Grocery Giveaway Submission

Xanadu is giving away some doll-sized grocery items (in various scales) at her blog. She asked that you post an interesting pic of your dolls on your blog, and link back to her giveaway post. For some reason, I read it as her wanting pictures of tiny dolls, so I killed two birds with one stone. My Cu-Poche girls are enjoying a day at the beach relaxing, with a LORI patio swing that I've been meaning to share. It came with the lemonade pitcher, two glasses of lemonade, the tray, and the "grass" rug for the swing to sit on. Unfortunately, Little Red's big hair made it impossible for her to sit on the swing, so she's lounging on the grass with her lemonade.

This is really made for the mini LORI dolls, and similar dolls like the mini American Girl dolls, but I thought the Cu-Poche girls might look cuter with it. I think they do, except poor Little Red can't sit on it!

I have a huge backlog of new purchases to blog about, so stay tuned! I just finished up a nice new roombox for the photography. It doesn't take up too much space on my worktable, but it's large enough that I can feature a few dolls or items in it at a time. I finished covering the floor last night; I took this photo the day before.

LORI Camper

I first noted the existence of the LORI camper, made by Our Generation for their 6" doll line, back in August of 2015. Our Generation is a doll company that makes lower cost (and quality) 18" dolls, like the American Girls. They also make extra clothes, accessories, and even roombox playsets. With the popularity of the mini AG dolls, Our Generation also began to make mini 6" versions of their bigger dolls. Then they introduced the LORI line, which makes 6" dolls of better quality, at a higher price point, and also lots of accessories, like outfits, cars, horses, a stable, a dollhouse, individual room furniture sets, and the camper below (or caravan for my friends outside the US.) :) Speaking of the US, LORI items only seem to be available at Target stores in person, although LORI also has a presence on US Amazon.

I'd wanted to buy one fairly soon after I saw it, but I kept putting it off. I finally decided I'd better buy one, since who knows when they're going to stop being produced, so I'd like to share a few pictures, now that I've gotten it home. I do wish I'd bought one back when the exterior trim and interior seating and beds were blue. They're now pink.

The camper comes with everything you see inside, plus another pot and a frying pan, cooking utensils, and a set of dishes and silverware for two. Most of those items have also been included with one of the cookware and food accessory sets, if you've seen that. The kitchenette drawers and doors open, although the doors under the kitchen sink are kind of warped. I'm thinking the doors can be fixed, or replaced. Also functional are the cupboard doors just under the roof of the camper, but they only open in pairs, so there are only two doors, and not four. The camper is exactly suited for the 6" doll, but since I don't have a LORI doll, I'm substituting mini American Girl Ruth, friend of 1930s character Kit Kittredge. She's the most modern era mini AG that I own. According to the American Girl website, the mini dolls are 6.5" tall, while LORI says their dolls are 6" tall. I think Ruth looks great in there anyway.

The small silver bar above the kitchen sink contains a light, which can be turned on by the tiny button you may be able to see on the right of the light. I forgot to get a picture of the camper with the light on. :(

I suppose the color scheme doesn't matter in the long run, since I really want to revamp this camper. I'm currently trying to think of a theme that I would like to use. Oddly enough, I haven't seen many pictures of this camper at all online, much less inspiring ones. Maybe mini doll collectors have moved on to other things, but this could still be used for other types of dolls of this size. Someone on Flickr took progressive photos of how she started with the LORI dollhouse as a shell, and almost completely broke it apart and put it back together with additions, using it for her miniature family and furniture. One person on Flickr did an impressive upgrade of the camper, using a Route 66 Western theme. She also added her own lighting. I also found one person who left the interior mostly the same, but did add her own bedding, and cushioning and pillows for the corner seating, plus a few decorations. And here's a second one with just new bedding, seating and curtains.

If I redo it, it's definitely going to be more of an overall transformation, like the Route 66 version. I may do something similar to what she did with the overall wood look, only make mine with more of the look of a rustic cabin. Buffalo check blankets, snowshoes, that kind of thing. It would take some research, but I have a vague idea, if I wanted to go that way. There are also lots of people who have done creative things with DIY camper kits, like the kind that you can buy at AliExpress. I feel that those ideas would be useful, because those kits are not very large, so you're also trying to make a lot of a small space. For all that LORI calls this item a "glamper," this really doesn't have the space or amenities that a lot of real-life big campers do.

