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Post by sailormolly on Sept 5, 2015 22:45:29 GMT -5
Maryellen made her debut in August 2015. Imaginative Maryellen Larkin™ has hazel eyes that open and close, and her long strawberry-blond hair is worn in a high ponytail with sideswept bangs. She comes in an authentic 1950s outfit:
A striped dress with a sweetheart neckline, tailored bows, and a full skirt An aqua lacy-knit shrug monogrammed with her initial Black Mary Jane shoes White underwear An aqua ribbon bow on a ponytail holder for her hair
The 18" Maryellen doll has a huggable cloth body, and her movable head and limbs are made of smooth vinyl. She comes with The One and Only: A Maryellen Classic 1 book. I don't think I've ever reviewed a doll before, so let me know if I leave anything out. Maryellen meet 1 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Here she is fresh out of the box. Maryellen review 1 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Here she is with her Meet Accessories. Maryellen review 5 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Hair bow Maryellen review 6 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Shrug close up. Maryellen review 10 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Tag in the shrug. If you don't tuck it in just right, it hangs out. Maryellen review 7 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Shoes Maryellen review 11 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Without the shrug. Maryellen review 12 by Elizabeth, on Flickr And the back. The one thing I really want to point out is her hairline. Maryellen really does have a "good side". Maryellen review 14 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Maryellen's "good side" (left) Maryellen review 13 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Maryellen's not so "good side" (right) It's just the way her hairline, part and bangs come together in the same spot. It leaves this triangle void that at the wrong angle looks like a bald spot. Look at the pictures side by side. Maryellen review 15 by Elizabeth, on Flickr See what I mean? It makes it harder to photograph her right side. Eye color comparison between Maryellen and Lanie. Maryellen Lanie compare 2 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Maryellen Lanie compare 4 by Elizabeth, on Flickr ETA.... I agree with molly&lydia about her wig. I tried to put Maryellen's hair in pigtails, but it came out all wonky. With her part being so far to the side it really throws everything off. Also, I curled Maryellen's hair and I wanted to add some pictures of that. Maryellen curles 1 by Elizabeth, on Flickr Maryellen curles 2 by Elizabeth, on Flickr And a more detailed picture of her eyes. Maryellen eyes by Elizabeth, on Flickr SailorMolly
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Post by Deleted on Sept 6, 2015 16:27:15 GMT -5
I picked up my Maryellen from Charlotte on September 30. Maryellen's section was consistently busy - I saw at least 4 or 5 other people walk away with dolls, and there was only 12 out when I left the store. I do think that this a doll you are best off handpicking. Most Maryellen dolls had good faces, but the bangs greatly varied. I would have loved to find one like dollydeadest but the one I did find with nice smooth bangs going across has a wonky eye. So I brought the next best one home. All staff was clearly trained to say that the reason Maryellen has crazy bangs is due to her haircutting fiasco in the books. I think sailormolly provided many pictures, and I don't have many to add. Some pluses of the doll: 1) She has a good thick wig with a slight wave to it. Not at all curly like Caroline or Saige even. The wave is closer to #55. The wig itself is a lovely orange color - the strands are a mix of blonde, strawberry blonde and carrot red. It is a much easier wig to handle than Caroline's, so it will likely attract girls. The bangs are not very thick, but thinner like Nellie's. 2) I love the colors of her outfit. I like that they went with the seagreen/pink combo vs the all pink of the prototypes. The dress seems well made, and the sweater comes on and off easy. Same with the shoes. I like that they have a matte finish. Minuses: 1) I was really hoping for another eye color other than hazel. AG has been too hazel-happy. 2) I would have loved to see a different mold used, since there has been a fair number of classic molds released recently (#55-57 in 2011, Caroline in 2012, #59-60 and Saige in 2013, Isabelle and #61 in 2014..). For my own personal collection, I actually had more Josefina molds than classic molds, but I do like variety. 3) Socks would have been great to go with the outfit. I could understand it if were sandals, but socks and shoes seem more common for the 50s. I can see why many people are skipping Maryellen, since she seems safe and perhaps not that much different from other dolls they may already have (such as Saige, #33 and #61). I love Maryellen since she is only my second redhead and is representative of my dad's childhood time period. I think the nostalgia for that time period is what primarily drove me to get Maryellen - if I didn't have a link, I would have skipped her likely as well. Overall, I give her an A-. Cute but safe doll. Her bangs may deter people. Bonus picture of her in an Etsy dress based off the prototype pictures:
