Real life fashion dolls - Jason Wu

Jason Wu Ready-to-Wear fashion from Bergdorf Goodman

So, in my window shopping endeavors the other day, I made a few discoveries. Of course, you're familiar with Montaigne Market's Fashion Royalty exclusive that I mentioned a few days ago. I found the original design that this doll is based on, ready to order today from Bergdorf Goodman.

Unlike the doll, the people-sized fashion here shows a sequined bias-cut skirt (but you can also find a similar dress in silver, here) with the cropped trench jacket. Now, seeing the prices of these designer fashions, I wonder, does the 150 Euro price tag of a designer doll seem quite so high?

I have to confess, I'm even impressed with the shoes and the clutch--pretty nicely reproduced, at least in the promotional photos.

Daphne suede clutch 

d'Orsay ankle-wrap sandal in dove gray

Miniature versions of the designs

 And check out the video attached to the fashion--Jason Wu answers our 5 Questions. It's really cute. (Click the more button, and then you will see the link to the video.) I hate to admit how often I've worn acid-washed jeans... as a child of the 1980s, of course! Not recently! LOL!

Montaigne Market exclusive

Photos are property of Bergdorf Goodman and Integrity Toys.

OOAK Australian designer Integrity Toys dolls

Limited edition Alannah Hill POUT doll, courtesy Chadstone

According to a recent newsletter from Integrity Toys, there are a few OOAK couture dolls available for auction on eBay Australia. I'm not sure they ship outside of the US--but it wouldn't hurt to ask. Here are IT's notes on the doll:

Earlier this year, we participated in an exhibition of our dolls in Australia called POUT which featured a selection of 50 Fashion Royalty dolls created by the Integrity Toys design team since the start of the collection in 2001. Also part of this exciting exhibit, selected top Australian fashion designers where invited to replicate some of their creations in miniature and were each given an FR: Monogram doll to display their OOAK creations. These mini-couture models where also put on display at Chadstone.

These OOAK dolls that the Australian designers created are now available in a charity auction on eBay. The charity that benefits from these auctions is the Royal Women's Hospital in Melbourne.
Please note:

1. These are one of a kind fashions crafted by various Australian designers. As such, they may have different levels of detail and quality.

1. While we wanted to alert you to this auction, Integrity is not involved in any aspect of it and cannot answer questions, etc., so please direct them to the auction seller.

1. Please note that none of the props shown in the photos are included in these auctions. Only the dolls with their fashions are included in the auction. If you have any questions about these dolls, please contact the auction seller.

A link to the auctions can be found here. The auctions start at AU $100 (currently $103.87), and have 3 days and about 7 hours left. I have to admit--I'm tempted!

Like lists? Top sellers from Tonner Doll for the week

The top selling dolls from Tonner Doll Company this week are now available in list format. (I really think this is cool--you can make your own lists as well.)

Top Sellers on Tonnerdoll.com - 7/20/12

View more lists from Tonner Doll Company

Alice: Out of the Box has also arrived!

As if working on one project at a time weren't enough:

Alice: Out of the Box is an eclectic scrapbook of Alice in Wonderland-themed dolls that have graced the author’s collection over the years. Alice fans and doll collectors alike will enjoy this friendly showcase, including both traditional and contemporary dolls.

From vinyl to resin, the editor of the Fashion Doll Review introduces both restyled, one-of-a-kind, and manufactured eye candy, from girlish befuddlement to Lolita-style ball-jointed beauties. While the author herself does not profess to be a photographer, she hopes to bring her passion for Lewis Carroll’s timeless heroine to the page--in a tiny, redressable, posable art form.

The Out of the Box series is a casual visual reference for doll collectors and fans of the Fashion Doll Review blog. An affordable paperback collection, this series examines specific doll styles, sculpts, and collections in pages filled with color photographs with descriptions. Fashion dolls are styled, dressed, and fashioned according to the book’s theme. Resources and references are included.

Currently for sale on CreateSpace directly, this print-on-demand title is also for sale on Amazon--I'll keep you posted as soon as a preview is available. If you live in Europe, check out this post. I will have copies of this book with me at the Barbie convention and also at IFDC.


List Price: $16.00
8.5" x 8.5" (21.59 x 21.59 cm)
Full Color Bleed on White paper
76 pages
The Fashion Doll Review
ISBN-13: 978-0983681625
ISBN-10: 0983681627
BISAC: Antiques & Collectibles / Dolls


I am so excited to share the Out of the Box series of books with you. I can't wait to share what else we have in store!

Superfrock new release - Katana

Katana - photo property of Superfrock.

