The Strawberry Shortcake Convention, a fun place for you and your berry best friends! @BerryBestBits @FoxHomeEnt @fheinsiders #ssc #berrybestfriends

*** This trip was provided by FOX. I received an all-expense paid trip, to attend The Strawberry Shortcake Convention courtesy of FOX. My opinions are 100% my own and have not been influenced in any way.***

Being a child of the 80’s I was a huge fan of Strawberry Shortcake my room was filled with my dolls, and accessories. My bed was covered with Strawberry Shortcake bed sheets and pillows. I had a little table and char set where I would sit for hours and play with my dolls. I can remember getting my first dolls, Strawberry Shortcake and Orange Blossom when I was 6 years old so many years ago. I toted those little sweeties everywhere! I just loved that they smelled as sweet as they looked, and I had to show them to everyone! Of course I had to have a Strawberry Shortcake birthday party complete with a strawberry shaped cake. That Halloween, who was I? You guessed it, Strawberry Shortcake of course!

 I love that Strawberry Shortcake is just as popular today as she was when I was a child. My daughter has become a bit of a collector of these sweet smelling friends. I love that I can share the characters (along with the many new characters)  I loved as a child with my daughter, it is just fun. I would have never thought that my favorites would become my little girls favorites.  My daughter uses the vintage Strawberry Shortcake bed sheets I had as a child, it is so very cool that I can share something like this with her.  I can see why Strawberry Shortcake is so very popular, she is wholesome, sweet and like a mini adult. She has responsibilities, and duty’s but she still has to soul of a child. 

Did you know that there is a convention dedicated to Strawberry Shortcake and all of her friends? Fans and collectors come from all over the world to meet up and socialize with other fans. If you grew up loving Strawberry Shortcake, or if you because a collector in the later years to today. Is the love of Strawberry Shortcake something you share with your little one? Well the Strawberry Shortcake Convention is a great place for the whole family. Started by doll lover and collector, Christina Stewart the Strawberry Shortcake Convention is in its 11^th year. The convention was on 8/1/14 -8/2/14. For this fun event I enjoyed this with fellow FHE Insiders,April, Kirsten, Caryn, and Amanda.

At the convention we would get a sneak peak of the new doll line coming to stores in the fall of 2014. We also got the first look at a few new characters!  During the two day event, the days were jammed packed full of fun events.  The convention took place in Cleveland OH, why Cleveland you ask? Well Cleveland is the home of American Greetings where Strawberry Shortcake began. So in essence it is the birthplace of Strawberry Shortcake! She began as a drawing in 1977 by artist Muriel Fahrion during her time as a greeting card illustrator at American Greetings. Her popularly soon soared and brought a line of dolls in the early 80’s, these fun sweet smelling friends were each named after a fruit or a dessert and each were accompanied with a sweet pet.

 

 Me and the gang at American Greetings photo credit @Berrybestbits

We toured  the American Greeting offices, we got to see how the cards come to life! From the brainstorming, to the idea walls, and some of the fun new cards (the walls were off limits for pictures… but I am sure you will see the great cards in stores soon, one set in particular you are going to LOVE!). I found out about a great free app, Just Wink, a great virtual card app, a way to show you care that is more personable than a text. Sure a physical card is my favorite way to say I love you, get well, happy birthday, and for pretty much any occasion.

American Greetings have been a favorite for cards for many years in our home. The artists at American Greetings, can showcase their art for their coworkers to see, it would be lovely if this was open to the public, these are amazingly talented artists that the whole world should see. These great folks at American Greeting love were they work, and it shows. We had time to check out the AG store, have lunch and of course cake… We had a raffle for some of the newest Strawberry Shortcake dolls and toys from the Bridge Direct. Check out the new dolls, aren’t they precious!

Today Apple Dumplin has matured, she is no longer the baby I remembered we were given a sneak peak of her character  transformation… She is now a tween, and a blogger! 

There are also two new characters Sweet and Sour grapes can’t wait to hear more about them soon.

