http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-9RoF68I4w&hd=1
Part II will be uploaded late tonight for viewing tomorrow.
11/04/2010
11/03/2010
The Centerpiece Dolls; Jason's Talk - 2010 Fashion Royalty Integrity Convention
The first centerpiece was at dinner on Thursday night. She is called Smoke Screen Dania Zarr. I thought it was Agnes as her hairstyle and makeup are very much like that of Firefly Agnes.
This doll is styled in a way that's been used often on FR dolls this past year - multi-level, multi shaped and multi-styled pieces in mixed fabrics. It's not my favorite style. I don't see any grace there. I see mix and match and cute but not classy.
The Friday afternoon luncheon saw a lovely Poppy Parker "Shadow of a Smile" as the centerpiece.
I have been told that this gown is a black (dark blue?) version of the beautiful off-white "The Look of Love" fashion currently available at dealers. [Correction: The gown is deep purple and black.] Her adorable red hair and irresistible face made this a delightful centerpiece.
Friday evening we were treated to the sight of a gorgeous doll called "Provocatrice" Anja trapped inside a cage! She is extremely sought after by collectors. I wonder why. Could it be that she looks like a version of Veronique? Hmmm....why fix it if it ain't broke?
We love Veronique and she is going to be relegated to the base of the pyramid of Fashion Royalty. More on that hint from Jason later.
Is this red fabric with black lace the same as was used on the Agnes Giftset? I don't have Agnes here anymore so I can't compare.
Saturday afternoon's W Club Luncheon saw Elyse Jolie "Dark Swan" as the FR2 centerpiece. The last time Elyse was seen was as the convention souvenir doll in 2009. She was such a gorgeous doll, so well dressed that I haven't touched a hair on her head or a thread of her fashion.
That one had the regular Fashion Royalty body. The new one has been moved to the FR2 line. She's wearing a little dress with a skirt which stands out due to a stiff crinoline. Her cropped jacket is double breasted. She comes with lace ankle socks, a brown rectangular handbag and very nice shoes which look better sans socks. All I can say is OY VEY. Did anyone actually look at this doll's ridiculous hairstyle before letting it out of the gate? She sports a long, fat braid with frizzy ends. The top of her hair is center parted with one side out of the braid that's been cut shorter and curled. Did you get that? This character went from sublime to ridiculous. There is no grace or class. How does the train case styled, poopy-brown handbag fit in here? The FR2 have Barbie length eyelashes and underarm gripper stands.
The Saturday night table centerpiece is my pick for the best doll of the lot. She is called "Smoldering" and is a dark-skinned Monogram doll. Her gown is absolutely magnificent and quite obviously designed by someone who knows how to drape fabric. It is two-tone and feels like brushed satin. Just gorgeous!!! This doll is classy and graceful and I'm so happy to have her in my collection.
I wish they would have done something with her hair besides chopping it into a short, style-less do. She definitely needs to be wigged.
Someone had started a thread on the W Club board questioning the absence of a dark-skinned doll from the Monogram line. And now we have one. I wonder if there will ever be a new Monogram sculpt.
Jason's talk on Saturday night was enigmatic, as usual. What I got from what he did say was that there was going to be a restructuring of the Fashion Royalty line. The prices would go down. Veronique will appear in that restructured line. He said they would be "growing the brand," a big marketing expression. Whatever.
He stated that there would be a return to fine-tuned details, great accessories, shoes that look like real shoes, etc. He said this last year related to the Monogram line. Why is it coming back? Where did it go? What exactly do we have now?
Alain pranced around the ballroom with a microphone to get to those who wanted to ask Jason questions.
Drawings were held for those whose winning tickets were pulled. Actually, the drawings were held behind closed doors; the winners were announced. This year the tickets had to have names on them. You couldn't just rely on the anonymous numbers which are printed on the tickets. To avoid the appearance of impropriety in the future, all drawings should be in public in front of those who spent money on chances. This is a pretty serious issue and should be addressed.
This is not to say that the staff has favorites or resentments. Ahem. It just looks bad.
More will be revealed.
 |
| Smoke Screen Dania Zarr 2010 |
 |
| Integrity Photo (Exposure Adjusted by Author) |
The Friday afternoon luncheon saw a lovely Poppy Parker "Shadow of a Smile" as the centerpiece.
 |
| Poppy Parker "Shadow of a Smile" 2010 |
 |
| Integrity Photo (Exposure Adjusted by Author) |
 |
| Integrity Photo |
Friday evening we were treated to the sight of a gorgeous doll called "Provocatrice" Anja trapped inside a cage! She is extremely sought after by collectors. I wonder why. Could it be that she looks like a version of Veronique? Hmmm....why fix it if it ain't broke?
