CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS!!! Samantha with All Dressed Up and Annika with Wacky Wednesday. Check your email ladies!

Are you ready for another really FUN giveaway?? Our friends at Springfield Dolls have recently launched their SFStyleClub – a fun destination for girls where you can create outfits for your dolls, change them over and over, earn points for playing, do some activities, and share your style with your friends.

For our giveaway, you are invited to create one new outfit for your dolls per day at the SFStyleClub and share it with us. At the end of the giveaway we will be choosing two entries at random and the winner will get the Springfield Dolls outfit they created. Sound like fun?? In other words, YOU get to create YOUR PRIZE!

HOW DO YOU ENTER??

Step 1 - Go to the SFStyleClub website and Login. If you do not have an account there yet, it’s easy to register AND it’s FREE. Your parent will have to approve your account. Grown ups – you are welcome to enter as well!

Step 2 – Pick the doll you want to dress up then choose the tab at the top that says DRESS UP. Try on tops, pants, shoes, dresses, accessories and more until you find just the right combination – the outfit that you would love to have for one of your own 18″ dolls like Springfield Dolls, American Girl, Maplelea or similar dolls. You can even change the backgrounds.

Step 3 – Choose to SHARE your outfit. The screen you see above will show up. Fill in the blanks like so…

• Recipient Name: Char (that’s me!)
• Recipient Email Address: share@dolldiaries.com
• Your message: In this section put your name, your email address, and what your outfit is about. I will not be sharing your email address – just the outfit you create – but need it so I can contact you if you win.

Step 4 – Click the SHARE button and your design will get sent to me!

Step 5 - Come back and check this post as I will be posting everyones’ outfits (not your email address) in a gallery below so you can see how creative your Doll Diaries friends are! Note: sometimes it may be a few hours before your design gets posted – I don’t live in the computer

Let’s RECAP!

• We are giving away an outfit of your creating from the Springfield Dolls collection.
• There will be two winners chosen at RANDOM
• You may enter one outfit per day.
• The giveaway will be open from now until midnight Eastern time on January 12, 2012.
• If you are under 13, you must have your parent’s permission to participate.
• In the event that any of the items you have selected as part of your outfit are out of stock, a substitute item will be included instead.
• By submitting your photo, you are granting DollDiaries.com permission to publish the photo along with your first name and the description you provide. We will never publish or share your email address or personal information. You are also granting us permission to use your photo on the DollDiaries Facebook page and/or YouTube channel.

Click on your friend’s entries below to view their outfits and to leave nice comments, too! Have fun with this one!!

Inspired by our craft editor, Karen, one of our awesome readers, Madelon, re-purposed a set of Bottle Warmers she found at the discount store Marshalls for $4.99 each into cute tops for her daughter’s dolls.

What do you think? Adorable!! Now I may need to take a trip to Marshall’s…

And she used the “hat” from the bottle warmer as a hat for Mini Kit. Beyond cute!!

As always, if you have photos of your dolls, doll finds, etc you want me to share, email me at share@dolldiaries.com. I can’t guarantee I will post everything, or when it will be posted, but I try to get everything posted eventually.

UPDATED! Scroll down for winner.

Last month when DreamWorld Collections sponsored a giveaway for one of their most popular dresses, we asked which outfit you, the readers, wanted them to giveaway this month. The answer was a pretty resounding – Happy Holidays outfit.

As promised, we are doing a giveaway for this stunning red and gold dress with white cape and mittens also known as the Happy Holidays outfit from DreamWorld Collections!

Congratulations to BonggaMom!

What We Are Giving Away

• We are giving away Happy Holidays Outfit pictured above that includes the dress, cape and mittens for 18″  dolls by DreamWorld Collections.

How To Enter

• Visit DreamWorld Collections web site and take a look around. Then come back here and leave a comment letting us know what kind of outfit you would love to see from DreamWorld Collections.
  