When I was adding the links to this post, I noticed that the same person who changed up the LORI dollhouse, also made the Route 66 camper. I guess that really shouldn't surprise me, but it is even more of an indicator of how little creativity with these pieces is being shared on the Internet. The same person also did some pretty racy stuff with other dolls in another Flickr album; you have been warned if you go looking around her photo account. Lastly, one weird note: the table in the camper was originally the same fuchsia pink, and was spray painted to match the color of the wood-look floor. One good thing about this camper is the floor and table already have that wood look and an actual textured wood grain appearance, which I think would look great repainted.

Does anyone else have a home on wheels for their dolls? Do you yourself like to camp, in a tent or a camper? Or do you not vacation anywhere that you can't call room service? ;)

Shopping: Tuesday Morning and Target Version

Let's start with Target, as one of the items there is time-limited. It's this doll-size grill. Tam already posted about it, and when I went to Target a couple of days ago, there were only two left, and one of them had come apart into two pieces and was on two different shelving units. However, when I went back today, there were three gleaming brand-new ones, and one of them was pink, which I hadn't seen before, but apparently Tam had. I imagine these will be in stores until after Independence Day, or close to it. In any case, if you want one and you have a Target near you, head in and grab one. They're in the dollar store section in the front. Tam's looks very realistic now that it's gotten a coat of black spray paint.

This Our Generation set caught my eye, because in my mind, I associate those build-a-molecule sets with chemistry, and not biology. Then again, the actual title of the set is Life Science.The Dancer and I had a small discussion about life science, biology, and atoms. According to the Dancer, they did learn about cell membranes, which have to do with things like potassium, in biology. I've only ever known students to get those molecule sets in chemistry classes, though. It doesn't matter too much, as the set is still cute (if you can call seeing someone's insides "cute.") I wonder if that set is structured with a real molecule in mind, or if the design is only to have an attractive grouping of "atoms." I flunked my high school chemistry final, so don't look at me!

These pet sets also appeared to be new. It's fun to see a variety beyond the usual cat and dog.

Speaking of dogs, this scooter set is super cute! It's the kind of clever, outside-the-box thinking that I like to see, that takes a doll product a step higher. Granted, it is easier to add something like this to products for the 6" size dolls. The actual product also makes use of "girly colors" beyond pink, even if the boxes themselves are pink.

And lastly, I took a picture of this science desk set, only because it is still full-price at Target (as far as I could tell) but also available (and marked down) at my local Tuesday Morning. The art desk set was also at Tuesday Morning.

Also, there were a couple of LORI dolls at Tuesday Morning. That surprised me, because I thought Target was the only brick-and-mortar retailer of LORI dolls, and Target generally clearances stuff down until it's gone.

As for what I got, I picked up my second Ever After High Raven and Apple School Spirit set from Tuesday Morning. I got, and reviewed, my first School Spirit two-pack for Mother's Day of 2016. The last time I went to Tuesday Morning, there were two of the packs on the shelf. I had enough self-control to only take one of them home the last time I was there, but for $14.99, I had to grab the other one when I found it still there two days ago. The dolls can always be re-rooted, re-painted, and re-dressed. $7.50 each for a full-dressed and articulated Ever After High doll is nothing to be sneezed since they're pretty much not around anymore. There was also a Budget Apple with straight arms and legs still on the shelf. Hopefully some little girl will find her and be happy with her.

I also picked up the Barbie violinist pack for $2.99, solely for the violin, even if it does say "Barbie" on it.

I passed on an Ever After High Castle Set, marked down to $30.00. You'd better believe I'll be looking to see if it's been marked down some more, though, the next time I go in.

Tuesday Morning has many kinds of products for sale, and I love to cruise some of the other aisles, looking to see if there are any other bargains that I can pick up. I got a cardboard scratcher for cats, and a small make-up type bag for the Dancer, since she's traveling a couple of times this summer. I also found a few great things for dolls, in the craft aisle: three of these three-bag sets of sticky-back white tiles. Each set of three bags was only $1.99! I also picked up one set of pink, as that was all they had of that. Not enough to tile a 1/6 size floor, which would have been fun, but they can be used for mirrors, tabletops, and kitchen/bathroom counters.

