Dissatisfaction

Top Model Nikki has felt dissatisfaction over the past week that she's had Opal's old body.  She's been looking around for a new one.  And that's when she became very friendly with Monsieur Z Wild.

In the photo above, on the left is Top Model Nikki's head on Mixis Opal's body, and on the right is Monsieur Z wild.

After the swap:  Monsieur Z Wild's head on Mixis Opal's body, Top Model Nikki's head on Monsieur Z Wild's body.

I like Nikki's head much better on the Integrity body, and I think that the Monsieur Z Wild head looks good on Opal's body.  I feel satisfied with this swap.

And The Winner Is...

Dragon Jennifer has been giving me the evil eye for the past few months for not officially announcing the winner of the Final Challenge - Yoga Poses.  Well, Jennifer finally gets her day in the spotlight!

The readers of this blog have voted and the winner of the Final Challenge - Yoga is Dragon Jennifer!

The readers have spoken, and Jennifer has blown away the competition with her awesome moves.  She is durable, she is flexible, and she can hold a pose like no other.

Jennifer is presented with a bouquet of roses while her fellow finalists and others join in congratulating her on her well-deserved victory.

Second place goes to Alvin Ailey Barbie!

She is graceful, beautiful, and flexible, and the readers were impressed with how well she posed against the fierce competition of the action figures.

Triad Alpha seemed visibly upset when second place was announced.  She was later heard exclaiming "I was ROBBED!"

 Jennifer's speech:  "Thank you all very much for your votes.  I am aware that I do not embody glamour and beauty the way that other dolls do, and some may even find me unattractive. For that reason, I am relegated to the background most of the time. Thank you for recognizing my strengths and for allowing me to have this moment to stand out from the crowd."

Jennifer has become much more popular with the male figures here, which she appreciates.  But right now, she really just wants to snatch off that wig, wash off the make-up, and put on some comfortable clothes and shoes.  Yes, the outfit was my idea.  Forgive me, Jennifer, and congratulations once again!

The Final Challenge: Yoga

It's time to choose the best of the best!  In this final set of figure comparisons, our finalists really show you what they can do in this series of Yoga poses.  From left to right, they are:  LIV Alexis body with Hadley head, Triad Alpha African, action figure body similar to Takara with Opal head, Monsieur Z Wild, Dragon Jennifer (Special Version), and Alvin Ailey Barbie.

Seated & Twist:
Hero - Jennifer does this the best, followed closely by Hadley.


Cow Face - both Jennifer and Alpha can do this pose, but Jennifer does it best and is able to clasp her hands behind her back.  To be fair, Alpha and Opal would probably be able to clasp their hands also if I had put their alternate hands on.


Standing:
Tree - Wow.  How about a round of applause for Jennifer for balancing on one foot unassisted!  I was able to get Alpha and Opal to balance on one foot for a few seconds, but not long enough to snap the photo.  Jennifer was steady on that one foot and stayed that way until I moved her again.


Downward-Facing Dog - Jennifer does this the best.  Hadley also does this really well.  I like Barbie's form, and if she had been able to do this pose with flat feet, I probably would have felt that she did this the best.


Arm Balance:
Side Plank - there's not a clear winner for me here.  Hadley, Alpha, Opal, and Jennifer all do this pose well.  Who do you think looks the best?  Neither Monsieur Z Wild nor Barbie could hold their weight on one arm.


Wild Thing - the dolls with double torso articulation really excel in this pose, which requires a torso twist as well as a backwards arch (not to mention arms strong enough to support the weight of the doll).  I had a hard time deciding who does this pose the best between Alpha and Jennifer.  I think that the Alpha looks more natural in her execution of this pose, but Jennifer just nails it.  Jennifer does this the best.


Core:
Cat - this pose requires arching the back upwards.  Opal does this the best.  Alpha gets a pretty good back arch, but it looks like she has a hump on her back when she does it.


Side-Reclining Leg Lift - I have a tough time deciding between Jennifer and Barbie here.  Jennifer arguably has the best form, but Barbie is able to lift her leg the highest.  Who do you think does this the best?  I'm going to go with Barbie here.


Backbend:
Bow - Jennifer does this the best. Perhaps if I had used the alternate hands for Alpha and Opal and they had been able to grab their ankles, they would have done better here.  The Alpha has a good back arch.


Cobra - all of the dolls do this well except for Monsieur Z Wild.  This is a tough decision, but I think that Barbie does this the best.  What do you think?


Inversions:
Supported Headstand - I should have probably gone with just a plain headstand here and the dolls would have had more success.  Since the supported headstand requires elbows down, Opal does this the best.


Plow - Opal does this the best, and also looks the most natural.


