Throwback Thursday review: Gerber baby

Last November I posted a sizeable string of reviews on baby dolls, but it turns out that I forgot a few!  I picked this doll up at the same time that I bought Anita, and it made for some hilarious photo ops.

Yep, I'm talking about the Gerber baby, whom I affectionately call "Gerb."

When I started this review (I've had it in draft form since late last summer) I had no idea who made this doll.  I merely knew that she was a premium doll, the kind that one gets when one buys X-amount of a certain product and mails in parts of the package with a dab of money.  Luckily, someone beat me to the punch with this review, as Tam reviewed her own Gerber baby last December.  Her doll still has her hang tag, and it reads "Atlanta Novelty, 1979," so now I have an idea of where my dolly came from.  Gerb is about twelve and a half inches from head to toe and thus a little smaller than Anita in size.

Frankly, those huge eyes remind me more of Galoob's Baby Face dolls than they do Gerber's iconic logo.  She particularly looks like the Baby Face doll that I once had, So Surprised Suzie.  She also reminds me (ever so slightly) of Hessy Levinsons Taft, better known as the baby that fooled the Nazis.  If ever there was a baby that looked like the Gerber baby it was Hessy, who survived the war and grew up to be a chemistry professor.  But as usual I digress.  Gerb's hair is painted a light golden shade and is molded into the cowlick that both Hessy and the Gerber baby possess.

Normally I prefer rooted hair to molded or painted hair, but in the case of baby dolls I'll make an exception, since babies aren't supposed to have a lot of hair and a root job on a baby doll can sometimes look a little odd.  But then again, this molded hair looks a little odd too, as the cowlick makes Gerb look like a member of the Lollipop Guild.

To my great surprise, Gerb's neck is marked...but it does absolutely nothing to help me name a maker.  All it says is GERBER PRODUCTS CO.  Thus why I'm grateful for Tam's post.

Now to the face.  The iconic Gerber face.

Truthfully my doll is quite a bit more pop-eyed than the original baby.  Oh take my word, the resemblance IS there, but the longer I look at Gerb the more she looks like So Surprised Suzie and less like the original Gerber baby.  Resemblance aside, let's start breaking this face down.  Eyes first.  Gerb's eyebrows and eyelashes are dark lines of paint, and the eyebrows aren't centered properly so they look a little goofy.

Now for the fun part.  Gerb has inset plastic eyes with silver-blue irises, and they move from side to side!  These are called "flirty eyes" in the doll community and they're not particularly common.  More often we see eyes that change position by virtue of some sort of mechanism, like Blythe's pull ring and Pullip's system of buttons and levers.  Older companies like Jumeau and Armand Marsaille also made dolls with flirting eyes, as did Wilde Imagination and Horsman.  Indeed, my old Horsman doll Sally has eyes that flirt, though I have to shake her in order to get them to work.  All I have to do to Gerb is tip her to one side or the other and her eyes will follow.  But unfortunately this flirting feature does have a drawback:  the eye mech doesn't have any levers or buttons or stuff of that stripe, so I have relatively little control over how her eyes can look.  Oh sure, I can tip her anyway I want, but that doesn't mean I'll get her eyes positioned perfectly.  As a result Gerb's eyes can look delightfully ridiculous at times, like so!

To be fair, so can Sally's.

So can the eyes of some of my other dolls, like Shirley Temple here.  Shirley's eyes don't even "flirt" like Sally's and Gerb's do.

Lordy, I can only imagine what a group picture of those three would look like!  LOL, before I move on, notice that Gerb has eyeshine just like my Pussycat does.

The rest of Gerb's face is typical of both a baby doll's and a Gerber baby's.  She's got a little pug nose and a wide open mouth.

I'm not a big fan of the paint used for Gerb's cheeks and mouth.  It's very...well, it's very bubble-gummy, too pink to look natural.  But that isn't what surprised me the most, oh nooooo.  Look deep inside Gerb's mouth:  it's possible to see a hole in there.

Gerb is another drink-and-wet baby, which shocks me because although Gerb's head is hard plastic, her body is cloth.

I don't usually do this, but here's the doll's...pee hole, I guess y'all could call it.  It's made out of brass and is apparently attached to Gerb's mouth through tubing.

I don't know about y'all, but this seems like a BAD IDEA, making a cloth-bodied doll a drink-and-wet doll.  Yeah, cloth will dry after awhile, but probably repeated soakings will make that stuffing discolor and mildew and start reeking.  Not to mention that brass boohole could corrode and make an even bigger mess.  Yeah...not sure what the designers were thinking there.  I've run into a great many drink-and-wet dolls in my time, and they were all either hard plastic or vinyl.

