Halloween Happenings 2011

T.J. did not oversee the Halloween party this year. Some of the East Philadelphians decided to hold a Best Costume Competition. Here are the photos ...

The Other N Word

The word I am about to type may send shock waves through the North American continent. But let us face the reality: some dolls have them. Some action figures have them. Others do not. Approve or disapprove, you may want to know where your next doll or action figure stands on this count. For those who wish to add this feature to your playscale people, I have a link to show you how one doll artist adjusts hers. Here is the word:


nipple


There, I typed the word. How many of you are reeling? No one? Good. I was worried about reader reactions because in the United States and possibly Canada and Mexico, nipples are NOT to be SEEN. Does anyone recall the cacophony of horror that erupted about the event 38th Super Bowl game or the more recent event on a reality dance show? Fortunately, I do not watch football games or dance programs so my sight was never impaired by those glimpses of the human female anatomy.



Sometimes, I expose my dolls' and action figures' nipples. Sometimes, I just want to show the doll's or action figure's body stripped so that you can see the proportions without distortion from clothes. I forget that some of the Asian fashion dolls (Ladies Mission and Girl's Mission especially) and action figures (oh, those Power Team guys!) have some breast detailing. Other times, I notice the doll's um definition and I COVER them up. The - you know, other N word. Either with a towel or heavy top. Face red, I think, I cannot show nasty, naughty nipples. Oh, I typed that word again. Tsk.

Back and forth. Nipples are there and should not be considered worse than any other body part; on the other hand, I have to overcome some reluctance to see or to mention them.

For additional reading, please check these websites:

Taboo: Nipples

Barbie nipple tutorial

Breast feeding baby

Facebook censor

Stalker Review at Silent G's Onesixthophrenia

Hello ... any G.I. Joe fans out there? Sure there are. And you are all far more knowledgeable about Sideshow Toy's G.I. Joe line than I am. (My last Sideshow figures were from Buffy, James Bond, and Planet of the Apes. Oh, dating myself there, hmm?)

Yes, Sideshow Collectibles has a G.I. Joe line. Mighty fine figures they are, those Sideshow Joes. A good example is their Stalker character. Read Silent G's Stalker review. Then head over to the Sideshow site. Beyond "doll" and veering closely to art.

Happy viewing - I mean, reading.

Jo, Winner of the Sinatra (Barbie) Body

Jo reading Halloween stories to Tawny Tommy, So in Style Kianna, and a few of the other children.

Voila, Jo, formerly from Mattel's Timeless Treasures, When I Read, I Dream line. She won the most votes - 5 out of 6 (Takara's School Girl Kisara took the remaining vote). Jo has removed the black-white check suit - I didn't think that the suit suited her character - and now wears a Spin Master Liv fashion. The Sinatra body gives her a long-legged, teenager look that I find a better fit for her face than the child-body she originally had.

For anyone curious to see Blossom and Kisara with the Sinatra body, here are their photos:

Blossom Unbound

Kisara Jams

Notes: the Sinatra Barbie body feet are longer than the old-style high-heeled Barbie feet, but they are not flat like the Poser feet or large as the BigFoot Barbie feet.

Does anyone else think that Jo looks like a younger sister of Gillian from the Fashion Fever line? I think that I will have mine share that connection.

Links to New DOTW Promo Photos

Recent online visits to Angelic Dreamz and Pink Ponytail Presents made me wonder:

Is it possible for any DOTW Barbie from Ireland to have ANY other hair color BUT red? Are there no blond or brunette Irish lasses? And is "lasses" an offensive term nowadays?



Can DOTW from China wear any other color but RED? Yes, the Mattel dolls from China look lovely in red, but would it KILL them to dress in another color. Just once ...



Do the dolls from Australia HAVE to be blond? Although this one looks interesting - she's not grinning for a change. Please no more Mackies though. I am overrun by Mackies. Especially blond ones.



Suggestion: grab up the Shoe Obsession Barbie ASAP - looks like she actually eats. Or has eaten. She looks as though she has a bit of substance to her. Imagine a fed-looking, healthy Barbie. We'll forgive the fishnet stockings. Okay, I will. Speak for myself, right? Wink.


DOTW Argentina breaks the mold on TWO counts. Can you guess what they are?

