Throwback Thursday review: Mattel Baby Love 'n' Touch

Today's doll is Mattel's Baby Love 'n' Touch, and I know for a fact that some of y'all own her (or did in the past, at least).  Some of the emojis on my pillow approve of her and some don't.

She came ensconced in my old nemesis, packing peanuts.  Sideshow Bob has his rakes, and I have my packing peanuts.  Oh well, I have my ways of dealing with these.  

I've said this before but I'll say it again:  I don't know where this blog would be without Tam and her amazing blog.  I credit Miss Emily with inspiring me to start a blog to begin with, but without Tam I'd really have to dig for source material.  Baby Love 'n' Touch was featured in one of her Doll-a-Day posts, and the way Tam describes her doll made me want one so bad I could almost feel it in my arms.  The doll is stuffed and her body is mostly fabric, but her face, hands, and butt are made of this soft, smooth vinyl that is supposed to emulate baby skin.  Okay, I can hear someone saying "Wait a minute, did the Moon Girl just say 'face, hands, and BUTT'???"  Yep, you read right, and if you looked at Tam's post then you saw it with your own eyes!  "But WHYYYYY???"  you ask.  Well...ever hear the phrase "smooth as a baby's bottom"?  Apparently this doll's designers did!  Indeed, there are fewer things nicer to touch than a baby's soft, clean skin.  I guess that's what Mattel was going for when they made this doll, even though they did well enuff with Teenie Talk.  I can't photograph softness very well, so y'all will have to take my word that Teenie is soft.

Teenie is one of my favorite dolls to hold for this very reason, but Baby Love 'n' Touch may be about to give her a run for her money.  Since "Baby Love 'n' Touch" is a mouthful I'll call this doll "Carrie," for Carrie Ingalls and for "carry me," because this doll is the perfect kind for carrying!  Like many baby dolls this doll could just as easily be a boy, but this doll just looks like a "Carrie" to me...the sweet, innocent kind, not the kind that kills her tormentors with telekinesis.  Gotta make that clear!  Carrie is twelve inches from head to toe, meaning that she's small, even for a baby doll.  Adam is a behemoth next to Carrie, and Anita, my unidentified Horsman baby, is also larger.  As usual, Anita is unimpressed by this.

Unsurprisingly Carrie is quite a bit smaller than Teenie Talk, meaning that she can sit more comfortably on Lindsay's lap.  Teenie is not amused by this development.

Luckily for Teenie, Carrie is just as content to sit on Salome's lap.

Tam notes that these dolls have a lot of hair, and indeed Carrie is well-endowed.  This may sound unrealistic for a baby, but baby hair can vary wildly in thickness.  I've mentioned this before, but both my sister and I had a ton of hair when we were born, and my mother had none at all when she was a baby.  Indeed, when I was new I had so much hair that the nurses couldn't make it lie down, even with Vaseline.  LOL, Daddy told me I looked like a punk rocker with my hair sticking up in Vaseline spikes, especially when my mouth was open and wailing for a bottle.  Sister didn't have that problem, though she too had a full head of hair.  Ironically and unfortunately, my hair is so thin now that y'all can see my scalp shining through!  Anywho, here's what Carrie's hair looks like.

Carrie's hair is a bit out of control, just like Teenie Talk's hair and Softina's hair and mine.  I was able to bring both Teenie's hair and Softina's hair under control without the help/hinderance of Vaseline, so I shouldn't have any trouble taming Carrie's hair.  For the record, the rooting is not the greatest.  

There are big gaps between the rows of rooting, and at the moment I've been unable to find a clear-cut part.  I was able to do this with Teenie Talk, hence why her bangs are swept to one side.

Carrie WOULD have a nice thick head of hair if the roots weren't so obvious.  Oh well, good thing she's got a hood!  She's also got enough hair to frame her sweet little face, so that's a plus.

Carrie's eyebrows are brown and delicately painted, her irises are blue, and strangely, her sclera are also blue.