As I said above, Gerb's body is made out of cloth with vinyl head and limbs attached.  The body is similar in construction to Pussycat's and Anita's, but there is one big difference.  Pussycat and Anita are both soft enough to flex some; notice that Anita's hips can bend and she can sit properly.  Gerb is so firmly stuffed that she cannot sit.  I either have to prop her up like this...

...or lie her down like this.

Gerb's head and joints are made of hard plastic.  These parts are hollow and lightweight, but they don't feel cheap.  The plastic is smooth and pale, and it took to the molds fairly well.  Gerb's arms are plastic from finger to shoulder and are slightly bent at the elbow, with a few creases and fat rolls present.

Gerb's right hand is bent downward slightly, while her left hand is open with the thumb extended.  Her little knuckles and nails are not sharply defined, but they ARE there.

Gerb's legs and feet are molded in a similar way.  Her knees are bent with creases and dimples here and there.

and average-looking feet with nails and knuckles sculpted in.

The head is attached with a plastic cable tie...

...and the limbs are sewn on.  I'll bet that was tricky!

My Gerb leaves a little to be desired in the clothing department.  Tam's little baby came with a onesie, while my doll got a dress that doesn't cover her nether region.  It appears to be long enough in the above pictures, but I'm using camera tricks in most of those shots.

I'm unsure if this doll came with bloomers or a diaper or anything of that sort.  If not, she certainly should have, and if not, why on earth not???  I'll have to make a diaper, I guess; can't be that hard.  Anywho, the dress is pink with white polka dots.  It has a gathered skirt...

...puffed sleeves with elastic that has relaxed a little over the years...

...a HUGE white collar that likes to stick up...

...with a white ribbon sewn on the bodice (this doesn't match any part of the dress)...

.and a matching waistband that's got some stains on the back (this does match the collar on the dress).

Probably nothing that won't come out with a little TLC.  Anyway, the back of this dress opens all the way, and it closes with three tabs of old-style Velcro that is wearing out and not holding together like it should.  Also note the loose threads hanging off the hems; these were widespread in this dress.

Par for the course for a baby doll, though I have to admit that I prefer the onesie that Tam's doll wears.  My doll looks good in her dress, but she also looks a little goofy with her bottom half hanging out.  She definitely needs a diaper.

Alrighty, that's enough to think about.  Good and bad.

BAD
*Cloth-bodied doll with a drink-and-wet feature...really???  That's NOT a good idea.
*Eyes like to slip out of alignment
*Facepaint is a little too pink for my taste
*Dress appears to be of cheap construction and is showing signs of age
*Unusual size, so she can't share clothes with my other baby dolls

GOOD
*Wonderfully expressive face.  This doll is advertised as the Gerber baby, and she looks the part!
*No gaffes in the paint; as simple as this paint job is I'd hope not!
*Very sturdy; would make a great plaything for a small child
*Eyes are fun to play with, even if they are difficult to control
*Provides a nice contrast to other baby dolls, which can be a bit monotonous at times

 I mainly wanted this doll because I love the Gerber baby's original logo and because I wanted something that was done up in that likeness.  The Gerber logo has undergone a few redesigns over the years and quite frankly, I haven't liked any of them.  This world is full of cute babies, no question about that, but for me there will only be one Gerber baby.  Gerb isn't without her flaws, of course; she's simply painted in a color palette that looks unnatural, her dress has a ton of loose threads on the insides, and she doesn't compress into any cute positions like Pussycat does.  I also think the drink-and-wet feature is a bit of a waste on this doll since it can't be used unless one wants a sopping-wet doll that may mildew over time.  Not that I'm into playing "mother" with my dolls nowadays anyway; I won't be attempting any sort of feeding with this doll, but she does make a suitable plaything for an age bracket that DOES like to play "mother."  Just take my advice on this one, and don't feed Gerb if you have a doll like her!  Dress her, play with her, set her with your baby dolls, do what you like with her, but don't feed her!  That being said, this is a very cute doll, one that I desperately want to pair with a Galoob Baby Face doll.

Cheers,
RagingMoon1987

Lalaloopsy Diaper Surprise Blossom Flowerpot review

At the time that I cobbled the text part of this review together I'd been bitten by the Lalaloopsy bug (remember that I type up the bulk of this then add pictures later).  The last doll I reviewed was a Lalaloopsy Girl, and this one is one of the babies.  Most of the Lalaloopsy Babies have vinyl heads and stuffed bodies, but the Diaper Surprise dolls are different.  They are hard plastic and rely on just a teensy bit of bathroom humor to sell themselves.  Well, okay, maybe more than just a teensy bit.  For some reason MGA has been going in that direction lately.  Go figure.  Anywho, these dolls have separate diaper sets available, and you know how I love extra clothes for dolls, so I plunked down the money for one of these goofy Lalaloopsies.  There were only two characters available when I was buying, so I chose Blossom Flowerpot.

