The American Girl Store in Boston

It has always been my plan to visit the American Girl store in Manhattan.  My mom lives in Manhattan, and I figured that the Big Apple would have a pretty great example of the American Girl shopping experience.  What I failed to notice, though, is that there's a big American Girl store in Boston, and Boston is 2 hours away from where I live in Maine.  So, this week I decided to hop in the car, go see what American Girl is all about, and finally purchase my first American Girl doll.  Many of the other dolls I have reviewed (Carpatina, Princess & Me, Our Generation, Karito Kids, Hearts 4 Hearts, My Twinn) beg a comparison to American Girl, which is a hard thing for me to do without ever having spent any time with an actual American Girl doll in my hands.  Besides, I'll admit it, there's a part of me that has always wanted to go to one of the American Girl stores and get one of those awesome big red bags.

Thanks to your help in my poll, I went to the store determined to purchase Rebecca.  I'll say right up front that the experience was nothing like I imagined it would be, and I did not end up buying Rebecca...or at least not in the way I thought I would.  Apologies up front about that.  Let me tell you about my experience at the store, show you some of my favorite items, and explain why I came home with a different doll (and a few other goodies).

The American Girl store in Natick, MA.

Ever After High "Madeline Hatter" by Mattel: A Guest Review!

It is very exciting to see the new doll lines hitting the shelves so early in the summer!  Ever After High dolls are already in stock at some Justice stores (not here in Maine quite yet...) and the Pinkie Cooper line seems to have made its debut in Great Britain.  I have dolls from both of these lines on their way to me (she says, pacing in front of the mailbox...), but in the meantime, I am super-lucky that a fellow blogger has offered to share her impressions of Madeline Hatter (a Rebel) with all of us.  I will step in and represent the Royals after I have a closer look at Apple White next week (Update: here's the review!).  For now, though, I am absolutely delighted to introduce my guest reviewer, AJ, and her gorgeous Maddie Hatter:

Ever After High Madeline Hatter.

Now, I will turn the rest of this post over to AJ.  Take it away, girl!

Monster High 13 Wishes "Haunt the Casbah" Clawdeen Wolf

After a long dry spell in doll releases, there were a ton of new Monster High dolls at Toys R Us last week.  Many of the 13 Wishes dolls were in stock, as were the Ghoulia/Cleo and Heath/Abbey two-pack sets.  My first instinct was to grab 13 Wishes Lagoona (because of her bright yellow hair, and because she comes with Neptuna in a purse-bowl) and Twyla (because she's a new character with the shorter body mold).  But then I put Twyla back because I don't really think she's very interesting and I'm not wild about her face.  I grabbed Ghoulia's two-pack because of that periodic table dress.  Eeep!  That is the best piece of Monster High clothing I have ever seen.  I eventually put that set back, too, though, because while the dress is amazing, the dolls don't look that different from dolls I already have.  The Heath and Abbey set was tempting because Heath is a new character (and a guy) and I don't have an Abbey doll out of her box yet, but Heath looks a little plain to me.  He doesn't have a lot of detail in his face or hair.  The deluxe 13 Wishes characters (Draculara, Frankie and Clawdeen) appeared to be the most interesting of all the new dolls, and among these three beauties, I find Clawdeen to be the prettiest.  I think Clawdeen is simply my favorite character--she always stands out to me with her dark skin and elegantly threatening claws.

13 Wishes Clawdeen Wolf, $29.99 at Toys R Us.

Lala-Oopsie Sea Horse "Sunstar" by MGA Entertainment

I have to admit that I have a fairly lukewarm reaction to full-sized Lalaloopsy dolls.  I enjoy looking at them in the stores, and some of the fairy tale dolls are super-sweet, but I have no desire to own any more of these oversized plastic characters.  The Lalaloopsy mini dolls and the Lala-Oopsie horses, on the other hand, are a completely different story.  The mini dolls have clever themes and adorable faces, and they come in small manageable packages, and the dolls are a size that is very easy to display and collect.  The Lala-Oopsie horses, despite their obvious resemblance to My Little Pony figures, are wonderful little toys (and pretty good dancers).