Sclera should NEVER be blue, not unless you're a Monster High doll!  In real life blue sclera are signs of rare congenital nasties like osteogenesis imperfecta and Marfan's disease, so thank God Carrie is a doll and is thus impervious to crap like that!  As I noted above Carrie's irises are also blue, like those of many other Mattel dolls.  Indeed, I've started calling this shade "Mattel blue."  Teenie Talk has the same color, as does her "sister," Baby Secret, and a few dolls I've reviewed before, like Greta Griddle and Tiny Cheerful Tearful.  Here's a better look at Teenie's eyes, just so I can pound the point into the wood.

Babies usually have blue or gray eyes, but contrary to popular belief they can also be born with dark eyes.

Carrie's eyes have stood up to the test of time well, but her mouth has not.  It used to be this nice brick shade, but most of my doll's lip paint has been rubbed off.

That's a shame, because the mouth is a lovely shape.  It's slightly open and has a nice little smile, kinda like babies start to do at a young age.  As to the rest of the face, Carrie has chubby, squishy little cheeks with only a tiny bit of blush, and realistic ears.

Tam compares the Love 'n' Touch face to that of Ideal's Thumbelina, and I do see the resemblance...depending on which Thumbelina one looks at!  Some of them aren't so pretty.  Overall Carrie has a sweet, approachable face, one that lacks the attitude that Teenie Talk and Baby Peep have.  She has the right face for a doll that loves cuddles.  Her mouth will be easy to repair, once I overcome my laziness.

Okay, time to look at this body.  Like the Cabbage Patch Kids and a few of my other dolls Carrie is a glorified rag doll, meaning that she has vinyl parts attached to a soft, floppy, cuddly body.  Hmmm...using that criteria would mean that Pussycat is a glorified rag doll too.  I didn't think of that when I reviewed her!  Anyway, here's Carrie's body.

First and foremost, I wonder why Mattel didn't give these dolls rubbery feet, especially since the hands are so detailed? 

I love babies' teeny-weeny little feet, as do my family and a lot of my friends, and yet Carrie and her Love 'n' Touch siblings don't have proper feet.  They just have these cloth stub-feet.

For comparison, here's Teenie Talk's feet.

I guess Mattel didn't think to give these dolls proper feet since they're always covered.  But then again, Carrie's tushie is covered too, and it's vinyl.  Tam's niece called this doll "Naked Butt Baby" for that reason.  Y'all ready to see?

I see a bad moon rising!  In truth this bad moon a wonderfully soft, smooth, squishy little tushie, just like real babies' bottoms are, but...I can't help wondering what the folks in the factory thought when they were assembling this doll???  Think about it:  you've got a traditional baby doll with a cloth body and vinyl head and hands, and the only other vinyl part is...her butt.  Now, babies' bottoms are known for being soft and smooth.  I get that.  But babies' bottoms are also known for shenanigans such as THIS!!!  Once again, thank God Carrie is a doll, and not the kind that loads her pants!  Yeah, I'm gonna leave that alone and focus on Carrie's hands again.  They're not squishy-soft like her butt is, but they're flexible and smooth to the touch.  She's got a little grunge around her cuticles, but I can fix that.  Her little nails are wonderfully molded.

Regarding posing, Carrie can't do much since she's a baby, and since her arms and legs are only loosely attached...

...but she's certainly good at lounging!

Later versions of Baby Love 'n' Touch can grasp fingers when their tummies are squeezed, but Carrie can't do that (we'll see a doll that can do that in the not-too-distant future).  She also can't sit up well, due to her heavy head and lightly stuffed upper torso.  All too often when I sit Carrie up she tips over, bringing Ideal's Lazy Dazy to mind.

However, Carrie can do this, which I think looks cute.  Few of my baby dolls are limber enuff to attain this position.

Regarding clothes, Carrie is simply dressed in a warm, fuzzy hooded onesie.  We're finally getting a normal winter here in the Bootheel (we've had some snow and a lot of wind), so I'm glad Carrie's got this.

Carrie is wearing a yellow onesie with a trapdoor and a hood.  Do onesies still come with hoods these days, or have hoods been deemed a suffocation hazard?  I know I'd be a bit leery about putting a baby in something with a hood, and I figure I'm not the only one who feels that way.  Adam is wearing an outfit meant for real babies and it has a hood, but the hood is part of a jacket, not a onesie.  So I'm not sure about hooded onesies nowadays, but I do know that drawstrings are now a no-no on clothes for real babies now (Adam's jacket has none).  In the seventies they were allowed, and Carrie has them.

