Showing posts with label Modernist Eugenia Frost. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Modernist Eugenia Frost. Show all posts

Saturday, September 15, 2018

Modernist Eugenia Frost - 11.5 of 2018

In my last post, I noted that the eyes on my Modernist Eugenia were wonky ...
I contacted Patient Care at W Club and was told to take the doll apart and return the head attached to the breast plate.  That means deboxing, undressing, and taking the whole doll apart.  I am a teacher and we have started our new year, so I am very busy right now.  I haven't had a lot of time for my hobby over the last few weeks.

Fortunately, I printed out the "Damaged Product Replacement/Repair Form" that was sent by Patient Care.   I'm glad I did because there is now a disclaimer printed on the bottom:

IMPORTANT:

Please note that this return is only authorized for 30 days from the date the RA number is issued!  Send your defection item(s) without delay.   If we do not receive your defective parts within 30 days, we will assume that replacement is no longer required, as replacement parts may no longer be available after that period.  (Normal resolution time is approximately 4 to 5 weeks.)

When did this happen?  What ever happened to the 1 year warranty?  If you purchase an IT product, you better check it out thoroughly!  

Last year I purchased a NuFace doll from an IT dealer 8 months after the doll was released.  She came with glue all over the iris of her eye.  I contacted Patient Care and was told that they no longer had a replacement head for her.  I contacted them within 30 days of receiving the doll directly from an IT dealer and it was within the one year warranty period.  Looks like they are cutting back.

... Since the doll no longer has a head or breastplate, I titled this post 11.5 of 2018.  Clever, right?

The most exciting part of receiving this doll was the new packaging.  In an effort to be more environmentally friendly and provide better travel packaging, IT has changed the whole design of the box!

First here is the box from outside.
I like it.  It's simple but still gives the buyer the sense of quality we've come to expect - the use of the rose gold foiling accent is a nice touch.  The box has returned to opening with a flap and now has a string to tie it shut (instead of the ribbons the older version of the flap box used).
Although, I am not opposed to this new design, it was very nice that you could fit the bottom part of the double box into the top and store the dolls in the box facing out into cabinet.  That option for display is no longer available.  You have to lift the doll and liner out of the box to do display the doll NRFB.
I am very appreciative of the vents and the desiccant packet being placed outside the doll compartment.  Kudos!  
The desiccant packets have been a grave concern for me since they first started using them.  They often came loose and bounced around during transit wrecking all kinds of havoc to eyelashes.

The doll stand now slides out from the the bottom behind the doll.  NO EXCESSIVE TAPE!  And the telescoping stand is now on the outside of the box where the desiccant packets are glued.  Another item you no longer have to worry about coming lose during transit and banging around inside the compartment where the doll resides.  GREAT PLANNING!
My only complaint is the Accessory Compartment.  I really prefer the older version where the box comes out so you can store your accessories together.  (This box is glued in place!  Which also makes it difficult to get to the additional accessories that are taped down behind the box.)   I love how the original accessory box slips into a sleeve which feels more luxurious and expensive.  I hate the tab - if there are a lot of accessories stored inside, it immediately flips open upon opening the box and everything spills out onto the floor (at least that's what happened with Eye Candy Rayna).  This is a major step backwards in my opinion which I hope will be remedied.
The boots' zippers are like butter!  One of the easiest pairs of boots to get on and off.   This purse if one of my favorite purses ever produced by IT.  The earrings are quite nice.   The sunglasses are "meh".  So, how does Modernist Eugenia look?
Yes, she is standing on her own - without the stand.  The dress reminds me of that stupid picture a couple years ago "What color do you see?"   I think it's light blue.
I remember how excited the W Club was to have the opportunity to create this doll through a polling process.  Unfortunately, in their excitement, members forgot to research the actual hair color and skin tone, choosing what they thought the combination looked like from a fellow member's mock up.  
Not sure if this one will remain in my collection.   I just need some redress time to see how she looks in other ensembles.  Which is going to have to wait "4 to 5 weeks".  

