Dalicious Challenge 3

Dear Readers,

The third challenge of the Dalicious Photo Contest was: VINTAGE! One single idea came to my mind and I did not have any other so I went ahead with that initial plan. Can you tell what is going on in this picture?

Gerda (Dal Dotori) is having a yard sale and she is horrified to see Scout (Dal Tweety) fighting with Dal Cinnamoroll (She does not have a name yet!) for a much sought-after Kenner Blythe doll.

The inspiration for my photo came from two sources: one is from reading stories about doll collectors hoping to find a very rare Kenner Blythe doll for cheap at yard sales.  They Kenner dolls were the very first Blythe dolls but they were discontinued very early on.  It's extremely difficult to find them nowadays, especially when they are in their box.

The other source of inspiration was from my own experience at a Tuesday Morning store.  I spotted a DAL doll and took her in my hands to see.  Suddenly another customer ran toward me and took all the remaining dolls on the shelf!  Then she looked at me and my doll.  I thought that she was going to snatch it from my hands LOL  She asked me if she could look at it and I showed her. She complimented me on my find and left.  I then realized that I took the ONLY DAL doll from the shelf... all the other dolls in her shopping cart were J-dolls for which I did not really care to buy.  Well I like J-dolls but I am very particular about which one so I only like a few models.

So that was not a fight but it was such a surprising reaction from a buyer.  I never had seen somebody so eager to get the dolls!  I think she regretted that she could not get the DAL!

The most difficult hurdle I had for this challenge was to position my dolls to stage a realistic fight!  I could not make them stand up on their own.  So I put Scout on top of Dal Cinnamoroll.   Posing them was so much trouble because I could not get them to look like they were really fighting. I had to re-position them at least 10 times.  I took at least 50 pictures this time, more than I have ever done before in the contest.

Many of my pictures came out blurry during the two first challenges but for this one, I received some help!  My husband bought me a tripod from a garage sale (we do love going to yard sales!).  It was only $5 and in excellent condition.  Thanks to the tripod, I didn't have as much blurry photos.

Here is a behind-the-scene photo :)

I was excited for this challenge!  I got to use THREE of my Dal dolls and I took some time choosing among the "vintage" toys I have.  This picture also marked the return of Gerda (Dal Dotori) who had a broken arm.  I gave her a new body (an Obitsu 21cm).  She is a lot more sturdy now but her neck is floppy so I might have to cut the neck in half to fix that problem.  Otherwise, that new body is a dream compared to the Dal stock body.

It was a very fun challenge and I love having three Dals on display!  But I am terribly unhappy about my photo.  I wanted to redo the scene but time ran out so I sent in the best pictures I had.  I hope the judge will like it enough T_T  Wish me luck :)


EDIT: All the contestant's photos are now up!  You can view them HERE.

My very sweet Dal Dotori

I realized I never blogged about Dal Dotori when I took pictures of her in the dollhouse yesterday.  Remember when I posted here about whether or not I should get Dal Dotori?  Well I couldn't resist this cutie pie much longer and so she is now part of my collection :) 

She is beyond ♥ ADORABLE ♥ Her face is so pretty and sweet.  And her outfit is quite amazing!  She has so many garments!  Here below is the list of items which came in her box :

- Bonnet
- Earmuffs
- Long-Sleeved shirt
- Vest
- Skirt
- Apron with lace tie
- Underpants
- Socks
- Shoes
- Bag
- Doll stand
- Card

Her clothes are very good quality and I love how it reminds me of Mori-girl fashion (Mori means Forest in Japanese and it's a look inspired by nature).   She seems to belong in the forest, talking to birds and reindeers.  After all, her name Dotori means "acorn" in Korean.

It's easy to put on and take off  her clothes but her shoes are a little tricky.  They tend to fall off quite often (maybe she wants to walk barefoot in the forest?).  I like that she came with white underpants!  It may be a detail only but I think it is a nice addition to the outfit.  But my favorite accessories are her earmuffs. So cute!!!

She has lovely blond hair braided on both sides of her head.  It gives her an innocent little girl look.  Her bangs are very short but it suits her perfectly.  I don't have a single bad thing to say about her hair except that it will probably get messy and I'll have to undo her braids at some point.

 

I named her Gerda after the tale "The Snow Queen" from Christian Hans Anderson because her dress reminds me of Scandinavian prints.  And I like how my Isul Lir is named Kai because it reminds me of the same Tale :P

She is much smaller than the Pullip dolls and I think I like Dal better than Pullip.  Her pouting face is too adorable and her body is easier to handle because it's just the right size for my hands.  Pullips are a little bit more tricky to handle.

So Gerda will now join my Pullip dolls Lola (Pullip Merl) and Tiffany (Pullip Paja).   Here she is below flanked by her two "older sisters".  I am sorry for such a terrible picture >.< !  Apart from Lola and Tiffany having a bad hair day, I ran out of time giving them a decent outfit!  I really must take a better picture for their next photoshoot!
 

 

Dal Dotori

The Pullip dolls are beautiful but I also love Dal, Taeyang's eternally pouting little sister! She is just so adorable!  Her official biography is not flattering.  She is apparently jealous of Pullip who is her older brother's girlfriend.

When I first saw her, I thought she looked grumpy but she grew on me and now I love her!  Many say she looks like a spoiled brat but I think she looks charming.  She seems to have a spunky attitude!  So although Pullip looks mild and sweet, I think Dal is more fun and bold.

Maybe I am also biased toward her because her name means  "Moon" in Korean and that's the meaning of my real name as well, plus she is an Aquarius and has a blog like me O_O  But the comparison stops there as I don't have a big brother and I am definitely not 13 and studying in an International School in Milan :P

Pullip dolls are about the same size as Barbie whereas Dal dolls are the size of Skipper or Licca.  Dal comes up to about Pullip's shoulder.  Dal's body articulation is similar to Pullip's. Her eyes move from side to side but unlike Pullip, they cannot close.

She fits clothes for Licca and Blythe dolls.  She can also share clothes with Pullip and Barbie dolls although they will end up looking a little bigger on her.   She also fits Re-ment clothes (yes they do sell clothes!!!).

I haven't decided on what Dal to buy.  I don't plan on buying more than one Dal (because my wallet just won't allow it) so it has to be a good doll versatile to many cosplaying (changing of clothes and background).

One model that I instantly liked is Dal Dotori (her name means "acorn" in Korean).  How cute is that??? I love her outfit and she doesn't look as angry as other Dals.  I am just afraid her braids will be too messy after a short time so I am still hesitating on buying her!  Don't you think she looks ADORABLE?  Do you think she would be a good choice?