Dolls at Toy Fair 2005
Lindsay Lohan Joins the Barbie Scene
Teen
queen Lindsay Lohan joins the Barbie My Scene crew this June as a new doll in
the My Scene Goes Hollywood series. The doll does a good job of capturing
Lindsay's likeness as well as her sense of style. She comes with a full movie
premiere outfit, faux fur-trimmed coat, director’s chair, velvet-style rope,
and lots of fun movie-themed accessories, and will retail for approximately
$29.99
New Only Hears Club For 2005
This
is only the second year for the Only Hearts Club dolls, and they are thrilling
collectors both old and young with a great new selection of dolls, clothing,
furniture and accessories for 2005.
New items for the "special girls with big hearts" include dolls in sleepwear
(all ready for a pajama party!), dolls in swimwear, new fashion outfits, a
tote bag, cabana and patio furniture, and a ballet studieo theater. Most items
will be available for the second and third quarters.
Teen Trends are brand new 17" fashion dolls from Mattel. Teen Trends dolls have a specialty store look to them (and a specialty store price, at $39.99 suggested retail) but they have a distinct look, great accessories, and a box that doubles as a doll trunk! Each doll in the series has its own personality and clothing and accessories that reflect that personality. Pictured here is Gabby, the "Girly Girl" of the group who loves "shopping, watching movies and relaxing at the spa." There are four characters in all. Look for these dolls from Mattel in June.
With
the huge popularity of American Idol with the tween and even pre-tween set, it
was only a matter of time before Barbie became an American Idol competitor.
The new line of
American Idol Barbie dolls has three dolls in stores "trying out" for the
show, and then there will be three dolls released in the Fall who will be in
the "finals." All the dolls have a karaoke component for singing play. In the
Fall, a super-cool recording studio play set will be available which will
enable girls to "record" their own song, sing to pre-recorded music or even to
a real, working FM radio that is part of the studio!
I
often look for dolls from new companies at Toy Fair. Although
Monte Dragone dolls are not new (the company has been making dolls since
the 1980s) they have not been generally available in the United States,
although many collectors have seen them on vacations to Rome, Florence,
Venice, Madrid and other European cities. Made by the team of Stefania
Rossetti and Nadir Bino, the fairies, marionettes and ethereal dolls. From
this trip to Toy Fair, the company is hoping to find some shops in the United
States to carry their dolls.
Very
few doll artists producing dolls today make felt dolls. Most doll collectors
know the dolls of R.John Wright, but many fewer know of the dolls of Maggie
Iacono. The 2005 line of Maggie Iacono dolls showcased at Toy Fair 2005
includes seven new dolls, with a focus on young girls, plus one "Little
Maggie" fairy. There are three Little Maggie dolls this year, which generally
retail for $650. All dolls are completely handmade in Maggie's studio,
generally in editions of 70 dolls. 
This
is an exciting year for Marie Osmond dolls! With new doll lines such as the
all bisque Bitty Beauty Bugs, a porcelain Strawberry Shortcake and the
Material Girls, plus many surprises planned, Marie says to "expect the
unexpected this year!" With dolls ranging from soft, huggable "Babies a Bloom"
to the perennially favorite Tiny Tots, there is something for everyone.
So
many collectors were disappointed when
Susan
Wakeen Dolls closed its doors that it is welcome news that Susan Wakeen
has designed a new line of baby dolls for Madame Alexander for 2005! The
dolls, available for preview this week at Toy Fair, have the lovely faces that
Susan Wakeen's baby dolls are known for, as well as detailed clothing. Most of
the Susan Wakeen baby dolls designed for Alexander Dolls range in price from
$99 to $189.
Many
collectors have become familiar with the Volks Super Dollfie dolls through
online venues such as eBay. The dolls have become quite popular with many
fashion doll collectors, in spite of how difficult they are to find in the
United States. That may change soon, as Volks, the maker of the Super Dollfie
and Dollfie dolls visits Toy Fair for the first time this year. Super Dolfies
are the ultimate in customizable fashion dolls--the dolls are made for
customization by their owner, with eyes, wigs and more. Look for more on
Super Dolfie dolls in our upcoming Doll Profile!Annette Himstedt's "World's Children
Summit" Dolls 2005
Annette
Himstedt dolls are some of the first to sell out each year at Toy Fair in
spite of their high cost. Her dolls are handmade in Germany, from deluxe fabrics
and materials, and are produced in very small editions. This year, Annette
focuses on faces of children from all over the world. She continues her popular
open-mouth dolls from last year, and her dolls this year are carefully sculpted
to show off ethnic differences authentically; as Annette states, "I have
modelled faces that don't conform to the general doll norms--more so than in
previous years." Look for our Top Annette Himstedt picks after my return from
Toy Fair!