These are made of white braided cord like a shoelace, and there's a little bit of stretch in the material.  The ends are uneven, and the usual remedy for that would be to pull the shorter side until the ends ARE even, but I can't do that because the cord is sewn in place at the top of the hood.

That's handy, because now the cord can't be pulled all the way out, like I've done with a couple'a my own hoodies (LOL, oops!).  The front closes with two little snaps.  Real metal snaps!

Interestingly, the front left chest has an oval-shaped patch that reads "T & L."

Tam thought it was unusual that this patch reads "T & L" rather than "L & T," and I have to admit that it is odd.  Perhaps Mattel was hearkening back to the early seventies and the days of Baby Tender Love?  I dunno.  Baby Tender Love was quite a bit bigger than Baby Love 'n' Touch, so my early theory that Carrie could be wearing leftover Baby Tender Love clothes is out.

Like many onesies, Carrie's has a trap door in the back for her butt to hang out.  This trap door is held shut with tabs of Velcro, which work surprisingly well on this fuzzy fabric.

Usually I'd prefer snaps like the ones that close the front, but in this case I'll make an exception, as snaps could very likely get tight and cause this fabric to tear.  I guess that's true of all snaps, and maybe that's why doll clothes don't have them anymore.  That's all just conjecture, of course.

Since Carrie is a small doll she can't share clothes with any of my other dolls, but that's not a huge deal since I have a bag of Snoopy stuff...somewhere.  In my disorganized room those clothes could be anywhere, so I'll just dig those out and get back to y'all.  Carrie is also small enuff that I can knit for her, but I've been extremely lazy so I haven't done that yet.  I'll have to do that and get back with y'all.  Right now I think this is a good place to wrap this up.

BAD
*The worst thing I can think of is that hair that's broken off at the roots.  It can be hidden, but it still concerns me.  There's nothing worse than a doll head covered in stubble, and thus I'm hoping no more of it will fall out.
*Maybe not the sturdiest?  The clothes feel like they could tear if treated roughly, and the body might too.  This is NOT a doll for modern-day kids!
*I can't get this doll to sit up unless I prop her up, but that's true for most baby dolls.
*Not the easiest to dress, due to her small size.

GOOD
*She lives up to her name!  This doll is perfect for loving on and touching, though admittedly, having a squishy butt is still kinda weird for a doll.
*Uhhhhhh...I just like her???

I admit that I had a hard time finding anything outstandingly good or bad about Carrie.  She's just another baby doll, one that happens to be extra-cuddly instead of hard vinyl like so many baby dolls are nowadays.  If you like to hold your dolls, this one is the one for you.  She's not too big, not too heavy, and super soft.  Now if you have dogs or large cats, then maybe this doll is NOT the one for you; I once caught Tommy trying to drag Carrie under my bed, so beware of snoopy pets.  She's also not an ideal toy for small children, as her loose limbs and light fleece nightie would not stand up to a game of tug-o'-war.  C'mon, y'all know how rough children can be, especially in this day and age!  And that's...really all I have to say.  She's just another baby doll that happens to be soft and squishy like a real baby.  In today's modern day, when all babies are gimmicky, made of stiff vinyl, or both, that's saying something, but I still have to admit that that bare butt is weird!

Love,
RagingMoon1987

Rosemary has a broken neck!

Rosemary Green,
and Lavender Blue,
Thyme and sweet marjoram,
Hyssop and rue.
--"Rosemary Green and Lavender Blue," English rhyme

Maybe that's where everybody got the idea that lavender is blue rather than...well, lavender!  Don't worry, I'm not going to rip Miss Emily off completely and start flipping My Twinns, but this little poppet needed someone to love her.  So in the heat of the moment I bought her.