Anyone else pick up a good find lately?

Lottie Pony versus LORI Horse

When Battat's LORI brand for 8" dolls came out with horses for their line, I decided to buy one to see what it was like. Then I decided it was natural to compare it to the pony that Arklu has produced for their Lottie doll. I completely reviewed Lottie's pony here. This will be a short review of the new horse, and some comparison comments. For brevity, I named the Arklu Welsh pony Merlyn, which is the Welsh word for pony. The name Elinor appeals to me for this new horse, so that's what she'll be called.

Elinor is an Andalusian horse. I've read that gray is the most common color for that breed of horse, so it makes sense that she is that color. Andalusian horses are also popular for dressage and jumping, so an English saddle is correct here too. From my reading, Andalusian horses are a prized breed, originating in Spain. It was a favored mount of European royalty and nobility. I just think she's pretty.

Now that we've introduced Elinor, let's talk about my deboxing experience. Merlyn only had a few twist ties, and she was free. Elinor had plastic ties around three of her ankles holding her to the box, and her tail was connected by a rubber band to her rear left leg. There was also a rubber band around her tail where it comes out of her body. There was a zip tie around her "waist" securing her to the box, and a plastic tab sewn into her mane; the ends of the tab were sewn to her saddle pad and bridle. I had to cut the zip tie with small wire cutters, and it was easiest to use the cutters on the leg ties as well. That seems excessive to me. Not every house has wire cutters just lying around.

Merlyn's box had a little blurb talking about her personality; Arklu gave her the name Seren. It also talked about how Lottie and Seren are friends, and how Lottie takes care of Seren. Considering Battat was so specific with Elinor's breed, there is nothing on the box about the breed, nor about personality or care. I think Battat dropped the ball here.

Now, let's do some comparisons between Merlyn and Elinor. When I reviewed Merlyn, I used a Stacie doll as she was the best size match among the dolls I have. Since Elinor was created for 8" mini dolls, I'm using Felicity here as my human model, since she's the horse lover of the historical AG dolls.

Here's Felicity riding Merlyn, and Elinor. Felicity does not look too out of place on Merlyn, except that the stirrups are too far down. From the outfit I have that was made for Lottie, she seems to have proportionally longer legs than the dolls that I have. Stacie's feet were awkward in the stirrups since she wasn't built to ride a horse. But at least Merlyn comes with stirrups. I also like the color of Merlyn's bridle and saddle, as being more realistic. And the furry saddle pad on Elinor, which is underneath the purple pad, reminds me more of Western style tack, as opposed to English.

I think Felicity is a bit too big for Elinor. And keep in mind, Elinor is supposed to be a horse, while Merlyn is a pony. LORI 8" dolls live like adults, with their own car, house, etc., so I guess a horse would a be a better size for them? Only Elinor looks like a pony when Felicity is riding her. If they weren't so specific about the breed, I could pass it off, but calling this equine a horse just seems silly. I looked up some pictures of Andalusian horses on line, and they look *much* larger in comparison to adult humans.

While Merlyn's box talked about Lottie feeding her apples and carrots, no accessories besides tack came with her. I think a toy bunch of carrots or an apple would have been cute. Elinor does come with a few accessories: a pail, a brush and a sort of grooming mitt. There is also a horse trailer and stable by LORI sold separately, which come with more accessories for horses. The stable includes a bucket of carrots and a bucket of apples! I don't know why I have this obsession with horse treats. :D

If you go to the web page for the stable or the horse trailer, there is a slide show where a few of the pictures show a doll wearing this mitt. Supposedly then, it will fit on the LORI dolls' hands, but not on Felicity. The way her thumb sticks out makes it impossible to get the mitt onto her hand.

I think the bucket is a bit small, but that's not a major issue.

