Your local shelfwarmers

Y'all are probably familiar with 'em, items that linger on a shelf for months or even years.  Doesn't have to be dolls, it can be anything from a box of paperclips that was forgotten to a TV that's not the latest big shot model.  Now...on the Barbie subreddit I stumbled across a discussion of dolls as shelfwarmers, particularly Barbie.  In my neck of the woods Barbie tends to sell well, but some of the comments were eye-openers.  One person from the Phillipines noted that Fashionista #30 (named White and Pink Pizazz) was still on store shelves, a full nine years after her release!  #30 was one of my first tall Fashionistas.  The same person added that #84 and #102 are still hanging around as well.  This is what these three dolls look like; of course I'm including my own commentary, LOL.  Here's #30.

I own #30, but I only got her because she was the only tall Fashionista I could find at the time, and I thought that the new bodies would be sort of a flash-in-the-pan thing.  Yep, I truly thought that.  I never said it here that I know of, but I thought it.  Compared to some of the other tall dolls on shelves around then, #30 kinda faded into the background, and...well, she's kinda boring so I can understand why she'd be lingering.  Still, nine years is a long time to linger on store shelves.

#84 came with an extra outfit.  Remember that once upon a time Fashionistas had that perk.

Now this one is more visually stimulating.  I like this doll's hair, I like her clothes, I like her skin tone, which is a little oranger than white but not quite tan either.  Maybe the horizontal stripes doomed this doll to linger.  Not everyone looks good in horizontal stripes, and not everyone likes horizontal stripes.

Fashionista #102.

I'm not in love with that striped skirt, but I don't think that's why this doll doesn't sell, at least in the stores mentioned on Reddit.  The poor doll kinda gets lost against her packaging.

Or her second outfit does.  This one's kinda like #30, just...there.  Shame too, because she's got a pretty face.

Other Redditors chimed in with dolls from the movies Wish and Raya and the Last Dragon lingering in their locales, and I...I guess Malden is full of weirdos because our Wal-Mart doesn't have any of those dolls anymore.  I bought Sisu myself, mainly because I like her hair and her saucy expression.

Another redditor spoke of black dolls lingering, especially the very, very dark ones (the ones I like).  I sadly saw evidence of this when the basics were a thing, and the two darkest dolls were Models #4 and #10.  Both of them were on shelves for a looooong time.  I was on the fence about #10 (right), but #4 was and still is a favorite of mine. 

Ironically, #10 is now the one I own; she eventually got moved to the clearance wrack and I felt sorry for her.  Her name is Vivian.

That picture doesn't do her justice, but IRL she's really pretty.  Then when the jeans Basics arrived, Model #8 lingered.  Thus why I have her too...somewhere.

ALL of my Basics are somewhere, likely in my old room at Mama's old place.  But anyway Dani and Vivian were there at Dexter's Wal-Mart forever, and I thought they were pretty and felt sorry for them so I own them now.

Another user didn't give their location, and they mentioned Fashionistas #128 and #150.

I'm not in love with #128 either (her outfit isn't flattering) but I love #150.  Never once did I see her locally.

Here in Malden most of the fashion dolls available appear to be selling well.  The last time I saw shelfwarmers was last April, when the last of the Fidgie Friends were arriving...and staying...and staying!  Pizza Princess and Ramen Dream were the ones sticking around, for some reason, but the others were long gone.  Ramen Dream is my favorite of my three Fidgie Friends, though none of 'em are worth much in terms of play value...yeah, I can understand why no one wanted those dolls.  Kylie Jenner also stuck around, and come to think of it, the last time I crippled back to the toy area there were still some of those dolls hanging out, particularly the one that comes with the dog.  I guess the Jenners and the Kardashians are finally starting to falter in their relevance, or they never were relevant here in the Bootheel to begin with.  Most of us are working to middle class and don't have a lot of time for socialites and their nonsense.  I own Kylie, the one in the short black dress, but again it was because I thought she'd become hard to find...and her arms are jointed.  I love that.