It was the heat of the moment, tellin' me what my heart meant!  Or more like the heat of my fever, since I bought Rosemary while I was sick.  Anyway, Rosemary Caitlin Green dates from 1999 and came in a full outfit, including shoes.  That's more than Justin and Salome came with; I thought Justin's shoes would never friggin' come, and Salome still doesn't have any.  Anyway, Rosemary's outfit is a nice outfit, with kind of a mori girl vibe to it.  Granted, the shoes are peeling a bit as shoes like this will inevitably do, but I can make that look less unsightly with a little fabric paint.  

For that matter Rosemary's clothes all can do with a good washing, easy if one has a dab of Dawn and a large pickle jar, but her main problem is this.

As I bluntly stated in the title, Rosemary's neck is broken, but thanks to Miss Emily's awesome My Twinn blog I know how to mend this.  Some glue (will tacky glue work?) and a new cable tie, and she'll be good to go.  Now I just need to get the cable ties; I've never worked with those before, but how hard could it be? 

The rest of Rosemary's armature is in one piece as far as I can tell.  She holds all the poses she should, and probably some that she shouldn't.  She squeaks a little, more than Justin and Rael do, but far less than Salome.

Rosemary brings another new face to my collection, one that I like quite a bit.

As with the Ariel head there are two variants to this head, one called "Rosemary" and one called "Caitlin."  "Caitlin" has bigger, slightly crazed eyes, and both have the sedate, relaxed, Mona Lisa-esque smile.  After some discussion with friends on Failbook, I learned that some folks don't believe the "Caitlin" variant even exists, or if she does the difference is pretty subtle.  So I just used my own judgement and have labelled this head a "Rosemary" head.  Since I don't have a doll named Rosemary yet, the name stuck.

Aside from her broken neck and a loose wig Rosemary is in pretty good shape.  She's blonde and blue-eyed like Justin is, but her wig is original and needs...oh, maybe it needs a little TLC.

It's kinda dry like Salome's is, and it has heavy bangs up front that can be a blessing or a curse for these dolls, but I like this wig enuff to keep it around.  Rosemary's eyes are a darker shade of blue than Justin's are, but I wouldn't quite call them violet.

Hmmm...then again, maybe I would.  They have that purple cast that Miss Emily doesn't like and I do like, and because Rosemary is a Rosemary head her eyes are a tiny bit wonky.  Her eyelashes are all the way attached, which is more than I can say for Rael.

LOL, I'd better trot out the tacky glue!  I'll be needing it for Rosemary's wig anyway.

As I was readying myself for work this morning I caught Rosemary and Justin..."cuddling," LOL.

Don't get me wrong, the relationship between these two is strictly platonic (Justin has his eye on one of my American Girls), but they make for a cute pair.  But...notice how...well, how ORANGE Justin is compared to Rosemary, and to Rael and Salome too, for that matter.  Justin is from an era where dolls sometimes came in this unusual orangish tone, referred to as Outstanding Orange Blossom.  LOL, I may have to ask the folks on Failbook if Justin is one of them.  He dates from the correct year, 2002, when skin tones varied quite a bit for some reason or another.  I don't know how popular the Outstanding Orange Blossom tone is among collectors, but I rather like it.  With the right wig and eye combo it can look quite nice.

So my little My Twinn crew has expanded to five (four big ones and Xenia), though I haven't yet given up the search for a nice Denika.  I just need to be patient, I guess...and patience is NOT one of my virtues!  

Love,
RagingMoon1987

Dolly Dress Discussion: PZAS Toys summer wardrobe

I'm currently on my final day of quarantine and feeling 99%.  My mother is now laid up with whatever it was that I had, but she too is on the mend.  Mind y'all, my coronavirus test did come back positive, but I've started hearing about a lot of false positives coming out of that hospital.  Either way I'm better, and Mama is taking it easy until she feels 100%.  Thanks for asking...I guess.  The comment section has been about as exciting as high school algebra class lately.  However, I know readers are still coming by and for that, I thank y'all.  This post is for you.  Before I got sick I ordered this five-pack of American Girl-sized clothes off of eBay.  I did this for two reasons:

A:  To test the quality
B:  One of the dresses is rainbow.

Everyone ought to love rainbows!  I don't care which way you swing sexually; everyone ought to love rainbows!  Anywho, let's take a closer look at these.  As I noted above there are five outfits, and they are all accompanied by at least one accessory.  Here's what the front of the box says, and my first surprise.  I didn't know the outfits would come in a box.

