Why I won't Purchase Another MGA (Bratz) Product

It is a fact that I have never been a Bratz fan. I was not one of those who thought the dolls were trampy or anything, they just did not really appeal to me. I did however purchase quite a few after they lost their first court battle with Mattel. I had read that the dolls were ordered off store shelves and thought I should get a couple in the unlikely even that they increased in value. Needless to say, that didn't happen.

At any rate, as the court battles went on, MGA launched a couple of "new" doll lines. Moxie Girlz and Moxie Teenz. The former bore an uncanny resemblance to 4Ever Best Friends dolls(2004-2005) which bore a striking resemblance to Mattel's Wee Three Friends line of dolls which were launched several months earlier, and the latter resembled Liv dolls.

Today, I see an ad for Bald Bratz. MGA supposedly launched these dolls to support children undergoing cancer treatments. According to their website, $1 from the sale of each doll(which retails for $19.99) will be donated to The Starlight Children's foundation. So why do I have a problem with this? This comes along only after Mattel announced they would be producing bald Barbie dolls! Mattel chose not to sell their dolls, but donated them to children's hospitals around the country. In essence, I think MGA stinks! I gave them the benefit of the doubt with that whole Carter Bryant/ who is the legal owner of Brats, yadda, yadda, yadda, thing, but not any more! After looking at their entire body of work, it appears that MGA has created a business from other people's ideas/businesses. Why not continue to mimic Mattel and donate the dolls to the children they are supposed to help? No only do I believe MGA to be copy-catting thugs, but also exploiters of sick children. They're like the folks who sell pirated DVDs in front of the grocery stores. I don't buy those bootleg movies, and I will no longer spend money on any MGA products.

Tim Gunn Styles Barbie - Be still my beating heart!

According to InStyle magazine, Barbie is getting a Tim Gunn makeover. Barbie is - and may always be my favorite doll, and for the past 8 years, Project Runway has been one of my favorite television shows. These 2 go together like peas and carrots! The $30 dolls and $25 accessory packs are supposed to hit BarbieCollector.com and Target stores on August 1st. I can only assume that these dolls will replace the now discontinued Barbie Basics dolls. I can hardly contain my excitement!

Why!!!!

Once in a great while, a doll company hits a home run. Mattel hit it out of the park this year with the new Barbie Basics 2.5. For the uninitiated, Barbie Basics are a line of dolls utilizing various head molds, skin tones, and poses. These dolls had a price point of about $20 and were perfect for customizers and costumers. I was a fan from the beginning and only wished the dolls were more articulated. My wish was granted when I saw pics of the 2.5 dolls last spring - these new dolls would have articulated bodies - yeah! I read a post on a message board that said the dolls would be limited editions and got more than a bit anxious. If the dolls would be limited, I might not get one, so I was delighted to find a website taking pre-orders. I ordered 2 model #8 dolls and they arrived last week. Here she is and I couldn't be happier with her!

Also last week, I read that the next wave (3.0) will be the last of the Barbie Basics - WHY? I know the dolls are popular with adult collectors and are selling. Heck, I have 10 myself, and I am cheap! I realize that companies must continually alter their product in order to stay current and relevant, but when you hit that perfect wave - ride it!

I Need a Name!

This diorama is a work in progress. Eventually, I hope to showcase my original fashions for Barbie, Silkstone, and Integrity/Fashion Royalty, Liv, Moxie Teenz, Monster High, and other fashion dolls.

Right now, it is just stocked with random pieces to make it look like the girls are shopping. The challenge I am now faced with is an appropriate name for the boutique.


Since my name is Denyse and I am known online as Squarepeg78, I considered naming the boutique "D Squared" but I believe there are fashion designers for humans (twins) who go by that name. I don't want to be accused of copyright infringement, so I am asking for your help. Please leave a comment with your suggestion. When enough suggestions have been received, I will set up a poll. There will be a prize (don't quit your job) for the person who submits the winning name - fashion doll related.

UPDATE: What I meant by the previous sentence was that the prize would be "fashion doll related". The name of the boutique doesn't necessarily have to be. I really want the name to reflect quirky haute couture, with a chic, Bohemian twist - if there is such a thing. Also, I am revising the "fashion doll related" prize since some of you are out of the country and shipping may make sending the prize a bit costly. Soooo....the person who submits the winning name, will receive an Amazon gift card instead. Now keep those suggestions coming......please!

Avon Rose Splendor Barbie

When I first saw online pictures of this doll, I thought she was gorgeous! In the picture, the doll looked dark - almost espresso color and I was excited! I love dolls with really dark complexions, so I immediately emailed my daughter at work. She has a coworker who is an Avon rep, and I wanted to make sure I got one! The doll was ordered and I received her last week.

I was a bit disappointed because the doll is not nearly as dark as I had hoped. I'm thinking the other photographer had the same issue I did - not wanting to debox the doll for the photo. She had a plastic covering (removable) that I removed for the photo, but because she was still essentially in a box, the light did not surround and project a true color representation. She does have the Mbili face sculpt which I love, and her dress is more peachy than pink (another good thing). Oh, and she does have the model muse body.

