Tuesday, June 30, 2020

REVIEW: Barbie BMR1959

I forgot to mention it last post, but I'm using the space under my shrine area for reviews for the moment. Someday, I swear I will have my room entirely done and I'll figure out exactly where I want my review spot to be. It will not be anytime soon, as I'm still clocking too many shifts at work. I'm always too tired on my days off to work on the room! Argh.

Anyway.

I don't buy a lot of Barbie, so my want for these two kinda surprised me. But here we are.

I got them on Target.com. The $29.99 price is a little better with 5% off and free shipping. Thanks, Redcard.

I like the shoebox style of these, but it makes me wonder. Do they actually ever sell them in stores? They're wide open if you lift the lid! I'm guessing probably they don't. Each one was sent in its own sealed shipper within the larger Target box.








A couple quick shots of them on the liners removed from the shoebox.







Deboxing was pretty easy, though I will forever be annoyed that doll companies are still attaching doll heads to the boxes with those stupid plastic tabs. Always a pain to cut.




I apologize if this is anyone's actual clothing style, but man, are these outfits ugly.

Like really, really ugly.

Yep, I spent almost $30 apiece because I liked the dolls. I completely hate the clothes.

If anyone wants to buy the outfits and stands, just let me know.









She is super cute though. I am a serious sucker for the Diva mold.









That's a little better. Though for $30, the cut on the top could be improved.





Ah, that face!









Literally, the only "outfit" thing I like about her is the multicolored rubberbands.







As soon as I saw this one's glorious eyebrows, I knew I had to have her.

She does not disappoint. This is the Tango mold. Lovely. It reminds me a bit of the goddess one or at least my set of three Greek goddesses that use that mold.









Her outfit is way better than the first girl's, but it's still not to my liking.







I want to love these boots, but translucent things aren't the best match for dolls with a lot of articulation. All I see is how weird her feet look in there.





And finally, a body shot. Diva mold has the original Made to Move body, while Tango girl has the tall variation.

I ended up redressing these two, though I didn't take any other pictures. I might get them some new clothes if I see anything interesting. I honestly very rarely redress dolls these days!

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.

REVIEW: Ruby Red Fashion Friends Rock Star Stella

A new addition to my small Ruby Red Fashion Friends collection!

(Someday I'll get you, Sara. I promise.)

This is Rock Star Stella, the newest character to be released. She actually came out over a month before she was expected.

I didn't like how she looked in the box, so I didn't take a boxed pic. Her head was twisted to the side oddly. She has the same box as the blue-eyed version of Bella, the box with Kayla on it. But neither the box nor pamphlet was updated to include Stella.

Stella comes wearing a super cute outfit.



Her hat is made sturdily enough that it stands up very nicely on her head. I love the double pompoms.

Her sweater is sooooooooo soft. I love it.

The tank top is fab, but my favorite piece has to be the jeans!







As much as I love the hat and sweater, this is how I'm currently displaying her. The sweater doesn't exactly go with the outfit, in my opinion.

Here are Hanna and Stella. Hanna with her hair curling in her face. Having the fan on always does this, but dangit, it's hot. So you guys will have to deal with dolls with hair in their faces. It's not like it's a new thing. Heh.

But you can see the skintone difference. Hanna was my pale one before, but Stella is far paler and a much pinker tone.

You can also see how they painted Stella's lips to make the reuse of the mold seem less obvious. It's still obvious, but hey, they tried. A lot of people don't like the painted black corners of the mouth, but I think they look fine.



And finally, here are Hanna, Stella and Bella all together!

These girls aren't cheap, but I enjoy them a lot. I have a European exclusive one on pre-order!

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.

Sunday, June 28, 2020

NEWS: Hairdorables


Yay, the Series 5 checklist! Many thanks to one of my Facebook group members for finding and posting these there and giving me permission to share them here.

So in the top row, we have:

-Duchess Bella: Marie Antoinette-ish look

-Hey DeeDeeO: 50s

-Lucky Emily: UGH, she's a rare. Emily was hard enough to find in Series 4. Although honestly, I opened Kitschy Kali twice more than Emily, so I guess bring it on? Her theme is the Japanese lucky cat, although I'm not sure how that's time-related.

-Totally(?) Rad Harmony: So 80s. I love it.

Second row:

-Kali Cleopatra: GROAN. Please stop using Cleopatra for Egyptian themes, people. Cleopatra was not even Egyptian. NeferKali would have been a way better name for this doll. It uses an Egyptian word that was commonly used in female names (Nefertiti, Nefertari) and it's not linked to an actual historical figure. And the outfit should be white. SIGH. The perils of being a doll-collecting Egyptologist.

-Prehistoric Kat: I...guess? I don't really see it.

-So 90s Noah

-Glamour Phoebe: I think she's a flapper? I can't quite tell.

Third row:

-Peace 'n' Rayne: Of course.

-Roses & Saige: I'm not sure what time period this is aiming for.

-Steampunk Sallee: She's pretty cool.

-Grecian Skylar Star(?): Is the last word star? I don't know. You'd think I would be excited about the two ancient-themed ones, but both are disappointing. They look too similar. Both feature a pale, cool color plus gold. Meh.

