It's Alive aka Contains Limited Edition Mold

No, I'm not talking about Frankenstein's monster tonight but I do feel as if I've been reading a scary book.
I may be the last to know but there's mold in them there hills and on some of the Real Estate Agnes dolls.
The dolls may have been boxed with damp hair. No one is saying exactly but the pictures and descriptions of the location of the mold growth leads to that conclusion. Most of the mold is on the back of the jacket at the seams and under the arms. This Aggie has longish hair and if it were damp, that would be a likely place for mold to grow. And it's not just one person's doll. It's a bunch of them.
Here is a copy of the response someone posted on a doll board. I hope I don't get arrested by the doll police for posting this here. It does contain useful information which should be made available widely.
____________
“Thank you for your email and we are sorry to hear about the issue you are having with Agnes’ jacket.
Remember that all of our dolls spend several weeks on a boat before reaching their final destination and humidity levels vary each time depending on the weather. With this said, we do incorporate the little silica gel packs in all of our products to control the humidity levels, but sometimes it’s not enough. The mold issue can be solved pretty easily however. May I suggest that you please try to soak Agnes’ jacket in cold water, adding 1/4 cup of white vinegar and a small amount of dishwashing detergent, soak for 20-30 minutes, rinse thoroughly and let it air dry flat overnight? (Make sure not to wring the water out of the jacket and let it dry flat on a white towel so it doesn’t get deformed). If this doesn’t work, please contact us again and we’ll see to it that you are sent a replacement jacket, but we would like to ask for your collaboration in this matter as this issue, although a sad inconvenience, is fixable. Also, to make sure that no mold remains, please leave your doll’s box open to air it out for a few days to eliminate all traces of humidity.
As for the doll, please try the vinegar and water solution and see if this removes the spots.
Please let me know how it goes and thank you again for your collaboration, everyone at Integrity appreciates it.”
Regards,
________

You bet they appreciate it. The letter minimizes the problem. No one wants a $200. doll that has to be washed because mold is present. Oh, and thank you for the lesson on weather and humidity levels. "Sometimes it's not enough"? No shit, Sherlock.

Anyway, I kind of feel sorry for Integrity Toys. It's like someone has it in for them. One problem after another coming out of the factories, i.e. over-processed hair, ill-fitting shoes, stained bodies, cracked bodies, nuts and bolts....endless problems. Isn't anyone looking out for them over there in China regarding quality control? There's a missing link somewhere.

In a very short period of time Integrity Toys has amassed a large, fanatically devoted market of which I am a part. Did it happen too fast? Their main talent, Jason Wu, is probably way more occupied with his human fashion business, and rightly so. He deserves to soar to whatever heights he can. But I miss the consistently wonderful dolls.

Well kiddies, nothing lasts forever. Even resin dolls have their issues. I had a photography professor who used to say, "If you want archival, work in stone." Where is Michelangelo these days?

Credit to James for second half of title of this post.

Picture of the Week ~ April 19, 2010 ~ Cliff Chan

Cliff Chan from Hong Kong is the featured doll collector/photographer this week. His photograph of Tonner's Green Lantern character aka Hal Jordan, reached out and grabbed me.
Not knowing much about this fictional character, I went to Wikipedia for some background information. The power "ring is one of the most powerful weapons in the universe and can be very dangerous. It gives the user great control over the physical world as long as the wielder has sufficient willpower and strength to wield it." I also learned that there have been several Green Lanterns. Who knew? Superman was my idol.
Anyway...Cliff used a Canon EOS 450D with a 18-55MM lens in natural light. This one was taken in the early morning. He claims to be a clumsy photographer with shaky hands and declares that he ought to remember to use his macro option and a tripod.
I think this photo is terrific. It makes me want to see more.

I love the focus on the ring and fist with the soft character in the background. One needs to use a wide open lens thereby creating a shallow depth of field for this type of effect.

If you would like to see more of Cliff's collection and read about his doll collecting experience, here is a link to his blog entitled Fashion Doll Empire. You will find more pictures of this doll as well as many other dolls.

