Friday, January 10, 2014

Winx Club Dolls by Witty Toys and Jakks Pacific

I get inspired to write reviews for a number of different reasons.  Often, there is just a doll that is new and exciting and I want to get a close look at it.  I can also be motivated by special dolls in my collection, conversations with friends and family, the wonderful tips I get from you, and from shopping trips and online browsing (which I like to call "research").  This particular review has several origins.

I wrote a review of Winx Believix Bloom back in 2012 (here's the link).  The desire to write another Winx post started because of the simple fact that I have been noticing Winx dolls a lot lately.  I have been impressed by the steady stream of new dolls in this line, but have gotten into the habit of just stopping to admire the new dolls--not actually purchasing any of them.  The recently released Believix Power series proved too tempting to resist.  Believix Power Tecna will make an appearance at the end of this review.

Another inspiration for this post came ages ago, when I got an email tip from Emma to look into Giochi Preziosi dolls.  Giochi Preziosi is an Italian company that is one of the largest toy makers in the world.  This company makes toys, but also acts as a European distributor for other toy manufacturers.  Shopping for a Giochi Preziosi doll is like shopping for a Hasbro doll--there are a ton of different options in a range of styles.  With the help of eBay International, I ended up with a fun mix of dolls from Italy bearing the Giochi Preziosi label, including this basic Winx Club Bloom doll that I will review today:

Winx Club Bloom by Witty
Italian Winx Club Bloom doll (Witty Toys).
As I researched Giochi Preziosi and brushed up on my Winx doll history for this review, I learned a few things:  

First of all, I read that Giochi Preziosi used to make their own Winx dolls, and these are considered by many collectors to be the most accurate to the television characters.  I think this is the type of doll that Emma was recommending, but it's not what I ended up buying.  You can see a nice picture of a few of the Giochi Preziosi Winx dolls on flickr.  

Mattel also manufactured the Winx line for a while, and those dolls were very well-received and are now highly collectable.  

The Winx dolls on the shelves in the Unites States right now are made by Jakks Pacific.  

The doll I ended up buying seems to be something completely different from any of the dolls I just mentioned.  She was made in 2011 by Witty Toys (a.k.a. Rainbow Toys) and is distributed by Giochi Preziosi.  Giochi Preziosi is also the current European distributor for Jakks Pacific Winx dolls.

What does it mean?
So...the short version of what I've learned is that a Winx doll with a Giochi Preziosi label on it can be (as I understand it) one of three different things:
1. A Winx doll made by Giochi Preziosi 
2. A Witty Toys Winx doll distributed by Giochi Preziosi (what I bought)
3. A Jakks Pacific doll distributed in Europe by Giochi Preziosi 

Whew.

Let's look at the actual doll I got from Italy.  This Bloom comes in a colorful window box with a bright summery design, perfect for warming up a wintry day in Maine:


There's a cute cartoon of Bloom in the lower corner of the box.  This version of Bloom is different from the pictures on the Jakks Pacific doll boxes.


English isn't one of the three languages on this box, which is neat.  I had to translate each phrase to see what was going on...but I liked trying to guess what the words meant first.

The first caption reads: Il materassino super colorato delle Winx (Italian):

My guess: Super colorful materials (clothes?) for Winx!
It actually means: the super colorful Winx mat.  Because she comes with a water mattress accessory.  My guess wasn't too terrible, but maybe I can do better.

The name of this series of dolls seems to be "Frutty" in Italian:

Italian slang for freakishly nutty??
Google translate can't help me with "frutty."  I assume it's a mistranslation of "fruity," since there are pictures of fruit all over the box:


The back of the box has a photograph of the other dolls in the Frutty series...and some more Italian for me to translate:

I love Flora's hair color!
The text at the top of the box reads: Divertiti anche tu con le Winx al Frutti Music Bar!  I guess we're spelling Frutty with an "i" now.  That's cool.

My guess: Go along with the Winx to the fruity music bar!..?
Actually, Google Translate says this means: "Enjoy yourself with the Winx in the Seafood Music Bar!" Where does seafood come from in this sentence?  Is Google messing with me?  I mean, here in Maine we love a good seafood music bar, but it seems a little obscure.  They must be thinking of frutti di mare, or the fruit of the sea.  I think it's best to stick with real fruit for a doll line theme.  A shrimp cocktail dress would be a tad avant garde for a Winx fairy.

