It's Been Good to "Know" You (Denise Van Patten)

Denise Van Patten, the Guide of About.com's Doll Collecting, has retired from that post.

Longtime doll collector-enthusiasts may be familar with Ms. Van Patten as author of The Official Price Guide To Dolls or as "proprietress" of Katherine's Cottage. I have gleaned many tips from her About Doll Collecting pages from basic information such as doll terminology and more advanced information like organizing a collection. She has covered a variety of dolls, from antiques to Barbie.

Thanks for your many years of service to the online doll collecting community, Denise Van Patten.

Not Doll-Related SOS Computer Request

I turned off my e-machine computer while it was on.


When I turned it back on, it only shows the "e" logo screen with this two line message


BOOT Menu   :

BIOS Setting  :


Note: pressing the F10 button does not help.


Should I drape the machine with black crepe paper and put on my widow-wear? Any suggestions welcome.


HEEEELLLLPPPP!
Distressed Dana

Puzzler: Just Kidz' Scary Fashion Doll

Usually, I don't pay much attention to what I call the "cheap doll aisle." That aisle in Kmart where they have the Just Kidz toys. This 11.5" fashion doll though stopped me. I like her heart-shaped face. That is somewhat unusual. My jaw didn't drop, but I reached for my digital camera. Was it the tattoos on her face and on her thigh? No, although that placement raised my eyebrow. How many fashion dolls have thigh tattoos? Ankles or cheeks or stomach, yes. Thighs though? Her white complexion a la Mattel's Twilight dolls? No, clones happen. Her odd hollow posing body a la Maddie Mod? No, she's a budget doll. Budget dolls have cheap bodies. Shrug. So why did I decide that I must show this doll?

First, she comes equipped with her own coffin-wardrobe. The coffin-wardrobe looks bizarre to me. It's a flaming pink. (Scorching to the eyes, I would say.) And it has a cross embossed on the front that leaves me puzzled. How many hot pink coffins exist? Especially with crosses on the front?

Second, supernatural dolls seldom show crosses. Think of similar dolls in the "undead" or "mystic" vein: Lovely Patsy's Midnight Magic quartet; Mattel's Twilight series; MGA Entertainment's Bratzillaz; and Playhut's Mystixx teens. No crosses anywhere among those dolls. I am not complaining; I just find the cross - odd? - in this playline fashion doll set. Possibly it's the placement of a sacred image in with a secular setting?

Then, I wonder, what is a supernatural doll figure doing with a cross on her coffin-wardrobe? If she is a vampire - as might be inferred by the coffin - wouldn't the cross be ... well, disturbing? And if she is not a vampire - more likely - isn't the choice of a coffin odd for a wardrobe? Is she a "Goth" fashionista?

Whatever her background and story, let's say that A Scary Fashion doll is Just Kidz's piece of the "scary" fashion doll line. So she could be an interesting addition to your Gothic fashion doll line.

Here is a full length photo of the Scary doll.




And another full length photo of the doll and the coffin-wardrobe.




And last, a photo of the doll's stock number and a non-working url for the JustKidz line.



What do you think?

Spring Cleaning ... When Dolls Explode

Looks like Spring Cleaning is long overdue, yes?

For Alberto ... Mattel So in Style Baby Phat Kara

I've finally found the Mattel So in Style Baby Phat. She is lovely. I can see why she seemed to be the first doll to sell. She has lovely coloring - her streaked hair and her face.

 

More Spin Master Jade Photos ...

Okay, I had a few more photos of Spin Master's Jade from Victorious. So here they are ...

Jade doing push ups. Push ups keep her arms toned.

Jade seated and showing her profile. And her soft cotton distressed jeans.

Jade standing with a wide stance - see, she has some range of poseability.

 

Finally, Jade jumping high because she is so happy to be out of her box and in East Philly. Yay!

VicTORI Spin Master Jade is Here!

Calling any Victorious doll fans.

Anyone recall last year when I mentioned the three additional dolls that were to have been a part of Spin Master's Victorious doll series? Cat, Jade, and Trina? I had not seen any of those dolls so I assumed that they were only available online. For exorbitant prices. Well, I was wrong. The dolls were seen at Walmart by another blogger in January 2012.

Well, I have just seen these dolls in Philly at Ross, Dress for Less stores. Cost? $5.99 each. Yes! So guess who had to get one of them: me. Which one? Jade. Why her? First, she is the only closed mouth doll in the series. Next, she reminds me of a young Elizabeth Taylor. And last, because she looks different from most of my other fashion dolls.

Okay, I know that at least one person is curious about how this doll compares to Spin Master's once popular Liv dolls. At least, I was - so one person, ha ha. So I took a few photos showing a Liv doll body of similar complexion to Jade.

Yes she is no where near as poseable as the Liv dolls, but we all knew that when we found that she only had articulated knees. Her shoulders and legs allow for wide open stances though. So that helps. But alas the no bend arms. Sigh.

Now many of you share my um dislike of bigger heads. And no denying this, Jade has a big head. But it is somewhat in proportion to her body. And I rather like her in spite of the biggish head. She reminds me a little of Azone's Belinda.

What do you think of her? You can see a few Toys R Us reviews.

A PhillyCollector Sells Her Collection

“Enough is enough,” a PhillyCollector stated. “I cannot live with the chaos. It is time to sell my collection.”

“Yes, I thought it was the achievement of my lifetime. Yes, it represents great times and greater contacts. Yes, this particular mix of dolls and action figures will never be repeated. Never. Ever. But I need to move on."

 

When will the collection go on sale? The twelfth of Never ... and as Johnny Mathis sang, "And that's a long long time."

 

Okay, who really thought that I was selling my collection? This is my awful, terrible April Fools' Day joke. Anyone experiencing any doll, action figure, or other related jokes?