Celebrity Sighting

One of the funnest activities when in Old Hollywood (a place in time that one can visit often thanks to Gene Marshall and her Monolithic Studios friends) is to spot movie stars as they go about doing what they do in their glamorous fantasy lives. 

On a sunny day back in the days when class and style reigned supreme, Mel Odom's Miss Gene Marshall (Phoenix model produced by JAMIEshow) was spotted at the Museum of Fashion Arts and Sciences suited in a Christian Dior design, circa 1951. The suit was first modeled by Gene pal, Ivy Jordan in her Moss Rose incarnation produced by Integrity Toys. With a chinois hat by Liz Cole for Retros, earrings by Nicole Kartio, and a Barbie Fashion Model Collection diamond pin, Miss M gave it a fresh interpretation. So much, that many of the other attendees could not help but admire her fashion sense from behind their very dark sunglasses.

 

Magie Noire

When beauty appears, Dolldom takes note. JAMIEshow resin dolls caught Dolldom's attention with their exquisite renditions of Mel Odom's Gene Marshall, the three of which have been profiled extensively in our stories. 

When the Holiday 2013 line was announced, our collective editorial eye went to the super beautiful new sculpt named Natalie. An African-American character, her looks define supermodel of the world. And with a resin color previously available only in dreams, Natalie is a must have doll. 

From JAMIEshow's website:

"Introducing Natalie, our newest character. Natalie the slightly younger sister of Kyra, hit the Paris runway scene as soon as she was able! Strutting her high heels down the catwalk, her striking look made quite the impact! She is now the toast of the Paris couture runway.
 
Natalie is a dark skin tone resin 16" Fashion BJD. She is made of the exclusive JAMIEshow J-Resin. She has interchangeable hands, and can wear any of the JAMIEshow rooted wig caps.
 
Natalie is dressed in an off the runway outfit, a two piece jacket and skirt, with tulle underlay. Designed for JAMIEshow by Lori Lyon, Jamie's Favorite new Designer. The jacket is made up of an under layer of silk, with asymmetrical layer of tulle laid over. The jacket is lined. Her shoes are a work of art unto themselves in silver with spiked heels sporting a regal design. Her wig cap is a new style just for her, pulled back soft curl afro".

High quality at a sane price point paired with superb additional offerings such as a varied selection of wig caps, hands, shoes, and fashion make this JAMIEshow doll a veritably sound acquisition. The body sculpt is versatile and adapts well to the many fashions in a fashion doll collection.

For this exclusive entry, Dolldom lavished the very best on Natalie: Time of Doll wigs, Joy Jarred jewelry, Retros, and Tonner Doll Company fashions.

In Antoinette's Bold fashion and JAMIEshow's Scheherazade wigcap, Natalie is a Steampunk vision.

The fiery red haircolor suits her perfectly.

Friday Night Date. Natalie's debut skirt is paired with a sheer T-shirt from the Cami and Jon line by Tonner Doll Company, a belt by Liz Cole for Retros,  and luscious jewelry by Joy Jarred. Her debut wig is exquisite and nicely symmetrical.

What not to look at? Sensory overload. The eye dances from face to jewels to hair to eyes to lips...

In a Time of Doll hard cap wig, Natalie models her debut outfit. The raven beehive is strong and complements the strong lines of her fashion.

Paris, 1940-something. In a Théâtre de la Mode design by Tonner Doll Company and a period Time of Doll wig, Natalie plays fashion historian. A suit so well cut is never out of style.

Tropical dreams. In Retros' leopard classic and verdant necklace by Joy Jarred, Natalie is island bound. Her wig cap is borrowed from Phoenix Gene Marshall.

Lip gloss or skin care commercial?

Fierceness redefined.

Very much inspired by the beauty and talent of Dolldom favorite RuPaul, this photos portray Natalie as supermodel of the world. She knows how to work the Tyler Wentworth dress and the Time of Doll wig.

A pose to strike.

For more on Natalie, visit her a JAMIEshow Dolls.

The Swimsuit Illustrated

The Swimsuit Issue. Why should there be an issue about a swimsuit? Miss Barbie Millicent Roberts turns fifty-five years old and poses in a revamped version of her iconic 1959 look and the world goes bananas.



Dolldom reminds that the Barbie® doll has had a love affair with swimsuits ever since her inception. Meant to be a basic doll to be redressed, the teen-age fashion model was offered in a chic zebra striped black and white one piece so that children could ask for mini couture for her to wear. Of course, many of us believe that in her swimwear, Babs is nothing short of perfection.

To prove the point and to celebrate Miss Roberts' long due inclusion in the much-hyped Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, Dolldom presents an exclusive portfolio of her very best beach and pool wear.

Splash!


And then there was Barbie! The original 1959 model goes sunbathing in her très faux zebra skin strapless number with some of her Hong Kong clone friends.


A Number Three Barbie doll is ready for a swim in her Dreamhouse's pool.