Katana is now available to order from Superfrock. She is a new Sybarite resin fashion BJD in pale skin tone, and Fuju clone. She is in stock and ready to ship. Her price: £344.12 (about $550)

Katana is the first of the "Fashion Police" collection, and she is a criminologist. She has pale grey eyes, dusted with charcoal shadow and lined with black with hand-applied eyelashes. She wears a lovely white and gray braided wig and tied with slim red ribbon which accent her lips.

Her outfit is a belted strapless white cocktail dress with a black, laser cut overlay and inset bustle. She includes white sheer footless hose and fabulous white, black, and lime platform shoes.

Additional accessories include a face mask, "forensic size" handbag, enamel earrings, and "suicidal wrist wraps." She includes a stand, as well.

New JAMIEshow Evil

JAMIEshow Evil - photo property of Angelic Dreamz.

As seen on the cover of the summer issue of Fashion Doll Quarterly Magazine, Evil is a brand new full-set resin BJD JAMIEshow fashion doll available for order now from Angelic Dreamz. If you're a fan of fashion and fairytales, this doll is for you. (These dolls are SO much fun!)

She uses the lovely Grace head sculpt and includes a red wig cap and a smooth cap as well. Her face-up is amazing--black lips, and smokey makeup which enhances her blue green eyes. Her outfit is an amazing black chiffon dress with a silver laser cut breast plate, velveteen cape with black feather trim, black arm gauntlets.

She also includes a unique silver holster and a knife. And her shoes--wow. I need a close-up of those lovely shoes!

She's limited to just 50 dolls, and her retail is $450.

I think she would look amazing next to the White Swan--especially since I missed out on the Black Swan. (And oh--do I ever want to attend that convention!) I think I might have found Carolyn's first JAMIEshow!

Close-up of Evil JAMIEshow - photo property of Angelic Dreamz.

First ever JAMIEshow Convention!

JAMIEshow Premiere Convention
"Prohibition"
September 28-30, 2012
The Firehouse
Canandaigua, NY

This sounds like a really fabulous event for fashion doll and resin fashion BJD collectors alike. Registration is $475 and includes convention doll, events and workshops. Check out the website to register today (deadline and payment must be received by May 31, 2012).

Events include an opening breakfast, three workshops (photography by George G, repainting eyes and lips by PegFamousGirls, and styling doll wigs and hair by Michael Scott), all-day VIP shopping at Angelic Dreamz, a Sonnenberg Gardens cocktail reception (on the veranda of the mansion!), a trip to the Strong Museum of Art & Toy Hall of Fame, a Speakeasy costume event, and a closing brunch.

A special convention rate at The Inna on the Lake has been arranged (between $134-204 per night), including rooms, suites, and jacuzzi suites (!!!). Plus, there are lots of bed and breakfasts and hotels in Canandaigua. The closest airport is Rochester International.

I'm trying to figure out how I might be able to talk my husband into attending!

JAMIEshow Winter 2012 from Angelic Dreamz

Angelic Dreamz has revealed five new dressed resin fashion BJDs for their 2012 Winter collection. They are stunning! The dolls are limited to 50 each, retail for $395, and are due to ship at the end of February and the end of March. They are available for pre-order now--with Angelic Dreamz generous payment plans available.

Grace is styling in a fresh winter look with furry high heeled boots, a short skirt, black tee, coat long wool scarf, and matching hat.

Eshe comes dressed in an elegant silk two-piece suit with fur-trimmed jacket, large waist belt, black blouse and fabulous sparkling pumps.

Sun dons a gorgeous silk gown which captures the essence of the Chinese New Year celebration and the year of the dragon. She also wears fabulous yellow geta sandals.

Sasha is dressed in a lovely white silk dress with fringed trim and an asymmetric shape and pleated collar. Her gorgeous Gaga-styled musical note shoes finish her whimsical look.

Last but not least, Angelic Dreamz introduces a new character, Cameron. He is dressed in a winter cap, leather pants with zipper detailing, belt, black boots, black tee, colorful tie, and a black fur vest.


All photos property of Angelic Dreamz.

JAMIEshow anyone?

I know I'm a little late to the game here, but there are some fantastic sales on JAMIEshow dolls at Angelic Dreams--only a few left!

I'm super tempted by Kyra, listed at just $295 for the dressed dolls. She's just gorgeous. There are only six left as of this morning! Her gown looks like an Atelier Soda creation, which in the BJD world goes for no less than $210. It's fabulous!

There is a friend in our doll group, Shirley, who has two of these dolls--and I have to say, they are very versatile and quite lovely. This would be an ideal time to pick up one of these lovely ladies!