The back has smaller pictures and a brief description of the accessories. 

"Summer on the go has never been this fun!" the box proclaims, trippy capitalizing and all.  I wouldn't know how much fun summer on the go was, because my family used summer as a time to relax after a busy school year.  Oh sure, we had fun, but it was nice, relaxing fun, not extravagant vacations to Timbuktu and God knows where.  I admit that going to a beach would've been nice, but I can't swim and there's no beaches close to here anyway.  So let's start dressing my dolls up.

FIRST OUTFIT:  CASUAL SET

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:  Your basic blue tank top and yellow and white capris.  Accessories are sunglasses, a pink milkshake, and a pair of cupcakes.  Notice that I didn't say shoes.

MODEL:  Sadie Gray-Fisher, an Our Generation doll 

HOW IT FITS HER:  Pretty good.  I was afraid the top would be too small, but I needn't have worried.

NITTY-GRITTIES:  I don't care much for those sunglasses.  They throw back too much glare and make Sadie look like my daddy's creep brother-in-law.  

Ah, much better!  This top isn't exactly as pictured; the pictures make it look like a spaghetti-strapped tank top, but in reality it's a halter top with the straps both joined at the center of the neckline.  By mistake I tied the straps too tight, and now the top rides up in front in an unflattering manner.

The whole bodice is ruched, and when it's off the doll it looks more Wellie Wisher-sized, but there's ample elastic here to allow for ample stretch.  Nice and comfy, in other words.  I'd have worn this at one point in my life.

Sadie's capris are made of soft knitted fabric that has a little stretch, though not as much as the top does.  From a distance these look all yellow, but they actually have wavy yellow and white stripes.  I wonder if they'll glow under my blue porch light?

The top and the capris don't match each other in any way, shape, or form.  If I'd been designing this outfit I'd have put some yellow motif on the blouse or finished the capris with blue thread, something to tie it all together.  But that's just me.

The accessories, two cupcakes and a milkshake, are glorified erasers.  They're made of that soft, slightly flexible rubber that novelty erasers are made of.  There's nothing wrong with using novelty erasers as doll props, but I'm surprised that a toy company would do this.  The molded swirls on the cupcake icing came out well, though. 

To my great surprise, all three of these items come apart in multiple places.  These accessories should thus be kept miles away from pets and small children.

On the plus side, the cake parts make passable doughnuts!  Sadie could even hold it if she wanted!

Just for the heckuvit, here's a close-up of the milkshake.  Looks like plain old vanilla for Sadie.

Oh well, plain old vanilla is wonderfully refreshing on a hot day.  I know from personal experience!

Oh yes, the glasses.  They have a cute shape and fit Sadie well, but they feel a little fragile, kinda like the plastic glasses that Zoe and Z wear.  Molly and Amanda wear the old metal type, the kind that takes a heavy hand to break.  So these glass feel fragile, and the lenses throw back a lot of glare, neither of which are good. Further, I wish these lenses were tinted, as tinted glasses would make sense for a summer-themed outfit.

Overall Sadie's outfit is okay.  Nothing fancy, just like the label says.  Next time I have her wear this I won't tie the top so tight.  And by the way, this outfit didn't come with shoes.  None of these outfits do.  For a casual outfit that's fine, but for a dressier outfit no shoes are a problem. 

SECOND OUTFIT:  PARTY DRESS SET

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:  Short black dress with rainbow sequins.  Accessories are a necklace, an eyeshadow palette, and some lipstick.

MODEL:  Luciana Vega, Girl of the Year 2018

HOW IT FITS HER:  A little tight.  I had some trouble getting the Velcro to close, but luckily this dress has some give.

NITTY-GRITTIES:  I have my doubts about that makeup for Luciana the space lover, but then again, she does love to sparkle.  Just don't overdo it like I did, girlie.  Anyway, this dress is your basic little black dress with the addition of copious sequins that are painted in a Lisa Frank-esque leopard print.