One last thing about Elinor alone; she has her brand name on the upper inside of her rear right leg. While I suppose it wouldn't matter to a child, if you were thinking of her as a horse for a doll display, you can see the mark easily when she's just standing. Admittedly it's hard to see in most of the pictures I took.

Okay, now let's look at Merlyn and Elinor mane to mane, and tail to tail. First let's look at them from the side. Having Elinor's left front leg raised makes her unstable. I'm also not sure that her other three hooves touch the ground evenly; she was rocking a little bit on her feet while I was taking pictures. Having Felicity on her back also made her unstable.

I think looking at these two head to head really emphasizes their size differences. Elinor has a forelock, while Merlyn does not. Merlyn's eyes stick out just a bit oddly, while Elinor seems to have a thick head from this point of view.

Elinor seems to have a thicker mane than Merlyn.

When I wrote Merlyn's individual review, I pointed out that the hair in her tail seemed rather sparse, especially since it also comes out very easily. These pictures show that.

On the other hand, Elinor has a large opening where her tail comes out, and I'm not sure of the reason for that rubber band just past the opening. There was a rubber band on the outside of her tail, as I believe I mentioned above. I suppose that was to help keep the tail from being too fly-away.

Both these horses have issues. Merlyn's biggest drawback, I think, is the relative sparseness of her mane and tail. Elinor's is the realism of her tack, plus her size, if she is truly supposed to be the horse breed they say she is. The accessories Elinor does come with don't thrill me, and I think Battat could have had some description on Elinor's box. Merlyn has no accessories but at least we get some verbage about her and how Lottie takes care of her. I think the first choice on which horse to get would be what size doll you want to ride her.

Probably the next biggest factor would be availability. While Seren/Merlyn seems to no longer be for sale, there is a new Welsh pony, and a pony set that also comes with a Lottie doll, which I think is a good idea. Still no buckets, brushes or treats. Arklu will ship to the UK (of course), Ireland and continental Europe (EU), and the US. Shipping appears to be free to all of these places if you spend over 50 pounds, dollars or Euros. Lottie does have some cute things, but I also reviewed a Lottie dress in my review of Merlyn, and Lottie's clothes would definitely be a problematic fit for a lot of other dolls, just so you know. There were some stores that sold Lottie dolls in the US, but I don't know how many of them do still. The one specialty toy store in my area that I know sold Lottie products closed over a year ago.

LORI seems to only be available in the US, and only at Target stores, that I'm aware of, so that's not an option for a great many of you. :( On the other hand, if you do live in the US and also want to get the LORI horse trailer and/or stable, the LORI horse would be the one for you. At one point, there was also a LORI palomino horse, but I don't know if that one is still for sale. The LORI website only shows Elinor, and a Camarillo horse, which I might buy if I see her in store. I think her tack is much prettier than Elinor's.

Do any of your dolls like to ride?

Where Does the Time Go?

I'm working on my storyline, but in the meantime, I haven't been very good at coming up with posts lately. I'm frustrated with the projects that I've been working on, I haven't bought any new dolls besides Ever After High, stupid real life keeps getting in the way.

Speaking of projects that I'm not finishing, I picked up some cheap watercolor pencils at Michael's yesterday.

I've had a few plans in the back of my mind for some time for trying out watercolor pencils. I decided cheap pencils were a fine way to start, and if I'm not happy with the results, I can always try moving up to a better quality pencil. Preferably when I have a 40% off coupon at Michael's.

One of the things I want to do is improve Meg's face. She could use darker eyebrows, more color in her lips, maybe even some eyeliner like her design picture shows.

I have had a few ideas for posts, but I'm not sure if there is a lot of interest in what I wanted to post about. One of the posts I wanted to make was about the new LORI pony for the 6" dolls, and compare it to Lottie's pony. I also wanted to do a post about one of my older Cissy dolls; I thought perhaps people might be interested in seeing a doll you don't see much of anymore. I'm going to put a poll up and find out if there is any interest, and go from there. In the meantime, I'll be hard at work on my doll projects (hopefully!)

Browsing at Target, Shopping at Pat Catan's. LORI Adds On, EAH Takes a Dive. Outdoor Furniture!