Hispanic Heritage Month Blog Posts

Just a notice to playscale and ethnic doll fans, our blogging buddy at Male Doll World has a series of posts showing Hispanic and Latino MALES. That's right Hispanic/Latino dolls and action figures. Please see the start of that series here. My favorite is this guy - although I do think his legs are ssooooo large. (My Kens shudder at the thought of fitting that gentleman in dress pants.)

Update: Who Should Get the Sinatra Body ... and Why?

Now you knew that the new articulated Sinatra Barbie body would receive another head, right? Lifts hand up to stop the rush of oh, nos!, how could you do that? Yes, the face is pretty. However, from the LARGE assortment of pale and tanned faced blond Mackies with similar eye make up, I prefer the Festival of the World: Oktoberfest Barbie. I don't need so many similar faces. And no, Oktoberfest Barbie will NOT be receiving the Sinatra Barbie body at this time. OB prefers her rounded look, And I have other plans for that body.

... however, those plans aren't solid yet. Perhaps I can get some help from my fellow enthusiasts? There are three dolls that need articulated bodies who could match this doll body. They are Jo, Blossom, and Kisara. Here are the ladies themselves:

MiladyBlue reminds me that I have NOT introduced these ladies so that everyone can know who is who. From left to right, we have Jo in the pink pullover, grinning Blossom, and finally. School girl Kisara in her original schoolgirl uniform - black jacket, white blouse, tie, and black plaid skirt.

Jo (nickname for Josephine March) of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women is part of the When I Read, I Dream collection by Mattel. Other dolls in that series include Fern (E. B. White's Charlotte's Web), Anne of Green Gables (Lucy M. Montgomery), and Heidi (Johanna Spyri's Heidi). Jo is not shown on her original body; her head is on a Mystery Squad Kenzie body. The original When I Read dolls were on Stacie-sized bodies, about 8" tall.

Blossom by Tyco is from the 1980s television show, Blossom. Blossom is on her original body that makes her a little over 9". Other dolls in the Blossom group include her brother Joey and friend Six. Fellow doll enthusiast and blogger, Ms. Leo has several photos of Joey out of his box. I've heard about the existence of a fourth doll in this series, Vinnie, but I am waiting to see photos. (Color me curious ;-D)

Kisara is a Takara Jenny friend.

For this body replacement, I am sometimes partial to Kisara, sometimes partial to Jo. And Blossom clearly could use a larger body for her um larger head. Anyone want to submit a vote on which of these three heads you think should inherit the Sinatra Barbie body? I'm posting a poll to gather your responses.

Thanks in advance for your assistance!

More StarDolls Information Plus Link to Actual Doll

Uncanny how one day I am photographing Jakks Pacific G.I.R.L. Force dolls and later, I find nude photos of the new blonde Stardoll. This is the blonde Stardoll shown wearing a pink tweed jacket and black-white herringbone skirt. She is shown next to a nude Barbie Basics No. 14.

Here is some additional information and speculation from Gatorgirrl, E.A., and FashionistaBoy.

1). They will have "real" eyelashes per the eBay seller.

2.) They have the standard paper doll pose - arms slightly away from the body and legs in a wide stance.

3.) Arms jointed at shoulder and head seems moveable on the neck, but otherwise, the new body resembles the Jakks Pacific G.I.R.L. Force dolls and the Integrity Toys ITBE dolls.

4.) Cool fashions and accessories - please see photograph at Blog of Stench's site. Thanks, E.A. for the larger photo.

5.) Dolls seem to be available in FLORIDA.

6.) There will be an AA doll. Please check the third photo under FashionistaBoy's site. She is wearing a lilac dress and a white jacket. She has long curly hair and a medium brown complexion.

Okay, who else is jumping up and down like me? Got Florida contacts? Time to contact them, ASAP.

What I Got When I Went to Toys R Us Yesterday

Frannie and Vanessa, I guess you know me, lol. One of the dolls I got is the Sinatra Barbie doll; the other is Dolls of the World, Ken from Japan. Why? Well, first I was going to get the Rock Hudson set. I mean a good looking guy with a NOSE ... how could I resist? Hmmm .... $79.99 being too steep is how I resisted. The only other $79.99 set was Lucy and Desi. I would have bought them, but I'd only want Desi. And I don't like the way Mattel paints Desi's pupils to the far edge of his eye.

