Saturday, February 16, 2013

Integrity Toys Doll Comparison Review

I have wanted to write this review for a long time.  It is probably too ambitious, but I'm going to give it my best shot anyway.  Last year, during the Jason Wu Integrity Toys pre-ordering frenzy (which I have no skill at whatsoever) I had a vision of doing a comparative review between Integrity dolls across different price points.  In particular, I have always been curious about the differences between a Fashion Royalty doll and a Dynamite Girl.  I wanted the dolls I compared to look similar and I wanted to like all of them enough that I would buy them even without this crazy review scheme.  The problem is, the Integrity pre-order situation is hard enough without throwing in so many other constraints.  Still, I did pretty well.  I ordered "Back to Brooklyn" Gavin, a Dynamite Girl ($65.00), and Fashion Royalty "World on a String" Eugenia Perrin ($110.00).  I also ordered the discontinued ITBE doll, Confident ($19.99).  They are all redheads.  The dolls arrived at various times over the past year.  Eugenia trailed the pack and didn't make her appearance until the end of December.  Having just gone through the Integrity pre-order for 2013, I thought that this would be a good time to de-box my 2012 girls and see what Integrity has to offer at three very different prices.

Left to right: Dynamite Girl ($65), Fashion Royalty ($110), ITBE ($20).
All of the dolls are approximately 12 inches tall, but the boxes get bigger as the doll gets more expensive.  Also, the box design gets simpler as the price point increases:

Left to right: Fashion Royalty, Dynamite Girl, ITBE.
I'll give you a quick peek at each doll and her box before I look at the details.

A while back, I wrote a review that compares the ITBE line to the Barbie Basics.  This ITBE doll, Confident, is from the same series as the doll in that review, so her box is identical.  I am not going to talk a lot about packaging in this post, but I'll mention a few things.  The doll is attached to a bright pink three-sided display which slides into a decorated cardboard sleeve.  The sleeve has a black and white picture of the Trevi fountain (Rome).  I guess the Trevi fountain is a popular doll destination.  The doll is tied in with satin ribbons, so the de-boxing experience is short and pleasant.


First glimpse:


I pulled the plastic band away from her eyes to get a better look.  She has orange-red hair and hazel eyes:

Gorgeous face.
The Dynamite Girl box is very shiny and black and has a decorative band advertising the Back to Brooklyn line.  The inside of the box is lined with a cardboard insert that frames Gavin with subtle grey and white stripes.  The doll is secured with four satin ribbons.


There's a sepia picture of a section of the Brooklyn bridge:


First glimpse:


She has dark red hair and bright green eyes:


The Fashion Royalty box is similar in construction to the Dynamite Girl box, but it doesn't have the decorative band that slides on and off.  The box has a very minimalist gold "FR" on the front.  Eugenia is tied into the box with four white ribbons.


Eugenia comes with a ton of accessories that require their own separate drawer at the bottom of the box:


First glimpse:


Eugenia has auburn hair and forest green eyes.  She looks pissed:


Let me pause to give you my initial impressions.  First of all, unpacking Integrity dolls is an experience.  There's no plastic to wrestle, and the dolls themselves come out very easily, but it isn't always simple to get all of the little bits and pieces removed.  Everything about the packaging is artfully presented and cleverly designed, so for me, the small frustrations come mostly from trying to preserve the beauty of the box.  I think these dolls are best opened while sitting next to a warm fire, sipping on a favorite drink, and taking the time to relish every small detail and every little added accessory.  

I am always amazed by the number of clothing items and accessories that accompany Integrity dolls.  The clothing is fantastic.  The fabrics are diverse and high-quality and the colors and designs seem hip and refreshing.  In addition, the dolls' faces are all interesting.  The ITBE girl has a benign, beautiful face.  Gavin has a bit more feistiness in her features, and Eugenia can look downright diabolical from some angles.  At first glance, it seems like the more you pay, the more atitude you get.

Let's go back to the ITBE doll, "Confident:"  


Confident comes with a stand and a pair of shoes.  The shoes are wedge-heeled sandals made out of hard plastic.  They're cute and are very easy to get on and off.  I love that they have Jason Wu's "W" logo on the top.