So how about y'all?  Who are your local shelfwarmers?  Discuss.

Shelfwarming love,
RagingMoon1987

So random, January '25

We start the month (and the year) with a Failbook memory, from January 3rd, 2022.

Adam and Mei together.  Both of them need new eyelashes now.

January 4th I took this image of my vintage Skipper crew, which had by then grown to three.

From left, Living Fluff, Pose 'n' Play Skipper, and straight-leg Skipper.  I'll discuss these in more detail around March or so.

Bae Day Mondays this month went with the various Coleco years, and January 6th was for 1983 and 1984.  I have no Cabbies at all from 1983, but I have three from 1984.  From left, Valencia Rose (Coleco), Nathan Hunter (Coleco Preemie), and Candela Laura (Jesmar). 

I am still casually looking for a fuzzy boy; they are strictly 1983.  But these will do just fine for now.  After taking in Gary Collier and getting the electric bill I need to take a chill pill with Cabbies.  January was colder than average, so the bills were outta sight.

January 11th.  Candela Laura flew solo that night.

It was cold that night, and I was listening to a YouTube documentary about Texas Tower 4.  The saga of Texas Tower 4 is not a happy one, so I lightened the mood with Candela.  The Cliff Notes version of the ill-fated tower can be found here, and an excruciatingly detailed version can be found here; the latter was the one I was watching.

January 13th, Bae Day Monday.  The years this time were 1985 and 1986.  For them I have my popcorn girls, Idalia Gale and Beryl June (both 1986)...

...Matt the Brat and Kitrick Randolph Fergus (both 1985)...

...Hugo Jack (1985) and Ernest John (1986, Preemie)...

...Elisabeth Clara and Shelley Fred (both 1985)...

...and finally, Stella Rae (1985, Preemie).  Her friend and carer Angela Fitzpatrick agreed to sit with her.

Angela cares so Stella doesn't have to, LOL.

January 17th I learned that there's a special term for Cabbies with arms like this.  

See how Matt's arms angle up and out rather than straight out?  Apparently this is called the cheerleader pose, and out of forty-six Cabbies (including figurines and clones) Matt the Brat is my only one like this...for now, anyway.

January 20th.  The years were 1987 and 1988, with that latter year being the earliest I could conceivably remember.  As a result I'm fond of dolls from this era...and yet I only have two big ones, Karen Sheila (1987) and Andrea Doria (1988)...

...and two little ones, Esmond Brant and Cara Raelean, both from 1987.  Esmond is a bean-butt and Cara is a Preemie. 

Also very early on January 20th, I took this head shot of Gary Collier. 

Gary had proven popular with my Failbook friends by this time, and I can see why.  He's a cutie.  I can also see why Treesa couldn't initially see his teeth, as they're ridiculously hard to photograph!  I personally didn't think I'd like the #17 head, but now that I have it in my collection it's not so bad.  That leaves the #18 head that I'm not enamored with...no, Moony, stay off eBay!!!  But yeah, when I started collecting Cabbage Patch Kids the #4, #15, and #30 heads were my favorites, while #5, #17, and #18 were deal-breakers.  #5 and #17 grew on me after I added them to my collection, so #18 potentially could too.

January 21st.  Y'all know how I like opposites, and Draculaura and Venus McFlytrap are pretty much that. 

I tried to take a conservative approach with G1 Monster High dolls, and as I've said before it bit me in the butt.  So I'm not playing this time around; if I really, really, REALLY like a doll, I'm goin' after it, budget or no.  Luckily for me I haven't seen any that I'm absolutely dying for yet...except maybe Cupid.  I've always loved Cupid.

I returned to clippings from the Cabbage Patch on January 22nd, with a new outfit supplied by who else?  Mama!

I knew immediately that this would have to belong to Clio Teresa.  Her yellow body matches the trim around the waist, and some of the letters match her hair.  Some of the letters match her hair bows too, but that's hard to see.