Because of my fondness for the Lala-Oopsie horses and minis, I have gotten into the habit of stopping by the Lalaloopsy aisle in Target and Walmart every now and then, just to see who is there and if perhaps there is a tempting sale. The other day at Walmart, I found an unexpected little cutie: a Lala-Oopsie Sea Horse.  There was only one left, an orange unicorn named "Sunstar," but she probably would have been my first choice anyway.  I love the color orange.

I figured that before I leave the Virgin Islands, I should give you a peek at Sunstar in her natural habitat:

Lala-Oopsie Sea Horse, "Sunstar."

The "Rapunzel" and "Mother Gothel" Disney Store Dolls for 2013

Simultaneous to the wonderful Twice Upon a Year sale (thank you for the tip, Astroasis!), the Disney Store updated their site with the 2013 princesses.  If it weren't for Kate's comment about this release in the Our Generation review, I wouldn't have noticed in time to bring a few of these new dolls with me on vacation.  Because of the big sale, all of the classic princesses (including the new ones) were $10 each.  I've said this before, but I'll say it again--I've yet to find any other doll on the market that can deliver equivalent quality for this price.  Assuming, of course, that the quality of Disney Store princesses hasn't changed much since last year.

I was tempted to order several of the new princesses.  Cinderella will have to join my collection at some point, of course, and I am also curious to see how the new Merida compares to her first release predecessor.  I am surprised by how tempting I find this year's Snow White doll, too, even though she is my least favorite princess.  I like Snow White much more after watching some of the charming ABC  television series, Once Upon a Time, in which Snow White is a spunky, rebellious character.

Above all, I was anxious to see Disney's ever-changing Rapunzel doll, and so she is the one I purchased first.  She arrived in the mail just in time to stow away in my luggage for our summer trip.  Mother Gothel insisted on coming along as a chaperone:

The Disney Store's "Rapunzel" and "Mother Gothel."

Poppy Parker Fashion Teen "Spring Morning" by Integrity

First of all, Rebecca is running away with the American Girl poll!  The poll closed and I haven't bought a doll yet, so I'll open up the voting for a few more days in case anyone wanted to weigh in but couldn't.  Thank you for helping me with this decision!  Second, I am on vacation, so I am s-l-o-w.  BUT!  There might be some beach blogging later in the week.

It's been a while since I've reviewed a larger fashion doll.  The 16" Poppy Parker "Fashion Teen" line was announced by Integrity in January of 2012 and the dolls started shipping last summer.  So...I am a little late with this, but I wanted to review this doll now for two reasons.  First, I missed out on the 2013 12" Poppys and I thought de-boxing some older Poppy dolls might make me feel better.  Second, the new Integrity 16" Tulabelle line is shipping and I want to be able to compare my Tulabelle to the Fashion Teens.

Integrity specializes in 12" fashion dolls, but seems to be trying to find a niche in the 16" market.  So far, we have seen the release of the AvantGuard dolls, the FR16 line, the larger Poppy Parker teens, and now Tulabelle.  Honestly, I am not sure if any of these dolls have been a huge success.  I have noticed that if you miss the Integrity pre-ordering frenzy and show up late to the party (as I often do) the 12" dolls are mostly sold out, but there are usually plenty of 16" girls to choose from.  All but one of the Poppy Parker Fashion Teen dolls can still be found for sale at their retail price of $150.

Large or small, Integrity offers gorgeous clothes and high quality, so I was pretty excited about de-boxing my behemoth Fashion Teen.  Here is Spring Morning:

Poppy Parker Fashion Teen
 "Spring Morning"

Our Generation "Charlotte" Doll by Battat

I have become much more interested in 18" play dolls recently.  In the comments section of a recent post, Juliet asked me if I own an American Girl doll, and I felt more than a little silly telling her that I do not.  Many of you know that I've thought about this purchase a lot, and I have every intention of reviewing one of these dolls (maybe Rebecca, Saige or Emily?  Will you help me decide in the poll on the right?), but I just can't seem to make it happen.  I think part of the reason is that there are so many amazing American Girl resources out there--Doll Diaries and Never Grow Up being among my favorites.  Those sites make me feel like I already have an American Girl doll, and so I tend to be more interested in investigating other options.

