Curvy Dolls Fashions

I told myself that I would ignore the latest packages to arrive until next Saturday, because I have so much to do. But on this dark and rainy Saturday, I caved to the temptation.

This fashion pack for curvy Barbies arrived this week. If you plan on buying this one, be careful, because there's one that looks almost exactly like this that fits standard sized Barbies. Make sure that the check mark is under the curvy silhouette at the upper right.

This Barbie Fashionistas Zig & Zag doll also arrived this week. I had previously decided not to buy her, but since seeing her potential in how others have customized her, I changed my mind.

Still reeling from the loss of my Janay's hair, I found myself on eBay searching for Janay (why, I don't know). I saw this one that I don't recall seeing before. She's African Dancer Janay. She's begging to be released from her box so that she can dance dance dance with her articulated body, but this one will wait.

So this is what I was REALLY shopping for when I purchased Zig & Zag and the curvy fashions. But this Musician Barbie will have to wait until next Saturday or later, because I feel that I will need to spend some quality time with her when I do release her from her box. She has some cool accessories.

I struggle somewhat with photography, but I figure that my photos are decent enough for this blog. You can see what I'm talking about well enough in my photos for the most part. However, my videos have been a different story. They come out so dang dark! I really am trying to improve with my photography and my videos. So another one of my purchases arrived this week, and I did take these out of the box intending to use them today, but one of them looks like it was damaged during shipping and has a piece broken off. So back in the box they went, and they will probably be going back to where they came from (which I'm dreading, since I do really despise going to the post office).

Not my photo - I don't have enough light to take a photo this good

So today, you will be treated to terrible photos taken on a dark and rainy Saturday. I will spare you the super dark video though (okay, maybe a slideshow).

Here is Zig & Zag Barbie out of the box. I will soon remove her pink lipstick. I'm not planning on repainting her lips right away. She can stand on her own in her shoes.

She made friends with the other curvy ladies right away.

Here are Madam LaVinia and Emoji Fun posing in the new fashions. I know that LaVinia would look better without her stockings, but I don't want to remove them and deal with the adhesive that is holding them up on her legs. The ladies can not stand in the brown shoes that came with this fashion pack, which is really disappointing. Also, I can't tell if that's supposed to be a belt or a necklace that comes with the fashion pack, but it doesn't look right as either. In order to fit as a belt on the curvy ladies, it would have to ride way up high on their waists. The belt (or whatever) looks good on standard size Barbies, though. I wonder if they just used the same belt that they used for the standard Barbie fashion pack. The purse is cute.

 Dasia and Monica can wear the flowered shirt from the fashion pack, and that's it. Below, Dasia wears the shirt, along with her Hollywood Starlette top and shoes, and Russell Williams' shorts. Monica wears Tracy Turnblad's dress, and Tracy wears Monica's dress (and both of them wear action figure shoes that are too large).

Below, Dasia wears Monica's dress, and Monica wears Dasia's dress. Zig & Zag wears an outfit that came on a Herobuilders action figure (the top has 2 snaps, and only the top one will snap).

Below, Dasia wears Monica's bikini, and Monica wears the Hollywood Starlette undies that Dasia normally wears. Zig & Zag wears Jakks Pacific Lola's outfit.

Below, Dasia wears a Ken jacket, Monica wears Zig & Zag's dress (it will not close in the back), and Zig & Zag wears a Sparkle Girlz dress.

In the photos below, Dasia wears Mammy's dress, Monica wears a Ken shirt and Mammy's red petticoat and a different pair of Monster High shoes, and Zig & Zag wears a Triad Alpha leotard with shorts from the fashion pack.

Below, Dasia wears the Herobuilders jacket and Scottie Pippen's shorts, Monica wears Mixis Opal's dress (which does not resemble a dress on her) with Russell Williams' shorts, and Zig & Zag wears a Sparkle Girlz dress.

And here's my video slideshow. 😊

Small Scale Articulation

I purchased an articulated Blythe doll body (the dark skin version).

My apologies to all of you Blythe lovers out there, but I do not know much about Blythe. I think that Takara manufactures this body, but I'm not sure. There are no markings on the body. I tried to do some research to find out more, but I got bored and my eyes started to glaze over after just a little while.  I don't know if this is an Azone or Pure Neemo or what, I just know that I wanted this articulated body. I don't want the huge Blythe head. Another one of my dolls will use this body. 

When removing this doll from the box, I was very glad to see that the skin tone is pretty much exactly what I expected from the photos on the advertisements. I was especially pleased after recent purchases where the figure that I received was not as dark as advertised.