Also, I'm not a fan of the gray sclera on this version - probably because her face up is already shades of gray and her skin tone is so dark.  The fact that her irises are gray doesn't help matters.  There just doesn't seem to be "life" to this version.

NOTE:  A couple collectors have shared that the 1-Year Warranty period is still valid.  The 30 Days to send in your part is for "holding" a part for replacement.   If you go beyond the 30 Days, you have to submit another Patient Care request.


Saturday, September 8, 2018

Can Anyone's Luck Be This Bad?

I remember a few short years ago when Integrity Toys (IT) was experiencing growing pains and there were several dolls released with flaws.  IT was very proactive and replaced defective dolls, clothing, and/or accessories.  They even gave all W Club members a one-time special credit to use on future purchases.  That's the way a company should respond to factory problems; it's why collectors remained loyal to this brand.

Things straightened out and collectors no longer hand to hold their breath when opening a new doll.  It was bliss!  Unfortunately, I seem to be having a run of bad luck lately.  I purchased Just a Tease Mme Jolie from a dealer.   I tend to participate on the doll boards, the W Club, flickr, and Facebook.  Other collectors started posting photos of the sewing mistakes on this doll's lingerie.
Yep, mine was crooked as well.  I contacted patient care and waited almost 8 weeks for a replacement.  When it arrived, it came without stockings attached.  (I know the stockings weren't damaged on the original, but I have arthritis and it takes me a lot of time and frustration to snap those little things in the right places.)  I'm not sure those little stockings cost that much to produce, and it would've been very nice to open the package and have every thing just ready to put on the doll.  I mean I could've been super picky and asked for a new head since the right eye's iris seems lower than the left, but I decided it was so much that I couldn't live with it.

I recently blogged about Time of The Season Poppy Parker.  She was my Doll Number 10 of 2018.  Like many other collectors, I had to report that the lower legs had been stained by the hose.
I am still waiting on the replacement parts from China ...

Apparently, I was one of the more lucky collectors with Fame & Fortune Vanessa Perrin.  Many collectors have reported "wonky" eye with this version.  I love mine.   Faces of Adele Makeda was also a home run hit for me.  I recently received the W Club upgrade dolls, Eye Candy Rayna and Modernist Eugenia Frost.

Many collectors are in a frenzy over the use of "grayish" paint for the sclera of the eyes.  I hadn't noticed this in Fame & Fortune Vanessa (where it apparently started, but isn't too obvious).  I can tell the difference in Eye Candy Rayna; she will be getting her own review in the near future.  I think this is a lovely version.
However, I also have Go Home Rayna from 2011.  I think Go Home Rayna is one of the most perfect dolls, head-to-toe, produced.
I am faced with deciding which may stay; however, they are so different in style I think there is room for both.  Rayna is one of a few doll molds where I have every version ever produced.
When I opened Modernist Eugenia Frost, I knew her eyes were off.  I mean I haven't even gotten the replacement legs back for Poppy and I am sending off another defective head for replacement.   (The gray in her sclera is more obvious in this doll.  I'm not sure if it is the skin tone color or the fact that the sclera is almost the same color as the dress, but I don't like it in this doll.  Maybe it's just all the grays in the eyeshadow.  And then it may just be a combination of these things.)

I thought about selling her NRFB, but I can't sell a defective head to another collector.  I'll have to wait a couple months for the replacement to arrive.  First, I have to remove the torso and head and send it to CANADA; from there, they will order me another torso and head from China.  Wait time:  2 months at least.  Then I have to reassemble the doll.  If I decide to sell it, it won't be NRFB anymore.  This doll cost me $135 with shipping.  I shouldn't have to go to all this trouble.

Fortunately, I have amassed a lovely collection over the past 13 years I have been collecting IT dolls. If I never purchased another doll, I should be happy with those residing here.  But, as we all know, I seem to be forever desperately seeking dolls.