Integrity Face Mold Correction - Not Alysa But Icon Sooki

My final post for 2013 features a correction to a face mold identification. The dark complected fashion doll in the center of this post's photo is NOT Alysa as cited, but the Icon Sooki aka Jade (used by the last Jade dolls). I learned this information from a long-time Integrity playline - Janay et al. - collector on Facebook. So please update your notes on that matter, if you have not done so already.

May you all have a Happy New Year.

Collectors Three, Mixis Three, and PrettieGirls One

Last weekend, Ms. Leo invited local doll enthusiasts to a doll play meet. She brought coffee and Dunkin' Donuts doughnuts. A date and location were set. Cyndy Bee and I were able to attend. I cannot speak for the others, but I had fun. How often do you feel free to discuss dolls and finding things for them? We discussed other collector-enthusiasts whose work we admired and learned of "new" photographers and artisans. Shared blog addresses and Flickr accounts.

We unpacked the Show and Tell items we had each brought. Cyndy brought a charming hostess gift for Ms. Leo - which I will leave for Ms. Leo to describe - and a well-constructed wooden doll trunk created by her husband. Cyndy explained how he put together two shadow boxes and how she decorated the interior of the box.

Ms. Leo brought some of her new dolls: Max, Marie, and Lena of the Prettie Girls. (So Cyndy and I got to see a Prettie Girl doll in the vinyl. Very helpful. Now I want at least THREE of those dolls ... sometime next year, but THREE. Pleased to have decided that.) Ms. Leo also brought a doll clothes pattern book, some accessories, and two neat rug coverings that I claimed along with a pair of men's sneakers when we made trades. My printer is out of ink so the rugs were a welcome accessory since I would not have been able to print them online anytime soon.

I brought a NRFB YNU Group Inc. Limited Edition Emerald, a LE Rosa, and a First Edition Opal as well as accessories and my extra Mixis doll fashion. Ms. Leo had wanted to see the Mixis dolls and the series was new to Cyndy. I got to see Lena of the Prettie Girls. Yes, the Prettie Girls and the Mixis dolls can wear each other’s clothes with only two off elements:



The Mixis dolls are a little wider in the torso so more fitted Prettie Girls fashions may not fit them properly. Lena's blouse barely fit Opal. The Prettie Girls' torso is closer to Barbie's with an inward curve at the lower back similar to the new JLo doll and/or the early Shani dolls. The distinction between the waist and the hips on the Mixis dolls is not as exaggerated.







The Prettie Girls have slightly longer legs so Opal’s jeans might seem high-water on Lena. However, Lena’s pants (which I thought were high-water) fit Opal's leg length.



See how the Prettie Girls body dips at the lower back.




As I mentioned, I had fun. Thanks, Ms. Leo for making the arrangements for this meet and for bringing me out of my home doll cave ;-) Thanks Cyndy for coming along and contributing to a jolly time. See you both next year.

Winter is Coming ... 2014 Update

Hey, Game of Thrones fans - yoo hoo! Gather near. Guess what famous franchise is going sixth scale? Yeah, baby - Game of Thrones! But didn't I say that Dark Horse was NOT producing sixth scale figures? Yes, I did and no, they aren't. So whoa - who is?

ThreeZero. Who? A toy company called Threezero has the license to produce sixth scale Game of Thrones figures. Eeekkk! Excited? One of the first figures likely to be available next year is Tyrion Lannister. I first learned this news from The Rebel Page and found additional confirmation at ActionFigureFury.

You can like ThreeZero on Facebook.

So it seems we will have Game of Thrones playscale figures. Only problem ... the cost. Something tells me that these figures will not be cheap. Unless Mattel or a similar company also gets permission to create them ... now that would be fun.

Happy Kwanzaa!

Four years ago, Deidre shared this greeting duty with her friend Keeya. Since Keeya was featured on another blog, we decided that Deidre could go solo this year. So here is our East Philly Kwanzaa ambassador. Alas, she is too pooped to answer any questions tonight. I took the photo a few hours ago; little Deidre has long since gone to sleep. Sigh. In addition to the Black Doll Collecting blog post, I offer this link to an Integrity Toys' Kwanzaa family. 

And here is a Pinterest board dedicated to Kwanzaa. Enjoy!

toyhaven: Check out Ace Toyz preview of their 1/6 scale Blac...

