Dollism (part 1)

I got back from Dollism Monday, but mentally I'm still in limbo lol
I have yet to even unpack!! I've been useless at work, and I really just want to play dolls, but have to get back to real life, as it were.

I was putting this post off until I had pictures to post, but I still don't have them all edited!! There's so many D: I didn't think I took a lot, but apparently I did, I'm not half through yet. A lot of them are horrible, my point and shoot does a good job, but nothing could function well in the horrid lighting EVERYWHERE in that awful hotel. So some turned out, others did not.

I will try and do a more detailed post, but for now, a few highlights.

Room Sales
This was the first thing we did Friday. We literally checked into the hotel, checked into Dollism,  tossed our sales on the bed and opened the door. XD People were shopping as we organized. The good thing was we had everything but the resin priced, and I had price tags pre-printed for the dolls, and a sign, so I did that kind of leisurely as people looked.

Room sales was honestly one of my favorite things all weekend because I am a very social person, and having people come in my room all hours of the night was a lot of fun, especially since they were all doll people, and a lot of them friends I've known for years and never met! It was like a giant party! With doll stuff! And money! XD I do regret not being able to shop more, I would have loved to visit everyone's room, and talk to those I missed, but I was selling most of the time, and unable to leave :( Plus the hotel's crap with shutting us down early, then before we even started....well, I'll leave most of my opinion on the Hyatt out, at least for now, other than to say I am NOT disappointed that they're looking at other venues for the next Dollism already.

Room sales were also fabulous for the most unexpected and wonder reason of all: they paid for my whole trip minus the Hotel and plane ticket. I am not kidding. I used my card for one small purchase, and my initial spending cash, and that's it. Room sales covered everything else. Including the doll I bought, most of the clothes and all the many pairs of eyes. Among all the other stuff, I sold two dolls (both bunnies), a body and a head. I consider that to be a major success.

Dollmore
If you know me at all, you know that one of the biggest reasons I was so incredibly excited to go to Dollism was to see Dollmore in person. They did not disappoint.

Friday night I escaped room sales for 5 minutes and took the elevator to their room. While in the 'vator, I chatted with another con-goer (who's name I didn't get and I regret that so much!!!), who it turned out, had a Judith on her. She stripped the poor girl lol to show me the body - because I'd mentioned I was interested in one (which is true, I'd been considering a Judith to replace the Souldoll as Mini Isis). I was so impressed I decided that that was definitely the way to go, but still wasn't thinking about immediate gratification so much as "OMGI'MRIGHTOUTSIDEDOLLMORE'SROOM!!!!!!!" In I went.

It was moderate chaos, dolls were set up on all the cabinets, all fullsets, looking amazing, and people were everywhere. Running around, talking, buying things, going through piles of stuff. It was sensory over-load. Being the total dork I am I teared up from just being in the room with all the dolls and the Dollmore ladies (who I was too afraid to talk too), and I didn't want to get involved in the mess (someone knocked over a doll and there was much noise) so I just looked at the dolls set up on display. I noticed two dolls right away. One, they had a Kara Klum sitting on their bed amongst all the sales stuff holding a sword and looking (as they do) disgruntled. He had brown hair, which might have accounted for his mood...they do like to be blond. XD
The other doll I saw right away was a blue-skinned Dollpire Shiloh, which I wanted SO FREAKING BAD!!! But I was "smart" and didn't bring my wallet. So no way could I buy not one thing. I was waiting to see how the sales turned out first.

While I was there, the Shiloh sold, which made me leave before I could start begging them to let me buy it XD
I didn't talk to them at room sales. It was a madhouse and I didn't have my identification with me (meaning I had left Alex in my room) so there was no point IMO. My roommate went after me, and confirmed that someone bought the blue vampire. Boo. One of the friends I went with ran down and actually bought one of the Judiths they had....so I got a good look at her too and was double-sure I wanted one at that point, but since I knew one had sold for sure and thought maybe another had sold, I didn't really think about buying one....

Saturday we stood in line waiting to be let in to the vendor room. When the line finally moved we split up, my roommate and I went to Oscar (pausing by DM - more chaos. They were really busy the whole time) so we could buy eyes and our other friends got in the long Switch line.

