doll collector

Girls Gone Wilde

~ writergal42 ~ Leave a comment

Wilde Imagination debuted its Spring Line today … Sort of. While 12 dressed Ellos and friends were introduced, only six came with production photos. Perhaps it would have been a better idea to hold off until most of the the completed dolls were ready for photography. But what do I know?

Along with the 12 dressed dolls, three basic dolls were released. As I observed yesterday, the brunette is my favorite.

My top pics

Dressed Dolls

“Brrooties” – Cute Ello with a WTF name. Wilde is clearing running out of ideas in the naming department.
“Ship Shape”: Robert loves his sailor-themed outfits … and they are usually adorable

Basic Doll

Essential Ellowyne Seven

Of course, there are new Evangeline, Amelia Thimble, and Sad Sally offerings as well. I do not collect any of these, so my opinion on them probably isn’t worth much. Nevertheless, the new AA sculpt, Angelique, caught my attention. Tonner’s AA sculpts are some of his loveliest, I think. This one is no exception.

Evening Angel Angelique

I also like “Sister Moon” Evangeline. She’s a nice alternative to Evie’s overdone (IMHO) gothic ensembles. I especially like the ornate hairstyle Tonner gave her.

“Sister Moon” Evangeline

Altogether, Wilde is offering nine dressed dolls, one basic doll, and nine outfits in this line. They’ve been working hard. I guess Evie and her friends are selling well.

No new Patience dolls, which doesn’t surprise me. I don’t think she’s gained much of a following. I suspect she’ll join the ranks of Tonner’s “in-like-a-lion-and-out-like-a-lamb” offerings. One Sad Sally dressed doll and three outfits joined the line, along with one dressed Amelia and one Hamish.

Now I’m waiting impatiently for the introduction of Tonner’s spring fashion doll lines. From the sneak peaks we’ve been given, the Diana Prince line looks promising for collectors who want to transform her from superhero into fashion model. And I’m really, really hoping that Marley will join the ranks of Wentworth this season. And dare I hope for a few more Tylers and Sydneys? Nah …. I’ve been disappointed too many times to set myself up for that kind of heartbreak again.

Why the hell isn’t this doll sold out?

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Fashion ball-jointed doll (BJD) artists continue to dazzle the collector community with their creations–and there seem to be more to choose from each year. These dolls are typically of very high quality and are produced in very limited editions. They are accordingly very expensive. Nevertheless, the top doll artist can sell out of their creations within minutes.

Which leads me to wonder why the hell this doll is still available. Doll artist Paul Pham was a pioneer in the fashion BJD market, offering extremely well-made, well-engineered resin dolls with perfectly scaled couture. Paul’s dolls are the only ones that have been able to lure away this committed vinyl doll collector into the resin BJD world. Paul’s “Stratus” was my first fashion doll BJD, and I was only able to afford her after selling off a good number of my vinyl girls. I was so pleased with the beauty of Stratus’ sculpt and her versatility in being able to pull off innumerable wigs and outfits, that I knew I was destined to add another one of Paul’s creations to my collection.

When I saw “Alma”–Paul’s Spanish-inspired creation–last year it was love at first sight. And again, I thinned the herd a bit to be able to add her to my collection. Alma is a limited edition of 50, and it recently came to my attention that, after originally being offered in September 2014, Alma is not yet sold out. In the doll world, four months is an eternity–the most superior fashion BJDs do not linger on the virtual store shelves for long.

So here is my plug for those of you who may be sitting on the fence about Alma (or any fashion BJD doll). Buy her. If you don’t have the cash (and she’s not cheap), sell off some of your collection you can live without or borrow against your dolly budget until you have enough. Sell a kidney if you have to. Because, next to the lovely Stratus, Alma is one of the most elegant dolls I own. Her sculpt is different, distinct, and sophisticated. Her face paint is superb. Her gown is regal. And she adapts well to different looks. I’ve had her in dozens of outfits that she has done tremendous justice to.

Below are a few of my very amateur photos of my Alma (as well as several superior photos by the talented Angela Nielson) and my Stratus. Now click HERE and buy yourself the loveliest fashion doll you are likely to own.

