Tennis & Golf Set + Book (2008-2010)
Mar 21, 2008 21:11:52 GMT -5
Post by Keri on Mar 21, 2008 21:11:52 GMT -5
As soon as I saw this on the site, I just knew I had to have it. But, whoa, it's not my Beatrice-doll's style at all! Thank goodness I had plans for a new doll who could wear it... 
There is definitely a 'preppy' feel to this set, because, c'mon, golf and tennis? plaid skirt and polo? psh-yeah right. However, the pieces combine beautifully with so many other items, especially those released this spring and last autumn. Because the skirt is reversible, you get added functionality. White skirt always = awesome matching powers.
The blue in the polo shirt is the exact shade of the blue in the Coconut Fun Outfit cropped pants. They go really well together, and you can do either the golf shoes or the sandals from that outfit. Likewise, the purple t-shirt from the Coconut Fun Outfit goes really well with the white side of the skirt.
I also really like the striped shirt from the 2-in-1 summer outfit with the white side of the skirt. It's a little more summery than the pants that came with that outfit.
The polo can also be worn with the camo shorts from the skateboard outfit, though the camo is a deeper, greyer blue.
Polo Shirt: A
This is the same knit fabric that big-people shirts are made from, which makes it just a little bit thin. I don't recommend putting a coloured camisole or anything underneath, because it'll be really visible.
The fit is a little close, but not overly so. You'd probably have trouble with a fat PM doll, but the shirt does stretch, so it might not be too bad. It's kind of weird around the shoulders, I'm not sure why, but that might just be due to the trim. It's not a bad weird, just a mild oddness to the fit!
The collar is stitched down in the back, so if you put the sweater on top, only the front part of the collar will lie on top of the pink. It's not a huge deal unless you're really particular about the back of your doll.
The velcro goes all the way from the top to the bottom, which is fantastic! It's the no-snag kind and rather thin, so there isn't a lot of added bulk.
I personally love the blue around the arms and collar and the little star on the left chest. It's a nice fashion detail.
V-neck Sweater: B
I like this a lot, but it's not my favorite part of the set. It has a cableknit pattern which is a little bulky in some places and loose in others, which meant I did a lot of tweaking and pulling it get it to look right.
The velcro in the back is the no-snag kind and goes from the top to the bottom, just like the polo shirt has. The neck in the back is just a little lower than that of the polo, so it ends up lying on TOP of the polo's collar. Since it V's in the front, you can still fold the collar over the sweater.
The bottom of the sweater is kind of baggy over the contrasting band, but again, I think that's how it's supposed to be? Mostly I feel the fabric is too thin and too big to really make this style look fantastic, but when you put the whole thing together, it isn't a bad look. This sweater could probably fit a fat PM doll easily, because of the stretch it has.
Reversible Wrap Skirt: A-
One side is white, the other is a blue/white/pink plaid. It velcros at the waistband of the overlap, so there is absolutely no problems with wearing it one way or the other, unlike the "reversible" blue and red vest from the third (fourth?) JLY meet outfit. There IS an AG tag in the skirt, but it's sewn under the velcro on one of the ends, so you never see it once the skirt is on.
The velcro and overlap make the front of the skirt a little bulky to wear under some shirts, but if you tug it down a little, it helps. With this outfit, it's meant to be worn on TOP of the shirt (according to the AG picture), but you could do it either way. Neither the shirt nor the skirt is so tight that it can't be put on top.
I found that it's oodles easier to get the skirt to fit if you don't put underwear on the doll. That adds just enough extra bulk and layering to be a pain.
I am a little confused about how it's intended to look on the doll. The AG picture has the flap over to the doll's right, but when it arrived here, it had been folded so the flap would be on the left, and that's how the side creases want it to look. I can't see that there'd be much of a difference no matter how I did it, but the shape of the skirt is slightly A-line, so maybe there is? I don't know, but it was a little confusing and is primarily what knocked the grade from an A to an A-.
