Round Two Theme

What is Round Two's theme, may you ask?

What I Love About the Holidays

 This way, if you don't celebrate Christmas, you can do your own thing. 

I want quality, creativity, and beauty in your photos, okay? These are due January 3rd.

Love,

Willow   

Round One Photos

I was so excited for this round, and am very happy with the results. The names are under the photos, by the way.

Jess with Rosalyn

Emma with Delilah

Bekah with Alayna

Priya with Lanie

TracAn with Taryn Eana

Silence with Elizabeth

Jessie with McKenna

AGTriviaMaster with Callie

VKpixie with Samantha

Katie with McKenna

Alanna with Amy

Lena Grace with Jessa

Misspiggy=awesome with Julianna

Jeneca with Kanani

Rachel Nicole with Mya

Gracie with Ali

Emma Kate with Gwen

Claire with Josie

Teryn with Emily

Alisha with Jess



Eliminations: Quinlyn with Leah and Jasmine with Cynthia Rose did not get their photos in, so they are out :(

Special Mentions:

Rachel with Mya: Stunning. Beautiful. Gorgeous quality and lighting!

Jess with Rosalyn: Lovely setting and theme. The lighting is awesome too:)

Emma with Delilah: I love the angle! Very creative interpretation.

Everyone Else: Very good!

Okay, the next round will be posted later today.

Love,

Willow

One Day 'till Due Reminder!

Hey everyone!
 The 18th is coming up fast, and your photos are due by that date at midnight Pacific Time.
So far I do not have the photos of:

Quinlyn with Leah
Jasmine with Cynthia


Please send them in, or you will be eliminated!

Love,

Willow

Round One Theme

 Here's the next theme! I thought of it while waiting to see who won AGC last season.

Myself

This can be anything about your doll: what she wants to be, her hobby, what she's proud of now, you get the picture. If you need inspiration, you can try looking back at old photos in AGC, try My Hobbies or When I Grow Up.

These are due Tuesday the 18th {so we can do a Christmas round}

Love,

Willow

Ready for Season Nine? {Sign Up Closed!}

 Ahoy there! 
 My name is Willow, and I will be hosting this season :) 

Thank you to Jessie for being such an amazing {and challenging} host. Some themes were hard, but fun!

Wow, I was so nervous the days following sending my photo in {the last day for it}. Wow, I was sure that Phoebe had me beat! Phoebe, you're such an amazing photographer, I love the way you make your photos so vibrant!

 A little about me: I'm a Christian, doll lover, Lord of the Rings freak, Star Wars nerd and Narnia liker.

Anyhow, now it's time to sign up for the next season. Normally, it's 15-20 {read the rules, people} but I thought, out of the kindness of my heart, that I would allow one extra person {plus the fact that twenty-one is a favorite number of mine}

Read the Rules at the bottom of this post!

Email me or comment to sign up!

Feel free to ask me any questions via comment or 

email me at americangirlcontest@gmail.com

Once I have all the headshots and everyone has filled the slots, Round One will begin!

{if you have your name on this list: please send in your headshot}

1. Jessie with McKenna
2. Alisha with Jess
3. Alanna with Amy
4. Priya with Lanie
5. Bekah with Alayna
6. Jess with Rosalyn
7. Emma Kate with Gwen
8. Silence with Elizabeth
9. Quinlyn with Leah
10. Lena Grace with Jess
11. Jeneca with Kanani
12. Gracie with Ali
13. VKpixie with Samantha
14. TraCan with Taryn Eana
15. AGTriviaMaster with Callie
16. Jasmine with Cynthia
17. Misspiggy=awesome with Julianna
18. Claire with Josie
19. Teryn with Emily
20. Emma with Delilah
21. Katie with McKenna
22.Rachel Nicole with Mya

!!All the spots are filled!!

{*This means that I have not received your headshot}

RULES OF THIS COMPETITION

1. You must use an American Girl Doll.

2. You must take all of the pictures for your contest.

3. It should be understood that if you fail to turn in your entry too late, you will be automatically eliminated.

4. Please, please please think about which doll you will enter. This contest is going to be a lot about personality, so you should know your dolls and consider which one to enter before you sign up. This also means NO SWITCHING DOLLS in the middle of the competition. Also, try to choose a doll with nicer hair. You don't want her hair to be frizzy in the middle of an important photo, where it might be noticed. If you can't though, that's fine : )

5. Editing/watermarking your photos is encouraged!! If it helps you be more creative with your picture, go ahead and do it, although if your picture looks good enough without any editing you don't have to. But at least marking your name {e.g. your name with doll name} in a corner or something is highly encouraged.