Call out to Vanessa and other Morgan Freeman fans ...

toyhaven: Check out Ace Toyz preview of their 1/6 scale Blac...: Finally, a really decent and complete 1/6 scale Morgan Freeman 12-inch figure. There have been quite a few 1/6 scale Morgan Freeman head scu...

Anyone interested in this figure? The likeness to the actor is striking. I don't know the cost yet, but you can keep it in mind for your future doll and action figure budget.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Ballerina Barbie

Who's That Janay? Test Your Integrity Playline Knowledge

I was photographing four of my Integrity Toys Janay dolls to show body differences.* Then I took a photo of the four dolls in a cross pattern - one in the center, two flanking on either side and a fourth above the first. Such lovely and unique facial screenings they have. Such a variety in hair textures and styles. Integrity Toys did some wonderful, creative fashion dolls in the mid-2000s. See the photo below. Anyone recognize these dolls by their Integrity title?

One of the dolls, I believe will be easy to identify because she recently appeared on another collector's blog; but I wondered about the others. So I am putting you to a Janay ID test. Here are the individual Janays:

JANAY1

JANAY2

JANAY3

JANAY4

Here are the titles to match to these Janay dolls 1-4:

Fashion Fling = ?

Tribal Treasures = ?

Icons = ?

Fashion Fling = ?

Studio It - ?

 

(While there are four dolls, I list five titles because one of the four may have been packaged under two titles.) If you recognize any of the dolls with a specific title, submit your answer(s) in the comments. I am eager to see who's a savvy Janay fan.

Can you guess which Janay has which title?

Celebrity Links - KISS, Dallas, Gilligan's Island by Figures

Figures Toy Company plans to expand your playscale collections with their caricatured celebrities from the 1960s-1980s. (Note: their Kiss figures, however, have more realistic features than the usual Figures offerings. Alas, they all have the 1970s KISS make-up so unless you remove the original face paint, you are stuck with the KISS persona.) Shrug. Here are some of the attractions produced or to be produced:

KISS figures in their Love Gun gear or in their Dressed to Kill business suits

J.R. Ewing from Dallas in two versions at $79.99 each or $159.99 for both

Gilligan and the Skipper from Gilligan's Island

Bo and Luke Duke, Rosco and Boss Hogg from The Dukes of Hazzard 

Evel Knievel, 1970s stunt performer

Happy viewing!

  

Playscale Reindeer from Disney Movie Frozen

If you want a reindeer to act out parts of the Disney movie Frozen, you are in luck. Walmart has a playscale gift set with the two Frozen sisters, Anna and Elsa, Sven the reindeer, and Olaf the snowman. Walmart online is out of stock for this item so if you cannot find it at a Walmart near you, try Toywiz. Yes, Toywiz has this Walmart exclusive. BUT there is a BIG price difference. At Walmart, this set costs $39.97; at Toywiz, it costs $64.99.

A Midnight Magic Pets Collection Doll I Almost Bought

Midnight Magic Pets Collection Alexis and Pet Owl Snowy

Last year's Midnight Magic dolls were clearly based on Mattel's Monster High series.  They were a little cute. I didn't buy them, but I looked at them and smiled. (Yes and that pleased everyone, lol.) This year's Midnight Magic Pets Collection borrows the vivid, sparkly-translucent bodies of the Novi Star dolls and the odd-scaled pets of that series. And I winced, shuddered, and turned my head when I saw the first 2013 Midnight Magic doll, Alexis. Why?

Translucent head

Translucent, sparkly body

Odd-sized pet

Ten dollar price

Then I saw the Makayla doll from this series.

Midnight Magic Pets Collection Makayla and Pet ? Persia

Oh, now this one is much cuter. I LOVE her curly white hair with orange highlights. The translucent brown face does not seem as ghastly as the pink, green, and blue heads. But the glittery, bone-thin body takes away the pluses for me. So I did not buy her.

If you would like to see more photos of this and other Midnight Magic collections, see

MM website

Facebook page

Tumblr site by Kate's Creations

Photos of these dolls

Happy viewing!

Ron Burgundy Doll - Ouch - Action Figure Alert

Are you a fan of Anchorman?

If you are, Paul of Idle Hands shares this neat news: a 13" Ron Burgundy doll er action figure is available on Amazon.com. (Yes, that makes him a little taller than most playscale figures, but what else could you expect of the always classy Mr. Burgundy?) Beeline Creative presents their first action figure, a 13" Ron Burgundy figure and 8" versions of Ron and his KVWN Channel 4 News Team.

