The Rainy Season Blues

I've snagged a couple of new pieces lately, including a clearance articulated Barbie and a surprisingly low-priced Eaglemoss Hellblazer figurine, but the weather is not cooperating and giving me the sunshine that I'd like to have for detailed review photos.  So while we wait, how about a few photos of American Girl dolls (Cécile and Truly Me #44) on an overcast day?

Shopping for Dolls: adbarttelt/Rhinnaco for AG

Clothes modelled by AG Cécile and SewDolling Madison

I'd seen photos from Rihanna and Co pop up on Flickr a couple of times, and thought her stuff was cute so when I saw listing a decent-sized lot on eBay for a low(ish) price and thought "Why not?"

The package arrived fairly  quickly and was well-packed for shipment.  The outfits themselves were each individually packaged in clear plastic as well.

The lot included one pair of pyjamas, one skirt/t-shirt set, one skirt-halter set (which I'd actually thought was a dress based on the sales photos), a t-shirt/legging set, and a shirt/tank/legging set.  The first thing I noticed was that the items all mix-and-match well, so that's always nice to see.

Outfit #1 will be the Halter/skirt set:  the material is a light sundress-type fabric with a colourful geometric design.  The skirt is just above knee-length, has three tiers and is well sewn.  It has an elastic waist that is tight enough to allow it to sit in a number of positions on the doll.

The top is the same material (giving the outfit the look of a dress) with the neck-tie being a green ribbon.  The ribbon is a little small for my tastes (I'd have rather seen a slightly thicker one), but it's fully functional, which is the most important thing.  The top is well-sewn, but there are a few ends that needed to be trimmed off (I only noticed them after I'd already taken photos).

This was actually the outfit that I was most uncertain about (I'm not usually a fan of outfits that show the cloth-body/vinyl limb joints, but this one has really been growing on me. 



Outfit #2 is the t-shirt/skirt set.  The top is a white t-shirt with a printed yellow-and-brown animal design.  It's made out of a fairly thin material, so it should work well layered under a jacket or cardigan.  It's solidly constructed and opens completely down the back, which is fantastic for play (although less so if you're wanting to take "realistic" photos from the rear).

The skirt is similar in style (and of a similar material) to the one from Outfit #1, but is slightly shorter and uses a differently patterned fabric.  I quite like the look of this skirt, but the back is less well-finished than any other item in this lot - it's functional, so the dress will hold up to play, but it does look a bit messy when you flip it over.

I actually wish I'd thought to photograph these pieces with other items, because I think that both of these pieces work better with other items than they do together.

Outfit #3 is the t-shirt/capri leggings set.  The t-shirt is constructed exactly like the one in outfit #2, but I found both the light blue colour and the pink and grey print to be quite a bit more appealing (some of that may be the way the colour works with this doll's eyes, of course).  The material also appears to be slightly thicker on this one.


The capri-length leggings are made of what feels like the material used in track (or yoga) pants, and are solidly-constructed and neatly finished.  They have an elastic waistband and are made of a stretchy material, so I expect that they could be worn by dolls of a wider range of sizes than some AG clothes allow.  They're also a nice solid neutral grey, so they're a great mix-and-match piece.



Outfit #4 is the tank/shirt/leggings set.  The tank is basically a plain sleeveless version of the t-shirt from Outfit #2, although it is slightly longer than the t-shirts.  The leggings are similarly a longer, black version of the capri ones - again well constructed and nicely finished.

The highlight of this set for me is the plaid shirt with front ties.  It's brightly coloured, well-finished, a nice thick material and - for me at least - very visually appealing. 


The final set is the pyjamas, which I didn't  open as they're a gift for a friend's daughter, but I'll share them here in case anyone wants to see what they look like (and what the inner packaging looks like).

Overall, I'd happily recommend these items - especially for people looking for basic items, or looking to add to a play collection.

New Arrival: American Girl Cécile

I think I've mentioned before that while I'm an admirer 18" play dolls, I'm not really a collector of them, so I was happy to own just two, my old AG Samantha and then my more recent SewDolling Madison.  But with the Samantha in storage I found that I missed having an AG around, and with rumours of the retirement of a couple of the historical dolls floating around, I decided to pick up a Cécile.

Having just been looking at my sister's old AG's a little over a week ago, I immediately noticed that this doll is much smaller (or at least less plush) than the old ones.  She also seems to have better hip mobility in that she can sit with her legs more-or-less out in front of her rather than with them splayed to the sides, which I think is a lovely feature.

In any case, I've talked about these dolls before, so I won't go into too many details expect to say that I'm quite pleased with this girl!

Cécile up close.

In modern gear.

Out of the Box: Samantha and Cécile (American Girl Mini Dolls)

My American Girl mini dolls are a bit of an accidental collection - I didn't intend to bring them home, and yet here they are!

Mini Samantha came first, a gift from my husband (then boyfriend).  I'd joked to him, as he was heading to NYC on business, that he should visit the AG store and buy me "stuff", thinking that he wouldn't have the time or the desire.  He surprised me by actually going in ("I had to stand in line with hoards of housewives and little girls!") and picking up this doll (he also surprised me by actually recognizing it as the mini version of my larger doll - we weren't living together at the time, so he'd only seen big Samantha once or twice at that point).

Mini Cécile

Mini Cécile arrived just this past month - I picked her up (along with the book series) as a gift for my niece who would be visiting during her school holidays.  However when the niece arrived, I discovered that she had zero interest in either dolls or history and a huge interest in wildlife, so she ended up picking out some zoo souvenirs instead.  Which means that mini Cécile is now here to stay.

As for the dolls themselves, they're very reasonable copies of their 18" counterparts.  They have the
same plush bodies with vinyl limbs and heads, and their outfits are near-identical to the full size ones - fewer details, and with somewhat messier closures on the back due to the small scale, but still decent quality overall.

Mini Samantha

Unlike the larger dolls though, the minis have almost no neck, which makes them seem a bit strangely proportioned over all.  It seems to gives them a broad shouldered appearance that seems a little out of balance with their tiny hands and delicate outfits. 

Unlike the bigger dolls, they have painted eyes (although I understand that the very first versions of the mini dolls from the 1990s had glass eyes) which gives them a somewhat less neutral gaze.  I alternate between thinking they look shocked with thinking that their expressions are just vacant.

As baby dolls for an SD16

Despite the decade's difference in production times, my two seem to be fairly similar in quality overall.  The one exception is the footware on Cécile - while Samantha's plain plastic shoes may be less impressive to look at, the unevenness of the faux-leather of Cécile's boots means that it's near-impossible to get her to stand on her own.  Still, that's a small complaint for a doll that's probably meant more for play than display.

Overall, they're cute little dolls that make a nice accessory for their larger counterparts (and other large dolls), and they're a fun little addition to the doll posse - even if they weren't a planned one!