I have been waiting for the perfect time to take this doll out and spend some designated playtime with her, but things have been so busy this winter. Since I am trying to be completely upfront with my collecting this year and not get too far behind, I decided to proceed with my review anyway to allow myself the opportunity to get caught up.
A Doll's Life Vanessa Perrin was my only "Must Have" doll from the 2021 Integrity Toys Obsession Convention. She was designed by Mark Tinkey. I have been a big fan of Mark Tinkey since I started collecting Misaki dolls in 2006. Mark was recently given the design task to takeover the much-neglected NuFantasy line from Integrity Toys. He has created two stellar dolls for that line already with Divining Beauty Adele Makeda (mold 3.0). Photo property of Integrity Toys (IT).
And her predecessor Smoke and Shadows Vanessa Perrin (mold 3.0). Photo property of IT.
A Doll's Life Vanessa Perrin was the "Welcome Event" doll and was a gift to online attendees as part of their convention registration ($525). There seemed to be two complaints from collectors regarding this doll:
1. She looked very similar to Smoke and Shadows
2. She was too pink and reminded collectors a great deal of Mattel's Barbie dolls.
In regard to the first complaint, I can see the comparison to Smoke and Shadows. I actually passed on Smoke and Shadows because it reminded me too much of several other dolls in my collection with smoky eyes and low blonde ponytails: Renegade Dasha D'Amboise (2011), October Issue Agnes Von Weiss (2013), Secret Garden Eugenia Frost (2018), Passion Week Elyse Jolie (2018), and, most recently, Violet Obsidian Vanessa Perrin (2020). As a matter of fact I had thinned out my collection of similar dolls in 2020 (See blog entry: Blonde IT Dolls With Ponytails ) Smoke and Shadows is a lovely doll, but I have a great deal of difficulty bonding with mold 3.0. My favorite that is still residing in my collection is Star Power from 2015.
Since I didn't purchase Smoke & Shadows Vanessa Perrin, the similarity with A Doll's Life didn't affect my decision to add her to my collection.
Now about that complaint related to Barbie. Doll collectors can be a fickle group of people. I was surprised so many convention ticket holders complained that A Doll's Life was too much like "Barbie". Didn't David Buttry just do an entire Style Lab on this concept in 2019 (Poppy Parker: She's A Real Doll)? He did interpretations that were almost duplicates of vintage Barbies and collectors lost their minds over this line. Several grails came out of it. Was A Doll's Life just too literal an interpretation of the first doll from the "Barbie Style" line?
Personally, I don't mind in the least. If anything, A Doll's Life is "Barbie Style #1 on steroids". Mark Tinkey commented that he wanted this to be a "fantasy of mix and match play". There were so many incredible mix and match pieces. This is a photo of the actual doll as packaged.
The next group of photos are all from the promotional post by Integrity Toys.
And just look at all the accessories!
I immediately thought "Grail Status" and was afraid I would never be able to buy this doll. I now realize there is no predicting what collectors will do - this doll can still be picked up on secondary market for less than $400. I was blessed to be in the right place at the right time. One attendee who doesn't collect many female dolls offered A Doll's Life NRFB for sale for $200. I was in tears when I was able to acquire her at that price. I will always appreciate that individual and hope he reads this post.
Here is a closeup photo of my doll. When things slow down a little, I plan to spend a lot of time with her.
I think she is one of the most beautiful versions of Vanessa Perrin ever produced. #4 for 2022 is A Doll's Life Vanessa Perrin (mold 3.0)