The other character at the time was Peanut Big Top.  Blossom and Peanut have since been joined by Cinder Slippers.

I already own the regular Blossom Flowerpot, so that should make things interesting.  Here's how Baby Blossom compares with her older self (I also threw Pix E. Flutters into the mix for further size comparison).

There's something about Baby Blossom that makes her...well, I don't think she's as cute as her older self.  I'm not sure what it is yet.  Baby Blossom is quite a bit larger than her Lala counterparts.  And since she's a baby, her proportions are different from those of the other dolls.  Her proportions are similar to those of your typical baby doll, but a bit more exaggerated.  Notice the differences between Blossom and Anita, my unenthusiastic Horsman baby:

"Who is THIS weirdo???"

Notice that while both dolls have big heads and short limbs, Blossom's proportions are much more cartoonish.  

Despite her large size, Blossom is very lightweight.  She's got a hollow hard plastic body with vinyl head and limbs.  Her hair is pink, typical of Lalaloopsies and accurate for her character.

However, there are no molded stitch lines on this hair, just two molded pigtails (also accurate for her character) and a few molded curls...

The paint work on one of these beads is a bit sloppy.  I'm willing to bet someone put the hat on this doll before the paint was fully dry.  Overall this is a fairly big departure from the usual Lalaloopsy hair; both the Girls and the original Lalas have hair that's molded to look like yarn.  However, it's accurate for a baby's hair, which tends to fall in wispy, soft, short tendrils like what Blossom has.  I guess I could pretend that Blossom's hair is made out of very fine yarn...or fake fur!  LOL

Blossom may divert from the Lala norm with her hair, but her eyes are classic Lalaloopsy:  big, black, button eyes with molded eyelashes.

My sister hates these, by the way.  I'd love to hear what she'd say if I'd chosen Bea Spells A Lot instead of Blossom!  Bea is not available as a Diaper Surprise character, but there IS a regular soft-bodied doll and she's freaky...especially when she's got her binky in her mouth!

Alrighty, back to Blossom.  She again strays from Lalaloopsy tradition by not having molded patch cheeks.  Instead she has some blush painted on.

The blush is hard to photograph.  It's painted well and does a good job of making Blossom's cheeks look rosy like baby cheeks should, but I miss the patches.  That may be why I think she's not as cute as the older Blossom.  Or maybe it's this mouth.

Yeah, not a huge fan of the mouth.  It's your average bottle mouth and thus serves a purpose, as you will soon see, but I wish there were a little more expression with it.  It IS possible to make a bottle mouth with a bit of expression, like my Gerber baby does.

I mean, Blossom DOES have a little bit of lip definition, but I'd hardly call that an expression.

As a final note, there's this to be seen.

I have no idea what that spot is about, but I can't get it to come off.  I've used spit, I've used water, and I've used soap and water, but nothing took the spot off.  That makes photographing this doll that much trickier, because the spot catches the light.

So aside from the button eyes Blossom's head and face are mostly devoid of the usual Lalaloopsy features.  Fortunately, the same can't be said for the body.  First and foremost, she's got the smooth egg-shaped body common to all the Lalaloopsy dolls I've handled (including Pix).  She has molded stitching down the midline of her torso, which is something new to the Lalaloopsy world (none of my other girls have this)

She has an X "stitched" on her bellybutton, which literally is a button!

Her sewn-on date is stamped on her rear. 

Blossom's limbs are stubby and chubby like baby limbs tend to be, but unfortunately, the vinyl is stiff as a board.  You'd think that since this is a baby doll she'd have a few soft appendages, but heck no!  Blossom is hard as a rock.  The limbs have some details that normal Lala limbs don't, though.  They have molded stitch lines, just like the torso does.

Her hands are "mitten hands" typical of all Lalas, but there is more stitch definition on them (not typical of Lalas).  Note that the thumb has a full ring of "stitches" around it.  I love this detail.

Blossom's legs are short as well, and they have molded stitches along the sides of her legs...

...and around the soles of her feet.

I was hoping that since the soles are partly flat that Blossom would be able to stand...but she can't.  She can't sit worth a doggone either; her bum isn't even touching the countertop in the picture below.  Her arms have simple rotation that doesn't look realistic in any pose.  I think she looks like she's thumbing a ride.

