Ah yes, the Christmas season is upon us! I like almost everything about Christmas, but I wish Uncle Man-Child would either shut his door or turn his radio down. He's found a channel that plays nothing but Christmas music...and not the good stuff. No Trans-Siberian Orchestra, no Manheim Steamroller, just pop artists screeching out "Santa Baby," Celine Dion butchering "O Holy Night," or goodness knows what. I wouldn't mind it so much, except that that station is nothing BUT that. But other than that I love the Christmas season. The lights on the houses, the nativity scenes in front of the churches, the little kids excited for presents and a break from school, the toys. THE TOYS!!!
Another kludgy intro over, I'm willing to bet that today's doll was on at least a few kids' Christmas lists in the eighties. Y'all probably knew today's post was coming. When I pulled this doll out of Treesa's box in October and found so little information about her online I thought "Yep, that one's going in the review pile." Two months later, my lilac rag doll has gained a friend. Meet Grandma's Marshmallow Babies. Marshmallow is on the left, and the new girl on the right is Creamsicle. Marshmallow is Treesa's doll and Creamsicle is one I found on eBay. Treesa admits that she didn't really bond with Marshmallow too tight, which I get. We all have our favorites and our flops. Anyway, here's what these two look like.
The sole commercial I found advertises Grandma's Marshmallow Babies as being similar to the rag dolls that an eighties grandmother might make, though I kinda doubt that. Most of the vintage/antique rag dolls that I've seen are NOT orange, lilac, pink, blue. But then that's why I like these a lot; I like my dolls in weird colors. Hair is good, but skin is even better since there's not a lot like that. The only problem with these dolls is that there was no green, though I guess that makes sense because green skin on humans is commonly associated with illness. Indeed, Daddy told me I turned green one time after I'd gotten overheated. But then again blue skin on humans isn't a good sign either, so I dunno. Not gonna complain too loud since the two I've got are pretty cute without green skin.
Alrighty! As far as I know Grandma's Marshmallow Babies only came in one size, and that size was roughly similar to that of a Cabbage Patch Kid. Marshmallow and Rowena Skylar won't be able to share clothes, but their heights are similar...or not! Marshmallow has longer legs!
Alrighty! As far as I know Grandma's Marshmallow Babies only came in one size, and that size was roughly similar to that of a Cabbage Patch Kid. Marshmallow and Rowena Skylar won't be able to share clothes, but their heights are similar...or not! Marshmallow has longer legs!
However, like our dear Cabbies, Marshmallow Babies also have a fair amount of variation in size. Creamsicle has short legs, for example.
Rowena Skylar does still kiss, by the way. Treesa and I had that discussion not too long ago, and it turned out that I wasn't squeezing Rowena in the right place.
Like most of my Cabbage Patch Kids, Olivia Reese, and a few other dolls I own, Marshmallow Babies have yarn hair that they wore in varying hairstyles. They could have short looped hair, double braids, high pigtails, or low pigtails. By luck of the draw I got two dolls with high pigtails.
Sometimes a doll's hair color matched her skin-fabric and sometimes it didn't. Creamsicle's hair is colored orange and white like her namesake treat, so she matches for the most part. Mama says her hair is pretty "out there," LOL.
Marshmallow's hair is more subtle, being mostly white with streaks of blue and light green. She doesn't really match, but she doesn't clash terribly either.
Both dolls have "bangs," in the form of yarn loops that frame their faces. Several of my Cabbies also have these loops.
I like that. Keeps tangles to a minimum. Now...these dolls' pigtails are fastened with loops of yarn and are thus not meant to come down, so I don't know much about rooting. However, I was able to part a little of Marshmallow's hair and reveal some bare scalp.
Therefore I presume that Marshmallow Babies have root jobs like Cabbage Patch Kids. If the doll has short loops, then they have fully rooted heads. If they wear pigtails, only the part and hairline are rooted. Or at least, that's the case with my double pony girls.
...and Creamsicle appears to have a mix of straight and...not quite boucle, but wavy.
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These faces look vaguely familiar, with their big eyes and Mona Lisa smiles...ah yes, I remember. Marshmallow and Creamsicle look a little like the My Child dolls in the face. Their mouth is a similar shape. Christa79 also noticed the similarities.