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Post by ralphie50 on Sept 6, 2015 20:53:09 GMT -5
Maryellen is a girl that I wanted to like, being a child of the 50s myself. Her advance publicity was less than exciting to me personally. We had nothing in common at all that I could find. When I saw her in person after launch, I was even less enchanted. Those bangs--what were they thinking? Still, after I read her story, which was pretty cute and not entirely plain vanilla, I was willing to give her another chance. Well, first, we share the same birth date. How could you turn your back on somebody like that? The $10 off $100 coupon in the Jill's Deals box was the tipping point. I set out to find a Maryellen I could live with. First, no two Maryellens are alike, and I looked at at least a dozen. There were many more. If you're planning on acquiring one and can, my advice is to pick her out in person. Because of the big variation in bangs, even their expressions look entirely different. She doesn't seem to be a hot seller, although somebody else was paying for one at the same time as I was. One caught my eye. She just looked like a girl who was trying to imitate her favorite movie star, and her bangs had a gamin, pixie quality the others lacked. Instead of being hacked straight across, they were feathered and kind of cute. She wasn't my first choice, but she wouldn't let me put her down after I opened the box. *mod edit to delete inaccessible image links* Maryellen's eyes have a surprising amount of color depth to them that isn't readily apparent until you look more closely. It doesn't really show up at this picture size or resolution, but her eyes look much more detailed in person. Straight out of the box, she's pretty hard to adjust to. Her hair is a hot mess. It isn't in a hairnet, so it's very mussed. They're all looking over their left shoulder at the side of the box, which isn't very engaging. Her dress is worse. It's all wrinkled and creased. Her hairbow was askew, listing heavily right instead of sitting perkily atop her head. I set to work pressing her dress and giving her a more Barbie-like 50s ponytail silhouette, although Barbie didn't make the scene until the latter part of the decade. I straightened her bow. She began to look almost human. I put on her meet accessories. The necklace was easy to fasten since it's strung on elastic. I'm sure that won't last over time, but it looks cute now and, as an added bonus, covers up that crease between her neck and body nicely. :) I also didn't care for her shoes. They just didn't seem to go with the dress, and I know for a fact that no little girl would be wearing shoes without socks back then. Sandals, maybe, but shoes, never. So I switched her to a pair of white sandals. They weren't perfect, but they looked better to me. The accessories were a no-brainer because of the cute beads, but I didn't know a girl in the world who carried a knitted purse. Patent leather, maybe, but knit, naw.... The light was fading fast, but she was finally ready to meet the world. Her pedal pusher outfit had already been usurped by #61, a formerly nameless girl who was on the chopping block--caught between periods and never with a place to call home. She had one foot out the door until that outfit arrived on the scene. She grabbed that outfit and declared herself "Lorelei," a new friend of Maryellen. I caught Maryellen in this wave, so apparently they've bonded already and Lorelei has found a permanent home by Maryellen's side. In summary, Maryellen is a girl I was determined not to like, and ended up finding a place for her regardless. Her clothes are well made. The lace bolero is a clever touch, and the stripes running in two directions on her dress remind me of one of my own from that period. Everything fits her well. Her white underpants could cover a little more territory. They look suspiciously more like hiphuggers than briefs, but at least they are white. She's not flashy or stunning, but she's a solid addition to the historical line. Her hair is a pretty color, and it goes well with her coloration. I like that her face paint is subdued so she doesn't look like she's wearing makeup. I'd give her a solid B+ to A-, but I'm kind of a tough grader. I have no plans for any more of Maryellen's clothing or furnishings, unless the sofa bed happened to be slashed at some point in the future. I sew, and I can easily live without the rest of her furnishings. We have the OG diner and camper where she can hang out and feel right at home.
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Post by molly&lydia on Sept 7, 2015 15:28:51 GMT -5
Although I love my Maryellen dearly and she will be staying put at my house regardless, I want to add a review about some hair issues she has. She is definitely a doll that will look best with her hair down or in a ponytail.
She has a few short hairs in the back, but not enough to cover her wig cap, and the short hairs kind of stick out every which way instead of laying neatly.
Her wig cap also seems a good deal darker in color than her hair - it's a dark brown color, so if you can see any part of her wig cap after styling, it will stick out like a sore thumb.