January 23rd.  Venus McFlytrap returns, this time with Skooter, who'd joined the Skipper Squad by then. 

And I thought that Draculaura couldn't be more opposite of Venus!

January 27th, another Bae Day Monday.  1989 got a year of its own, and Cleopatra Chantale and Gavin Andrew share it.

Some of my favorites come from 1989, but I only own two of them.  The rest of my Cabbies are 1990 and beyond, or clones.

Also January 27th, a memory from 2021.  I was comparing Always Sisters Vanessa to my beloved Courtney Moore.

This came from an aborted review of the Always Sisters line.  I was excited about a doll that was soft like the Hot Looks but had honest-to-God joints, but Vanessa's internal skeleton was too warpy to make the joints enjoyable.  I can't say as I've gotten much enjoyment out of my Always Sisters dolls, though they have sweet faces.  But as always, if anyone wants a review I'll root 'em out of storage.

Not much of a month for dolly photography, actually!  More same ol', same ol'.

Love,
RagingMoon1987

Two old dollies get a new home

One of our favorite patrons at the library is a lady we'll call Ms. N.  Ms. N is Mama's age and has the same issues with sciatic pain, and she was gone from the library for quite a stretch due to corrective surgery.  After a month or so of no contact I reached out to her and we had a lovely conversation.  I don't remember how, but my dolls came up, and she told me of two childhood friends she had...and how no one in her family liked dolls.  "I'd hate for them to be thrown away," she said.  Heartstrings properly pulled, I volunteered to take the dolls since they're old and there are only two of them.  Ms. N said that when she finally did make it back to the library she'd give them to me...and that time has come.  The tall doll is a Revlon-type grocery store doll, and the baby doll is a Tiny Tears or Betsy Wetsy-type doll.

The baby doll is a little worse for wear, being a toy, but I'll just wrap that hand up until I can send her to be repaired.

Hopefully they can repair these eyes too, because I don't know how to fix foggy doll eyes.  As to this doll's name...she has no markings, none at all, so I'm at a complete loss as to her identity.  She looks like a Sun Rubber doll, and oh, would it be lovely if she were!  I freaking love Sun Rubber dolls.  But the Sun Rubber Company marked most of their dolls, on their backs, necks, or feet, and as I said above this baby has no markings.  But speaking of feet, she does have distinctive feet, with five separate little toes.

Some So Wee Sunbabe dolls have feet like this too, so maybe my doll is a So Wee clone.  Based on that I could call my poppet "Sunflower" or something like that, and make her a sunflower dress.  For the record though, Sunbabe is ten inches long and Sunflower is thirteen.  Good thing her dress is holding up.  It needs a laundering, but that's all.

Unfortunately in her current state Sunflower has a face that only a mother could love.  Her eyes are badly fogged, making her look possessed.

As I said above, I haven't a clue how to fix doll eyes when they're like this, and eyes are so important to a doll's aesthetics!  If not for this then Sunflower would be adorable. 

As an aside, while I was researching Tiny Tears I stumbled across an interesting tale called "Why I Hate My Tiny Tears Doll."  It's not as heartless as it sounds; a young woman was asked to think of an object she loved and then write about why she hated it.  The woman did just that and...well, the article ends on a deeply sad note.  Just read it and you'll see what I mean.  Sunflower ISN'T Tiny Tears, but I'm including that anecdote anyway.

As for the Revlon-type doll...oh, how I love Revlon and Revlon-style dolls!  I have three little ones (Wendy, Belle, and Suzette), but Brigitte here is a big one, much bigger than the Revlon dolls I'm familiar with.  The largest Revlons I've seen have been a little taller than an American Girl, like River Song, while most of the Revlons I've met in the wild are close to a small Paola Reina, like Mar.

