More Bang for the Buck

It was my intention to continue introducing my readers to my collection.  You met my playline dolls who reside permanently here in my last post.  I was going to move on to my next group of girls, but a friend and I were talking about some Barbie Models on Location giftsets from five or six years ago.  I was telling her how versatile the pieces were and which dolls looked good in the outfits.   That phone conversation led to this blog.

There were four giftsets in this collection and each giftset included a Model Muse Body Barbie.  I was able to find all four giftsets when they were first released- two were on clearance and one even showed up at my local Tuesday Morning.   The most popular doll was in the Models on Location: Monte Carlo.   (Since these were designed for Model Muse dolls, everything fits that body type, so I didn't include any photos of Model Muse Dolls)

Wearing the Monte Carlo pants and top is Dynamite Girl Feelin' Fierce Dani. 

The pants in these sets fit the first version (before the knee enhancement and the longer legs) perfectly.  They look fantastic on the DGs.  The length is perfect and the fit is comfortable.   I didn't include the jackets because it makes it harder to pose the girls, but the DGs are ideal for the jackets because their hands actually come out. 

 Grace is looking at her watch and saying, "It is about time you realized that you left me out of the last blog post."  Grace is #10 in the playline dolls that reside here permanently.  She was the last doll I added to my permanent collection and was the subject of the previous blog.  I forgot her; I'm sorry, Grace.  She is wearing the Monte Carlo top and skirt.

 Grace is also sporting a DG body.  You can see the skirt and top are perfect fits. 

 The Fashion Royalty women can wear very little from these collections.  The pants are too tight (and too short for the new taller body).  The jackets and sweaters do not come all the way down on their arms.  The blouses are too tight for those big breasteses.  They can wear the skirts and two of the bathing suits.  This is Eris (a Sheer Goddess Veronique on a taller body) wearing the Monte Carlo swimsuit. 

Next up, we have DG Boogie Beach Aria wearing the South Beach casual jeans and peasant blouse.   Aria is also a DG.   I had originally planned on using only DGs for all of the photos and "killing two birds with one post" by introducing that segment of my collection, but then I wanted to show other dolls wearing the clothing. 

As you can see, the jeans are a perfect length and Aria just looks so funky in this blouse!

Silkstones are a "hit" or "miss" with this collection.  The pants are usually too tight.  It's a struggled getting their hands through the jackets, but they are the correct length.  The tops are a tad snug but "do-able".  The skirts fit nicely as does this South Beach dress.

 I thought Lingerie #4 (known as Marilyn) was just radiant wearing this.  

This brings me to the fashionista body.  Again, the pants are a struggle.   The skirts, blouses, and swimsuits fit fine.  Actually, the swimsuits fit this body better than any because their hips are a little thicker. 

Barbie Basics 2.0 Teresa has not been placed "permanently" yet, but she is growing on me.   Especially in this South Beach swimsuit.

By this time, I realized I hadn't photographed anyone except DGs wearing the pants, so I pulled out my favorite Misaki, Harajuku Honey.  Those who have been posting for some time on the boards may remember her from her model training in Europe where she found her Lavender Poodle, Henri.

 The Misaki dolls look extraordinary in everything from this collection.   Their flat feet allow them to stand on their own more easily.   This is the pantsuit from the Milan Collection.  Again, I didn't include the matching jacket.

This is the upgrade Jett from the last Integrity Convention.  She is on the "refreshed" taller body with better knees.  Although she cannot wear the pants, she definitely looks great in the skirt outfit from Milan.

 Even though her legs got lengthened a little, the arms stayed the same.  Everything except the pants can be worn by the new version of the DG girls.

 Kiki holds a very special place in my collection.  She was my model in Pink Parlor's Next Top Doll contest from a few years back.  The Nuface girls are too tall for the slacks and the sweaters/jackets are too short on the arms.  The tops, skirts, dresses, and swimsuits fit fine though.

 Kiki really knows how to work that Milan swimsuit.

 Since the Monogram dolls have similar attributes to the NuFace dolls like Kiki, they can wear the same pieces as KiKi.   Again, no pants, jackets, or sweaters.

 But Blue Chip looks very nice in this dress from the Barcelona Collection.  Even the length works.

 The Poppy Parker girls get a "modern" facelift with these collections.   They are like Honey and the other Misaki dolls.   Everything fits great and looks fantastic on the Poppy Parker girls.

 I really like how I Love How You Love Me looks in this top. This was the pants outfit from Barcelona.  The length is supposed to be low calf: sort of like clam diggers.