I was also glad to see that the dark skin tone would match several of the dolls in my collection. The body feels very sturdy and is heavier than other dolls this size. She is a little bit taller than Juku Couture dolls, and about the same height as Wee Three Friends dolls.

Because of the immobility of the neck connector, any head that I put on this body will be able to move side to side, but not up and down. She has good mobility in her arms and shoulders. Her range of motion is somewhat limited at the elbows. Her upper arms swivel. Her hands rotate. There are several sets of hands that can be purchased for this doll, but I'm not interested in the various hand gestures. It would be nice to have a relaxed set of hands, though.

Her waist twists from side to side. Her legs will part slightly. Her legs rotate at the upper thigh. The range of motion at her knees is somewhat limited. Because of her ankle articulation, she can wear flat shoes, or shoes with a slight heel. She can kneel. She can also sit flat on the floor. She looks good posing in a seated position, and she can cross her lower legs.

This doll is small in stature, so I definitely wanted to give her a head with a youthful appearance. I have an extra Juku Couture Kana head, but the head has a tiny hole for the neck connector and would not fit without permanent modification. The neck connector for the Blythe body is Barbie sized.

The closest skin tone match to the Blythe body is probably my tan Momoko doll.  Momoko already has an articulated body and she's adorable on that body, so I was not about to rebody her. If I'm ever in possession of another tan Momoko head though, I'll probably put that head on this body.

I purchased this body hoping that it would be a good match for my Barbie Crazy for Coral Petite Fashionistas doll. My petite doll was not thrilled about that idea. She wasn't sure if she wanted to give up what height she does have in favor of articulation.

She's a decent skin tone match. My petite doll started to warm up to the idea.

It's a done deal. My petite doll is now more petite than ever! Her head looks slightly oversized on this body, though.

But she is thrilled with her ability to strike different poses!

Even though she is now the same height as the tweens and young teens in my collection, she is quick to remind them that she is actually a little older than they are.

She still likes hanging out with her old friends.

 The teen guys all still think she's cute.

My overall impression is that this is a good quality doll at a reasonable price. The joints are not very attractive, though. It's particularly noticeable and not aesthetically pleasing to me when I rotate her arms or legs, and the parts above and below the point of articulation do not appear to line up properly. I will find this doll something to wear that covers her body more.

I am very happy with this purchase, and look forward to posing her for many years to come.

Here is my video review of this body.

I Love Valentine's Day

Several years ago, my husband gave me a 2006 I love Valentine's Day Barbie as a Valentine's Day gift. I remember that I was absolutely thrilled to receive her. I think that this is the first doll that he ever purchased for me. After several more Barbie gifts from him, I asked him to stop buying dolls for me. 

She's been out of her box for years, but I saved her box. She came with a teddy bear key chain, a heart shaped purse, a ring (for me), and a hairbrush, all of which have remained attached inside the box. She also came with a cute pair of heart-shaped glasses that I can not locate at the moment. I'm sure they'll turn up when I'm looking for something else.

Back then, I briefly considered leaving her in her box, but decided against it because she did have some qualities that were unique to my collection. She is the only Barbie that I have with the "Hobbit" body.

She has been a single young woman for most of the time that she's been here. She did have a brief relationship with GI Joe (with her short stature, she and Joe looked cute together), but she was never as into him as he was into her.

She has caught the eye of one of my recent arrivals. Fashionistas Ken has arrived.

He has the all too familiar Jamal face, but in a lighter skin tone.

They have been getting to know one another for a couple of months, but Ken has decided to make his move on this special day. He shows up with gifts, ready to impress.

Barbie loves the roses!

Barbie acknowledges her gift with a huge hug. And hugs are not easy for this couple, because they both have straight arms that do not bend.

They can still be very expressive, though. Barbie has clicky knees that bend and allow her to sit. Ken has a slight bend in one of his legs and sits rather awkwardly. 

Since Ken has issues with sitting, they decide to get comfortable the best way that they can.

She can hear his heart racing.

Unfortunately, the back of Ken's head was attached to his packaging, which left 2 tiny holes and what looks like 2 small bald spots on the back of his head. Why oh why did the manufacturer do that? Fortunately, Barbie is too busy gazing into Ken's eyes to notice his baldness in the back.

Ken is relieved to see the huge smile on Barbie's face, and he knows that he has just moved himself out of the friend zone.

It's official, they're a couple!

 Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!