the platinum doll fringe gown Is available for purchase

she isn’t as popular as Mattel expected. 

If you want  her, order now: (you must be a platinum member to order)

http://barbie.mattel.com/shop/en-us/ba/blush-fringe-gown-barbie-doll-dwf52

I could  have ordered her on Aug 10th,  but I couldn’t get any free shipping or discount, she would be $158 (Including membership fee),  so I waited until today.

The lost magic…

Barbie has lost her magic wand.  whatever she does,  she does not wow me.  so what’s next? I don’t know.

2018 Barbie Convention Theme

An email from the 2018 Barbie Convention Co-chairs announced the 2018 Barbie Convention Theme, it sounds very intriguing.

Main Theme: On the Avenue With Barbie

No doubt whoever came up with this theme is a Vintage collector. I do not have any vintage dolls or fashions. but this set of ensemble can be quickly produced if my Silkstone Girls feel the need.  I don’t think they need it now, the sun is burning up the earth, who would be so crazy to wear a wool coat?

 

Three Official Events:

1. “High Tea” Luncheon

I’m not an English, so these Low Tea & High Tea things confuse me.  It sounds  to me that “High Tea” is more like an evening meal, not luncheon. but  what do I know?    Tea is a complicated thing,  I don’t drink any Tea.

The “High Tea” doll is released before I started collecting,  I don’t have her.  I looked up on eBay, she is expensive.  I wont have her.

2. The Benefit Ball

I knew there was a “Benefit Ball” doll from 90s.  So I checked her up, oh, I must say this doll is not my cup of Tea.  The shiny gown looks Dramatic but the fabric is too cheap.   however, its a smart design, as it does not require a lot of work to create this “over-the-top” look.

3. Dinner At Eight

Jean Harlow’s stunning white satin gown comes to my mind whenever I hear “Dinner at Eight”. but Barbie probably has to cook dinner & serve the guests , so the white satin gown isn’t an option.

if you are preparing for 2018 convention,  may you be inspired by the theme.

(All the illustrations & photos are by Mattel, except the “High Tea” Sketch –I created this one as I couldn’t find one from Mattel)

Disney Platinum Snow White & Prince giftset goes on sale tonight

Disney store exclusive,
17″ Snow White and Her Prince Charming giftset,
Platinum label, Limited edition,
650 sets worldwide.
Price: $750/set,
Release Date: Aug 2nd, 2017.

https://www.disneystore.com/dolls-snow-white-and-prince-collectors-doll-set—17—limited-edition/mp/1438090/1000259/

https://www.disneystore.com/dolls-snow-white-collectors-doll—17—limited-edition/mp/1438328/1000259/

if you want them, you will have to standby tonight (Aug 1, 2017) until the clock strikes 12  (PST), then, you join the crowds & fight for them.   I  see some people already listed them for $1200–$1400 on eBay & eCrater.  One eBay seller has 2 sets. he wants $1450 each. I wonder how these sellers are so sure they will get the doll. since more than 650 people will be online to grab them, everyone has fair chances.

I don’t want to pay $750 for them.  they don’t look like $750 at all.

Happy August!

August arrived faster than I expected. although its quiet in my household, Barbie made a couple of summer splashes.

Mattel re-launched its website & Barbie Fan Club, now its a  big Salad plate, from hot wheel to Barbie, all-in-one under Mattel.com

A new Brand  “Barbie Signature” replaced  “the Barbie Collection” , from Barbie Collectibles to Barbie Collector, then Barbie Collection, now  “Barbie signature”,  you can clearly see the mindsets of  the past & present  marketing strategists.   “Barbie collectible” focused on doll quality, something nice you want to collect.  “Barbie Collector”(BC)  was more customer-oriented,  the marketers wanted to create customers emotional attachment;  The Barbie Collection said “everything goes, you buy whatever we throw on you”.  Barbie signature”(BS) is  very egocentric,  the Marketers really believe they can rely on the brand influences to attract customers. lets wait and see if  they will find a Billboard that’s large enough for Barbie to put up her  signature.

Each time they change the name,  the sales would drop significantly.  each time the sales drop, they would change the name.  who believes the BS marketers can not do better than BC marketers?

Besides the name changes, the structure of the Fan club also changed.  it now has 3-tired membership:  Platinum,  Gold & Pink. basically, its an old “Buy more Save more” program Mattel loved to use before..

Platinum Membership: membership fee is  $34.99,  for every 3 month, you get $30 discount if you place an order of $100 or more and all the items of  your purchase are BS items, not playline items like Fashionistas. you have access to club Forum and club dolls, you also have earlier access to new dolls — for example, the new Sorcha doll is now available for Platinum members to order, the other costumers have to wait for a week –its a blessing for non-platinum members, b/c the later you buy, the cheaper you get.  99% of the BS dolls take 3 years or longer to sell out.

Gold Membership: membership fee is  $19.99,  then for each 3 month, you get $20 discount if you place an order of $80 or more and all the items of  your purchase are BS items, not playline items like Fashionistas. you have access to club Forum and club dolls.