-Queen Willow



Then we've got the After School theme.

As you can see, Emily, Saige and Phoebe got two dolls each, which is nice, but some of the originals did not fare so well. DeeDee and Willow are only in the masquerade line. Brit and Neila are only in the school line. DeeDee and Sallee continue to be screwed over. No rare for either of them, although Sallee's steampunk doll could easily have been made a rare. She at least gets to be in both sets, but DeeDee doesn't. Yet one of the new girls gets a rare already. (Honestly, I don't really care about that except I don't want more hard to find Emilys.)

First row:

-Bella Taps: Depending on the actual doll, this may be the first Bella I haven't really cared for since Series 1. She reminds me of the pigtailed one from Series 1 actually.

-Touchdown Brit: I need her. Brit playing football? Sold. Now give me hockey in Series 6.

-After School Emily: Well, that's some low-hanging name fruit. Maybe they had trouble thinking of a name as well as a theme, because I can't figure out what she's supposed to be doing. She looks great though.

Second row:

-Harmony on Parade: This is one of the few I really liked from the Toy Fair pics.

-Creative Kali: Is that another robot animal? I dunno. She seems a bit dull and themeless.

-Kat's #1: The ultra rare mascot one.

Third row:

-Neila in Space: She should have been in the masquerade line. She's out of place here.

-Noah-tography: Okay, that's a cute name.

-Phoebe's a Star: I think Phoebe and Emily easily got the best looks this series.

Fourth Row:

-Newsie Rayne: She looks adorable.

-Forget-Me-Not Saige: Garden Club, I guess? A lot of these themes are weak.

-Sallee Sculpts: I'm looking forward  to seeing the structure of this outfit, because it's a blue and white blob to my eyes right now.

-Alpine Skylar: Are those lederhosen? I hope so. She has no theme either, but for lederhosen, I'll let it slide.

I'm going to end up with more of these than I originally intended. Probably the whole line again. Sigh. Sure. Why not?

NEWS: Rainbow High

More gorgeous new dolls!

Remember the Poopsie Rainbow Surprise giant dolls? Well, MGAE got wise and shrank them. And also removed any sloppy slime aspect and the Poopsie connection.

This line is now officially called Rainbow High.

Yeah, I know. Isn't it a few years too late to be going for the "High?" They don't look school-themed or anything, so what's the point?

Anyway.

So naturally, they left out indigo. They always effin' do that.

Each doll has a color theme and a somewhat color-themed name. This lovely lady is Ruby Anderson. Each girl comes with 2 full outfits, including 2 pairs of shoes. I have boxed photos of them from a friend and I've seen the second outfits with shoes. The quality looks great! I've been asked to keep the photos private, so I can't share them, but we do have these promo pics now.





Here is Poppy Rowan, who looks like Mia Monarch. Her second outfit has an orange vinyl skirt that matches the top here and a pair of heels with butterflies that are so gorgeous! I love these boots, too, though! I may need two of her...



Or maybe Sunny Madison can steal the butterfly shoes since both of her pairs are kinda boring.

She's my favorite of these dolls though. I'm kinda surprised I'd go for the yellow, since I normally am a sucker more for green and orange, but there is something about her that I just adore!







This is Jade Hunter. I love the doll, but she has my least favorite outfits, which is a shame. I do love green.








Skyler Bradshaw definitely looks like the big Blue Skye doll.







As Violet Willow looks like Amethyst Rae.

These two are my least favorites thanks to the similarities, but honestly, I'm probably going to get them all. They should be $26.99, which really isn't bad for a very articulated doll with inset eyes and two complete outfits.




Then we've got Avery Styles, a wigged doll that comes with a bunch of clothes. I really do not need her, but several of those pieces are so tempting!

The three pairs of shoes she isn't wear are all amazing. I like her outfit, too. I wish there was something green here for Jade though.





More Avery.

No known price point yet.




Then there's Rainbow Raine.

Sigh. Couldn't they have picked something a little less Rayne from Hairdorables? Come on, MGAE.

I am a sucker for white hair. I can resist rainbows, but man, that white hair is calling me.



I actually like her pale makeup a lot, too.

And those boots.

Yeah, I'll end up with her.

There's been talk of a pink doll named Bella something. I forget what it was.

I swear, if pink gets a doll before indigo, which is actually in the damn rianbow...

Again, no original source for these pics, but also again, they're promos, so it's MGAE.

NEWS: LOL OMG



One of the next LOL OMG lines is called Remix. It's got a music theme and the dolls each come with 2 outfits and retail for $34.99.

We don't know the names of the characters yet, but this is obviously Kitty Queen's sister.

I'm guessing this is representing pop music.




She also appears in this playset promo pic and the doll has much shorter hair. Maybe a bit more silvery, too? I wonder which version we'll get.

Either way, I really want her. There's something kinda magical girl, Azone doll-ish about her.





Honey Bun's big sis is definitely reminiscent of the old Bratz Tokyo-a-Go-Go line. In a good way. I love TaGG.