We love Veronique and she is going to be relegated to the base of the pyramid of Fashion Royalty. More on that hint from Jason later.
Is this red fabric with black lace the same as was used on the Agnes Giftset? I don't have Agnes here anymore so I can't compare.
 |
| From Agnes Giftset 2010 |
 |
| Successful Ascension 2009 |
 |
| "Provocatrice" Anja |
 | |||
|
 |
| Elyse Jolie "Blue Blood" 2009 Convention Souvenir Doll |
 |
| Dark Swan Elise FR2 |
 |
| Dark Swan Elise FR2 |
The Saturday night table centerpiece is my pick for the best doll of the lot. She is called "Smoldering" and is a dark-skinned Monogram doll. Her gown is absolutely magnificent and quite obviously designed by someone who knows how to drape fabric. It is two-tone and feels like brushed satin. Just gorgeous!!! This doll is classy and graceful and I'm so happy to have her in my collection.
I wish they would have done something with her hair besides chopping it into a short, style-less do. She definitely needs to be wigged.
Someone had started a thread on the W Club board questioning the absence of a dark-skinned doll from the Monogram line. And now we have one. I wonder if there will ever be a new Monogram sculpt.
Jason's talk on Saturday night was enigmatic, as usual. What I got from what he did say was that there was going to be a restructuring of the Fashion Royalty line. The prices would go down. Veronique will appear in that restructured line. He said they would be "growing the brand," a big marketing expression. Whatever.
He stated that there would be a return to fine-tuned details, great accessories, shoes that look like real shoes, etc. He said this last year related to the Monogram line. Why is it coming back? Where did it go? What exactly do we have now?
Alain pranced around the ballroom with a microphone to get to those who wanted to ask Jason questions.
Drawings were held for those whose winning tickets were pulled. Actually, the drawings were held behind closed doors; the winners were announced. This year the tickets had to have names on them. You couldn't just rely on the anonymous numbers which are printed on the tickets. To avoid the appearance of impropriety in the future, all drawings should be in public in front of those who spent money on chances. This is a pretty serious issue and should be addressed.
This is not to say that the staff has favorites or resentments. Ahem. It just looks bad.
More will be revealed.
BarbieCollector.Com "The Big Reveal"
Forget about trying to browse through the newly designed site during your break. The site is crawling and is taking forever to load. I had it up once but it froze. Everyone and his mother is trying to see what the big deal is. It's no big deal at all but there is an extra 25% off on everything until midnight tonight. That's not too shabby. Here's the link and good luck.
http://www.barbiecollector.com/
http://www.barbiecollector.com/
11/02/2010
The Meal Events, the Swag and Halloween at the Convention
The food was so much better than previous years at this Hyatt that I suspect someone else is running the kitchen. The servers were solicitous and well-trained. What a turn-around! I don't remember exactly what we had at each meal but the portions were more than sufficient, the ingredients were identifiable and some of them were actually vegetables! This hotel serves great coffee. We were able to talk to eachother during the meals because there wasn't loud music playing. There was plenty of room between the tables. All in all, the dining was a pleasant experience. I liked the way the centerpieces were displayed with a Halloween theme. The cage, the big hand, the spider web with the skeleton were all very clever and fun to look at.
The find the key "What's behind door Number X" was played at each meal and some of the prizes were really great. From what I heard, people were seen opening cabinets and drawers, looking under furniture and behind panels throughout the lobby and halls of the hotel in search of these keys. It would have been fun to have hidden cameras to see this activity!
On Friday night, Sherrilyn Kenyan, in full costume, took the stage and gave a brief, humorous talk. Then she went into the lobby to sign books and chat with collectors. An impressively bound and boxed edition of one of her books was given to each attendee along with a black plastic chair with a related symbol. I am not familiar with her books but I did chat with her and she's very pleasant.
The costumes worn by guests were amazing. I couldn't believe the lengths some went to to impress. And they certainly did. I did not recognize many people because their costumes were so good. That was really fun. There was also a woman on stilts making balloon sculptures. Very Carnaval.
Bob brought Rudy down and I took him onto the dance floor. The poor thing was scared to death by the music and lights almost immediately. He started to shake. He will not be on Dancing with the Stars any time soon.
