REVIEW: The New Articulated Silkstone "Basic Black"

Basic Black is basic as they come and they left out the panties!

The quality of the dress fabric is fair to middling—the type that leaves little pieces of lint on the doll. It's a cute dress and it closes with snaps. I could not remove her boots without having to cut the back part open. I could have warmed them up but I was frustrated and I have better boots for this doll.

Her high pony-tail styled hair is neatly and nicely done and her face painting is carefully but plainly applied.  She looks a lot less sophisticated and somewhat younger than prior Silkstones.

 UPDATE: Mattel's Promo Photo modifies the true doll by changing the elbow and knee joints and making the pony tail perfect. I just read the BC.Com forum and the complaints are the same and worse than mine and it's really a fiasco. I had such high hopes!

Mattel needs to rethink the finishing of the surface areas, the appearance of the elbow joints and the too-youthful appearance of her face. And...she needs earring holes.

If you enlarge several of my photos and look at the seams, you will see how poorly done they are. There are strange protrusions from the elbows. I am concerned about the knee joints as well as they are very stiff and I don't really trust bending them all the way.

On the other hand, she poses very well.

Here she is compared to the original Silkstone body front and back. She is slightly lighter than the original.

I didn't have a problem with redressing in any way. Everything fits perfectly.

The price was very good. On BC.Com, she retailed for $40. I used my $20 quarterly coupon and got her for $20. Dealers are offering her for about $49. I don't think she's worth a whole lot more.  I'll venture to guess that future issues will cost more. They will have to appear to be worth it to get my money.

13" Agatha Primrose from Tonner Doll

New Agatha Primrose Line

Here is the introductory paragraph about Agatha Primrose from the Tonner website:

From the artistic to the technological, from fashion to fiction to science, Agatha Primrose loves the experiences that her life brings. Whether obsessing over Dr. Who’s TARDIS, Hermione’s Time Turner or Doc’s DeLorean, figuring out the recipe for Katniss’ District Four bread, and of course, trying to find a believable female character for her gaming fixation, Agatha is on a fact-finding mission and it’s all for her personal knowledge. You’ll find her wearing the perfect handmade costume at Comic-Con, testing the latest gadgets at the tech store and nose deep in books with places to which she hopes to travel.

 She comes across as a more articulated young Marley who is on the nerdy side.  I do not care for the open mouth. She's been given a bust and fashion feet but wears very child-like clothing.  I guess I'm trying to figure out how old she is.

I love the outfit but something is off here. She's has a gaming fixation? Seriously?

So I like the doll and her outfits but the back story sucks.

Remember this Marley? I loved her hair and face and dress. How does the new one compare?

Another similar looking Marley.

It's all a little too obvious.

An outfit that would have been improved if the doll had flat feet, tighter pants and tall boots.

The link to Tonner's Agatha Primrose dolls:
http://www.tonnerdoll.com/tonner/fashion-dolls/agatha-primrose
If you click on the blonde basic, it says "sold out."  I believe it's just not in stock yet.

Dasha and Elise Model R&D Exclusive Fashions

Photo by Kha Hoang

Last year Rudi Teruel, of R&D Dolls, offered limited editions of fashions from Kha Hoang and FuZin. These are the last two that I purchased and they are just lovely.

"Bleu de Chine" is a complex gown of many folded pieces - almost Origami. Like a good sculpture it looks great from all sides. My model is Fashion Royalty Dasha.


"Bleu de Chine" by K (Kha Hoang)

Below: Model Elise Jolie is admiring her new gown in the mirror.


"Golden Dream" by FuZin

Here is Rudi's Facebook Album of R&D Exclusives:

  https://www.facebook.com/rpteruel/media_set?set=a.10152812160331945.1073742055.519746944&type=3

There are several in there I'm sorry to say that I missed out on.

Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice Collection by Mattel

I'm quite surprised by the good looks of these dolls and the low price of $39.95 each.  I thought I was on the wrong website.

Batman has the new Ben Affleck sculpt. He's fierce! This is so not like Mattel it's wonderful. They're calling the body type Poseable Hero Male. No more Mr. Wimpy.

The Superman Doll uses the new Henry Cavill sculpt. Not bad at all. The hero body is super muscular. No information about the costume or measurements of the doll are posted with the listings.