Anyway--back to the box.  I like that it's made to look like all of the dolls have signed their name under their picture, but this scrolling font makes it look like Tecna's name is Teena:

Teena the grape.
The cardboard backdrop slides out of the main box.  This backdrop is fairly plain and modest, and it doesn't have a lot of tape or plastic stuck to it, which is great for my recycling efforts.


Bloom's face is very different from the Winx faces I am used to seeing here in Maine.  I have to admit that I didn't have a good first reaction to this doll's unfamiliar face:

I think those are kaleidoscope eyes.
I like her frutty skirt, though:


Bloom is easy to get out of the box...as is her water mattress accessory:


The floating mattress is fun and can actually be inflated and used in a pool:



I would demonstrate this for you except that it's about 10°F here in Maine right now with a windchill of below zero (that's -12°C with a windchill of -20°C outside the US).  So let's just admire this fruity floaty from the safety of indoors:


I'm actually going to pause right here and introduce another doll.  One of the other inspirations for this review was Target's crazy-awesome post-holiday sale.  Turns out that the Jakks Pacific basic Everyday Collection version of Bloom was selling for just under $5.  For those of you with Target stores nearby, the fancier Sirenix dolls are only $7....as are most of the La Dee Da dolls (including the Art Show dolls!).

I figured I'd bring this Jakks Pacific basic Bloom doll into the review for a little comparison.

Sei carino, ma dove è il tuo materasso super-colorata?
Here's Everyday Bloom in her box:


With her more familiar Winx Club face:

I love doing "research" at Target.
You can see how different the box art styles are: 


The back of this box is very similar in layout to Frutty Bloom's box.  It has a photograph of the six Winx girls--but, sadly, nothing for me to translate.


This Tecna is so cute.

This box is not as simple as the other Bloom's box.  It has one of those mysterious perforated panels in the back.  The panel opens to reveal....a lot of plastic and tons of attachments to deal with:

Trap door to nowhere!
I cut the edges of the plastic shell and managed to extract Bloom and her cardboard backdrop.   This backdrop is also minimally decorated.  The doll comes with a plastic hairbrush:


With the packaging out of the way, now I'll take a closer look at each doll and try to draw some comparisons.

Overview:
Here's Frutty Bloom (I think I'll start calling her Fruity Bloom...) right out of her box.  Her hair comes sewn into a plastic holder:


She comes with a pair of sunglasses that are held securely to the top of her head with a clear rubber band:


Everyday Bloom's hair is not tied down in any way, but it does have flecks of white styling gel residue that keep it fairly flat (matted) in the box. 


This Bloom is advertised as having an armband accessory, and it's is just a simple pink plastic band around her upper right arm:


Everyday Bloom is taller than Fruity Bloom:

Everyday Bloom (L) and Fruity Bloom (R).

Hair:
Fruity Bloom's hair is very soft and silky.  It reminds me of Bratzillaz Magic Night Out hair--at least the hair on the Meygana doll.  Bloom's hair is bright red with orange highlights and is left mostly down with two cute twirled pieces pulled back on either side of her head:


The hair has a little bit of curl at the ends:


And it brushes out very nicely:


The rooting pattern is good, with tight rows of hair encircling the scalp and then some scattered clusters of two or three strands covering the top of the head:


Everyday Bloom's hair is styled down, with two short (crispy) curls of hair on either side of her face.  There are some loose waves throughout most of the hair.  This hair is more monochromatic than Fruity Bloom's hair, and has no highlights.


This hair fiber has a texture more similar to the first wave Meygana's hair.  It's coarse and frizzy--especially at the ends.  The hair is kept under relative control by the liberal use of styling product.   


Everyday Bloom's hair is easy enough to brush, but it becomes very wild and tangle-prone, and the waves disappear into a puffy mass:


The rooting pattern is good, with tight rows around the edges of the hairline and looser rows covering the top of the head:

The scalp is tinted orange.
Face:
These two dolls have very different faces.   Fruity Bloom has very colorful, teardrop shaped eyes and a broad jawline while Everyday Bloom has more natural eyes and an oval-shaped face:


Fruity Bloom's lips are rosy pink with a faint sheen.  Her blue eyes are lined with an arch of orange, peach and yellow.  The shape of her eyes makes it seem like she's looking up, and also makes her eyes look a little crossed:

There's that pesky convergent strabismus again.
The eye design is very shiny and has faint cracks in it, suggesting that it was not painted, but applied in one piece like a temporary tattoo (similar to the Create-A-Monster Design Lab features).


