Barbie

My first love. When I was little I had dozens of Barbies and loved to take them over to my best friend's house and play. I had everything a doll could need -- outfits, beach huts, a kitchen, car, pool... Then I grew up and grew out of playing with dolls -- or so I thought. Sadly, most of my original Barbies were sold at subsequent garage sales and those that I'd managed to hold on to burnt up in a house fire when I was 13. Years later, the obsession has re-surfaced and I have once again started to collect Barbies.

I tried to collect Barbies that looked different or unique so that my collection wouldn't look like a mass-produced army of blond bombshells. As a result, my collection is varied and the Barbies that I do have stand out and get noticed more -- or that's what I think anyway... I love them all.

Princess of the World Barbies

So far, I have three Princess of the World Barbies - Princess of the Renaissance, Princess of Denmark, and Princess of Japan. All three are among my favourites. Renaissance with her beautiful, dark, exotic makeup and eyes, Denmark with her pale skin and great up-do, and Japan with her unique heart-shaped face (her hairline has a peak). All three are dressed finely in great outfits.

Exotic Barbies

I recently came across the Expressions of India, Wedding Fantasy Barbie and was unable to resist her. I got her for a pretty good price on eBay but was left unimpressed with the hidden charges the seller snuck into the shipping. However, once she arrived, I was ecstatic with her. She is beautiful. Definately a favourite. Her dress is fabulous and so is her jewellery and face-up. She comes with a unique type of stand that holds her at her calves - I should have taken a pic, I suppose, but I didn't think about it at the time, maybe later.

Fashion Fever

I have two fashion fever dolls - Kayla and Barbie (with pink-streaked hair). The first two pictures of the standard-looking Barbie is actually a Coca-Cola Christmas Barbie that I changed into a fashion fever outfit. These outfits are really stylish. I loved Kayla's upturned eyes and dark hair and fell in love with Barbie's streaks - so funky! These aren't really collector barbies, but I like them anyway.

Model of the Moment Barbies

I have three Model of the Moment Barbie Dolls - Nichelle, Urban Hipster; Daria Celebutante; and Marisa, Pretty Young Thing. These were my most expensive Barbies, before I got the Expressions of India Barbie. Their legs don't bend, they're molded. This is annoying because I really like to pose my Barbies and therefore I like articulation. But they are also fabulous looking in their existing poses... so... it works out. Daria, like the Princess of Denmark, sports beautifully pale skin and has an arched back that looks fabulous, Nichelle's main feature is her tight, curly black hair, and Marisa has a nice exotic face mold. Their fashions are superb - my faves are Nichelle and Daria - and their shoes are really cool - too bad I only have a close up pic of Daria's because I like Nichelle's too... maybe some day.

Ballerina Barbies

I have two ballerina Barbies, Barbie as Juliet (as in Romeo and Juliet, if it isn't painfully obvious), and Peppermint Candy Cane Barbie. I got P.C.C. Barbie free when I bought Juliet, otherwise I don't think I would have bought her - she is way too happy looking (no offense to anyone out there who likes her). Juliet is beautiful, she has stuck-on eyelashes and great big curls. Her makeup is fabulously done in magenta pinks and she has a certain Mona-Lisa type smile. I fell in love with her the moment I saw her. My only beef is that their legs, like the Model of the Moment dolls, are molded and don't bend, however this is just a pet peeve and I still love Juliet!

Articulated Barbies

I only have one articulated Barbie (Barbie's that have bendable arms and legs - not just the click-into-place ones, but ones that bend with a joint). I hope to have many more in the future, but Mattel just doesn't produce them very often and I just started. These Barbies are the most fun to pose because they are so flexible - this is why I have more pictures of my articulated Barbie than just the usual two - that, and the fact that the only articulated Barbie I have (California Girl Horseback Riding Lea) also has her horse, which I also took pictures of her with. Lea can sit, bend, and twist into any number of positions and as an added bonus she's really pretty (that exotic face just turns me to jelly) and has unique (well, unique to the California-Girl line) feet - they're bare, flat feet! She comes with one pair of cowboy boots (which look too big because they have to accomodate her flat feet) and one pair of funky flip-flop sandals that look awesome! Oh, and she has painted toe-nails... *giggle* She doesn't come with the book (in her saddle bag in the last pic) - I made that.

