The Quest for Perfect Articulation

I know that many of us are on a quest for the best articulation for our dolls. I mean, how many of us get a "stiff" doll and wait for the right skin tone on an articulated doll to really be able to play with that doll? How many of us watch for sales and stock up on articulated bodies just to have on hand for body swaps? How many tutorials have you seen out there sharing techniques on how to improve the articulation on a body with limited range or how to modify a head to make it work on a different type of neck knob (or visa versa) only with the goal in mind of giving that doll articulation? Why do we do it? For me, it makes telling a story with my dolls more plausible. It makes taking pictures of them more enticing. It makes playing with them so much more fun!

When I first started collecting dolls, I only did it for looking at them. I put them in a glass case for the pure pleasure of admiring them. With my vintage dolls, they still hold there place of honor in that glass case. I seldom would rebody one of them as there is something about preserving that aesthetic that won't let me modify them. 

One thing that finding the doll community on the internet with all of the wonderfully posed pictures and creative story telling and simply sharing a mutual joy of doll play and collecting is that my eyes were opened up to the possibility of telling my own stories and expressing my own creativity through my dolls. I found other adults like me who were not afraid of sharing their love for dolls. I feel as though I have made some truly wonderful friends through this connection. And although I haven't personally met any of you, I still feel that I know more about you and you know more about me than a lot of people I have met face to face! I do hope to meet some of you in person some day! Who knows, maybe at a doll convention or something similar.

Ok, I digress! The point of this post was to share what I believe is sheer articulation perfection! Without further ado, meet the latest additions to my little doll town (Hanaly Corners):

Meet Stephanie (Left) and Mayumi (Right). Just having a little girl talk and wondering about the possibilities of life in Hanaly Corners!

These ladies are both the new Phicen figures with the stainless steel skeleton. So far, these ladies have demonstrated the ultimate in articulation. The movement is like silk -- no clicking or "breaking" sounds, just free movement into a multitude of positions. And the feel of their skin is so realistic! Their bodies have realistic shading and they are anatomically correct! I had to be careful when posing them not to show off some of that correctness! They do not fit into most Barbie clothes, but they are seen here wearing dresses from my Mixis ladies. I do not know yet what their roles will be in Hanaly Corners. Will they be married and/or have children? Will they be single and play the field or will they have boyfriends? Their future remains to be seen! In the meantime, I did a photo shoot with them demonstrating some of the posing possibilities that they have!

Shoes are a bit of challenge for them. Mayumi is wearing a pair of high heeled pumps from IT Color Infusion

Stephanie is wearing a pair of red high heels for Cy Girl I found on eBay.

I hope you found this post interesting. I am going to try to post more often and work more on my town. I do have a lot of work to do and stories to tell!

Thanks for stopping by. I welcome your comments!

W Club Registration Dolls, City Shine Barbies and Latest Fashionistas

I have had these dolls for a while now, but have just gotten around to taking pictures of them. First up are the W Club Registration dolls. Since this is my first year in the W Club, I took full advantage of this opportunity. 

Yup, I got all 3 of the registration dolls. Aristocratic Agnes, Groovy Galore Poppy Parker and Vice Effect Ollie Lawson. 

At first, I was on the fence about getting Aristocratic Agnes. But, I knew this would be my only chance to get her and besides, if she arrived and I didn't like her, I could always sell her. Well, when she arrived and I opened the box to this beauty, I was glad I decided to order her as she definitely did not disappoint. She has a beautiful face, lovely dress and gorgeous blonde hair. Below is a close up of her face.

Next is Groovy Galore Poppy Parker. This is only my second Poppy Parker doll. I also have a Poppy Parker as Corrie Bratter. I am just starting to see the appeal of this doll. I do also have a Darla Daly and Kimiko Gunn from the Poppy Parker line, but I now have 2 actual Poppys! I don't think she will be my last! (Of course she won't as I have 2 more on order - Mood Changers and Hippy Dippy!)