DOTY 2005 Industry Choice Awards Announced At Toy Fair
Early
on the first morning of Toy Fair 2005, a special breakfast was held where the
Doll Of The Year ("DOTY") Industry Choice Awards were announced. Winners of this
year's awards include Vouge Dolls (Give a Dog a Bone Ginny and My Wedding Day
Ginny), Madame Alexander dolls (Stilettos Nikki, Elan's IT Girl, Marie
Antoinette and, pictured, Mel Odom winning for Extravagance), Marie Osmond Dolls
(Pansy and Lavender Rose), Tonner Dolls (Beyond Envy Sydney Chase, Thoroughly
Modern Betsy, Choo Choo Chick) Mattel (Stolen Moments Barbie and the Bob Mackie
Holiday Doll), and doll artists including Annette Himstedt, Berdine Creedy,
Emily Garthright, Hildegard Gunzel, and others. The DOTYS are like the Academy
Awards of dolls, and are eagerly awaited each toy fair. Congratulations to all
the winners!
Showstopper Dolls Once Again Stop The Show
The
lovely porcelain dolls from Showstoppers for 2005 will delight porcelain doll
collectors with their fantasy themes (mermaids and fairys) as well as porcelain
dolls ranging from 1" in size to several feet! Flossie Maranuk travels 11 months
out of the year to find the best dolls and values worldwide, and she also
personally designs several of the limited edition dolls in the line.
Tonner Dolls Will Produce Harry Potter Dolls
One of the most exciting pieces of doll news that I uncovered today is that
Tonner Dolls will be producing a line of Harry Potter dolls! They have licensed
the rights and dolls will be available to collectors by the end of this year.
There are no prototypes available yet, but the dolls are planned to be 14" in
size and will have many accessories available. Dolls of Harry, Hermione and Ron
are planned so far.
Considering that many doll collectors have found the Harry Potter dolls released
by other companies so far to be generally uninspiring, this is great news! The
dolls should appeal to both young and old doll collectors alike.
Tyler Wentworth Dinner For Broadway Cares A Big Success
My
final pre-Toy Fair event was tonight's special Tyler Wentworth Fashion Event for
Broadway Cares - Equity Fights AIDS. Held at the Westin Times Square, the
semi-formal event started with dinner. A special limited editon Tyler Wentworth,
Broadway Lights Tyler, was sold with proceeds to go to Broadway Cares.
After the dinner, there was a presentation on inspirations for the Tyler
Wentworth line of dolls, followed by a live fashion show of real-life models
modeling Tyler outfits for 2005. Several celebrities attended the event,
including two of the Lennon Sisters and Sandy Duncan (Ms. Duncan actively raises
money for Broadway Cares and accepted the check for over $18,000 raisesd by the
event). The retailers and collectors who attended enjoyed a special evening and
also got to see the 2005 line of Tyler Wentworth dolls beautifully presented.
The Doll & Toy Museum of NYC Hold Pre-Toy
Fair Doll Show
I've been running all around a very chilly New York today for some pre-Toy Fair
activities. This afternoon at the Jacob Javits Convention Center, the
Doll and Toy Museum of New York hosted a Doll and Teddy Bear Show. This show
focused on many talented individual doll and bear artists who wanted to share
their dolls with the public before the start of Toy Fair.
Some of these artists will attend Toy Fair, but for others, this was their only chance to have their work be seen by a wide audience this week. Artists at the show included Neva Dolls, Dorothea Petzold, Expressions of Color, Original Dolls by Goldie and many others. The Doll Castle News was also there, and Tom Tierney, the famous paper doll designer, signed paper dolls for attendees.
Off To Toy Fair; Barbie vs. Bratz
I'm on my way to Toy Fair 2005! I'm actually at the airport in San Francisco
now, eager to start events and meetings tomorrow. Already, there's been some big
pre-Toy Fair news--Barbie and Bratz have decided to battle it out on several
entertainment fronts, pitting the two main divas of fashion dolls against one
another in movies, music, and more. The My Scene Barbie dolls will star in a
direct-to-video movie, "My Scene Goes to Hollywood," and the Bratz dolls rock it
out as the new "Bratz Rock Angelz." Find out more in
Barbie, Bratz to Compete With Movies, Tunes from AZCentral.com.
