But who wants to leave the comfort of your home when you can experience retail heaven with just a few clicks of your mouse? With fashion blogs and enough beautiful photographs to hook any fashionista, online stores have been virtually outdoing their physical counterparts -- and at a much quicker rate than any brick and mortar store could accomplish -- ever since the dot.com market exploded onto the scene.
Isn't it great then that this trend has finally caught on for our dolls? I don't know about where you live, but down here in Houstonville finding doll clothes used to be a big ol' chore -- nothing resembling any kind of heaven for sure!!
Couturedollshops.com not only pulled together interesting doll shops in one unique spot on the net, they also put down specific guidelines to make everyone's shopping experience safe as well as fun. Shoppers get the satisfaction of finding products at their own pace and time. And the minute they find an item, they are left with a unique sense of satisfaction -- a sense of having not only discovered the perfect item for today's purchase, but also a place to come back to time and time again!
To help you get better acquainted with the merchants of CDS, we're continuing our profiles of our shop owners. Today we'll take a look at two of the fine merchants of CDS' Designer Drive. While very different, each of these shop owners has one thing in common. They have a desire to design and make quality products their customers will be satisfied in owning. They also work to ensure confidence in their clients by providing great customer service. So come along and meet someone new today. Find out what they do, and watch their ideas grow. You dolly's wardrobe will thank you for doing so.
CINDI STOWELL, CINDI'S DOLL APPAREL
Cindi: The “real” person behind the doll biz is a musician that now teaches private music lessons to kids. I have a wonderful job and I completely adore my students! I even had one of my students that knows I love to sew, show me her book bag that she had sewn. She wanted to give me the rest of her material from her project to make a doll dress for my dolls. It was very touching!
Cindi: I have always had a love for dolls but I became disinterested after years of collecting. After my husband and I moved from Las Vegas, I thought now was my opportunity to do something different. I thought I would open my own doll store. So, I remembered going to the bookstore and looking at a Haute Doll Magazine to see what kind of dolls were out there to buy. I fell in love with the dolls on the cover and started looking for how I could buy my first BJD doll. What I liked about the BJDs was that the possibilities of creating their look was endless. You can change their wigs and eyes and they are dolls that are meant to be played with. I knew then that I wanted to sew and make clothes for them. I started to look for patterns that I could sew and found a few very good designers.
Cindi: I have always had a love for sewing. I started with sewing
clothes for me. I loved making jackets for myself and designing clothes for me to wear. Then I got into making teddy bears. The funnest part about making a teddy bear was when the eyes went in the bear and suddenly the bear came to life and had character and personality. Once I discovered the BJDsm I haven't stopped creating a wardrobe for them.
Blogmeister: Was anything or anyone a significant influence on your work initially?
Cindi: No, I have to admit that I have never been a “designer” monger. All of my girlfriends talk about designer names when they go shopping but for me it’s always been about what I like and don’t like and not who the designer is.
Cindi: I love to look at fashion by googling the internet. There are all kinds of great inspirations and fun pictures to look at. I love fashion and sewing books too and lately, I’ve been into the Victorian fashion and the steampunk fashion. I have always loved movies depicting those time periods.
Cindi: I’ve been most challenged by studying and studying and studying again other people’s creations and attention to detail. I feel very challenged when I see some of the great works of doll fashion that people create. It always amazes me. So, my advice would be to look at the clothes you like and pay attention to all the fine detail.
Cindi: I have been completely absorbed by Victorian fashion and bustle dresses. I have so many ideas and just not enough time to sit down and sew. I found a wonderful book by John R. Burbidge entitled Les petites Dames de Mode: An Adventure in Design and I have been very inspired by his Victorian dresses. I also finally have my MSD BJDs back from a wonderful face-up artist and I am ready to sew for them too.
Cindi's shop is the middle shop on Row 2 of Designer Drive.
TERRY BARNER, OFF THE WALL by Terrkat
Terry: Off The Wall Terrkat is a name I thought would encompass a very wide range of artistic offerings. My first love in doll customization is re-painting but sometimes I have to explore different aspects which leads to some interesting and unexpected items. Always doll related, I have offered furniture and fashion accessories. You will never know what might turn up.
Terry: This started sometime around 1997. My wife Kathy, was enamored with Barbie collectibles, and then Gene by Mel Odom, and Ashton Drake galleries came along. I think we attended most doll shows, and as many doll stores close to home as we heard about. We drove 5 hours once to visit a doll show in search of anything that we could spend money on, and we usually did. At one of these shows I found an 18 inch Pocahontas and, although the face was a bit cartoonish, I was lured by the possibilities. She was my first “victim” I experimented with painting over the old paint, applying eyelashes and then, I took the final plunge and removed all of the old paint. It forced me to learn how to repaint the face into what I wanted to see. I was hooked.
Terry: I did only create for me and my wife at first. Then as I got better, I thought maybe some of my work would sell so we tried that at a doll show in Austin and Although I had to work my “real” job at the time, my wife did quite well selling what she and I had created.
Blogmeister: Was anything or anyone a significant influence on your work initially?
Blogmeister: Today where do you find inspiration for your projects?
Terry: I find inspiration from many sources. Movies, television, magazines and I like to see what others create. An inspiration can come from anywhere.
Terry: Don’t give up on something before you start. You may not like your first attempts at something but there is no substitute for practice. Try new things, if you have the passion, use the energy to push you. You will find a great deal of satisfaction in what you learn about yourself and your abilities.
Terry: I have no plans to stop creating. I have some very interesting opportunities before me now.
Terry's shop is the middle shop on Row 3 of Designer Drive.
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