Madam LaVinia

I finally have my curvy articulated doll. Madam LaVinia Barbie is the first collector doll to use the curvy body.

"Embodying the unbridled style of the Harlem Renaissance, the second member in the Harlem Theatre™ Collection presides over one of the hottest nightclubs of the 1920s. This music maven features a new posable curvy body and many lavish details!"

 I have actually had her since late last year, and kept her in the box. I've been wanting to take her out of the box, but a bigger part of me did not want to take her out of the box because she is so beautifully displayed there and is such a collectible.

I couldn't bring myself to take her out of the box. So what's a collector to do? I looked for one nude on eBay, but was never able to locate one for a price that I was willing to pay. So, I purchased a second doll to debox.

Here she is out of the box. She has beautiful clothing and accessories. She looks regal. She is able to stand in her shoes without her stand. It was difficult to balance her walking stick.

Here she is up close. Her earrings and turban are removable.

She has exquisite details on her jewelry and the accents on her clothing. Her fur is wonderful, and the chiffon sash around her hips is really soft. 

Here she is with her clothing removed. She had a thread connecting her turban to her head that was easily removed. Her earrings and ring were easily removed (her ring is like the old school Barbies where the ring pokes through a hole in the hand). She had double sided tape on her chest to hold her dress in place, and she has it on her legs to hold her stockings in place. I have decided to leave her stockings on for now. Her hair was stiff, but I brushed it out and she has a cute short curly cut. 

In addition to traditional articulation, LaVinia has articulation at the elbows, wrists, and knees. Her elbows rotate, but her knees do not. Her legs rotate slightly at the hips.

She cannot wear standard Barbie clothes. In these photos, she is wearing action figure undies, and her own stockings and shoes.

Here she is in a seated position. I could not get her to cross her legs on this low couch.

She can share shoes with other curvy Barbies. In the photo below, Emoji Fun Barbie wears one of Madam LaVinia's shoes and one of her own shoes, and she is able to balance. I could not get Emoji Fun's shoe on Madam LaVinia's foot over her stocking.

Madam LaVinia has a slightly different body than the other curvy Barbies. Below, she is joined by Dolled Up Denim and Emoji Fun. They can both wear Barbie bras. Madam LaVinia has a fuller bust and a smaller waist. She does not have molded panties, while the other two do.

All of my curvy ladies can share clothes. They can all also wear action figure clothing. I have packed Madam LaVinia's original clothing and accessories away for now. I'm sure she'll have an opportunity to wear her outfit at a lavish gala to be held sometime in the distant future.

Overall, I love this doll! I feel like I've waited a long time for her. She feels pretty sturdy, and I can pose her easily. Hopefully the curvy ladies will be getting more clothing and shoe options (I'm particularly interested in the shoes, because I can find plenty of clothing for them in the action figure world). These curvy ladies look normal sized to me, so I'd still love to see some truly plus sized 1/6 scale dolls with articulation.