The stand has a hollow white square base and a telescoping metal pole.  At the top of the pole, you can choose to attach a plastic saddle suport, or a plastic grip support.  I prefer the saddle option, though I'm not sure Confident agrees:



The doll's hair is plastered down around her face with some styling product.  Her features are a bit generic, but I like that she has a different face mold from my other ITBE doll, and I like that she doesn't look like a Barbie mimic.


Her eyes are painted in two shades of brown, giving them an overall hazel appearance.  She has painted upper and lower lashes.  The pastel pink eyeshadow is distractingly overdone, but the shade of pink is so light, it's not as bad as it could have been.  I think her dramatically arched, dark eyebrows clearly identify her as an Integrity doll:


She has short, curled pumpkin colored hair.  The hair looks a little flat in profile right out of the box:



Confident is wearing a peach colored shirt dress.  The style of the dress is a strange princess-meets-cowboy hybrid.  The top of the dress has a vaguely Western style to it with those shoulder details, but the balloon sleeves remind me of a Disney Princess dress or something from the 1830s.  

Here's a closeup of the sleeve:


I want YOU
To notice my sleeves.
The plunging neckline is sewn closed and I can't be sure if that stitch was meant to be cut or not.  I'm thinking not.  That would be a very eye-catching neckline.

Whoa, cowboy.
The dress is cinched at the waist with a slightly ratty pearlescent pink belt.  The belt does not stand up very well to repeated dressing and undressing.


No, my dog wasn't playing with it.
The dress is made out of a light-weight seersucker texture fabric with a slight sheen.  It has four metal snaps down the back and is very easy to get on and off.


The stitching on the dress is thorough and neat. Everything is hemmed and finished.  The detail in this dress is impressive for such a seemingly simple garment.


I brushed this doll's hair until the plastered parts around her face loosened up.  The hair fiber is middle-of-the-road in terms of texture.  It's a bit coarse, especially at the ends, but it isn't tangled and unpleasant to touch or anything like that.  

It's either really awesome, edgy runway hair...or maybe she has some troll ancestry??

Rawr.

It was a bit tricky to contain the hair.   It's very, ah...exuberant.  I do like how the brushed hair softens her facial features though:



This doll's body is almost exactly the same as the other ITBE I reviewed.  She has eight points of articulation (neck, shoulders, torso, hips, knees).  Her knee joints are internal.


However, Confident does not have the freaky body color differences that the other doll (Desirable) has.  Desirable's body is pale in the torso and pinkish in the limbs.  The color difference makes her torso look yellowed.  Confident's body is all one single lovely shade of pale.

Hey--how'd you get your hair so straight?
Ok, so I admit that in this picture, Confident's body looks a tiny bit two-toned.  I promise you that is is almost completely unnoticeable in real life.  The mismatched body parts are much more obvious with the blonde doll.
Not that desirable.
I am really glad I took a look at this doll, because she is much more fun than the other ITBE doll I reviewed.  Her outfit is interesting and easy to use, the fabric doesn't stain, the body parts match and the doll has a nicely painted face and distinctive hair.  She is an excellent purchase for $19.99, and a great, affordable way to get your hands on an Integrity doll.



Although the ITBE line is discontinued, you can still find a few of these dolls lingering at some of the doll shops.  I ordered Confident from the Doll Peddlar, and while this doll is sold out now, Judy still has several other ITBE girls.  Windy City Dolls has a few left, too.

Incidentally, I ordered my 2012 Integrity dolls from three different shops (Doll Peddlar, Angelic Dreamz and Ideas, etc, Toys, etc.) and had great experiences with all of them.  I placed my 2013 pre-order with The Doll Peddlar because it was the only one of my favorite shops that had the doll I wanted.  


Next up, here is the Dynamite Girl, "Back to Brooklyn Gavin" ($65.00):


Gavin comes with a stand and a pair of boots.  The boots are made out of a very soft, pliable fake leather material.  They look like they'll be hard to get on and off, but it is actually super easy.  They look great, too:


The boots have a black plastic sole with a stiletto heel:


Gavin comes with a stand that is almost identical to the ITBE stand.  It is made out of black plastic and has the same saddle and waist grip options.  The only difference (besides color) is that the attachements for this stand screw into place.  The ITBE attachments just slide on and off.


