Thursday, October 4, 2012

Mademoiselle Isabelle


My Mum thinks Mademoiselle Isabelle is ugly and is her least favourite in my collection. I suppose I’m not that taken by her and only bought her because she was on sale and would accompany Lady Camille who is also stuck immortalized in a painting. I suppose Isabelle, first in the Portraits Collection series is rather elaborate and is draped in too many layers of fabric but the details are delightful!


Barbie’s hair is elegantly fashioned in a chignon with fine braids circling her crown with pink and teal flowers pinned at the side. Her brown eyes are glancing sideways (who is she checking out?) and she wears pearl stud earrings and a double stand of pearls with a cameo brooch. Her gown consists of mauve satin bodice with elbow length ruffled sleeves which are embellished with lace. White chiffon is criss-crossed around her torso and waist, and a corsage of flowers shows off her tiny waist. Her full teal taffeta shirt features a mauve satin draping in the centre and white lace. She also has a white chiffon shawl edged with lace and her white gloved hands carries a fan. The outfit is trying to do so much and I admire the factory worker who put this elaborate ensemble together – just think of the tiny stitches!
 
 
Like Lady Camille, Mademoiselle Isabelle is packaged in a 19th century shadowbox. The backdrop is inspired by Rococco style of art which originated in 18th century France.

Date of release: 1 August 2002
Mattel price: US$79
Label: Limited Collection
Ebay price as at October 2012: US$140 - US$260

4 comments:

  1. I have the pleasure of owning this lovely doll and her 2 sisters in this collection. Ugly? I guess beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. As for me I love this doll so much! She's my dream doll after the Marie Antoinette and was my first direct exclusive doll. Until I eventually got the Marie Antoinette 2 years ago she was one of the most fabulous doll in my collection.
    Trivia on Mademoiselle Isabelle you might find interesting:
    1) Original retail price is actually $124.95. The one stated in BC.com (which is I assume where you got it) is the price after she was marked down to sell...
    2) She's a winner of the 2001 DOTY (Doll of the year) for best fashion doll below $150, thanks to those amazing details no doubt!
    3) Designed by Heather Fonseca, who designed the Lady Camille and Duchess Emma as well. She also designed some other dolls like the Bard from the Legends of Ireland and Marie Antoinette as well.

    p/s: Got the Duchess Emma? She's amazing as well. A bit expensive than the other 2, but she's worth the trouble...

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Paulus for your trivia on Isabelle - I was taken aback when the Barbie Collector website indicated that it was priced at US$79 because the doll is of such high quality and so detailed.

      No, I don't have Duchess Emma but it would be lovely to complete the set... hum, should I check out eBay?

      Did you like the Heather Fonseca? Massive hair do!

      http://www.barbiedeboxed.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/heather-fonseca.html

      Thank you for reading and and leaving a comment on my blog, :)

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    2. You're welcome dear...always love to read dolly blogs like this and get to know collectors from another country. I'm Malaysian btw...

      Emma is awesome! Much simpler in style compared to Isabelle and Camille, but it is authentic 18th century fashion. Hair, dress and all. Among the 3 she is the most historically accurate, so maybe that's why she's more expensive than the other 2. You should definitely get her...

      I have the Heather Fonseca doll! Yeah, very big hair! XD But love the Victorian style gown. Very exquisite. Her facepaint is a bit weird though...

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    3. I agree that the Heather Fonseca has weird facepaint - I think it's her eyes which are kinda spooky!

      I was born in Malaysia but have spent most of my life in Melbourne. Are there good stores in KL that stock collector Barbies? My uncle (mentioned in this post: http://barbiedeboxed.blogspot.com.au/2012/04/irish-2nd-edition.html)and I went searching for dolls years ago and found a great selection at Sogo but this was back in 1998. My last visit to KL was about 4 years ago and I didn't find any at department stores and only KLIA stocked them and they were super expensive.

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