6. In some rounds, you will be allowed to do more than one picture. I'll be sure to make it clear when and when not this is acceptable. 

7. I will give out one {or two} honorable mention {s} each round to the best picture of that subject. Getting an honorable mention does not mean that you will win or get top 3. 

8. To stay in the competition, you must take clear photos, where your doll is the main subject, be creative-try to think of your own new ideas- and, say the subject is "My hobbies", I don't want it to be sitting under a tree. 

Sign up away!

Love,
Willow 

Round 11 results // Winner!!

{Please take time to read this post instead of scrolling really fast to the bottom to see who won... doing that would spoil the suspenseful effect.}

Well, this is it. In this post one of you will be crowned winner and move on as host of American Girl Contest, Season 9. I just want to say thank you to everyone who participated this season. It was such a great experience for me (and I hope it was for you, too!) and I loved all of your ideas. Now we're down to the final two.

This round was by far my favourite, even if there are only two entries. I really wish you both could win. It took me a verrrrrrrry long time to decide (hence my posting this later than I normally would).

 Willow with Josefina - This is amazing!! I love your creativity, and how you kept the night scenes dark and the day scenes light. The setup and idea and angle in each photo are amazing. Great job!

Phoebe with Evelyne - Superb!! I love your references not only to the movie but also to the books. The shots around the main photo really bring out the details. I love the 'organized chaos' look and the text. Great work!

It was sooooooooo hard to pick a winner! But alas, it must be done (does anyone else have the feeling I've said that before?). So without further ado, I shall announce the winner.

*drumroll*

...

........

.......................

{the suspense is killing you, right?}

............

......

... Willow with Josefina!!

Congratulations, my friend. You were spectacular all season and I loved your creativity and detail in every one of your entries. I wish you well in your host-dom and hope that you're as awesome as I was tons awesome-er at being host than I shall ever be. I have complete faith that you will make Season 9 spectacular and the most fun AGC season ever!

Phoebe, you were simply amazing throughout the whole season too. I can assure you that you were every bit as amazing as Willow and that it was a terrible inward struggle for me to pick a winner. You more are a superb photographer and I hope to see more of you in the future. Congratulations on 2nd place!!

Willow, I will email you soon (hopefully today, but don't be surprised if Saturday I put it off until next Saturday. I'm a very forgetful person.) with rules, accounts, passwords, etc. Congratulations again!!

I have had an amazing time being host and I wish I could host forever, but Willow just won and that would be mean to not let her host. Thank you for putting up with my weirdness, and I hope everyone who participated enjoyed this season. Thank you again, Amerigirl, for letting me host! (:

much love,

~Jessie~

Round 10 results // Round 11 theme

You three have really outdone yourselves! This is by far one of my favourite rounds. It took me a looong time to make my decision (D:) which is why I'm getting this up a teeny bit late.

 

Bekah with Alayna - This is really, really cute. I love the text and all the photos are sooooo cute! The setup, lighting, outfits, everything; great job on it all.

 Phoebe with Evelyne - This is adorable! I always love your bright colours and creativity. The emotion this depicts is really sweet and definitely defines friendship. Very, very cute!!

Willow with Josefina -This is superb, Willow! I love how it's so simple, yet it depicts sooo much sweetness. Its realism and detail leave me at loss for words.

You three are all so spectaculary amazing!! Great work to all of you.

I wish you could all go on to round 11, but alas, there is one word that makes it impossible: elimination. After thinking long and hard, I have chosen to eliminate Bekah with Alayna.

Bekah, you were simply spectacular all through this season and never failed to leave me in awe at your creativity. I hope you can compete again in Season 9, and congratulations on getting 3rd place! (:

Phoebe and Willow, you are the top two finalists!! You two are great amazing photographers and I have complete faith in you as I give you one of the most difficult themes of this season, which is...

Wonderland.

This an also be translated as 'fantasy world' or something along the lines of that, but my original inspiration was Alice in Wonderland (obviously). These are due on or before Wednesday, November 21. I'm giving you two full weeks as I know this theme is difficult and it'll probably need some thought.

I want my jaw to drop when I see your pictures. I want to be dying of agony because I can't pick a winner (by the way, this next round is the last, and the winner will be announced when I post your pictures for round 11). I want to be completely in awe of your amazingness. Okay?

I'm not too concerned about quality because I want you to focus more on creativity this round, but please don't slack off on it.

Have FUN with this round!! Do your best and remember that even if you don't win, you still got second place!

