The Joys of Collecting "Younger" Dolls

I first started collecting Fashion Royalty dolls in 2004.  I only had a couple of dolls when I discovered Nippon Misaki.  It is an Integrity Toys (IT) line manufactured exclusively for the Asian market.  I immediately fell in love with the "playability" of these dolls.  Harajuku Honey is still one of my very favorites.  I really enjoyed Misaki dolls until about 2009 when IT seemed to lose interest in maintaining the line (49 dolls were released between 2004 - 2009 and less than half that number since).

There are several Misaki that I missed from the early years.  Fortunately I was able to pick up two of them recently at great prices.   The first is from 2006 and is called Autumn Champagne.  I owned her once but used her in a trade.  I have regretted the decision ever since, so you can't imagine how happy it made me to find a beautiful version NRFB to replace her.

The second is from the 2007 Summer Collection and is called Summer Blues.  I own Summer Storm and Summer Crush from this line already.

Having purchased these dolls, reminded me of the joy I had playing with my Misaki and Poppy Parker dolls before the Fashion Royalty and FR2 dolls took over.  They are surprisingly easy to find clothing for since they can wear most Barbie clothes, as well as Dynamite Girl and Momoko clothing.  Recently I found some newly released outfits of the Sparkle Girlz by Funville.  Here is a Barbie Basics wearing one of the ensembles I found.

And here is Hot Dots Poppy (one of my favorite dolls from the Tropicalia Convention) modeling a t-shirt/denim shorts outfit with some Sparkle Girlz shoes from a different package.

Did you notice she was standing on her own?  That's right!  I was excited to find that the Sparkle Girlz shoes fit Poppy and Misaki!  They may be rubber, but who cares?  right?  More shoe wardrobe choices!

I had forgotten how much I loved this doll when she came out.  I tend to prefer the less valuable Poppy Parker dolls.  I wound selling my rarer dolls last year (Reluctant Debutante, Fashion Night Out, and Holiday in the Hamptons).  I just couldn't enjoy playing with something that was worth so much money.  Is that weird?

I purchased Hot Dots at the only doll convention I've ever attended, so she is very special to me.  I think she looks quite smart in her $2 outfit from Walmart!  So, I had a joy-filled morning redressing and playing with a doll for less than $10.  Sometimes, the best fun doesn't have to cost a lot of money!

I hope my readers didn't mind the change of pace.  I just felt like playing today.

Inspirations and Aspirations

After my last blog entry, I was inspired to test some clothing on my FR2 bodies.   I decided to take out four of my favorite FR2 releases from last year.  Four dolls that I believe are quite under-rated and under-appreciated.

I started with my Monogram clothing (included in the previous post).  Here is a repeat photo of Sheer Sensuality Vanessa mold 1.0 wearing it.  It fits like a glove!

Next, I thought I would try some Silkstone clothing.  I have quite a number of lovely suiting possibilities.  As long as there are no long sleeves, it seems Silkstone also provides a clothing option to FR2.  Here is Full Spectrum Veronique wearing the Fashionably Foral Ensemble that was recently released.  You can see why this Silkstone is already sold out!  The outfit can be picked up on e-bay for around $35 shipped.

I felt like I was on a roll!   I took out an older outfit from a doll seamstress.  The pants and blouse were created by SL Doll design (Sanglian) who is currently selling on Etsy.  It is being modeled by Elusive Creature Natalia.  I believe most collectors prefer her sister, Brazen Beauty, but I really like Elusive Creature.

I hope my readers have noticed the new format for posting photos.  I have taken the inspiration from another collector on Flickr.   I think it is a nice way to show how the doll looks in the ensemble and then see a closeup of the doll's face.   Speaking of inspiration, a Flickr poster recently created a collage of clothing designs they would like to see in the FR reveal later this month.   One of the designs sent me looking for this Clear Lan dress and NuFace jacket.   The model is Fashion Explorer Vanessa mold 3.0.

Now, that I've covered "inspirations", it's time to write about "aspirations".   A few years ago, I thought I would try something different and combine Fashion Royalty mainline heads with NuFace bodies.  I was going to attempt a "When they were young" group of dolls.  I wanted to pretend like the new dolls were the teen versions of the beloved characters.   Here is a photo.

I tried to choose dolls that looked "young".   I picked Girl of the Moment Veronique, Spring Forward Eugenia, Something Sexy Adele, and Urban Geisha Kyori.  I have Shock Bon Bon Vanessa ready for a spa visit to correct her eyes.  I also had Capricious Natalia, but in a purge frenzy two years ago, I sold her.  Although I have some seller's remorse (a latin NuFace body is rare - The Making of Erin is the only NuFace doll to use it), she resides with a dear friend and fellow blogger.

Unfortunately, the older NuFace body is no longer being manufactured, so this project will be unable to be finished without a lot of effort and money.  I hate to abandon it, but I'm not sure it is worth the time to complete.  I liked Spring Forward Eugenia so much in her ensemble, I had to show you another photo.