An advantage of being a model is having garments fitted to your exact measurements.


Dolldom commends the Japanese seamstresses who made each one of the zebra stripes meet at the center seam. Bravissime!



In 1964, a Swirl Ponytail Barbie modeled a red Helenca swimsuit. Very athletic!


In 1963, Fashion Queen Barbie demolished all glamour standards in her Egyptian gold wonder and a year later, Miss Barbie came along in a coquettish cotton candy and gold sparkle number.


And in 1965, The Barbie Look was defined by a gayly striped blouson model.

Barbie is to swimsuits what gin is to tonic. Here's to Barbie Style.

Time for Pink Bubbles

Pink bubbles, happy bubbles.

Recently, Dolldom began noticing that several of its in-house supermodels were starting to show signs of fatigue. For example, a rubber band dried out and  -snap! - off came the bountiful factory ponytail. Or the fresh-out-of-the-box hairstyle resembled a rat's nest. Or perhaps the original factory style was rather bland. Perhaps, it was just simply time for a change. But were does one send supermodels to be refreshed? To Pink Bubbles Spa were attention to detail and mastery of technique reign supreme. The results are nothing short of breathtaking, satisfying Dolldom's desire for class, sass, and harmony of scale.

Pink Bubbles Doll Spa  is not only  “Rejuvenation Destination" but also one of the very best blogs on Wordpress. The behind the scenes stories and photos take its visitors back to the days when a beauty parlor was a realm of magical transformations. Each before and after story replicates the linguistic registers and idiomatic expressions of a time gone by but not forgotten by the diehard fans of vintage fashion dolls.

In this exclusive Dolldom feature, seven Barbie Fashion Model Collection dolls show their new styles. Dolldom believes that they are veritable mannequins de mode who can now wear the very best of mid-century inspired design. We hope that you enjoy the show and be inspired to give that special beauty in your collection a day of much needed pampering at Pink Bubbles Spa.

Dolldom thanks the spectacularly talented Bobby Taylor for being such a fantastic friend.

Chic. Very. Utterly. Finally.

BFMC Lingerie No. 6 has her titian tresses styled. Gone is the fly-away hair that impeded her from being part of the cannon of couture.

Cut and styled by Bobby Taylor at Pink Bubbles Spa, Lingerie No. 6 is a sweet delight.

Silkstone 2000 Debut. Delphine. Definitely. But in place of the original model, it is worn by BFMC's Lingerie No. 1 doll.

Her high ponytail is gone. In its place, an appropriate and classic chignon. Jewelry by Joy Jarred. A Barbie for forever.

50th Anniversary party? Absolutely. In James Bogue's basic black and a to-scale bun with braided wrap piece and a playful spit curl. That's Barbie style.

A style for all moments of the day. For all seasons.

Ball Gown Beauty. But even more beautiful when she goes for a Lunch at The Club. The debut fashion called for an assertive face and a style to match it.

A horror hair story when taken out of the box, this spectacular model gains stature and authority in Bobby Taylor's elegant style. 

That curl would drive Alfred Hitchcock wild.

 Another ponytail deterioration story, BFMC' Lingerie No. 3 becomes an icon.

And what about the groundbreaking Lingerie No. 2? With her brown eyes and brunette chignon, she's ready for a big platter chapeau. Earrings by Joy Jarred.

The hat perfectly fits atop her new and sanely scaled do.

Chinoiserie Red Moon boast one of the most unique face make-up designs, but perhaps the effect got lost beneath the towering ponytail with doughnut wrap. Now, the BFMC doll embodies the ideals of Dolldom's  sacrosanct three C's: chic, couture, and class.

With one of the collections' detailed rhinestone pins and a James Bogue cocktail dress, she becomes a divine creature. 

Francie's Finally Fabulous

Francie made her debut in Silkstone in 2011. Dolldom cheered the return of the Barbie doll's cousin to the fabulous world of the Barbie Fashion Model Collection.



The new body sculpt retains the original doll's measurements with enhanced detailing of her hands and feet, so it's easy to welcome a Silkstone Francie to your collection and have her model fashions from the fab mid 1960s or any of the superb creations available from many gifted freelance designers. Even her chair, handmade by Maryann Roy, illustrates the wealth of offerings of which our dolls may partake these days.

For this exclusive portfolio, Kitty Corner Francie went to Pink Bubbles Spa to have her hair styled. The operation performed by the professionals at Pink Bubbles achieved the look that the prototype doll has but that was not achieved in production. Dolldom wonders out loud why hairstyles these days seldom attain the level of precision and respect to scale that was the standard when Barbie was manufactured in Japan. But we digress, for this is all about Francie being finally fabulous.

In Monsieur Z's Flaunt It fashion, a white enamel cuff bracelet, mood ring by Joy Jarred, and her newly styled flip, Miss Fairchild gives Dolldom a little bit of Youthquake fun! Enjoy!