Wonder Woman Doll's description: The wild card in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice™, Wonder Woman is the daughter of Zeus and an Amazonian princess! Sculpted and costumed just like the movie character, she’s fully articulated and ready to fight with her sword, shield, and her iconic “magic” lasso. Knee-high boots, armored bracelets, and a headdress complete her warrior’s attire.

The costumes are not removable without cutting them off. I think these figures still have a lot of play potential in spite of that. The molded hair on the male figures doesn't bother me although it would be cool if they could have done rooted hair. I'll wait to see them in the stores before jumping although I'd like to have Wonder Woman just for the new articulated body.

Check out this video for more information.

Black Lipstick Gene, Wigs and Props

I was fooling around with Black Lipstick Gene yesterday. She got tired of the 1940's look and I had a modern wig just waiting for a bald head.

It's a Monique Gold wig (http://store.monique.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=monique&Category_Code=WIG-MGC&Product_Code=&Search=&Sort_By=disp_order&Per_Page=-1.)
The wig is called Jade #415 and it's priced at $19.  Gene wears size 4-5. It comes in 7 colors and 5 sizes. 

I do not recommend them for someone who is used to hard cap wigs from Ilaria, Chewin, Patta and the like. You will find that these wigs have a lesser quality fiber and construction. They are not well-styled right out of the box. Their benefits are the lower price of $12-$27 each depending on size and style and they do have a stretch band inside so the fit is more flexible. They come in a very wide variety of colors and styles.

Be prepared to do some styling, perhaps with a hair product and pointy snips in order to get the look you want. I was not pleased with my results as I feel the top of the wig is too pouffy. I would have had to do some thinning.

If you're good at it - this is definitely a great way to go for quantity and choice.

Her glasses are by Horsman for Urban Vita.

 The wonderful drafting table is a Tonner Tyler furniture item. The clip on lamp works. The drawer opens as does the top of the table which is held in an angled slant by a rod you pull up inside. The stool comes with the set.  Recently a nearly new set sold on eBay for $50.99. The seller also included the Design Essentials set which is adorable. Tonner furniture is perfectly scaled for our 16" dolls. It never looks too small.

The sweater Gene is wearing is a handmade product from Retros. The buttonholes are real working ones. I love this item. I purchased the jeans from Marlbe last year. It was a very small edition from Marcelo Jacobs.

The platform sneakers she is wearing are from Ficon. Sadly, I broke one of the zippers. These are fitted inside to support a fashion foot with a built-in wedge. I'd buy a replacement pair in a minute if I could find them.

Another item in this photo that I've used zillions of times is the CED folding screen. There are two in these photos. They are wood with three panels that depict scenes in Italy. The screens are two-sided making them incredibly useful and easy to customize if desired.  Folding screens are an essential tool for a quick photo set-up. They're also easy to make from foam core board.

Kingdom Doll Star and Turn on Your Lights

The third in a series of three Kingdom Doll "Angel" dolls, Star, arrived last week and I am very happy with her.

She is super photogenic. Here's a shot taken with my iPhone.

She is wearing her own lingerie and wig. Her necklace had opened which escaped my eye during the picture taking.

Her beautiful silver shoes zip up the back. I have a vague memory of being told these are her 'signature' shoes. They are the same style that Liberty came with and the pink suit from the Liberty event also used this style.

 I never leave my gals dressed in lingerie and Star's first redress was into this beautiful, slinky dress from one of Sandra's conventions. It's a favorite of mine and looks great on many of my girls.
The wonderful, curly wig is a Cheryl Wood creation. You may recognize Tonner's Snow Leopard from his Golden Compass line.

 The whole scene is very jungle-tropical. I really didn't plan it this way. These days most of my studio photos use very simple backdrops and props. I'm too lazy to do elaborate dioramas.  But I do have a bunch of different artificial greens and in this case, I just pinned a few to the huge bulletin board I have in back of my shooting table. There were some empty spaces and I Photoshopped that away. I also used PS to darken the background because I thought it competed too much with the foreground. I kept the focus on the doll's face to draw the viewer's eye there.

I see loads of indoor photos in which there is barely any light on the dolls' faces. So many people with beautiful dolls don't know how to light their photos. I just want to scream, "Turn on the damn lights!" You don't need professional equipment.

There is a false belief that using a flash is anathema. Seriously? Have you ever been to a professional studio? We're not aiming for Annie Leibovitz here; we just want to see your dolls!

