending on the level of the environment illumination and use the flash accordingly.

- Setting#2:
Automatic Flash with Eye Reduction: Again, the camera uses its software to determine when the flash will fire but there's also some type of red eye filters to reduce the red eye effect.

You camera will probably automatically select, by default, one of the above two settings. I recommend to never use the above settings if you're aiming for the perfect digital photography. And why is that you may ask. As I said before YOU should be the one who decides whether to use flash or not. And furthermore the eye reduction filters will not always do a good work and will confuse your subjects in most cases.

I recommend to make use of the following settings depending on the scene and the subject you're trying to shoot.

- Setting #3:
Flash Always: With this setting enabled your flash will fire in all cases. You may want to choose this setting when you want to fill small shadowed areas with light.

- Setting #4:
Flash Disabled: Your flash will not fire no matter how illuminated the environment or the scene is.. Make use of this setting when you want to shoot in a low-illuminated environment e.g. a dark room with a candle burning. Just remember that in a low-illumination environment you have to be really steady in order to shoot the perfect digital photography.

- Setting #5:
Slow Shutter Flash: This is a very underestimated setting and the least used.. If you choose this setting your flash will fire occasionally but the shutter will remain open for a longer time than usual. This will allow you to capture the subject illuminated by the flash, but it will also allow other lighting sources (like a candle's light) to record themselves. This setting is perfect if there is high illumination on the background while in-front of the subject there's certain darkness. For example when you want to shoot a person in front of a casino at night.

So.. If you're aiming for the perfect digital photography you should be able to switch between those five flash settings found in almost all digital cameras these days. Have a look at the camera's manual for more information on these settings. They are really important.



How would you like to use your camera's flash like professional digital photographer? You may want to have a look at this Perfect Digital Photography Secrets Manual/Guide. M.Mark is a webmaster of the DigitalStarProducts Digital Products Directory.

Article Source: http://www.positivearticles.com