Sun Visor: B
The visor is completely cloth with elastic in the back to help it stay on. It's really easy to put on, but I find that the visor tends to fall low and block my doll's eyes. Also, I had trouble getting it on and keeping the doll's hair neat at the same time. Bah.
Overall, it's a good, solid piece that could be used with a lot of other current outfits. It has the light blue detailing to match the polo shirt and the cropped pants from the Coconut Fun Outfit, but that's mostly in the stripes around the edges. I think there's a light blue star on one side of the band, but if so, it's not really obvious!
Shoes: B
These are pretty much exactly what you see in AG's picture.
They're really cute, but there's nothing outstanding about them. One BIG point is that the copy says "Shoes do double-duty: leave the fringe out for golf, or tuck it in for tennis," but the laces tie on top of the fringe (they actually go through holes that were punched into it) and switching it to the other version is going to be a pain in the neck. I dunno about anyone else, but I hate retying the tiny laces in AG shoes. These'll never have the fringe tucked in, because it's too much trouble.
Sports Equipment: B
I did NOT get this set for the sports equipment, I tell you what. If you want it, or your kid does, it's not bad stuff, but it's not the reason I'd recommend this set.
The golf ball is just a pink whiffle ball. The tennis ball is plastic. The golf club is pretty cute, with "* American Girl" printed on the head of the putter. And the tennis racket is cute, too. There's no way for your doll to hold any of these unless you have rubber bands or putty, which stinks.
Hair Bands: C
They did include a bunch of little hair bands for your doll. They're a light blue and very thin and very small. They're a lot like those clear bands you can get at Wal-Greens or someplace for hair (or helping a doll hold stuff ) but these are smaller and skinnier and blue. You do get several, thankfully, rather than the five or six that they used to include. I guess if you lose or break some, you still have others.
Book: C
The book is Good Sport and is a list of good sportsmanship, like "smile at your opponents" and "there is always a winner AND a loser" and matching pictures. There's two things per page plus a picture of either a girl doing a sport or equipment for a sport. Some of the pictures are really weird, like the gymnastics girl is wearing a pair of white Keds with socks. But whatever, it's just a little book. Not the best of the mini books included with an outfit, I gotta say.
(PS: Polo + plaid skirt + Mia's high top sneakers = awesome.)
--- KERI
There is definitely a 'preppy' feel to this set, because, c'mon, golf and tennis? plaid skirt and polo? psh-yeah right. However, the pieces combine beautifully with so many other items, especially those released this spring and last autumn. Because the skirt is reversible, you get added functionality. White skirt always = awesome matching powers.
The blue in the polo shirt is the exact shade of the blue in the Coconut Fun Outfit cropped pants. They go really well together, and you can do either the golf shoes or the sandals from that outfit. Likewise, the purple t-shirt from the Coconut Fun Outfit goes really well with the white side of the skirt.
I also really like the striped shirt from the 2-in-1 summer outfit with the white side of the skirt. It's a little more summery than the pants that came with that outfit.
The polo can also be worn with the camo shorts from the skateboard outfit, though the camo is a deeper, greyer blue.
Polo Shirt: A
This is the same knit fabric that big-people shirts are made from, which makes it just a little bit thin. I don't recommend putting a coloured camisole or anything underneath, because it'll be really visible.
The fit is a little close, but not overly so. You'd probably have trouble with a fat PM doll, but the shirt does stretch, so it might not be too bad. It's kind of weird around the shoulders, I'm not sure why, but that might just be due to the trim. It's not a bad weird, just a mild oddness to the fit!
The collar is stitched down in the back, so if you put the sweater on top, only the front part of the collar will lie on top of the pink. It's not a huge deal unless you're really particular about the back of your doll.
The velcro goes all the way from the top to the bottom, which is fantastic! It's the no-snag kind and rather thin, so there isn't a lot of added bulk.
I personally love the blue around the arms and collar and the little star on the left chest. It's a nice fashion detail.
V-neck Sweater: B
I like this a lot, but it's not my favorite part of the set. It has a cableknit pattern which is a little bulky in some places and loose in others, which meant I did a lot of tweaking and pulling it get it to look right.
