Back in 2009, taking part in the 50 years of Barbie celebrations (my-my, does she look swell for her age or what?), the Parisian boutique Colette dedicated a room on the first floor of the Parisian store to Barbie. As part of that set up, Karl Lagerfeld, the venerable designer behind Chanel and Fendi (plus his own brand) shot his favourite male model, Baptiste Giabiconi, with Barbie and limited edition prints of the photos were on sale there. I got wind of this only recently, while researching a previous Barbie post, so I am posting the results of the photo shoot (and subsequent photo shopping) today. I must say that the photos look a bit boring, as if Karl wanted to get over with this soon. Judging from his photographic oeuvre, I expected more from him.
There was also a collection of Barbie clothes on sale designed by Jeremy Scott, Linda Farrow sunglasses, a mini pink Goyard trunk and other Barbie-related stuff. Most of the clothes in the photo shoot doll look gorgeous.
Tonner Dolls announced a mini collection with three dressed dolls inspired by Dr. Seuss stories. All dolls have the Monica Merrill™ sculpt which is appropriately cartoon-y for Dr. Seuss but not for a fashion doll. Their body is the 16" Tyler™ BW body so the fashions can be easily worn by many other 16" dolls - but unfortunately they are not sold separately. They style reminds me a lot of Christian Lacroix and his whimsical couture collections. Also the embroidered "sketch" effect reminds me a lot of a certain John Galliano Christian Dior couture collection. The dolls are already available on-line at Tonner. albeit a bit pricey.
"This high-fashion take on the colorful, poetic whimsy of Dr. Seuss is
a marriage of what we do best: High fashion and pop culture. What you see here is not a re-creation of the Seuss characters, per se, but instead, creations inspired by the colors and the shapes that are at the essence of what we all love about Dr. Seuss's art".
From The Cat In The Hat comes The Cat's Hat LE 500
$189.99 Dressed doll. Face includes hand-painted details. Fine quality vinyl and hard plastic. Monica Merrill™ head sculpt. Tyler™ BW body. Cameo skin tone. Violet inset eyes. Blue rooted saran hair. Red and white striped flocked hat with yellow feather detail. Red faux fur vest with blue belt. Yellow shantung dress with black stitched accents. Red and White stripe tights. Yellow and black bead earrings. Blue faux leather boots.
From Green Eggs and Ham comes Sam I Am LE 500
$189.99 Dressed doll. Face includes hand-painted details. Fine quality vinyl and hard plastic. Monica Merrill™ head sculpt. Tyler™ BW body. Cameo skin tone. Inset green brown eyes. Yellow rooted saran hair. Red elastic hair tie. Orange shantung top with black stitched accents and blue faux fur trim. Red stretch knit gloves. Orange, red and green ribbon skirt. Blue lace tights. Blue, black & red bead earrings. Yellow faux leather boots with blue faux fur trim.
From Lorax comes Truffula LE 500
$189.99 Dressed doll. Face includes hand-painted details. Fine quality vinyl and hard plastic. Monica Merrill™ head sculpt. Tyler™ BW body. Cameo skin tone. Inset green eyes. Orange rooted saran hair. Yellow hair ribbon. Pink shantung top with black stitching and blue faux fur trim with orange shantung ribbon. Purple shantung skirt with black printed accents and yellow shantung trim. Pink and gold dot tights. Purple, pink & black bead earrings. Orange faux suede shoes.
Enjoy a day of Tonner on Saturday, December 8th when you attend their Factory Sale. Then, head over to the Tonner Company Store Dr. Seuss Launch Party, where the Dr. Seuss Collection will be available for purchase and you can get your dolls signed by Robert Tonner himself! There will be refreshments and Seussical adventures, so don't miss it!
Tonner and Wilde Imagination Factory Sale
Saturday, December 8, 2012
10am-1pm
Holiday Inn
503 Washington Avenue
Kingston, NY 12401 The Dr. Seuss Launch Party
The Tonner Company Store
14 Hurley Avenue
Kingston, NY
12p-2pm.
Doing my daily round of dolly blogs, I came across this post by Rebecca at Inside The Fashion Doll Studio about an article in the Dec/Jan 2012 issue of Interview magazine featuring Barbies as models in a clutch bag photo shoot. I knew I had to post them here as well. I am really wondering how on earth did I miss that when it first came out.
This is one of the most beautiful dolls of this year's Spring collection by Integrity Toys (a tour de force of collections indeed). It's my second Jordan (you can see the previous one here) and having seen her in real life, a firm favourite now.
She comes dressed in a two-piece ensemble: a short sleeved chartreuse top that buttons up her back, with peplum and a slim matching belt, over a sugar white pencil skirt. It is a 40s look re-done for out era and her hairdo channels exactly that.
The outfit is completed with brilliant accessories: a coral "crocodile" leather bag with beige strap and a pair of bi-colored strap pumps.
Her jewellery is beautiful too: a pair of multi-colored enamel earrings with a matching cuff bracelet. I wish she had a green ring to complete this, it would be perfect.
Her make up is not as bold as I feared - in real life it looks even more subtle. The nails are painted pink. The skin tone is lighter than previous Jordan versions. Her hairdo is perfect, fits the outfit,, giving it a 40s vibe and compliments her face beautifully. Her profile is almost Nefertiti like.
This has become one of my all-time favourite Fashion Royalty dolls and would very much like to try more outfits on her. She has set the bar very high for Adele, who will be coming home probably by the end of this year.
Each Christmas season, the Printemps department store in Paris sets up a magnificent display on its windows. In an atypical contest between the major Parisian department stores, locals are lucky to experience the best that artist collaborating with these stores have to offer, often setting up elaborate displays that attract crowds every day to them. This year, they did something special for us doll collectors: the windows are full of dolls dressed in Dior historical outfits (72 dolls and replicas of 12 iconic outfits), even down to the miniature accessories (oh those Di bags!) that are actually moving like marionettes. Let's read the article about this display from the Dior magazine:
Jean-Claude Dehix, the most famous of puppet masters, has been creating window displays for Paris department stores for over thirty years. He tells DiorMag about his work, and what it was like to collaborate with the house of Dior.
"In a setting of silk and tulle, sequins and ribbons, they're getting ready, making themselves up, impatient to go waltzing or ice-skating in a decor drawn straight from a fairytale. These distinctly Dior dolls are the stars of the Printemps department store's windows.
Under the Eiffel Tower's steel arches, they twirl and glide, beyond elegant in Bar jacket and full, flaring skirt. On the ice rink, they slice through the air, gracious skaters graced with the most Parisian of silhouettes. A little further on, under a band stand, they waltz and dance to the strains of a gramophone, bedecked in vaporous ball gowns. Look closely, for isn't that also them clutching to a huge bunch of balloons floating over the Opéra Garnier, Printemps and the Eiffel Tower, and again at the fairground, dancing between the carrousel and the big wheel? Yes, it's definitely them, no one else - the dolls!"
"In the Printemps windows, brought to life by the puppeteer Jean-Claude Dehix and dressed by Dior, they play the starring roles in a story of magic and enchantment, elegance and couture. For the holidays, the Paris department store places Dior center-stage with its codes and its many stories, from Avenue Montaigne and the gardens, to the banquet and the opera and the grand voyage. Over nine windows, Printemps tells a fairytale in the heart of the French capital. It's a story of joy and of celebration: the very tale of the house of Dior itself."
French film actress and Dior icon Marion Cotillard was the star of the opening event for Printemps Christmas windows.