The lovely Alma

My own little slice of fashion doll history

~ writergal42 ~ 5 Comments

Last summer, I attended the Modern Doll Collectors Convention in Orlando with some dear friends. While there, I attended a collector’s presentation on Robert Tonner’s child dolls. Robert himself was in attendance, and he mentioned that he was in the process of preparing a significant number of his private collection of vintage fashion dolls for auction. I was immediately intrigued by the prospect of owning a doll from the collection of Robert Tonner. I have more Tonner dolls than any other in my own collection, and it was his work that introduced me to the world of collector fashion dolls. I think he is a tremendously gifted artist and visionary in the realm of doll art. Owning a doll that he personally selected for his own collection would, to me, be like owning a little bit of fashion doll history.

In the fall, I learned that Robert’s collection was to be auctioned off by Theriault’s—an auction house dedicated solely to the sale of antique dolls. While the auction would take place in New York City, it would also be telecast over the Internet, where people could register to bid remotely. I marked the auction date on my calendar. Theriault’s composed a detailed listing, complete with stunning photos, of the auction dolls on its website, so I could decide ahead of time which of the 600+ beauties I wanted to bid on. I know next to nothing about vintage dolls, so I solely went on which dolls “spoke” to me. Quite a few did.

On the day of the auction, I logged on and watched the action. The experience was very much like being there. There was a streaming webcast, and dolls were held up to the camera for a closer look. When someone on the Internet placed a bid, it was immediately noted at the live event. I bid on several dolls, but most went higher than my budget allowed. However, I did manage to snag two of them for a few hundred dollars. Again, I only went on what “spoke” to me, so I have no idea if I got a “deal” or not. All I cared about was that they were pretty, and that they had been owned by Robert Tonner.

Theriault’s turned out to be less than ideal to deal with. The auction took place on Nov. 23, 2014, and, although I paid promptly when I received my invoice, I did not receive my dolls until January 5. One of the dolls did not arrive with the extra outfit, case, and original box she was supposed to come with. When I called the auction house, I was told that the missing accessories were sent to another bidder in error. So now I have to wait for that person to return the items to Theriault’s, and for Theriault’s to send those items to me. *sigh*

The first doll I purchased was a 19-inch “Sweet Sue” doll from 1957 in a blouse, skirt, and—what sealed the deal for me—a wonderful hooded corduroy coat. When I opened this doll, I was first struck by the quality of the doll and her clothing. Sweet Sue was a play line doll, but her quality is more like what modern collectors expect after spending several hundred dollars on a doll for their collection. No wonder Robert collected these dolls. Today’s play line dolls—with their cheap fabrics and poor construction—do not hold a candle to the 1950s fashion doll. I recall listening to Robert at several conventions as he recalled how much he wanted a “Little Miss Revlon” doll when he was a boy, and how he coveted the one that his sister was given. How wonderful that he was able to succeed so much in his craft that that he could amass such a stunning collection of Little Miss Revlons and her sisters.

My favorite detail on my Sweet Sue is the trim on the hood of her coat. It is made of angora and is softer than soft. Just imagine! Angora on a play line doll! Those were lucky little girls in the 1950s.

sue2

sue

The second doll I purchased is a 1958 14” Betsy McCall with a charming gingham dress and matching coat. It was her precious face and wool beret that attracted me to her. Betsy came with her original handtag, box, and advertising booklet. The booklet is like a miniature time capsule. It is part comic book, part brochure. The comic follows a little girl during a day with Betsy—a day that requires eight changes of clothes—all of which are advertised in the booklet.

betsy1

betsy3

book

use3

use2

I do have a few of my mother’s childhood dolls, but these are the first vintage dolls I have ever purchased for myself. I don’t suspect that I will purchase any more. My taste trends more toward the modern fashion doll. But I am delighted that these special dolls are now part of my collection. Holding them in my hands and being able to carefully inspect them, I understand what Robert Tonner saw in them and what inspired him to launch his own career as a doll artist. So, thank you, Robert, for continuing to share your art with us—and for making it possible for me to own a little bit of fashion doll history.

So how many dolls do you HAVE?

~ writergal42 ~ 19 Comments

My husband loves to bring people into my doll room. He leads them up our stairs and into our third bedroom, where my “happy place” resides. He positions himself ahead of our guests so that when they enter the room he has a spectator’s view of their facial expressions. And he is seldom disappointed by their “shock and awe.”