Pink Membership: Free. you get 20% off on your first order. you have no access to forum or club dolls. however, the forum is not as secure as Mattel thinks, anyone can access it, it just takes a few more clicks.  Mattel’s websites have always been a big mess. the Tech support is from India.  if you have problems with the website and call BS’,  the Customer Service Reps cant solve your problems, they have to consult with Mattel’s “Team India”, but India sleeps when you are awake.   Many customers  have password/log-In  problems , some have tons of items in their shopping carts that are not removable, some log in  under other people’s names…

if you are not interested in buying club dolls, you don’t have to join the club. b/c $30 or $20 reward isn’t big deal, you can buy dolls from somewhere else at better prices. for example, when Walmart website offered the $175 Oscar De la doll for $52, you saved $123. and you don’t have to spend $34.95 membership fee.   the club forum is almost dead, not active, not informative, there are plenty better online groups you can join  for free.

I have not joined the club, perhaps later this months  before the platinum Pink Fringed gown doll comes out,  I’ll buy Gold membership.

The other big event was Barbie Convention in July. however, I no longer attend conventions.

The next years convention theme is “On the Avenue with Barbie”, Here is my August Calendar, On the Ave with Barbie in a hot summer day

Wish everyone a happy August.

Bridal Bliss –Oscar De La Renta Barbie

The doll was $175, edition size 10,000 units worldwide. I didn’t believe that Barbie had such capacity to sell 10,000 units at $175 when the doll was released.

Last week the price went down to $52,   so I ordered one, I must confess I wouldn’t have ordered her if her original price was $52.  it was a different story when the price dropped from $175 to $52— it felt like a crime if I missed such  a great deal.  I am sure many people have the same shopping behaviors,  the big sales always does its tricks.

I don’t know how expensive the “license Fee” is, but the doll is not a $175 doll,  The plain face and  simple dress with ruffled train make her just another “Barbie” that you wont miss her if you don’t have her.

 

The Box is nicer than the regular Barbie Box, it comes with a lacer cut sleeve– its not really practical if you intend to display your doll.   The similar boxes are retailed for  $7.99 in the stores near me, so I don’t think  the box cost Mattel a lot to make.   however, the shipping charges  (both international & domestic) cost a lot more.  The little doll itself is 4 OZ, but  its nearly 5 lbs  if you count the box & its shipper.  Mattel shipped the doll with the shipper and a carton,  the whole package is 6 Lbs –I shipped a 6 lbs package last week from NY to AZ, the postage was $23.51.

 

you perhaps remember that   I made the dress in  last  April

 

PS: My Favorite  Barbie Bride is Reem Acro Barbie,

 

Ever After High Birthday Ball Duchess Swan

I like Ever After High dolls better than Monster High.
if these dolls didn’t have Glue in their heads, I would have bought tons of them. but most of them have glues, so I leave them in the stores.

this Doll, Birthday Ball Duchess Swan has a clean head & silky hair, she does not have glue. so she came home to live with me:

Purple is my favorite color:

All my purple girls:
The doll in the center has a glue-head,  not only her hair feels sticky & greasy, her white &  purple highlights have turned into yellow,  her face is also turning yellow—
that’s what the harm Glue can do.

I think both Monster High & Ever After High design teams at Mattel are so much smarter than “Barbie Collector” designers.  these High dolls’ design concepts are interesting,  their costumes  are “easy-to-make”  but still look petty & trendy —why is this so important? b/c it can avoid complications in the production and effectively keep the quality in control.  Some Collectible Barbie dolls’  quality issues are caused by design defect,  you cant really blame the Factory for it.

White Chiffon Gown

Michelle Obama Inauguration Dress 2008

 

My blog is nearly dead, I don’t post often, but the Spammers are incredibly active.  This Russian Robot “Michaelreido” posts a spam comment every 2 hours—hoping my blog visitors would buy cheap stuffs through the links he posted (good luck on that) — -this spammer was reported to the stopspam forum for more than 1,500 times -Wordpress should block him permanently and not to fill up my spam folder.. 😠

TokiDoki-Space Place 2017 Barbie Convention Raffle Doll

besides creating a doll for our club, I was asked to make a personal donation to the raffle room. so here goes, Barbie is blasting off with her all-star TokiDoki Spaceship Crew.

Initially, I chose an AA doll with Mbili face mold, then I changed my mind, I selected Lea instead, she looks more like a Japanese girl.

The Whole Package:

 

No, I’m not going to the convention. but Happy Convention to everyone who is going.

URBFC 2017 Barbie Convention Raffle Doll

Here is our club donation to the 2017 Barbie Convention Raffle Room. it took me a week to finish the whole project.

I’m not sure if its worth all the trouble making this backdrop, it was very hard to cut the cardboard—my hands blistered.

The background is hand-painted, then I pasted some planets & rockets on it, sort like 3D –only you can’t tell just by looking at the pictures:

the Star Tiara makes the doll taller than 12″, so she does not fit her original box. I found a silkstone Ken doll box for her. she has star earrings, diamond necklace, wristlet & self-fabric purse.

the dress is made of custom-designed fabric featuring Barbie’s dreams of exploring the planets.

less and less of our club members go to the convention each year, So the donation isn’t as big as it used to be. but anyone wins this doll should be happy, as she makes a perfect souvenir doll