Making a Splash

Apparently bathtubs were the hot home-decor item at Michael's this spring. Of course, the doll collector can't help but wonder if any of the tubs will work with her dolls. I ended up buying three. 

The white tub with the black feet is just about right for 16" dolls. Sam's legs can't extend all the way out inside the tub, but she found it a nice place to soak and day dream.

There were two other sizes of this tub at Michael's. At least, I think that one next to the biggest tub, is smaller than the medium tub. I forget now, and it's hard to tell!

Teresa liked playing with a rubber ducky. This tub is just a bit on the big size for a 12" doll, maybe, but I think it looks fine when pictured from the side.

There were three colors of that bathtub at Michael's: the one above and the two below.

Marie thinks this bathtub just the right size for her and her school friends. The Eden line of Madeline dolls included a set of bathroom furniture long ago, but as with just about everything from this line, it's super expensive on the secondary market now. The soap/dish and bath brush came from a Madeline set, and I also have a Madeline freestanding towel rack which came with the towel that Marie is using.

I happened to go down a different aisle at Michael's and saw that there were also bathtubs like this one in red and green, in the "strawberry theme" section of home decor.

I tried the trick of putting clear Contact paper on the floor tiles, which is supposed to make the paper look more like shiny vinyl tile. Maybe it's just my lighting, or angles, or something, but I don't see a big difference.

Also at Micheal's was a bathtub/candle holder, in two different colors.

Someone else on Instagram bought it for dolls. I was debating getting one, but I didn't want to bother digging out the candle. These tubs were pretty small, too.

Also, there was this galvanized tub with a shower head. This would be about right for American Girl or a large doll like that.

Don't mind the prices on Michael's things. The newest stuff goes on sale practically from the minute it comes in the door. This conveniently means you can't use their coupons for the newest stuff, as most Michael's coupons are not usable with sales items. Occasionally you do get a coupon which gives you a percentage off of your entire purchase including sales. On the other hand, last month I walked out with a plastic scrapbook paper storage case, two rolls of materials for my Cricut, and a several foot long garland made up of foam-type pastel Easter eggs for less than $8. I felt like I was stealing something. The trick at Michael's is to keep your eye on sales and to be signed up in their membership program, which gets you coupons.

Also at Michael's of doll interest was this piece of artificial green grass. It was labeled as a placemat, but can you imagine crumbs and spills on this? Maybe it would be nice for a centerpiece, with an Easter tree on top. It's smaller than the other piece of fake grass that I have; I used this one for my Easter shoot.

Then there were these chairs. I thought really hard about getting the red one, but decided against it. Someone on Instagram showed one of those chairs with a Tonner doll, and it looked okay, but didn't make me regret not buying one. I feel like the yellow and white chairs had too deep of a seat. They're probably made to display something-not-a-doll on, so that makes sense.

That reminds me that Michael's did have a small group of little plants of the kind that rarely need water, like a bromeliad. They might make good plants for a doll house or display. If Michael's doesn't have any more, because it took me forever to get this post up, or if you don't have a Michael's, I'm sure they can be found other places. At least in the US, these plants are another one of the things currently in style for home-decor.

Michael's happened to have these trash and recycle cans. I've seen those for a long time in other people's pictures. I think they're supposed to be for use on an office desk.

 

Lastly were these wall-hanging shelves. Or at least, they're supposed to be shelves. I thought they would make good side tables for dolls. Jaye of Jaye's Doll Space put up a picture on Instagram where she used the shorter one as a raised cocktail table. It's fun to see other people find the same things to re-purpose for dolls that you did. The small and large are two different size options, not the same piece.

I happened to be at Hobby Lobby around the same time, but the only thing doll-adaptable that I saw, besides the dollhouse things that they sell, were these mugs and teapots. And of course the mugs and teapots aren't the same scale, unless maybe the teapot is a one cuppa size. Both items were also too big for 12" dolls, but could work with a larger crew.

How often do you find regular decor that you can use for dolls?

My Collection Part Nine: Reading to Alice, Alice in Wonderland and Dorothy by Tonner

And thus we end the overview of my 16" Tonner collection with three dolls who are... not 16" tall. Alice and Dorothy, however, are sized to fit in the 16" range. They have the same bodies as Tyler Wentworth's sister, 12" tall Marley. While I never liked Marley very much, I love Alice, and since The Wizard of Oz is one of my favorite movies, I had to have Dorothy as well.

Reading to Alice is 15" tall, or so. I believe her body has been used for a range of Disney princesses by Tonner as well. It's a bit frustrating that although she was meant to go with the Alice doll, (it's right in the name) she doesn't fit in very well to the 16" line, in my opinion. You can make your own decision with the body comparison shot I'll show below the fold.

I like my Dorothy doll very much, although she does have a few yellow spots on the waist of her jumper. Toto looks a little bit odd, I think. Also, he's resin, and rather heavy for his size, since Dorothy is meant to carry the basket on her arm. I wonder if a stuffed dog would have been better.

I believe Tonner later introduced a Dorothy doll with the 15" body, which is actually more suited to Judy Garland's actual body type in the movie. We'll go with Reading to Alice next. She didn't photograph well for me. She's not typical doll "pretty" but she is striking looking. I'm throwing in a picture of her wearing an Ashton Drake Gene outfit that I took years ago.

Alice in Wonderland is one of the gems of my collection. Her face looks a little blank in my photos, but I love how she looks in person. I bought her nude, but she is wearing an outfit from Tonner's Nutcracker Clara collection, Off to the Land of Sweets. I'm disappointed in the slippers from that outfit. They were made with just a hair too little fabric, so that the back of the slippers pulls forward. I tried to put the slippers on Alice while holding the back of the slipper with tweezers, but then the stitches in the back looked like they were starting to come apart. Maybe somebody else can wear those slippers.

My youngest daughter, The Dancer, owns a Nutcracker Ballet Clara doll, that I bought her for Christmas many years ago. As you can see, she and Alice are basically sisters. Apologies for the first picture being blurry.

Last picture below the fold.