Everyday Bloom has even brighter pink lips with no shimmer.  Her eyes might also be decals, but they look painted, and have a more natural shape and less extravagant eyeshadow:

Day-glo pink lip.
I like the "cat eye" appearance of this Bloom's eyeliner and her very pale pink eyeshadow.  Too bad her lips aren't as subtle as her eyeshadow.


The two dolls have distinct profiles: Fruity Bloom has deep-set eyes, making her mouth and nose areas very prominent.  She also has a fairly short forehead.  In contrast, Everyday Bloom has a tall forehead and a shallower slope to her nose:



Accessories:
Fruity Bloom's sunglasses are painted purple and are nicely incorporated into her hairstyle:



Up close, you can see that each ear piece is decorated with tiny molded butterfly and the letter "w."



Once the clear rubber band is removed, it's difficult to get the sunglasses to stay on Bloom's face.  The ear pieces don't rest on her ears very easily, and even if they balance there for a second, this position puts the glasses too low on the nose.  I can tuck the glasses into Bloom's hair, though, and then they look good and stay put:


I love her goofy, big-eyed expression when she's wearing these glasses:


Everyday Bloom just comes with a bad hairbrush and a tiny pink armband with hearts on it:



Outfits:
Both dolls are wearing cropped tops and very short skirts.  


Fruity Bloom has a ruched yellow top and a skirt with a print that looks like sliced oranges.  Both pieces have velcro all of the way down the back.


The shirt seems stitched solidly enough, but it has a bunch of loose threads at the edges that unraveled more and more as I dressed and undressed the doll.  The loose threads in the sleeve area made the shirt increasingly hard to put on.



The skirt is really fun.  It makes me thirsty.


Fruity Bloom is wearing yellow slip-on sandals with flat soles, despite the fact that she has arched feet:

She just has to walk on tippy-toe all of the time.


Everyday Bloom's outfit is very similar.  It consists of a cropped blue and white striped top and a mini skirt with a denim-style print.  The style is pretty generic.


This doll is wearing netted knee-high stockings and blue high-heeled shoes:


The shoes have very bendy heels, but are nicely detailed and are pretty easy to get on and off:




This shirt has a more solid construction than Fruity Bloom's yellow shirt.  It looks like an easier fabric to work with.  The four iron-on hearts are a nice deep pinkish purple color--that would have been a good shade for the lipstick.



The skirt has a dropped waist and a ruffled hem in the front.  The back of the skirt is plain.  The zipper and pocket details are painted on the fabric.


The two versions of Bloom can share skirts, but Fruity Bloom's top is too small for Everyday Bloom and will not close in back.  I managed to squeeze Fruity Bloom's bendable feet into Everyday Bloom's blue shoes, but I wouldn't call it a perfect fit.



Body:
It's not surprising that these dolls don't share clothes, given how different their body shapes are.  

Everyday Bloom is very similar to the fully articulated Believix Bloom doll that I've already reviewed.  The only difference is that this basic doll does not have elbow and wrist joints.  Fruity Bloom's body is nothing like any of the Jakks Pacific Winx doll bodies: 

Everyday Bloom (L), Fruity Bloom (R).
The most obvious difference when handling the dolls is that Everyday Bloom's body is made out of hard, minimally flexible vinyl while Fruity Bloom has very bendable arms and legs.  Everyday Bloom's limbs seem just flexible enough to be crooked.  My doll's right leg is warped at the ankle, and this makes it very hard to balance her--even when she's propped up against a wall.

Everyday Bloom does not come with her own wings, but she has an attachment site on her back so she could share wings with other Jakks Winx dolls.

 

The biggest difference in body shape is in the torso.  Fruity Bloom has narrower shoulders and an exaggerated hourglass waist:


Here are the two Blooms with my beat up Mattel Tecna so that you can see the size progression.  Fruity Bloom is more similar to Tecna in proportion and flexibility.  The Mattel Tecna also has rubbery arms and legs.


Fruity Bloom has nine points of articulation.  She has hinged shoulders, ball-and-socket hips, and a head that can rotate, but can't look up or down.  Within her flexible vinyl limbs she has click knee joints and wire armature elbow joints.  


She is marked on the back with the Rainbow logo.  Rainbow is the company that makes the Winx television shows and Witty Toys is their Winx licensee.


Bloom's flexibility is enhanced by her rubbery limbs.  What would have been fairly average splits become better with a little sideways bend in the knees...



I have some worries about the long-term durability of Bloom's wire elbow joints, but as long as they work, they're pretty fun.