I've had a cold for over a week. Ugh. While I've not been feeling too awful, I really didn't feel like sitting in front of a computer and composing a blog post, either. But I'm slowly returning to feeling like a human being again, so today I'm sharing some pictures of things I looked at when I was at Target picking up a few things, and also some stuff I actually bought at one of our local craft stores a bit over a week ago.

If you want to get back at a sibling or an in-law for something, nothing says "Ha ha!" quite like giving your niece or grandchild or whomever, the Barbie Sparkle Style Salon, with a comb full of glitter, and a real working sink. Wet glitter everywhere!

Target seems to think there's a new Trolls movie coming out that's going to be a thing. Shrugs.

Jaye reviewed the set below. Apparently most of the pieces work with 12" dolls, so that's positive. I've heard there's another set of little accessories like this one, which I'm hoping my Target will get in before Christmas. In a positive note, my Target has wrapped the LORI section so it still has an endcap, and also is partially stocked into the Our Generation section. Hopefully they're going to rectify the mistakes of Christmas Past and have enough merchandise available on the shelves this Christmas.

Plus, your 6" dolls will be able to have horse riding adventures with new horses, a barn, and a horse trailer. This also gives the already-released LORI car something new to tow. I was ready to head home at this point, so I only took a picture of the horses that were there. I don't know if there will be any other horses released. These horses might at least be able to become ponies for taller dolls.

Also, Mattel has re-released some of the signature Ever After High dolls. I can see the appeal to Mattel of having some dolls of popular characters available in stores, that aren't currently represented in the latest theme lines, like Ballet or Epic Winter. But I'm giving the execution a big fat F. I've talked about this before, but the new Signatures just aren't up to the quality of the old dolls, and yet they're asking just about as much money. When I saw Cerise Hood at Target, I just had to gripe about this.

So here we have Cerise Hood. Less packaging than the original dolls. You don't get the thick diary entry from the character anymore, just that flat card in the right hand corner.

What disturbed me so much was the purse. The picture below shows the purse you get with the current Signature doll.

This purse below? This was the purse you got with the original Signature Cerise Hood. With the lovely checked detail on the top of the basket that made EAH the stand-out line that it was. Seriously, Mattel? It's not like the original dolls and accessories are NOT STILL AVAILABLE second hand and at places like Amazon. It's so obvious the shortcuts you took this time around. Cerise also doesn't come with the ring and chunky bracelet she was wearing before, in this incarnation either. I don't have pictures of my own of those, though.

Honestly, this makes me worry about Mattel's future. Even if I give them the benefit of the doubt and say the quality is going down because of a poor economy, it still doesn't bode well that Mattel had to cut these corners to keep them at a price where people will buy them. Yeah, Mattel lost the Disney Princesses, which was a big indicator of issues in itself, but Hasbro hasn't proven yet that there's huge profitability in that market either. There are two things I know for certain though. 1. Adult collectors alone can't keep a playline doll line afloat. 2. Mr. BTEG informed me that a short while back, LEGO almost went under. Yeah, that LEGO. Which, by the way, has a huge market of adult collectors.

On a happier note, I stopped by a local hobby store called Pat Catan's. It's a local chain; I don't know quite how many stores it has or where. I found a few really great deals!

Back in May, I posted about some mini garden type decorations I saw at a Michael's craft store. Michael's had lanterns on a short shepherd's hook type stand. For $1.19 each, I found just lanterns at Pat Catan's. I'm just not sure why they're described as "sleeping cats" in French and Spanish. I didn't realize that was a term for a lantern.

I also had to snatch up these wooden pieces of furniture which are much larger than the general 1/12 scale that you find at craft stores. The chairs were $3.95 each, the table $1.27. I haven't measured them, but Cerise's picnic basket is still in the picture to give you an idea of what a nice size these items are.

Don't worry, Mr. BTEG. These things will be off of the robotics table by the time that you get home.

You may have noticed that the items above are all Darice brand. Darice is an inexpensive local line of craft items which Pat Catan carries. Apparently, Michael's recently bought out Pat Catan's just to get the rights to sell Darice items; at least, that's the rumor that I heard. Now I wonder if Pat Catan's will disappear as a chain, and if Michael's will jack up the price on Darice stuff. Michael's has a reputation for being more expensive than other local craft stores. I'm kind of hoping that Michael's wanted to acquire Darice items as a way to also appeal to the crafter with the smaller budget, and we'll still get Darice's wide line of items, plus the same good prices.

