Finally ... A Chance To Play

First a story about "A Funny Thing Happened on My Way to the Convention".

Before going to the convention this year, I made plans to meet face-to-face with one of my favorite doll people - RichFL.   He is one of the most generous and kind individuals you could ever hope to know.  Unfortunately, it wasn't as easy to meet up as I anticipated; we kept missing each other.

On Saturday morning, Rebecca Berry (another truly amazing person), ran into me and said, "Rich has been looking all over for you!"  I asked her what he looked like.  She described Rich and told me he was wearing khaki shorts and a plaid shirt.   

So, I went on "The Great Rich Hunt!"   If I passed a man who fit Rich's description, I asked, "Are you Rich?"  It was surprising how many men were wearing plaid shirts and khaki shorts.  Even if the gentleman wasn't wearing a convention badge, I asked them, "Are you Rich?" I was set on finding my friend.  In the lobby, a man responded with "Exactly how rich do I need to be?"  I don't know precisely how many heavy, older women are pushing their personal wares at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress, but this man seemed amiable to the experience if the price was right.  Needless to say, "The Great Rich Hunt" ended right then and there.   It may have been a creative alternative for acquiring those elusive table centerpieces, but it wasn't going to happen.

I only posted this because my husband believed my blog should be an equal opportunity for embarrassment since I posted about his stage experience.

Now ... to our regularly scheduled program.

Choosing my first doll from the convention to write about was a very difficult decision.  There is the glamorous Eugenia who is getting alot of web time right now.  But the doll that caught my attention immediately and has been calling my name is Hot Dots Poppy.

This is not your traditional Poppy Parker.   I've always thought of Poppy as a young girl, late teens to early twenties, who is trying to make it in the Big Apple.  This doll transcends the Poppy story line.  She is a doll who has already made it.

Hot Dots Poppy is in a mini giftset.  She is wearing a one piece bathing suit with a little skirt tied around it.  The ribbon on the skirt matches the ribbon on the espadrilles - which was nice attention to details.

The bathing suit itself is too modern for Poppy's storyline.  The legs of the swimsuit are cut very high - too high for her body.  The fabric in the crotch doesn't fit snugly enough.

She comes with a beach bag that has the coolest little applique of a purse on the outside.

There is also some very nice jewelry.

The hairstyle on this Poppy is excellent.  Had Flawless Elise had this style, she would've definitely been flawless.

I wanted to show both profiles.

Here eyelashes are perfect.  The hair color is almost "frosted" looking.

The additional shorts outfit is my favorite part of the giftset.

There are a few Poppy Parker girls that hang out around here.  Somehow, I knew this girl was a little different.  She needed something else.  I had wanted to change her body, because she needs to be taller.  Her skintone is very different than the first tan version of Poppy.  I read that Christine (Shuga Shug) was putting her Poppy on a Neve body.  When I was putting things away from the convention, I found a Vinyl Vintage Sooki head in a drawer.  Where was the body???  I found it on a Barbie Basics.  It was an excellent match!

Now she truly belongs here.  She is perfect to me.  She needs a new name and some more redressing.  I really LOVE this doll.  One of the very best from the convention.

Color Infusion

First, I want to post a link to a wonderful flickr page.  There have been many naysayers about the clothing used in this year's convention line.  This awesome doll sleuth uncovered the inspiration behind several of the ensembles.  Enjoy the photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/64796926@N06/with/8049519162/#photo_8049519162

I promised last week I'd post something about the Color Infusion Lab at the Convention.   As this was my first Convention, I was disappointed that there wouldn't be a Dynamite Girl Build-A-Doll Workshop this year.  Actually I was disappointed that there were no Dynamite Girls at all. 

When you pay for convention registration, you get an e-mail with the official convention information several weeks later.  This information included details about workshops.  At that time, we were notified that there would be 14 different Color Infusion Dolls - 10 girls and 4 boys.  There were also 4 girl outfits and 2 boy outfits.  Later there was an ordering process for reserving dolls.  You could reserve as many as you wanted and would pick up a ticket when you arrived at the convention.  The price was $65 per doll/ensemble combination.  Attendees with tickets were given preference in line and dolls were first come/first serve.

At the convention, they didn't ask to see the tickets when you got in line, but you had to have them when you paid for the dolls.   When I arrived after breakfast, the line was all the way up the stairs - some attendees got in line at 3:00 a.m.  The convention management put a limit on purchases - you could only buy one of each version up to 14 tickets.  Most individuals in line were able to get the dolls they wanted.  After lunch, they opened the sale of CI to all attendees and anyone could buy whatever dolls they wanted.  Several sold out almost immediately.

I reserved 10 dolls.  These dolls were nothing like what I expected.  I expected a lot of avante garde color in faceups and odd hair colors.  Surprisingly, the dolls themselves do not fit the description of Color Infusion at all.  There were five female molds with two different skintones of each mold.   They were labeled A - J.   The first doll to sell out was Model I.  She was a beautiful Asian doll. 

I didn't like Model J which was the other version of this mold- auburn hair and darker complexion.  I also did not like either version of the G/H mold.   Another doll to sell out quickly was Model C.  She is amazing.

I liked this mold in both skintone versions.  So I got Model D also.

Everyone was excited about Model B who was shown on the poster for the Color Infusion Lab.  She is a gorgeous African American doll.

I actually preferred Model A.  She looks like a California girl:

This is what makes Integrity Toys so exciting.  They give you something you totally do not expect.  You don't even realize it's something you want until they show it to you.  I LOVE these girls.  Even with their big feet and hands.

Although I didn't like Model F, I liked Model E - who was another sell-out.

As there were only four ensemble choices, I had to get two repeats.  The outfits were the "Color Infusion".  The models were beautifully painted with awesome hair choices.  The ensembles were dramatic. 

Ensemble One:

Ensemble Two:

Ensemble Three:

Ensemble Four:

These ensembles fit many of the IT body types although the tops usually do not fit the bigger busts on the FR women. 

The outfits are well constructed; however, it seems that certain pieces are difficult to put on the new CI bodies.  These new models have big feet.  They cannot wear any shoes that fit other Integrity Dolls.  That's why we were offered a shoe pack for $20.

I have 11 pair of Star Doll shoes and they all fit these girls well.  They are plastic, but it's better to have plastic shoes than no shoes, right?  There are also several pair of Monster High shoes that fit as well. 

There were also 4 Male Dolls.  They are all created from the Chip mold.  I was shocked to see such handsome faceups using the Chip mold.  We'll start with model K who has wonderful locks and a hispanic skintone.  He also has facial hair.

Next we have Model L, my personal favorite of the boys.  He also has facial hair.

The most popular doll was Model N.  He looks quite a bit like Beautiful Boy but with a caucasian skintone.

I didn't get Model M - he had red hair and didn't appeal to me.  The two outfits are extremely well made and these males have the same bodies as the regular FR Hommes, so they can wear any of the Hommes clothing.. 

Ensemble 5 is really cool.  You can't tell from photos, but that black and white checked jacket is vinyl. 

Ensemble 6 is also very nice.

Even though I had 10 tickets, I decided to only get 9 dolls.  Although I was very surprised by these dolls, I was reluctant to go in 100%.   Their faces and hair are much better than I ever expected. It was not my intention to start a new collection, but I don't seem to be able to put them up for sale.  I love their face-ups.