I eagerly await your amazingness.

much love,

~Jessie~ 

[Jessie's day-before-the-due-date reminder]

Hallo! Just a quick reminder that the due date for this round is tomorrow. Phoebe and Willow still haven't sent theirs in, so I just wanted to get that to them... I can't wait to see your pictures!! (:

much love,

~Jessie~

Round 9 Results // Round 10 theme

I have a feeling this contest is going to go longer than it normally does... more suspense that way, I guess. (:

All four of you turned in your pictures, huzzah! I shall proceed to show them to you...

 Bekah with Alayna - Great job! I love the depiction of colour in this and the contrast of her jacket and the leaves.

 Priya with Penelope - This is really cute. I really like her fall outfit and the mini pumpkin!

 Phoebe with Evelyne - I really like this, Phoebe! Those are my two favourite things about autumn. I love the bright colours!

Willow with Josefina - This is super cute, Willow. I love all the details! The little cookbook and pie pan just tie the whole thing together.

This round was awesome, guys. Your ideas and creativity really stood out to me.

I was browsing through some older rounds [from previous seasons] and I came across this one post by Karalee two seasons ago. Here's what she said...
"That leaves only 4 people still in the competition! I cannot believe how far we have come! I will now be giving closer deadlines, but will only be eliminating one person per round."

After reading this, I have decided to only eliminate one person per upcoming round. After a lot of thought, I have chosen to eliminate.....

Priya with Penelope.

Priya, you have done a wonderful job throughout this entire season. I love your creativity in all your pictures! I wish you the best and hope you can compete again next season. Congratulations on getting 4th place!


And then there were three.
[I totally just stole that quote from Amerigirl...]

Your new theme is...

... friendship.

Nothing much to explain about this theme. Focus on quality and creativity. I want you to have a lot of fun with this theme. Remember, this round is determining the top two finalists!! These are due on or before Sunday, November 4.

much love,
~Jessie~

Entries are due tomorrow

Behold, my day-before-the-due-date reminder post!

Just a quick reminder that y'all need to get your entries in on or before October 23. I still need Phoebe's, Willow's, and Bekah's.

Remember--creativity and quality are what count. Have fun!

much love,

~Jessie~

Results - Round 8 // Round 9 theme

Great job with this round!! Unfortunately Madeline with Katie didn't send in her entry, so she is now out of the contest. ): Since there are only four of you left, I'll just write what I liked about each picture.

 Bekah with Alayna

I really love this, Bekah! The little blueprint is so cute and the whole idea is very unique.

 Priya with Penelope

Great job on this, Priya. The concept of dress-up is certainly creative! The little clothing box is very cute.

Willow with Josefina 

Adorable, Willow! I love the whole idea of the picture and especially the fairies. Great job!

Phoebe with Evelyne

This is such a unique idea, Phoebe! I really love the setup/angle of the scene and all those bright colors.

All four of you did such a great job!! Since Madeline is already eliminated I won't eliminate any of you four.

-------------------

Your new theme is...

my favourite thing about autumn.

So... this is obviously supposed to be depicting your (or your doll's, haha) favourite thing about autumn. This is sort of a different style of theme than what I've been giving you, but I have faith in you! These are due on or before Tuesday, October 23. Have fun and be creative!!

much love,

~Jessie~

New design... how do you like it?

I went old-school and used a ready-made background, haha. But other than that, how do you like it? Unless Jasmine still has the old header and background I can't change it back, so if you hate it, oh well. I think it's a lot less bright than it was, but that way it doesn't take away from the pictures themselves. So... tell me what you think!

much love,

~Jessie~

Entries due on October 9

Hai everyone! I hope you're having fun with this round. I've gotten two already, and I can't wait to see the other three! I just wanted to remind you that you should get your entries in today [October 8] or tomorrow [October 9] or you will be eliminated. I know you only had a week and a half for a difficult theme, but I have faith in you! Have fun and get those creative juices flowing!

much love,

~Jessie~

P.S. I know it's sort of random, but what do you think of a new blog design? I would probably do it myself.

Results - Round 7//Round 8 Theme

Yay, you all got your entries in! I love all of these; great job interpreting the theme, everybody!

Bekah with Alayna

Priya with Penelope

Silence with Felicity

VKPixie with Maya

Willow with Josefina

Phoebe with Evelyne

Madeline with Katie

Great job, everybody! I know that this theme was somewhat more difficult than others, but you all did a really awesome job. Since you all got your entries in, I have to eliminate two of you... :'( So I made the very difficult decision to eliminate... VKPixie with Maya and Silence with Felicity.You two were really great contestants and I hope you can compete in Season 9!

Onto special mentions...

Phoebe with Evelyne -  Very cute. I love how bright it is, and it depicts a very realistic scene.

Willow with Josefina - This is really awesome. The lighting and setup are all done in a realistic manner, and the overall idea is very sweet.