Bloom's fingers and hands are rubbery, too, which gives her some wrist and finger movement that most dolls do not have:


Here's a sampling of what she can do:






Fruity Bloom is more fun to pose than Everyday Bloom.  Everyday Bloom's rigid arms limit her flexibility.  


In general, I much prefer hinged knees to click knees, but Everyday Bloom's hinged knees do not have great flexibility.   Fruity Bloom's knees don't bend much, either, but her rubbery lower legs make up for this.



Fruity Bloom's height is more similar to Bratzillaz and Ever After High dolls than it is to Jakks Pacific Winx dolls:

La Dee Da Dee, Bratzillaz Magic Night Out Meygana, Fruity Bloom, Ever After High Apple, Monster High Clawdeen.
Fruity Bloom actually reminds me a lot of Bratzillaz Meygana.  They both have rubbery legs, red hair and very short torsos.  They can share clothes to some degree--Bloom has a smaller waist, so Meygana's clothes are loose on her, and Meygana has a wider chest, so Bloom's top is a little tight on her.  


Here is Fruity Bloom showing off some of her fun poses:

Notice how that skirt rides up because her waist is so tiny!





And here are a few shots of Everyday Bloom:




It was fun to compare these two Bloom dolls, and I'll summarize my thoughts for you at the end of the review.  First, though, I want to share one more Winx doll.  Before the holidays, my Toys R Us had the full collection of Believix Power dolls in stock, and also another group of dramatic new characters called the Trix Collection.  The Trix dolls look very impressive in their boxes, but I didn't care for their faces.  They all seemed to have funny, flat eyes.  In contrast, I thought the Believix Power dolls were great, and I wanted to leave the store with at least three of them.  

Here's a photo of all of the Believix Power fairies from the back of Tecna's box:


What I love about this collection is how most of the dolls' hair and wings match their outfits.  This is such a simple design idea, but it makes the colors look very rich and three dimensional.  I was particularly fond of Bloom, Tecna and Stella.  As an aside, I wonder why Flora and Aisha don't have matching hair?  I think Flora would look more unique with pink hair, but I'm not sure about how light blue hair would look on Aisha.  

I actually carried Bloom and Tecna to the checkout, but then a wave of frugality took over and I decided to put one of them back.  I bought Tecna because I don't have a Tecna doll yet and I thought her short hair would make the wings easier to use. 

Here's Tecna:


She comes with a large pair of fluttering wings and a "power ball," which is just a small pom-pom with glittery threads coming out of it.

Not a lottery ticket.
I like that her color palette is a mix of different shades of purple.  Maybe it's too monochromatic for some tastes, but I think it looks wonderful and rich:


Tecna's eyes catch a lot of glare and are tricky to photograph, but they're a beautiful mix of dark blue shades:



She has subtle two-toned eyeshadow that is covered in a layer of fine glitter:


This Tecna's hair is longer than the hair on other Tecna dolls.  The hair has a modern shoulder length cut and is a beautiful dark plum color.  Mixed into the dark purple hair are some subtle violet highlights and clusters of sparkling, tinsel-like thread.


I am not wild about the tinsel strands in Tecna's hair--they tend to stick out at odd angles and make the hair hard to brush.  However, the texture of this hair is much nicer than Everyday Bloom's hair.  It's not as silky as Fruity Bloom's hair, but it's fine.

The hair is longer at the sides than it is in the back:


Tecna has a purple plastic tiara sewn into her hair:


When I reviewed Believix Bloom, I mentioned that her long hair interfered with the fluttering wing mechanism...and made the wings fall off a lot.  Tecna's short hairstyle makes the wings much, much easier to use.  The thin plastic wings flutter back and forth on their own when the doll is being moved around, and this adds some wonderful drama to her appearance.  I didn't have any trouble with the wings falling out, either.




Tecna is wearing a futuristic dress that makes me think of Star Trek.  It has a glittering pinkish-purple high-necked shirt that is attached to a deep purple satin dress with a funky, pointed neckline.  The bottom of the dress has a slightly awkward tulle ruffle on one side and two thick bands of dark purple glitter:

Lieutenant commander Tecna, reporting for duty, Captain!
The fabric of the shirt is very stiff, as you can see from this picture of the inside of the outfit:


There's a small glittery diamond accenting the top of the neckline:

Starfleet communicator badge.
The dress has two separate areas of velcro in the back, leaving an opening for the wings.


The sleeves of the dress have triangular cutouts.  These are not hemmed in any way and seem at risk for unraveling.  