That does it for the Yoga poses.  Here is one more bonus pose.  The ladies were asked to do one final pose that displays their strongest abilities and sets them apart from the others, and this is what they came up with.

So there you have it.  Who do you think is the best?  Please vote on the poll.  Does the doll that you consider to be the best differ from the one that is your favorite?  If so, why?

I have to say that I highly recommend Yoga as great exercise and a great way to relax and relieve stress also.  It builds strength, balance, flexibility, and can be a great aerobic activity (sun salutations anyone?).  For more information about Yoga, check out http://www.yogajournal.com/.

The Finalists

Thank you for helping me choose the finalists in this posing competition!

Here are the finalists:

Group 1:  LIV Alexis body (Hadley head)

Group 2:  Triad Alpha

Group 3:  Opal head on action figure body (similar to Takara) - this was a landslide victory!

Group 4:  Monsieur Z Wild (really???)

Group 5:  Neither.  Happy Family Grandma had 1 more vote than Bessie Coleman, and just as many people voted for Neither as they did for Grandma.  I'm going with neither.  I'm substituting Dragon Jennifer here.  Sorry Grandma!

Group 6:  Alvin Ailey Barbie won by 1 vote.

Coming up next:  the final poses!

Who's the Best?

You've seen the figure comparisons featuring some of my articulated dolls, and now I will let you vote on who is the best of the best.  But first, I would like to get your help in choosing the dolls that will go on to the final round, where I will pose them in yoga poses.  I have chosen 2 dolls from each group that I thought posed the best and that were the most popular based on the comments, so let me know which one from each group that you would like to see move on.

Group 1 - Articulated Fashion Dolls

LIV Alexis body (Hadley head) vs. Artsy Fashionista

Group 2 - Action Figure Ladies

Dragon Jennifer (Special Version) vs. Triad Alpha (African)

Group 3 - Blurring the Lines

Dragon Linh vs. action figure body (similar to Takara with Opal head)

Group 4 - Trendy and Bendy
Dance 'N Flex Christie vs. Monsieur Z. Wild

Group 5 - Large and Lovely

Girls Explore Bessie Coleman vs. Happy Family Grandma (or neither)

Group 6 - Fragile and Fabulous
AA Nutcracker Barbie vs. Alvin Ailey Barbie

(As shown in the photo, Nutcracker Barbie can stand on her own after all).

Do you have a favorite that did not make the cut?  If so, let me know and I will consider moving that one to the final round instead of Bessie or Grandma.  Also, let me know if there are any specific yoga poses that you would like to see.

Trendy and Bendy: More Fashion Doll Comparisons

Happy Easter, Everyone!  This is not an Easter themed post, but feel free to check out my Easter Parade video from last year.

Here is my next group of fashion dolls for comparison.  They are posed similarly to my previous comparisons.  They are from left to right:  Winx Club Layla, Howleen Wolf, Isla head on Clawdeen Wolf body, V.I.P. A.N.T. Farm Chyna, Fashion Royalty Monsieur Z. Wild, and Dance 'N Flex Christie.

None of them can stand on their own.  Layla has bendy arms and legs, and Christie is entirely bendy.  The rest are articulated.  

They can all cross their arms somewhat.  They all have high-heeled feet.  Monsieur Z. Wild and Christie can share shoes.

Here they are doing a side stretch.  Layla, Howleen, and the Clawdeen Wolf body do not have torso articulation.  Chyna and Monsieur Z. Wild have upper torso articulation and do a decent job of stretching to the side.  Christie with her bendy torso does this better than all of them.

Here they are "walking like an Egyptian".  Chyna has no wrist articulation and Layla can not bend at the wrist.

Here they are doing kneeling back bends.  Christie can arch her back quite a bit.

Here they are showing off their hands.  All of them have weird hands that are not useful for holding objects.

Here they are attempting to sit cross-legged. Christie comes the closest, but it looks like I tried to tie her legs in a knot.

 Here they are attempting to do middle splits.  None of them are successful at this, least of all Layla.

Here they are doing front splits.  The Wolf sisters do this the best.

Here they are doing a leg lift.  The Wolf sisters and Monsieur Z. Wild do this the best.

 Here they are seated.  Layla can cross her legs, but she has issues with sitting straight up.  I think that Christie does the best job of crossing her legs.

Do you prefer bendy dolls or articulated dolls?  Do you have a favorite among these dolls?  Which ones look the best in their poses?

An Elegant Affair

The guests arrived and were impeccably dressed for the occasion. They found that the table had been set with the greatest of care and that the best china and silver were used.

The host spared no expense in getting only the finest wine and champagne for this evening of fine dining. Only the best for these ladies and gentlemen of distinction.

When the main course arrived, some of the guests were a little taken aback.

Not to worry! Alternatives were offered.