August Heat vs. Our Playscale Pals

August. Sultry summer time. Pfft.

Dog days of summer. Hot, humid atmosphere. Thunderstorms bringing relief. Mego melt? Try any manufacturer's melt - excessive heat is dangerous to all plastic and/or vinyl DAFs. Direct sunlight - no, no. Please be careful about exposing your DAFs to direct sunlight AND please try to keep them cool. Plastic joints and seams will melt and make it harder to pose.

Denise Van Patten has suggestions for protecting your DAFs in general safe as well as specific suggestions for Barbie types. Additional reading can be found at
1st Collectibles.

Hot weather is tough enough for sweating humans, but it's brutal and fatal for our plastic and vinyl folks, too. Take care.

Happy Belated Birthday, Teresa! Drum Roll, Too.

God, it feels good to finally close my legs!

Oh, I didn't know I was on yet. But check the photo of me below. If you were told to assume a dramatic position, well, you might have done it, too. I was supposed to show how flexible I was. I was also supposed to be bought by some kid who would rip open my packaging and take me out of what had quickly become a painful position. My luck though, I go to a collector who doesn't remove me from my box until 14 years later. On a hot and humid late July afternoon. I kicked off my once-cool brown high tops and wrestled out of the pink corduroy wide legged pants and the long-sleeved argyle sweater. Console myself with this thought: if the kid bought me, I'd probably be in pieces. Here's how I posed in the box:

Whew!

Glad I got out of prison - the box. Why now? I am here to replace another Teresa who was going to bore you with the fashions she inherited from some other Fashion Fever girls. Some officious bit calling herself Izzy-Never-Bella starts snapping orders at me. Yo, Little Mama - who died and made you Queen? She tosses a dress at me, and tells me I won't be able to use the other fashions. The Teresa closet post was scrapped, but drums are on. Guess I am the Teresa understudy. Whatever.

Do any of you remember when my birthday was? First one to write back with the correct date will win a vintage Francie outfit. TBA tomorrow, August 1st.

Wait, bossy Izzy is back with a camera. If I weren't so relieved to have my legs comfortable again, I would seriously kick her ... okay, smiling for the camera.

Jef Beck's Ken Book Available!

I Love Ken: My Life as the Ultimate Boyfriend by doll enthusiast Jef Beck is available online. The book seems to be about Ken as a dating expert. Sounds cute and fun, hmmm? This being Ken's 50th anniversary, what better time to read our favorite male fashion expert's views on dating. Anyone?

Updates to PhillyCollector: Accessibility for Blind Readers

One important update long overdue is to make PhillyCollector blog accessible for blind readers. Yes, Virginia, there are blind doll collectors. Big smile. Hey collectors! At this time, blind readers cannot subscribe here due to the "Subscribe" image NOT having a text alternative. Text alternatives appear instead of photographs or graphics on a web site. They are GOOD because they allow a blind or sight-impaired (sorry, I cannot and will not type "sight challenged") viewer or someone who has turned off graphics (for faster web page loading) to "read" or to "hear" what is on the web page. I have been trying to insert text alternatives here. I have not had luck. So I have to investigate - probably best among the blogging set, rather than the collecting set - oh, thinking in terms of dolls and action figures again - I mean bloggers as opposed to collectors/enthusiasts as to how to make PhillyCollector more accessible.

So far, I have found these articles helpful:

http://www.unleashwebaccess.com/2011/02/help-blind-users-read-your-blog-help-everyone/

http://www.mainecite.org/awd/accdocs/article7.html

http://www.afb.org/Section.asp?SectionID=57&TopicID=167&DocumentID=2757


However, if anyone uses the "alt image" HTML tag for his or her Blogger subscription link, please share your tips on how I could add it to a Blogger subscription link. My thanks in advance for any advice.

ToysRUs Clearance Sale Today! New Liv Series!

Okay, it isn't the greatest of sales. I checked the two pages of Barbie stuff. Nothing I wanted. But then, I am not You, so there might be something that You, Faithful Reader(s), might want. Or the free standard shipping for orders of $75 or more might lure you to the ToysRUs site. (Note: video game hardware, software, accessories are NOT included in this free shipping offer.)


I won't be getting anything this time: spent my doll funds last Saturday. Got a few of those Liv jackets for sale. Thanks, Ms. Leo! No, really thanks ;-D

However, there is more to the ToysRUs website than the for sale items.  Example? Doll research! Yay! Guess who will be bringing new, tanned, JOINTED bodies out? You guessed it - Spinmaster. Cheers. Applause. The series is called Liv Color Change and you can click on the last word of this sentence for a link to show three of the tanned Liv girls. Love their robes and the foot bath thing. Neat.


Additional links to Liv dolls include these two websites: Liv Color Change dolls and Liv dolls dancing to Beyonce's "Single Ladies."

Good luck! Happy Viewing.

Upcoming Third Anniversary of PhillyCollector of Playscale Dolls

Time flies? Well, it can and does move quicker than expected when you're doing something you enjoy. So here I am, three years after I began this blog, PhillyCollector. Yes, three years. I've learned how to upload photos and insert links. I've wrestled with HTML to present lists and tables ... we won't say who won those early battles. Suffice to note: I am NOT backing down yet. Puff.

In fact, I am considering a blog update. No! some of you might be thinking. Please keep this cluttered format. Please. How else will we recognize you? By your cough wit? Ha! Yes, an update is overdue for the blog.

Why am I telling you this? Well, I value your opinions. You are readers of PhillyCollector. Let me know what you think I need to do to refresh.  I'll consider doing it.

Thanks in advance for any feedback!

Surrender at Toys R Us

Okay, this is one of those times when an accessory takes precedence over dolls: the Liv drum set. This I could NOT resist. The accompanying Daniela will - of course - serve as a donor body. But I had to have the drums. Sale price ... $16.18 with tax for both the body and the drums. Eight dollars and nine cents each piece. Not bad. No, there are no musical genes in my body. No dreams of becoming a rock star in my present or my past. But drums and motorcycles are two "cool" must have items. I have plenty of motorcycles and skooters. I missed the Liv drums sale at Walmart. Could not take a chance that I might miss them. I don't have a drummer yet for them, but I have the prop now. So, that's good. I have completely justified my surrender to buy.