The situation is made worse by the fact that it's very difficult to get this dress on without catching the doll's thumbs in some of the holes:


Tecna is wearing light purple net stockings with darker purple glittery spots.


Her shoes are fun, with heart cutouts in the front, a winged design on the sides, and stars for heels:



Here are the three Winx dolls together:


Tecna has the same body as the Believix Bloom doll I reviewed before.  She has the same limitations in her arm movement, and the same funny, crooked legs.  Still, I prefer the her arm articulation to Everyday Bloom's stiff arms, and probably prefer it to Fruity Bloom's rubbery arms, too.  

Tecna is paler than both Bloom dolls, and I find her face paint much more natural and appealing than Everyday Bloom's bright palette.


I had a good time photographing Tecna.  Her wings are great and they really add to her expressiveness.  Her articulation isn't the best I've seen, but she has enough movement to allow for plenty of fun fairy poses.





Tecna is the fairy of technology, so I tried to incorporate some technology (my iPad wallpaper) into the photo shoot.  This was not a huge success.




I decided to just let the fairies go outside for their last photo session, despite the sub-zero wind chill and icy terrain.  Fairies don't seem to mind the cold as much as small dogs.

Since Tecna is the only fairy in this group with wings, she scouted ahead for a good place to visit:


She settled on the frozen stream because there were some patches of sun there, and the water had frozen into some fascinating ice formations.


Tecna perched on a nearby tree and watched the other fairies enjoy the scenery.



Everyday Bloom found an icy outcropping and sat down to admire the stream.  



Fruity Bloom got very excited when she saw the stream, and I wasn't sure why at first...


(Notice how beautiful her hair color is in the sun, though)


It turns out that her excitement was because she realized that she didn't have to wait for spring to test out her super colorful water mattress!

Ahhh....
It seems to make an excellent ice mattress, too:


So, that's the end of this very strange Winx comparison review.  I may not have hit the mark in finding a real Giochi Prezioso Winx doll, but I had fun with the doll I did find.  I have a few more Giochi Preziosi dolls waiting for review, so perhaps those will give a better sense of what this large Italian-based company is all about.


Bottom line?  At first glance, I leapt to the assumption that I wouldn't like Fruity Bloom at all.  Her face struck me as strange and overdone, with psychedelic eyes that look crossed.  I think my negative reaction was based partly on the fact that I was surprised by how little she resembles the Jakks Pacific dolls that I am accustomed to.  When I break it down, though, I find that I like most things about the Witty Toys Fruity Bloom doll better than the Jakks Pacific basic doll.  Let me chart it out for you:



Fruity Bloom
(Witty Toys)
Everyday Bloom
(Jakks Pacific)
Favorite?
Outfit
Simple design, bright colors and original fruit slice print. Shirt is tricky to get on. Lots of unsightly loose threads unraveled during play.
Simple design, unoriginal style.  Construction is fine and dressing is easy.
Design trumps construction in this case--I like Fruity Bloom’s outfit better.
Hair
Wonderfully silky and smooth.  Great highlights, simple but attractive style.  Very nice hair.
Scraggly, tangle-prone hair with visible white styling product.  Hair is worn down, with two short crispy sections on either side of the face.
Fruity Bloom has vastly superior hair.  No contest.
Face
Strange eyes that appear to be applied, not painted.  Exaggerated profile. Doll has a lot of goofy personality.
Sweet-looking face.  Colors are slightly garish, but the overall appearance is good.
In my opinion, Everyday Bloom has a prettier face.
Articulation
Rubbery limbs add a lot of flexibility to an already solid nine points of articulation.  Doll is fun to pose.  Elbow and knee joints seem like they might not wear well.
Articulation is fair.  The arms are stiff and unexpressive and the nice, hinged knees are overshadowed by long, crooked legs.
Fruity Bloom has better articulation, but I do worry about the durability of the joints.
Accessories
Goofy sunglasses and a neat inflatable water mattress.
Plastic brush.
Fruity Bloom’s mattress is really fun...and will be more fun in summer!

Of course, my favorite of all three of these dolls is the beautiful Believix Power Tecna.  I love how all of the dolls in the Believix Power wave display rich shades of their signature color.  Tecna has a few flaws, like her hard-to-manage sleeves and crooked legs, but her face paint, hair style, wings, outfit and coloring are fabulous.  A rainbow display of several of the dolls from this wave would look wonderful, and it will be all I can do not to seek out that beautiful Bloom.

