Fashion Royalty Convention Dolls

For those of us who were unable to attend the fabulous convention by Integrity TOys, here are the convention dolls to drool over!

Ask Any Girl Poppy Parker Gift Set

Shadow Of Your Smile Poppy Parker

Tears Go By Poppy Parker

Wild At Heart Lillith and Eden Gift Set

Scarlet Woman Adele Makeda

Provocatrice Anja

Night Vision Count Adrian von Lamberg

Fine Romance Eugenia Perrin Frost

Always Polished Dasha

Paper Dolls

Meet Violaine, dark-hearted heroine and one of 20 misfit characters in Emily Martin's "The Black Apple's Paper Doll Primer," due out Tuesday from Potter Craft books.
Martin's 160-page paper-doll extravaganza is loaded with tongue-in-cheek figures such as the conjoined twins Hazel and Olive and the mysterious Tom, who "might vanish for days at a time and then suddenly appear at the very diner where you just so happen to be having a cup of coffee and a piece of pie."

"All of these characters are facets of my own personality," the illustrator said from her studio in Portland, Ore., this week. "Violaine represents a time in my life when I was holed up in my darkroom, listening to the Cure and crying about no one understanding me."
An obsessive crafter who is a top seller on Etsy, Martin wanted to create a book unlike any other. "The thing that attracted me to making the book was that it was such an excessive idea," she said. "The average picture book is 32 pages long."

Included in the mix: apparel and accessories, beautifully painted scenes to use with the Black Paper Theater, a flip book and stationery.
Obsessive? Perhaps. Fun? Definitely. The book inspired my 12-year-old daughter to invent her own cast of misfits.

"I hope people are drawn in by how different it is," Martin said.
Curious to see what a character like Violaine might wear? Keep reading ...

Ken Gets Own Web Series

Mattel is about to put the spotlight on Ken, the former beau of Barbie, giving the doll his own online reality series, "Genuine Ken: The Search for the Great American Boyfriend," to be hosted by "The Hills" and "The City's" Whitney Port.

The series, which bows exclusively on Hulu starting Jan. 18, will become the latest media property that showcases Ken after his high-profile role in Pixar and Disney's "Toy Story 3," this summer and now on DVD, and leads into next year's 50th anniversary of the character.
A redesign of the Ken doll is in the works to go along with the recent launch of his Facebook page and Twitter feed, and he'll have a bolstered presence in upcoming animated DVD movies. All of the activity is the first big push for the character since he broke up with Barbie on Valentine's Day in 2004.

"He's getting a makeover to make sure he's still as culturally and visually relevant as Barbie is," said Stephanie Cota, senior VP of Mattel Girls' brands. "He's getting a little work done to get ready for his 50th anniversary."

Hudsun Media (Bravo's "Pregnant in Heels") is producing the reality show, which will unspool over eight 22-minute episodes. Once Hulu runs through the episodes, it will eventually be distributed to other dot-coms.
Hudsun CEO Michael Rourke and Max Benator, VP of digital for the shingle, exec produce with Lauren Stevens.

In the reality show, eight men between the ages of 21 and 30 will compete in a series of elimination challenges to prove that they possess Ken's qualities in order to be "the ultimate boyfriend for every occasion," including being able to surf, design, have a sense of fashion and show a romantic side.

Mattel said creating original content for the Internet is the latest entertainment effort, outside the TV shows, made-for-DVD features, videogames and events to get the Barbie brand in front of more consumers.

In this particular case, Mattel hopes to attract older auds to Barbie.
"With a 50-year history, you have people who have been embracing (Barbie and Ken) from day one," Cota said. While those consumers may never buy another doll, they may buy a T-shirt with Barbie on it or a Ken-themed bow tie.

The digital series "is a great way for us is to have grownup girls and boys stay connected to the brand," Cota added. Read more: http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118026504.html?categoryid=1009&cs=1#ixzz13qxqHDAr Visit Variety.com to become a Variety subscriber.

Japanese Robot - So Real

Follow this link:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/ashleybaccam/creepy-realistic-robot
to see a video of an incredibly realistic robot. Will our dolls ever achieve this?

Halloween Kitties

38 Facts About Reborns

Follow this link:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/38-facts-about-reborn-dolls

to read 38 facts about Reborns - and see darling photos!

Vera's Doll Stories

Our Customer Vera has been having fun creating stories with photos set in Philly! The photos are set in PHilly, not necessarily the stories. You'll enjoy recognizing the dolls!