16" Fashion Dolls

This is what I've been getting into lately. These dolls are much more expensive (well, the really special Barbies cost about as much, but I don't usually buy those Barbies because... you guessed it, they're not usually articulated! Plus, they're usually the Blonde Bombshell type of Barbie, which gets dull after a while). These 16 inchers are more often than not greatly articulated - yeah, posing! I have two Tyler Wentworth dolls - Sean O'Neill (the guy, obviously) and Tyler's Signature BW (bendable wrist) Redhead doll. I also have an Alex Mod Jadde doll. All dolls come with joints at the neck, waist, hip, knees, elbows, and wrists - Jadde and Sean have jointing at the ankles and Jadde has additional joints at her toes! Jadde is the cheaper doll - the vinyl is more brittle and the joints are straight - they look kind of unnatural, but you get used to them (I just got a fabulous Tyler dress (the Jazzy Dress) that I took pics of her (below) that shows her joints), and her joints are looser - she loses her pose more easily than Tyler, but on the other hand, this also means you can pose her more easily and quickly. Jadde has a gorgeous face! Real eyelashes, not just painted on! (I don't know why that's a big deal with me, but it is!) Tyler's jointing is superb. It is sticky so they keep their poses but of course, this stickiness means they can be a pain to pose in the first place. They are also cut out, more ball-like, joints, not straight, so they look more natural. Sean's arms can bend more than 90 degrees because of the way they are cut, but for some reason, Tyler can't. Tyler's Signature doll can cross her legs, however, which I have never seen on another doll! But, Tyler's face molds are kind of... square-ish, which isn't to my personal preferance - nice, but not me, at least for the girl dolls, Sean, being a man, looks great with a more square, manly face. Personally, I think both the Jadde doll and Tyler doll have pros and cons - though I confess I love the Sean O'Neill doll!

I shot some group pics of all my 16"'ers together. See below - Jadde is wearing mostly Tyler outfit pieces, from her "Jazzy Dress" to her East Meets West bracelets and Signature Style faux suede boots but retains her Alex Techno Tweed necklace, which I like and is also tremendously difficult to put on and take off. Sean is wearing his original outfit, and Tyler is wearing the same as she is wearing in her personal pics, which is described in the Tyler section. Jadde was the first 16 incher I purchased and when I got her, I decided she was so pretty she needed a guy, so I got Sean to be her "boyfriend" - which is why they are so cuddly in the pics.

Tyler Wentworth

Sean O'Neill and Tyler's Signature BW Redhead. The clothes are really well made and fit like a glove. Sean poses like a dream... I definitely need to take more pics of him - it is so awesome how he can pose! The pic of Tyler sitting cross-legged is kind of bright - I'm not sure why - but the pics of Sean, Jadde, and Tyler show her in the same pose and the level of brightness is much better. Tyler is wearing the boustier, jacket, and shoes from East Meets West and the neclace and skirt from her original Signature Style fashion. I like the pants that go with the East Meets West, but she has more trouble sitting and posing in them than she does in the skirt. The necklace from E.M.W., however, is a truly large and gawdy affair and I didn't like it all - the pearl necklace from Signature Style is much more refined and I like it better.

Alex

Jadde's face is so beautiful - yeah asian dolls! She is a Mod Jadde, so she came in this really atrocious spandex outfit with a neon green mini-skirt that she couldn't even sit down in without it riding up past her butt. I bought her an Alex "Techno Tweed" outfit, which she looks really hip and modern in - but she can't sit in it at all (not that she sits well to begin with, but still) because the skirt is too tight. She has a gigantic bust - I mean, really... too much... but still, I love her... I ended up buying her a kimono from Vicki Rubie (Missoula, Montana - aagh! Customs in Canada sucks - takes forever!) on eBay that I really like - asian clothes on asian dolls, hmm... makes sense, right? But she still can't sit down, 'cuz when she does, the front of the kimono parts and her legs just pop out the front. Someday, I will figure out how to make her sit without flashing the camera... someday...

You might notice - her kimono is done up the wrong way - I know... I made a mistake, it is supposed to go left over right - I wasn't trying to say anything by it or make it morbid or anything. I only realized after I took the pictures and it has since been fixed. I will take more pictures of her in her kimono done the right way at some point and replace these ones, but for now... well, what's done is done.

ABJDs - Asian Ball-Joint Dolls

These are dolls that are jointed and held together with elastic cord that runs through their bodies. They are also generally larger - the ones I collect are about 2 feet tall. Their larger size allows for exquisite detailing and they have cut-out eyeholes (at least, the ones I collect do) that can be filled with glass, or acrylic eyes for a more realistic look. They can also be customized - their eyes switched out, body parts swapped, paint-job re-done, and since they wear wigs, their hair can be changed with a snap! Their hip, asian look is also beautiful. The two main companies are the Korean Luts company, which carries Cerberus Project DELF dolls, and the Japanese Volks company, which make Super Dollfies. Luts dolls are slimmer, have different jointing at the waist, and look rather more 'edgier' than Volks dolls. Volks dolls, however, are (apparently - i haven't actually seen a Luts doll in person) made with a slightly heavier, better quality resin (though many Luts owners like the Luts resin even better than Volks) and generally look more 'cute' than Luts. I will say, though, that IMHO, Luts makes all the cool clothes. However, Luts and Volks are far, far, far from the only two options in the ABJD world - there are many different companies: Peakswoods, Soom, CustomHouse, Tensiya/Dollshe... just to name a few...

