School Days Outfit I + Book (2008-2010)
Jul 2, 2008 18:56:05 GMT -5
Post by Quirked on Jul 2, 2008 18:56:05 GMT -5
School Days Outfit for Dolls + Book
Item# F8325
American Girls will love this back-to-school outfit, featuring:
$26
Shirt
The top is a nice piece for no more than it is. Its just one shirt. It’s a sweater bit with a faux collar, sleeves, and bottom button-up shirt bit sewn on. It’s a popular style nowadays, yes? I own three blouses for work like this. Saves on the hassle of fussing with the layering and bulk of a blouse under a sweater. The sleeves are awkward, I guess in the way they're cut and also the way the shoulder and arm socket is shaped on a doll. The sleeve length is odd too -- it just barely reaches the wrists; too short to be called long-sleeved, and too long to be 3/4 sleeved. Its meant to be worn with the sleeves pushed up as in the Website stock picture.
Jeans
The jeans are great basic jeans -- they're one of the main reasons I bought the outfit in the first place. At the time of rewriting this review, I have two of this outfit in my possession. My first set, that I ordered the day it came out -- was too small on 3 different Mattel-era dolls. I could barely fasten the jeans on an Ivy doll. She was actually a bit overstuffed, but the fit wasn't much better on my #25 and #26. This resulted in a call to CS, and I was issued an exchange and a return label, and told to try the exchange outfit on all my dolls and let them know how things work out.
I decided to take the opportunity to compare the jeans from each of the sets before I sent my first set back, since they do seem to vary not only in size, but also in look.
In the website stock picture at the very top of this review, and in the picture in the catalog in which this outfit was first featured (July/Summer 2008 catalogs) the jeans appear to be of a dark wash with just a little bit of fading on the thighs. Not so true with the first set I ordered. The fading was quite extreme and a bit tacky. The exchange set I received I liked much more -- the fading is just barely there. I'm guessing the fading differs from batch to batch or even from one pair to another.
The jeans from the exchange set were still tight, but they fit better than the first set. They stay fastened rather than busting open randomly. There are very few situations where that would actually work to one's advantage.
All in all, I think it just boils down to how the pants are supposed to fit. It would have been nice had they been more generously cut in the waist and had more elastic than they do in the back. (I was mistaken before and thought they didn't have any elastic, but they actually do, but not in a way that its effective). I did end up removing some stuffing from my dolls to make things fit a bit better -- just a couple of pinches from my #25 and #26; and a couple of handfuls from Ivy since she was overstuffed and I was having issues with putting clothing I already owned on her.
Shoes
I L-O-V-E these shoes. They're the other reason I bought this outfit. They're adorable with jeans, but they'd also look great with skirts and dresses. And so very easy to put on!
Book
Do people actually read these? Sorry, no review on this from me. These books are usually reprints from American Girl Magazine anyway.
Summary
Overall Grade: B
*MOD EDIT to remove member's dead image links*
Item# F8325
American Girls will love this back-to-school outfit, featuring:
- A polka-dot top and a mock vest embellished with a floral design
- Classic jeans with a front fly and scoop pockets
- Ballet-flat shoes with a contrast toe and bow detail
- The Misadventures of Average Girl book
$26
--------------------------------------------------
Shirt
The top is a nice piece for no more than it is. Its just one shirt. It’s a sweater bit with a faux collar, sleeves, and bottom button-up shirt bit sewn on. It’s a popular style nowadays, yes? I own three blouses for work like this. Saves on the hassle of fussing with the layering and bulk of a blouse under a sweater. The sleeves are awkward, I guess in the way they're cut and also the way the shoulder and arm socket is shaped on a doll. The sleeve length is odd too -- it just barely reaches the wrists; too short to be called long-sleeved, and too long to be 3/4 sleeved. Its meant to be worn with the sleeves pushed up as in the Website stock picture.
Jeans
The jeans are great basic jeans -- they're one of the main reasons I bought the outfit in the first place. At the time of rewriting this review, I have two of this outfit in my possession. My first set, that I ordered the day it came out -- was too small on 3 different Mattel-era dolls. I could barely fasten the jeans on an Ivy doll. She was actually a bit overstuffed, but the fit wasn't much better on my #25 and #26. This resulted in a call to CS, and I was issued an exchange and a return label, and told to try the exchange outfit on all my dolls and let them know how things work out.
I decided to take the opportunity to compare the jeans from each of the sets before I sent my first set back, since they do seem to vary not only in size, but also in look.
In the website stock picture at the very top of this review, and in the picture in the catalog in which this outfit was first featured (July/Summer 2008 catalogs) the jeans appear to be of a dark wash with just a little bit of fading on the thighs. Not so true with the first set I ordered. The fading was quite extreme and a bit tacky. The exchange set I received I liked much more -- the fading is just barely there. I'm guessing the fading differs from batch to batch or even from one pair to another.
The jeans from the exchange set were still tight, but they fit better than the first set. They stay fastened rather than busting open randomly. There are very few situations where that would actually work to one's advantage.
All in all, I think it just boils down to how the pants are supposed to fit. It would have been nice had they been more generously cut in the waist and had more elastic than they do in the back. (I was mistaken before and thought they didn't have any elastic, but they actually do, but not in a way that its effective). I did end up removing some stuffing from my dolls to make things fit a bit better -- just a couple of pinches from my #25 and #26; and a couple of handfuls from Ivy since she was overstuffed and I was having issues with putting clothing I already owned on her.
Shoes
I L-O-V-E these shoes. They're the other reason I bought this outfit. They're adorable with jeans, but they'd also look great with skirts and dresses. And so very easy to put on!
Book
Do people actually read these? Sorry, no review on this from me. These books are usually reprints from American Girl Magazine anyway.
--------------------------------------------------
Summary
- The shirt gets a solid 'B'. Its cute enough but since I like mix/match pieces it would have been great if it had been two pieces.
- The jeans get a 'C'. While they're great looking jeans, they didn't fit well until I adjusted the stuffing in 3 dolls.
- I give the shoes an 'A'. I love the color, the style, and the fact that they're easy to put on.
Overall Grade: B
*MOD EDIT to remove member's dead image links*