FEEL THE EIGHTIES.

FEEL THEM.

I need her.

I need all of them actually. This is the first time that I've wanted every doll in the set.





Even Line Dancer's sister is adorable. I think they girlied her up a bit too much though. She's a little bit Cosmic Nova, a little bit Snowlicious with that color scheme. Why not just use Line Dancer's reds and blues? Weird. The doll is really cute though, so I do want her. She reminds me of something I can't put my finger on.

I'm not sure of the original source of these photos, but they're stock images, so honestly, it's really MGAE.

NEWS: Harry Potter




FINALLY!

I've been dying for promo pics of the Luna Lovegood doll for months now!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084KZYQWY/

I'm so excited. I definitely need two. One to open, one to keep boxed.





I love the casual outfit, but I wish she had robes, too. She's not going to fit in with the others at all.

Although that is Luna's thing.





I can't wait to own her!








She's a pretty good likeness.







SO CUTE.









Now if only they'd make Fred and George, I'd have all my faves. And poor Viktor, too.







Shoes.

Okay, that's it from the listing. I'm so excited! I have to keep saying it!

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Upcoming Reviews!

I've got a lot of awesome stuff coming in the mail soon(ish) that I'm really excited to review!

-LOL OMG Da Boss and Chillax

-LOL Present Surprise (Supposedly this was coming today, but hasn't shipped yet.)

-Barbie BMR1959 (2 of the newest dolls)

-Ruby Red Fashion Friends Stella

-CAVE CLUB! I'm most excited for these and I hope their shipment from Walmart isn't delayed. I ordered all 5 of the basic dolls plus 4 of the blind-packed pets.

-Zombies 2! Also really excited for these and I hope they finally ship. Their release date has been moved a bunch of times, but it's looking like early August now.

Sometime in fall, I'll also have the Ruby Red Fashion Friends European exclusive Charlotte and the new version of A Girl for All Time Elinor.

Monday, June 22, 2020

IN STOCK ALERT: LOL OMG

Series 3 of the LOL OMG line is starting to appear.

Someone said they found Roller Chick in Target, but they wouldn't sell her until July 7th. Odd because it's Target that has 3 of the 4 dolls available now for shipment.

Roller Chick:
https://www.target.com/p/l-o-l-surprise-o-m-g-roller-chick-fashion-doll/-/A-79781666

Class Prez:
https://www.target.com/p/l-o-l-surprise-o-m-g-class-prez-fashion-doll/-/A-79781667

Da Boss:
https://www.target.com/p/l-o-l-surprise-o-m-g-da-boss-fashion-doll/-/A-79781665

I ordered Da Boss and skipped the other two. It's going to take a very special pink-haired doll to get me to buy another one. I have enough. They're totally cute, but for $27, I'm gonna be picky. I already regret a few of the ones I bought from past series.

If you want Chillax, she is not on Target, but she is on Amazon. Sort of. She appeared very briefly, sold out and hasn't come back in stock yet.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B085B1PFY7/
I was lucky enough to order one. I'm a huge Sleepy Bones fan, so I had to have her. The doll herself is great, but you can bet she's going to be redressed! I hate that outfit so much.

Saturday, June 20, 2020

NEWS: Hairdorables

Got some new Hairdorables promos from Smyth's Toys website!

Here are some of the Series 5 girls.

I still think the outfits this series are lacking compared to the first four. This may be the first series where I don't want every common doll.

The themes are Masquerade Through Time and After School Fun.







Noah with the box.

The doll is darling, but the outfit not so much.





Then we've got the first line of Hairdudeables that is just the boys, no girls packed with them.

There are 2 different looks for each of the 4 boys, so a total of 8 to collect.







There's one of the Gregs.






And the other one.






Max








Logan. I like this one. I don't have a Logan yet.








And adorable Asher.






Group pic





The Longest Hair Ever line is likely going to be popular with kids who are obsessed with brushing hair. 

Being that I'm not, they're just kinda meh to me. 








There's Noah with the packaging. 

At least they're not blind-packed!












Here's Noah in her...um...glory?

I guess she's some sort of stylized mermaid. 

Seems more fitted to Willow.






While Willow is like a 70s disco star or something. I think Noah could have pulled this off and Willow could have been the mermaid to satisfy all the people who never got Sea Willow. 








Rayne is the only one I might get. I'm a sucker for Rayne with bangs and she seems to be an ice-skating fairy, which is pretty cute if you leave off the Fruit Loops tiara.

Sadly, no listing for Kali, so her only photo is the group shot. 





They also had promos for the Prom Perfect dolls, except for Kali and Bella. 

I love this Harmony.










I think she's got some Pizzazz going on here for sure.





Noah in the box





The ridiculous giant earrings kind of work here. And for Harmony up there, too. 







Willow boxed







Yeah, those earrings are coming right off. 

The purse. I love it. 




And finally, DeeDee. She's the only one without a boxed pic. She actually had Willow's box pic in her listing and Willow's listing just had the out of box pic. 

I really like this. It's simple, but very elegant. 

I'm going to get all these. I just know it.