I am excited to find a Giochi Preziosi Bloom doll some day, and maybe a Mattel Bloom doll, too, so that I can add to this comparison, and take another step towards understanding the complex, rich history of the enticing Winx empire.


47 comments:

  1. Everyday Bloom have much sweeter and more pretty face. But I think I like Frutty Bloom's face more - she have much more personality in it. ED Bloom is a bit boring with all those sweetnes and prettyness. (And her forehead is huge)

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    1. I agree--I love Fruity Bloom's unique personality. Not just another pretty face. :)

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  2. Tecna is beautiful! And my favorite color is purple! I definitely need to get her at some point! Her hair is awesome.

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    1. She's perfect for purple-lovers, Ava! So many different shades, and it all looks great together, I think.

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  3. The strange thing is I was on target.com admiring Power Techna and Musa right before I read your post. I think the new Power dolls are the nicest ones so far. As for your Blooms, I like ED Bloom's face the best, but the more I saw of Fruity Bloom the more I liked her.
    Thanks again for another great review.

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    1. I totally agree, Starr. The Power dolls really struck me in a way that the other waves haven't. I especially like them all together--which is a problem for my self control! :D

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  4. I agree that Frutty Bloom has the most personality. I like her a lot more than the others because of that. Plus, her hair is lovely.

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    1. Yes--exactly! The hair and personality are great. I think she just takes a little getting used to, and then she's a winner.

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  5. Very cute. I love the Believix Stella she's always been my favorite. There is something wrong with the Witty dolls face I can't put my finger on it.I'll figure it out. Loved your review

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    1. Hi Jessie! When I look at Fruity, what strikes me is that her eyes are a strange shape--so pointy at one end and then very rounded at the other. I think this is what makes her look cross-eyed. There might be something else, too, but that's what I see first!

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  6. Jessie, maybe it's that Frutty Bloom's eyes are too close together. That was off putting for me. I like Power Techna the best; my favorite color's purple.

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    1. Oooh--good point! They do look close together, especially compared to the Jakks girls.

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  7. I love Tecna! She is so pretty :) Tecna reminds me of Carmen from the spykids movies, but I'm not sure why...(?) Frutty Bloom's eye's weren't the best choice- in my opinion. The last picture is super cute!

    This is off topic, but Emily- Have you ever thought about joining AGPlaythings? It's one of my favorite sites for all things AG. If you ever need to know more about the AG dolls and their inner workings, just check out some of the eye-swap/rewigging/restringing/anything-else-you-want-to-know tutorials (but you have to make a Pro-boards account).

    Anyhow, thank you for the review! It's always awesome to haer about other dolls, and to learn about them :)
    Juliet

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    1. Hi Juliet! I have heard of AGPlaythings, but I haven't considered joining yet. Maybe I will go check it out! My problem is time...I don't know if I would have the time to get the most out of a doll board. However, the website is very appealing, and there are a bunch of links I would love to read if I had access! Thank you for the suggestion. :)

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  8. Dokładne, profesjonalne i piękne ;) Jesteś prawdziwą skarbnicą wiedzy o lalkach ...

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    1. Jaki piękny, miły rzecz do powiedzenia! Dziękuję bardzo! :)

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  9. only somewhat related but have you heard of these? http://imitationmonsters.tumblr.com/post/72616132700/bringing-fashion-back-to-life

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    1. Wow! It's a Jakks Winx body with zombie face paint! How fascinating! I like the Once Upon a Zombie dolls better, but I'd love to get my hands on one of these. Thank you for the link!

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  10. Hey there, long time fan and first time poster here. I had to say I'm thrilled that you finally reviewed some more Winx Dolls. I'm a huge fan of them and part of what makes them interesting is the many incarnations they have, each with their own strengths. I personally think the original Italian Giochi dolls win in accuracy and variety (Before Jakks, they were the only ones that made Darcy and Stormy, and even gave us two boys!). Mattel, in my opinion, has the best clothes. Witty Toys has some of the best hair I've seen in playline dolls (Especially their curly/wavy hair. If you're ever tempted for another, I'd reccomend going for a Layla/Aisha. My witty toys In Concert Layla has the best quality curly/wavy hair I've seen on a doll. Beware, tough, their newer dolls are basically Witty bodies with Jakks heads (And hair). For some reason...) and Jakks has some great articulation on their deluxe dolls, great wings and they're the second company that gave us Darcy and Stormy. (As a fan of those two, that means a lot). Personally the faces don't look that great to me, but that's personal. Also might be because I'm Dutch, so the Witty dolls are more readily available to me. Jakks Dolls I have to import.
    Heh, sorry for prattling on. Winx does that to me.
    Anyway, great review, and I'm happy you've finally gave your opinion on a Witty doll.

