I went to play with dolls last week in LA. This was a trip that was planned before Ned's surgery and I wasn't sure I could actually go. We asked one of Ned's sons if he would be able to come visit so I could get a break.
I am in love with Sybarite dolls. They are 16" high fashion dolls made by Superdoll in the UK; the dolls have attitude and fashions to die for. This was to be the first official U.S. event giving many collectors the opportunity to attend an event outside of London. A special doll is given to each of the attendees and it is usually very coveted since it is a limited edition. An unofficial pre-event took place on Wedensday evening so that those who came from longer distances and had to come in a day earlier could get together.
Of course my trip started off with a bang. I just knew I had forgotten something! I was invited to attend the early cocktail party so I flew in a day earlier. While getting ready to party I found that I had left my makeup case at home!!! There was going to be a visit to CVS come morning. West Los Angeles is very green....not only in foliage but also in recycling....they charge you for bags. The party was at the home of the incomparable Abbe Lane who was honored last year with a look -a -like doll.
Of course first thing on my agenda the next morning was a walk to CVS. Ned could have overnighted my makeup case for what it cost me for basics except it was too late on Wednesday to do it. Oh well. While I am not particularly vain, naked face is only for the house. The rest of the day was spent walking around the area with friends and window shopping. I really tried to spend some money on hot outfits but I couldn't find anything that fit. Whew!! Thursday evening was the official kick off event cocktail party held on the gorgeous terrace garden of The London hotel. The views of the setting sun over LA were gorgeous..... of course I forgot my camera and I almost never remember I can use the camera on my phone.... just give me 1 glass of wine and my brain is fried! We each received a goody bag filled with... what else? Goodies! Included was a teaser outfit for the doll to be presented Saturday night, and silly stuff...yep, we are really kids at heart. It was the perfect opportunity to catch up with old friends and to make new ones. The internet is a wondrous thing. I got to finally meet people who I have been talking to online and put a face to a name. I also got to spend time with people I met before but didn't have a lot of time to chat with. The time flew by and the staff finally kicked us out. Some of us decided to continue the party at one of the local bars in West Los Angeles. We ended up at one of the ubiquitous gay bars down the street. It wasn't my first and I am sure it won't be my last. They are always a lot of fun. This one had a bunch of "dancers" up on the stage... sorry, not posting those pics...I don't want Google to think this is an X rated blog! This one is some of our group in a "hug".
Yeah, we had fun.
Since I have done the tourist stuff in LA before, I opted to spend the morning at the mall with friends. Who knew that I needed $300+ cream for my face??? Sorry, Oil of Olay is my speed. I did get a sample but so far can't see a difference. Seemed like most of the shops on Rodeo drive were also represented here. Nice eye candy. We got back to the hotel in time to change for our luncheon.
As we entered the banquet room we started to drool... no, it wasn't the food. It was the doll standing on each of the tables. Little did we know at the time that these beauties would be going home with 8 lucky people.
I won, I won, I won! I was flying. Take a deep breath Sherryl.
Getting ahead of myself here.... Many collectors brought their One of a kind dolls for the rest of us to see. They were all drool worthy.
We very rarely get to see these beauties as they are all in private collections. Thankfully, I had taken photos before we ate or I would never have been able to hold the camera still as my adrenalin was in high gear after the raffle. We also got a sneak peak at Superdolls current collection of dolls.
We were given a second goody bag with a more incredible outfit.
The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur. Many of us spent it in the hotel lobby chatting away then went back to our rooms for a rest before making dinner plans and deciding what we would do the next day. We were on our own.
We had spectacular weather in LA... not too hot, not much of a marine layer in the mornings. A group of us went to the Getty museum with the generous offer of one of the locals who had a car. I had never been to the new museum. It is a spectacular collection of art with breathtaking views and gardens to only dream of. Because the weather was so cooperating we actually spent more time outside than inside.
I will definitely do a return visit. The day passed quickly and we returned to our hotel to rest up and get gussied up for our red carpet affair in the evening. This was dress up night and a professional photographer was on hand for photos. Excitement was running high in expectation of our special doll. An elegant sit down dinner, catered by the world renown chef Gordon Ramsey, was the setting for our last night. The food was perfection as was the service. Everyone was getting antsy waiting. But wait, there was another surprise in store for us. There was going to be another raffle. Ten lucky winners would go home with another prize. The prizes were all different. There were several gift certificates of varying amounts to spend in the Superdoll salon or website, one salon outfit, and one doll from the current collection. I should have gone and bought a lottery ticket. I won the doll. I was really in shock this time. The doll I won was Meadow. If you scroll back up you can see her with her sisters... she is the blue one.
Breathe Sherryl, breathe!
Drum roll! Finally the doll everyone was waiting for... she was worth the wait. Her name is ONYX and she has one gold eye and one silver eye. She is standing in front of a backdrop that was created special for us and given out in doll size to take home with her.
Did I have a good time... silly question. Hope they do this again next year.
This trip would not be complete without some additional excitement on the way home. As I mentioned, Evan, my stepson was keeping Ned company while I was gone. The plan was that he would leave the car for me at the airport on Sunday when he left and I would pick it up coming home later. Ned showed him where we park it when they dropped me off a the airport on Wednesday. Evan had to be at the airport about 5:00 a.m. We normally park our cars at the Parking Spot 2 lot. Evan texted me where he left the car. I arrive with the shuttle bus and no car. Hmmm. The wonderful driver then started to drive me around the lot (it's big) looking for the car. Still no car. He finally drops me off at the office so we can figure this all out. ( I did tip him well). I tried to call Evan but he still hadn't landed and his phone was off. Of course I called Ned in a near panic. He was about to come get me. I do have a customer card for the Parking Spot and we told Evan to use it when he entered the lot. The manager ran my card and nothing came up. We then had the brilliant idea to check the sister lot. They had record of my card!! By this time Ned was able to get in touch with Evan. He got lost in the morning and saw a shuttle for Parking Spot so followed it. He didn't know there were 2 of them. The manager had someone drive me over to the other lot. All's well that ends well and a good chuckle was had by all.
