Doll News 4/10/03 By John Medeiros

Adele & Veronique Get the Royal Treatment

After two years of eager anticipation, Jason Wu's new "Fashion Royalty" line of dolls has finally been released by Integrity Toys. Let me tell you right off the bat.these gals are well worth the wait. I have spent the past week with several of these beauties on hand and I am totally blown away.

As expected, the quality, detail and workmanship are what we have come to expect from the Wu/Integrity team. What has totally captured and wowed me this year is how well the entire concept has been designed and executed for the "Fashion Royalty" line. Every detail from the fabulous new bodies, head sculpts and facial screening to the superb micro-tailoring of the stunning ensembles to the new silver "W" logo on the 1/2" thick Plexiglas pedestal stands makes an impressively elegant and cohesive design statement. There is no doubt in my mind that Mr. Wu and Integrity have a complete understanding of what adult collectors are looking for in a fashion doll.

Let's look at the basic "Close-Up" dolls. The samples I was sent are of Adele Makeda and the redhead Veronique Perrin. Both are stunning, limited to 1000 dolls and at the suggested retail of $29.99, an absolute steal.

The dolls' bodies are made of a hard plastic with a soft buffed semi-matte finish. There are some beautiful details in the sculpts including shoulder blades, elbow dimples as well as a navel and suggestion of nipples. The hands are gracefully sculpted and realistic looking. They are jointed at the knees, hips, neck and double jointed at the shoulders so that the arms can rotate as well as move up and down and side to side. A twist waist would be a nice addition for more realistic posing, but I imagine we have that to look forward to in the line.

The vinyl heads are fully rooted with exceptional high quality hair. It is soft, silky and has the feel, sheen and weight of real human hair. The makeup design manages to be exotic and elegant at the same time. The dolls wear the trademark faux diamond post earrings.

Their lingerie and robe ensembles are masterpieces of micro-tailoring. Adele wears a black silk satin-like lace-up bustier with matching panties. Over this is a luxurious & voluminous belted dressing robe with oversized monogrammed shawl collar of the same lush material. All the garments are fully lined in a silver version of the fabric and the fit is superb. If I am not mistaken, the bustier looks to be made out of ten separate panels of material. The back laces up via a dozen tiny grommets. This is really astounding work. The robe and bustier are tagged with the embroidered "W" logo. The high-heeled pumps have a lined insole and match the ensemble. Veronique's ensemble is a twin of Adele's but is done in white and silver.

I also received the "Silver Society" Veronique dressed doll. This stunner is limited to an edition of 1000 and retails for $59.99.

Her sophisticated ensemble consists of a form fitting sheath of silver shantung silk. It is detailed with incredible miniature embroidered vines with crystal bead accents. This detail work is mirrored along the vent in the back of the sheath. The fully lined sheath zips up the back with a real miniature and "in scale" zipper. Her accessories include a matching envelope clutch with silver chain wrist bracelet and veiled bow hat. Both feature the lovely beadwork and the bag has a "vintage style" hook and thread closure. As with the "Close-Up" dolls, the attention to detail and fit is unmatched.

Her silver mink stole is one of the most realistic faux miniature furs I have seen for a fashion doll. It is lined in silver satin and tagged.

Her look is finished off by long silver gloves, crystal teardrop bracelet, silver shoes with bead trim, pantyhose, diamond stud earrings and "W" logo hatbox.

Her platinum hair is pulled back in a top-knot and her long ponytail ends in a bouquet of hard-curls.

All the dolls come in fabulous and stylish storage/display boxes with magnetic closures. The inside features stunning design art by Jason Wu. These are boxes you will want to keep. The "Fashion Royalty" color palate of white, metallic lavender and silver is followed through in all the packaging elements.

All the dolls come with a beautiful triangular clear Lucite pedestal stand embossed with the silver "W". The business end of the stand cradles the doll under her pelvis. It is a bit of a challenge to get the doll balanced on it, but once she is positioned, the doll stays put with the help of molded leg-gripping tabs on the cradle. The classy and clean look of these stands makes them perfect for the "Fashion Royalty" dolls.

Also included in each box is a miniature shoe box for the doll's heels as well as a hand-numbered certificate of authenticity and a collectible Official Story Card. These cards can be displayed in Fashion Royalty Story Portfolio, available separately.

As the back of the portfolio states: "Welcome to the luxurious world of Adele & Veronique. Born in Royalty, Fashion Muses by Design".

I certainly am looking forward to discovering more of their gorgeous world.