• Get bonus entries by letting your friends know about our giveaway. Get one extra entry for each of the following, but come back and leave a second comment telling us where you shared it:
  • Post about it on your own blog, in a forum, tweet about it or share it with your friends on Facebook.
  • Follow us on Twitter (we are @DollDiaries) – please send us a tweet letting us know you are following us and introduce yourself, too.
  • Like us on Facebook (we are DollDiaries) – again, feel free to leave us a note on Facebook saying hello and that you are entering the giveaway.

Rules

• Leave your comment(s) no later than midnight December 15, 2011.
• Make sure your email address is right. We only use it to contact the winner and we will NEVER share it or publish it.
• You must be 18 or older to enter. If you are under 18, just ask your parent, grandparent, favorite aunt or uncle to enter for you!
• We will be using the “And the winner is” plugin to select one (1) winner at random.

Be sure to check the sidebar for the most up to date list of giveaways we have going on Doll Diaries! We have quite a few lined up in the next few weeks and you don’t want to miss a thing!!

UPDATED!! Scroll down to find out who won!

Over the weekend I went to fancy holiday party and it was a lot of fun to see everyone all dressed up, so it is very fitting that the giveaway we are starting today is for a Grand Ball Dress for 18″ dolls. One of our awesome advertisers, MyPinkPlanet, wants one your dolls to look amazing on the ballroom this holiday season, too!

Gwen offered to model the Grand Ball dress in black and I think it looks great on her!  The satiny dress is sleeveless and features a row of rosettes at the waistline. It is ankle length and zips up back. The dress is also available in a beautiful fuschia color, too and is affordably priced at $16.99.

Now is your chance to win it!

And the winner is Ashley H!! Congratulations!

What We Are Giving Away

• We are giving away a the Grand Ball Dress from My Pink Planet for 18′ dolls like American Girl to one lucky winner.

How To Enter

• Visit the MyPinkPlanet website and take a look around. Leave a comment below telling us what you like about the site or something from the site. And the most important thing – let us know whether you want the black Grand Ball Dress or the Fuschia Grand Ball Dress if you win!
• Get bonus entries by letting your friends know about our giveaway. Get one extra entry for each of the following, but come back and leave a second comment telling us where you shared it:
  • Post about it on your own blog, in a forum, tweet about it or share it with your friends on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter (we are @DollDiaries and @mypinkplanet)
  • Like us on Facebook (we are DollDiaries on Facebook and MyPinkPlanet on Facebook).

Rules

• Leave your comment(s) no later than midnight December 12, 2011.
• Make sure your email address is right. We only use it to contact the winner and we will NEVER share it or publish it.
• You must be 18 or older to enter. If you are under 18, just ask your parent, grandparent, favorite aunt or uncle to enter for you!
• This giveaway is only open to US & Canadian addresses.
• We will be using the “And the winner is” plugin to select one (1) winner at random.

UPDATE!! Scroll down to see who won!

It is time for another giveaway from our friends at Carpatina. Carpatina makes beautiful 18″ slim body dolls, are well-known for their Renaissance inspired doll clothes, and have a fun line of contemporary clothes for 18″ dolls. They recently added some new dresses to their shop and when I saw the Glitter Girl dress I knew I had to see it up close and personal. Let me just say now, the photos on the Carpatina site and my own photos of Julie modeling the dress do not do it justice.

This stunning white organza dress has satin and tulle layers that make it something special. The silver polka-dots shimmer from every angle and the bodice has beautiful pleated ruffles (that’s the best way to describe the detail) that give the dress a truly elegant line.

Perfect for a doll party, tea party or fancy dress up session, the Glitter Girl dress for 18″ dolls is extremely well made with attention paid to every detail. It snaps in the back and is cut generously so it would fit all American Girl dolls (and I bet it would look adorable on Bitty Baby too).

The dress is on sale now for $22.95 and does not include shoes. We found the fancy black patent leather shoes from the 2004 Winter Magic Outfit were the perfect match. Megan styled Julie’s hair – she did one braid on each side and pulled it all back into a sleek ponytail for a simple, elegant touch.

