Kane County Doll Show Haul/Loot
Earlier this month, we went to our second doll show of the year– the Kane County Doll Show at the Kane County Fairgrounds in St. Charles, Illinois. Many of the show exhibitors also attend the Naperville Doll Show (see our haul/loot from January here). This show had around 70 vendors, all in one room! Admission was $6.50 for anyone over 12 years old. Kids younger than 12 were free.
This is an interesting show, because the themes you see change show to show! This weekend, the big theme was bisque. There were so many vendors with beautiful bisque dolls for sale. There were a few modern doll vendors, but not enough to impress a collector who only collects newer dolls. However, if you were in the market for antique bisque and composition dolls, the Kane County Doll Show was the place to be! They had more Barbie vendors than normal, in my opinion, but the Barbies they had were a bit pricey. The budget Barbie vendors skipped out on this show, it seems!
While both my mom and I both left with some fantastic buys, we also both felt like very few things were calling to us! For a good while there, I wasn’t even sure we’d have a haul/loot post or video! But, after two laps around the room, we eventually found a few things that we felt would be great in our collections!
Now, let’s get to our Kane County Doll Show Haul! For me, my first purchase was a beautiful R&B (Arrenbee) Cinderella. Technically, she’s not really an R&B Cinderella. She’s a 14 inch R&B Nancy Ann dressed in a Madame Alexander Cinderella dress with a replacement crown. The seller sold it to me under the guise that it was a Madame Alexander Cinderella, but the price was too good to pass up. Plus, at this point, I should have realized it was R&B when I saw it. Cinderella has an adorable Nancy Ann face. I love how round and innocent the Nancy Ann face is! She looks more innocent than the Madame Alexander Cinderella. Her hair is also in great shape and styled beautifully. Even though I thought she was one thing and she turned out to be another, I am very happy with this purchase.
At local doll shop Gigi’s booth, I ended up finding my final purchases of the day. When we first began exploring the hall, I noticed that Gigi had some adorable Fairyland BJD’s on display. Being a little pricey, I took the ‘wait and see’ approach and made a note to go back after we had walked the show floor. So, we reach the end of our second loop and head back to Gigi’s, where I suddenly notice two Kurhn dolls that had not been on display when I looked at the booth before. I immediately snatched up an adorable Kurhn in a cream dress with a blue sweater top. This particular Kurhn doll has been on my watch list on eBay for years now. Even at a slightly inflated price tag, she was sold. Her styling is amazing and I love this version of the Kurhn face. The second Kurhn on display was taken from the table less than a minute after I claimed my Kurhn doll. I don’t even remember which it was, to be honest, because the other buyer swooped in that quickly!
Staying at Gigi’s booth, I decided to look at the other Fairyland BJD’s she had in a box under her booth. Gigi’s had about 7 or 8 dolls for sale from the BJD maker. I ended up falling in love with a PukiFee Ante. Ante has the most adorable face with round eyes, a cute innocent look and freckles above her nose. And let’s not forget the adorable fairy ears. They are too cute for words!
Ante is about 15cm, bigger than a PukiPuki (11cm) and smaller than a LittleFee (25cm). A few things here– I’m surprised at how sturdy this doll feels for being so small! The Fairyland BJD PukiFee’s articulation is great. The joints move so fluidly! I also love that there are apparently magnets in the torso so you can buy wings for these little cuties. How cool is that? I understand now why people love their tiny BJD’s so much! I wish I could pick up more from Gigi’s, but unless I win the lottery, those will have to join other dolly families!
My mom walked away with some great buys, too! At the last doll show, she bought a very pretty bisque doll. That doll needed a new outfit and wig, so at this show, my mom went to work to find those two things! Her German bisque doll now looks much fresher than before.
Her last purchase of the day was a Wanda the Walking Doll. This hard plastic doll from the 50’s is super cool. You wind up the key in Wanda’s torso, turn her on and, boom, she starts walking! For being over 70 years old, this doll is in wonderful shape. You can watch her walk in the haul/loot video– fast forward to 11 minutes in.