Gavin has long, wavy deep red hair.  It is gorgeous, but very prone to static flyaways.  



The hair fiber is soft and smooth and (aside from the static) brushes out beautifully.  



Of the three dolls, Gavin has my favorite face.  She has some personality in her thick, arched eyebrows and pouty lips, but not so much personality that I can't project a wide range of emotions on her.


She has thick, dark applied lashes that shade her two-toned green eyes.  She has subtle iridescent greenish yellow eyeshadow that accents her eyes really nicely.  Her full lips have an exaggerated shape and are painted in a natural shade of rose-pink.


Gavin's outfit is amazing.  It's hard for me to believe that a $65 doll has so many detailed pieces of clothing.  I don't know what to call her look, exactly, maybe vintage professional?  It has a mix of colors and styles that remind me of the 1970s, but the tailoring is very sleek and polished.

She's wearing a mustard colored fitted blazer with a two-layer khaki and brown velvet trim.  You can see that the jacket is a bit pinched in at the waist--from where the box ribbon was tied pretty tightly:



The fit of the jacket is perfect--with just the cuff of the shirt showing at the wrist:


The jacket is fully lined.  Underneath the jacket, she is wearing a green wool vest:


Again, the stitching and fit of the vest are remarkable.



Underneath the vest, Gavin is wearing a textured red button-down fitted shirt. The shirt has tiny buttons sewn down the front, but the real closure is a series of metal snaps.  


Look at the crease detail in the sleeve:


There are no shortcuts in construction here.  It is an amazing little miniature dress shirt:



Gavin is wearing grey corduroy boot cut trousers with a working dark green belt at the waist.

I'd wear those.
Even the pants are lined:


The Dynamite Girl body has twelve points of articulation (neck, shoulders, torso, elbows, wrists, hips and knees.


She has wonderful arm and head movement.  Her torso joint only moves slightly from side to side (not back and forth):


Her hips and knee articulation are very good, too--she can even kneel:


Gavin essentially has the Poppy Parker body (reviewed here) with fashion feet and no articulation in the ankles.  Gavin is slightly shorter than Confident and slightly taller than Poppy.  The height differences between the three dolls are all due to different leg structure.


Poppy's legs (L), Gavin's legs (R).
Poppy Parker, Confident and Gavin all have the same torso mold.  I think Gavin has the most realistic skin tone in her vinyl.  She makes Confident look grey-ish white and Poppy look a tiny bit yellow.


Gavin can share shoes and clothes with the ITBE doll to some extent.  Tops and dresses trade back and forth really well, but Gavin's pants are too tight for the ITBE legs.



So, finally, here is the Fashion Royalty doll, "World on a String Eugenia Perrin:"


She comes with a hat, a stand, a purse, shoes, an extra pair of hands and some jewelry.  The stand has a solid clear plastic base, a metal telescoping pole and a white plastic saddle support.  It's a great stand for dolls with tight skirts.


The hat is covered in black flocking and comes with two little hat pins.


The black flocking sheds everywhere.  It's a good thing the hat came in a separate plastic bag.  What a mess!

Someone has fleas.
I tried the hat on once and then put it right back into the plastic bag.  It's way too messy and it doesn't fit very well on her head.  It perches on top of her curled hair and makes her look like a teapot:

Tip me over.  I dare you.
In contrast, the purse is fabulous.  It's a perfectly constructed little replica:


  It is made out of a lilac faux leather with an embossed floral pattern:


All of the details and attachments are stitched and/or riveted.  As far as I can tell, there's no glue in the construction of this purse.


It's hard to open the tiny little latch, but the effort is rewarded by a working zipper:


Here are the other accessories from the drawer at the bottom of the box:

Who knew hands were an accessory?
There are earrings, a matching finger ring and a metal bracelet.  I love the cameo-set design of the earrings and ring.


The shoes are high heeled pumps with patent leather heels and toes and a tinted transparent body:


The heels are strangely set on these shoes, and I am not sure if it intentional (to work with the angle of the doll's foot?) or if the heels were attached slightly crooked.