Superfrock's Geometry goes on sale tomorrow

Geometry - Photo property of Superfrock.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, June 8, 2011, Superfrock will be positing another doll from the Colorvision collection on its website: Geometry.

Additionally, a new pair of heels, Picnic Magnet, will also be offered. Check them out tomorrow!

Blythe in Stylist Magazine: Issue 65

Stylist Magazine: Issue 65

Check out Issue #65 for a terrific Blythe fashion photo shoot in UK's Stylist Magazine. If you love these photos, you can download wallpapers (for your desktop computer) for free at this link.

I, for one, am glad to see our large-headed, large-eyed doll has made it in the fashion world, the savvy dresser she is!

Fashion Doll Photography - Christmas Vacation

Photographing my fashion dolls in venues other than my home is something fairly new for me. It began a couple of years ago when a friend of mine and I hosted the official travel doll for the 2009 National Barbie Doll Convention. Since then I've taken various fashion dolls to local areas for impromptu fashion shoots. Over the holidays we made a couple of trips for which I decided to take a fashion doll, much to the amusement of my family.

Happy Go Lightly in the lobby of the War Memorial Opera Hou

The first trip was a quick visit up to San Francisco to see the Nutcracker Ballet at the War Memorial Opera House. I thought Happy Go Lightly Silkstone Barbie (HGL) would enjoy dressing up in her finery to attend a beautifully produced ballet in such an historic location. She took the opportunity to don Sheer Sparkle by Dressmaker Details. Photographing dolls out in the public is a constant learning experience. Available lighting, on-site props, people milling about, the camera, and the photographer's skills (just to name a few) all influence the outcome of the photo. In this case, there were so many folks visiting in the lobby that it was impossible to get a photograph of HGL without someone stepping into the picture. The unfortunate aspect of this is that it messes with the perceived scale of things. Also, I need to learn more about my camera's capabilities. While the lighting at the Opera House is fine for it's intended use, it's underlit for photographing HGL. I currently use a point and shoot digital camera and right now I only know either flash on or flash off. With the flash on, HGL was in focus but I couldn't see the background. With the flash off, HGL is a little fuzzy but we can see not only HGL but the background as well. And isn't that why I took her to the ballet in the first place? So for now, to explain the fuzziness, I'm going with the old Hollywood standby of claiming she wanted petroleum jelly slathered on the camera lens to give her a more youthful look.

Endless Summer Poppy Parker with Minnie Mouse.

For our next trip, we went to Disneyland. For this little junket, I took Endless Summer Poppy Parker. Poppy has become my favorite fashion doll (shh, don't tell HGL or any of my other dolls!). She has such a youthful appearance and she wears so many different clothing styles well. For this session she wore a jacket, top, belt, and pants from Clear-Lan and shoes and jewelry from the Ask Any Girl gift set from the 2010 Fashion Royalty Convention collection. This photo session went much better as we were outside for most of the photos which gave me natural lighting to work with.  Also, while there are just masses of people at Disneyland (the fire marshal actually closed the park to newly entering people due to overcrowding) the people have more space to spread out so I was able to do better about avoiding folks stepping into my picture. Here Poppy poses with Minnie Mouse in front of Cinderella's Castle.

While I do occasionally run into glitches with my doll photography, I still enjoy the experience immensely. When I first began I was a little timid about how people would react. Now I don't worry about that because I've experienced how much fun it is. As a matter of fact, on both of these trips, I had complete strangers come up and photograph my doll as well! And I know that with time and practice, my photos will begin to better meet my expectations.

If you'd like to see more pictures from these two photo shoots, please visit my Flickr.

January POTM: Vera Bradley

La Boutique released their January Purse of the Month and it's Vera Bradley!

They wanted to go with the cruise feel this January and so they have miniaturized Vera Bradley's floral print "Make Me Blush" and are giving you 2 options. You can purchase the Alice bag or the Tote bag (both trimmed in apple green leather) and each will come with a matching wallet. Cost is $32 each plus shipping from Canada. As always, exclusive fashions are offered to go with the purses, so if you'd like to see those pics you can see them HERE.

To order the purses, contact Diana at dianawieler@sympatico.ca  (For those of you with bigger dolls, you can also purchase the purses in 16" doll size for a small upgrade charge)

**Photos are property of LaBoutique**

New 12" Doll Furniture

Maryann Roy of Welcome Home Furniture has just posted a new “apartment” for preorder. I absolutely love this set and the color combinations! These are perfect for 12″ dolls and include quite a bit (furniture, walls, etc.). If you’d like to see more pictures or find out pricing to order, please check Maryann’s blog HERE.