In short, Blossom's mobility, for lack of a better term, sucks.  All these joints simply rotate around their point of attachment.  The head has a rotating neck joint but doesn't hold a pose, which I assume is to help accommodate this doll's gimmick.

Oh yes, the gimmick.  You may have gotten some clues about the gimmick if you looked closely at the pictures of Blossom's body.  The button on her stomach is a clue, as is the bottle mouth.  Also, Blossom has two holes in the bottom of her torso.  Not one like my Gerber doll, but two.  I'm NOT going to show these, because guess what?  Said holes are supposed to represent bodily orifices.  Yep, Blossom is a drink and wet doll, complete with something I've never seen on any other doll...a butthole!  I've seen plenty of openings on drink-and-wet dolls that are supposed to represent urethras, but never the nether region.  One hole really would've done the trick, so go figure on MGA's frame of mind there.  But wait, there's more!  Remember that this doll's name is "Diaper Surprise," and remember that I said she relied on bathroom humor.  If you need one last hint, check out the logo from the package:

Yeah, you read that right.  That's the diaper surprise.  One of Blossom's accessories is a charm bracelet with one charm on it (both made of brightly colored plastic)

Another of Blossom's accessories is this bottle, done up to look like her pet butterfly.

And she comes with four diapers.

All of these items factor into the gimmick except for the default diaper, which Blossom wore inside the box:

This diaper is an ordinary diaper, designed to cover Blossom's nudity.  The other diapers are integral to the gimmick.  Whaaaaaat, you thought that these charms actually fell out of the doll's bunghole?  No, these dolls don't actually crap out their charms.  Rather, these special diapers each have one charm located in the crotch area.  There are also three extra sets of diapers available, also with charms inside.  The charms in turn are covered with some sort of thin paper.

What you do is you fill this bottle up with water.  Don't use any other liquid or it could do a number on this doll's innards.  Then you put the top on the bottle and put the bottle in Baby's mouth.  Push it in very firmly!

After that you squeeze the bottle.  The water will go everywhere and make a huge mess, so I recommend doing this over the sink or covering the play area with a towel.  You don't have to get all the water in Baby's tummy, just squeeze the bottle once.  After that, press Baby's tummy button, then peel off that diaper! 

This particular diaper had a crown charm in it, but it's also possible to get buttons, butterflies, hearts, flowers, and other shapes, like these:

The one on the far right looks like something that Mami Tomoe would wear.  LOL, I couldn't resist!  Most of my charms are yellow like this, but several other colors are also available; I did get that pink charm, and this one came out blue:

It's all part of the surprise element; you never know what charm you're going to end up with!  Once you've got all the charms, you hook them onto the bracelet.

The charms and the bracelet are both stiff plastic, so hooking these charms on there is quite difficult.  I'm an adult woman who has sewn aprons, crocheted Barbie dresses with teensy steel hooks, and hand-beaded porcupine quills into earrings, and even I had a hard time getting this bracelet to go together!  Not that it's really worth the effort in my case; the bracelet doesn't fit my fat wrist.  It will fit a child's wrist quite nicely though...once you get it hooked on there, that is; the clasp is also fiddly.  This accessory is NOT kid-friendly at all; moms and dads will likely have to help put this bad boy together.  As an extra aside, I also advise rinsing the charms after they've come out, as they tend to be coated with a wet layer of the paper.  This is harmless, but it feels nasty.
 
Okay, so you've used up all your diapers.  THEN WHAT???  Well, it turns out that these diapers hold one more surprise, located in the lining of the diaper below the charm.  Here's what the linings look like when they are dry:

And here's how they look when they're wet:

Each of these diapers has a color-change panel in the crotch.  Get this part wet, and a pattern will appear in some sort of color.  Like the charms, the material used is random, thus you never know what sort of pattern you'll get until you get it wet.  So even after you've collected all the charms you can continue to play with these diapers.  Bit of advice, though:  DO NOT store these diapers wet, and don't hand wash them.  Hand washing will cause the color-changing pattern to deteriorate.  Another word of advice:  be careful when removing these diapers from their boxes, as they are very tightly tacked into the packages.  Words cannot convey my hatred of MGA Entertainment's packaging, by the way.  Too much plastic, too many of those infernal little plastic ties, too many rubber bands.  Too much of everything is too much for me.

Where was I?  Oh yeah, accessories.  In addition to diapers that help Blossom poop flowers and stars, there are your more traditional accessories.  There is this bowl and a plastic spoon to "feed" your baby.

In addition Blossom comes with a few more articles of clothing.  She has that hat which featured prominently in the earlier pictures.

