What are these dolls up to and what is the dog doing?

Caption this!

Pictures of Eshe

As previously posted, Eshe is the latest and an exclusive Jamieshow doll. Here are four pictures of note which I saw on Prego earlier this evening.

George Gonzales

Liane

Liane

Johanna

Goddess of the Galaxy Barbie Doll

Ready to be released on June 15, 2011, Goddess of the Galaxy Barbie Doll was designed by Bill Greening for Mattel.  She is a Gold Label BC Fan Club Exclusive.

Get ready to go gaga for Goddess of the Galaxy Barbie doll, with out of the world, over the top glamour courtesy of designer Bill Greening. This bold beauty wears a molded metallic corset embellished with fuchsia "jewels" above a layered underskirt of shimmering fabric, a dramatic pinstripe cape, and silvery forearm and leg cuffs. Silvery rings with "jeweled" accents orbit an up-do with twisted platinum braids, and her dramatic face paint features ultra long, rooted, feathered lashes. She stands strong in thigh-high platform boots, with a look that says she's here to conquer the universe in fabulous fierce fashion!

 Spectacular fashion! I would love to see this in person. The only thing I don't like about her is the cheek screening.

Are you going to order her?

Hershey's Hommes

While on vacation this past week, I still browsed my favorite sites and came across these wonderful pictures of Zanifa Payne's (aka Hershey) Homme dolls.

I'd never seen so many Homme dolls in one collection and I was intrigued so I sent a few questions to Hershey.
Here is the text of her reply:

Apart from the twenty-two and counting Fashion Royalty Hommes, my collection also includes over one hundred Fashion Royalty female dolls, close to a thousand Barbies, countless miniatures, pets, vehicles, Barbie play sets, clothes, jewelry and numerous Re-ment sets. Basically the list is endless and all the items I collect are in 1/6 scale (Playscale). The male Fashion Royalty dolls are one of the smallest sections of the group, and I mainly collect them to be coupled off with my favorite female Fashion Royalty ladies, as an accessory of sorts. They are on display all the time in one of my many dioramas, such as the bar, cafe or barber shop. Collecting dolls began when I started to build 1/6 dioramas, and this dates back over 10 years.

My website www.lifecirclez.net (offline while I undergo updates) was started in 2003 and was created to facilitate the many photo stories that flooded my mind. The most notable being the Breast Cancer Awareness Convention and the Hurricane Preparedness story. Some of my past dioramas can be found on my Flickr photo stream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/32312740@N06/

My ultimate goal is to build a city for my dolls with dioramas representing places such as a post office, supermarket, theater, dentist office and many more, possibly that room will become a museum of sorts.  This life of collecting, writing stories and playing with dolls will probably continue throughout my life, as it continues to bring me joy and permits an outlet for my daughter and I to enjoy together. 

Zanifa suggested another of her pictures to post here:

The fact that the dolls are dressed mostly in black creates a unified and powerful impact on the viewer. What a fun photo.

I highly recommend her flickr which you can find under the name,  citycirclez's photostream.

It's so amazing what people do with their dolls.

How to Set Your Doll's Bangs by Kathy at RestoreDoll.com

Kathy from RestoreDoll.com sent out this newsletter to share with all:

To start off, I don’t cut the bangs or the hair until I set the hair in place. Here is how I do it. I set the bangs before I curl the hair. In getting ready for the hot water set or perm, boil the water on the stove and have a small bowl large enough to stick the dolls head in it. When doing just the bangs, you only have to get that part wet. After dividing the hair, I comb it into straight pieces that I can keep in place with netting and a tie. I use coated wire ties that won’t dye onto the doll or hair. I do not use rubber bands because they crease the hair and are hard to get off. Make sure the netting is a light or better yet white color. You can also use old panty hose. Test the netting in hot water to make sure the color does not Run. I highly suggest white. Pull the bangs down over the face. Secure the netting over the bangs and part and secure it with the wire tie.