So there you have it! Another doll show in the books! What do you think of the haul/loot we picked up at the Kane County Doll Show? Have you picked up any new additions to your collection at a show recently? Let us know in the comments!
The Chicago Toy and Game Fair 2018 (ChiTAG)
Recently, my mom and I attended the Chicago Toy and Game Fair. Celebrating toys and games of all shapes and sizes, the game fair is unique among other toy shows. It is aimed at families and inventors, as opposed to industry buyers. Held at Navy Pier, ChiTAG has been going strong for over 10 years. It’s not a great place to see what’s new in the doll world, but it is a fun event to attend if you’re in the Chicagoland area, especially if you have young kids.
Welcome to the Chicago Toy and Game Fair at Navy Pier!
The best thing about ChiTAG this year for us was that our friend Frances brought her A Girl for All Time dolls to the show. As far as industry friends go, Frances is the best! Plus, it’s always fun seeing A Girl for All Time dolls and their accessories in person! (You can see plenty of reviews on this doll line on my YouTube channel or here on the blog!) Live video from their booth found here.
There was only one other doll company at the show and that was Instant Glam Dolls. Instant Glam Dolls is a line of styling heads with a unique twist! Instead of just being able to style their hair, Instant Glam Dolls use innovative fastening technology that allow you to switch out hair extensions or change the hair texture and color whenever you’d like. This line was invented by a grandmother who thought it would be a fun thing for her granddaughters. A few years ago, she brought it to market. There are three styling heads available and accessory packs with more hair extensions to expand your play options! You’ll be seeing them on my YouTube channel and here on the blog soon!
Besides these two doll lines, the other things I found cool were mostly game related. Golden Bell Studios brought some of their games. They’re working on two Once Upon a Time games (a card game and a board game) and a heart like the ones used on the show (which I assume is a plushie, but am not sure). They also had the adorable Marshfellows.
I-Top by Goliath was pretty neat, too. It’s a play on an old classic- spinning tops. These spinning tops are decked out with a counting system to tell you how many turns your top has spun. It also keeps the ‘high score’ so you know what you need to beat for a new personal best or to play alongside your friends!
Here’s a few more photos from the show!
ChiTAG, while it isn’t attended by many large toy companies and usually has very few dolls on display, is a fun event for those in the area. Visit the website to learn more about The Chicago Toy and Game Fair. Share your comments about the toys in this post below. Do you have a show like the Chicago Toy and Game Fair in your area? Share it in the comment area!
Sweet Suite 2018 Recap
This past week, I made a quick trip into New York City for an event called Sweet Suite hosted by The Toy Insider. Formally Blogger Bash, Sweet Suite is a mini toy fair event. With over 70 toy and game companies showcasing their new products for the year alongside deliciously tasty treats, 2018’s Sweet Suite was a fun evening filled with mingling and product reveals. Here are some highlights from the show floor!
Cabbage Patch Kids: A perk of any toy show is getting to catch up with Janis, who represents Wicked Cool Toys. One of their properties is Cabbage Patch Kids. In celebration of Cabbage Patch Kid’s 35th anniversary, Wicked Cool Toy’s chose to theme the products for 2018 around celebrations! (Perfect for me, as I, too, will be celebrating the big 3-5 this year!)
Also, take note of the cute Teddy Ruxpin Hug ‘N Sing Plush and his friend Grubby!
Rideamal Horse Scout: Scout is a battery operated horse that moves forwards and backwards with fully motorized eyes, ears, head, and wheels from Kid Trax. Scout has over 100 unique sounds and movements. I personally found him adorable! I want one!
Hairdorables: Hairdorables made their debut at Sweet Suite! From Just Play, each Hairdorable doll package is a surprise –just pull, peel, and reveal 11 accessories and fashions that unwrap the unique personality, style, and talent of the Hairdorables girl hidden inside! With 36 different dolls to collect (including two rare and one ultra-rare), these will definitely be on a lot of Christmas lists this year! Hairdorables hit stores 8/1/18.