This is definitely one of my all time favorite dresses – such a classic style and the silver glittery polka-dots just put it over the top.  And now, you can WIN it!

And the winner is…. Brandy! Thanks to all who entered. We have more giveaways on the way – check the sidebar for current giveaways.

What We Are Giving Away

• We are giving away a the Carpatina Glitter Girl Dress for 18″ dolls like American Girl to one lucky winner.

How To Enter

• Visit the Carpatina website and take a look around. Leave a comment below telling us what your favorite outfit is – is it one of the new dresses or is it a historical gown or is it one of their other beautiful gowns?
• Get bonus entries by letting your friends know about our giveaway. Get one extra entry for each of the following, but come back and leave a second comment telling us where you shared it:
  • Post about it on your own blog, in a forum, tweet about it or share it with your friends on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter (we are @DollDiaries and @18inchDolls)
  • Like us on Facebook (we are DollDiaries on Facebook and Carpatina on Facebook).

Rules

• Leave your comment(s) no later than midnight December 2, 2011.
• You must use your real name and email address in the comment form below – don’t put your email address in the comment itself. We don’t share this information, we just use it to contact you if you win.
• If you are under 14, you need to get a parent’s permission to enter.
• We will be using the “And the winner is” plugin to select one (1) winner at random.

I have had a few friends ask where they can get matching doll and girl outfits for their daughters and then I have friends who say they wish they knew how to sew because they would love to make a one of a kind outfit for their daughter and/or her doll. I have the answer for both of those friends – FashionPlaytes!!

Before I get going on what Fashion Playtes is, how it works and show you what I made, I have to share this awesome Groupon deal on FashionPlaytes with you first. Spend $20 and get $40 of goods at Fashion Playtes – that is 50% off a matching outfit for your daughter and her dolls or just some cool clothes for your doll – you decide.

So I had the opportunity to try out FashionPlaytes a few weeks ago – I was going to let Natalie do the designing, but she was at school and I needed to get the design in by a certain time so they could send it out to me quickly.  Fashion Playtes has basic clothing pieces for girls ages 5-12 (roughly) and 18″ dolls. The outfits available include dresses, hoodies, tops, yoga pants, pajamas, and more. The idea is that you or your fashion loving daughter can go into the Fashion Playtes site, select the clothing item(s) she wants, choose the color and then choose the embellishments. There are over a million combinations from basic to bling, so every girl can find something to match her style.

Of course, I decided to make something for our dolls! I was given a $25 gift certificate to choose my item for review so I started with a basic doll dress. The dress itself is $10 – not bad. I chose the color – I thought this teal blue would look good on all our dolls. Then I picked the embellishment for the top – $3.00. There are close to 40 different embellishments I could choose from for the bodice from blinged out initials to animals to sports and this cute little butterfly. Next I chose the trim ($5.50) – there are 90 different trim options you pick from, too!!  I previewed my item and added it to my cart. The dress with embellishments ended up being $18.50 – a pretty good value, especially when you add the value of the customization experience to it.  I could have easily made the matching dress for Natalie or designed matching PJs (hmmm, that gives me an idea for Christmas!).

The very next week my package arrived. The dress was wrapped up with a Fashion Playtes sticker on it and there were two sheets of cute stickers for Natalie to use in notebooks or on her bulletin board.

And here is the finished version of the dress I designed on FashionPlaytes.com. The dress and embellishments are very nice quality – thicker cotton jersey with nicely finished seams.

Sonali wanted to model the  dress and we found some doll flip flops that Megan had made at an American Girl party at least 4 years ago that matched perfectly. I’m really glad I picked this color – it is a beautiful blue!!

Here is a closer look at the butterfly embellishment.

And a close up of the trim!

The Fashion Playtes girl and doll clothes make a really fun gift! They are a great way to inspire creativity and to make clothing that will not only last, but will make childhood memories, too.

