Sandra Stillwell Presents... Sophisticated Lady!




    Sandra Stillwell Presents: Sophisticated Lady 
August 16th - 19th, 2018 

SOLD OUT
Accepting names for wait-list only
dls6643@aol.com



Absentee packages:

A limited number of absentee packages are available. Absentees have first option on pre-orders after convention, before opening sales to the general public. Please email dls6643@aol.com for more info.

Registration and Fees:

·        Registration fee for "Sophisticated Lady" is $525 for attendees who book within our room block and pay in full by cash, check/money order by July 1st. Payments can be worked out on request.  After July 1st, a $50 additional fee applies.
·        Registration fee for those not staying at the host hotel is $675. 
·        A $30 fee will be added to payments other than cash/check. Please contact me first, before selecting a different method for payments. 
·        A $150 cancellation fee applies to all cancellations prior to June 15th. After June 15th, no refunds will be issued.  


Your "Sophisticated Lady" registration fee will include: 

  • An exclusive collection of fashions designed for your 16" Sophisticated Lady - with the perfect twist of elegance, glamour, and fun you've come to expect from Sandra Stillwell Presents
  • Thursday evening opening reception
  • Three breakfast presentations
  • One lunch
  • Two dinners
  • Table gifts
  • Interesting programs and speakers
  • Movie breaks, surprises, raffles, and lots of fashionable dolly fun!!
  • A very special curator presentation and behind the scenes tour of the phenomenal fashion archives at the fascinating Western Reserve History Center, featuring garments worn by the crème de la crème of Cleveland area society through the years, designed by both master couturiers and more "privately" held, equally talented designers  -- plus a fun selection of still more fashions on exhibition! We will also have a guided tour of the other interesting and diverse collections featured at the museum, including their beautiful automobile collection, after which we can treat the "child" in all of us with a delightful ride on an original, 1900's carousel!  

But there's still more!!

You'll have first opportunity to purchase or pre-order exclusive, small edition fashions from the Sandra Stillwell Presents: Sophisticated Lady convention collection! Designed to fit our favorite 16 inch "star", some of these fashions may fit other doll bodies -- so if there are any "special" dolls you want them to fit, please feel free to bring a fit model with you! 

You'll not want to miss a minute of all the fun and surprises we have planned, so please do plan to attend all the functions....however, if you have to miss one, please be sure to let either myself, Michael Basala, or Sherlyn Lovell know. We will do our best to keep any gifts or table gifts for you, but please understand this is not guaranteed.   

Also -- Timely delivery of fashions is not guaranteed....
Though we make every attempt to have the souvenir fashions available at convention, we are dependent not only on shipping, but also on factories meeting deadlines and customs passing deliveries through without hold up. In the event that any of the souvenirs are not delivered in time so that we can present them at convention, they will be mailed as soon as possible. I very much appreciate your understanding where this is concerned.


Hotel Information: 

Our host hotel is the Airport Crowne Plaza, 7230 Engle Rd, Middleburg Heights, Ohio 44130. 
Our special group rate of only $119 includes breakfast in the restaurant on days that we do not have a convention breakfast function!  

Beginning March 15th, Hotel reservations may be made by calling the on site Group Rooms Coordinator at 440-243-4040 and asking for the Sandra Stillwell Presents group rate. 
There are a limited number of rooms with safes, as well as one at the front desk. If a safe in your room is important to you, please specify this when making your reservation and, though not guaranteed, the hotel will do their best to accommodate your request. 
In order for you to enjoy all of what Cleveland has to offer, our group rate has been extended 3 days prior and 3 days after convention, based on availability.  If you need additional nights other than these, please be sure to contact me! There are SO many fun things to experience in the Cleveland area -- and we have great tours planned -- so you'll want to come early and stay over, if possible! 
The cut off date for reservations is July 25th -- however, our room block is limited, so I strongly suggest you make hotel reservations as quickly as possible! 
The room block is being closely monitored and room types added as necessary. If you have any issues with the registration process, please don't hesitate to contact me --  I'll do my best to handle it for you.
Please remember that, in order to keep costs down, it is VERY important to stay at the hotel and book within our group block before, during, and after convention, as your room booking helps defray room rental and food and beverage costs, among other things. Your cooperation with this is crucial, and  much appreciated! 

If you plan to join us but are not yet ready to make room reservations, it would be a big help to know what days you are planning to be there so we will have an idea how many guests to expect each day. 


Airport and transportation: 

The Crowne Plaza offers complimentary parking and airport shuttle --  
The hotel has 3 shuttle vans for 24/7 transportation to and from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, only minutes away.  However -- the shuttles serve many hotel guests, so please be sure to notify the hotel of your flight schedule and transportation needs in advance. 