Congratulations, Cliff, on the Picture of the Week Award.

Private Label Eugenia at VenusSecret in Taiwan

Those lucky (?) enough to purchase $2000 worth of lingerie from VENUS SECRET in Taiwan will get a Fashion Royalty doll with the Eugenia sculpt. Nice! How many of you doll collectors spend $2000. on lingerie? Now if I could get designer lingerie for buying about $2000 worth of dolls, I'd be pretty happy.

The box has Jason Wu's name on it. I can't read the language but I can sure see the pretty doll. These images are all from the website of the store.

How many will you buy?

The Show & Sell Site Re-Opens

Thanks to Rae, Linda Malarkey and her husband Steve at the Doll Page, the new Show and Sell site is up and running. Several weeks ago the program crashed and burned with everyone's posts lost in cyberspace. They launched a new program and now there are many sales posts. They do this completely on their own and don't ask anyone for anything! I've done several transactions with Rae and she is just delightful to deal with.
There are so many wonderful people in the doll world that when a thief comes along and steals either dolls or money from collectors it's disheartening. Getting scammed by one of these pieces of shit can happen to pretty much anyone who is not vigilant about their shopping and selling practices.
They change names and addresses and use actual collectors' names to make themselves look respectable.
Be careful.
My sale posts: http://www.thedollpage.com/ads/searchresults.php?owner=46

Regal Estate Agnes Von Weiss From Oz

I may have mentioned several times previously that Agnes is not a favorite sculpt of mine. I've tried them all but have never been able to warm up to any version except Firefly, also from Oz.
This is the most beautiful Agnes yet. She comes dressed in an elegant and conservative-looking suit of black and beige. I have removed her patterned black tights which, in my opinion, interfered with the delicacy of the fashion and did not fit well in the shoes.

I was worried about removing the hair net but her hair is done well and isn't over processed or stiff.

The jewelry is a twisty cluster of blue/black beads. Earrings are gold colored metal with a bluish rhinestone. I love the clear vinyl shoes and they definitely did not fit well over the tights.

Remove the jacket and a beautiful little black dress changes everything. She goes from day to night. Gorgeous!

Agnes Regal Estate was $195. There was no charge for shipping due to the W Club free shipping coupon. She was a little pricey for a doll with few accessories and a basic outfit but she was a convention souvenir and I definitely have a place for her in my collection.

Picture of the Week Award ~ April 10, 2010

Remember the name Rebecca Berry because you will be seeing more of her photography in the future. She posts most often on the BFC, In The Pink and on Doll Divas. I discovered this photo on the W Club and I'm glad I did.

[Picture source was removed by photographer.]

The doll is a new Fashion Royalty doll from Jason Wu from his Monogram line and is called "Disclosure."
She is dressed in the outfit originally from Valia "Adore." Isn't she gorgeous? Seriously!

I asked Rebecca to describe her photography set up and camera. Here are her responses:

"The photo was taken in a photo tent with a graduated blue background, (it goes from white to dark blue).
I like to take photos in natural light if I can but I live in the Pacific Northwest so good quality natural light is hard to find from November to July. I use a three light system most of the time - one on either side and one light on top. I show some behind the scenes of my setup on my website http://thinkpink1265.spaces.live.com/.
I am currently using a Canon 40D and these photos were taken with a 28-135mm lens."

"I consider myself a young an inexperienced student when it comes to photography and I have soooo much to learn. I am inspired every day by the photos I see on the doll board and flickr and especially on your doll blog. I love the photos you post."  {Ooooo....thank you, Rebecca.}

"My suggestion to fellow collectors is to have fun, photograph what you love and don't forget to play!"


Rebecca is blessed with a 10-year-old daughter with whom she spends time discussing fashion photo shoots. She feels inspired by the amount of creativity on the doll boards and is in awe over the supportive and kind natures of fellow collectors.


Readers, you must visit her links to see her work and her collection. You will be in awe! 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/42498300@N07/

Congratulations, Rebecca, on the Picture of the Week Award!