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    1. I can't tell you how happy I was to read your comment, P-girl! I got completely sucked in to the Winx history as I was writing this review, and had to form some very fast impressions. I haven't seen a lot of these dolls in person, so I felt a little bit in over my head! Your opinions really solidify many of the things I was reading and thinking.
      I got super-confused when I started browsing Italian Amazon for Winx dolls. There are the regular Witty dolls, the hybrids that you mentioned, and then some that look exactly like the Jakks dolls we have here. It's tricky to know what each doll is--I did lots of peering at small pictures! I have been back on the secondary market looking for a Giochi Bloom and now I feel like I know what I am doing a bit better. Some of the dolls are wonderful!
      However, I am glad I ended up with a Witty doll this time around since it added to my knowledge and I ended up liking the doll quite a lot!
      Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts (and for the Layla/Aisha recommendation)--I find this incredibly helpful! :D

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  11. OMIGOSH YOU FOUND A TECNA! there so rare here.anyway i love the witty better than jakks pacific

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    1. Hi Katrina! Tecna can be hard to find here, too. She is the most scarce of all of the characters. I haven't seen another Power Tecna since I found this girl. Actually, now that I think of it, I haven't seen any of the Believix Power series since the first time I saw them! They must be quite popular--which I understand!

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  12. All three are beautiful. You mentioned that Techna is paler than the Blooms and I had to chuckle thinking about the Blooms always being in the sun and Techna at her computer...the old stereotype for tech gurus never seeing the sun.

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    1. LOL! I hadn't thought of that, Melody! Perfect. :D

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  13. Looks like Tecna's "power ball" is just a furball. Awesome review Emily! :D

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    1. Indeed, it is! :D I should glue googly eyes on it and make it her pet. ;)

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  14. You see, this is why reading your blog is so very dangerous! I had forgotten that I wanted a Bloom doll. Between the three, I like Everyday Bloom best and her price would make her totally irritable. I am really longing for one of the more original ones though. Wings are an absolute must. I might start by watching some of the TV series and take it from there....

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    1. Yes, I have to watch the show, too, Nat Kat! I know I will get completely sucked in. :) The dolls are on crazy clearance sales here. I'll keep an eye out for a special Bloom. So far, I have only seen the Sirenix Bloom on sale. She's pretty cute, though...

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  15. I think once you get over the fact that Fruity Bloom looks nothing like the cartoon, it's not a bad doll at all, with that articulation, quality hair and unique mattress.

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    1. I agree! It takes some time to get used to the face, but it's worth it. I wish Jakks would switch to using the same type of hair fiber that Fruity Bloom has. That would be fantastic!

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  16. My daughter has a Mattel Bloom. I can take some pics if you are interested, although I don't have any of the other Blooms. Although with Target's sales, picking up a friend for Bloom wouldn't be too expensive. Hmmmm.

    I studied Spanish for seven years, so reading Italian is not as difficult as it might be otherwise. My eldest daughter studied Latin for three years and Spanish for four, including three years in Honors. She is now in Honors French II and finding it incredibly easy. Go Romance languages!

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  17. about everyday bloom- i have dolls like that with wings, but they are in a fairy outfit and it comes with my 3 favorite- bloom, flora, and stella, but out of the "frutty/ fruity/ frutti" dolls i like musa, aisha, and bloom, and out of the everyday i like ( going by outfits for this because i already said some) bloom, musa, and again, flora

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  18. Emily~So glad to have found your blog! I refurbish (and collect) vintage dolls (and a few modern dolls) and there are not many (good) blogs on doll collecting out there! Happy to find yours! I have another longstanding blog about where I live (in the Appalachians) but just teased out my doll blog (new) as a separate one! Hope you stop on by. You do a great and comprehensive review of the doll you feature! I, too, have college degrees. :-) Glad to meet 'ya! Back to reading your blog, now. My husband supports my doll hobby also! Louvregirl (Karen) P.S. I sell some of the dolls I refurbish and restore on eBay as well!

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  19. Emily~ On another topic, have you ever reviewed the Japanese (let's say) Sekiguchi Momoko doll; 'Honey Wild;' (although there are many variations of the Momoko doll) or any other Momoko doll? They look fabulous. I am 'tempted' to buy one [although I am a vintage Barbie (mainly) aficionado...] LOVE love the Japanese dolls. Hey! Barbie was (originally) made there! lg!