I've already found one sequin on my bed, so I have my doubts about how well these are attached.  Add to that the fact that the underlying fabric is Lycra or Spandex or something of that stripe, and will thus snag if caught in Velcro.  Guess what this dress fastens with?  Yeah...that Velcro snagged Luciana's cute pink panties badly, so it might be best to remove your doll's skivvies before putting this dress on her.

Regarding the accessories, Luciana's necklace is the best accessory in this whole five-outfit set.  It's made out metal chain links and has a simple, versatile design.

Luciana's other accessories are more glorified erasers, but they're nicer than Sadie's.  She's got a blush compact and a thing of lipstick. 

Hmmm, lipstick already, Astro-Luci?  Are you hoping to kiss David Tennant?  LOL, the tube opens and has "real" lipstick inside (this item also comes apart in other places like the cupcakes do).

It's big enuff to be a believable too, though Luciana can't hold it up to her lips.  I have to do that. 

The rest of Luciana's makeup is supposed to be blush, but ye gods, who'd wear MINT blush???

Okay, I admit that I would've at one time, but for Luciana's sanity let's pretend that this is eyeshadow.  It even has a little brush that comes out.

It's not really a brush, of course!  As for shoes, I had to dip into my Etsy stash for these shoes.  Mama got them for me, as she often does.

Now, Luci, just because the Tenth Doctor wore Converse everywhere doesn't mean you have to!  LOL, anyway, I like how this outfit presents visually, and I much prefer these accessories to Sadie's, but I worry for the long-term structural integrity of that dress.  Pairing Velcro with thin, snaggy material and sequins seems like a bad idea.  I'll have to remember that when I use this dress again. 

THIRD OUTFIT:  HOLIDAY SET

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:  Blue argyle dress with white faux-fur capelet.  Accessories are a hair bow, a necklace and bracelet, another tube of lipstick, and a little jewelry bag.

MODEL:  Zoe Barber, Just Like You #26

HOW IT FITS HER:  A little tight, just like Luciana's dress.  This one has much less stretch so fitting it onto Zoe was kind of a pain in the posterior. 

NITTY-GRITTIES:  Zoe loves to play dress-up, and this is...well, it's an original outfit!  I thought this print was argyle, but it's actually this lacy diamond pattern over blue sateen.  This gives the dress a nice sparkle, but also makes it easy to snag (this dress also has Velcro).

Poor Zoe.  Despite my best efforts her curls are starting to look pretty tormented.  I can probably fix this mess, but it would take more time than I've got now.  Anyway, Zoe's less-than-summery coverup is a faux-fur capelet, which I like even though it doesn't really jive with the rest of the outfit.  This too is closed with a small strip of Velcro.

I apologize for the poor quality of this next picture, but considering the quality of this necklace, I think the blurriness is fitting.  Luciana got a sturdy, versatile metal necklace,  and Zoe got this flimsy plastic piece of crap.

As easy as it is to find cheap metal chains and cheap heart pendants, this company could've made a better necklace.  The necklace is made even more glaring by Zoe's bracelet.  It's metal, and because it has two tiers it looks like two bracelets.  I'd have worn something like this once upon a time.  Heck, I still would!

All of my dolls with side parts wear hair bows or clips of some type (except for Luciana, go figure).  In Zoe's case this dress just happens to have a nice hair bow, made of cream-colored sateen glued to a small alligator clip.

Zoe's other accessories consist of one of those cheap gauzy bags that I use to hold doll jewelry, and another eraser tube of lipstick.

Zoe can "carry" this bag if I hang it over her bracelet.  Hey, whatever works. 

This outfit is the other one in this set that requires shoes, and I have another rhinestone pair.  They're not a perfect match, but they're close enuff.

Of the five outfits I received today, I like this one the least.  The fur wrap is out of place with the summer theme, and the necklace and purse are cheap.  As with the sequined dress, I also worry about how well this dress will age, though if I'm careful that shouldn't be an issue.  I should probably also note that both Zoe's dress and Luciana's are lined, which is good.  But for now I'm getting Zoe out of that chilly thing and tossing her into a new outfit that Mama got.

Ah, off to snowshoe, are you, Zoe?  Too bad most of the snow is gone now.