Four pairs (Four!!) of Oscar Eyes later, we went back to Dollmore. I sneaked in to their booth, and was caught by Abby...She saw Alex and recognized him as a Kara Klum right away (I'd always wondered if they would). She pointed him out to the other two (one of which is the DM CEO!! MRS DOLLMORE!) and they fawned all over him! I of course had to mention how much I loved his mold and all their dolls, and that I had one on order, so they fished him out for me and handed him over - wrapped in bubble-wrap and a blanket (he has his own blanket!! lol) and in a Dollmore Shopping bag (yay!!). I didn't want to leave, so I kind of stuck around and with help from my BF convinced myself I did need a new doll (even though I was not supposed to get one) since room sales had been so successful, and bought the last Judith Zinna. My CC didn't go through ( a whole other story - ugh) so I paid with cash. They let me have her for $20 less than price, which was less than actual price on their site. Yay! I was to come back in an hour to get her (her fullset is insane. I'm not kidding.) so they could pack her up.

20 minutes later Abby came running after me down the hall to tell me she was ready for pick-up XD so I followed her back to their booth. She asked me a little more about Alex and if I wrote about him...so I told her about the comic. I had brought them with me, both intending to sell them and to give some to Dollmore as a thank you for, well for Alex. He did get me into the hobby, and I love it, so they deserve something IMO. Unfortunately me being me I'd forgotten to bring them down....so I would have to grab them later.....

Fast forward through a bunch of other con stuff, and I went up to my room, grabbed the comics and brought them down...I only had one set with me, because in all honesty I wasn't sure they'd even care. I handed them to Abby, and she saw what they were and gave them to the CEO (I wish I'd gotten their names!!! I am so fail) who got really excited and handed me a box with their amazing solid metal headphones as a gift!! I'm still shocked. I must have thanked her a million times while I stood there like an idiot - those things are expensive and they weren't marked down for the con. Abby asked if she could have some too (again, didn't think they'd care so much *fail again*) so I went up and brought two more sets down for them.

I will forever be so touched by how happy they were to see my art, and to realize that the doll they made plays such a huge part in my artistic life. And by how wonderful they were to me. They smiled and talked to me every time I walked by, and really loved Alex. I had been worried tbh. I had III with me most of the time - and I've always been a little afraid that they wouldn't appreciate how I took a very limited fullset doll and.....well, turned him into something else. But they loved his faceup and that I'd made his wig (they asked). It really made me happy. And when I had Alex I they liked him too, especially when I mentioned he was my first doll ever. He's not quite as flashy as III (who is?), but he's my baby lol (he got spoiled rotten too - a super-expensive outfit just for him. Though the new one is wearing the pants right now...).

I really can't thank them enough for being so friendly to me, and going out of their way to do it (I'm sure it doesn't hurt that I have like, nine-thousand DM dolls lol and just bought one while I was there, but still!!). They made what was already a fabulous weekend that much more memorable. Something I'll never forget.

And now I have a new Alex!!

Look, there he is now

 

I probably don't have to point out that he's the middle one XD
Their all wearing their new loot (III has on the headphones) but the new one is wearing the underwear he came in (which for some reason, I really like. He's still got the shirt on), one of the many "Alex-wigs", a shirt I bought at room sales, and Enchanted Doll eyes I got in the vendor room. Yep. I finally caved and bought super-expensive urethane eyes that aren't Oscar. And they really are worth it. Just look how much they show up in my crappy photo!! Of course, they may not when he the Alex "eyelashes of doom" they all get. But for now they look amazing. III got Oscar eyes like I's, so all three of them have special eyes now.

I am....way more enamored by the new one (I'm already referring too as Seven) than I thought I would be. I thought it would be like the others...but I had forgotten how long it's been since I've gotten a full one and not parts. And I've never gotten a blank one. Even the heads have had faceups. He looks different too. The first thing I said when I had a chance to inspect him in my hotel room was that something was different about his body. It's more detailed than the others - making me resolve to change my order around. I don't want to mod this one - he's special. My friends, as usual, think I'm crazy and that he's the same, but I will swear on my life he's not, and yesterday I suddenly realized why. He's the only one I own who isn't sanded.

I didn't know what seams were when I bought I(one) so I had them sanded. III came sanded as part of his Fullset, as did IV. II's body I got sanded because the others were. Dollmore sands their dolls completely, head included, so it's an all-over perfection and there's no marks. Seven isn't sanded at all....so all his detail is just a tiny bit sharper. It's not really that noticeable except in his torso...he has more abs than the others XDD

Ok, this has gone on too long as it is and I only posted one photo!! I'll get into more stuff in the next post. I don't have all the photos finished, but what I have is on my flickr in a Dollism album.

I have to go do actual work now....hope everyone has a great weekend!!

I wish I knew how to do a cut D: