MONTH IN REVIEW: October & November 2022

Angelica is one of the forgotten bears from 2020 that took this long to be produced and distributed to the US. She was made in January of this year but stuck on a ship or in a container for months. I hate that they did this because they basically ruined her. She and several other characters have this problem of having a really odd smell. It's supposedly the glue from the boxes they sat in for so many months. 

So poor Angelica basically lives in my living room with a dryer sheet that I move around to various places on her body, trying to overpower this weird smell. There's more air flow out here than in my room and she's also far away from my other toys this way. Absolutely ridiculous that they ruined so many of their products this way. I don't see how she sat so long when things that were shipped far more recently made it without issues.

She's really cute though. Sigh. 

Phlox is a very unusual bunny covered in flowers. I really love this odd fabric and hope they use it on more in the future. It's nice to see something this out there instead of constant browns, whites, pinks and grays. 

He's a little sad-faced but so cute. 

I love the look of the hairy ones but they take me a little longer to bond with because they're not as cuddly. Their hair tickles! 

Gina has the same bonding issue as Jonathan. She's very pretty though. 

By far the smallest of the dragons. Lantern is possibly my favorite. I love the orange. His smaller size makes him a little bit less cuddly though because the dragons are very spiky. That's his only con. 

Knox was an unplanned buy. He's in the same style as Zach, one of my faves from this year, and Greg, who comes out later. I skipped him because he was a similar color to Dreamy, who's one of my favorite tybers, but then I fell for this one's face. He's one of my faves for naptime now. Super cuddly! 

Lammington Cake was a bit of an impulse buy when I saw her on QVC. I do love this style of bears, but I would have preferred an orange face, because one of the others is quite a similar darker pink. 

You can see the foursome here. Bumbleberry Pie is the pinkest one on the left. Lammington is next to her. She's a more purpley-pink. Then there's Pecan Pie, who's purplish-gray on the muzzle. Not sure why because pecan pie is definitely neither of those colors. And on the right is Blueberry Pudding. 

I've actually really come to love Lammington. As one of my friends agreed, she looks like she's got a bit of eye makeup on!

I'm adding Journey on here, even though he arrived in very early November. I've opted to make this post a Month in Review for both months, even though November is barely half over. I'm not expecting anything else to arrive that I won't do a review for, so making a November post later on with one photo is silly. 

Journey is glorious. A lot of his red is tyber so he's super soft there. He uses so many fabrics, too! His ears have three different colors! I highly recommend him if you love foxes.

PHOTO CREDIT: Mine.

REVIEW: Astra Girls Valmora & Oriana

Ah, these make me so happy! 

First of all, many thanks to Amsiluis for finding these two for me. My nearest Macy's Backstage is almost 50 miles away, so it's not like I'll ever be getting there. As of right now, I have no idea if this line is carried anywhere else. I wrote the company, but they haven't replied. 

All the dolls have the same box. There isn't even a spot for the name anywhere. So here's the back where you can see all the characters. 

We'll begin of course with Valmora, my obvious favorite. 

These come packaged with their shoes off. They all have the same boots, which are amusingly labelled "angle boots." 

The box is taped shut in 3 places on the top and the doll is held down only in two places, so it's easy to snip the plastic straps and free her. She's in a little plastic tray that's designed to hold the wings in place, so you just pop those out and she's loose. The wings are held on by a plastic band, which is easily removed. I love things that are easy to open. 

I didn't undress Valmora. Her outfit is in two parts. The metallic top and purple top are all one piece, and then all of the bottom layers are all one piece. The purple stockings are thigh highs. 

It doesn't show well in photos, but she has three different hair colors. There's the bright blue and a purple that matches her top and stockings, but on her left side, there's also a section of hair that's the same bright aqua as her wings. 

These dolls are cheap so the hair is nylon. It's not terrible though. 

Her hair isn't in just a simple ponytail. It's like there's a ponytail on top of the main ponytail. It's held once nearer the front and then the main ponytail has another plastic band farther back. I should have just taken a picture of this instead of trying to describe it. 

There, you can sort of see it. 

These dolls have two molds: one smiling with teeth showing and the other with no teeth. 

Valmora has purple eyebrows and eyeshadow. Her eyes are the brighter blue and aqua. She has little sparkle decorations around her eyes in aqua and purple. Her bright pink lips are the only bit of pink on her. 

I love all the detailing on the outfit. Again, these are cheap, so they're not quality materials, but they took the time to add a black sequin belt and the translucent plastic panels at the hem of the short skirt. 

The sequins on the lightest silver fabric do fall off, but she only lost one so far. 

Her boots were a bit of a struggle to get on over the stockings. 

These remind me of Winx boots or EAH's Fairest on Ice without the skates. I'm not sure if they borrowed the mold from another line or if they're original. 

Her wings slip on over her shoulders and stay in place pretty nicely. 

Overall, I absolutely love her. She immediately got a spot on the coffee table. (Oriana almost bumped Dolores, but Doloresssss. I couldn't move her. So I'll find Oriana a nice spot to fly in my toy room.) 

Naturally, I'm drawn to the darker elements of her costume. Oriana is fire-themed and Dryade is Earth. Celestina looks more like a basic angel only more fashiony. Valmora is more the cosmic type and I love that. The ponytail and widow's peak remind me of Icy from the Trix. The Giochi doll even has similar bright blue hair, though it's not as dark. 

Despite the lower quality, you're still getting a great doll. I think she's very fairly priced at $12.99. 

Moving on, here is Oriana. She was my second most wanted of the four and she doesn't disappoint. 

Like Valmora, Oriana also has three hair colors. The main curly awesome mass is red and black, but there are places in front where a lighter orange is woven in. 

The light orange is not tightly-curled so it's a bit rough. 

I love this braid. 

As with Valmora, the hair is nylon and it's not great, but it's exactly what I'd expect at this price point. What it definitely is though is fun. 

Oriana's outfit is only one piece so it was easy to remove.

The dolls have only basic articulation, and their bodies are made entirely of a light plastic. Even the head is less vinyl and more of a hard plastic. 

I didn't take any pics, but the hands are different. The fingers on the left hand are all together, while the fingers on the right are more splayed. The index and pinkie are separate from the middle and ring fingers, which are together. It's a nice little detail. 

Oriana's outfit is made of several different materials, which is nice. She shed a couple sequins. 

Her wings are the same mold as Valmora's. On the back of the box, the front pieces that go around her neck are molded differently, but the actual doll's are the same as Valmora's. 

She has the closed mouth mold. Her eyebrows are black. Her eyeshadow is yellow and red with a couple lines of orange eyeliner, and she has stars and sparkles in a light peach color plus some red bursts around her eyes. Her irises are very unusual. They are completely black with a red and yellow design in them. It's really awesome-looking. 

Oriana is an amazing doll. I love her hair, her outfit and her eye detail especially. 

Seriously, if you like fairies, angels or magical girls in doll form and you have a Macy's Backstage, go look for these girls. They're definitely worth the $12.99! I hope to get the other two eventually!

Gotta end with some shots of the girls together. 

And a size comparison. 

And back to only them. 

They stand on their own, too! I was surprised at that. 

These get a solid good recommendation for me. Not so much for quality, though again, they're fair-priced at $12.99, but for sheer fun. And sometimes fun is all I need from a doll.

PHOTO CREDIT: Mine. 

REVIEW: Monster High Creepover Twyla

FINALLLLLLLLLLY. 

It feels like it's been forever. I hated sitting back and watching person after person find her when none of my four (seriously, not one in four) got the Creepover line in. Twyla's been one of my top faves since her first doll, so my want for her was pretty desperate. 

Thankfully, Amazon came through. The only one that hasn't had a closer-creeping ship date is Clawdeen and if I have to cancel her, I won't mind. She's the one I wanted least and I'll just order when I get back from vacation. 

Would be so cute if not for that stupid hat. 

Accessories. 

Because she's a signature within a theme line, she has some theme pieces like the mask and stupid bunny ears, and some sig pieces like a backpack, phone, book and barrette. The drink and food seem to appear in any old line, which is cool by me. I love snacks. 

I gleefully ripped this thing off her. It will never go back on. I get the dust bunny joke, but I HATE this hat. 

A lot of people like to say G3 is childish because the dolls have colorful clothing in age-appropriate styles. I firmly disagree with this. However, this hat can only be described as childish. Why does wearing bunny ears mean she's at a sleepover? This does not turn her outfit into PJs. 

What they should have done had they been thinking was take the fabric from these stupid ears and turn them into a pair of sleep shorts. Swap her skirt for shorts and now she looks like she's ready for sleep. But no. We got an ear hat instead. 

Anyway. Back to things I like. 

This freakin' pop tart. Come on. I love it. 

Her purple cup has a pearly blue sheen. I like that she's drinking tea. 

Cute keyhole barrette. I love that she has a book. I wish more of them had textbooks. 

The bunny phone also has the pretty blue sheen.

And you can kind of see the webs on the book's corners. 

Adorableness all around 

Eye mask on. 

She is gorgeous perfection. I'm so happy she has so few changes. I've liked a lot of the updates, but I also like seeing Twyla look like the Twyla I've loved for so long. 

Quick hair note: She had a little gel in her bangs. Her hair also shed the most out of any of them. I gave her a quick conditioning earlier today before work and she's dried very nicely. 

She has buttons in her eyes!

I couldn't get a photo of it (not for lack of trying, believe me), but she has tiny cobwebs inside her ears. Excellent intricate detail that ups her monster factor. 

Her eyes still glow in the dark like they did before. 

It's not visible here, but she has windows on her wedges that go straight through the entire shoe. Love that. I would wear these. 

I really do not know why people complained about this outfit. I like the off-the-shoulder, little bit oversized top. I think it's really cute, as is the skirt. 

She is shorter than the regular ghouls but not curvy like Laura. 

Her hands are completely the warmer shade of purple that swirls up her forearms and calves. 

I liked the gray on the old one, but I like this purple, too. 

Height comparison with G3. Laura only looks shorter due to Twyla's taller shoes. 

My very favorite G1 Twyla with my new favorite Twyla. 

She has so many great things to hold! I decided to go for the snack option with her phone poking out of her bag so it can still be seen. 

I am utterly thrilled she is finally home. I'm so glad she made it in time to be part of the small number of dolls coming along on my vacation. So far, it's G3 Cleo and now Twyla, plus Naomi Storm and Mila from RH. Maybe one or both of the dolls that should be arriving tomorrow. We'll see. 

I love her so much! Eee!

PHOTO CREDIT: Mine.

REVIEW: Monster High Creepover Draculaura

Laura arrived on Sunday, but I've been busy. 

Art. 

All her stuff. 

Count Fabulous is now a winged quadruped. I hope this is explained in the show. Maybe he's a shapeshifter. 

In coffin bed. 

I like that the dolls of Laura can be on the tougher side. The cartoon version is definitely not like the movie version. This design feels more like the movie ghoul with her snappier, more standoffish personality. Cartoon Laura is a bit of a screamer. (So are Frankie and Clawdeen.) 

I love all of this. Well, I merely like the robe except for its bat wings. Those I love. 

The headband is a really cute mold. Definitely not something you need at a sleepover though. 

I love these wings. That's the sole reason she's keeping the robe on. 

Because she looks awesome without it. 

I love that these slippers give the illusion of being flat. I'm such a fan of them embracing flat shoes. Women do not need to always be seen in heels. Aside from the whole problem of the male gaze, there's also the fact that teen girls who are still growing do not need to be forcing their feet into high heels. Especially not for sleepovers! 

These are possibly the cutest slippers ever made for dolls. I LOVE them. I want them in my size. 

The face mask is pretty entertaining. I like the nail polish bottles, too, but I'm a bit surprised they're only one piece. 

All in all, I like this Laura a lot. I think she's definitely the sassiest of the ones they've done so far, and I love her mostly black PJs. Without the pink of the robe, they're really awesome, but I'm a sucker for those bat wings on the back. Her accessories are all cute and fun, too. A solid sleepover doll for sure. 

PHOTO CREDIT: Mine.