Sparkly Sport Outfit (2004-2005)
May 9, 2007 17:18:46 GMT -5
Post by EB Agent J/Goo on May 9, 2007 17:18:46 GMT -5
First, how many outfits has AG released with the word "sparkle" or "sport" or some variation of those words in the name? It took me ages to figure out there's no review of this. So I'll make one!
The Sparkly Sport Outfit had its run waaaay back in 2004. In fact, here's the box it came in:
And it also comes with the old-style black AGT hanger:
green chile supergirl got it for me from the outlet for its original retail price, so I just thought I'd mention how I got an outfit that's been retired for two years for retail price. Now, on to the review:
The shirt. I am not very happy with the design of this. I thought it was going to be just a generic long-sleeved tee, but it has bizarre bunching on the side that doesn't stretch much, and on the left side, two ribbons trailing down. You can't see any of this in the catalog pic. this causes the shirt to hike up and expose the doll's midriff unless you pull her pants way up, which is pretty much impossible (more on that in a minute).
Slightly better detail of the image on the shirt. It says "American Girl", which is underlined. The line is white with pink stars on it, and at the end of the left side of the line is a circle with "AG" in side of it. Below that is the number "08" with two very tiny rhinestones to either side of it, which I guess accounts for all of the sparkle in this outfit. The catalog describes it as "generously accented with glitter and rhinestones". I see only a hint of glitter in the white on the logo and only two rhinestones. Whatever. B-
The cargo pants. You can, in fact, fold the cuffs down to hide that camo print if you don't like that (I know at least one person who passed on the outfit because of it). As you'll see in a bit, the pant legs are more capris-style, so folding them down would just make them regular pants. The pockets are actual pockets, but too tiny to stick anything in, and the material is a light, sort of canvasy material. Maybe I'm spoiled because I already have a very nice pair of khaki cargos from Peppermintsticks (see my review there) with deep pockets and durable material. Maybe I'm just annoyed that these don't even properly fit my Mattel doll, and it was a huge pain to get these on over her rear, especially since the strip of velcro in the front for the fly is very short and hardly makes the waistline any bigger to pull them on. Between the pants not going up far enough and the shirt not going down far enough, unless you constantly tug on one or the other, you'll have exposed midriff. The pants also hike up far enough to be shorts when you sit the doll down, and the belt is too short to tie properly. C-
Some more detail of the pant leg (the other is mostly the same, but with a pink patch that says "AG" on it) and the belt.
The headband, which is all one cloth piece and took me a few moments to untwist so it'd look right. It stretches on the bottom, and is made of the same pink camo material as the cuffs of the pants. I found the easiest way to get it on is to pull it around the doll's neck and leave it like a necklace, brush the doll's hair, then pull it back up and around her head. It took a bit of adjust to get the elastic portion underneath her hair and the rest of it behind her ears.
Headband from the front (Claire's my model today).
Headband from the side (the stick-on earrings came with the Butterfly Brocade outfit, not this one, even though they happen to match it well). I actually love this headband, but then, I think it could be because it's the first time I've seen Claire in a headband and I think she looks adorable. But it looks good on her, and I like it a lot. A-
The shoes! Shoe-affectionados *coughKericough* will love these. I don't even care for doll shoes much, and I'm delighted by these. They have tread underneath similar to the grey sneakers, but in black and white, and are bright pink, with pale pink elastics across the top and silver toes and heels. I had some trouble getting the doll to stand, until I realized I hadn't pulled the tongues out (I didn't think they had tongues) and thus they weren't on all the way. A+
Claire modeling the entire thing. You can see where the pants are more capris-like, and where her shirt is starting to ride up on her. It's a very cute outfit, but it'll give you a lot of grief and you'll have to fight with it. Considering it's retired, I wouldn't get it unless you're willing to pay the eBay mark-up and it's your absolute heart's desire, or you can get it for retail at the outlet like I did. B
The Sparkly Sport Outfit had its run waaaay back in 2004. In fact, here's the box it came in:
And it also comes with the old-style black AGT hanger:
green chile supergirl got it for me from the outlet for its original retail price, so I just thought I'd mention how I got an outfit that's been retired for two years for retail price. Now, on to the review:
The shirt. I am not very happy with the design of this. I thought it was going to be just a generic long-sleeved tee, but it has bizarre bunching on the side that doesn't stretch much, and on the left side, two ribbons trailing down. You can't see any of this in the catalog pic. this causes the shirt to hike up and expose the doll's midriff unless you pull her pants way up, which is pretty much impossible (more on that in a minute).
Slightly better detail of the image on the shirt. It says "American Girl", which is underlined. The line is white with pink stars on it, and at the end of the left side of the line is a circle with "AG" in side of it. Below that is the number "08" with two very tiny rhinestones to either side of it, which I guess accounts for all of the sparkle in this outfit. The catalog describes it as "generously accented with glitter and rhinestones". I see only a hint of glitter in the white on the logo and only two rhinestones. Whatever. B-
The cargo pants. You can, in fact, fold the cuffs down to hide that camo print if you don't like that (I know at least one person who passed on the outfit because of it). As you'll see in a bit, the pant legs are more capris-style, so folding them down would just make them regular pants. The pockets are actual pockets, but too tiny to stick anything in, and the material is a light, sort of canvasy material. Maybe I'm spoiled because I already have a very nice pair of khaki cargos from Peppermintsticks (see my review there) with deep pockets and durable material. Maybe I'm just annoyed that these don't even properly fit my Mattel doll, and it was a huge pain to get these on over her rear, especially since the strip of velcro in the front for the fly is very short and hardly makes the waistline any bigger to pull them on. Between the pants not going up far enough and the shirt not going down far enough, unless you constantly tug on one or the other, you'll have exposed midriff. The pants also hike up far enough to be shorts when you sit the doll down, and the belt is too short to tie properly. C-
Some more detail of the pant leg (the other is mostly the same, but with a pink patch that says "AG" on it) and the belt.
The headband, which is all one cloth piece and took me a few moments to untwist so it'd look right. It stretches on the bottom, and is made of the same pink camo material as the cuffs of the pants. I found the easiest way to get it on is to pull it around the doll's neck and leave it like a necklace, brush the doll's hair, then pull it back up and around her head. It took a bit of adjust to get the elastic portion underneath her hair and the rest of it behind her ears.
Headband from the front (Claire's my model today).
Headband from the side (the stick-on earrings came with the Butterfly Brocade outfit, not this one, even though they happen to match it well). I actually love this headband, but then, I think it could be because it's the first time I've seen Claire in a headband and I think she looks adorable. But it looks good on her, and I like it a lot. A-
The shoes! Shoe-affectionados *coughKericough* will love these. I don't even care for doll shoes much, and I'm delighted by these. They have tread underneath similar to the grey sneakers, but in black and white, and are bright pink, with pale pink elastics across the top and silver toes and heels. I had some trouble getting the doll to stand, until I realized I hadn't pulled the tongues out (I didn't think they had tongues) and thus they weren't on all the way. A+
Claire modeling the entire thing. You can see where the pants are more capris-like, and where her shirt is starting to ride up on her. It's a very cute outfit, but it'll give you a lot of grief and you'll have to fight with it. Considering it's retired, I wouldn't get it unless you're willing to pay the eBay mark-up and it's your absolute heart's desire, or you can get it for retail at the outlet like I did. B