I often refer to the less expensive American Girl imitators when I am discussing the prices of various 18" dolls.  I have mentioned the Springfield Collection, the Journey Girls (Toys R Us) and Our Generation (Target).  I've never actually reviewed one of these brands, though.  The other day while I was browsing at Target, I noticed that the Our Generation girls were on sale for $18.99 (down from $22.99).  That's a pretty good deal.  Not only that, but there was a cute little redhead with bright blue eyes that I had never seen before sitting on the shelf all alone--clearly hoping that I would bring her home.  Meet Charlotte:

Our Generation doll, "Charlotte."
$18.99 on sale at Target.

Monster High "Headless Headmistress Bloodgood"

For the better part of this week, I have been working on a different Monster High review, but I was getting bogged down by too many pictures, mixed opinions and stuff like that.  I took a break to run some errands and check out what's on the shelves at Toys R Us and Walmart...and I am so glad I did.  I knew about the Headless Headmistress, but she had dropped off my radar somehow.  When I saw the shelves of Toys R Us lined with blue horses, I think I squeaked out loud and maybe jumped up and down once or twice.  What made it better is that I was clutching some beloved Toys R Us dollars, so the $42.00 price tag on this set wasn't quite as intimidating as it might have been.  I'll get back to that other Monster High review some day, but for today, I just couldn't wait to get Mistress Bloodgood and her blue steed out of their box:  

Monster High Headless Headmistress Bloodgood and
Nightmare.

The Arizona Doll and Toy Museum in Phoenix

I am back amidst the greenery (and cold) of Maine, and am working on my next normal review, but I want to quickly share one other neat spot I found in Phoenix.  Within walking distance from our hotel was the beautiful Heritage & Science Park, home to both the Arizona Science Center and the Arizona Doll and Toy Museum.  The park offered an excellent arrangement for my family--my son and husband made a beeline for the science center while I stopped in to check out the doll museum before joining them.  Everyone was happy--and both museums are excellent.

The Arizona Doll and Toy Museum is situated in an old house right next to the science center.  The house, called the Stevens-Haustgen house, was built 1901 and is a perfect place to display a big collection of lovely old dolls.  It costs $5 to tour the museum's four rooms, which seemed like a good deal to me.  All in all, I think I had about a half an hour to spend looking around, and this wasn't quite enough.  It would have been ideal to have twice that much time so that I could read all of the identification cards and maybe learn a thing or two about my very favorite dolls.  Because I was a bit rushed (and also distractedly excited by rooms filled with dolls...), I forgot to take a picture of the outside of the museum.  So, I'll just go ahead and start with a picture of my favorite display:

Antique bisque doll school scene at the Arizona Doll and Toy Museum
 in Phoenix, Arizona.

The Doll House and Toy Store in Scottsdale, Arizona

Well, I tried to track down a place called "JBS Dolls and Gifts." This shop advertised having custom porcelain dolls and doll making supplies, in addition to some collectable doll lines like Zapf and Madame Alexander.  Sounded perfect.  Unfortunately, I didn't call ahead or anything, and when we pulled into the shopping center where the store was supposed to be, there was no doll store.  Just a donut shop (not a bad thing) and a few other miscellaneous retail spots.  My second try was a few miles away in Scottsdale, at a place called The Doll House that Sarah (futuredoll) recommended (thank you, Sarah!).

The Doll House was easy to find and was right where it said it would be.  The store is bright and colorful and filled with high-quality toys and dolls.  A little fake frog croaked at me as I walked in the door, announcing my arrival to the friendly owners.  To my right, I could see a large display of Calico Critters followed by a wall of Breyer horses.   Off in a separate room on the right, I caught a glimpse of a huge Lee Middleton Newborn Nursery.  To my left were games and toys for younger kids.  I could see huge dollhouses at the back of the store.  This is one of those places that makes you happy the second you walk inside.