As I stated, the top photo on this page (and the shoe shot) were made with my iPhone - using it's built in flash. In many cases, the phone's flash doesn't do what I want it to, but there's a way to make it work. Admittedly, it was daylight in room - actually it's in the bedroom. I opened the shades and the room was pretty bright but I knew I'd need some highlights and the only way to do that was with some direct light. I didn't hold the camera directly aiming at the doll, instead I angled it a little off to one side.

Here's a shot that did not work:

 The angle is all wrong. Her hair is too bright. It's a discard.

The beauty of digital photography is that you can keep going until you are satisfied. You get instant feedback. In my studio, I constantly move the lights and change their power and/or the settings on the camera until I'm happy (or until I'm so tired I can't go on.) You can take multiple shots with your phone as well. But do us all a favor, don't post all of them. Pick out the three best,  then toss two of those.  I look back at the last 15 years of my own doll photography and really should toss 80% of the images but I'm keeping them as a record of what I've had in my collection. Of course there are days when I can't take a decent picture no matter what.

EDIT, EDIT, EDIT.

There are websites, books, ezines and loads of information out there. The problem is, you may not even know you need one.

A great all around source of tips and tricks:  http://www.digital-photography-tips.net/

Superdoll "Chinchilla" Dressed Doll

The Valentine Venus this year from Superdoll is a sparkling vision of diamonds and silver.
 http://www.superdollonline.co.uk/acatalog/DRESSED-DOLLS.html

Here is the description from the website:

CHINCHILLA DD_102

Boop - boop - de - boop! BANG!

Venus was all out for her Valentine, and just couldn't resist a little 'Shake in the Box!'

NEW! GENX.2 body!
NEW! Cosmetique skin tone!

Her waist length wig is a delicate blend of silver and grey, tousled for that come and get me look! Eyes of steel gray and blue surrounded by shadow in pinks, greys, white and dark charcoal. Brows of shaded grey accentuated with a stroke of pure reflective silver. Lips the colour of marshmallow rose.
Her all in one 'corselette' is of pale pink satin and bears panels of mirror foil, firstly to grab your attention and secondly to blind you as she stands in the spotlight!
Rose coloured hose, a pair of pink giant powder puffs and a drizzling 'diamond' neck piece are her accents for this gleaming outfit. Grey tulle opera length gloves.
And of course what could be more spectacular than her mirror foil bunny ears and matching slip on stilettos?

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY Darlings!
Clone: 1000 Venus d'Royce

Of course she comes with the following standard accessories:
-manic_cure hands (see booklet for hand change instructions)
-booklet
-stand

In stock and ready to be delivered

Price: £247.68 (Excluding VAT at 20%)

 She is very pretty but I'm passing. 

First Ever Posable Silkstone Doll "Classic Black Dress"

Today, members of the BCC received invitations to order Classic Black Dress at the retail price of $40—surprisingly inexpensive.  I was able to use my first quarter $20 coupon bringing the total of this gal to only $25.95 including shipping.

This will be interesting.
http://www.thebarbiecollection.com/shop

Here's the description:

Gold Label®
Designer: Robert Best
Release Date: 2/1/2016

The little black dress is a staple in any sophisticated wardrobe. Barbie® doll wears this classic with an air of modern chic, featuring a dramatic deep “V” neckline and feminine bows at the shoulders. Tall boots and a signature ponytail complete the oh-so-fabulous look. For the first time ever, the 2016 BFMC series features a posable Silkstone® body, for endless posing possibilities.

Please note:

• Fashion designed especially for the Silkstone® Barbie® doll body. Not for use with other Barbie® dolls.
  
  Production doll may vary from the photo shown above. Mattel reserves the right to modify the fashion/fabrics, sculpt, hair color/style, and accessories. Doll cannot stand alone as shown.

____________

In addition, all in stock Silkstone dolls went on sale. They're practically giving away the Silkstone Ken dolls at just above 50% off the already reduced prices. If the outfit on Blush Beauty didn't look so much like a prior fashion, I would have purchased her last year.

The website actually worked for 10 minutes. And then, when I wanted to do some research into the older Silkies, it took forever to load, then it froze again, loaded, froze again. They still have a lot of work to do.

W Club Registration for 2016

Is this the "moment you've been waiting for" as stated on the web page? I've been a member of the W Club since the beginning and this is the first year I've delayed joining. Registration closes on February 16, 2016.  I'm also not going to buy any of the 'upgrade' dolls - for the first time.

