Bay Update - Dolly Road Trip!!! Girl AGain Boutique!

Hey all! So, today was an interesting day and since this doesn't really fit under anyone else's parts of the blog yet, I'll do it myself. We went on a dolly road trip today! Two and a half hours in the car each way to visit Girl AGain!
Girl AGain Boutique is an American Girl boutique in White Plains, New York...all of the dolls there are donated, each one hand cleaned and refurbished by the girls of Yes She Can. It's part of a program that helps girls with varying levels of autism learn workplace skills and the profit made on the dolls goes back into the program.
What's cool about Girl AGain Boutique for doll collectors is that they tend to have some of the harder to find dolls - Retired Girl of the Year and Just Like You dolls, original Historical dolls like Kirsten, Molly etc. from before the BeForever rebranding; a lot of their clothes and original accessories and furniture.
They even have some "DIY" dolls, dolls who would need significant repair to be playable again...for those of us who enjoy customizing and restoring AG dolls on our own or needing spare parts to fix someone we already have waiting for new parts at home. 
I'll do a second post for our dolly haul tomorrow, but in the meantime, let me show you what our little friend Luciana looked like when we brought her along for the ride - 

She decided to put on her Galaxy gown, which I might add was handmade for her by a friend of ours last year, along with her Starlight accessories - So it would be easy to tell she was with us and not one of the Boutique dolls. 
The displays at Girl AGain Boutique change with the wind depending on which dolls they have on hand at the time and whose birthdays are in that particular month. Currently featured inside the door when you first walk in is a group of Samanthas, a Felicity and a Caroline or two-

These Samanthas were on sale, as were the outfits hanging beside them - the bargain area is just inside the door as you walk in, along with a small basket of assorted mini dolls who might possibly be missing shoes or clothes but are otherwise in great condition.

As you move further in, on your right is a display of various TrulyMe/Just Like You/My AG dolls along with various scenes and accessories for them - Today, there was a bike and someone's snack cart, if memory serves, alongside half a dozen dolls.

On the left, the start of the Historical doll displays, beginning with Addy and Molly on the end shelf unit - There are multiple of each doll, most in Meet outfits, although some wear their holiday, school and other outfits - some of it depends on what's on hand and some simply to show off alternate outfits. The second shelf unit held Kirsten dolls and more Samanthas, the first of which made me smile since Kirsten has been retired for a while now.

 The third of these historical doll shelves held an assortment of Kit and Felicity (with her friend Elizabeth), each with accessories and furniture setting the scene. The final shelf of Historical dolls on this wall held Josefina and Kaya, although it's not clearly visible in these photos for some reason.

Across the room, with their backs to the large front window, an array of Molly, Emily and Julie (this amused us because our Molly, Emily and Julie are all very good friends with each other) and a few oddball others, a couple of TrulyMe/Just Like You and a Felicity who crept in there somehow to hide among the Molly dolls.

And hidden off in the corner just beyond the Molly and Emily dolls in the window, there were our Girl of the Years. This time, the display featured Kanani, Marisol, Mia, Saige and two McKenna dolls, all grinning at us from the shelves.
There were some Bitty Babies at the bottom of the shelf that housed Kit and Felicity on the other side of the room and a large section for Historical dolls' outfits and one for the MyAG/JLY/TrulyMe doll clothes as well as a shelf unit lined with various American Girl books, from the advice books to the character books that match the dolls and including a row of brand new mini dolls in their boxes, just awaiting someone to take them home.
Girl AGain is a paradise for the AG doll collector, and aside from a few particular dolls who seem to be harder to come by, their prices were worth paying for dolls in the condition most all the dolls were in.
I wish I'd had more time to explore the collections and accessories, but it was still a complete blast to visit Girl AGain Boutique!
Check back later/tomorrow to see the girls we brought home from our visit to the boutique!
--Bay--

Kari's Fashion Runway - Jewelry and Accessories #1

Left: Kari, Right: Becca

Hey guys! It's Kari! I have some fun stuff for you today! First of all, here's my partner in crime for the fashion corner, Miss Becca Oldstein. She's the one who keeps me from going too completely over the top crazy with my designs and helps make some of them a reality!
Today's fashion show is all about jewelry and accessories, we've dressed our models to match their accessories - But don't mind if some of them have a bit of visible irritation going on around the ear lobes, we had to do some last minute piercings (we'll give you a lesson in another post, I promise!) so everyone could wear their earrings. Here are some of our models!

 First up, we have Cynthia modeling her purple lace dress with purple and gold jewelry set includind headband, earrings, necklace and two (2) gold bangle bracelets. Following her, we have Dawna Hokulani, our Hawaiian beauty in Unicorn Chic with her yellow and mauve earrings and necklace (not pictured: yellow and mauve bangle bracelet).

 Our next pair of models, Carly in blue and leather to properly show off her chain pendant necklace and matching blue gem earrings, finished off with a single blue bangle, and Elsie, whose flaming red hair nicely contrasts with her blue and green color scheme, from her green soft knit top to the choice of blue and pale green for her necklace, the beads on her silver hoop earrings and the matching bangle on her left wrist.

Vicky shows a bit of skin with her cropped tank, the very casual nature of her clothes fittingly accessorized by a chunky jewelry set accented with Superman logo charms on both earrings and necklace (not pictured, chunky white bangle). Jayda, by contrast, shows us a very Princess Jasmine look in gold and turquoise, the beads on her earrings matching the faux bows on her necklace and headband. (not pictured: gold bangle bracelet).

Our final pair of models today are Monique, rocking a blush peach striped crop top and matching tulle circle skirt to help show off the pastel colors of her butterfly adorned earrings, necklace and matching bangle, and Aubrey, who is not only showing off star studded pale blue and black jewelry in the form of her headband, earrings and necklace (not pictured: Blue and black bangle with star charm at the center), but a hand made, one of a kind blouse and skirt ensemble made completely from the loose knit material of a pair of socks!

That'll be our show for today ~ Keep an eye on our Etsy store for some of these jewelry sets to pop up for sale! (Dolls not included, our models need to stay with us for future shows!)