Parisienne Pretty Barbie Doll

The latest Silkstone addition to my collection is wearing a lovely reproduction of the 1959 vintage Gay Parisienne fashion. With her navy blue & white polka dot taffeta bubble style dress and tulle hat Barbie wears long white gloves, navy ribbon pumps, navy pantyhose, a silver clutch with rhinestone clasp, pearl and rhinestone earrings, a rhinestone brooch and a rhinestone bracelet.

Parisienne Pretty is part of the "Since 1959" collection which commemorates famed vintage Barbie fashions re-invented for a new era. She was designed by Robert Best. The doll is available at select retailers. The prices I've seen range from a low of $99. to a high of $129.99. I recommend this doll as a beautiful addition to any Silkstone Barbie collection but shop around for your best price!

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In 2003, Mattel issued a Gay Parisienne reproduction as part of the collector's request series.

Here is the promotional text that went along with this item:

Sixth in the Collectors' Request™ Series, this Barbie® doll is a vinyl reproduction wearing a re-creation of the original 1959 fashion Gay Parisienne®. Barbie® looks chic in her classic dark blue bubble dress with tiny white polka-dots. Around her shoulders is a fabulous faux fur stole, and sitting atop her head is a sophisticated veiled headband hat. Accessories include a faux pearl necklace, golden velvety clutch, and navy open-toe shoes. Barbie® doll's demure vintage look is captured with lovely side-glancing eyes, red lipstick, painted finger and toenails, and a brunette ponytail with curled bangs.

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The original Barbie Outfit Gay Parisienne #964, issued in 1959 is pictured here (NRFB!!!) in a photograph by copyrighted by Denise Van Patten.

Denise writes: "Gay Parisienne was produced for one year only. This iconic vintage Barbie outfit consists of a bubble dress in blue with white dots and two bows (front and back), brown clutch, rabbit fur stone with white satin lining (if the lining is pink it is not from this set), veiled headband hat in tulle, long white gloves and deep blue open toe pumps,plus a strand of graduated pearls."

Announcements from Integrity Toys

Life Ball dolls and Integrity raise nearly $50,000 for the Life Ball Organisation!
That's a great donation for the cause of HIV/AIDS research and prevention. I was doing the math and the results are worth pondering (or maybe not.) This assumes that all were sold at the retail price.
The 2009 Official Life Ball doll was limited to 250 dolls worldwide and retailed for $270.
250 dolls @ $270. = $67,500.
$67,500 less the net proceeds of $50,000 = $17,500.
$17,500 divided by # of dolls produced = $70.
Does that mean that the cost of producing the dolls was $70 each?
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There is no specific date yet for the arrival of the Poppy Parker line. Hopefully the long wait will have been worth it when they finally do arrive.
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There is now a new European dealership, Laure Belle Couture of Belgium! Laurence is a doll herself and that is great news to those in Europe who have a difficult time getting their needs met by the existing dealers in Europe.

Picture of the Week Award ~ July 3, 2009

This week's award goes to Veronica Haage also known as Eight O'clock Designs - Repaints by Veronica.
On her website, Veronica explains how the name of her business came about.
"With two boys painting doesn't get done during their waking hours. As you can imagine, that would be a big mess. So everything I do is done after their 8 PM bedtime. Hence Eight O'clock Designs."
It was very difficult to choose a favorite from amongst many beautifully photographed dolls. I chose this one for several reasons. The lighting and soft quality of the focus makes it look like a painting. It appears that the doll is looking far away into the light. I love it. This was "In Full Regalia" Eugenia Frost.

Congratulations, Veronica!

A Little Dose of Antoinette

It's been a hectic week with deadlines, appliance repairs and constant rainstorms. I have never experienced so much rain so many days in a row in my life. This has to be some kind of record and as the weather gets more and more erratic and extreme, I fear that the climate is beyond repair.
And now for some lighter fare...here are two of my lovelies. On the left we have Treasured Antoinette in her convention gown which has been altered. I removed the three rows of fringe and the entire bottom tier in order to create a simple cocktail dress. Her shoulder bows were trashed as well. I took a few stitches in the bodice to define the bust area. I had thoughts of creating a shrug from the remaining fabric but I couldn't figure out how to do it. I'm going to have to get directions.
Ms. Treasured is standing next to Idyllic Antoinette. I've removed all the tchotchkes from her hair. It was no easy job. The thread holding the flowers and the topknot in place was actually rooted! I was worried about what I'd find under all that but her hair is rooted nicely and evenly. I boiled it to straighten it out and trimmed it evenly. I will probably trim it even shorter. She is wearing the fashion entitled "Influential." I have replaced the multi-strand of beads with which the outfit came because they did not lay right and looked very messy. The jewelry she's now wearing is from a Fashion Royalty outfit. I may replace the black tights with black stockings and take off the semi-sheer black top. The dress itself is covered in micro sequins and will be lovely as a cocktail dress.

So far I am quite pleased with this line. I do have a problem with the stands but all of Tonner's stands suck pretty much so nothing is new.
I'm still waiting for two more fashions and I desperately want to order Hypnotic. The fashions I'm expecting are Brilliant and Posh. They've gone past their expected arrival date.

Amid all the fabulous fashions and pretty dolls, there is one thing I don't understand. How did they let this outfit out of the gate? Someone dropped the ball on these pants. If the price drops low, I will buy it and turn the pants into a skirt. The jacket and the bag are pretty and it looks like there's a nice tank top under there.

This image is the property of Tonner Doll Company.

2009 Gene Fan Appreciation Tour Announced

Information on this year's Gene Fan Appreciation Tour was released to the public today. Here is the information and the picture of the doll. She's a beauty and I adore the fashion. I would love to visit Cherished Friends but it's a 3+ hour drive each way and for such a brief event, I don't think I will be going. If someone was in my area of New York to share the ride with me....well, I would reconsider.

-Tour Stop One: W Club online event, August 8th

-Tour Stop Two: Hollywood Ahoy convention in California, managed by Joe Blitman, August 14th at the Gene Breakout Event Dinner
Hollywood Ahoy Website: http://sandrastillwell.com
Joe Blitman's Website: http://www.joeslist.com

-Tour Stop Three: Cherished Friends, Saturday September 12thCherished Friends' Website: www.cherishedfriends.com

-Tour Stop Four: Gigi's Dolls and Sherry's Teddy Bears, Saturday September 26thGigi's Dolls' Website: www.gigisdolls.com

The Marceline tour doll is done in a limited edition of 120 dolls and retails for $155.
45 dolls will be available at the W Club online event and 25 dolls at each additional tour stop. More details regarding the W Club online event will be released closer to the event.

Picture of the Week Award ~ June 28, 2009

Instantly recognizable to Fashion Royalty collectors, these dolls and their fashion are so-called holy grails to many. Captured together by Angel in California, the pair creates a striking reminder of the earlier days of Fashion Royalty that so many remember fondly.

Angel posted that the original Toast of Paris Dressed Doll was an elusive, much sought after doll missing from her collection. She already had the fashion and was going to have a different Veronique re-rooted and re-painted to resemble the original. Luckily a friend offered her the dressed doll and she didn't hesitate.

Congratulations to Angel for presenting a double dip of beauty in this Picture of the Week.