To like Beeline Creative on FaceBook, go to this link.

For previews of the upcoming Anchorman 2, go to this link.

Think you will be adding this pseudo-1970s icon to your collection? 

Mixis Doll Sale - $19.95 ANY One

HOLIDAY SPECIAL
ALL MIXIS DOLLS $19.95
TWO WEEKS ONLY!

(Price valid from Nov 28 to Dec 13)

Go to the Mixis store and take advantage of this wonderful deal. Mixis First dolls  wear the denim bottoms and either the knee high, back zipped leather boots (Emerald and Rosa) or the black leather slip-on loafers (Opal). They also carry a leather backpack and an additional pair of footwear, black high-heeled sandals. The Mixis Limited dolls have lace-up leather sandals, an attractive sundress, and a fabric handbag.

Articulation, you will ask. The Mixis Limited dolls have articulated elbows. The Mixis First dolls have standard, straight arms. Both sets of dolls have click bend knees and can sit and move their arms up/down and turn their heads. Additional posts about the Mixis bodies are here, here, here, and here. DBG and Roxanne have written several posts about the Mixis dolls.

The Mixis store now ships to the United States as well as Canada. And if you need shipping to another country, send an email query to them first. 

Note: American customers, there are additional fees outside the sale cost. Please read the relevant information on the Mixis store shipping page.

Good luck and may you get the Mixis you want.

 

Play Hut's Mystixx Dolls Return

Remember I wrote a post about the Mystixx dolls? The creepy two-faced dolls by Play Hut ... well, some people like them because they are back. Moreover, Azra and Kalani have brought friends with them. Yes, the Vampire quartet is complete: Siva and Talin have joined the line-up.

Azra = blue

Kalani = green

Siva = purple

Talin = pink

The face looks the same (probably is the same), but they have different wig styles and outfits in goth or punk themes. Read ... additional fashions, yes! Most of the Vampire dolls listed above are also available in these themes:

Zombie dolls play "beautiful human girl by day or mesmerizing zombie by night"

Grimm dolls play fairy tale girl or masked forest creature

Articles on the Mystixx Dolls

Of Toys and Games sales site
(P.S. can anyone explain how Kalani can be a vampire AND a vegetarian?)

Reviews of the Mystixx Dolls

Emily Toy Philosopher

Ashley Confessions of a Doll Collector

jpopluvr1000 Mystixx Zombie Azra review

Monica J of Sofamilyonline

Mystixx on Social Media

Mystixx dolls have a Facebook page in addition to a Flickr Hive site brimming with photos of them. Play Hut claims the brand on their website.


Happy viewing and reading.

New Source for 12" M&C Power Team Action Figures!

There is a NEW toy store at 1708 Chestnut Street in Center City. Yes! Was I surprised? Yes. Did I go there? Yes. I had to see what they had - just in case.

Oh the name of the store? ToyZam. Their motto: It's Okay to Play! And there was a lot of playing going on at the store. Kids and at least one staff member riding an Ezy Roller, noise-making toy animals sounding off, tormenting of musical instruments, and other "fun" activities. I checked the doll line - nothing outstanding - Disney princesses, Chic Boutique princesses, Monster High dolls, and some playline Barbies. The prices seemed a little high: the 2013 Holiday Barbie costs $49.99. Monster High dolls ranged from $19.99 for the Dead Tired, Dance Class, and Skultimate Roller Maze dolls to $34.99 for the Sweet 1600 and Ghouls Rule dolls.

I'm pleased to see a toy store on Chestnut Street, but I'm not overwhelmed until I came to a wall of green boxes and black boxes. Well now. Green boxes ... yes, you guessed right. The M&C Power Team guys were on the shelves. About eight to ten figures. Price? They are $12.99 a figure. The basic PT guys with some extra accessories thrown into the box. Not enough or big enough accessories to warrant $19.99. Although the $20 sets usually had useful accessories - animals or vehicles, furniture, etc. - so the price bump didn't matter so much. But think: Power Team figures outside of Big Lots! Happy dance time.

Because I know someone will ask: no, they did not have any Black or Asian figures in the store. However, that the store carries the Power Team guys at all, that gives me hope that someday, I might find them there. The "them" I mention are the ethnic guys. Or, let me honest, any race or ethnic playscale male figure whose face pleases me. How can I resist them - they are World Peacekeepers, after all.

So check your East Coast neighborhoods for Toyzam stores. Best of luck finding your Power Team crew.