The velcro in the back is the no-snag kind and goes from the top to the bottom, just like the polo shirt has. The neck in the back is just a little lower than that of the polo, so it ends up lying on TOP of the polo's collar. Since it V's in the front, you can still fold the collar over the sweater.
The bottom of the sweater is kind of baggy over the contrasting band, but again, I think that's how it's supposed to be? Mostly I feel the fabric is too thin and too big to really make this style look fantastic, but when you put the whole thing together, it isn't a bad look. This sweater could probably fit a fat PM doll easily, because of the stretch it has.
Reversible Wrap Skirt: A-
One side is white, the other is a blue/white/pink plaid. It velcros at the waistband of the overlap, so there is absolutely no problems with wearing it one way or the other, unlike the "reversible" blue and red vest from the third (fourth?) JLY meet outfit. There IS an AG tag in the skirt, but it's sewn under the velcro on one of the ends, so you never see it once the skirt is on.
The velcro and overlap make the front of the skirt a little bulky to wear under some shirts, but if you tug it down a little, it helps. With this outfit, it's meant to be worn on TOP of the shirt (according to the AG picture), but you could do it either way. Neither the shirt nor the skirt is so tight that it can't be put on top.
I found that it's oodles easier to get the skirt to fit if you don't put underwear on the doll. That adds just enough extra bulk and layering to be a pain.
I am a little confused about how it's intended to look on the doll. The AG picture has the flap over to the doll's right, but when it arrived here, it had been folded so the flap would be on the left, and that's how the side creases want it to look. I can't see that there'd be much of a difference no matter how I did it, but the shape of the skirt is slightly A-line, so maybe there is? I don't know, but it was a little confusing and is primarily what knocked the grade from an A to an A-.
Sun Visor: B
The visor is completely cloth with elastic in the back to help it stay on. It's really easy to put on, but I find that the visor tends to fall low and block my doll's eyes. Also, I had trouble getting it on and keeping the doll's hair neat at the same time. Bah.
Overall, it's a good, solid piece that could be used with a lot of other current outfits. It has the light blue detailing to match the polo shirt and the cropped pants from the Coconut Fun Outfit, but that's mostly in the stripes around the edges. I think there's a light blue star on one side of the band, but if so, it's not really obvious!
Shoes: B
These are pretty much exactly what you see in AG's picture.
They're really cute, but there's nothing outstanding about them. One BIG point is that the copy says "Shoes do double-duty: leave the fringe out for golf, or tuck it in for tennis," but the laces tie on top of the fringe (they actually go through holes that were punched into it) and switching it to the other version is going to be a pain in the neck. I dunno about anyone else, but I hate retying the tiny laces in AG shoes. These'll never have the fringe tucked in, because it's too much trouble.Sports Equipment: B
I did NOT get this set for the sports equipment, I tell you what. If you want it, or your kid does, it's not bad stuff, but it's not the reason I'd recommend this set.
The golf ball is just a pink whiffle ball. The tennis ball is plastic. The golf club is pretty cute, with "* American Girl" printed on the head of the putter. And the tennis racket is cute, too. There's no way for your doll to hold any of these unless you have rubber bands or putty, which stinks.
Hair Bands: C
They did include a bunch of little hair bands for your doll. They're a light blue and very thin and very small. They're a lot like those clear bands you can get at Wal-Greens or someplace for hair (or helping a doll hold stuff
) but these are smaller and skinnier and blue. You do get several, thankfully, rather than the five or six that they used to include. I guess if you lose or break some, you still have others.Book: C
The book is Good Sport and is a list of good sportsmanship, like "smile at your opponents" and "there is always a winner AND a loser" and matching pictures. There's two things per page plus a picture of either a girl doing a sport or equipment for a sport. Some of the pictures are really weird, like the gymnastics girl is wearing a pair of white Keds with socks. But whatever, it's just a little book. Not the best of the mini books included with an outfit, I gotta say.
(PS: Polo + plaid skirt + Mia's high top sneakers = awesome.)
--- KERI