We received an generous amount of dolls and gifts at the table. This is definitely the only convention that gives away so much good stuff. The doll gifts were a complete Agnes giftset, a Poppy Parker in an adorable black A-line dress, Kesenia-a new character, and of course, the convention doll, Giselle.
"Hourglass" Kesenia is a Fashion Royalty doll with one of the Brides of Dracula faces sans fangs. I would like her better with a different mouth.
"Tears Go By" Poppy Parker is very cute. She has the popular eye screening and long flippy hair. Her outfit is perfect for her.
The Dark Romance Agnes Giftset was presented one piece at a time. We knew when we got the big empty box in our registration bag that we would be getting a set. That is so much fun. This Agnes looks like the FAO Agnes from the early W Club event. She was very popular and I think this one will be popular as well.
The convention souvenir doll, Dark Romance Giselle was a complete surprise to everyone. We knew from what Jason said that it would not be Veronique and that was sad (although Anja is a good substitute.) Is Giselle considered a Fashion Royalty doll?
I love Giselle's gown. The beaded bodice is stunning and the shredded fabric ball gown skirt is very pretty. Although Giselle is not one of my favored characters, I know that many people love her. I like her smoky eye screening and the color of her lips as well.
Other items received as gifts were the suit from the Deceptively Yours Kyori giftset (without the accessories, ) a black plastic Dark Hunters chair and a beautifully boxed Sherrilyn Kenyon book, Azone sandals and a jewelry set with shoes.
If I left anything out, please email me!
My next post will cover the centerpieces and the convention collection.
The find the key "What's behind door Number X" was played at each meal and some of the prizes were really great. From what I heard, people were seen opening cabinets and drawers, looking under furniture and behind panels throughout the lobby and halls of the hotel in search of these keys. It would have been fun to have hidden cameras to see this activity!
On Friday night, Sherrilyn Kenyan, in full costume, took the stage and gave a brief, humorous talk. Then she went into the lobby to sign books and chat with collectors. An impressively bound and boxed edition of one of her books was given to each attendee along with a black plastic chair with a related symbol. I am not familiar with her books but I did chat with her and she's very pleasant.
The costumes worn by guests were amazing. I couldn't believe the lengths some went to to impress. And they certainly did. I did not recognize many people because their costumes were so good. That was really fun. There was also a woman on stilts making balloon sculptures. Very Carnaval.
Bob brought Rudy down and I took him onto the dance floor. The poor thing was scared to death by the music and lights almost immediately. He started to shake. He will not be on Dancing with the Stars any time soon.
We received an generous amount of dolls and gifts at the table. This is definitely the only convention that gives away so much good stuff. The doll gifts were a complete Agnes giftset, a Poppy Parker in an adorable black A-line dress, Kesenia-a new character, and of course, the convention doll, Giselle.
 |
| Integrity Photo |
 |
| Integrity Photo |
 |
| Integrity Photo |
The convention souvenir doll, Dark Romance Giselle was a complete surprise to everyone. We knew from what Jason said that it would not be Veronique and that was sad (although Anja is a good substitute.) Is Giselle considered a Fashion Royalty doll?
I love Giselle's gown. The beaded bodice is stunning and the shredded fabric ball gown skirt is very pretty. Although Giselle is not one of my favored characters, I know that many people love her. I like her smoky eye screening and the color of her lips as well.
Other items received as gifts were the suit from the Deceptively Yours Kyori giftset (without the accessories, ) a black plastic Dark Hunters chair and a beautifully boxed Sherrilyn Kenyon book, Azone sandals and a jewelry set with shoes.
 |
| Integrity Photo |
If I left anything out, please email me!
My next post will cover the centerpieces and the convention collection.
11/01/2010
The Day After Pittsburgh and My Workshop Experience
The blog post title sounds like a disaster movie title. It is somewhat appropriate as I haven't even gone near my suitcases except to extract my toothbrush and a doll that was packed. My clothes may remain packed for a week. I'm not kidding. It wasn't that long ago that I finished unpacking from the Nashville event in August.
This morning I've been busy doing sales transactions. I think I may have nipped a scam in the bud. There were two confusing transactions from China with multiple addresses and I couldn't figure out who was who. Last night I refunded one of the payments and today I refunded the other. I feel relieved. I'm not going to name names but be careful if the name on the transaction doesn't match the Paypal name and address...especially if they don't tell you up front so you have time to check. That's a big red flag!