There were a thousand temptations in this store, but I decided to spend my limited time looking at what seemed to be their specialty--doll house miniatures.

Resin dollhouse miniature, "Jessica."

EuroGirl Diana Collection Doll by The Doll Factory

I've been pretty distracted lately--sorry.  There was a week of complete pandemonium in my house as we helped my son prepare for a big science fair in Phoenix.  Now that we're finally in Arizona, I have some time to relax and write.  I am so excited to be here--partly because of the science, but also because it's neat to be in the desert.  It looks completely different from Maine.   I mean, I saw a cactus at the side of the road last night as we drove from the airport.  A cactus.

My internet searching tells me that there are a few doll stores in this area, so I hope to have some time for live blogging later in the week (please let me know if you have a tip about a doll location in the greater Phoenix area!).  In the meantime, I'd like to quickly show you an 18" play doll that I have been wanting to de-box for a long time.  This is a (discontinued) EuroGirl from the Diana Collection.  She is a slim 18" size, like the Magic Attic and Carpatina dolls, but she has this amazing character face:

EuroGirl by The Doll Factory.

Funko POP! Cinderella

I got a tip a while ago about the presence of a Funko POP! Cinderella figurine.  This captured my attention for three reasons.  First, Cinderella.  Second, the name: "Funko Pop" sounds cool and is fun to say.  Third, I had never heard about Funko before, and I love learning about doll and toy companies and their products.  I decided to investigate.

Funko is a 15-year-old Washington-based company that is best known for making bobbleheads.  They also make a variety of pop culture items including action figures and plush toys.  The POP! line is a series of large-headed vinyl figures that are about 3 1/4 inches tall.   These toys have the proportions of bobble heads, but their heads don't bobble.  The figures cost anywhere from $1 (used) to $800 (discontinued), but the average price is about $10.  Cinderella was $8.99 at Amazon.

To me, Cinderella toys that cost under $10 are a special kind of awesome, so this funky princess quickly found her way to my house:

Funko POP!  Cinderella, $8.99.

Disney "Princess & Me" Rapunzel Jewel Edition Doll by Jakks Pacific

Over the last year, I have had several requests to review one of the Disney "Princess & Me" dolls.  I can understand why people are curious about these dolls.  First of all, at just under 20 inches tall, they make impressive gifts.  In addition, they portray the beloved Disney Princesses, and so collectors and enthusiasts of these characters will be tempted to own a large version of their favorite heroine.  Also, these dolls are comparably sized to many slim 18" play dolls like Carpatina, Kidz 'n' Cats and Magic Attic, which makes clothes-sharing an added temptation.

To be honest, I always walk a little faster past this section of the Disney doll aisle, purposefully avoiding eye contact with these huge princesses.  Their oversized faces and round, staring eyes freak me out a little.  Also, the price tag is a bit of a stunner.  All of the dolls cost $50 except for the Diamond Edition Cinderella, who (because of a bigger dress?) is $60.  That's really expensive for a Toys R Us play doll.  So, I have been reluctantly watching for a sale, but secretly hoping that I would never need to bring one of these large, glassy-eyed girls home with me.

As luck would have it, over April break, a really good sale started at Toys R Us.  All of the princesses (including Cinderella) were $39.99 (sale ends May 11th).  I headed over to my local Toys R Us and, with my teenaged son running in the opposite direction as fast as he could, I bit the bullet and settled in to inspect all of the dolls.  While Cinderella was the obvious choice for me, especially with the $20 off sale, I actually found Rapunzel to be the most appealing doll in the group:

Disney "Princess & Me" Rapunzel doll.

Monster High's Skelita Calaveras: A Guest Review!

For this post, I am thrilled to introduce an overseas friend who asked to write a guest review for the blog this week.  She and I both have Skelita Calaveras, one of the new Scaris Monster High dolls.  Since I am always bursting with opinions, I'll have to get my two cents in at the end, but I'll let our guest, known here as "LagoonaLicious," tell you all about Skelita first.  In fact, I'd like to start the review with her wonderful portrait.  I love this:

Skelita Calaveras portrait.