To have an extra pair of hands is fun, but they are so similar to the original hands, I don't think I'll use them very much.  They can grip things a bit better than the original hands, and they are good for pointing.


Man, oh, man.  Eugenia's face is intimidating.  She gives the evil eye like no other doll in my house:


Eugenia has amazing face paint with buckets full of personalty.  She has applied eyelashes in addition to dramatic painted black upper lashes.   Her irises are very small and side-glancing, making them hard to see, but they have rings of olive and forest green.  She has a thin line of mint-colored eyeliner just above her lashes, and then a dark brown accent above that, followed by faint yellow highlight.  She has a sardonic arched brow and a full, pouty pink mouth.

Do not taunt Happy Fun Eugenia.
Her hair is a mix of of blonde and auburn brown.  It is arranged in a fairly simple style with one section of hair pulled back over her right ear and the rest of her hair looped into a large curl.  There's quite a bit of styling product keeping this hair locked down.




I dislike fake fur clothing, not just because it derives from garments made out of dead animals, but because I simply don't like how it looks.  I bought Eugenia with the intention of keeping her coat in the box.  Still, the green blouse underneath shows a lot of promise, and I have to admire the coat for its detail and construction:


The coat has a houndstooth wool body and fur sleeves.  I love the black and white checkered part of the coat and wish the sleeves were made out of that fabric, too.


The coat is cinched with a patent leather belt that is of much higher quality than the ITBE belt. 


The coat actually has a detachable fur stole that I mistook for a large collar:


The stole has tiny thread loops that attach to little black buttons around the edges of the coat:



The coat closes in front with two metal hooks and is lined in black satin.  It is a little work of art.  

Despite my admiration for the quality of the coat, I much prefer how Eugenia looks in just her skirt and blouse.  The feminine cut and fabric of the shirt softens her scary look:


The blouse is made out of lime green silk and has an embroidered greenish-yellow dot design: 



This tiny loop of thread is the only sewing error I found in all of the garment on all three dolls.  Not bad.



The blouse does a great job of bringing out the green in Eugenia's eyes:


Eugenia is wearing a salt and pepper pencil skirt with a long slit on one side:


By now it should be no surprise that the skirt is fully lined, has a real zipper and even has a zipper guard:



The problem with removing Eugenia's fur coat is that her hair was styled to sit just above the large collar of the coat.  It hovers awkwardly above the collar of the blouse:


 I tried loosening the hair  and pushing it down around her face...


...but it just springs back up:

Sproing!!
I tried brushing her hair to loosen the curl, but without the gel to hold the hair in place, it started to look pretty bad.  The big curl doesn't soften enough to hang naturally on her shoulders, and yet it is loose enough for the static to invade:


I had to tie her hair back into a single, severe ponytail.  


With one of the extra pointing hands attached and her hair styled like this, she looks like she's about to give some unsuspecting person a piece of her mind:

No talking in the library!
Eugenia's body is quite different from both the ITBE body and the Dynamite Girl body.  She has thirteen points of articulation--all of the joints that Gavin has plus an additional swivel waist.

Egads!  What happened to my waist?!

She has a broad chest and a funny little bottom:


Her bottom is seriously about four sizes too small for the rest of her body.  

Man-waist.
Here's the naked lineup.  The Confident doll has Gavin's torso and Eugenia's legs...and a question:

Um...excuse me?  Can I go stand next to that other girl instead?
Leg comparions: Eugenia and Gavin are in the picture on the left, and Eugenia and Confident are on the right.  Confident and Eugenia have the same leg mold--just different knee articulation.  Gavin's legs are shorter.


Gavin's torso is so much more realistic than Eugenia's peculiar shape:


Here's a comparison with my Barbie Fashionista Artsy.  Hard to criticize Barbie for being too skinny in this instance.


Between Gavin and Eugenia, I like Gavin's body much better.  The only thing Eugenia has over Gavin is that her knee joints rotate in and out.  I really like this feature, but it isn't worth it for the shrunken bott-o.


Gavin can wear Eugenia's clothes...but that silk blouse is a static machine:




Here's the strange thing: Eugenia, despite her tiny bottom, can't fit into Gavin's pants.  To be fair, I think it's actually Eugenia's thicker legs that make the fit so poor.