Party Popteenies: Party Popteenies from Spin Master are pretty neat! Pull, twist and pop to throw the most fabulous celebration with these poptastic dolls! The dolls are pocket sized. Each Party Popteenies includes a doll, one hair accessory, 1-2 party accessories, themed confetti, and a collector’s poster. Wave one includes three different themes: Rainbow Unicorn, Cutie Animal or Winter Wonderland Party Popteenie!
D-Lectables: D-Lectables from Imperial Toys are right up my alley. These blind bags feature miniature sweet treats themed around popular Disney characters. Each D-Lectable is created with stackable pieces, so you can mix and match! I like how the designs are creative, giving you a hint of the character without being ‘on the nose’.
Pop-Oh-Ver: From Kangaroo Manufacturing comes Pop-Oh-Ver! Pop-Oh-Ver is a clever space saving play set perfect for imaginative play! These fabric coverings are designed to fit any kitchen or dining room chair to resemble a real-world kitchen, stove or counter tops. When you’re done playing make believe, it’s super easy to remove the Pop-Oh-Ver from the chair, fold it up and store it away till the next time it’s needed.
World’s Smallest: Hot Wheels is celebrating 50 years this year. To celebrate, the World’s Smallest line is making a whole slew of miniature Hot Wheels products! These would be perfect props for the right sized doll! There’s mini cars, car cases and even tracks!
Boxy Girls: Exclusive to Walmart, Boxy Girls play on the unboxing trend! Each doll comes with shipping boxes with special surprises inside of them! There are four girls in the line. See the video review below!
Calico Critters: Calico Critters from Epoch displayed the Grand Department Store from the Town Series, a super cute playset centered around the adorable bunny rabbit, Stella and her friends. The Grand Department Store features elegant, sophisticated styling and a unified design for even more freedom with the layout. The special gift set comes complete with terrace, balconies, custom windows, awnings, flags and railings to spark even more customizable play. I also quite liked the Ride Along Tram. Seriously, it’s too cute.
GUND: GUND had their new baby line on display, which was adorable! My favorite thing on the table was probably the cute Sloth, though! I was surprised to see that they were making Gudetama plushies!
Fancy Nancy: Jakks Pacific was showing off a few things, including Fancy Nancy! I think this Fancy Nancy is adorable!
Harry Potter Die-Cast Wands Blind Boxes: Look at these wizard wands! They’d be perfect as props for your dolls! These are by Jakks Pacific and would probably work great with dolls that are 1/6th scale!
Here are a few more photos from Sweet Suite 2018!
Cry Babies (Spin Master)
Furreal Munchin Rex (Hasbro)
Cupcake Surprise
Arcade 1Up (a 4ft tall, light weight and very affordable arcade console– I want one!)
JoJo’s Closet, JoJo Doll (Just Play)
Snap Dolls (Cortex Toys)
Crayola Crayon Melter (Crayola)
Puz Oodles
Me and Mario (not looking too bad for being up since 4AM thankfully!)
Airbrush Art
Me and Toad
A GIANT GI JOE box
Cry Babies (ICM)
Did you catch our review on these doll sized (and super playable) mini arcade games from Arcade Classics?
I was worried that the loss of Toys R Us would put a wrench in toy companies plans for 2018, but judging by what I saw at Sweet Suite, this holiday season is looking pretty merry. There were a number of toys that I know will fly off shelves and be on many children’s Christmas lists! Stay tuned for the swag box opening video–to be posted soon! Does anything on this list strike your fancy? Let us know in the comment area!
UPDATE:
Here’s all the SWAG we received in the Sweet Suite Swag box!!!!
PUDDLE 2018- Thoughts and Haul/Loot
June 23, 2018 marked the 11th annual Pullip and Dal Doll Lovers Event, aka PUDDLE. My mother, Barbee0913 on YouTube, and I have gone for the past five years. In those five years, we’ve seen PUDDLE grow tremendously. For PUDDLE 2018, the showrunners made a few changes to the day. Instead of all the activities being held in one room, there was an added room where they held two programs, as well as the custom doll contest. The addition of the extra room saved up space in the main room, which was nice.
