Monster High 28″ Gore-Geous Ghoul

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

Say hello to my beast freaky friend. For all the box opening pics on Flickr, click here.

So here she is out of the box, the giant, 28″ Monster High doll. In this picture, she’s wearing her dress and belt, earrings, and shoes.

She comes with the following accessories:

1 pair wings
1 sheet temporary tattoos
1 sheet stickers
1 mask in jar carrier
1 clip on hair extension
wolf ears headband
eye patch
1 pair glasses
two pair calf wraps
1 pair shoe covers
1 extra pair hands
2 wipe off markers

Features:

  • She has a button on the back of her head that changes her eyes. There are three sets of eyes, green, blue, and one blue/one orange.
  • Further change her look with wings, extra webbed hands, and a mask, and the other accessories.

Drawbacks:

  • No knee joint! It’s molded, but the knee is fused straight
  • Shoes don’t come off
  • Upper arms strike upper torso- arms can’t hang straight at sides
  • No torso articulation

She’s a pretty girl, and the size is interesting, but the drawbacks to this doll are really disappointing. With chunky shoes that don’t come off (I really tried), how can she wear pants? With knees that don’t bend, imagine how far her feet are going to stick out if I display her seated. Nope.

The other things are minor disappointments compared to those factors. She lacks the tilting head that the smaller doll have, and the torso joint of the 17″ dolls like Gooliope. The doll comes with lots of accessories, but they’re the sorts of things that are more geared toward novelty for a little kid to play with for a few hours, but I don’t think they lend themselves to a lot of play possibilities for older girls (like me 😉 ). All factors to consider if you’re thinking about shelling out $50 for this as a Christmas gift.

I’m still looking forward to making some new clothes for this girl eventually, but I don’t think I’ll play with her very much. With so much more articulation, the 17″ “large” Monster High group is much more attractive.

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Invitation to the Back Room

Posted on September 24, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

You're Invited

Christmas is coming (3 months!), and I really, really need to get some of these projects done. I always feel more inspired and motivated when I spend time with people who love dolls, so I decided to make a Facebook group, hoping to find some people who want to hang out, share what they’re working on, and talk about dolls. Hope you’ll join me!

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12″ Frozen Set Disney Store Version

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

I had been seeing and admiring the dolls for months, and when I finally got to see Frozen, I came out of the theater going, ThatWasTheBestThingEver MustHaveAllTheDolls. I raced to Target, the dolly stop closest to the theater, only to find that everything was gone.

There are Frozen dolls aplenty at the time of this writing (except for 16″ Singing Anna), but back then, I was having trouble soothing my dolly cravings. While I waited for the toy companies to decide that Frozen merchandise deserved an extended run, I looked (longingly) at a lot of other people’s dolls on the internet, and decided that the classic Disney Store dolls were the ones I wanted. I was finally able to get them all–though Hans played hard to get.

Looks like they’re off to see a wizard.

Disney Store seems to be in the middle of a changeover on the 12″ classic characters. Looks like the Frozen dolls will be included in that line. It’s a price drop for them (I think they were $19.95?), but the price of the line looks to be going up from $14.95 to $16.95. Also of note: no villains! The villains have disappeared from the website and are rapidly disappearing from the store shelves. If anyone wants to send Ursula my way, please let me know.

But back to Frozen.

 

Anna gets way more stuff than Elsa. Elsa has a dress and shoes. Good luck getting little girls to get her fingers back through those sleeves, BTW. Anna has a shirt/vest combo, skirt, boots, cape, hat, and mittens.

The boys have a similar difference. Hans has a one-piece suit (that was so tight coming off I haven’t even tried putting it back on yet), boots, and a jacket. Kristoff has a top, pants, hat, boots, and mittens. It should be noted that Kristoff’s mittens have little ties have to be tied to secure. Possibly suggesting that Disney toy designers are out to punish mommies worldwide.

By the way, my Hans has staining on the backs of both arms from his very blue shirt. He and Kristoff are looking in opposite directions here. I think they’re uncomfortable. Even though, in my world, Hans turned out to be a redeemable character with extenuating circumstances, Kristoff isn’t very forgiving where Anna’s concerned and they do not get along.

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More YouTube Fun: DisneyToysFan

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

If I end up buying all of the 12″ Disney dolls, this is who is to blame. DisneyToysFan on YouTube has all the dolls, and makes great use of them, regularly sharing fun short episodes with a number of 11″-12″ fashion dolls.

I’ve already had to scour eBay for a Captain Hook for my daughter. And since the Disney store regularly puts their 12″ characters on sale, it’s only a matter of time before I cave and start collecting them all.