Don’t forget the awesome Groupon deal on FashionPlaytes. Spend $20 and get $40 of goods at Fashion Playtes – I am not sure how long it will last, so if you are even thinking about getting it, I would do so sooner than later.

UPDATED WITH WINNER – Scroll down for to see who won.

Did you see the review and enter the giveaway (it closes the 15th) for the Doll Storage Trunk with Built in Bed from The Queen’s Treasures yet? If not – go look! If so, you will love this week’s giveaway. This week we are doing a giveaway for the doll-sized Steamer Trunk from The Queen’s Treasures that matches the big one.

Back in the old days when you traveled you were usually gone for weeks, maybe months at a time – especially if you were traveling by boat or taking a train. Suitcases were uncommon and people packed their belongings in something called a Steamer Trunk. The doll sized Steamer Trunk that The Queen’s Treasures sent us to review is very similar in style to one that girl’s during Samantha’s time frame may have actually used. Covered in beautiful Pretty in Pink and featuring faux leather straps, a metal clasp and reinforced corners, this doll sized trunk measures 9 inches x 6 inches x 7.5 inches.

Samantha is curious as to what she may find in her trunk! Steamer trunks frequently had removable trays for keeping your smaller items and necessities. The removable tray in this trunk is solid! It is the same high quality wooden material that is used for the rest of the trunk. As I have said before, I just can not get over the level of detail in The Queen’s Treasures pieces. Just beautiful!

It looks like Samantha’s purple dress fits nicely in her trunk with plenty of room for additional outfits, some shoes and of course – smaller accessories in the top tray.

Whether you have a doll with a historical background story or one that is a contemporary best friend, this steamer trunk is just a really nice storage piece. It looks beautiful on a dresser top or on a shelf and it is the perfect size to take your doll’s favorite outfits and accessories to her BFF’s house for a sleepover! The vintage styling makes it even more special.

Do you want one for yourself? We are giving away one Steamer Trunk for dolls below, but you can also get one directly from The Queen’s Treasures and there is an exclusive 15% off coupon for Doll Diaries readers on all The Queen’s Treasures orders by using the code DD15%OFF.

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNER!! Morgane is the winner of the Queen’s Treasures Steamer Trunk for dolls.

What We Are Giving Away

• We are giving away the Doll Steamer Trunk from The Queen’s Treasures to one lucky winner.

How To Enter

• Visit The Queen’s Treasures web site and take a look around. The Queen’s Treasures has so many items that facilitate play, imagination, and the love of collecting, too. Leave us a comment below telling us what essentials your doll needs for her travels and what items from The Queen’s Treasures your doll would want to pack in her own Steamer Trunk.
  
• Get bonus entries by letting your friends know about our giveaway. Get one extra entry for each of the following, but come back and leave a second comment telling us where you shared it:
  • Post about it on your own blog, in a forum, tweet about it or share it with your friends on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter (we are @DollDiaries and @TheQueensTreas) – please send us a tweet letting us know you are following us and introduce yourself, too.
  • Like us on Facebook (we are DollDiaries and The Queen’s Treasures) – again, feel free to leave us a note on Facebook saying hello and that you are entering the giveaway.

Rules

• Leave your comment(s) no later than midnight November 23, 2011.
• Make sure your email address is right. We only use it to contact the winner and we will NEVER share it or publish it.
• You must be 18 or older to enter. If you are under 18, just ask your parent, grandparent, favorite aunt or uncle to enter for you!
• Due to shipping expenses for this large item, this giveaway is only open to US & Canadian addresses.
• We will be using the “And the winner is” plugin to select one (1) winner at random.

Disclosure: The Queen’s Treasures sent us the steamer trunk for purpose of review but the opinions of the products are our own!

P.S. We will be giving away two more awesome (and I mean AWESOME) items from The Queen’s Treasures in coming weeks – so be sure to check back!

UPDATED WITH WINNER!! Scroll down to find out who won!