So do you have any thoughts about new items on the shelves? Crafting? Mattel, for better or worse? I'd especially love to hear thoughts on Mattel, or even any good dirt you have. :)

OG LORI and Basic Ever After High Dolls at Target

I could write a bunch of explanations, but let's just say that between my daughter's recital, and spending some of the Independence Day holiday out and having fun with real people, there hasn't been a lot of dolly stuff going on. I did buy a few things I will share pictures of later this month; I'm *still* working on making my sewing and doll areas better organized. In the meantime, I saw some pretty nice new outfits on some of the OG LORI dolls at Target.

These three dolls were in the OG mini doll ballet studio. I'm thinking this was not marketing as much as a little girl "playing" with the dolls in the store.

The LORI line seems to be headed toward fall outfits. Is this actual planning, or just what they decided to produce next?

Some of these clothing pieces are cute, but I don't want the dolls. It is a very, very common complaint, though, that there not enough individual outfits produced, instead of dolls with outfits. However, I did end up not very thrilled with the LORI outfit that I bought to review, last year. If I see a 6" doll outfit that I want badly enough, I'll buy the dressed doll, keep the new outfit and donate the doll and the outfit I don't want to the Salvation Army or something.

I do feel like Our Generation missed the boat somewhat with LORI. They released some of the cars, campers, houses and furniture to some stores, right before Christmas, but never completely stocked them, leaving customers really interested in buying and not being able to. Even now, the LORI stuff is still just on an endcap, and there's usually only one camper, patio set, etc. when I look. I also still occasionally see people asking scalper prices for these items on eBay. In my opinion, OG should have introduced a new furniture set or a mini camping accessories set or something to keep people talking about the brand, after the Christmas fiasco. The posts I wrote about the LORI dolls are two of the most heavily visited posts of the ones I've written, so people were interested in this stuff. We'll see in the fall if they bring something new and exciting out for the Christmas season.

Speaking of brands, the Ever After High brand has been going through a lot of changes recently. Most of the EAH stuff that I saw at Target is on clearance. The only new dolls are the basics with the new smiling faces. I don't mind the basic line, as I'm sure it's profitable to have low costs EAH dolls available. As I've already talked about, I also bought two basic ballet dolls to do head swaps for the new faces. I don't mind the new faces either, although to me, they look more like younger siblings to the original dolls, and they may become siblings in my EAH collection. I do still want to see higher-priced doll waves, some with the older faces.

I've read people's opinions that while a smile is perfectly in character for Maddie, who is a Wonderlandian and enjoys craziness, Apple doesn't seem like she smiles much. I must admit I've watched all the EAH webisodes, and Apple does smile a lot, although a lot of times, it's in the prom queen/royal wave kind of way. Here Apple just looks like a little girl who wants to play. Then again, if their target audience for these dolls is three or four years old, that kind of friendly smiling face is probably appealing.

I also found a smiling Raven, although my pic is blurry. Even Raven does smile in the webisodes, though!

Maddie looks like she has molded on white tights. That seems a shame for the little girls who do like to redress these dolls.

When EAH was first produced, I thought Mattel was going to follow some of the same themes as Monster High. I thought maybe we'd see an Art Class wave, maybe a Magic Spell/"Science" wave. Most of the waves we've gotten recently seem to revolve around the latest Netflix movie release, and I've heard there will be no more Netflix releases after Epic Winter. I have no idea what direction the EAH brand will take, but there are still a *lot* of dolls that could be made. The reroot/repaint artists out there are already making dolls that older fans want to see, so I'm sure at least some of the dolls that people want to see will be produced, in one way or another.

ETA: I forgot I was going to include this picture I took at a Toys 'R Us, of a first and second release signature Darling Charming. As you can see, the newer release (on the left side) is lacking the bracelet and the paint on her neckpiece, that the Darling doll on the right has. Re-releasing signature EAH dolls with fewer details is not winning Mattel any friends, either.