Gavin's shirt isn't nearly big enough for Eugenia's chest, either:


Here are all three dolls together:


Eugenia and Confident shouldn't even stand next to each other.  Granted, the price difference is huge (you could get five and a half ITBE dolls for the price of one Eugenia) but they are in completely different leagues.  Confident looks like a mannequin at a shop that Eugenia terrorizes visits.  


The comparison between Eugenia and Gavin is more interesting.  Gavin costs just slightly under half of what Eugenia costs, and yet Gavin arguably has just as much to offer.


Clothing?  Comparing the specific clothing on these two dolls is difficult because so much of their value depends on the individual taste of the collector.  For me, Eugenia lost two pieces of clothing right off the bat because the hat sheds and the coat isn't my style.  In general, though, the clothing is outstanding on both dolls.  I am blown away by the meticulous tailoring, fantastic details and careful stitching on every last one of the garments.

Extras? Comparing the accessories reveals a significant difference between the two dolls.  Eugenia has a lot more goodies:


World on a String Eugenia Perrin
Back to Brooklyn Gavin
Accessories
Stand
Hat
Shoes
Purse
Hands
Earrings
Ring
Bracelet
Stand
Shoes

The thing is, while I think the purse is incredible, I could probably do without all of the other accessories.  In fact, if it dropped Eugenia's price to $65, I'd be happy to surrender the purse, too. I am guessing that many collectors adore the little extras, though.  This year's mini gift set theme is good evidence for that.  

Doll?  Last, the two dolls themselves need to be compared:


World on a String Eugenia Perrin
Back to Brooklyn Gavin
Body
13 points of articulation
Strange body shape
Rotating hinged knees
12 points of articulation
Natural body shape
Simple hinged knees
Face
Applied lashes
Detailed paint
Conveys some personality
Looks angry
Applied lashes
Detailed paint
Conveys some personality
Looks spunky
Hair
Soft 
Style a bit difficult to work with
Nice two-toned color
Long, silky smooth hair
Versatile style
Beautiful color

A lot of this assessment comes down to personal taste, too.  For me, Eugenia is fabulous and dripping with attitude, but Gavin edges her out in a few critical categories.  I like the shape of Gavin's body more.  I think she has a nice, natural form and yet she still looks great with several layers of clothing.  I also prefer Gavin's face.  I am amused by Eugenia's haughty scowl, but I think I'd rather look at Gavin's spunky but approachable features every day.  I didn't like Eugenia's styled hair (especially with the coat removed) and it was difficult to relax her hair into a new style.  Gavin's long red hair is my idea of perfection.


I realize that I shouldn't jump to conclusions after looking at only one doll from each of these lines.  I'm sure you could find another pair of dolls from which I would overwhelmingly prefer the Fashion Royalty to the Dynamite Girl.  However, my experience with this review has changed the way I am thinking about the 2013 dolls.  Suddenly, it seems like I should have seriously considered getting two of the London Calling Dynamite Girls rather than choosing only one of the more expensive ($150-$200) dolls.    

To complicate things a bit, the 2013 Funny Face dolls, which are similar in presentation to the Fashion Royalty line, have the Dynamite Girl torso, not Eugenia's funny-butt.  We'll have to wait and see which body the 2013 Fashion Royalty dolls are sporting.

Bottom line? First of all, it's hard to go wrong with any Integrity doll.  The quality is outstanding.  I treasure all three of the dolls in this review--they have unique faces, highly articulated bodies and wear incredible high-fashion clothes.  Unless you love getting lots of accessories, though, it's worth taking a close look at the Dynamite Girls.  Given the significant drop in price from their Fashion Royalty cousins, there is no notable drop in quality.  Amidst a 2013 lineup of what I think are some shockingly expensive collector fashion dolls, the Dynamite Girls offer a top-notch product at a surprisingly good price.