Here are the "perks and privileges" as listed:

If you are looking to get the latest scoop on every brand manufactured by Integrity Toys, search no more, the W Club is THE club to join! W Club members get the best perks in the industry, which makes a W Club membership a tremendous value! Aside from gaining access to the members-only W Club forum and exclusive newsletters, here's a peek at some of the great perks W Club members will get in 2016...

• Awesome Club Exclusive Dolls!
• For 2016, every member will have an opportunity (in addition to the upgrade dolls) to pre-order at least 5 exclusive Club-only dolls, including 2 Fashion Royalty dolls (which may include NU. Face), 2 exclusive Poppy Parker dolls, and 1 JEM AND THE HOLOGRAMS™ doll*, plus additional surprise items!
• FREE Digital Subscription to DOLLS and Haute Doll Magazine!
• DOLLS Magazine is once again generously giving a FREE year-long digital subscription to every 2016 W Club member! This year-long digital magazine subscription is the best way to keep up to date on all of the dolly news!
• Updated This Year: Our Annual Coupon is Better Than Ever!
• Each W Club membership that you purchase will automatically add a special $25 coupon to your IT Direct Coupon Wallet that can be used towards ANY IT Direct shopping cart purchase of $99 or more online only during the 2016 W Club year! No more restrictions to W Club exclusive items-- as long as your order is above $99 before shipping and tax, you can apply your coupon towards any order of your choice!*

 As time goes by, the W Club becomes less like the club I joined which was all Fashion Royalty. I don't collect Poppy Parker or Jem. The 2 Fashion Royalty exclusives may be NuFace instead of FR.  But I keep joining because I'm afraid to miss something.

Yes, I still love my 12" dolls. They are a joy to look at. I buy designer clothes for them and they're staying but my passion for the 16" resin BJDs is where the dolly funds go for the most part.

Anyway, here are the three optional dolls that can be purchased along with membership:

Vanessa (3.0) "Take Me On" $130.
At first I was intrigued but she's the wrong Vanessa sculpt for me and I don't see her fashion as being useful or complete. I like the shoes and that's it.

Poppy Parker "Ma Petite Fleur" $120.

 Did someone say Beverly Hillbillies? I guess if you have a record with French songs on it, you're French. Poor Elly Mae Clampett (R.I.P.) She didn't have that.

Imogen "Be Daring" Nu Face  $120.

I like the outfit and the really cute skull jewelry. Looking closely at the fit of the top, I don't care for her boob joint so exposed like that and the fit at the arm seam doesn't look right.

Did you know that there were 2066 members in 2015 according to the member list. If you multiply say, 2055 paying members by $50. that equals $102,750. Take away $25. per member if everyone uses their coupon, you have $51,375. remaining. Of course, there are expenses (salaries, web) of which I have no idea but I'm going to guess that there is other income from the advertising which is a constant.
The entire operation is a brilliant, money-making, marketing tool.
For me, if I'm not going to get something of value that no one outside the club can get, it won't be worth it to continue. However, it is a difficult habit to break.

So the W Club will just be getting my $50. and we'll see if it's worth it. You know I'll let you know.

Did you join? If so, are you adding the extra dolls? 

Photos of the dolls and accessories are the property of Integrity Toys.

Editor's Note:

I've been informed by a friend that the Poppy Parker doll may be inspired by Brigitte Bardot who often wore pink gingham dresses.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigitte_Bardot

My Antonio Realli Fashions for Fashion Royalty

FDQ recently published my interview with dress designer, Antonio Realli of Brazil. Now I can show off the fashions that I showcased in that interview and a few more I've recently added.
My 12" dolls are definitely getting a wonderful fashion infusion.

Adele. Franklin Mint pearls.

 Below left is Elise and on the right, another Elise. Fashion Royalty shoes.

 Below on the left is yet another Elise and on the right is Vanessa. Fashion Royalty shoes.

Elise yet again. Added fur and FR hat.

Kyori

Natalia. Added Jewelry.

In every case, the seams are finished beautifully. The zippers are set in properly and work smoothly. There's not a stray thread hanging anywhere. Lest I forget, the fit is excellent. All the dolls shown have the FR2 body.

Of all the fashions I show above, the first and the last are my favorites for now. I will certainly be adding more this year.

His Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/toni.ritti.79
Website: http://www.antoniorealli.com/