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Post by Quirked on Apr 3, 2009 22:10:40 GMT -5
I received my Chrissa doll today, and I have to say that I am very pleased with the doll that was sent to me. I was prepared for disappointment, since Chrissa seemed to be very hit and miss -- much more so than other dolls with the Josefina mold. Some things I've noticed with this face mold are a noticeable difference in the size of the eye sockets between one another (like with the Julies I was picking through in November 2008 at a Boutique&Bistro -- they all had one eye socket larger than the other, you could see the white part of the eye below the iris, rather than the bottom of the iris being flush with the lower rim of the eye), and several seem to be a bit cock-eyed. On top of these, Chrissa also seems to have problems with her wig being thin.
My Chrissa's eyes are perfect enough in my opinion, and her wig is great. It's plenty thick, and doesn't have to be laying 'just so' to cover her wig cap. She also has nice coverage around the rim of her wig, so pulling the front of her hair back (since its not long enough to do much else with) shouldn't be too much of a problem. She also has more, and much darker face paint than the Julie and Nellie I got in late 2008.
I don't like Chrissa's meet outfit much, at least not while its on her. I just don't think it does anything for her. I like Chrissa better in clothing other than that dress, and I like the dress better on dolls other than her. In fact, I put it on Ivy and it looks great with her coloring. I think the shoes are quite ugly, but I think they'd look nicer with a pair of jeans.
Doll + Meet Outfit: B- Doll minus Meet Outfit and in other clothing: A- (the hair length and lack of clipped hairs in the wig for cap coverage whilst in pigtails drag the grade down a bit) Meet Outfit: C+ (just average, its really nothing to write home about).
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Post by Quirked on Nov 29, 2008 22:57:02 GMT -5
I won't bother with pictures, as they're already well covered in the starting post. I broke and ended up getting this doll when I went to the Boutique and Bistro in Dallas. Well, my mom told me to pick out doll (other than the one I was already buying) and she'd buy it and the Purchase With Purchase available at that time as a Christmas gift. I was drawn to #30 and kept coming back to her after walking away. She appeared in many of the displays that they had set up at the store, so it was difficult to get away. I had already customized an Ivy to look similar prior to this doll coming out; and I had a change of heart and decided to change her back into Ivy and get many of Julie's things for her (since I'll not have an actual Julie -- I'm customizing the one I bought). That's off my chest, so now I can move on. #30 is a great doll. And while I do agree that her hair is a bit on the thin side; it is natural to the hairstyle. My own hair is cut in much the same way, and ponytails and braids tend to look thin and somewhat messy. I do wish her part were a little more to the side though, centered with the pupil of her eye rather than lined up with the inside edge of her eyebrow. But I think I can get over it. Grade: A
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Post by Quirked on Oct 7, 2008 22:30:15 GMT -5
This shirt is also available at the B&B in Dallas, except that it says 'Dallas' on it instead (obviously).
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Post by Quirked on Oct 7, 2008 22:26:31 GMT -5
They're available in Dallas. I have another vote for too tight. They just barely stay closed on my thinnest girl sans undies.
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Post by Quirked on Aug 27, 2008 0:14:05 GMT -5
I had issues getting this sweatshirt on a Mattel doll, but it was mostly due to the fact that she's been re-wigged with a rather thick wig. And the sweatshirt I got is probably a bit on the small side. Getting it off was harder than getting it on, I thought I was going to damage or pull off her wig at one point!
I've found it easier to take the doll's head off when putting on or taking off this sweatshirt.
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Post by Quirked on Aug 25, 2008 17:07:18 GMT -5
I got this dress with a doll that I bought from another board member -- no headband and the snaps needed to be re-sewn on. I don't have Kit, but I do have Molly, and I feel that anything in Kit's collection is fair game for Molly. Plus I like Kit's stuff better than Molly's.
This dress is way sweet -- the colors, print, and piping are wonderful. The dress fits great on a PM doll, it even hangs a bit loosely. I think that the dress is supposed to fit that way -- with the idea of a child being able to wear the clothing item for a few years by making it wide, and having a 'belt' to cinch the extra fabric in. I really like this dress on my PM Molly, and prefer it over that horrid 'Victory Garden' dress that was in Molly's collection at one point.
I usually prefer snaps over Velcro -- but only snaps that are set in. The snaps on this dress are difficult and I feel like I have to be delicate with them. Well, actually I do have to be careful with sewn-on snaps of this size. They just aren't super sturdy. And sewing them back on can be difficult; because the snaps are so small and they're the 'clear' variety, so they're hard to see against the fabric. Believe me, I was cursing AG while I was re-sewing snaps back on the dress -- even in the best light it was difficult.
While it is a cute dress, I don't think it would hold up well to play, given how it fastens. The snaps are difficult and delicate, I can see them popping off easily and lost. But at least those would be sort-of-but-not-really easy to replace if one can sew. If I can get my hands on some of the snaps that require a setting tool and a hammer in a small enough size, I will probably commit sacrilege and alter the dress to have sturdier snaps.
