Saturday was Puddle. Puddle is a day long celebration of all things Pullip. If you recall, I attended last year with mom. We decided to give it a second go this year, staying for the whole day (as opposed to half a day, like last year). Puddle attendees come from all over the United States. It’s one of the largest US celebrations of Pullips and the Pullip family. This year, attendance was reportedly the highest the organizers have seen. (Always good!)
Before I get into the actual event, I’d just like to say how awesome it was to meet some of you in person! You guys made Puddle so much fun. Special shout out to Brock. I’m glad we could hang out during the show! Keep on collecting, friend! Also, congrats to Colin for winning in the customization contest!
Here’s a quick run down of what goes on during the event. Puddle is not like your traditional convention. It’s a mixture between a fan gathering and a convention. The event took place in a large room with various tables spread throughout. Vendors (eight or so) lined the walls with some amazing products. The circle tables in the center were for attendees to sit at. Each table was topped with a raised display area, so attendees could place their own dolls on the table, like a center piece.
One thing I like about Puddle is that attendees get a goodie bag. The goodie bags this year were really nice! They featured KiraKira eye chips, eyelashes from Mimi Collection, and wigs from DollHeart. Other items in the bag were cute mini plushes by Myufish, a tiny emergency kit from Cindy, a super cute miniature bottled filled with fairy dust, a miniature cupcake and Chicago guidebook from Pullstring Lane, a cute fairy tale themed charm from the organizers, a colorful skirt (not sure who made it) and dolly panties by Setsie Silhouette.
The majority of the morning was spent mingling with attendees, shopping and looking around the room at everyone’s dolls. There were two ice breakers. The first ice breaker was something you’ve probably done a few times at various work places or classes. We had to go around asking if people fit certain descriptions (ie: first time attendee, brought a non-pullip doll, own over 25 Pullips).
The second ice breaker took place later, right before lunch, and was pretty fun! In small groups, we had to come up with a Pullip design. This wasn’t a contest or anything, just a fun activity to get people thinking and chatting about what they liked best in their dolls.
And of course, there were the group photos. I love seeing everyone’s dolls together. There were a lot more dolls in the room than what you see in the group shot. We were told to bring one up, even though most had many, many more dolls on display at their table. (I have two in the photo, because I saw another person with two and thought they were allowing it. Can you spot Jem and Emma Swan?)
The second half of the convention was filled with the competitions. Pacing was, I’ll be honest, weird. The second ice breaker would have been better placed in the sluggish second half of Puddle than in the first half of the day. My mom and I decided to put three of our dolls in the customization contest. That was fun, though we didn’t win.
Also held in the afternoon was the Dress Like Your Doll Parade, trivia contest and raffle pull. I wasn’t actually participating in any of those events. (Other than the raffle, of course, and you didn’t have to be present to win.)
What did I buy, you ask? We’ll start off with the smaller items. I picked up a pair of Pullip boots, because my Mary Margaret custom was in need of some shoes. I also bought a three dollar wig. The seller had a naked Evangelion Asuka that was tempting, but it was too much for me to pick up.
From there, I moved onto clothing. The thing about Puddle is that the vendors, while few, are super talented. This year, I picked up a fantastic coat from Kaleidoscope Coats. They look amazing. This jacket was purchased for my Hujoo Action Yumi (MSD sized).
I also picked up some equally amazing outfits from Darling Clover. The muted colors and neat mixture of fabrics are very pretty. I picked up a cute sleeveless dress and a delicately made vest.
My Makie came home with a new outfit, too, from Keely’s Cute Kimono‘s. The outfit needed a bit of tweaking to fit my Makie, but the seller was kind enough to make the adjustment on the spot. Besides this bright, super cute kimono, there were some amazing Doctor Who themed kimono’s, too.
A few other outfits found their way to me at Puddle. The first was a super cute and very well fitting outfit by Emerz Doll Apparel.
One of Setsie Silhouette’s gorgeous kimono’s found its way home with me, as well. It’s so pretty and much more adult than the kimono I bought for my Makie.
My last purchase (well, technically, it was my first) was a Pullip Make It Own kit. I love the Make It Own kits. Truthfully, I think stock Pullips are mostly overpriced. These Make It Own kits are way more affordable. Plus, the whole process of customizing them is so much fun!
Unlike my past two Make It Own kits which were customized into Jem and her Hologram Aja, I want to make this an ‘anything’ Pullip. One that is normal looking that can wear whatever wig or outfit I want her to. I can’t wait to work on this new girl and see how she looks in all the amazing outfits I purchased this weekend!!!
Overall, I can’t imagine a more fun way to spend a Saturday. I met some amazing collectors, saw some fantastic customs and brought home some really well crafted outfits for my 1/6th dolls!
For more information on Puddle, keep an eye on their website. I would highly recommend clicking into some of the vendor pages linked in this post. I can’t say I was disappointed with any of the sellers displaying their wares.
Below are some of my favorite Pullips from the convention.
Video’s below.
On Site Vendors:
Emerz Doll Apparel (website to be added later)
Kaleidoscope Coats (no online store)
To see my full album of photos, visit my flickr page. If you have any questions about my experience, feel free to ask! Did you attend Puddle? Did you enjoy it? Share your thoughts below!
Filed under: Articles and Doll Histories, Spotlight Posts, Uncategorized Tagged: convention, conventions, pullip
