Does that sound weird? And when I say ‘doll-crush’ I mean I don’t actually have a crush on a doll, I mean I just really, really like a certain doll… Like a dress-crush. Or a shoe-crush. Is that a thing? *ahem* Moving on…
So I went to Target today. Nothing had changed from the last time I was there, except they sold out of a few more Fashionistas. Now there’s only “Zapp” and some boring blonde Barbie. I decided not to waste my money on anything. I didn’t need any of these. As I was walking back, I noticed a clearance tag on every single Monster High doll. Does this mean they’re getting rid of ALL the Monster High dolls? I wondered. Is Monster High no longer popular? Does this mean Barbie is back on top? I decided to check out the Ever After High dolls, which were next to the MH dolls, and immediately my thoughts switched over.
I couldn’t believe what I saw. Such detail! Such beauty! Nothing like Barbie. I was blown away (I haven’t looked at EAH dolls closely before… I tend to stay away from anything non-Barbie). Most of the EAH dolls were on clearance, too. I was immediately drawn to a very pink doll on the top shelf (ah, this is what years of Barbie have done to me! Always with the pink!) She was in a big box, while most of the others were in much smaller boxes. I assumed they were the ‘budget’ versions. They were hardly as nice.
I looked through all the others, but eventually I decided that I liked the pink one the best. So, on a whim, I bought her. $25, on clearance. I hope I can come back for a few more before the sale ends. Who knows how long it’ll last… So yes. My first ever non-Barbie doll purchase. Apart from LPS Blythe. You were the best, Blythe! But do you really count? Nah…
Gee. I really miss Blythe. She was very pretty. Anyway. Let’s move on.
TA-DAAAA. Her name is ‘Briar Beauty,’ which at first I did NOT get AT ALL. And then I remembered Sleeping Beauty, where the princess’s name is ‘Aurora Briar Rose’ or something? (How does she have 3 first names?) I haven’t seen Sleeping Beauty since I was like, 4, so I don’t really remember much, apart from how much I absolutely hated it. I have, however, seen Maleficent a few years ago, which I also greatly disliked.
I love the packaging. You would not get this kind of detail from Barbie! This is the kinda stuff I love to analyse, love to stare at. It’s STUNNING. Whoever designed this, puh-lease go work for Barbie! But I don’t like the dark underlines in the opening statement, it looks way too harsh with the yellow. Perhaps just one, instead of three?
There’s a very strange ‘interview’ on the back of the box. And by strange, I don’t mean the answers are strange, I mean she keeps using these crazy words -it reminds me of those terrible Polly Pocket stories were everyone would keep saying stuff like ‘a party on the rooftop sounds flower-riffic!’ Er, okay.
My Barbies look so pathetic next to this wonder. I understand the drop in sales lately… If it wasn’t for my long history of being wildly obsessed with her, I probably would have jumped ship years ago.
There is definitely a vine-y theme going on, as it’s on her dress, her tights, her shoes. Speaking of which, I have never seen a doll with actual, proper tights before. Yup, I’ve definitely joined the dark side (aka the side that’s not Barbie, which is, of course, the pink side). Back to the point -I don’t really get the vines. Or are they thorns? But didn’t she prick her finger on a spinning wheel, not a thorn? *shakes head* I don’t even know.
The side of the box is simply gorgeous. It reminds me of my Princess Charm School Delancy doll. Have I talked about her on this blog before? I can’t remember.
***
I wasn’t sure whether to open the box or not. I waited a few hours, then caved in.
There is a ‘bookmark’ that opens up and turns into a story. A dreadful one, actually. I might only be a high school student, but even I can write better than this! Did this person actually pass English? Kudos to whoever designed the packaging, but whoever wrote this story gets a thumbs down from me. It’s not just the story that’s badly written (so many characters! no language techniques! no structure!), it’s also the grammar. I might not be a grammar queen myself, but please use your commas!
I promptly returned the “story” to it’s packaging. I doubt I will take it out again.
Here are those vines / thorns I was talking about. OH WAIT I THINK I GET IT NOW. When Aurora Briar Rose or whatever-her-name-was fell asleep, the castle grew thorns everywhere! Because it was 100 years! And that’s what happens in 100 years? Or something?
The ring fell off around 10000 times, so I ended up sticking it on with blu-tac. It’s so pretty though!
Here is the purse (it’s cute, but would never work for Barbie), and LITERALLY THE CUTEST HAIRBRUSH IN THE WORLD. I would use this myself if it was human-sized!
I wasn’t too sure about taking the sunglasses off, in case they didn’t sit properly after, but I did, and turns out they sit okay, even without the plastic ties. They don’t look very good on her face, though -but let’s be honest, does ANYBODY look good wearing sunglasses on their face?
There is a lot of hair. I mean, a lot! It’s really ratty at the ends, but not that greasy. I might wash it later.
Here she is without the plastic shoulder wrap thing. I’m not quite sure what it is yet.
I got rid of all the plastic sitcky-outy bits and now she looks very nice with the cardboard background. I was able to put the plastic covering back on very easily, so now she can sit on my shelf in her box and I can take her out when I like!
I still can’t believe I actually bought an EAH doll. Like, when they arrived in Australia, over 12 months after they arrived in the US, I was horrified because I knew they would be taking sales away from Barbie. But I had to admit they looked pretty. And now I have one! On my shelf! With the Barbies!
Good gosh. What am I coming to?
Barbie Girl's Dreamhouse 