Also, due to issues with her bangs, she really is a good doll to pick out in person - I was fortunate to find one whose bangs lay very neatly, but most of the ME dolls had some seriously crazy bangs:
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Post by American Girl Rescue on Sept 7, 2015 18:24:01 GMT -5
I purposely picked a Maryellen with the crazy bangs...that's a big part in her story!!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2015 14:32:22 GMT -5
My Ellie came home today. Right out of the box she didn't have any hairnet to keep her hair in place, She sorta looked like she had a rough night sleeping so I had to take it down and floof it right away. I ordered mine online so I didn't have a chance to pick her bangs out. Mine are very straight and thin, I'd prefer thicker bangs. But she's not going anywhere so we'll just have to deal. However what she lacks in bangs the rest of her hair is incredibly thick, I can't wrap her bow scrunchie over more then once and it's thick enough to make good sized two braids with no wigcap showing(I wonder if the bangs are a correlation to the overall hair thickness?) It's a wonderful colour that is a mix of blonde and orangey red Here it is straightened out from playing with her Recurled, It's very moldable for lack of a better term, It's easily put into different styles and curled without much effort. It seems to be just lightly layered but doesn't hamper hairstyles. Her skintone is peachy, Her eyes are a mix of brown and green, Which are absolutely adorable. I really couldn't be happier with her. Her time period is wonderful, She and her clothes are the best quality. She looks smashing in everything I put her in. She gets a A times infinity from me, I can't say enough
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Post by lindsayr on Sept 8, 2015 15:03:15 GMT -5
I'm not supposed to pull her out to play with her yet, but I also got Maryellen in the mail (had to use my last coupon before it expired : ). She also has thinner bangs, and they don't seem as crazy as some others. I didn't get a good feel for her hair, but there aren't any major problems and it seems reasonably thick. I will do a proper review after I officially receive her, but wanted to put my experience with her out. I am happy with her bangs even though I didn't get to pick her out in person. flic.kr/p/yoK5ut
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Post by Deleted on Sept 13, 2015 21:05:15 GMT -5
@beatrixnessa that is what I understood as well, the way her bangs are is a large part of her story....so I would want them to be story accurate!!All the MEs are so cute though.
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clp2
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Post by clp2 on Oct 9, 2015 9:59:25 GMT -5
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Post by FelicityFan85 on Oct 14, 2015 18:12:35 GMT -5
I picked out Maryellen at AG Boston on Monday. She has a nice, thick wig that is curly and bouncy. Her bangs are a cute future; I actually like that they don't go all the way across as it adds some variety to my banged dolls. Maryellen arrives in a cute aqua green, coral and white striped dress, an aqua green shrug with a monogrammed "M", an aqua green ribbon attached to a hair elastic, white undies, and black t-strap shoes. I love her dress and the colors are really nice. Aqua green is one of my favorite colors. I do kind of wish that her hair ribbon was a real ribbon because the elastics don't last forever. Her shrug is a nice feature although the "M" does limit it a tad, when trying to mix and match. You could probably pin something to cover it, like a fake flower, or just use it on dolls who have names starting with "M." Overall Maryellen is a cutie; I like that while her coloring is close o Mia's, it's different (similar to how Nicki and Saige are). Here is a review video: And some photos of Maryellen: And a comparison of Mia and Maryellen:
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Post by Deleted on Mar 12, 2016 10:21:58 GMT -5
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Post by sapphirekat on Jan 5, 2017 18:50:25 GMT -5
This is my first doll review (hopefully not my last). Ever since I got Maryellen I really wanted to do a review of her. Before deciding to get Maryellen, I checked out many pictures, and videos of her. And the more that I saw that her hair was a great length to do styles in, and it seems thick, the more that I really liked her (Also, her meet outfit is so cute). Also, when I was first deciding to get a American Girl doll, in 2013 I was almost going to get #33. I'm glad I waited, because I like that Maryellen has longer hair. And it might be thicker too (I ended up getting #23). At the end of October I went to the King of Prussia mall (where American Girl had a temporary store). I picked out Maryellen (but, I had to save her for Christmas). That gave me some time to collect her outfits. I really recommend to pick her out in person. The bangs can be quite different on each doll. This is my Maryellen (not right out of the box, I had put her in another outfit, and taken down her hair. But, her meet hair style was easy to put back it looks just like I took her out of the box. She is wearing the crinoline with her outfit. The necklace and bracelet I made (I don't have her meet accessories yet, but I might get them sometime). Edit: I forgot to add a letter grade. I give the Maryellen doll a A. I love that her hair is thick (out of the 3 dolls I have: #23, Grace and Maryellen. She has the thickest hair), and it is long enough to do many styles. But, when it is done in pigtails, for some reason it is longer, and thicker on 1 side than the other (but, the thinner side is still thick enough). I would love the hair to be even when it is in pigtails. And if you look at the back of her head you can kind of see the wig cap ( I did find some short hairs, but they are closer to the top of the head). Her hair is easy to take care of (once you know the right way of taking care of her hair). Her meet outfit is very cute, and I'm sure it will look cute on many dolls. Side look at her meet hairstyle:
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Post by sapphirekat on Jan 5, 2017 19:02:24 GMT -5
Here is Maryellen in different hairstyles: Here she is in pigtails. You can see the wig cap in the back, but I think from the front its cute. The hair seems to be different lengths. In the kitten sweater and pigtails: You can see the back of her head better in this picture: In a french braid: In braided pigtails: I discovered how thick her hair was when I did this ballerina bun: And finally here she is in the Ombre Ballet Outfit:
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Post by keeperofthepast on Jul 11, 2023 20:22:44 GMT -5
A friend recently acquired Maryellen and she is really a pretty doll. Her hair is a lovely color. Her meet dress is very sweet. I think pairing white shoes instead of black with it would have been better though.
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