During the first half of the day, there was a break out session where you could get tips on sewing. The second half had a breakout where you could learn more about making doll music videos. While I’ve suggested in past video recaps that panels would be a nice thing to consider, I ended up missing the first panel, because I plum forgot about it. It was very early in the day and I was busy shopping. The second session wasn’t something I was interested in, as I am familiar with video making. I don’t think the panels were as popular as they could have been with attendees, but it’s a step in the right direction.
The attendee tables were decorated in very creative and unique ways. Each table had been decorated by a volunteer table host who also provided some cute table gifts. The table gifts at the table we chose were crocheted jellyfish hats! They were hand-made by our table host!
As far as dolls on display, there were a lot! One of the nice things about PUDDLE is that people will bring a handful of dolls with them to display by their seats. The dolls don’t have to be Pullips. They can be whatever you’d like to show off. This year, I saw a lot of Kiki Pops, a doll on my wish list. Seeing them in person made me want one even more!
This year, there were lots of viewers/readers at PUDDLE who stopped us to say hello. It was so much fun chatting with you all. We hope to see you next year!
One of the most exciting parts of the day was when they announced the winners of the custom contests! My mother made a mini custom themed around the Coast Guard, since PUDDLE’s theme was “Spell of the Sea”. Her custom placed first! It was all very exciting.
The vendor tables were again a highlight of the day! There were so many fantastic sellers at the show. So, I know what you’re thinking– where’s the loot?! Well, here ya go! Both my mom and I left with only a few items. They all came from the same booths, too, as it so happened! I picked up a fantastically made pink jean jacket for one of my Skipper dolls from Mota de Algodon. My mom left with a cute Little Prince inspired dress from her booth, as well. Mota makes high quality clothing and comes highly recommended from us if you’re looking for well made doll clothing!
Craftineered was back and this year, she was a vendor! We both bought some cute hair clip hats for our dolls. Mom bought a light up unicorn horn and I bought cute deer ears (not pictured).
Doll Angel, the customizer who made my Divergent custom, had a table this year again, too. I bought a bunny hat for my Blythe doll. The hat’s too cute on her!
A new vendor this year was Nightengale Needles. She’s a seamstress who makes a variety of different things. My mom picked up two doll sized hats that were then sized to her dolls heads. The hats are very cool looking! I am definitely going to reach out to her if I need any custom outfits for my dolls OR myself!
More photos can be seen here. Overall, 2018’s PUDDLE was a lot of fun. Next years theme is steampunk, which I already have so many ideas for! I’ve inquired about getting some custom outfit pieces for my custom contest entry already, in fact! Fingers crossed the ideas come together!!! Let us know what you think of the cute things we picked up at the show or if you’ve attended a fan gathering or convention recently in the comment area!
Netchie Dolls and Nata’s Knitted Friends
At the Chicago Toy Show, it’s pretty typical to see the same vendors show after show, which is I why I was happily surprised to see two new vendors! Both vendors were doll artists/creators, not dealers, which was another happy surprise. They also happened to be right next to each other in the room.
We’ll start with Netchie Dolls. Netchie Dolls are adorable cloth dolls! They stood out among the other vendors, who had more vintage pieces on display. Netchie Dolls are stuffed with a combination of sheep’s wool and polyester stuffing and are covered in a cotton knit fabric. The hair is composed of yarn attached to a crocheted wig cap that is firmly attached to the head so that it can stand up to hours of play time and a variety of hairstyles.
They’re cute online, but even more adorable in person! Being short on cash, I wasn’t able to pick one of these up this show, but I am very tempted to next time!
The second seller that stood out was Nata’s Knitted Friends. Nata had a table full of super cute crocheted creations! When I asked her about the dolls, she mentioned that she’s also open to making 100% unique creations based on a drawing. I can’t think of a better way of immortalizing a family members art than making their 2D image real!
So, check these guys out if you’re looking for a unique doll for yourself, a family member or a friend. What do you think of these? Share your thoughts in the comment area!
Confessions of a Doll Collectors Daughter 