So far, I have 2 Mimi13's from Volks - yes, two! :P There is a long and complicated story about the thought process that led up to that decision but i'm not going to explain it here... ^^; heh heh... The first doll I brought home I named Niamh, and her double is Halla. I bought a Mimi13 for her eyes, plain and simple, they are so gorgeous!
Mimi13 eyes: *sigh*
I love my babies so much! ^_^

Owners of ABJDs are known for their insanity... frequently speaking of their dolls as if they were little people, taking endless amounts of pictures, developing characters and backstories for their dolls... heh heh... So much fun... I currently haunt the Den of Angels forum where such insanity can be viewed on-line... I myself have even started to get caught up in it... Niamh and Halla both have such presence and personality, it is hard not to think of them as people, not to want to create lives for them... oh, come on! it is not crazy... really... it isn't! :P Anyway, as a result, there are many, many pics of Niamh and Halla posted on DoA and on my lj. Instead of posting them here, too, i'm just going to put up the links:
Niamh's arrival pics
Niamh's Red hair and Volks' outfit
Niamh's lazy day
Niamh comes to work
Niamh in Dollmore clothes and Luts mary-janes
Ack! Evil Robot Twin! (a.k.a. Halla's arrival pics)
The Steal-the-Kitty-Hat-and-Wait Plan
The girls go to Ai-Kon
The girls play pool and awkward silence ensues
The Futon Made With Love
Love Hurts
Experimental poses with Niamh
Night Dreams
Temptation at the Masque
Finally!
Night Shots of Halla
Awesome Pics of Ni at Work
Halla's work shoot
Halla on the bus
A Walk in the Park
WTH? It's barely noon!
Meetup Invasion of Chapters
Dollie Pantie
Girlz in Tonka Ride outside Wal-Mart
Halla has Something to Say (a.k.a. Halla's Sexy Shoot)
The Breaking Point
Ni Raises a Good Question
Reconciliation (a.k.a. Snow=Love)
Misc. Beauty Pics plus the Girlz' very first snow!
Just a bit o' fluff
Fall pics of Ni

I am thinking of making another page just for BJDs, but until I get around to that, this'll have to do. Here are more pics of Niamh and Halla that I haven't uploaded anywhere yet (just a taste):

Miscellaneous Dolls

I am such a fan of articulated dolls that I have sought them out in all the forms I can find. So far, aside from Barbie, Alex, and Tyler, the only other articulated dolls that have caught my interest are Jan McLean's Lollipop Girls - of which I have one of the smaller 12" scale - Suzi K. from Seattle, Pullip dolls - I have Mercu Pullip (whew, expensive - like Tyler), and of course the BJDs (see below in my wish list). I have decided to pool the pictures of the Lollipop Girl doll and Pullip doll (and any other doll, besides Barbie, Tyler, Alex, or BJD) that catches my eye, here because I am not likely to get more than just the one doll of these kinds. In other words, these are the dolls that I don't intend to collect, but which interested me all the same.

Note: Animula - my Little Apple Doll - is NOT articulated. She can move her arms at the shoulders and her legs at the hips, and has a little bit of head movement, but that's it.

Wish List

Mostly BJDs... actually, all BJDs at this point... 'cuz like, they're so expensive that just wanting one is a major savings experience! They are so wonderful, though, I just can't see myself saving for a barbie over a BJD - which doesn't mean "no more barbies" - it just means that for a while at least, my dollie savings are going to go towards getting me one of these babies!

SoulDoll

SoulDoll is a Korean manufacturer of BJD. Their molds are more muscular (which I really don't like on the guy SoulDolls, but which looks nice on their SoulKids (kid version BJDs)). Their resin has this beautiful 'glowy' look to it - it's really nice. Poseability is not as good as Luts Kid Delfs, or so I've been told, but it's not bad and hey, you figure out what your doll is capable of when he arrives, right? And you work with that...

Volks Super Dollfie

These are the first BJD (ball-joint dolls) I came across. They still capture my heart.

Luts DELF

In researching these dolls on the web I found a Korean company - Cerberus Project - which is said to be very similar in quality to Volks. CP dolls are sold by Luts company in Korea. These are also very beautiful dolls and I like that Luts tends to have dolls that look a little more grown up (SD13's from Volks are only supposed to be 13 years old). DELF dolls do not come with a wig or clothes, and the eye color they come with is random - but even so, they still tend to be a little less expensive than Volks.