The Elyse Chronicles: Dior Inspiration
I shared on my Instagram story a little peek into this photo shoot. Many of my ideas for photos come from images I have seen and have been inspired by. When I started thinking about doing a photo series on the 10th Anniversary Jason Wu dolls, my thought was to put them into fashions that were very different than the ones they originally came in. The model for this next set of images is the first Net a Porter Jason Wu doll. And no…I did not take the image below. Wow is it blown out! Come on Net a Porter…you can do better than this 
Have your eyeballs recovered from the retinal searage above?…LOL!
Since this lady came in a ball gown…my thought was to bring it down and put her in some day wear…but Dior daywear so…I guess it’s an elevated daywear look.
Model: 10th Anniversary Jason Wu doll by Net a Porter
Dress: Barbie® Elegant Rose Cocktail Dress Doll
Shoes: 10th Anniversary Jason Wu doll by Net a Porter
Hat: Integrity Toys Love the One Kyori and modified by me
Poodle: Randall Craig
And….what a face!!
Who says you can’t put a redhead in red?!! Not me.
-Rebecca
J’Adore Miss Amour
The title speaks for itself. When I first saw this doll my reaction was this…
And..that has not changed upon receiving her. She is EVERYTHING I was hoping for and more. David, I bow down! 
Miss Amour
Poppy Parker™ Dressed Doll
The Bonbon Collection
IT Direct Exclusive
Approximate Ship Date: Mid-Late Summer 2016
Limited Edition Size: 700 Dolls
Doll Tech Specs:
Body Type: Poppy Parker™
Head Sculpt: Poppy Parker™
Quick Switch Feature: No
Skin Tone: FR White
Hair Color: Ash Brown Mix
Eyelashes: Yes, Hand-Applied
Head Sculpt: Poppy Parker™
This amazing creature is gorgeous. The dress is beyond people…just…BEYOND.
It’s inspired by Dior I and many believe, what is not to love about that. Fashion inspiration image find goes to Nata-Leto on Flickr. Big THANKS to Rogier Corbeau of Dutch Barbie World for letting me use this image.
The jewelry is fabulous!
Me likey!!….Me likey a lot!!!!
-Rebecca
The Oscars Red Carpet Fashion Recap
I’m back with my annual Oscars Red Carpet fashion picks and pans. The 88th Annual Academy Awards were full of fashion high points…and….definitely some low points. These are just my humble opinions and I realize my idea of fashion may not coincide with everyone’s . I am just taking this moment to tell you what I liked. I will be taking a few moments to poke some fun at what I didn’t like too.
Let’s start with the good stuff…
Red Carpet Picks
My pick of the night is actually shared between two different ladies because I just could not decide between the two who pulled it off the best.
Charlize Theron in custom Dior…again….and we love it….again.
Head to toe chic. I wonder whether a choker would have worked on this look. The long pendant works well but I wonder if a choker would have worked better…not sure. I love that they went minimal and didn’t over stack this gown with jewelry. Clean, simple, elegant and so very chic. Brava!!
A little look inside the Dior workroom (Instagram) on this one. It was a custom order folks. It’s pays to be a couture house’s muse.
Cate Blanchett in Armani Privé
Stunning!!! From the color to the delicate floral embellishment I adored this look. Her Tiffany jewelry brought it to another level. Everything just sings for me on this one. All the girly princess pressure points in my system sang to this Ave Maria of a gown.
Illustration from Megan Hess Instagram
Those were my two favorite looks of the evening but there were a number of looks that made me nod my head in approval to the wearer and stylist.
Alicia Virkander in custom Louis Vuitton
Glorious in whipped butter yellow!! All you bakers out there know the color I reference. When was the last time we saw yellow rock the red carpet? I’m thinking never! Michelle Williams did orange in Vera Wang beautifully one year but I’m not sure this shade of yellow has made an appearance lately. Again minimal jewelry, soft hair and softer makeup palette brings forth a win on this one. And congrats to Ms. Virkender on her Oscar win and….managing to bring Michael Fassbender as her date! Cuuuuuuute.
Ms. Virkander also rocked a LV for the after parties too…
Giuliana Rancic in George Chakra
I loved the clean elegant lines of this gown and the party that was the back. Nice. Giuliana still needs a few cheeseburgers though to fill out those arms.
Olivia Munn in Stella McCartney
Loved this bold deep orange/red on her. I also loved the bold clean lines of this design and the strong clean jewelry she ( or her stylist) paired with it. Nice!