45 comments:

  1. I love all of them! for some reason I think Raven would suit one of them really well. love your blog!!
    -Chloe

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    1. Thank you, Chloe! I like the name Raven--it can sound beautiful and bird-like, or a little bit dark and sinister! :)

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  2. Lovely review! I like ITBE Orange-hair one!she is very pretty! Don't like Gavin, but Eugenia is AWESOME!wonderful makeup!and fantastic outfit and bag!but her shoes are piece of crap,i'm afraid.... :)

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    1. Thank you, Urshula! Eugenia has a wonderful personality. She makes me smile. :) So--you think the shoes are put together badly, or do you just dislike the design? They did make me pause. The heels are at such a strange angle. I am used to Integrity shoes being pretty amazing, so these were a surprise.

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  3. I love the very long blog posts! I thought the ITBE in this review looked much more "quality" than the other one, I guess it was some combination of the hair/makeup/skintone. She has more expression in her face.

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    1. Thank you! You are kind to say that. ;)
      This ITBE doll was really fun to photograph. The camera LOVES her pretty face. It's so funny to me how the first ITBE I de-boxed was not so great, but this one is wonderful. I guess the quality is hit-or-miss?

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  4. I was originally going to start setting some money aside for a Poppy Parker, but now I am being drawn towards a Dynamite Girl... I like how you paired her fur stole with the shirt without the coat!

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    1. Thank you--I'm so glad you noticed the stole! I was really happy to discover that I can use part of that big coat. Eugenia needs a little fur in her wardrobe. ;)

      The Dynamite girls are a choice I overlooked until now--not sure why. They have many of the Integrity "wow" factors without the budget guilt. They also tend to be easier to find. I don't like this year's color palette as much as last year's Brooklyn line, but I think a few of them are wonderful. I have to say that Poppy is my favorite Integrity doll, though. She's harder to find, but there's something special about her.

      I hope you find just the right doll!

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  5. I always look forward to your reviews. They're very entertaining. :)
    I'm pleasantly surprised with thus one. I have to agree with you, between Eugenia and Gavin, I'd choose Gavin easily. Of course, part of that is I'm a bit intimidated by Eugenia's expression lol.

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    1. Thank you, Mandy! Yeah--Eugenia is pretty intimidating! Yikes! I do like her a lot, though. She's strangely realistic for having such an incredible pout on her face. Gavin is just amazing. I like her, and I want her outfit in my size. ;)

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  6. I bought my first Integrity dolls last year with the release of Jem and the Holograms. I had been a big fan since I was little and was exploding with excitement when they announced the new dolls. Even at the high price tag I quickly pre-ordered Jem, Synergy and Jerrica and I was not disappointed. The dolls were worth every penny. As a fan I could truly appreciate all the hard work that went into recreating the small details in the characters I love.

    The only qualm I had with them is that their hair felt like it really had been melted together in a gnarled rats nest . But after a very vigorous shampoo and conditioning they look beautiful!

    It had been over four years since I had let myself buy a toy but the beautiful craftsmanship of them, reminded me why I love toys. Its bad news for my bank account but I am happy and back to toy collecting.

    Thank you for another fabulous and insightful post!

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    1. Thank you so much! I love your story. It is great to hear that the Jem line is accurate and well done (and that the hair is fixable). I like how you say they have "beautiful craftsmanship"--that captures it perfectly. Integrity does everything so well. I haven't watched the Jem and the Holograms show yet, so I have to admit that I haven't paid much attention to these dolls except to admire their styling and awesome hair. I am feeling tempted to watch the show now, though...

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  7. I've always wondered what the differences were in the types of Integrity dolls, no one else has really gone into it that much. Thanks so much for your in depth reviews! :D Can I ask what camera you use though? I'm currently on the hunt for a good camera, and your pictures always look so good. :)

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    1. Oh, gosh, Emma! I have been having such camera trouble lately. Actually, we have been discussing the possibility of a new camera. It's so encouraging to hear you say that the pictures look nice! Thank you!! To answer your question, I am currently using a little Canon PowerShot SD850 IS, called the "Digital Elph." It's really hard to find a camera that will take nice pictures indoors. Good luck in your hunt! :)

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  8. Hermosas muñecas, pero concuerdo que Gavin es mejor, mas armoniosa y la ropa está bella, sobre todo la camisa y las botas.
    Me encanta tu análisis y comparación. Es muy detallado.
    Saludos, Naty de Villa Caramelo :)

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    1. ¡Gracias! Deseo ropa de Gavin entró en mi tamaño. :)

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  9. Hi Emily. Thanks for the great review. I had never even heard of these dolls and they are all so amazing. However, if there is one thing we can conclude from the expressions on these girls faces, it is that money does not buy happiness! It is funny that the more expensive the doll, the more unhappy they look :) The sour look on Eugenia's face is fantastic. I imagine that you will have a lot of fun posing her in different amusing scenarios. Overall, I like Gavin the best. She is so beautiful and I adore her hair. I am very impressed by the quality of the clothing on these dolls.