As mentioned before, I don't have the headband. I don't see it as a significant loss, as I could make one easily if I found fabric to match the color of the piping.
Mod edit to remove dead image link
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Post by Quirked on Jul 12, 2008 17:45:31 GMT -5
I bought this set for my PM Molly. The shoes are very tight, as mentioned by AmericanGirlRescue -- I've found that they're tight even on Mattel dolls. They fit best without socks, but I can manage to get the shoes on over the socks with the red trim.
Trying to get the shoes on resulted in bending the shoes, and since they're patent, they crease badly. Just trying them on made the shoes look very well loved. Even though I can get them on and fasten them, they look awkward. Perhaps they're not that much better than Molly's default plastic Mary Jane shoes.
The socks are nice to have around though. As for the shoes, well, I bought a pair of non-AG Mary Jane shoes that fit well on both PM and Mattel dolls.
Grade: C The shoes fail, and the socks are decent, but well, they're just socks.
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Post by Quirked on Jul 9, 2008 15:03:52 GMT -5
I have had no problem with my Mia standing with her boots. However, because of the color of the boots-I just don't care for them. My Mia has been able to stand on the coffee table since yesterday evening (even with the cats running around) with the boots on. Hm. I think its my #25. I keep thinking she has wonky legs because it takes more work to get her to stand than my other dolls. I think one of her legs might be longer than the other. Ah well. I did get my #26 and Ivy to stand just fine in them though. But I still hate the boots. But I hate them less when they're on Mia. I have to admit. Mia looks fantastic in this outfit. It's like it was made for her! It just doesn't seem to look as great on dark-haired dolls, in my opinion.
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Post by Quirked on Jul 8, 2008 16:46:38 GMT -5
I just got this outfit in the mail today as well. I have to say, I don't like it as much as I thought I would. The outfit itself is really cute, but the boots are junk. Its difficult to get a doll to stand properly in them. They can't stand straight, else they tip forward. So they have to stand leaning back to compensate for the heel, or have to stand awkwardly like I have my #25 in the photo above. Honestly, I think the boots are even worse looking in person than they are on the website. And I tried some different shoes out from the slim selection of shoes that I own -- The boots from the Santa Baby Helper Outfit and the shoes from Ivy's New Year Outfit The jumper and shirt are really great pieces. The jumper is a grape-y purple fabric that looks sort of like muslin, but a bit thicker. The pinstripes are a very light purple. And I want to say that theres pink undertones in it, because it almost fooled me at first glance into thinking the stripes were pink. The laced-up part reminds me of a shoe lace with the aglets cut off. Its laced up and tied in a bow at the top, with the bow stitched down. However, I think the stitches could be picked out and the cording replaced if one so wishes to do so. It closes in the back with heavy snag-happy Velcro. I think the jumper looks pretty good on its own, without a shirt underneath -- which was how I intended to use it. But it also matches well with the pink shirt from the Petals and Plaid Outfit. The shirt is a great basic. Its a sage green with darker top-stitching at the wrists, shoulders, and bottom hem. It fits closely, and could make for a great layering piece, because it uses the flatter, low-snag Velcro as a fastener in the back. Its hard to pull the bottom part of the sleeve over the hands though, since the top-stitching doesn't allow for the fabric to stretch. The shirt might look good with the Pretty Print Outfit -- the green matches with the leaves in the shirt from that outfit, and likely the skirt as well. I can't find my skirt to the Pretty Print outfit, but I'm sure I will when I re-organize my closet. The shirt is a very good length, which I'm surprised about. A lot of the tops I've seen, and a lot of tops in the sewing patterns I own are very short -- and make AG dolls look very short-waisted. I love how the shirt looks with the jeans from the School Days Outfit. And the second picture example below isn't a serious example, its just to show that the shirt can be layered without a doll looking like a burrito. I'm not going to review the book or the clips -- books are almost always reprints from American Girl Magazine; and the clips, I likely will never use. Grade: B+If the boots didn't have heels and they were black and non-patent, the outfit would have gotten more love. I'll seek out those non-AG Gothy McGoth boots I've seen about, along with some stockings.
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Post by Quirked on Jul 2, 2008 18:56:05 GMT -5
School Days Outfit for Dolls + Book Item# F8325American 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-------------------------------------------------- ShirtThe 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. JeansThe 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. ShoesI 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! BookDo 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*
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Post by Quirked on Mar 8, 2008 19:57:18 GMT -5
I'm in love with this outfit. I think this is one of my favorite JLY outfits at the current time. The boots are cute, but they seem better suited with a raincoat on a rainy day. And they're also hard to get on and off. They'll fit on PM feet/legs, but are even harder to get off -- so I wouldn't recommend the boots for this set for a PM doll. I love the outfit itself. I think its a really cute look for spring. The jacket and shirt have mix-and-match potential, and the jacket makes a good wardrobe staple. I only wish that the design on the back wasn't there, so that the mix-and-match potential was further increased. Grade: A.