The last doll of the registration dolls is Vice Effect Ollie Lawson. He definitely is modeled after Don Johnson of the old Miami Vice series. He is a handsome blonde fellow and he already has many of my ladies talking about him. They are not exactly thrilled that he arrived with a woman on each arm, but I am sure they won't let them stand in their way! Just look into those baby blue eyes and I dare ya not to swoon!

From Barbiecollector.com, I ordered all 4 of the 2015 City Shine Barbies and the latest Grace and the Redheaded Fashionistas. I have not yet deboxed the Barbie City Shine doll, so I did not photograph her at this time. 

"Purple" has the Aphrodite face mold and the most glorious curly red hair. I rebodied her on a hybrid body from a Resort Style Barbie and the legs from a Barbie Director. Usually, I am not able to get the Model Muse dresses on a regular Barbie body, but in this case, the dress fits just fine. "Red" has the Lea/Kayla face mold and has been rebodied on an Elvis Barbie Pivotal body. I love her hair, which has been shampooed and conditioned. "Pink" has the Pazette face mold and has been rebodied on a Style Grace body. Her dress also fits her very well on her new body. 

I also got the 2 latest Barbie Fashionistas from Barbiecollector.com. The latest Grace and the new Redhead. 

The Redhead has been rebodied on a Style Barbie body and Grace has been rebodied on a Baby Phat Grace body.  

Here are some additional shots of the dolls from Barbiecollector.com.

 "Red" is long and lanky! I just love this outfit! She will fit right in with the other models in Hanaly Corners.

 Grace and "Pink" stop to pose for a picture together.

 These 2 redhead look like they might be related! Maybe sisters?!

 "Purple" stops to pose for an individual shot. She is very beautiful after all!

Uh oh, "Pink" saw this new fellow arrive and she grabbed onto him right away. This is Djimon Hounsou from "The Guardians". Hmmm, do you think she will be able to keep him to herself once they join the other residents of Hanaly Corners???

Dasia's New Wardrobe

Thanks to Vanessa from Van's Doll Treasures, Dasia's wardrobe has grown significantly. She has incredible handiwork and I (well Dasia) have certainly taken advantage of that fact. If you haven't done so already, you should check out her Etsy shop. In addition to buying from Vanessa's line of custom Dasia clothing, I also purchased a couple of Groovy Girl outfits for her. She was more than happy to put on a little fashion show for you and her hubby!

First, the clothing from Vanessa's fashion line:

Red skirt with red blouse with white polka dots

Red floral print dress with blue ribbon belt

White V Neck top with Navy skirt with white polka dots

Black & White print top with black skirt. This is one of my favorites!

Animal print night gown Dasia's husband really likes this one - He wanted to give a special thanks to Vanessa for this one!

I also purchased a denim skirt from Vanessa. in the next couple of photos, I am pairing the skirt with Ken shirts I purchased on ebay that fit Dasia very nicely.

Now for the Groovy Girl outfits!

Here is a pair of pajamas from Groovy Girl

Here is a blue jean outfit from Groovy girl.  Note that the jeans don't close all the way in the back, but since it is covered by the top, it is not noticeable.

I also paired the Groovy Girl jeans with some of the shirts from the eBay seller.

With that, our little Dasia fashion show is concluded. Keegan liked all the outfits, but he especially likes the animal print night gown made by Vanessa!

Keegan: Thank you, Vanessa!

I Got a Ruruko!

Some of you may remember that a Ruruko doll was the top item on my Grail list. She sells out very quickly when they go on sale from Petworks, so they are quite expensive in the secondary market. I found one on eBay that was going for a reasonable price. Although she was nude, I jumped on the Buy It Now option and she arrived in my home yesterday. I dressed her in a mini AG dress and shoes. Isn't she adorable?

She very quickly made friends with my homemade Ruruko (the Momoko/Pure Neemo hybrid). 

Before I found the Ruruko doll, I had ordered several Licca heads to go on the XS Pure Neemo bodies I had previously purchased.  I now have 5 new girls and 1 new boy for Ruruko to be friends with.

Ruruko is so happy to be meeting so many new friends. They all cannot wait to get their names and find out what families they will be in. In the meantime, I think they will have fun playing with one another!