    Thank you for your email yesterday. I am worried that my emails to you are getting lost in cyberspace. I presumed that you weren't responding because you were too busy (which would be understandable), but I would hate to think that they were getting lost :(

    Happy birthday for tomorrow by the way. x

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    1. Nat, I was totally thinking the same thing as I read Emily's post! The basic doll looks far, far happier than her expensive cousin. And I have to agree that Gavin is the best of the lot. Maybe the middle road is the best one after all!

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  10. This was a good post! I always wanted to see the comparison's between dolls.
    I'm a big fan of the the FR face's but the Dynamite Girls have the better body to me. I like both the FR and DG but I think I'd prefer a DG over FR, I'm not big on accessories ha!

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  11. Hello from Spain: I love the analysis and comparative study of these three dolls. My favorite clothes and accessories is Eugenia Perrin. She wears gorgeous. But my favorite is Gavin doll. How fortunate that you have the three dolls. Keep in touch

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  12. Keep blogging. I love it. I always visit--but never comment! Your eye is keen but your wit is keener. Thank you, don

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  13. This is really helpful, I never knew the difference between the different Integrity doll lines. I'm happy to discover I prefer Gavin hands down - she doesn't have the angular "supermodel face" and she's almost affordable! :) The details on the clothes are just amazing.

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  14. That last pair of pictures makes me think Eugenia looks like she could be Gavin's super-stern mother, lol!

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  15. The Dynamite Girls are so pretty and I'm glad to learn they're great quality too, later this year or next year I might have to try one out (not much of a possibility currently!)
    Most other Integrity lines look too stuck up to me though!

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  16. I love the static picture! That is my head after removing a sweater or sweatshirt this winter. Great review.

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  17. First I'd like to congratulate you with your birthday! It's today, isn't it? My mom found a box to ship the doll in and I'll send her to you as soon as I get the change!

    Now about the review:
    At first I didn't really like the look of Confident but when you fixed her hair she came to live for me. I think her face paint is excellent and I adore her outfit. It's a great doll for that price!
    Gavin, however, is perfect to me. I think she's the complete picture and I agree with everything you said about her. Her outfit is amazing, her hair is beautiful (even when it's static) and het face is flawless. I love real eyelashes on dolls, those are always a big plus for me. She looks friendly but she also has enough attitude. I think she's the best option out of the three.
    I like Eugenia, but as you know I'm not a high-end fashion doll collector. She looks a bit to angry for my taste, and her hairstyle isn't exactly my fave either. I admire the quality of her outfit though (all the outfits are of great quality) and I like the style.
    Her jewelry is great and I'd kill for that purse. But she's just not my dream gal.
    Thanks for this review Emily, it was very interesting and you had me laughing a couple of times, just as usual ^^

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  18. You should try a Nu.Face model by Integrity, they are the "younger" Fashion Royalty, they have the same torso of Gavin, but are FR height, also, thay are considered on FR "League". I feel like they are considered women in different stages of thier life, like the FR are "sexy-mature" i.e. 30+; Nu.Face "model-chic" early 20's and Dynamite Girls are cute teenagers

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  19. Hi, when will be ready the jdolls review?

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  20. Speaking of evil looks, have you considered reviewing the Disney Villain dolls? C: Cheers!

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  21. Really fantastic review!

    I think Eugenia has one of the earlier FR bodies (which was criticized for having an unnatural shape, as you pointed out). The NuFace and the newer FR2 bodies have a more realistic waist-to-hip ratio, and they can get into a lot of other clothes more easily (that was my problem with the older FR bodies: they seemed so "Amazon-like" that they couldn't really fit into the clothes of fashion dolls with similar height.)