When available, the shuttles also offer transportation within a 5 mile radius of the hotel, which is conveniently located with several nearby eateries, K Mart across the street, and a Walgreens pharmacy within a mile. 


Convention "Helper" Donations:

A little known fact about conventions is that registration fees never fully cover expenses, so we'll  once again have "helper" drawings to assist in offsetting extra costs!
Dolls, fashions, accessories, repaints, dolly "spa" days or gift certificates... donations of all types and sizes are welcomed and greatly appreciated -- including "people" prizes your fellow collectors will personally enjoy!
We've had such phenomenal raffle tables the past few years -- and SO much fun drawing for all the "loot" -- let's make it our goal to continue the tradition and have a repeat performance this year!
If you'd like to contribute to the fun -- and help convention at the same time -- please email me!


Table seating, table gifts and special meal needs:

If you have friends you would like to sit with, please submit your request to me asap. Though we make every effort to honor seating requests, please understand that we cannot always do so. 

We realize that table gifts are a long time tradition enjoyed by many -- but they can also be a burden for some. We do not want to interfere with any of your fun, so table gifts will be left to the discretion of each individual attendee and/or table -- but please give any such goodies in the fun spirit which they are intended and understand that not everyone will reciprocate.

This year, we will most likely seat nine guests to a table -- and may increase the number to ten as needed. If you are doing table gifts, please plan for ten -- you can give any extras to friends who aren't seated with you, or donate them to be used as door prizes! 

Please let me know if you have any special food requirements and the hotel will do their best to accommodate them -- also, it's a good idea to follow up right before convention to be sure your special needs have been addressed.


Optional Tours: 

There are so many great things to see and do in the Cleveland area that we're still narrowing down possibilities!
We will definitely be doing not to be missed tours Thursday and Sunday, and on Wednesday, if there is enough interest. 

Please take a look at the possibilities below and let me know which interest you most.....

Kent State University Fashion Museum -- https://www.kent.edu/museum
Kent State will feature three small - medium specialized theme fashion exhibits, including Katherine Hepburn's personal collection of Stage and film costumes and ephemera.
The museum archives houses a phenomenal collection of vintage couture fashions, and the special collections library is home to Pauline Trigere's design sketches, spanning almost forty years. 

Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens -- http://www.stanhywet.org/estate
Built in 1912 - 1915 for F.A. Sieberling, the co-founder of the Goodyear Tire company, the Stan Hywet estate includes a historic Tudor Revival Manor House and collections, the Corbin Conservatory and breathtaking gardens, among other buildings. 

The Rock N Roll Hall of Fame -- https://www.rockhall.com/
A not to be missed experience, the Rock N Roll Hall of fame offers something for every music lover -- no matter your preferred era! Take a trip down memory lane with memorabilia of Cleveland's Alan Freed and the birth of Rock N Roll  and learn the histories of  the bands and entertainers whose specialized sounds skyrocketed them to fame as the genre exploded.  Whether you swoon to the sounds of Elvis or rock to the lads from Liverpool...groove to the San Francisco beat or melt to the harmonies of  Motown tunes...whether you come alive to the rockin' tunes of Bon Jovi or the smooth moves of Boy Bands -- whether you love dreamy crooners or bad boy heavy metal bands -- you're bound to see and hear something that will have you dancin' in the aisles and singin' along with the tunes! 

A fun experience for lovers of  the "A Christmas Story" movie is the original movie house and a museum with original props and memorabilia from the beloved 1983 holiday classic, partially filmed inside Cleveland's Higbees department store. 

Home to the Cleveland Orchestra, Severance Hall opened in 1931. Regarded by many as one of the world's most beautiful concert halls, the historic building has the romantic but sad legacy of being built as a tribute to a lost love. 

Something for the sports lover and/or husbands in the group -- the 38,000 sq ft  Football Hall of Fame, built in 1963, is a tribute to "America's Favorite Sport" and coaches, players and teams that have contributed to it's history. 

I'll be making several more visits to Cleveland to check out tour options, so if there is anything you'd like to see or do in the area, now is the time to let me know! 

In closing -- I want to thank you all, once again, for your ongoing support and enthusiasm for Sandra Stillwell Presents conventions and fashions! 

I know there are many other fun events planned throughout the year that make a demand on dolly dollars and valuable time -- and am truly honored that you are willing to spend yours to be with us! 

I look forward to seeing you this August in Cleveland for our celebration of friendships, dolls, and fashion-- it's going to be a ROCKIN GOOD TIME!! 

Sincerely, 
Sandra 
502 377-5153 (It's often easier to reach me by phone!)