Votre Beaute cover tribute

In December, the Greek edition of Votre Beaute magazine celebrated it's 20th birthday with a great anniversary issue, showcasing various moments of the magazine's history in Greece. The cover was a blast: featuring one of the most iconic Greek models ever, the inimitable Mara Desypri (nowdays a photohrapher, frequently contributing to Vogue Hellas) wearing a dress by Vassilis Zoulias, who started his carrer as a stylist when Mara was a model and now is a fashion designer turning out gorgeous collections full of coveted frocks and accessories. I loved it so much, I decided to make a version of it for my blog. Of course there is no doll looking like Mara: her strong features would not make a very commercial doll. I picked Red Zinger Daria from the Future Perfect 2009 collection. Her make up was very close to Mara's and she looks gorgeous too.

The hair of Mara was styled by the extremely talented and fellow doll collector and lover Thanos Samaras. I could not even begin to try and imitate the same hair on Daria, so I just made a new updo, keeping it stylish and chic. The black dress is the top and skirt of Dressing the Part Agnes, shoes are from an older Fashion Royalty outfit and the gloves are from Bewitching Hour Luchia. Unfortunately the doll's articulation does not help to style the exact pose but I did the best I could save breaking her shoulder joints. And here is the original cover (Photo by Thanassis Krikis, fashion editor is Michalis Georgiou and makeup is by Stellar):

And yes, you do remember correctly, this was the same set up for my Holidays card for 2010!

Not Your Usual Wedding: Poppy Parker gets married

When a dear friend, who has an incredible agency for brides to be who need to be different than all the rest, asked me to make a photo shoot for her relative blog, with my dolls, I jumped at the opportunity. Having never done anything remotely bridal with the dolls, it presented me with the opportunity to do something unusual. 

The brief was precise "Our inspiration is the film Barefoot in The Park". Going through my doll faces to cast the model, I decided thar Integrity's Poppy Parker was the perfect match for Jane Fonda in that era. The problem was that I did not have a dress that would serve as a wedding gown. Then Uriah came into the rescue, unbeknownst to him, when he sent me the dress from the "Ask Any Girl" gift set. Poppy now could prepare for the big day.

As I picked Reluctant Debutante Poppy for the shoot, her gloves, coat, earrings and stockings were of course ideal for the outfit. The shoes were kindly provided by "She's Arrived" Poppy's outfit, while her hair ornament (I decided against a veil as in this scale it would probably look awkward and stiff) is a brooch from Silkstone Barbies. No bride is complete without a bouquet of course: Franklin Mint's Princess Diana series has an excellent one with Princes Of Wales roses (from the blue bouclé suit) that matched perfectly. I hope you like it. And thanks again to Margarita, I love you girl.

Writing this post, today, it dawned on me that I forgot to photograph Poppy barefoot. So here she is - sorry Margarita, I should have done this with the rest of the shoot.

And a black & white grainy one, just for the fun of it.

Tonner Dolls Pre-Toyfair collection! Part two - Retro gals: Deanna & Holywood

Retro lines are usually treated with panache by Tonner and this one is no exception The Deanna Denton line features a unique full figured body which is more realistic for the period. For this collection they have only one dressed doll. I like the outfit but the doll leaves me cold. She could have looked that much better. Their previous efforts were so much more interesting. I hope this changes again for the next one. It is called Bye Bye Baby. Yes of course it is the Marilyn song:

So she could have looked like that. Sigh.

Let us stay in Holywood then and check out the Holywood Glamour collection. Tonner have condensed here all the old Holywood star dolls they make plus a series of glamorous outfits.

 Joan Crawford is a gorgeous doll, the likeness of the sculpt is breathtaking and the outfit so glamourous it dazzles. An excellent doll but quite expensive at US$189.99. The doll is named appropriately Devil In White and is wearing a sleek satin gown and luxurious faux fur trimmed capelet, adorned with a lavish rhinestone brooch. Rhinestone bracelet, pantyhose, and faux-leather shoes also included. Joan Crawford™ Head Sculpt and 16" Tyler BW Body; Blue Eyes w/ Raven Hair and Bloom Skin tone. I think she could have used a pair of long gloves.