The Revlon dolls were popular enuff that other doll companies made imitations, many of whom are just as good as the honest-to-God Revlons.  Uneeda's Suzette is one example, and some of the Circle P dolls are good too.  Belle, my Circle P doll, isn't a great example because she only has a neck joint, but others do have joints.  Brigitte is a grocery store doll, and what her name once was, I don't know...yes, I do!  She matches the last doll on this page, Lovable Louise, meaning that she'd have to be by Deluxe Reading.  The hair is the same.  

So "Brigitte" is actually Lovable Louise!  Tam has a similar doll, and guess what???  I helped identify her, so I apparently have seen these dolls before...and as I often do, I forgot all about it.  Tam's doll has straight hair like Lovable Linda, but otherwise she and Louise are pretty much the same.  My Louise has cloudy eyes like Tiny Tears does, and her dress, while original, is in sad condition.  It looks okay here...

...but here's what the left sleeve looks like. 

I was able to find one (count 'em, ONE) dress on Etsy.  The seller is based here in Missouri, so it should be here before too long.

Before wrapping it up, here's Louise's face.

Louise has cloudy eyes just like Sunflower does, and she's nowhere near as happy.  Indeed, at times she looks like she might burst into tears, like she does here.

I guess when you live with the same human for seventy years, saying goodbye can hurt.  Louise stuck close to Candela Laura last night; Candela is a Cabbie of few words, but she listens well and gives great hugs.

Ms. N acted a little sad to see her girls go too, but she was also glad that I was able and willing to take them in.  We joked about me not having a lot of room for my admittedly too large collection.  "They can take the bed and you can take the couch," Ms. N teased, but I didn't have to resort to that.  Sheesh, couldn't sleep on the couch even if I wanted too, because it's too narrow.  Now to learn a fix for foggy doll eyes, if there is one.

Oh, as a last little haw-haw, my friend from Newfoundland saw the picture above and googled Lovable Louise...and look at the first result she got!

A blow-up doll!

Happy days,
RagingMoon1987

A rare find, part deux

I've stated in the past that mermaid dolls are not my thing.  They're pretty for sure, but they don't pose well and they usually can't sit or stand.  Nerida can sit, but Boba Bubbles can neither sit, stand, nor even lounge effectively.  I really, really, REALLY wish those Fidgie Friends came with stands!  It doesn't matter anymore since this line has gone the way of the dodo, but a nice stand might've helped.  Boba and company are visually eye-catching and would've looked cute posing on some little girl's dresser.  Initially my feelings towards the Mermaze Mermaidz was about the same; I found them attractive but impractical since only one of them could stand on her own.  Oh yeah, and cutesy consonants.  We all know how MGA Entertainment is obsessed with extraneous x's and z's...jeez, drop that stupidity, will you, MGA???  Anywho, my main beef with these dolls was that they'd lay around and not even be able to sit up, like Boba Bubbles.  Surprise!  These dolls now come with stands!  How do I know this???  Well...I saw these dolls first on Reddit, and then Veni Vidi Dolli subsequently revealed that these dolls do indeed have stands, and that was enuff to twist my arm.  Meet Crystabella, from the Winter Waves line.

MGA boxes are impressive, but they're also a nightmare to get into.

That wasn't too bad, actually.  No injuries, one cuss word, a muttered "Well I'll be damned" when finding a hidden plastic tie inside Crystabella's jacket.  Here she is, free of packaging and unadorned for the moment. 

I love the winter theme; winter-themed dolls tend to be very pretty, as Abbey Bominable shows.  Anyway, both Miss Emily and Veni Vidi Dolli have reviewed these dolls so I'm just gonna skim this.  For reasons I'll never know mermaid dolls always have a ton of hair, and I'm told that with the Mermaze dolls said hair can vary in quality.  First-wave Jordie has a head full of microbraids (those are always easy to maintain), and first-wave Kishiko has these amazing little gathered ponytails that look like they're made from yarn, but first-wave Riviera has this mass of pink curls that looks good but is tough to maintain.  So I'm giving Crystabella's ample hair a wary side-eye.  It looks good, and it's done up in a style that will likely stave off a few tangles, but I'll still be treating this hair with respect.  It feels like either middle-of-the-road nylon or polypropylene, kinda stiff.