I figured that putting the new theme in this post would create less bulk, etc. So, your theme for round eight is...

Creativity!

Obviously this theme is very vague and gives you a lot of scope for the imagination [kudos to whoever catches that quote!]. I think this theme shouldn't just depict creativity, but it should be creative in and of itself.  Get some crazy ideas, guys. Anything goes in this round, as long as it's creative. I really want this theme to be bursting with creativity and awesomeness.

Your entries for round 8 are due on or before Tuesday, October 9. Now I shall proceed to say what I say every round. I know you're sick of it, but I'll say it anyway:

Remember what counts:

*Quality

*Creativity [duh, haha]

*Setup/angle

*Awesomeness

And as always, try to keep your camera steady with a tripod or something of the sort.

Have fun, and get crazy with this theme!

much love,

~Jessie~

Your entries are due today!!

Just a reminder that you all should have your entries for round 7 in by 11:59 pm tonight, Pacific time. I'm just waiting for Willow's, Madeline's, and Silence's, and then I can show you the results! If I get all three before midnight I can probably post them today. Remember, focus on creativity and quality. Have fun!

much love,

~Jessie~

Round 7 theme

Wow, round 7 already? This season is going by way too fast. Anyway, I'm here with your new theme, which is...

Remembering You.

You know, like remembering a special someone, like a parent or friend. Try and keep it clean, as in no boyfriend/girlfriend stuff. I know, I know, that totally just ruined your amazing idea, but I'd like to keep it appropriate for all ages.... There is a Steven Curtis Chapman song with the name 'Remembering You' that I was sort of inspired by, so you're definitely allowed to base your entry off of that.

These are due Wednesday, September 26th. As always, focus on creativity and quality. I don't know how many times I've said this, but I'll say it again: Use. A. Tripod. Seriously, guys, I've improved so much in photography since season 7 of AGC and I've learned that tripods are the way to win. Or at least make sure your photos aren't blurry, that always helps. (: Go out and get shooting! I eagerly await your pictures.

much love,

~Jessie~

Results - Round 6

 Bekah with Alayna

 Silence with Felicity

 Priya with Penelope

 Willow with Josefina

 VKPixie with Maya

 Madeline with Katie

Phoebe with Evelyne

Y'all were SO creative with this round!! I loved each and every one of them.

Only one person (Emma with Lanie) didn't get her picture in, so she is now out of the contest. ): Thanks to those who did get their entries in!! I won't be eliminating anyone who got their pictures in this round.

Bekah with Alayna--so sweet! I love that you only showed the hands. The quote is adorable and the lighting/setup are great!

Phoebe with Evelyne--This is super cute. I really like the angle and the focusing! The whole idea of the picture is awesome.

Your next theme will be posted asap. Hopefully today if I can remember it. Great job again, everybody!!

much love,
~Jessie~

Quick reminder for Silence and Emma

Hola! Just wanted to remind Silence with Felicity and Emma with Lanie that your pictures are due today. I have the other 6's entries, and I can't wait to see yours!! Remember, focus on quality and creativity. Have fun!!

-Jessie (:

Round 6 theme

Alrighty, contestants! Your theme for round 6 is....

Memories.

Your entries must be in at or before 11:59pm {CA time as usual} on Saturday, September 8. Like I say every round, be creative. Please, please, please focus on quality as well. Some of you have had really cute ideas in past rounds, but the quality isn't great. Get good lighting, make sure your doll looks nice, etc. Use. A. Tripod. It boosts the quality waaaayyyy up as well as it frees up your hands while shooting.

Have fun!

much love,

~Jessie~

Results - Round 5

Hurrah! All but one contestant sent in their entries. We're getting somewhere now!

 Emma with Lanie

 Bekah with Alayna

 Priya with Penelope

 Silence with Felicity

VKPixie with Maya

 Willow with Josefina

 Madeline with Katie

Phoebe with Evelyne

Wow, you all did spectacular jobs with your interpretation of the theme. Onto special mentions {from now on I'll only be doing two mentions, as there are only 8 contestants left}...

Priya with Penelope - I. Love. This. Oh my heavens. Seriously, this is almost exactly what I had in mind when I posted the theme... and it's so cute and well done! Great job!!

Willow with Josefina - I adore this one. It's very well set up, has good lighting, etc. Also, my family adopted two little girls from Africa last year, so this has special meaning to me. Great job to you too, Willow!

Unfortunately Lissie [with Dakota] did not send her entry in, so she is now out of the contest. ): That clears up my 'eliminating quota', though, so all 8 who sent in their entries are still in. I'll try to have your new theme up soon.

much love,

~Jessie~