SYC The FINAL Week

It's the FINAL countdown!
Excuse me for a moment while I search for that hilarious Geico commercial.

Okay, I'm back. If you haven't been following my month of SYC (Savor Your Collection), please check out the challenges and pictures from weeks one, two, and three. And even if you have been following along, it's worth another look in case you missed some of the fun pictures that I've been continuously updating.

Day 23) Exclusives
Whether it's a Barbie Fan Club exclusive, W Club exclusive, convention exclusive, or store exclusive (I'm looking at you Barbie Basics Red collection), it's time to savor those dolls created especially for whatever! And while we're on the subject, what do y'all think of this year's National Barbie Doll Collectors Convention exclusive?

Glamazon Adele, an Integrity Toys convention exclusive

Day 24) Life in the Dreamhouse 
It's time for a look at those fabulous doll houses and doll house dioramas.

*Picture coming soon

Day 25) Ladies of Leisure
What do your dollies like to do in their free time? Do they bike, hike, swim, read, paint, or play an instrument?

Book Club meeting at the local bookshop cafe

I've had these unopened fashions for a while. This was a great opportunity to open them up and put them to use. The twins take music lessons in their free time, and Rosa paints.

Day 26) Pet/Animal Lovers
This day is dedicated to  dolls with pets and/or those who love to wear animal print or clothes featuring animals. Dr. Williams, the town vet finally got some play time thanks to SYC. He's been sitting neglected in a plastic bin for months. I also got to use the veterinarian playset that Mara gifted me. Repainting it has been on my "later" list for months.

Day 27) Working Girls
If we have a day especially for the ladies of leisure, then we also have to have a day for those who work hard for the money. Here are the female models of Muse Model Management.

Mal, Natasha, and Yasmin

Day 28) Red-y for the Weekend
Redress one or more dolls in a weekend ready red ensemble.

Day 29) Ladies Night
Dress your dolls for a fun evening out.

Day 30) Barbie Style
Taking a leaf from the wildly popular Barbie Style book, the challenge was to put together an ensemble and then choose the perfect doll to wear it.

Day 31) Shopping Queens
Let's salute our little shopping queens as we get our credit and debit cards ready. After a month of savoring our collections, we are ready to return to the stores with more targeted shopping lists.

Thanks for tuning in!

SYC Challenge Week Three

Two weeks down and two to go!

If you haven't already done so, be sure to check out the challenges and pictures from weeks one and two of SYC. Stay tuned for updates as I continue to savor my collection.

Day 16) Give "props" where they are due. Set up a scene for your doll(s).
Here is a book store I made using a MyFroggyStuff tutorial and a book prop from Muff's online store. Aphrodite is strolling through the shop in search of some summer reading material.

Day 17) Let the Little Ones Shine.
For this challenge, I decided to focus on siblings that had not already appeared in an SYC photo.

Raelynn & Sydney

Macee (R) & Makenna (L)

Tommy & Serena

Day 18) Celebrate the Celebrity Dolls in your collection.

Day 19) Who Wore it Best? ONE outfit and TWO dolls, you know the rest.

Day 20) Throwback Thursday
*Picture coming soon

Day 21) Date Night
*Pictures coming soon

Day 22) Spotlight on Special Occasion Dolls

Carmen, formerly a Quinceanera Barbie

Halle, formerly a 2016 Holiday Barbie

SYC Challenge Week Two

The fun continues...

As explained in my previous post, some dear dolleagues of mine and I are embarking on an SYC Challenge for the month of July. Week One was a success. We're having a wonderful time savoring our collections. And now it's time for another week of challenges, so here goes.

Day 9) Celebrate relics from retired doll lines (e.g., Barbie Basics, So in Style, Dynamite Girls, or any other defunct doll line).

Before there was So in Style, there was Shani- a line of black dolls with black features. The Shani line debuted in the early 90s and included black dolls in a variety of skin tones. Shani's handsome boyfriend, Jamal, was introduced in 1992 and was retired by 1994. His head mold was later re-used for Steven and AA Ken in the mid 90s and continues to be used for both to this day.

Integrity Toys put speculation to rest a year or two ago and announced that its Dynamite Girls line, which had been on hiatus since 2014, was retired. The Dynamite Girls were introduced in 2007 and were a line of colorful, trendy fashion dolls. Below is a convention workshop doll that I bought and customized. She was bald in order to wear the workshop wigs. I decided to give her flocking, because I liked the way she looked with short hair.

Day 10) Spotlight on OOAKs. Take some time to appreciate those One of a Kind items in your collection and what makes them special.

I don't have many OOAKs that I haven't already featured on this blog. Here is a Fashion Madness Kenya that I customized with a yarn reroot tutorial from MyFroggyStuff.

Day 11) The Doll That Started it All- Every collector has that one doll that started their obsession.
When my daughter was old enough to play Barbies, I decided I needed a doll of my own. I found a So in Style Tennis Grace online. When she arrived, it was love at first sight. She was the prettiest playline doll I'd ever seen. The rest is history.

Mommy's Doll

Day 12) Fun with Fashionistas- There is no denying the appeal of the Barbie Fashionistas line. Even the most exclusive collectors find themselves putting them in their carts. Whether you have one or one dozen, it's time to have some fun with your fashionista(s).

I decided to give my Tropi-cutie Barbie Fashionista a makeover. I redressed her and gave her rooted eyelashes and a toned down lip color.

Tropi-Cutie now known as Aphrodite

Day 13) Let's Hear it for the Boys. It's time to spend some time savoring your favorite guy dolls.

Ken Fashionistas Darius & Benjamin

Day 14) Spend some time going through the doll closet or wherever you store your treasures, and find something you literally forgot you had.

Look at this cutie! I forgot all about her. I think I had plans to use her as a certain couple's baby, but then I found another baby that looked more like them. I need to find her a family so she can come out of that box.

Day 15) It's time to play favorites. Because I know how hard it is to narrow it down to ONE favorite doll, you get to pick a favorite from three different categories of your choosing. For example, favorite Silkstone, favorite holiday doll, etc. Think outside of the doll box, and include other favorites, too, like favorite accessory set or play set.

The categories I chose for this challenge were Favorite Couple, Favorite Face Sculpt, and Favorite Male Doll.

Favorite Couple: Grace & Darren, Daytona Beach 2017

Favorite Face Sculpt is the Lea sculpt

Favorite Male Doll: Fast Track Victor James

Just like before, I’ll update this post with more pics as I go.

Sorry for the delay in updating pictures, I went to Orlando while all of this was going on, and while I continued to do the challenges, I did not have my laptop to update pics.