Right now I'm uploading two videos I shot during the dance party on Friday night. You will love them!
Quite by accident, one of the videos has the band performing Jump On It which is the same song I shot two years ago and which is up there to see.
I will of course post links when the uploads are complete.
Update on Video upload - it failed. The thing took more than three hours and then failed. UGH. If anyone knows how to upload a 5 minute recording (.mov) please let me know. I know how to use a camera but this file thing has me stumped.
I know you are all waiting for pictures and reviews. I am dying to get to that. What I've decided to do is to post all my pictures from the entire event at one link. Most of my pictures identify the people shown. If you see yourself or someone's picture and there is no identification, email me with the info. Try to identify the picture by number or grab it and send it to me with the info. I'm confused enough for all of us.
Picture link will be up later. Hang in there peeps.
----------
I signed up for 5 workshops: Rob's Poppy head hair styling, the Design-a-Doll workshop, Alain's fireplace workshop, Steven Fraser's art workshop and Vaughn's out of the box workshop.
Rob was supremely well prepared with a print out and finished samples. He demonstrated carefully. Most of us watched as some worked along with him. There were enough supplies to create the hairstyle on the optional Poppy head which was sold for $25. to those signed up. The Poppy body to match was $25. in the store but $30 before class. Huh? There were loads of them in the store right up to the end of the convention. The heads, however, were only one to a customer. I can't believe the prices that the heads are fetching. It's like what happened with the Madra head from the Gene convention.
The Design A Doll room was arranged like a buffet. When you entered you picked up your nude dolls. There were four available: one AA, one cocoa colored, two white. I chose the darker skinned dolls as I thought they were the prettiest.
Then you could choose two wigs for each doll. There was a good selection of wigs.
Arriving at the clothing selection area was a disappointment. There were a bunch of cheap-looking skirts that could be paired with cute blouses. There were two different colors of hoodies but no jeans to go with them. The clothes were very crappy as were the two optional clothing packs. I've seen much better at lower prices in Fashion Fever items. There were optional wig packs which were nice. I was told that other collectors weren't able to get them because they ran out. I bought one extra nude, rooted doll for $25. When I saw a doll that someone had put together earlier in the day, I couldn't believe the clothes she had gotten. I was very disappointed that the choices varied so much. It was definitely a WTF moment. I asked David Buttry about it later on and he explained that they had to hold back items for other collectors. What am I, chicken soup? What about those of us who had that segment of time? I would never sign up again to do this because it's not fair. David also told me that there were some clothes in the store I could buy. Really? The two crappy clothing packs and the cheap stuff is what was there. The good stuff was for other collectors apparently.
Matt Sutton was available to help put wigs on for us. He combed out the two Afro wigs I chose. That was a nice touch.
Here are the two dolls I put together in the stuff I could scrounge up. The shrug on one of the dolls is from an extra pack. The jeans, handbag and brown shoes also were in that pack with the patterned blouse. They would have been cute in 60's dresses with those Afros.
I'm sure if David Buttry had his way, there would have been enough of the nice stuff for everyone. It's too bad that didn't happen.
Steven Fraser's class was very relaxing and laid back. He talked about how anything could be art. Some of us did little paintings or used colored pencils to draw. We were given a package of die cut paper frames that are often used in scrapbooking.
Alain Tremblay and Jakki Peters held a session in which Alain displayed a stained glass mantel and electrified fire screen that could be ordered for $80 plus shipping. Jakki talked about re-purposing plastic items and remodeling styrofoam for diorama purposes. We were given a set of sturdy templates for building our own mantels from foam board.
The most interesting session was the one with Vaughn. There was an optional doll to purchase which really had nothing at all to do with the session. Vaughn hinted that she was inspired by Lady Gaga. I didn't see it but many did. What do I know?
We got to ask him questions about everything from design to creation to shipping to naming and more.
He is a really a down-to-earth, open man who comes across very honest and sincere.
There's no dog-and-pony show there. He talked about going back and forth to the factory in China to train the workers - over and over again. He talked about how things are interpreted differently and may cause production problems. It was a great session and it made me see certain things in a different light.
Apparently Vaughn was aware of my dislike for unbalanced shoes. They're reading the blog. That's a good thing for the most part, but I do catch hostility. An attitude change from some of the Integrity people was quite obvious to me. Maybe I don't spend enough money buying Integrity products. Hmmmm.