All in all, she is a pretty doll, but had I seen her in person, I doubt I would have paid $40 for her.

Fabulous Finds and Franken-dollies!

click on pics to enlarge

One of my favorite weekend pastimes is going to garage sales, estate sales, flea markets, and thrift shops. Not sure why, but the trash to treasure thing really ignites my creativity. Though it happens quite infrequently, I get giddy with joy whenever I find something wonderful for almost nothing. Such was the case when I went to an estate sale a few months ago. I purchased close to 3 dozen vintage dolls, a drum set, and an incredible cedar chest and spent just under $60!

Pictured above are a few older African American fashion dolls I purchased - aren't they lovely! I'm not sure, but I think the second doll on the left may be gymnast Barbie, but it really didn't matter - her hair was a frizzy mess, but she had jointed elbows and knees - woo-hoo! She would certainly be the subject of my next Franken-dolly project.




Here she is with another Franken-dolly ( So In Style Trichelle with a fashionista body). Her head is an Asha face - before the heads got big, and she has been redressed in a Barbie ourfit and Bfc "Converse" Chucks. She tells me that she can't walk in heels, so she will never be a model. However, this girl has some stories to tell..........

Not a good sign for SIS- So In Style dolls....

Today as I went about my errands, I browsed to doll aisles of Target. They had nothing new, but what caught my eye were the bright red stickers on the So In Style Rocawear dolls. They were marked down to $9.08 from $12.99. This did not appear to be part of a weekly sale event, but permanent mark downs. Given that this line is less than a year old, it seems to me a bad omen of things to come.



I confess to having issues with the dolls - mainly that the dolls did not live up to the pre-release promotional hype. We were promised a new line of AA dolls with new sculpts and the promo pics of the latest releases showed the dolls with articulated bodies. The actual dolls - although pretty, were not what many collectors hoped. Instead of new face sculpts, each of the 4 characters share the Mbili face mold. I love this particular sculpt, but it is by no means, "new". None of the dolls have the articulated bodies as we were led to believe - though some do have jointed elbows.


Being a frugalista as well as a doll collector, I really wanted to purchase some of the dolls at the sale price, but I was just not inspired to do so! I had already purchased several of the dolls early on at retail prices and was disappointed with each purchase. I kept looking for the "new" but all I saw was old familiar face sculpts with old familiar bodies dressed up in new fashions.

I am certain that Stacy McBride-Irby, the designer of this line, did the best she could with what she was allotted. The facial screenings and clothing designs are current and fresh and I love that the dolls represent a variety of skin tones. I just feel that Mattel did not truly commit to the project and decided to minimize production costs by using old and familiar instead of really doing something new.

The result is that the dolls are now being discounted. Mattel will probably use this as an excuse for not releasing new ethnic dolls in the future. They will say they just don't sell - yeah, right! The truth is, many collectors were almost salivating at the prospect of something new from Mattel. Many like myself, ran out and purchased the new dolls at retail price as soon as they hit store shelves. We wanted Mattel to know that such a project would be well supported. I am certain that many people really like the dolls. The story lines are great and provide a positive message for young girls. However for collectors, I think the dolls fell a bit short of the mark.

Generation of Dreams Barbie Mystery

Sometime in October of last year, I purchased this doll at Costco.


It was to be a Christmas gift for my daughter who is also a Barbie collector. The price was significantly less that the suggested retail, so I thought I was getting a pretty good deal.


Last Friday, I was shopping my local Big Lots and found this:



Holy smokes! Not only was she priced at less than half of the one purchased at Costco, but this one included bonus jewelry - a really nice cloisonne pendant with the same motif as the dress. Nowhere on the box does it say that this was any particular store's exclusive, and I can find no information online about the doll with the bonus. One of these dolls is destined to be deboxed and become one of my models (love the ebony skin tone and the model muse pose), but I am unsure which to debox. It would make sense to leave the least common NRFB, but I would love to wear that pendant! Can anyone out there solve this mystery?

My Scene Clone Identity?

I purchased this doll last spring at either Big Lots, or DD's Boutique and paid $4 or $5 for her. She was the only one of her kind on the shelf and her box was trashed, but I still thought she was cute. Shortly thereafter, she was packed away with the rest of my dolls in preparation for the move to the new house. She has been imprisoned in a large cardboard prison with many other dolls until this week when I was determined to parole them all.

The packaging insert, accessories, and of course the doll all look like My Scene imitations and are actually of really good quality considering the price. I can only assumed that the box was discarded since it was in such bad shape, so now I am left wondering who she is, or what company made her. She has the typical My Scene belly button body with click knees, over-sized head, and big clunky boots on otherwise small, Barbie-size feet. Her only flaw is that her hair is thin. It is a good thing that it is so curly, otherwise I am sure that her scalp would be visible in spots.

Does anyone have a clue who this doll might be, or the company that manufactured her? The last picture shows her with My Scene Jai for comparison.