Honerable Mention
First off “Cutest reveal of a baby bump” has to go to Emily Blunt in Prada
I was not on social media for the days leading up to the Oscars so I missed the announcement that she was expecting. I took one look at her empire waist gown and said to my daughter “Is Emily Blunt preggers?” Guess I should have read the news feed before the event. She glowed in this and I liked it.
Next up is “Person most likely to feel a draft the WHOLE evening”. This goes to Rachel McAdams in August Getty.
Why the “feel the draft” comment? This is why….
Ohhhhh my. There had to have been some industrial tapping going on when she got dressed. There was simply no room for “gap issues” in that gown. Tape all the way. Can’t imagine what it was like to undress from that one. Ouuuuuuch. She looked gorgeous in it though. I wonder how many times people stepped on the train.
“Best revenge on a cheating ex-husband” has to go to Jennifer Garner in Atelier Versace
She looked regal and elegant in this all black power house of a gown. Take that one to the nanny Ben. Seriously.
“Best way to support a friend” goes to Lady Gaga in Brandon Maxwell
The designer is a friend of hers and he is trying to make his way in this shark tank of a fashion industry. Lady Gaga showed his work to perfection on the red carpet. She also performed a powerful rendition of her best song nomination from a documentary showcasing the alarming epidemic of college campus rape. Nicely done my Lady.
“The woman who most embodied a gladiator” award goes to Kerry Washington in Atelier Versace
The leather breastplate top just didn’t do it for me. It was a strong bold look for sure…just wasn’t feeling it. I kept thinking…”she needs the helmet thing with the brush broom on top..and a sword”
Red Carpet Pans
My pans for the evening were few actually. First up has to be Sandy Powell in…well..don’t know the designer but the look sadly came across as a catastrophic ode to David Bowie. The woman is an amazing costume designer (hello!! she has multiple Oscars to prove it) but her style fell very short on the red carpet last night. Poor woman…E! Online kept calling her Tilda Swinton during their red carpet segment. I nearly made myself hoarse screaming at the TV “ It’s NOT Tilda Swinton…it’s Sandy Powel!!” Get it together E! !!
Olivia Wilde in Valentino
Ummmmm. no! I am all for architectural design in clothing but this just felt wrong to me. WAY too many pleats for my taste. Olivia Wilde is an amazingly beautiful woman. This fashion on her did not showcase that at all. Yes, she sure has the body to wear it but this one just left me…well….de pleated LOL!
It didn’t work any better on the Spring 2016 Couture runway either
Mara Rooney in Givenchy
Oh I know I will get hate mail for this one. I can hear the comments now…”But Rebecca…it’s Givenchy!!” The gown is stunning…just not on this albino skinned actress. I have to admit, part of my negative review of this look had to do with Mara Rooney and her none too happy face every time the camera landed on her. It came across as petulance. I would love to see the amazing Ms. Rooney in some kind of color not this gothic pasty white/cream. She just blended into the background here.
Lastly, and it pains me to do this….I give you Kate Winslet in Ralph Lauren
My first thought…honest to God…was, who put Kate in a hefty bag? Was that sequins, metallic sheen or just plain plastic sheeting? Have no idea. Normally she nocks it out of the park. This year, she stayed in the park and was rummaging around in the garbage cans. Sadly Kate, not the king of the world with this one. It was honestly adorable though that you walked in with Leo DiCaprio à la Titanic from years ago. Very cute.
Lastly we have Heidi Klum in Marchesa
Ok, the color is not bad but please, oh please lose the puff sleeve!! And the Pom-Pom fleurettes need to go…like right now. This dress has garden party gone amuck all over it. No disrespect to the talented ladies of Marchesa but…was Heidi looking for funding from Harvey Weinstein and was just sucking up by buying the last dress on the rack from his wife? Ouch Rebecca!
After Party
As an added item for this years tome on Oscar night fashions, I would like to add a few snaps on who ruled at the after parties. Vanity Fair had quite a few winners as well as Elton John’s big party.
Taylor Swift in Alexandre Vauthier
Rachel McAdams in Naeem Khan
Maggie Grace in Galia Lahav
And…how cute is this couple?!! Gwen Stefani in Yanina and Blake Shelton. His expression is priceless. It says “ I’m just happy to be here y’all”. I love how she is decked out sexy gorgeous and he looks like he’s going to a neighborhood association meeting.
And that’s a wrap for this years award season fashion reviews.