**Photos are property of Welcome Home Furniture**

11-12" December Christmas Finery

December Christmas Finery, originally uploaded by alington.

My 11-12" Fabulous Gown shelf:

• Madame du Barbie (Bob Mackie)
• Queen V Veronique (Integrity Toys)
• Portrait in Taffeta (another collector Barbie)
• True Royalty Vanessa (Integrity--well, parts of her outfit only--you might notice her pink petticoat, which is from Dressmaker Detail's Blushing Bride)
• Christian Dior Barbie.

Forgive my attempt at Vanessa's hair. I bought her with her hair taken down, and she's scheduled for a hair restyle next month.

My Play Scale Christmas Diorama

I recently purchased a GORM shelving system from IKEA. It was easy to put together and I love it! I already had BONDE bookcases from IKEA, but the interior dimensions of the shelving area made it a little hard to realistically display my dolls. With this GORM system, I'm able to have a larger space to display each "room" of my diorama.

On this level of the shelving, we enter the apartment of the play scale, or 1/6th scale, dolls. Guests enter the living room from a patio (not shown). Displayed is a silver tinsel Christmas tree from Michael's along with various miniature ornaments. Under the tree are wrapped Christmas presents from both Michael's and Walmart. From this angle we get a glimpse of what is to come.

Here we get a full view of the living room. Darius is seated in a side chair from Welcome Home by Maryann Roy. In fact, much of the furniture you see in this room is Welcome Home furniture.  The sofa, coffee table, floor lamp, room divider, and fireplace wall back drop were all created by Maryann Roy. I love her mid-century modern flair! The On Location model muse is wearing a Santa t-shirt that is actually a Jolee's Boutique scrap book embellishment.

After the living room, we pass into the dining room where the table is already set for the impending feast.  The table is from a Gloria dining room set that was refurbished by a friend to look more realistic. Seriously, does anyone out there have a pink dining table in human size? Once again, there are other pieces from Welcome Home. The gold buffet and the window seat back drop are fairly recent additions from Maryann. The chandelier is from Kikkerland. They were given out at the 2010 Barbie Convention, but I actually bought this from a room seller at the 2009 Barbie Convention. The clear is no longer available from the Kikkerland website, but you can still get the black or pink variant. And the best part? The chandelier really lights up! It's battery operated so no need for an outlet. The rugs in the two rooms are from eBay. They are woven cloth.

You can see a few more pictures on my Flickr page.

The Alice Project, Day 40

I'm running low on Alices, believe it or not, and on dolls, too! Day 40 of the Alice Project is here, and I'm introducing you to Drink Me Alice. This is Luchia Z, Bewitching Hour. She was a W Club exclusive doll from last year, I think (or maybe 2008), dressed simply in a Fashion Fever dress, Barbie Basics shoes, holding her essential "drink me" martini.

My idea of the perfect Alice. You can see the rest of her photo shoot on Flickr.

New 12" fashion BJDs: JAMIEshow DEMI-Collection from Angelic Dreamz

A brand new size of resin ball-jointed dolls from the JAMIEshow line are now available for preorder exclusively from Angelic Dreamz. Orders are being accepted through December 1, and only those quantities will be produced. The estimated ship date is the first week in January. Retail price is $250.

The DEMI-Collection dolls are available in three sculpts:

• Isabella (Cocoa skin tone)
• Dianna (Light skin tone)
• Margot (Medium skin tone)

The dolls stand 12" tall and are manufactured with the same resin as the 16" BJD fashion dolls. They are sized to wear most 12" fashion doll clothing and shoes (Barbie, Dressmaker Details and Fashion Royalty).

Basic dolls include a hand-painted face up, full body blushing, sanding, random black dress (or possibly basic lingerie--there is some confusion on the website), stand and random size 4 wig. They arrive fully assembled. It appears the dolls have double jointed elbows and knees, included in their 19 points of articulation. Their eyes are painted, and acrylic eyes are not offered.

Additionally, 4 additional hand poses (12 total--four in each skin tone--two right hands, two left hands) are available for $15 each hand, and they are strung with s-hooks for easy changing. Plus, the Gaga shoe collection is also available for preorder, $20 per pair, solid resin, and will be arriving in November. These shoes also fit Fashion Royalty, Barbie and Silkstone dolls.

Please click on the links to see George's fantastic photos.

(I have to confess, I love small BJDs, and Isabella is my favorite. Plus, she can share Barbie and FR clothes! Eeek!)