These faces look vaguely familiar, with their big eyes and Mona Lisa smiles...ah yes, I remember. Marshmallow and Creamsicle look a little like the My Child dolls in the face. Their mouth is a similar shape. Christa79 also noticed the similarities.
To my delight, there's a little variation in these dolls' expressions. Both dolls are smiling, but Marshmallow's smile isn't as wide. This paired with her upturned eyes gives her a wistful, vaguely melancholic expression. Creamsicle, on the other hand, is happy as a lark. Otherwise both dolls have the same basic facial features. Their eyes are patches or appliques of some stripe, and my two dolls have blue eyes. Note that Marshmallow has eyelashes and Creamsicle does not.
Another Marshmallow Baby that I'm eyeing on Etsy has pink eyes, so eye color does vary some. Mouths also vary in both shape and color, but not in execution (they're also appliques). Creamsicle's mouth is wider than Marshmallow's, and it's an orangey shade that jives well with the rest of her coloring. Marshmallow's mouth is pale pink and can look washed out if I don't get the flash right.
Oh, I guess I should've mentioned right off that these dolls have a type of mask face. Usually mask-faced dolls have a rigid face over a softer base underneath, the way Puffalump Kids and a couple'a my Polish dolls do. Grandma's Marshmallow Babies have vinyl frames UNDER the fabric of their faces, but the principle is the same. This is (presumably) how they get their little button noses...or those protuberances that pass for noses. Good thing these dolls don't wear glasses.
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As far as I know, Grandma's Marshmallow Babies don't get saggy "skin" like My Child dolls can. I've never seen one with sagging fabric, but that doesn't mean much.
Since these dolls are rag dolls their bodies are pretty simple, with floppy limbs that are loosely attached like so. These kiddies can't hold a pose, but they make up for it by being lovely lapsitters.
As far as I know, Grandma's Marshmallow Babies don't get saggy "skin" like My Child dolls can. I've never seen one with sagging fabric, but that doesn't mean much.
Since these dolls are rag dolls their bodies are pretty simple, with floppy limbs that are loosely attached like so. These kiddies can't hold a pose, but they make up for it by being lovely lapsitters.
Some rag dolls have stitched fingers and some have mitten hands, with Grandma's Marshmallow Babies being in the latter category.
The feet are typical rag doll feet, big and bulbous, kinda like Little Red's shoe-feet.
Most of Marshmallow's body is made of thick, smooth stockinette, but her body is made of this not-knitted fabric...muslin or something like that.
The print on the fabric leaves no doubts about Marshmallow's identity. She's even got brightly colored marshmallows mixed in with the words.
The body is also tagged, in case there were any lingering doubts about the identity of these dolls. This is Creamsicle's tag; her body is constructed identically to Marshmallow's. One side has the company info...
...and the other side has the name of the line and laundering info. Grandma's Marshmallow Babies can be washed and dried inside a pillowcase, just like Cabbage Patch Kids of the era can.
Very average for a rag doll body, though I love the knitted fabric. I only have a handful of dolls that are made of stockinette, and they're always pleasant to touch and hold. Marshmallow and Creamsicle are no exception.
A year and some change ago, when I was having a mild depressed spell and Hurricane Helene was front-page news, I spoke of a vlogger whose dolls dominantly wore pastels and were called "the Pastel Army." Grandma's Marshmallow Babies would fit in well with them, as they too are dressed in pastels. I'll show y'all Marshmallow's romper, which is pink and lavender with copious lace on the front...
A year and some change ago, when I was having a mild depressed spell and Hurricane Helene was front-page news, I spoke of a vlogger whose dolls dominantly wore pastels and were called "the Pastel Army." Grandma's Marshmallow Babies would fit in well with them, as they too are dressed in pastels. I'll show y'all Marshmallow's romper, which is pink and lavender with copious lace on the front...
...but the outfit I'll review is Creamsicle's. She wears a dress in yellow and blue-green.
From the top, the neckline has a row of eyelet lace (I love eyelet) and a little satin/sateen bow that's just for decoration. Here it's possible to see that Creamsicle's dress is not polka-dotted, but rather flowered.