It's really pretty hair, though.  It's pearl-colored with strands of tinsel, a fitting color for mermaid hair AND for ice hair.  I like the style too, a high ponytail that flatters this shape of head.  There's just so...much...hair...so much that Crystabella's head is pulled off to her right like so.

In other news, I'm pleased to see MGA Entertainment embracing dolls with uber-dark skin...er, plastic, whatever you wanna call it.  Since she IS dark it's a bit hard for me to properly capture her face, but she's got beautiful makeup, kinda like the aurora borealis. 

Her eyes are inset and are of an ethereal lilac color, and they're unfortunately a bit wonky.  On a positive note...I don't know if this glitter is painted onto Crystabella's face or if it's molded in, but either way she's got a sparkly face.  The rest of her body has this glitter too, and note that the top of her tail has studs and seams, like a fancy pair of jeans.

I love that silver nail polish too.  I wore many colors in my day, but I can't remember ever wearing silver...<pauses to think> yeah, I did!  It wasn't smooth-looking like Crystabella's is, though.

Back in the day, the only Bratz doll that was this dark was Felicia, and she got all of two releases before the Bratz reboot.  In more recent times Rainbow High students Robin Sterling, Coco Vanderbalt, and Krystal Bailey have been rendered in that lovely dark shade, and Felicia has gotten a few new releases as well.  I really like Coco Vanderbalt, by the way!  Secondary market prices for Rainbow High and Shadow High dolls are just as ridiculous as prices for old-school Bratz and G1 Monster High dolls, but I still like Coco.  ANYWAY, MGA is stepping up the ol' diversity game, Crystabella is unapologetically dark, and her complexion pops against her fair hair and light-colored tail.

Oh yes, the tail, and the reason why these Winter Waves mermaids (mermaidz?) appealed to me.  They all have snow globe tails, filled with liquid and glitter.

Hmmm, I need to shake that up a bit.

Now that I think of it, that was also how Boba Bubbles suckered me into buying her, LOL.  It was also the reason why Una Verse was my first favorite of the Novi Starz.  Remember those?  Sila Clops and Malie Tasker were the ones I ultimately bought, but Una was an initial favorite because of her icy coloration and snow-filled legs.  Indeed, I STILL think Una Verse is cute.  Unfortunately, I also remember some parents being concerned about Una leaking as time passed, and I myself have been worried about that with the Fidgie Friends.  The seams on Crystabella's tail look pretty robust...

...but I'll be careful not to drop or mishandle her, just in case.  Her tail isn't soft like Boba's and would likely split when dropped rather than bounce.

Some of these Mermaidz come with fabric clothes and some do not (Orra had permanently attached outerwear).  Crystabella has honest-to-God fabric clothes, including a very pretty and very thick winter coat, and (spoilers!) this killed my enjoyment of Crystabella a bit.

First-wave Jordie also wears a thick coat, and Miss Emily rightfully pointed out that such a getup would quickly get waterlogged.  I'll add that with Crystabella being a winter-themed doll, such a coat would not only get soggy, but also COLD!!!  But...these are dolls, and dolls are not bound by Earthly rules.  Or I could take the Twelfth Doctor's attitude:

"Of course, the real question is where did I get a cup of tea?  Answer:  I'm the Doctor.  Just accept it."

I'm not particularly fond of the Twelfth Doctor; he tends to be an irascible old git at times, and...well, he's not Number Eleven!  But I like that scene, where he gives a room full of Daleks a piece of his mind and survives being shot by the same Daleks.  Anyway, in Crystabella's case I'll take the Doctor's advice:  she's a doll.  Just accept that she's wearing a heavy coat in the water and have a nice day.  As I said above, it's a pretty coat...

...but it was a living nightmare to put on, and it pulls Crystabella's arms back in an uncomfortable-looking position.  Veni Vidi Dolli wasn't in love with her doll's coat either, to the point that she left it off completely.  What a shame, it's a pretty coat.  Maybe Draculaura can wear it.