You can secure the wire tie around the neck or shoulders. Put the boiling water into the bowl and make it deep enough for the bangs and part to be submerged.  Stick the head into the water and leave for several minutes.

Take the head out and blot it dry with a clean towel.  You can now take off the netting and the bangs should be set.

Everyone is crazy about the new colors. Please send some pictures so I can use them on my website. If you haven’t seen them go to my homepage of the catalog, here is the link

http://stores.restoredoll.com/StoreFront.bok

We are still having our 30% off everything in the store.

Interview With Mel Odom

Mel Odom stands before some of his Gene Marshall dolls at FAO Schwarz on 2/14/07

Interview With Mel Odom

The internet has provided us with a chance to have a virtual interview with the talented and handsome Mel Odom, creator of the Gene Marshall line of dolls. For those who are not familiar with this line, it was retired one year ago and went out with a bang! I was lucky enough to attend the final convention celebrating the life, times and friends of this gorgeous doll. 

Although I came to appreciate Gene and to meet Mel long after they became popular, the more I know the more respect I have for his creativity and the amazing dolls he created.  Ashton-Drake, the first company to produce the line came through with an enormous amount of fashions and an extraordinary selection of furniture and accessories which are, to this day, cherished by collectors. Integrity Toys/Jason Wu, the final producers of the line, manufactured gorgeous fashions with the most amazing shoes, jewelry and other tiny details. It’s almost hard to believe that doll clothing could be so beautiful and so finely made.

Most importantly, Mel is known by all to be a kind and humble man. I am honored to have been granted this opportunity.

For this virtual interview, I have asked collectors to submit their questions.
_____________________________

—It’s been a year since Gene’s retirement. What has she been up to? Does she see Madra and Trent on a regular basis or have they all gone their separate ways?

A- I always figured Gene would move to Italy and live a very private life with occasional forays back into the spotlight.  I think she would have always considered Hollywood her hometown though, and certainly gone back for visits and her friends.  I think her friendship with Ivy would have always been there, perhaps with Ivy spending time with her in Italy.

—Do your doll characters ever populate your dreams?

A- It’s strange, you’d think they would, but no.  I think I spent so much ‘real’ time with them that they’re exhausted as a subject for my subconscious.  I wish they would.

—Are there characters you’ve imagined who never made it into the vinyl life? Which one(s) would you like to have seen produced? Would there have been another male?

A- I would have loved to create a Cora Harper doll.  She was the gossip columnist in my book.  I thought she was such an endearing character but her proportions (short/round) made her an unlikely character for doll-world success.  We tend to like our girls thin and pretty.  I wanted to do a doll of Eric Von Sternberg as well, he was pretty dashing and we could have used the same body as Trent.  He wore a monocle and would have been very fun to design.

—Do you miss the designing, the production and the unveiling of a new Gene? Do you miss the fans, doll shop shows and conventions?  Or was it easy to let go of?

I still see clothes in movies or magazines and think ‘That would be great for Gene or someone’ so I do miss having a place to go with that impulse.  The research was always fun.  The business part of it is pretty stressful so I can’t say I miss the unveiling.  I was always on pins and needles when that was going on. I do miss the collectors and talking with them about dolls or their lives, that part was a pleasant surprise for me.  My illustration career life was very solitary compared with the public person I became for Gene.  That person was my father’s personality kicking in and allowing to me to be at ease by not thinking of the people as a crowd but as individuals.
 I don’t find much of anything easy to let go of, but I did feel it was the right time and the right thing to do.  Trust me, I’d thought about it long and hard before I decided.  I’ve had no regrets, let’s put it that way.


—Did you ever consider how high Gene's star would shine when you first thought of producing a doll? Did you think your creation would gain world wide fame, spanning several decades and many different roles?

A- I always thought she’d be a success.  That’s the only way I could excuse the years of work that went into creating her.  I really thought she’d change things, and she did.  She was created by an artist expressing something really personal, and I think the people got that.  I was very much an open book about how much Gene mattered to me.  That was her blessing and her curse.  People would say negative things about ‘product’ and I’d react (inside) personally. That’s an unusual thing to deal with in business.

