Our bus arrived at the next location, The Kent State University Museum where we were ushered into an auditorium for a fantastic presentation on The Silverman/Rodgers Collection. Film and theater costume designer Shannon Rodgers was hired by Jerry Silverman to design clothes for the labels Jerry Silverman, Inc., and Shannon Rodgers for Jerry Silverman. By the early 1960s the two had begun collecting what was to become one of the largest period costume collections in the U.S. which is now the foundation of Kent State's collection. The Museum now owns a number of dresses they produced as well as their archives - including sketches and photographs. The "wow" was this pink dress with hand-painted palm fronds which I believe was by MGM's Adrian.
Then we were unleashed to tour the museum, where we saw items from their Katharine Hepburn collection.
This iconic Hepburn outfit is from “On Golden Pond.” As if I needed to even tell you. It just screams Hepburn.
Two outfits from the stage version of “The Philadelphia Story,” which paved the way for Hepburn's film comeback.
The Tour Gift outfit was “True Love,” a faithful miniature of the Hepburn outfit.
Always ready to provide options, Sandra offered a color variation called “Blue Love.”
In another gallery, we saw Beyond the Suit, contemporary menswear from the collection of Alexandre Marr and Dominic ludiciani. I coveted a number of the looks here.
This one in particular drew crowds. I call this one “Easy Access.”
After touring the galleries I decided to snap a few campus photos.
You just never know what your camera might pick up. Oh Kelly; as if a double-bird would stop me from taking a photo!
And finally, the moment you’ve been waiting for. The Convention itself, which began with a dessert reception. Sue Connor’s diorama caused a traffic jam, as Sandra's guests stopped to look at all the incredible details.
The tables were perfectly set, with each plate loaded with Patsy’s incomparable miniature sets.
The Centerpiece Dolls were titled “Tutti Frutti,” and came in an assortment of four colors: Blueberry, Orange, Lime, and Raspberry.
I look forward to the dolls that attendees bring to each meal. They are always dressed to the nines. Here’s the one that Wayne brought:
Ryan dressed Zita up in one of my favorite outfits, Black Ribbon, sporting a very stylish hat upgrade!
Other dresses available for purchase included this favorite, Rockin' Robin:
...and Buckeye Beauty:
How about a little sugar to get our buzz going? Plenty of delicious desserts:
and a special cake:
The Helper Raffle table was LOADED with good stuff. Not sure if the included portrait of Robert Tonner was a plus or minus for this doll!
Michael Basala, the best MC ever, posing with Jeff Lega:
The first game of the Convention was “A Christmas Story” trivia:
Ed had the room in stitches as he appeared in Aunt Clara’s famous bunny costume. Dear Helen had never seen the movie. I sure hope she rectifies that soon!
Diane Wagner won this Tonner Ralphie doll:
Sandra stepped up to the podium and talked about the evening’s fashions, and then it was time for the big reveal.
Our gift for the night was the outfit titled Allegro:
Allegro’s official portrait:
Helen G. was another prize winner, proudly displaying a Madra doll wearing a Michael Basala original:
Sandra graciously offered 40% for one outfit for one night only. It was like Black Friday had come early!
I’ll close today's entry with a picture of Helen Hall's beautifully tailored outfit, posed in front of Sue Connor's diorama:
See more Sandra Stillwell convention photos at my website. You can order these Sandra Stillwell outfits at her website...while they last!