Mmmm, she looks okay.  She doesn't have elbow joints or thick sleeves like Crystabella does, so the coat doesn't slow her down as much.  I pair this with a new shirt and some leggings and Draculaura should be good to go.  As for Crystabella, she is much more comfortable without her coat, kinda like I am.

So the coat was a flop, but it wasn't a complete waste since Draculaura can wear it.  Likely Crystabella would've benefited from a softer coat, something like what Jordie wore...or what a couple of her Winter Waves sisters got.  Nera and Gwen both come with soft coats, soft enuff that Veni Vidi Dolli didn't have to take Nera's hands off, so Crystabella could've had that too.  Stiff, crinkly, plasticky fabric looks good on futuristic outfits like Aurora's, but it just slows down a mermaid.

Turning towards another positive now, Crystabella's tailfin changes colors with water.  See how it's pearly right now?

Cold water turns it aurora-colored, though I'm not gonna dip my hands in cold water to show y'all, LOL!  Not right now, anyway; too cold outside already, and Casa Pizarro's hot water heater is on the blink so I'm sick to death of cold water.  Orra and Jordie both worked pretty well for Miss Emily though, so I have no reason to doubt that Crystabella's feature will work too.  Oddly, the instructions say not to submerge these dolls.  Uh...aren't mermaid dolls SUPPOSED to be played with in the pool or the tub?  Not smart, MGA.  Whatevs, Crystabella came with some extraneous crap that she can't hold.

Take that back, she can hold the makeup brush and probably the cup, but not the other stuff.  But the pink tube opens up, revealing a tiny mascara wand...

...and the nail polish bottle also opens up.

The pager-cell phone thingy and the compact also open and have some details inside.  That teeny-weeny mirror actually functions as a passable mirror. 

I love little details like that, though it's extra little stuff that a kid could lose.  I'm not a kid, and I keep the stuff in a Ziploc bag, so it won't get lost too quickly.

The buzz on Reddit is that the Mermaidz are not selling particularly well, and there has been talk of cancellation for these dolls at least twice, but YouLoveIt! has images of a third wave, done up in a pajama party theme.  My favorite of those is Zuna, since she's kinda punky and believes in UFOs.  YouLoveIt! says that a small number of these pajama dolls made it to stores, and once again Veni Vidi Dolli has a few of them (Zuna is her favorite too), but there's no official word yet whether Mermaze Mermaidz are canceled or not.  The Reddit post regarding the slumber party line is at least a year old, and Veni Vidi Dolli's last Mermaidz post was clean back in March.  With no new waves released in a year, I can't say that that bodes well for the Mermaidz.

As for me, I can't offer any word on the line as a whole, but I can see where these dolls might fall a little flat.  Crystabella isn't very versatile, she can't strike a ton of creative poses, she's got a lot of hair that could tangle, and as far as I know she doesn't have any extra outfits to wear.  She also has inset eyes, which can be a detriment for some kids who find such eyes creepy (I like them).  Or maybe it's the fact that these dolls have an element that changes color in water, but the dolls themselves should not be submerged, and their clothes are not water-friendly.  Hell, Crystabella's jacket isn't even USER-friendly!  All that said, I do like Crystabella.  She's pretty and ethereal, and I'll be able to effectively display her (like I CAN'T do with my other mermaids).  I like how she sparkles in the right light, and I'm hoping that maybe some Monster High clothes might fit her upper body...may have to revisit that bit.  She's nice to have around, if only for display purposes; she sadly can't sit and chillax with Nerida, but she can at least stand.  She needs at least one friend, maybe first-wave Kishiko or Zuma if I can find her.

That's all I have to see.  My feelings for Crystabella are a bit mixed but pretty good overall.  EDIT:  I found a comment on Miss Emily's post where I said I'd pass on the Mermaze bunch!  Funny how opinions can change with time.

Cheers,
RagingMoon1987