After the guest picks his/her jaw off the floor, the most frequent question is, “How many dolls do you have?” which my husband, who has gleefully counted them, is more than happy to answer.

Such people are usually not doll collectors themselves, as nearly all members of the collecting community know that, once you pass a certain number of dolls in your collection, you’d better stop counting. It’s just best for everyone concerned not to be able to answer that question.

It’s true that most collectors I know have more dolls in their collections than they’d care to admit to. But reducing our collections to the number of units they contain trivializes the heart and soul that go into most of these collections. I started amassing my own collection more than two decades ago, and many of my older dolls represent precious time spent with my mother as we traveled to various doll conventions throughout the country. They represent Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, and “just because” gifts. Many of my pieces are one-of-a-kind (OOAK) dolls painted by extremely talented portrait artists. Many pieces of clothing were sewn by hand, their seamstresses achieving beautifully executed miniature-scaled couture. Others are dolls that I pursued for years before finally being able to acquire second-hand. I know the names that each artist represented in my collection gave to their creations.

My collection reflects my own creativity as well. I do not sew for or paint dolls, but I take great joy in mixing and matching their fashions, posing them, and photographing them. I do not excel in any of these things, but I enjoy it, and spending an hour with “my girls” at the end of a long day of work and motherhood is more effective therapy than that provided by the priciest shrink.

Yes, the number of my dolls can be visually overwhelming. But keep in mind that you are looking at much more than a collection of vinyl playthings. You are looking at unique pieces of art that represent the fruit of the creative endeavors of hundreds of talented people. So you will never hear me apologize for proudly displaying them—although I do reserve the right not to count them.

Welcome to Barb’s doll world

~ writergal42 ~ 5 Comments

Dolls are to me many things. They are a hobby, an art, an obsession. They have brought me great joy and great regret. They have brought me closer to some friends and family, and further away from others. They have helped me cope with debilitating depression and grief. They have been both my solace and my demons. They have been my doorway into a unique community of very colorful and talented people. They have brought me new friends, and they have brought me great loneliness.

I believe dolls are unique in the strong emotional reactions they can provoke from people. We dress them in diapers and dresses and give them to young girls to encourage maternal tendencies. We demonize them and cast them as the lead characters in absurd horror films. We give them unrealistic and hyper-sexualized proportions and put them in the hands of prepubescent girls. We encourage their use as imaginative playthings for girls and ridicule the same in boys.

Our various reactions to dolls ultimately tell us much more about ourselves than the actual doll at hand. Women who collect dolls as a hobby are often pathologized, the subject of psychological musings about feelings of inadequate motherhood and childhood lost. Men who collect action figures–which, however you slice it, are DOLLS–are never subject to the same inquiry. At the most, such men are designated as cultural “nerds.” Female doll collectors are just silly.

As a professional writer and a doll collector, this blog will serve as my window into the doll-collecting universe for both insiders and–hopefully–outsiders alike. I intend to offer my own perspectives on the collector doll industry and the colorful personalities that comprise it. I will post photographs of my own dolls and share the work of some of the most talented people in the industry. I hope to bring to wider attention artists whose work I believe is up-and-coming, and I will offer thoughtful critical reviews of the latest products.

Since I am a collector of fashion dolls, my blog will mostly concern itself with that section of the collector market. I have collected a wide variety of dolls during my 20+ years of collecting. Like many, I started out with Barbie, and I abandoned her when her newer 16″ sisters caught my eye. But although they make up the majority of my collection, I have never limited myself to the “taller” fashion dolls. My collection includes the work of Robert Tonner, Integrity, Paul Pham, Helen Kish, Annette Himstedt, Madame Alexander, Jan McLean, and others.

So welcome to “Doll Therapy,” and please subscribe to be notified when there is a new post. I look forward to sharing my dolly journey with all of you. Happy New Year!

 

Below is my latest muse, Paul Pham’s “Stratus.” You can see how well she adapts to different looks and styles. Stratus is one of the loveliest dolls in my collection. The two bottom portraits are the work of the lovely Angela Nielson.

Stratus in Cami wig Hippie7 Paul Pham's "Stratus" Paul Pham's "Stratus"