    I love the proportions of Dynamite Girls: not only are they more realistic and able to get into a lot of fashion doll clothes (including Barbie's), but their feet can also squeeze into the Christian-Louboutin-for-Barbie shoes, which is a great option for "finishing" all those gorgeous outfits! (I also have Back-to-Brooklyn Gavin, and she's got great attitude!:))

    Thanks for this great in-depth review!

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  22. I was hoping to see you reviewing Integrity dolls someday... and you did !
    I have this Gavin too and I'm a big fan of Dynamite Girls
    It was funny and interesting to read your take on these girls ;)

    Which 2013 dolls di you order?

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  23. I really loved this review, did you take any pictures of Eugenia's jewellery accessories?

    Also I can't tell if it's just me or the camera angles but Gavin's eyes look seriously wonky in some pictures, particularly the one below the picture of her stand.

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  24. Hi Emily!

    Totally off topic, but have you seen any pictures out of Toy Fair? This site has some great pictures of several of the doll lines that you are interested in. And no, I am not affiliated with this site in any way. I just go there every year and drool over all the new toys.

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  25. Hi:-) I love your blog. It's informative and your picture captions are too good!

    Personally, I don't like Confident. I don't know exactly what it is, probably here face/face mold. I don't like her out-of-the-box hairstyle, though you helped it a great deal.
    Gavin is very pretty, I love her hair colour, it's exactly like my sisters, who is also quite pale. Her outfit is lovely, I also get a sorta retro workin' woman feel off it. I also like the trousers, though they wouldn't fit me if scaled up to human size.
    Eugenia is very high fashion like, not the avetage pink and pretty beauty.
    She looks very aggro and like she needs to be taken to her Happy Place, but I like her face mold, it's fulla personality ya know? Don't get me started on the clothes, they're divine. I personally don't mind faux fur, as its just basically plastic/fluff and tbh, I like the way it looks (though I despise real fur as I adore animals) . The coat is pure quality, and the outfit is quite soft and feminine overall, a sharp contrast to Aggro Annies face mold,hehe.
    Despite popular opinion, Eugenia is my favourite,funny butt 'n all.
    Best wishes and blessings
    Clare Rose

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  26. Now I am a big big fan of Jason Wu's dolls series. I got the second hand one which i think, she is Fashion Royalty although the sales person said, it's Dynamited Girl. Your review makes me know about the joint and my doll is more FR than Dynamited Girl while I can't find her on Dynamited Girl's achieve in the website.

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  28. I first found your wonderful and informative site while trying to find out the size of a Tonner doll. Strangely the Tonner site seems to think we will buy dolls without knowing their size.

    Now I'm roaming through your posts, learning about all KINDS of new to me dolls and thoroughly enjoying myself. Thank you so much!

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  29. I am happy to found this blog. Show appreciation you for posting this...I just have to say Great information about it
    http://www.apparelnbags.com/hanes/index.htm

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  30. It kept bothering me that Confident looked familiar but couldnt fig out how. Now that I figured it out I cant unsee it. She looks exactly like a readheaded Sandra Bulock!

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  31. Thanks so much for this review--it's really helped me better understand the difference between the Dynamite Girls dolls and Fashion Royalty. You have a wonderful method of explaining, but visually and verbally.

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  32. This is an amazing review! I've never been interested in dolls aside from playing with them from my childhood. You even got me interested and giggling at the funny parts. They are all fabulous, but I especially like Gavin. I think she's so beautiful and that luxurious flowing mane! The outstanding quality of the clothes and accessories had me in awe. I never realized that they could come in such high quality. Now you've inspired me and I want to start my own collection! I love Eugene's bag, it's darling. Fantastic review, you just earned yourself another follower!

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  33. each outfit suits gavin very well! i definitely prefer the outfits of both confident and eugenia on gavin rather than the dolls they were originally on.

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  34. Eugenia reminds me of one of my teachers! XD

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  35. Oh my gosh! I just saw a Netflix commercial on TV (the airport one) and instantly recognized the girl in the commercial and I knew I'd seen her on your blog and now I realize that Eugenia looks JUST like the girl! Laughing so hard.

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