The AvantGuards, Integrity Toy's Gold Mine.

I can't express how surprised and pleased I am with this round of AvantGuard dolls—Aphrodisiac, Androgyny and Goldmine. I originally thought that Aphrodisiac and Goldmine were too edgy for me, but seeing them in person has proven to be just what I needed to become an AvantGuard devotee´. They are much more beautiful than the promotional photos show.

At the W Event, Aphrodisiac and Androgyny were shown out of the direct light of the display lamps that turned everything yellow.

An Aphrodisiac is a substance which is used in the belief that it increases sexual desire. The name comes from Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sensuality. I'm still not sure about the raccoon eyes.

Androgyny is a term derived from a combination of Greek words meaning man and woman. In fashion statements it refers to the mixing of masculine and feminine characteristics. This gal is the tame note of the collection.

The term Goldmine needs no definition. It conjures up images of dust covered men with pick axes and head lamps, carts with wheels on a track filled with rocks, panning, metal detecting and sluicing.
No, Goldmine is not dust covered. She is wearing a dress thickly embellished with coins. She's fabulous. Pictures of her are forthcoming.

The AvantGuard dolls retail for $220. each. Goldmine was $239 and is not available from dealers as she was the optional purchase W Event doll. They come with one extra pair of flat feet with articulated toes and one extra pair of hands with articulation. Each doll comes with a wig and a doll stand. Goldmine's edition size is 400 and the others have an edition size of 500 each.

Gold digger? That's something else entirely.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU13MRtSD7E

The Dynamite Girls- ElectroPop Collection

As if some of us weren't confused enough already, Integrity has gone and divided it's products into conceptual categories. The following comes off as high falutin' marketing-speak. Puh-leese. Keep this kind of stuff where it belongs - in the boardroom.

The Dynamite Girls are in the concept category called POP.
"Concept: Mid-level collectible category consisting of pop culture-centric brands such as the Dynamite Girls and modern celebrities.
Era: MOD, modern, urban, funky.
Fashion Style: Slightly more elaborate outfits."

More elaborate than what?

Here is the text from Integrity Toys describing the new Dynamite Girl dolls:
"A new and slightly more sophisticated take on clingy fabrics, layering, shocking candy colors and fun accessories that personified the 1980s acts as a base for the 2009 ElectroPop collection from the Dynamite Girls. These 12 inch tall vinyl cuties have removable hands for easy re-dressing! As an added bonus, the ElectroPop Collection introduces a cool new feature for the Dynamite Girls: 3-D reusable packaging! Now you'll be able to display your dolls like never before and reduce waste by re-using these colorful packages and quickly turn them into mini recording studio dioramas! Instructions and extra parts are included with each doll for easy assembly. Each doll is done in a limited edition of 1000 pieces."
Getting past the hype we find an adorable collection of five articulated dolls in cotton candy colors.
This stuff is eye candy! Images of the Dynamite Girls are Courtesy of Integrity Toys.

Aria:

Dayle:

Rufus Blue:

Sooki:

Jasper:

David Buttry must be a fan of the TV series "Big Love." Jasper could easily play the part of Rhonda Volmer.

Dolls retail at $45. each and are due in mid-March through mid-April.
By the way, if you're in the mood for some Fundamentalist crafts and fashions (and who wouldn't be?) check out this site:
http://www.fldscrafts.com/index.php

Fourth Annual Integrity Toys W Club "Toy Fair" Event

We arrived at the W Hotel in Manhattan shortly before the scheduled opening of the Integrity Toy's traveling store. I was expecting lots of deals and goodies however we were presented with very little in the way of variety or bargains. A few items from the Gene Marshall line were reduced. There were dolls that didn't sell well in the retail market for sale at retail. Phase I of the AvantGuard dolls were available in limited quantities. Eclectic sold out fast. I wanted her fashion so I purchased one and sold the nude doll to another collector. I also picked up the Josephine Baker event doll called "La Joie de Paris." This is a Limited Edition of 350 dolls. At $120. this gal was no bargain but she looked beautiful in her futuristic blue and silver gown with the silver gauntlets and I couldn't resist. I really like the packaging of the Hollywood Royalty dolls with their window boxes and the featured doll's signature on the front of the box.

Josephine Baker photo courtesy of Integrity Toys

We sat and chatted and greeted eachother in the lovely seating area outside of the main event room until it was time to go in to dinner. The space was very large with tables set for the meal on one side of the room and the displays featuring the new lines on the other side.

On each table there were two dolls dressed similarly with the same color hair. One was a Luchia and the other was a Zita. At each place setting there was a placecard and a gift of an AvantGuard wig and a pair of shoes.

The food was very good. We had the steak. The service was excellent. Everyone I asked said they'd love to have a convention right there in Manhattan.

Brief remarks were made by Carol Roth,


Mel Odom,Jason Wu and Percy Newsome. Jason began his greeting by saying, "A few things have happened since we last met." We all laughed.

We browsed the collections during dinner. My comments on the dolls will be in posts to follow.

Prior to dessert, those who had won the opportunity to purchase the centerpiece dolls were notified and asked to go to the salesroom to pay for and pick up their dolls.

From 9:00PM to 10:00 PM a free cocktail party was held in the same room as the displays. The area of the dining room was partially partitioned off so that those who lingered over coffee could hang out. There were many areas outside of the main room to gather, chat and sit comfortably.

Overall, it was a fun mini-convention. The atmosphere was 100% superior to that of the FAO events of the previous two years. And it did not snow!

Some of our tablemates:




Marg of MFD and Luanne:

Fashion Week Highlights from the New York Times

Click this URL in order to see and hear a very interesting and concise editorial regarding recent showings at New York Fashion Week. Jason Wu is mentioned.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/02/17/fashion/20090218-fashion-feature/index.html

Happy Valentine's Day to All

Vero wanted to stop by and wish you all a very Happy Valentine's Day.
This is Midnight in Monaco. She was the first Fashion Royalty convention doll ever and was presented to those attending the IFCD in 2003. She is an LE of 500. The fee for that convention was $125.
The dress she is wearing in this photo is from my favorite dress maker in Thailand who has now disappeared from eBay. It's odd because the seller whose label was sewn in to two of my dresses is now selling again after being out to lunch for months. Hmm....
Necklace from a Fashion Royalty outfit.

Here are several other photos I have taken of her.

In the first photo below, Veronique is wearing True Royalty's lingerie as she plays in bed with her tiny poodle.

The second photo has her wearing a Fashion Royalty outfit from the Baltimore convention. I dyed it lavender. I was originally white. Earrings are Dressmaker Details. The handbag is a La Boutique Purse of the Month "Fendi." That was the day I ran around the house looking for things I could dye lavender.

In the third photo, Vero is wearing a copy of Trannytale, an Amanda Lepore doll dress, made by Mio.

Fashion Royalty Graphic Language Adele

There is no doubt in my mind that this is the most beautiful of all the early Adeles. Graphic Language Adele was issued in 2004 as part of the Fall/Winter Graphic Flirtation Collection along with Girl of the Moment Veronique, Glam Slam Kyori, and the first Vanessa, Shock Bonbon. Her retail price was $59.99.
She came dressed in an argyle sweater and black tights and her accessory was an adorable pink patent leather hat box.

In my version above, Adele has been transferred to a tall articulated body and she is wearing another one of Ovaz' fabulous, sexy gowns.