On Goodreau and Make it Mine dolls

I've probably told y'all before I spent some time out of the dolly loop before returning to the hobby in early 2011.  During that time there were some pretty cool lines that came and went without me even noticing, like the Top Model Barbie line, Mattel's Teen Trends, and the 10-10-10 Bratz.  I wasn't aware of what the American Girl site was doing, which is really saying something because I still love finding clothes that will fit my five American Girls...and my two Madame Alexanders that can share those clothes.  Heck, I almost missed the LIV dolls; I got in on those right before Spin Masters discontinued them!  Better late than never, I guess...but my lack of awareness about the goings-on in the doll world led me to overlook some awesome websites until fairly recently, and one is the MiM, or Make it Mine site.

I don't have an MiM doll so I can only give you a rudimentary description of the product.  MiM is a line of hard plastic, poseable, CUSTOMIZABLE dolls.  The dolls come in two skin colors (black and white, or "bronze" and "peach," as the site puts it) and two different face molds (smiling and serious).  Both faces are available in both colors, by the way.

Everything else can be picked by the person ordering the doll.  There are seven different eye colors, ten different wigs, ten different outfits, nine accessory sets, and two bodies (centaur and mermaid) to choose from.  The doll's body comes apart at the waist to accommodate the centaur and mermaid bodies.  So you truly can "Make it Mine!"  Here are some of your options:

And that's just a few!

But MiM is just the tip of the iceberg.  The website and the dolls there are a satellite site of Goodreau Doll.  I'm not going to include a link to that site for reasons that I'll reveal shortly (heck, you may already know why!).  Like MiM I hadn't heard of Goodreau Doll until fairly recently; my sudden interest in ball-jointed dolls should have led me there.  After all, Goodreau is an American company, and in the world of ball-jointed dolls that's a rare breed.  Most of the BJD companies are Korean or Chinese, hence why the word "Asian" is often tacked onto the already-lengthy term "ball-jointed doll."  Goodreau however, is American.  I have no idea why I overlooked such a promising company.  Perhaps I did so because I prefer my dolls to be...nonentities, shall we say.  I get them, they have their clothes and their faces, but no elaborate backstory or anything like that.  Thus the task falls to me to assign them a name, a personality, and a story.  Goodreau dolls are not like that; the ones I've seen are fantasy-themed.  Zoey, for example, is dressed up in an Alice in Wonderland-inspired dress, while Privera has elf ears (which I like).  Not all of them are like this, you understand, but they didn't suit the storyline I had crafted.  However, I will admit that I wouldn't mind owning Innuendo; she reminds me of some of Helen Kish's work, and she is just a teensy bit edgy, just how I like!

Anyways, Goodreau was not even on my radar, and now I am lamenting that oversight because the company is CLOSING!!!!!!!  Paulette Goodreau, the woman at the helm of the business, has announced her retirement for personal reasons.  This announcement can be found on the Goodreau Facebook page, or on this blog post by Terri Gold.  In the announcement Paulette said she was unsure over the future of MiM; she isn't sure whether to close it down or sell it.  Closing MiM down will (obviously) mean a cessation of production altogether, while selling MiM might mean that the line takes a hit in quality or variety.  Or those aspects might get BETTER!!!  Who knows?  I certainly don't, and Miss Paulette doesn't either as of writing.

It annoys me no end though, that I spend my life with my head up my butt, find these great dolls from great companies, and lo and behold they close just as my interest is firing up.  My aggravation is not directed at the makers of these dolls, of course; after all, it's their company and they can do what they want to with it.  Furthermore, Miss Paulette has a very, VERY good reason for wanting to retire (her mother, I am sorry to say, is sick with Alzheimer's disease).  I'm just irritated with myself for not being more observant, particularly in this case.  Having searched for a decent ball-jointed doll I should have paid closer attention to Goodreau and their lovely, cost-efficient wares (Innuendo costs less than the average Soom Super Gem doll, which I did consider during my search for the perfect BJD).  And I absolutely LOVE the customization that an MiM doll would offer.  If I were to order an MiM doll tonight, she'd look like this:

A little redhead, of course!  I realize that I can still obtain that perfect little MiM doll.  It's just a matter of money.  Being a college student I'm always strapped for cash.  In this case the doll, with metallic hazel eyes, a red ponytail wig, the MiM Rocks! outfit, and the matching accessory pack will cost $159.  $159 that I need for college books and life's various necessities.  Oh yes, I do have a mother and a grandmother who still like to provide me with the dolls that I love, but I wouldn't dream of asking them for a doll this expensive.  This one may be the one that gets away.  It all depends on what Miss Paulette decides to do with the MiM company.

Whatever Miss Paulette DOES decide to do, I send her and her mom prayers and best wishes.

God bless y'all,
RagingMoon1987