Juku Couture "Hayley" by Jakks Pacific

Update: two quick announcements: thanks to a reader suggestion, you can now translate the whole blog into the language of your choice with the Toy Box Translator (on the right).  This is fun even if you speak English.  I love the Latin translation of the blog title, In Toy Box Philosophus.  Classic.  Also, you can now follow the blog by email.  Hope that works.

Juku Couture dolls are 9 inch articulated plastic fashion dolls with inset eyes.  The dolls are named after a Japanese fashion trend called "Harajuku" that involves combining lots of mis-matched fashion elements into a personalized look.  The dolls are dressed in multi-layered outfits with pieces in contrasting styles and colors.  These dolls were released by Jakks Pacific in 2008 and, from what I can tell, were discontinued after only four waves: Series 1, Series 2 (called "In the Wild"), a 2009 re-release group, and the "Global Good" series.   Each release of dolls has four different characters, Hayley, Jun, Kana and Audrina.

The dolls originally sold for $19.99, and can now be found on eBay and Amazon for significantly more or significantly less than that.  The 2009 re-release dolls are thought to be of lesser quality than the originals, and they seem to be the easiest group to find.  I bought Hayley from the 2009 re-release series for about $10 on Amazon:

Juku Couture re-release Hayley (2009) by Jakks Pacific.

"China Girl" Doll by Jakks Pacific

It seems fitting that I stumbled upon China Girl while I was writing my post about antique dolls.  I had crazing, cracking and bisque on my mind as I was wandering the aisles of Target, and I could barely believe my eyes when I saw a plastic doll made to look like she was made out of porcelain.  Without knowing a thing about who she was, I handed over $19.99 and brought her home.

The China Girl is actually a character from the new movie, Oz, The Great and Powerful.  I haven't seen the movie yet, but I've read that while it might not live up to its predecessor (how could it?), and there might be some script and casting fumbles, the special effects are jaw-dropping and the China Girl character steals the show.  I'll probably love it.  The thing is, there's no need to watch the movie to enjoy this doll.  I can safely say that there is nothing on the toy shelves even remotely like her.

Both The Disney Store and Jakks Pacific have released a full line of dolls based on characters from this movie.  Most of the dolls are 1:6 scale, like Barbie.  The Disney Store offered a 19" limited edition version of The China Girl ($179.50, sold out) that was actually made out of porcelain.  They also made a 4" Polly Pocket style vinyl version ($9.99, sold out).  The Jakks Pacific China Girl is 14" tall and highly articulated.  She's just shy of being a life sized version of the movie character.

In this review, I will look at the 14" Jakks Pacific doll and the little 4" doll:

4" Disney Store China Doll ($9.99)
and 14" Jakks Pacific China Girl ($19.99).

Crazed Dolls

This is less of a review and more of a window into the life of an obsessed doll collector.  The doll journey I have been on during the last few weeks is not really in keeping with my normal collecting habits, and yet it highlights some of the things I love most about this hobby--the rich history of doll-making, the incredible diversity of dolls available to us today...and a little bit of silliness.  Let me tell you what happened and what I learned along the way.

It all started with some friends giving me a gift.  These particular friends are aware of my doll obsession and still like me.  That's pretty great on its own, but to make things even better, these friends also have a fantastic sense of humor.  They saw this book at a local store and thought of me:

Creepy-Ass Dolls, by Stacey Leigh Brooks

J-Doll "Josephsplatz" by Jun Planning

J-Dolls are highly articulated 9-inch plastic fashion dolls that are made by the same company that makes Pullip dolls.  If you've ever admired a Pullip doll's style and articulation but been turned off by the oversized noggin, a J-Doll might be a nice alternative.  In a nutshell, J-Dolls are Pullips with shrunken heads.