Ava Gardner is again a great sculpt and this release is probably the one that looks more like the famous film star. I like the outfit as well, although the jewellery is too simple for a star of this calibre. A pair of short gloves would have looked perfect as well as a clutch bag. The doll is called Hearts Ablaze and she wears a red dress of sumptuous lace and frothy tulle. Her waist is cinched in with a satin belt and sparkling rhinestone buckle. Rhinestone earrings, bracelet, pantyhose, and faux-leather pumps also included. Ava Gardner™ Head Sculpt and 16" Tyler BW Body; Green Eyes w/ Brunette Hair and Bloom Skin tone.

There is a Bette Davies doll as well, called Stardust but no picture is available yet. She comes clothed in a shimmering gown with matching braided trim, gleaming beaded bracelet, pantyhose, and T-strap high-heeled shoes. Bette Davis™ Head Sculpt and 16" Tyler BW Body; Blue Eyes w/ Platinum Hair and Bloom Skin tone.

Tonner Dolls Pre-Toyfair collection! Part one - Cami & Jon

Tonner Dolls anounnced their pre-ToyFair collection on their website. We are of course interested in the fashion dolls from the huge spectrum of collections they offer, so let's take a look to see the new arrivals.

Lately Tonner has put much of their weight behind promoting the Cami & Jon line. It says on the website that this collection will be made to order so hurry up to reserve yours. There are four basic dolls, one of them wigged, two outfits and three wigs. The body is the 16"Antoinette body. The sculpts do not look too fashion doll like to me, they look too cute and girly doll for my taste. But I am sure they will be very popular. Here they are:

 Wigged basic Cami

 Basic Cami Redhead

Basic Jonquil Brunette

 Wigs

One of the basic dolls ( Basic Cami Brunette) does not have an image up yet. I like the black evening gown (City Nights), although I would have preferred it to have a more pronounced blouse effect. The other outfit (Play on words), which you can buy online already, reminds me a lot of many I have seen in last year's spring collections.

What a great way to start the year: beautiful dolls!

One of the best ways to start the year is to see beautiful dolls! This happened today with a lovely email by Integrity making public the first 2011 Monogram line releases! Let us see what they are:

Redefined
FR: Monogram Accessory Set
Limited Edition of 300 Sets Worldwide
Suggested Retail: $75.00 USD

Hinted at last fall in the pictures Integrity released for "Escapade" and "Extravagance" in late summer 2010,  this black & white accessory pack features a finely sculpted miniature wig stand/bust cast in the finest resin and includes a brunette wig and wide brimmed straw hat, purse, shoes, jewelry set and certificate of authenticity. Designed to fit 1:6 scale dolls. It looks like modern Chanel stuff, nice but not my cup of tea. And the hat could have been so much more interesting - please look at what Stephen Jones is doing.

**Please Note: The clear acrylic cubes shown are props only and are not included in with the accessory set.

Discreet
FR: Monogram Basic Dressed Doll
Limited Edition of 300 Basic Dolls Worldwide
Suggested Retail: $99.00 USD

Based on the success and the great feedback they got of the first basic FR: Monogram doll Disclosure, Integrity decided to revisit her and offer a companion doll that would perfectly complement her if the two were to take a stroll down the catwalk. The outfit is almost the same in contrasting colouring and the tanned FR: Monogram brunette doll is to die for. She has rooted hair and her outfit includes a sexy belted lingerie set, strappy sandal shoes, and stud earrings. It comes with a doll stand and certificate of authenticity.

Magnificent
FR: Monogram Dressed Doll
Limited Edition of 300 Dressed Dolls Worldwide
Suggested Retail: $160.00 USD

The pièce de résistance of this release, a vision of couture and pure beauty, what better way to start the new year? She looks like she came out of a vintage Charles James couture collection. Clad in an elaborate dual toned, intricately draped evening gown, this stunning new creation will surely become very wanted indeed. Includes FR: Monogram brunette doll, gown, shoes, jewelry (that looks like diamanté), doll stand and certificate of authenticity.

She is rooted again and the gown looks like a re-working of the Smoldering gown from the convention 2010 collection. This one though looks much more enticing and gorgeous. If this is any indication, it looks like 2011 will be a year full of exciting dolls!

**All photos are copyrighted Integrity Toys, Inc. and Intercap Merchant Partners, LLC 2010 and may not be reprinted or disseminated without express written permission.**