FOURTH OUTFIT:  BEACH SET

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:  The aforementioned rainbow dress.  It's accompanied by sunglasses, a bag, and a headband.

MODEL:  Lark Anderson, customized Just Like You doll

HOW IT FITS HER:  Darn-near perfect.  This is a soft material with a fair amount of stretch, so putting it on was easy.

NITTY-GRITTIES:  This dress is so simple that I barely need to say anything.  It's a soft, brightly-colored tube with a slit on one leg and a neck that ties.  Perfect for the beach, in other words.  Like Sadie, Lark came with sunglasses, but her wig is so thick that there was no place for the earpieces.  So as with Sadie, I hung them on the front of Lark's dress.  The frames feel fragile, but the bright colors (pink and yellow) are better than Sadie's clear frames.  The dark lenses make sense too, especially with the beach theme.

Lark has so much hair that a headband like this is greatly appreciated.  It's made of the same fabric as the dress, with the addition of some elastic to make the fit more snug.

Lark's bag is a pink backpack-style bag with a flower on it.  It's big enuff to carry some small foodstuffs or a towel (or both), but right now she has none of those things.

I wore a backpack-style purse like this all over Fort Massac one fall.  It was handy knowing I had my purse but could still use both hands.  On the other hand, if one doesn't have a way to close a bag like this, then one is a prime target for pickpocketers.  I never fell victim to any thieves, but I kept a lookout just the same.  Hopefully Lark will too.  Right now this outfit is still my favorite due to its simplicity and bright colors, but I've still got one more set to discuss. 

FIFTH OUTFIT:  SWIM SET

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:  Pink swimsuit and matching cap with striped coverup dress.  This set includes a beach bag, sunglasses, and two different ice cream treats.

MODEL:  Kailey Hopkins, Girl of the Year 2003 (yep, that's Kailey under all that!)

HOW IT FITS HER:  Being a swim set, the actual swimsuit is tight, though not impossibly so.  The rest fits fine, though the bathing cap is tricky to put on.

NITTY-GRITTIES:  While Zoe and Luciana attend a fancy dress party and Sadie and Lark build sand castles, Kailey is hitting the water.  The colors of this set are more like something Maryellen might wear, but that matters naught to Kailey.  What matters most to her (me, LOL) is the unfinished bottom hem of the coverup. 

That could potentially become a problem in the wrong hands, but if I'm careful it shouldn't be an issue.  The swimsuit itself is stretchy bubblegum pink fabric with a halter tie at the neck.  The fabric has an acid wash pattern on it...

...and I think the bathing cap is supposed to match, but it looks more tie-dyed.

I was able to cram all of Kailey's hair under there, by the way.  I usually can't get that done, and I wouldn't have attempted it with a doll with a ton of hair, like Lark.  Kailey also comes with white plastic sunglasses that give her a bit of an Elton John vibe.  These actually do fit over her ears (remember that Lark's couldn't).

Kailey has a large white bag with pink rope handles.  It too is big enuff to hold food or sandals or a change of clothes, and like Lark's bag there's no way to fasten it closed.

Unlike Lark, Kailey does have some food to carry in her bag, though both items are ice cream and would make a tremendous mess.  Oh, and these are more glorified erasers that can come apart in places.

I've gotta admit that that swimsuit is a cute one!  Swimsuits are always dodgy clothing items for American Girls, but this one covers Kailey's whole body.  However, for me the rainbow dress is still the winner for me.  A few accessories in that bag and Lark is good to go.  The blue party dress is the loser, mainly for the accessories, not for the dress itself.  If Zoe replaces her cape with a gauzy wrap and loses that tacky necklace altogether then she'll be good to go...and that may very well be what I do.  Overall these outfits are average to good, not as good as brand-name AG crap, but better than some other mail-order outfits.  The fabrics do require a somewhat gentle hand when being put on a doll, and keep those accessories away from small children and pets, lest they become choking hazards.  Otherwise they're a nice way to fill out a doll's wardrobe.  Just make sure you provide your own shoes.

I obtained this set on eBay from collar-stay for $22.95.  Sheesh, that's what ONE brand-name outfit costs!

Much love,
RagingMoon1987