Pretty Woman ~ Not So Pretty Doll

Soon-to-be Princess of Wales, Catherine Middleton, has been poorly rendered as a doll. It is being sold in London for 35 British Pounds. Sad.

I'm sure it's not the last or the worst.

Diorama 101: How to Make 1/6 Scale Dioramas by Nina

Are your dolls looking for something to read?

This real-looking bookcase library is scaled for 11-13 inch dolls. If you would like to learn how it was created, go to Nina's website, to a post entitled Dioramas 101 to find out.

Nina covers topics such as One Wall Dioramas, Walls, Floors, Dos and Don'ts.  Although directed at 1/6 scale collectors, all the techniques can be adapted to other scales.

Fashion Doll Quarterly: Summer 2011 "Fantasy"

The latest issue of FDQ is shipping now. While waiting for your copy, check out this wonderful and interesting video of Robert being interviewed by editor, Pat Henry.
The Fantasy issue is multi fashion doll oriented and features interviews, photographic essays, doll and artist information and so much more.  Pat's stunning photography graces the two distinctive covers which are available on this issue.
My own contribution on the hats of Cisca Durieux is included.

Click on the magazine cover below to see the Robert Tonner interview. 

Progress with Ekaterina and Hand

Conditioning and trimming helped tame Ekaterina's hair. A little gel added texture and control. I am happy with her hair now.  I never loved Dreamscape's gown but it was hanging out and E needed clothes. It's too tight in the bust so I basted it closed. It is cute on her.

Pokey and Gumby snuck in there when I wasn't looking.

Re: the broken FR2 hand stem. I was wondering if the bust part of the torso could be pulled off of the rest of the body like Tonner bodies. Yes, they can.

I used a small diameter drill to open up the clog.

The next step is making the pin on the replacement hand smaller so it will fit inside properly. Stay tuned.

This is not turning out well.

Today I worked on Dasha's hair and it finally looked nice. I put on her jewelry and shoes all the while handling her extremely carefully. In order to put on her solid bracelet, her hand must be removed. I pulled gently on the left hand and it came out. Unfortunately the plug end stayed inside the forearm with nothing protruding. 
This has gone beyond frustrating.
I wonder if I can drill it out. I have a Dremel and fine jewelers bits. If I can drill the pin to make it slimmer, I might be able to remove it and use one of her replacement hands. So now I will have to undress her in order to wrap her for protection. Not fun.

Renegade Dasha Needs a New Hair Stylist and So Does Integrity Toys

She looked gorgeous when I opened the box. Renegade is stunning in her red fashion. Her screening is gorgeous. Her hair color is a blend of light blondes. I love the color. But look at the back. WTF?

What is this?

I was so hoping I would love everything about this doll. The pony tail hair is divided into two sections. One is rolled under and ends are caught up in the hair that wraps around the ponytail. Did you get that?
Who thought up this stupid hairstyle?  It does not work and it looks ridiculous. Someone at IT had to approve it. The prototype was different but I never examined the back.
I will fix it by taking the end of the curled clump out and boiling it straight. I'm quite certain that I will have to take it all out. It ruins the joy of a new doll. That's two ruined dolls because of the hair. I am still waiting for my Flawless Elise replacement head.

Don't turn around.

 Maybe that's why she has side glancing eyes.

I Love How You Love Me — Poppy Parker Gift Set

A great benefit of being a shipping buddy to a collector who lets me debox to lower the weight of their shipment is that I get to play and photograph their goodies.
"I Love How You Love Me" is a Dolls Magazine exclusive of only 300 pieces and the retail price was $150. There was a huge brouhaha on the day half of these items went up for order as the link crashed and an alternate link was put up. Many who would have ordered did not know of the alternate link and it caused a great deal of angst. It's my opinion that this is part of the reason that the secondary market rise in price of this gift set.
This season's Poppy Parker fashions do not appear to have the same styling as prior years. Although this set is primarily white, the clothes on the rest of the season's Poppy's and Darla are darker and more sophisticated. Something is changing.

 She comes wearing a white a-line dress that has lovely bodice detailing with a pleated back and the omnipresent bow. This set has a total of eight bows. I may have missed one or two.
The coat is a different fabric from the dress. It is a thin brocade with silver thread running throughout. The jumper is simple and goes over a frilly white blouse. Her pajamas are a smooth fabric, perhaps a polished cotton, with ruffled lace and ribbons and matching panties. The accessories consist of 3-fingered gloves, clutch bag, hair bow, red flats, white low-heeled shoes, fuzzy slippers, lace pantyhose, regular pantyhose, pearl stud earrings and a hat pin.

The best pictures I've seen of this doll show her hair restyled. As it comes it is styled into 3 hard rolls without butter.

Out of The Box: Ekaterina and Roger Sterling

Buying Ekaterina was a mistake. It was the red hair and excellent promotional photos that threw me. I love my redhaired Silkies. I did see her in another fashion last week and she will be redressed.
I knew it the minute I opened the box that her hair was going to be a problem. It may look good in the picture because I used Photoshop to push pixels around.  She has more hair than my dog and it's a lot harder to comb.
The hat was sewn on in a strange way so that removing it also removed the stitches that were holding back part of her hair. Seen here, I have replaced the hat towards the back of her head and used a pin to hold it on. When I have an hour and nothing else to do ha she needs a trim.

I am planning to sell off her fashion as it looks like and reminds me too much of Je Ne Sais Quoi seen below.

Here are her boots which aren't bad but I could definitely live without. I think they'd look better without the golden tassles.

How many Silkstones came with this exact bracelet or a variation? Tiring. 

No one forced me to buy her and in a weak and needy moment I deboxed. There is a pleasure in deboxing: untying ribbons, snipping threads, lifting the freed doll from her cardboard prison. Ahhhh.
The same needy time period saw Roger Sterling come out.
I bought him because the suit looked really good and because I have no other Silkstone male dolls. His suit is excellent! I was impressed.
If he looks weird in this photo it's because of the awkward bend in his arm. They should have given him straight arms.

If I saw a man whose shirt collar was too short to come into contact with his chest when he was wearing a tie, I'd say he wasn't well groomed. This is a problem. I'm thinking (when I have time) to use a needle and thread to create the look of a tiebar to hold the points of the collar down. It would make a huge difference. That neck joint is awful.

 There are several terrific details like Roger's initials on his shirt sleeve. The suit is well constructed with tiny faux buttons to camouflage the fact that the closure is with snaps. Very well done!

 The hat is a squishy plastic that fits well and stays on.

The stand he comes with is a waist gripper type which must be used under his jacket.  He does stand on his own but I wouldn't leave him for long without support.