The hat is sewn into the shape of a pink flower, complete with a stem on top. 

It's a nice little article of clothing, well-sewn and soft, but it catches pet hair like mad.  Keep this in mind if you live with cats or dogs.

Lastly, Blossom also has a bib, which keeps with her flower theme by being done up to look like a daisy.

This bib has three layers of fleece (green, white, and sparkly yellow), and ties on with a hot pink satin ribbon.

It's difficult to tie this bib right, because Blossom's bulky head, skinny neck, and bulky body leave little room to work.  In short I like the clothes, but I'm a tad disappointed that there wasn't a little more ON the doll!  I mean, booties look cute, and so do little jackets!  I do like what was included, though...especially the hat!  So...what else do I like about Blossom?  What DON'T I like?  Let's see...

BAD
*Doll is not soft at all.  I can understand why plastic was utilized instead of fabric, but there is such a thing as SOFT PLASTIC!!!
*Posability is terrible.  Blossom can't sit unless propped up, can't stand, can't wave very well, and can't turn her head.
*Few clothes, unless you count the diapers.
*Face is blank and in my opinion, lacks the usual Lalaloopsy charm.
*Diapers must be handled with care when wet.
*Small parts.
*Bracelet is difficult to put together and difficult to fasten.
*Bib is difficult to tie, though this is likely a problem unique to Blossom (Peanut has a clown's ruff instead of a bib)
*Mine has a shiny mark on her face that won't come off.  Again, this may be a problem unique to my doll, but beware nevertheless.
*Gimmick may be considered crude by some.

GOOD
*Blossom is sturdy and lightweight.  She won't shatter if dropped, and she's less likely to make a good club, though I still don't advise swinging this at someone.
*Clothes are cute, well-made, and appropriate for a baby doll.
*Accessories are also appropriate and have some play value.  If you don't want to change Baby's diaper, you can pretend to feed her Cheerios and then burp her.  LOL
*The Lalaloopsy theme is adhered to.  Some of the basic features are missing, but it's still obvious that this doll is a Lala.
*Also character-appropriate.  This doll is marketed as Blossom Flowerpot, and she lives up to that marketing...right down to the hairstyle.
*Good for smaller children, so long as the charms are taken away first.
*Diapers are colorful and come with several surprise elements that make them valuable play items.
*Gimmick, while crude, provides an original spin on a very old concept.

Drink-and-wet dolls are nothing new.  My Gerber baby dates back to...I think she dates back to the 1970's, and the concept has been around long before that.  These Lalaloopsy Diaper Surprise dolls take that old idea and put a new spin on it with their charmed diapers.  However, the idea of a doll "pooping" charms is off-putting for some.  If you read the link that I included above, you'll notice that Miss Emily entitled her review on Moxie Girlz Poopsy Pets "What Were They Thinking?"  Not surprisingly, Lalaloopsy Diaper Surprise dolls made it onto a "what were they thinking" list too.  In spite of this doll's cuteness and her originality, I have to say that I agree with this line of thinking.  If you stop to think about it, you're literally wearing pieces of doll crap on your wrist!  Plus, I can't get over the fact that this doll has a butthole!  Since realism isn't the point of this toy one hole that simulated the urethra would've sufficed, but nooooooo, we've got to have something else!  Finally, Blossom is hard as a rock.  I admit that at the ripe old age of twenty-seven I still like to cuddle with my dolls, and on the evening of November 2nd Blossom was my doll of choice.  Yep, I held her on my lap during Skyscraper Live...and she wasn't a very comfortable companion.  In short, I advise extreme discretion when buying this toy.  If you're not bothered by a doll that is stiff as a board, has an anus, and holds charms in her used diapers, then this is a great little toy.  She's also great for games of make-believe if your child is into that; the bowl, spoon, and bottle are perfect for pretend breakfast.  However, if you are looking for something soft or are revolted by the gimmick then I'd skip these and go with a Mooshka doll or a regular Lalaloopsy Baby.

I do look forward to crocheting some little booties for Blossom, though!  I think I may go with lime green to match the stem on that hat, and little yellow ribbons to match the bib.  But before all that can happen...I get to open Christmas gifts!!!!!!!!  And I get to watch my sister and brother-in-law open theirs too.  I'm particularly excited about one present for them; I got them a special box with some odds and ends inside.  Sort of a gift within a gift, so to speak.  I'll let y'all know how that goes.

Merry Christmas,
RagingMoon1987

P.S.:  I haven't seen any of the Newborn Lalas in stores yet, but they appear to be smaller than this baby doll that I have reviewed here.  When I see one I plan on reviewing her/him as well.