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Some Barbie Comparisons

Posted on July 10, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

Since I’ve been on the Barbie trip this week, I thought I’d share some body comparison photos, including the one that was part of the reason I gave up sewing for Barbie. FYI, when I throw out years for these, I’m not talking about the year that particular doll was produced, but the year stamped on the back of the body.

Photo-bombed by my daughter’s toes, here are, left to right, Sugar Plum Fairy with 1966 twist n’ turn body, a random pink box doll on a 2006 body, and Midge with a 1999 belly button body.

So this is what did it. When I opened my Etsy shop in 2007, I started with Barbie clothes. Making money sewing for Barbie was my childhood dream, after all. I do have a problem with being obsessive about fit. The switch to the belly button body threw me. I think I would have been okay with that had they stuck with it, especially because I really do like it and it’s easier to fit. That pinched in waist on the twist n’ turn (and on Blythe), makes things like sheath dresses difficult. At that point, at least it was fairly easy to tell when they were using the twist n’ turn vs. the belly button just by looking at the doll in the box.

But then I wanted a model with red lipstick, so I picked up this girl in the middle. Look how much smaller she is! After an entire childhood with one body, I couldn’t cope with the idea that we were just going to keep changing sizes. The clothes I was making that looked good on both the 1966 and 1999 bodies did not look as good on the 2006 body. When buying other dolls during these period, it was impossible to know if it was going to be on the 1999 or the 2006 body. Even in 2008, I bought one from the Fashion Fever line and the body was the 1999. The whole thing just ticked me off, and I hated the idea of selling something and having it not look great on their doll.

I don’t think I have any photos of the Fashionista I got a few years ago, just to have a more recent, classic Barbie on my shelf again. I was so uninterested in sewing for them, I didn’t even compare her to the older ones. She’s on a 2009 body.

Recently I updated again and got a Barbie Style from the current (2015) line. She’s on a 2013 body. Here’s a side by side of 2013 and 2009.

 

As far as I can tell, despite the differences in articulation, these dolls are the same size. So…does that mean Barbie’s size has been stable for the last 5 years? Maybe it’s time to start sewing for Barbie again.

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New Doll: Barbie Style 2015

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

Well, after spending some time in the Dreamhouse, I had to go to the toy store. Really, I now WANT all the characters, but I at least needed a more up-to-date Barbie. My last Barbie was a Fashionista I bought a couple years ago, and I’ve been wanting to know if the sizes have changed.

Sorry I didn’t get a picture of the doll in the packaging. I was a little excited. But you’ve forgive me when I tell you: ARTICULATED ANKLES! Okay, so it doesn’t take much to thrill me. These dolls can wear flats and heels. It’s about time.

A couple annoyances while shopping. The first was that I didn’t find a Life in the Dreamhouse line. It seems like I always come to things late, and, by the time I do, all the dolls are gone. Like when Frozen merchandise was everywhere BEFORE the movie even came out, but when I went to see it in December, and came out of the theater going MUST HAVE ALL OF THE DOLLS…. they were all gone and weren’t restocked for a very long time.

The second annoyance was that there’s not a lot of information on the packaging. Mainly I want to how about points of articulation under the clothes. How many times have you bought a doll only to find that knees aren’t bendable. That kind of thing. But I’d also like to know basic stats like face mold, body type, and articulation. without having to do extensive research before shopping. I think there’s room on the box for a little stat block, and I’m willing to put on my glasses to read it.

But I digress. Back to my box opening. I have to say that I was mostly disappointed in the rooted eyelashes. Because they left the lashes long and didn’t curl them at all, most of the dolls look kind of ugly. I had to get down on the floor and hunt to the back for a really good one. (Of course, you know I get down on the floor and hunt to the back in case there’s something interesting hidden back there anyway.) I think trimming the lashes a bit would help most of those I rejected.

As an afterthought, I took a picture of the empty package. Because I keep terrible records and will someday want to remember what this girl is.

I got this one at the local Toys R Us, reg. $19.99, on sale for $15.99. Amazon has them for $15.99.

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Life in the Dreamhouse

Posted on July 6, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse has been in my Netflix Q for a while now, but I tend to put off watching G-rated TV because it’s often boring, insipid, or just too stupid to watch. Finally started this one and it is sooo much fun! Unlike the Barbie movies (which I love), in which Barbie plays various characters, in this series Barbie plays herself as a doll, a Barbie girl in a Barbie world. The characters are illustrated with their doll joints intact, and they make reference to their plastic bodies and articulation. As a doll collector, this just delights me to no end. Another ongoing source of humor is Barbie’s 135 careers.

There are 7 seasons of this web series available on YouTube on the Barbie channel. Here’s the first season. I don’t know why YouTube playlists are always backward.

Hope you enjoy!