—If there were to be another Gene would she be as an ultra-limited resin or porcelain doll possibly hand-painted by yourself? (The person who submitted this question admits that this is his wish.)

A- No, I think she’s perfect in the material she’s in.  As a boomer baby, I LOVE plastic toys, some of my favorite toys of all time were plastic.  My experience with resin is limited but resin doesn’t really thrill me, it’s seems brittle, and I really don’t like porcelain.  Porcelain for modern dolls is just sort of cynical.  It’s making something artificially precious when the original material is actually better, more durable and even prettier.  As for painting the faces, I would never be able to paint them to my satisfaction.  I’m not good at painting little faces, too clumsy.  I always drew the faces for the factory.  That I can do.

—Is there ANY interest on your part in creating another Diva who will take our breath away?
Have you been approached by any manufacturers?

A- I’m working on a new doll now, but I’m not sure she’s a diva.  She’s not that character.  I’ve done the diva thing, I think better than anybody.  Madra was certainly a diva.  She was probably the most fun to design for, because she was such an over-the-top character.  Nothing was ever too outrageous for her.  She was also really beautiful, which gave her some power with the outrageousness.

I’ve been approached about bringing Gene back but didn’t like the picture I had in my mind of how she’d look.  They were planning on a different material and style of body.  Gene’s body is almost as recognizable as her face and I think she was perfect just as she happened.  I would love for a manufacturer to approach me.  I’d show them my new thing.


—Will  you ever write a tell-all book about your time in the doll biz?

A- Well, I hope I’m going to still be in the doll business so I don’t think I’ll be writing any tell-all soon. LOL   And really, I’m not sure there’s a story there, or maybe it’s just a very personal story.  Early on Gene helped me go through some things I might not have been able to if I hadn’t been so preoccupied with a project I truly loved.  She came from the heart.

—Do you have interest in having a coffee table book with your many beautiful illustrations, many of which inspired the Gene doll?

A- I would love to do a gorgeous big book on Gene.  Trust me, I have a LOT of images for a book like that, dating back to the original drawings.  I kept a scrapbook the first year or so before I got so busy I didn’t have time for the scrapbook. LOL.  I think it’ll happen in time.

—How do you feel about dolls yellowing over time? 

A- Well, nobody wants that to happen, but the deal with vinyl is certain chemicals that are used to help to keep it flexible.  They’re mixed in with the materials that make up the color and texture.  The materials are mixed by humans and as a result vary.  And you don’t know till sometimes years later that there’s a problem.  It’s a drag, but a constant possibility in manufacturing.

—Is it true that there was a "Smiling Gene" sculpt?

A-Yes.

—What Genes do you currently have on display in your home?

A- I play with Plum Role the most, she’s always out.  And my ‘Mel/Trent’ is standing around.  I take different dolls out and play with them for a while or look at them, and then put them away again.  I live in an apartment in New York rather than a house with a doll room.  My doll room is my studio.  And these dolls standing around in my studio kind of oversee my new projects, and give me examples of what is possible.  I love my dolls, I think they’re truly wonderful, and treasure having been the one who got the inspiration to create them.  They’re my children in a (crazy) way.   I have lots of antique dolls in my studio too.  And I always think of them as the grandparents to my dolls, in the lineage of fashion dolls.  As you can tell, I love dolls and fine them profound and moving. 

—Are there questions you believe should have been asked? What are they?

A- I think you’ve covered it!  Thank you for this opportunity.

__________________

I want to thank Mel for his time and thoughtful answers.

Thanks, too, to other collectors who sent in questions: Becky Moar aka Becky in Upstate, Mary Dessert aka Mary in CT,  PrncssPJ, Ernesto Padro-Campos, Amanda Turnock, Carolyn Tattersall Teachman, Steven Casey, Linda Kriegbaum.

If you didn't get to ask a question, you can put it in the comments section and Mel might answer.