In my dream world, I would have bought the new Johnny Depp doll, but he was not among the available choices. (See how that Angelica choice, Vanessa, was a near miss?) Harley Davidson Ken was likewise, not available. And I had wanted the DOTW Ken anyway so I got him. He's getting out of his cartoony outfit as soon as I can decide what he should and can wear. Also DOTW Ken from Japan has these dreamy cheekbones. His features are different from other Kens.

Sinatra Barbie? Okay, I confess. The suit did it. Yes, I bought her for her black-white checked suit. And that gray plastic fedora hat. Sigh. Love the V-neck white shirt too.And the long black tie. I could work those pieces for my other dolls. And use that pale, poser body for one of my very fair dolls. Which one? You'll learn more in a future post.

For now, let's have the Buff Guy and the Gal-in-the-Suit.

Who Went to Toys R Us Today ... Me!

I think I have been pretty good lately. No big doll purchases, hmmm?

Well, I succumbed to the Toys R Us sale. Got two dolls on their buy one, get one free sale. Alas, not Jack Sparrow. No, not Rock Hudson and Doris Day. No, not the Museum dolls. Hmmm ... which ones?

I'd like to hear your guesses as to which two dolls and/or doll sets I bought today. I'll post the photo of them tomorrow.

Additional Footwear for Jakks Pacific G.I.R.L. Force Ladies

Remember the Jakks Pacific G.I.R.L. Force dolls from 2000?

I do. I had to go to the suburbs to get my first two - Bianca and Creanna - from a Target there. (This is before the South Philly Target existed.)

Anyway, I received a query asking which other shoes the Jakks Pacific G.I.R.L. Force dolls can wear. My initial answer was any of the shoes Mego produced for their over 12" celebrity dolls: Farrah Fawcett, Diana Ross, etc. I see another collector offer that same advice, but now we have new dolls and new shoe sources. Yay!

1.) Mattel's Barbie ... the "big foot" Riding Club Cali Girl dolls. Yes, Mattel produced some plastic cowboy boots for their big foot dolls. Jakks Josie wears the red-black pair made for Lea. There were a white pair of cowboy boots for Barbie and probably a pair for Summer. (I don't recall seeing the color of Summer's boots. And, no, there was no Christie or Nikki for this series. Then again, I don't see me riding a horse. Ever. lol)

2.) Mattel's Flavas ... the black boots worn by Jakks' Valerie are boots made for either Happy D or Kiyoni Brown (possibly both?) Both pairs of Mattel boots are slit down the back to allow easy removal of the doll's feet. Whew. Thank you for that, Mattel!

3.) YNU Group's Mixis open-toed sandals. Jaz shows off these stylish black sandals. Note: the closed toe loafers belonging to YNU Group's Opal do NOT fit the Jakks dolls. And I would not even think of trying the Mixis zippered boots. The Jakks Pacific dolls have rounder legs than the Mixis dolls.

Say, has anyone ever seen a Jakks Pacific Felicia doll? Glamerboy, wonderful doll researcher and creator of the Jakks page cited above, writes that she was NOT produced. There was another Black doll in the G.I.R.L. Force line who was not produced either. Pity that. Sigh. She looked pretty and different.

Photos of other Jakks dolls appear at Lady Bast's site, in my Flick account, and in my Webshots folder. Know of any additional Jakks Pacific doll websites or blog entries? Please share with me or Jen of Doll Links fame. Thanks in advance.

Mattel Hobbit Bodies

Hobbit bodies anyone? Here they are. These hobbit bodies belong to Rebelde Schoolgirls Mia (blonde) and Lupita (brunette). They are roughly 11" tall. Markings on the middle of their back read:

C2008 Mattel, Inc.
INDONESIAN
1468

Rebelde Schoolgirls Mia and Lupita

Mia turns on her side for a profile shot. Lupita holds aside Mia's hair

Other Mattel Teen Fashion Dolls

Rio de Janeiro Skipper, Mystery Squad Drew, Generation Girl Lara, High School Musical Taylor and Rebelde Schoolgirl Lupita (dolls left to right)

The hobbit body is shorter than that of most of the teen fashion dolls shown here. Only High School Musical Taylor has a shorter torso; Taylor is about 10" tall. The hobbit dolls also have wider hips and more narrow shoulders. Neither the waist nor the bust twists for the hobbit dolls. Finally, their legs seem a little wobbly. But if you would like a different height and a different build for your teen dolls, the hobbit body can provide that difference.