It’s time for another giveaway! Last month we were first introduced to the top-quality outfits from DreamWorld Collections when we did a review of her Asian Beauty and her Black Swan outfits for 18″ dolls. Since we did our review, DreamWorld Collections has added some absolutely ADORABLE outfits to their collection (the Snow Leopard and Winter Defense outfits come to mind first!). This week we get to giveaway the outfit that first greets you when you visit her site, but you get to help decide what outfit she will have us giveaway next. So, read on…

What We Are Giving Away

• We are giving away The Let’s Go Shopping Outfit that includes a yellow Ladybug dress, red shopping bag, red headband and red slippers for 18″ dolls by DreamWorld Collections.

How To Enter

• Visit DreamWorld Collections web site and take a look around. Then come back here and leave a comment letting us know what outfit from her collection you want us to giveaway next – and why.
  
• Get bonus entries by letting your friends know about our giveaway. Get one extra entry for each of the following, but come back and leave a second comment telling us where you shared it:
  • Post about it on your own blog, in a forum, tweet about it or share it with your friends on Facebook.
  • Follow us on Twitter (we are @DollDiaries) – please send us a tweet letting us know you are following us and introduce yourself, too.
  • Like us on Facebook (we are DollDiaries) – again, feel free to leave us a note on Facebook saying hello and that you are entering the giveaway.

Rules

• Leave your comment(s) no later than midnight November 12, 2011.
• Make sure your email address is right. We only use it to contact the winner and we will NEVER share it or publish it.
• You must be 18 or older to enter. If you are under 18, just ask your parent, grandparent, favorite aunt or uncle to enter for you!
• We will be using the “And the winner is” plugin to select one (1) winner at random.

Be sure to check the sidebar for the most up to date list of giveaways we have going on Doll Diaries! We have quite a few lined up in the next few weeks and you don’t want to miss a thing!!

AND WE HAVE A WINNER!! Congratulations Susan!!

And for the next DreamWorld Collections giveaway, it will be the Happy Holidays outfit complete with cape and mittens.

UPDATED! Scroll down to see who won.

I am so excited!!! We have got the most amazing two months worth of giveaways lined up for our fabulous Doll Diaries readers and today’s giveaway is just the beginning. You will not want to miss a thing!

Recently I was contacted by The Queen’s Treasures – not only do they have an online store, but if you happen to be near Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, you will want to stop by their store, too. The Queen’s Treasures is filled with everything a girl would love – from doll clothes and accessories to doll furniture, everything you need for an elegant tea party and even gourmet goodies. And I just happen to love the “Queen’s” story of entrepreneurship.

The Queen’s Treasures has sent us some of their goodies to review and to giveaway to our readers and let me tell you, the quality of the items we have received to review and giveaway are TOP-NOTCH. We are going to kick off the fun with a review of their Chef’s Outfit and Kitchen Utensils set for 18″ dolls. Be sure to read all the way through so you can enter to win this adorable set for yourself.

Nicki was happy to be our model for this adorable Chef’s Outfit and Kitchen Utensils set from The Queen’s Treasures. The first thing I noticed when I opened the box of the Kitchen Utensils was they are NOT plastic. What a pleasant surprise!

The bowl and the wooden spoon are really WOOD – as in the feel good in your hand, I can tell this is high quality kind of  wood. In addition to the wooden bowl and wooden spoon, the set also includes a spatula, a whisk, a mini strainer/colander and slotted spoon. Their handles are wood and the utensil part is metal. The vintage styling of the utensil set adds to its charm, but this set is made for playing. My daughter and her friends spent hours in their doll kitchen making and serving “meals’ with this set along with other items we already have.

The Chef Outfit is adorable – the black and white checked pattern gives it a fun and somewhat vintage feel. The outfit comes with a hat, the top, pull on pants, black slipper type shoes and an oven mitt. Your doll will be ready to cook up some delicious treats for her friends dressed in the Chef’s Outfit. The outfit also comes with a thick cardboard hanger and a thick plastic garment bag to keep the outfit in when not in use. PS – there is nothing wrong with the button on Nicki’s jacket – I just forgot to straighten it before I took the photo.