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    1. She has a Momoko review - http://www.toyboxphilosopher.com/2012/11/momoko-love-dhexl-10th-anniversary-doll.html. Did you try the custom search at the top of the page? There are several Japanese toys reviews. My favourite is of the J-doll "Joseph Splatz".

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  20. Ok, I don't know if someone has already commented this but, you need to take pictures of fruity bloom on her pool floaty thing in the summer, and then put them on this blog

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  21. I wonder how these compare to the fully articulated disney fairy dolls I've seen at Walmart and toys r us! They have wrist joints and cute shoes as well, but I wonder how their range of motion compare...

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  22. Yes, you finally found yourself a foreign Winx doll you liked! The Giochi dolls I was talking about was this kind:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/98783647@N02/9274857305/

    The tallest one at the very end. :]

    Witty Winx dolls are beautiful though, I'd love to collect the entire Frutti line someday. :) I've always loved the faces those dolls have though, they're so unique and colorful.

    Glad you love your Believix Power Tecna! I'd love to get the whole collection myself, but money and doll overcrowding on my shelves prevents me from doing so. I'm still trying to complete the entire 2012 Believix collection.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/90661829@N05/10092949964/in/set-72157632646438186

    Can't wait to see the rest of your new Giochi Preziosi dolls!

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  23. Have you considered reviewing a Maru doll? They are adorable and attempt to be diverse. I am considering getting one, but have been holding off since my Kidz n Catz disappointment. (Beautiful dolls, but did not fall in love)

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  24. the phrase about the Frutti bar says: "Have fun with the Winx at Frutti music bar"
    even when I've watched some episodes of the animated series, and the fact that I love fairies, I've never felt tempted to get a Winx doll. Even so, that Star Trek Tekna (I found that kinda amusing XD) looks really pretty.
    good review!

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  25. I always say to myself if i ever get into the toy making business get it approved by Emily! But seriously great review. While I've NEVER been interested in the show or the dolls (after the third tinkerbell movie i gave up on fairies XD) your review has persuaded me. Overall I think that Fruity Bloom is more brighter and more appealing to kids while everyday bloom is sorta blah. But i have to say one thing that erks me about both...the fairies is that while tecna has wings they don't to me they just look like girls so I think it would have been better for them to have came with wings. Fairies that don't have wings just messes with my brain. Anyways great review Emily!

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    1. The reason that some dolls have wings and some don't is because in the Winx world fairies are basically like humans except they have magical powers. The Winx can use their magical powers whenever they want but they transform into fairies when they get into a battle to fight villains like witches, monsters, etc. So the two Bloom dolls are wearing outfits seen in the series, but the Tecna doll is wearing an outfit based on her Believix transformation, which is used primarily in season 4 (and in season 5 for a bit) to fight evil. Hope that helped!

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  26. Lovely review. I must admit that Mattel's winx have really spoiled me for other versions but Jakks is really doing a lot better in their newer releases to actually have nice hair & different make-up (verses the year one dolls that all had the same) and seem to really be listening to the fans. While the rainbow versions of the believix dolls seem a little superfluous I also can't deny both their beauty & the fact that details are better overall than the original believixes.

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  27. Wow tecna is soo pretty!! Also I'm not sure if you noticed or not but the newer winx club dolls have a better quality hair material than the old ones.
    p.s.
    if you are to ever review more winx dolls could you pretty please review the new toys r us exclusives color change sirenix dolls?

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  28. Not sure if anyone has mentioned this already, but in the believix power series, they all have their true hair color from the cartoons....why not all their hair colors match their overall color theme. The ones that do have matching hair color to theme is because that is their true hair color in the shows already. I just purchased believix power techna, bloom, and flora (one for me and one for each of my daughters). Can't wait to open them up! My daughters and I love watching the winx club shows together. Also, for any crocheters put there, I will be adding the winx club dolls to my blog where I create and share crochet doll clothes patterns: www.paperdollmom.blogspot.com

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  29. Hi. Do you know of any stores in Italy that sell the Winx dolls? My parents are going to Rome, Venice and Florence next month, and I was hoping they could find some for my daughter. The selection where I live, at Toys R Us is very poor. Only Bloom and Stella are available and my daughter loves Musa.

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  30. If you have never been across the pond to Scotland, then you have never visited it magnificent Capital city of Edinburgh. What could you be missing out on? There are many answers to this question and so, I am giving you a short insight into some of the things you may not know exists there, including the city below the city. Famous teddy bears

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