I decided to end the blog with another DG.  This is Electro Pop Aria.  I gave her a "faux"hawk in the front.  She looks like Li'l Kim to me.  She is wearing the Barcelona swimsuit which is one of my very favorite pieces.

I call her Kym.  She is a very difficult doll to adjust to with that pink hair, but I just love her.

I didn't include all of the purses or accessories.  Most of the shoes were selected from my stash of shoes and may not be the ones actually included in the giftsets.  These giftsets can still be found and are reasonably priced.   The clothing has NO velcro.  Everything has snaps.  Although items are not lined, they are quality made.  Many cute details.  For the price it is hard to find nicer groups of clothing WITH A DOLL INCLUDED!

Let The Games Begin

I just got back from vacation in Charleston.  With my mother's illness and getting behind in school, I've neglected to finish unpacking from my move after our marriage last June.   There are doll boxes, bodies, clothing, etc., etc.  

I have been very good about keeping my doll numbers manageable this year.   So far, more dolls have left then have come in.  I know that is about to change with the shipping of the new Integrity girls.   (Woe is me!)

One of my projects this summer is to organize my collection.   I decided to start with my "playline" dolls.   They consist of my Mattel dolls. 

The first doll is my only Barbie I still have from my childhood.  I had three sisters, so all of our dolls got "pooled" together and wound up in different places and experiences.  One of my sisters decided she was going to become a hairdresser and cut off most of our dolls' hair.  I can remember Momma meeting us as we got off the bus one afternoon with, "Don't get upset, but Wendy ..."  My favorite of the Barbies was Malibu, and I somehow managed to hide her from my sisters and keep her in the condition you see below. 

After I grew up, finished college, got married, started a career ... I found my way back to Barbie.  This was in the 1990's when everything started being overproduced.  I purchased a number of "collector" editions and jumped on the Silkstone bandwagon the very first year.   In 2005, I found the following Playline Doll.   She is a Fashion Fever Makeup Chic AA doll.

For some reason this doll reminds me of Brook Burke.   So, naturally her name is Brooke.  When the fashionista articulated dolls came out, she was put on a new body.

I went to doll shows regulary because I was collecting Vogue Ginny dolls from the 1960s and antique dolls.  Other than the Silkstone and Fashion Royalty dolls, I didn't have very many playline girls.  When I was leaving a doll show, I saw a seller who had a group of the Model of The Moment Marissa dolls.  They were $5.  I decided to buy one for the outfit.  When I got home, I started playing around and decided to try this girl on an articulated body.  What a difference.  That's when "Lara" was born.

I really do enjoy Lara.  She is casual and fun.  My best doll friend has adopted one as well, since seeing mine on the articulated body.  Lara became my "travel companion".   She went with me to my next show.   At this show, I found a vintage doll that needed some love.  I forget which doll she is, but she had received a haircut and been placed on a twist n turn body.  She looked like she needed to be loved and be in someone's collection.

She is wearing Caribbean Cruise.  I named her Diane after my closest cousin.  Diane was older than me and introduced me to Barbies.  I used to go to her house and we would play Barbies for hours.  So, I now have a Diane in my collection.

A couple years ago, Barbie released their "Basics" line in the black dresses.  I was really impressed with these dolls, but it wasn't until they came out with the 1.5 girls exclusive to Target that I caved!  Here is my very favorite "playline doll", Chaundra. 

Chaundra is the mascot around here.   She keeps the other girls in line.  She gets to this since she has more attitude than all the other girls combined.   The biggest mistake I made when I got Chaundra was that I wanted a body with a perfect match.  Integrity was having a massive sale on their Dynamite Girls, so I ordered a few to use as body donors.   Chaundra is using a Dayle body.   The search for Chaundra's body led me to collecting DG's, which will be focus of a future blog.

When I started experimenting with heads and different bodies, it didn't take me long to find that some Mattel heads actually looked good on FR bodies.  Here is Nikki on a Josephine Baker body.  I love her like this.  I've been asked by several collector friends how I "tamed" her hair.  All I did was slowly push the rubber band backwards until it was where I wanted it.  Voila!  No trick! 

I fell in love with all of the Barbie Basic 2.0 jeans girls.  However, only three have made it into permanent spots in my collection.  They all have received articulation.   The first is Carli.  Carli is my socialite and bain of Chaundra's existence.  The mere sound of Carli's name and Chaundra grimaces.

The most popular doll from this collection was the Louboutin mold #14.  She is called Anjila in my house.  She is on a DG body also.  Her skintone is hard to match.

And the final playline doll currently in my collection is Chaundra's best friend.  Her name is Arizona.

So, there is a grand total of 9 playline dolls in my "permanent" collection.   They have names and personalties. There are a few "visitors" but these are staying.