-Rebecca
Fashionably Floral in February
Mattel’s first BFMC offering will be available at BFC starting February 2nd. What a perfect way to welcome Valentine’s Day.
Fashionably Floral™ Barbie® Doll
Gold Label®
Designed by: Robert Best
Release Date: 2/2/2015
Product Code: CGK91
No more than 10000 units produced worldwide
Retail: $50.00
source: www.barbiecollector.com
It looks like Mr. Best and Lars(set designer for Mattel) are channeling their inner Dior with this set. How Fabulous!! I ask again…can we please, please, please get these little chairs in production for purchase?!!
source: www.barbiecollector.com
Ahhhh….so very Dior. I want to see the sketches on the table. Any clues to what is coming out this year??
source: www.barbiecollector.com
{SWOON} You had me at the hat people…at the hat. I have to admit though, the little side chignon is making me do the happy dance too. Here is another thing making me do the happy dance, the new box design.
source: www..amazon.co.uk
Rogier over at one of my favorite doll blogs, Dutch Barbie World, reported this morning with these pictures from European Amazon sites. If you want information on the Silkstone world first…sign up for his blog posts. I have to say…I like the IRL photos even better. And that pale pink liner?!!! {Swoon…again} Now how am I supposed to debox that?! Rogier laughed and said “Easy, get two” Wise words Mr. Corbeau.
The new logo is very reminiscent of the vintage Dior logo.
source: www.etsy.com
Owning a Silkstone has never been more affordable with this $50.00 price tag. What are you waiting for collectors? I will be running to get this one…may even get two 
-Rebecca
Fashion Inspiration
Hello 2015!! I don’t know about you guys but I am really looking forward to a better year this year. I was trolling( cough…obsessing …cough) through Pinterest this morning as I sipped my coffee and I saw something that caught my interest. At the Integrity Toys convention this past October, they introduced a new friend of Victoire’s. Here name is Simonetta.
source: Integrity Toys Inc.
source: Integrity Toys Inc
source: Integrity Toys Inc
Here title is “La Ville Lumiere” or City of Light. She was a definite purchase for me at convention and I am looking forward to photographing her. So classic…so chic. Today, I saw this photo from the Met’s archive.
source: Metropolitan Museum of Art
It is Dior 1949. Perfection
The Allure of Dior
For most fashion lovers, all you have to say is the word Dior, and we are listening. Dior has been in the headlines of many collector FB pages and blogs recently because of a brand new exhibition in China right now. It is called Le Petit Théâtre Dior.
The exhibit is patterned off of the Théâtre de la mode exhibition that opened in Paris in March of 1945. Théâtre de la mode brought together European design houses to exhibit couture designs on small wire mannequins. It was done to reinvigorate a flagging fashion industry after World War II. The current beautifully constructed Dior exhibit also uses smaller mannequins to display some of Dior’s most famous fashions past and present. The fact that these are shown in small scale is enough to get me excited about this traveling exhibit ( oh please, please, please bring this one to the States!). The real bonus is…and here I concur with my friend Rogier who writes the very informative Dutch Barbie World blog…the exquisite sets they have designed for these small recreations. To a diorama enthusiast, these are pure heaven. Yes I would be one of those annoying people at this exhibit who simply would NOT move so you could see what was inside the case. I would need the entire day to commit to memory every detail in every display. Seriously….I am not kidding.
One of the cornerstones in this new exhibition appears to be the “Miss Dior” gown. The original “Miss Dior” gown was designed by Christian Dior in 1949
source: www.dior.com
Raf Simons, the current designer for the house of Dior, resurrected this design in his Fall 2012 couture collection and added a more modern spin.
source: www.style.com
It was used in the ad campaigns for the Miss Dior perfume.
source: www.dior.com
Mr. Simons even designed a black version of the gown
source: http://thestatementbox.com/2013/11/19/miss-dior-exhibition-at-the-grand-palais/
With this new exhibit, Dior has created a small scale version of the iconic gown from 1949 and gave us an absolutely mesmerizing video to show the making of.
source: www.dior.com
source: www.dior.com
Many, many collectors are just blown away by this gown and are lusting after it for their diminutive diva’s. Wouldn’t you just love to have this in your collection? Well…maybe you can….or at least something very close to it. The talented Hilda of Bellissima Couture will be holding a silent auction for a 1/6 scale replica of the “Miss Dior” gown. Information about the auction should be on her blog today, June 12th.
Inside the Fashion Doll Studio 