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Frozen Anna and Elsa 16″

Posted on April 20, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

Anna’s and Elsa’s Flickr Collection Page

I might have mentioned that I really like 16″ dolls. I looked at the two of them on my birthday, but decided I couldn’t afford $80 worth of dolls that day. A week or so later I was still thinking about them, and had gotten some gift monies, so I went back to the store, but only found Elsa. After several weeks, there are still tons of Elsas, with no Annas in sight.

Anna box openingAfter scouring the Disney parks, and still finding no sign of Anna, I knew it was time to brave eBay. Now, you know I hate the scalpers with a fiery passion for sucking all the joy out of toy collecting. It’s one thing when you’re selling something legitimately old and/or rare, but this business of brand new toys flying off shelves, available nowhere but eBay at inflated prices–that just makes me crazy.

I bid on an open box Anna, waited days for the auction to be over, watched it count down to the end, and was bid-sniped in the last minute–no doubt by a bid-sniping service. I loathe those as well, which is why I only do Buy It Now on eBay. So much for making an exception. Not doing that again. Grrr.

Together againAnyway, I was able to find this one from a sell who actually charged the retail price. Because sales tax is so high where I live, even after I paid the shipping, I still paid a dollar or two less than I would have had I just gotten her here in the first place. So yay for that.

Elsa is very happy to have her sister home, and hopefully will now stop glaring at me.

I wish I had bought more of the 16″ princesses when they were available. The main reason I didn’t (other than Disney collectibles always disappearing and being painful and expensive to track down) was because they sing. I don’t think dolls should make noise. Silence is one of their best qualities. Another reason is that they don’t make princes in this size, and that’s kind of sad. Dollies need love too.

a blue conditionIf I had to choose just one, I probably would have gotten Anna, because Elsa’s blue hands freak me out. (Two by two, hands of blue…) That’s going to look weird if I ever get around to making clothes for them. So I was happy to get Anna, who would make a better model. Or so I thought. Surprise! This is what I discovered when I took her clothes off. When she sings, her heart glows. For some reason, that necessitates her entire torso being blue. So that off-the-shoulder gown from the coronation? Not really working. What are you thinking??

Lastly, I lined them up with some 16″ fashion dolls so you could compare. From left to right: Alex by Madame Alexander, Ellowyne by Tonner/Wilde Imagination, Tyler (Shauna) by Tonner, Anna by Disney, Elsa by Disney, Gene by Odom

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Brigit

Posted on April 17, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

Brigit’s Flickr Collection Page

BrigitBrigit Sullivan is a Lati Yellow, a resin ball-jointed doll made by the Korean company Latidoll. She was purchased directly from Latidoll.com in Spring 2008. (Lati only opens for orders quarterly. When they’re not accepting orders, dolls appear as “soldout.” Keep checking back.) She has the “renewal” size body, which is 16cm (~6 1/4″) tall, Lami head mold, and normal skin tone resin.

When I got her, I believe she came with both hook and magnet hands and feet. I think right now I have her with magnet hands (easily removable for changing clothes) and hook feet (feet are held on by S-hooks at the end of her elastic stringing. I find it easy to lose magnet feet accidentally).

In the first photo, she has a new wig. Monique “Dimples” size 5/6. I think the color is light blonde. In other photos she’s wearing Monique “Lexy” size 5/6, in golden strawberry. Her eyes are 14mm acrylics from Junkyspot in Pale Blue. Faceup by me.

Brigit plays with scissorsBrigit is the fourth of the six Sullivan sisters. I think Ciara and Dana would agree with me when I say she’s the most mischievous of the family. But it’s just because she’s high-spirited and very curious. Here she is playing with scissors.Brigit in the garden

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Leia

Posted on April 16, 2015 by Susan Bischoff

Leia’s Flickr Collection Page
This is Leia. She’s an Iplehouse ABJD from their JID line. She has the Amy head mold, and the JID body with the small bust and mobility thigh. She’s a slim MSD, 43cm (17 inches) tall. I purchased her head and body from two different sellers on the Den of Angels forum marketplace in 2009. I don’t usually buy dolls with faceups, but the price was right. Seeing this one in person, I’d say Iplehouse faceups are definitely worth the extra $50. It’s exquisite work. I’d love to have more Iplehouse dolls.

Leia is wearing a Monique “Navajo” wig in dark brown, size 7/8 that I unbraided. She’s wearing 12mm brown glass eyes that came from Lati.

Leia sweepingIf you’re looking into the JID line to add to your slim-MSD doll family, be advised that these girls are a bit bigger than most, and don’t share clothes as well as other dolls.

Leia is sweet and quiet. Even though she can be a little shy, she’s not afraid to pitch in and help out when needed. She loves to bake, and her goal is to someday open her own bakery.

The pictures below show her opening her loot from a Santa Swap we participated in on the Den of Angels forum.

 

Santa Swap

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