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Post by Quirked on Mar 8, 2008 19:44:49 GMT -5
I like this outfit better than I thought I would. I mainly bought it for just the skirt and jacket, but I can see some usage coming out of the shirt and shoes. The outfit is cute as a whole, but I'm not sure I like the shoes with this particular outfit. Maybe a different pair of shoes, or a pair of boots would be cute. I'm a little surprised that this outfit had sneakers instead of boots, what with AG's 2006-2007 trends... :x My one real nitpick of this outfit is that the skirt I got seems to be a tiny bit big in the waist for my dolls, who all have a waist measurement of 11". Other than that, I give this outfit an A.
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Post by Quirked on Mar 8, 2008 18:15:30 GMT -5
I just recieved this doll and I have to say, she's so much prettier in person and member pictures versus AG catalog/website pictures! I was a bit nervous about her hair, since I don't know how to deal with curly hair. The ends of her hair seemed a little dry when I got her out of her box, but some spray wig conditioner (many refer to it as braid spray) and a little bit of rearranging and twisting by hand fixed it. I love her hair so much. I will be careful with it though, because I'm nervous about messing it up. I'm not sure how her hair would hold up to play, because the only way my dolls get played with is by changing their clothes and styling their hair. That's how I've always played with dolls; though I am an adult now and much more careful than I was as a child. This doll has such a beautiful overall coloration. She does like she could be biracial, and she actually looks quite a lot like two different people I know. One is a friend from childhood and she is half African-American and half Filipina; the other is the daughter of a family friend, and she is half African-American and half German. I really like this doll's eye color. My doll is going to be subject to an eye swap in the future, however. I have a custom planned that involves amber eyes, and I think Rachael (my 26) would be quite content with brown eyes. I've also noticed that this doll is very photogenic. She seems to photograph much better than my Molly and #25. My grade: A+
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Post by Quirked on Jan 25, 2008 18:01:58 GMT -5
I like this outfit all right. It doesn't really go with my doll's personality, but it is quite cute.
I dislike the graphics on the shirt, but that's just my tastes at the time. I would have liked something like that when I was in the AG target age group. In fact, I recall having a pair of pajamas when I was little that was in similar color and pattern as the shirt.
The skort and boots are just a shade lighter in color than the jacket and pants from the tracksuit, so there might be some mix and match potential right there in the right combinations.
I'm a fan of undies, and the ones that come with the outfit are great -- they're not too thick and they don't peek over the back of pants like the jeans from the Sparkly Tunic outfit.
Overall, I give the entire outfit a B.
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Post by Quirked on Jan 25, 2008 18:17:09 GMT -5
The Big Brown Truck just came by about an hour ago and brought this doll home to me. I agree that the official AG pictures do not do this doll justice, she's absolutely gorgeous!
One of my favorite things about this doll is that her features really do not define her as any particular race or ethnic group, as others have mentioned.
She is my first Mattel-era doll; and I have noted the differences between her and my PM Molly. Lighter skin tone, more face paint, narrower face, softer hair, and harder vinyl. I think she might actually be overstuffed, because the outfits I've bought fit just as snugly as they do on Molly.
All in all, I love this doll. I liked her when I saw AG's pictures, liked her even more when I saw the pictures of her on this thread and other places on this forum, and I love her even more in person.
A+
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Post by Quirked on Jan 25, 2008 18:30:46 GMT -5
I think Lovemydolls covered almost all views with the pictures. The only view that wasn't covered was the back view of the jacket, which has the American Girl logo screen-printed on it in light blue -- I tried to get a picture of it, but a lack of good lighting, unsteady hands, and lack of knowledge about using 'zoom' properly has stopped me lol. BWAHAHA! I figured out how to change the setting of the macro on my camera: I love zip jackets like the one with this outfit, so I see a lot of mix-and-match potential with it. In fact, my #25 is wearing the tanktop, jacket, and shoes with the jeans from the Sparkly Tunic outfit. I also see the potential for the pants and tanktop to double as sleepwear, since I wear stuff like that to bed all the time. A+
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Post by Quirked on Dec 29, 2007 3:08:47 GMT -5
I just got this outfit in the mail earlier this evening. And I too, bought it for the blouse and shoes.
The entire outfit fits great on my PM Molly -- I had been worried that it wouldn't fit her very well, because I'd read that PM dolls are a bit... chunkier... than the Mattel dolls.
The blouse is fantastic, I love it so much. I like the shorts, more than I thought I would -- I think they'd be cute with a yellow tank top for spring/summer. The socks are okay, but they're almost too thick to wear with the shoes -- the shoes are hard to get on, and the socks also bunch up weirdly around the ankles.
I'd like the shoes so much more if they were actually BROWN. I thought they were brown. They looked brown to me on the site. They're deep cranberry red. I don't think they go well with the outfit, but they would match well with an outfit that had similar colors -- maybe her school jumper? I actually just finished a school jumper for her using the patterns I downloaded from the AGPT main site out of green and white plaid -- the loafers look alright with it, but I get a Christmas vibe from it with the green of my jumper and the dark cranberry red of the shoes.
This outfit gets a solid B from me. Would be an A if the loafers were brown though!
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