The newest release from Strawberry Shortcake and FOX, Strawberry Shortcake: Berry Best Friends is coming to dvd on 9/16/14. As a special treat at the convention, while we were at American Greetings we were fortunate to get a sneak peak of this fun dvd. Strawberry Shortcake, and her friends are overwhelmed, Orange is so very busy, and Strawberry wants to start a new business, the little bits are there to help… But things get a little hectic, what will they do? Being the best of friends they will find a way to make it all work. Be sure to check out the new dvd online and in stores on 9/16/14.

Well after AG the day was not over yet! There was more fun to come, it was yard sale time! This was the time for the collectors to sell and trade some classic and modern Strawberry Shortcake items. It was like taking a walk down memory lane…. Saying I had this, or I had that. Remembering toys I wanted as a child and seeing new toys that would be great for my daughter.

Saturday started early with a delicious breakfast. Yes the convention fee included all of your meals on Saturday, from a continental breakfast, to a full buffet lunch  and of course strawberries and cream for dessert!  We were shown ways to take the perfect pictures of your collectables and how to make them look their best on Instagram. Jaye, is an avid collector who showed us all of the tips he learned throughout the years. Jaye was patient and answered all of the questions, in the relaxed atmosphere, we were all there to learn and have fun! 

Have you ever wanted to catalog your collection online? Well Mia was there to show us how to set up and use Omeka, an online service that is free and can help you organize and document your collection.  The Convention also collected money for Alex’s Lemonade Stand, to help with childhood cancer. They collected a total of $400 for this great charity during the convention this year. That is such a wonderful thing. 

Of course there were some great photo opps, here I am as Cherry, too cute! Also there were some who dressed up as their favorite character, this outfit shown here was home made, and was amazing.  

Lemon Meringue is a hair dresser, and she loves to cut and style hair, in the sitit of Lemons salon, the convention  organizers had a fun contest.  The Lemon Hair Salon Project Contest sponsored by The Strawberry Patch, this showcased some dolls on a trip to the salon, or with a new look or new hairdo. Here is Strawberry Shortcake at a day at the spa, complete with cucumbers over her eyes, she looks so relaxed!

Have you ever wanted to personalize a doll, or just design one and make it your own? Well that is exactly what the Strawberry Shortcake fans did at the Strawberry Shortcake Creative Exhibition. These fans are so very talented and came up with some really cool dolls.

I always loved show and tell, when I was a little girl my most favorite days at school were the days when we had show and tell. This was no different, it was fun seeing the highlights of the super fan’s collections from old advertising, to homemade nutcrackers the show and tell was full of fun items. We ended the fun day making a t-shirt craft.

The craft, was making a t-shirt into a cute bag! It was so super easy and came out great. I will have to share with you all how to make this t-shirt bag, in an upcoming blog post.

 I was a collector when I was a little girl and I still have my new in package Purple Pie Man, a baby Apple Dumplin, and Angel Cake. I can appreciate the super fans love of this special doll line. This convention was a lot of fun, it was like hanging with old friends you knew for the longest time.  Strawberry Shortcake is turning 35 years young next year, and I am sure the Strawberry Shortcake Convention will be bigger than ever to celebrate this great milestone birthday! Be sure to watch out for the new toys from Bridge Direct coming fall 2014.

Be sure to stay social with Strawberry Shortcake:

Like Strawberry Shortcake on Facebook

Follow on Twitter @Berrybestbits

Check out for new convention news on the Strawberry Shortcake Convention website.

Buy it:

 Strawberry Shortcake: Berry Best Friends DVD is available online for preorder now and in stores on 9/16/2014

 Are you a fan of Strawberry Shortcake? Do you share your love of this fun doll with your kids?

 




Disclosure: The reviews and or opinions on this blog are my own opinions . No monitory compensation was received. I was not required to write a positive review. Your experience may differ. The opinions I have expressed are my own I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsement and Testimonials in Advertising .