The colors are a little off in this next image, but it shows more of the flowers. I prefer polka dots, but I like flowers too. The fabric itself is, from what I can tell, a simple cotton or polyester weave. Likely if I read the tag closer I'd know for sure.
The sleeves are little puffed sleeves with no decorations, but the elastic is still good so that's something positive. Elastic doesn't always hold up, as I've established time and time again.
The hem of the skirt has a row of eyelet and a green band, creating the illusion of layers, but in reality it's just the one layer.
I'd say that the only thing I don't like about these dolls' outfits is this Velcro. It catches in their hair and on their arms and can snag, but it also holds the dress together. If one is careful one won't run into snags.
Oh yeah, the seams inside also look pretty raggy. The hems are nicely done, but the rough edges on both outfits are...well, rough! They don't show on the outside, though.
Here's the tag; I photographed the wrong side for laundering info, but the other side revealed nothing other than the aforementioned laundering info.
My favorite things about these outfits are the cute little socks. Marshmallow is missing one, but that's no big deal. These socks fit tightly to the dolls' feet, so I took 'em off once and am not taking them off again, LOL. The fabric is soft and smooth, not at all like my own socks, and they're trimmed with bows that match the bows on the clothes. As far as I know, none of these dolls wore shoes of any sort.
Since Grandma's Marshmallow Babies are similar in a few ways to Cabbage Patch Kids, I swapped outfits...and since Ernest John was the one I had with me he was the one who got shoved into a dress. He's NEVER gonna forgive me for this.
But then again, Preemie Cabbie genders are all but impossible to determine without clothes. Anyway, Ernest's onesie is big on Creamsicle's body, but it fits well enuff that I'd put her in this again. Ernest John looks good in Creamy's dress, but the neck doesn't fasten all the way. Y'all couldn't tell it, though!
Hmmm...I wonder if a Magic Nursery dress will fit a Marshmallow Baby? I kinda have my doubts about Lena since she's smaller than Creamsicle, but let's look anyway.
Hmmm...I wonder if a Magic Nursery dress will fit a Marshmallow Baby? I kinda have my doubts about Lena since she's smaller than Creamsicle, but let's look anyway.
It's hard to tell in the pictures, but Lena's dress is very short on Creamsicle. Mikey's onesie probably would fit better, as otherwise the Magic Nursery baby dress fits well. Creamsicle's dress is slightly big all over on Lena, except for the neck area which (again) is tight. Still, I'd dress these dolls in each other's clothing if the situation called for it.
That's a wrap! Since these dolls are pretty simple I'm just gonna say I like 'em a lot and leave that at that. There's nothing really negative to say, unless one finds the unnatural colors off-putting. Indeed, some folks don't dig that kinda thing. But I'll say Grandma's Marshmallow Babies are...oh, they're as good as Cabbage Patch Kids. In terms of kid-friendliness they might even outdo the Cabbies a bit, since Marshmallow and Creamsicle are lighter and thus easier to carry. They also have the same limitation as Cabbies, being poor posers and a bit top-heavy, but these are not really meant to be posed. They're meant to be held, and that's pretty much what I do with them...when I'm not snapping pictures of them, that is! These are fun, though! Thank you, Treesa, for turning me onto this line; I had no idea they existed.
Warm hugs,
RagingMoon1987
That's a wrap! Since these dolls are pretty simple I'm just gonna say I like 'em a lot and leave that at that. There's nothing really negative to say, unless one finds the unnatural colors off-putting. Indeed, some folks don't dig that kinda thing. But I'll say Grandma's Marshmallow Babies are...oh, they're as good as Cabbage Patch Kids. In terms of kid-friendliness they might even outdo the Cabbies a bit, since Marshmallow and Creamsicle are lighter and thus easier to carry. They also have the same limitation as Cabbies, being poor posers and a bit top-heavy, but these are not really meant to be posed. They're meant to be held, and that's pretty much what I do with them...when I'm not snapping pictures of them, that is! These are fun, though! Thank you, Treesa, for turning me onto this line; I had no idea they existed.
Warm hugs,
RagingMoon1987
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