We love this set – especially the utensils – because you just don’t find high quality accessories like these everywhere anymore. You can purchase the Chef’s Outfit for $18.99 and the Kitchen Utensils are $14.99 at the Queen’s Treasures web site. Or enter below to win them for your own dolls!!

What We Are Giving Away

• We are giving away The Queen’s Treasures Chef Outfit and Kitchen Utensils set to one lucky winner.

How To Enter

• Visit The Queen’s Treasures web site and take a look around. Then come back here and leave a comment letting us know what your daughter’s favorite doll play activities are – for example, does she like to have tea parties, or host doll sleepover parties, does she play dress up or create elaborate adventures for her dolls. Or you can just let us know what you think of the Queen’s Treasures web site. Did you see all the historical doll furniture? Gorgeous, right?
  
• Get bonus entries by letting your friends know about our giveaway. Get one extra entry for each of the following, but come back and leave a second comment telling us where you shared it:
  • Post about it on your own blog, in a forum, tweet about it or share it with your friends on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter (we are @DollDiaries and @TheQueensTreas) – please send us a tweet letting us know you are following us and introduce yourself, too.
  • Like us on Facebook (we are DollDiaries and The Queen’s Treasures) – again, feel free to leave us a note on Facebook saying hello and that you are entering the giveaway.

Rules

• Leave your comment(s) no later than midnight November 6, 2011. This giveaway is now closed. Check our sidebar for a list of currently open giveaways.
• Make sure your email address is right. We only use it to contact the winner and we will NEVER share it or publish it.
• You must be 18 or older to enter. If you are under 18, just ask your parent, grandparent, favorite aunt or uncle to enter for you!
• We will be using the “And the winner is” plugin to select one (1) winner at random.

BONUS!! There is an exclusive 15% off coupon for Doll Diaries readers on all The Queen’s Treasures orders by using the code DD15%OFF.

CONGRATULATIONS! We have a winner! Congratulations to Jennifer – we just sent you an email.

Disclosure: The Queen’s Treasures sent us the outfit and accessories for purpose of review but the opinions of the products are our own!

You can find more great giveaways and contests at ContestGirl.com.

I’d like to welcome one of our newest site sponsors, DreamWorld Collections! DreamWorld Collections was born from a childhood love of dress making that resurfaced years later as her own daughter began to play with dolls. They sent us two outfits to review and let me just say – BEAUTIFUL!

They sent us the Black Swan ballet outfit and the Asian Beauty gown to review.  The first thing I noticed is that these doll outfits came packaged differently than any others I have ever received. They were packaged flat and with the coordinating shoes in the package. Nice touch!

Kailey asked to model the Black Swan outfit so we pulled her hair up into a bun, put on the tights, the leotard and laced up her ballet shoes. The detail in the Black Swan outfit is so pretty from the silver beaded trim at the neckline to the trim at the waistline and the 4 layer tutu. The body of the leotard and the shoes are a soft velvety material that has just the right amount of stretch.

I really wish we had Ivy or another doll who looks Asian to model the Asian Beauty gown, but Marisol does look stunning in it, too! The Asian Beauty gown is made of a very high quality feeling red Asian flowered material with gold ric-rac trim. The stitching on the dress is so exact and a higher quality of detail than I normally expect from doll clothes. Paired with the red shoes, this dress is absolutely stunning on the dolls. We just happened to have a doll-sized Chinese take-out box on hand for Marisol to carry – that is not part of the DreamWorld outfit.

If you are looking for high-quality, unique outfits (like a Princess Kate inspired gown or an Egyptian Beauty dinner gown) for your dolls, you really should check out DreamWorld Collections – my only complaint (which really isn’t a complaint but a compliment) is that I would love to see even more designs. Her stock may be small right now, but the pieces she offers are gorgeous and definitely well-made.

What are your favorites from the DreamWorld Collection?