J-Dolls were first made in 2006 by Jun Planning Co, Inc.  As with their Pullip cousins, manufacturing changed hands in 2009 when the Japanese branch of Jun Planning declared bankruptcy and the production of the dolls moved to Groove, Inc.  In the United States, Jun Planning and Groove seem to be linked, with Groove USA a subdivision of Jun Planning USA.  There were three new J-Dolls in 2012, but no releases for 2013 yet.

The J-Dolls are named after streets throughout the world that symbolize high fashion.  Each doll's outfit reflects the character of the particular street she's named after.  For example, Sunset Boulevard is near the ocean in Los Angeles and the doll with that name kind-of looks like a mermaid.  Some of the associations are lost on me, though.  The stunning Via Appia doll is named after an ancient Roman road, but she looks more like a cross between a World War 2 nurse and a pirate.

I chose this particular J-Doll because she was the cheapest one I could find still new in her box.  She cost $50 and was described as the "Joseph Splatz" J-Doll, which I assumed was the name of the man who designed her funky outfit.  In fact, Josephsplatz is the name of a street in Germany.  Here she is:

Josephsplatz J-Doll

Bratzillaz "Switch-A-Witch" Set

Ever since Chloe mentioned the new Bratzillaz "Switch-A-Witch" sets in the comments of the talking Merida review, I have been watching for them at my local stores.  I guess it's time to admit that I have become a bit of Bratzillaz fan...which is unexpected.  Also, I am fascinated by MGA's blatant copy of the Create-A-Monster idea.  It's shameless.  Not only is the concept nearly identical to that of Mattel's Monster High mix-and-match line, but even the packaging looks the same.  I found my Switch-A-Witch set at Target, right next to the Create-A-Monster sets, and it would have been easy for someone to get confused between the two.  One notable difference on the day I was shopping was that the witches were on sale ($19.99 down from $29.99) while the Monster High sets were not ($26.99).

I am not a big fan of the Create-A-Monster sets.  I had an afternoon of fun with the Create-A-Monster Design Lab, but was disappointed by the Werewolf & Dragon starter set.  I thought it was short-sighted for the starter sets to include two heads but only one torso (Mattel has fixed that with their newer sets).  Also, the wig was awful and I didn't end up creating any dolls I wanted to keep.  So, I was very curious to see if MGA could take this fantastic idea and actually make a fun toy that preserves some of the critical elements of Bratzillaz charm.  We'll see.

Pieces from the Switch-A-Witch Style 1 set

"Adopt a Friend" Dolls by My Twinn

If you’d asked me a few weeks ago, I would have said that the chances of my doing a My Twinn review were next to zero.  I’ve never been very interested in the My Twinn dolls.  My Twinn is known for selling 23" play dolls that are custom made to resemble a specific child.  I guess it has always seemed like such a hassle and a gamble to have a doll custom made. The catalogue pictures of girls with their matching dolls are pretty amazing, but the faces of My Twinn dolls are dangerously hit or miss—some are wonderful, some are not.  The bodies also look funny to me in some pictures, but I always assumed these shots were the result of a tall doll in a bad camera angle.  In the end, the price has simply been too high to take a chance that I might not like the end product.

So why am I writing a My Twinn review now?  It’s a bit of a convoluted story.  It all started because I have been getting serious about the purchase of an American Girl.  It would be very helpful to have one for comparisons to dolls like Karito Kids and Carpatina.  Last week, I was debating which American Girl I should choose.  Saige, the Girl of the Year for 2013, seems perfect.  She loves horses (just like me) and has red hair (like I wish I had).  I stumbled across this amazingly helpful post on Never Grow Up, though, and it convinced me that I actually prefer Josephina’s face mold and might want her (or Rebecca) instead.  Hmm.  So, I was looking at Saige’s horse and being massively indecisive, and then I remembered that My Twinn horses are better than American Girl horses and that got me wondering if My Twinn was still in business.  Last time I checked (in 2009) there were rumors of bankruptcy.  So…I headed over to the My Twinn website to scope things out.

That was the last my family saw of me all weekend.

My Twinn takes over the house.