This morning I've been busy doing sales transactions. I think I may have nipped a scam in the bud. There were two confusing transactions from China with multiple addresses and I couldn't figure out who was who. Last night I refunded one of the payments and today I refunded the other. I feel relieved. I'm not going to name names but be careful if the name on the transaction doesn't match the Paypal name and address...especially if they don't tell you up front so you have time to check. That's a big red flag!
Right now I'm uploading two videos I shot during the dance party on Friday night. You will love them!
Quite by accident, one of the videos has the band performing Jump On It which is the same song I shot two years ago and which is up there to see.
I will of course post links when the uploads are complete.
Update on Video upload - it failed. The thing took more than three hours and then failed. UGH. If anyone knows how to upload a 5 minute recording (.mov) please let me know. I know how to use a camera but this file thing has me stumped.
I know you are all waiting for pictures and reviews. I am dying to get to that. What I've decided to do is to post all my pictures from the entire event at one link. Most of my pictures identify the people shown. If you see yourself or someone's picture and there is no identification, email me with the info. Try to identify the picture by number or grab it and send it to me with the info. I'm confused enough for all of us.
Picture link will be up later. Hang in there peeps.
----------
I signed up for 5 workshops: Rob's Poppy head hair styling, the Design-a-Doll workshop, Alain's fireplace workshop, Steven Fraser's art workshop and Vaughn's out of the box workshop.
Rob was supremely well prepared with a print out and finished samples. He demonstrated carefully. Most of us watched as some worked along with him. There were enough supplies to create the hairstyle on the optional Poppy head which was sold for $25. to those signed up. The Poppy body to match was $25. in the store but $30 before class. Huh? There were loads of them in the store right up to the end of the convention. The heads, however, were only one to a customer. I can't believe the prices that the heads are fetching. It's like what happened with the Madra head from the Gene convention.
The Design A Doll room was arranged like a buffet. When you entered you picked up your nude dolls. There were four available: one AA, one cocoa colored, two white. I chose the darker skinned dolls as I thought they were the prettiest.
Then you could choose two wigs for each doll. There was a good selection of wigs.
Arriving at the clothing selection area was a disappointment. There were a bunch of cheap-looking skirts that could be paired with cute blouses. There were two different colors of hoodies but no jeans to go with them. The clothes were very crappy as were the two optional clothing packs. I've seen much better at lower prices in Fashion Fever items. There were optional wig packs which were nice. I was told that other collectors weren't able to get them because they ran out. I bought one extra nude, rooted doll for $25. When I saw a doll that someone had put together earlier in the day, I couldn't believe the clothes she had gotten. I was very disappointed that the choices varied so much. It was definitely a WTF moment. I asked David Buttry about it later on and he explained that they had to hold back items for other collectors. What am I, chicken soup? What about those of us who had that segment of time? I would never sign up again to do this because it's not fair. David also told me that there were some clothes in the store I could buy. Really? The two crappy clothing packs and the cheap stuff is what was there. The good stuff was for other collectors apparently.
Matt Sutton was available to help put wigs on for us. He combed out the two Afro wigs I chose. That was a nice touch.
I'm sure if David Buttry had his way, there would have been enough of the nice stuff for everyone. It's too bad that didn't happen.
Steven Fraser's class was very relaxing and laid back. He talked about how anything could be art. Some of us did little paintings or used colored pencils to draw. We were given a package of die cut paper frames that are often used in scrapbooking.
Alain Tremblay and Jakki Peters held a session in which Alain displayed a stained glass mantel and electrified fire screen that could be ordered for $80 plus shipping. Jakki talked about re-purposing plastic items and remodeling styrofoam for diorama purposes. We were given a set of sturdy templates for building our own mantels from foam board.
The most interesting session was the one with Vaughn. There was an optional doll to purchase which really had nothing at all to do with the session. Vaughn hinted that she was inspired by Lady Gaga. I didn't see it but many did. What do I know?
We got to ask him questions about everything from design to creation to shipping to naming and more.
He is a really a down-to-earth, open man who comes across very honest and sincere.
There's no dog-and-pony show there. He talked about going back and forth to the factory in China to train the workers - over and over again. He talked about how things are interpreted differently and may cause production problems. It was a great session and it made me see certain things in a different light.
Apparently Vaughn was aware of my dislike for unbalanced shoes. They're reading the blog. That's a good thing for the most part, but I do catch hostility. An attitude change from some of the Integrity people was quite obvious to me. Maybe I don't spend enough money buying Integrity products. Hmmmm.
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