Another Christmas has come and gone at Casa Nachos. This was probably the most doll-tastic Christmas I’ve had yet! I had a lot of stuff that I’d bought on sale and stashed away, and then my husband provided a few surprises as well! (I knew he was a keeper!)
I felt a little wobbly when I stacked all the doll stuff up for this picture – that’s a LOT. It really hammered home how blessed I’ve been this past year – both myself and my husband have good, solid jobs that pay us a decent living, and we’ve been able to buy a house, pay down debt, and still have enough left over to spoil each other at Christmastime.
First, Addy’s Flower-Picking Dress, which I bought with the $10-off-$50 code back in…October? or so. This is a lovely dress, one of my favorites from Addy’s collection. The fabric is thin, but doesn’t feel cheap – it’s a soft, light cotton. The details are wonderful – so many little tucks! I really like how the dress manages to be simple and elegant at the same time. At first glance, it seems plain, all one color with no fancy trims or embellishments, but the way it’s constructed raises it to a higher level. The ribbon and flowers are nothing to write home about – the dress is the star of this show.
Next, the MyAG Bowling Outfit, which I picked up for $10 in the Cyber Monday sale. I’m really glad I got this on sale, and I understand why it kept showing up on AG’s sale pages. It’s…not that great.
I split the parts up among Merrill, Lucy, and Robin for mix-and-match.
Robin is modeling the shirt, which is easily my favorite part. It’s cute, and I like the colors, but it is very tight. It only buttons on my skinniest dolls, and I don’t think I could squeeze a PM body into it at all.
Merrill is modeling the pants under the Pretty & Plaid dress, and they are incredibly tight as well. I had trouble getting her feet through! Part of me wants to give AG props for not doing Yet Another Pair of Leggings, but these would have really benefited from a stretchy fabric.
Lucy has the shoes, which are cute. There’s nothing that screams “ugly bowling shoes” about them, so they can easily be a pair of simple casual shoes on their own.
The accessories include three pins, a bowling ball, and blue hair ties. The hair ties are cute enough, and functional. The pin and balls get a big “meh” from me – the ball isn’t made to be held by a doll, which is highly disappointing, and the pins just…sit there? Those are going into my sale pile. In short, the cuteness of the shirt and shoes make this worth the $10, but I would never have paid full price.
My first surprise from my husband – the MyAG violin set! I have wanted the violin set ever since it was first released, back in the Pleasant Company days. I remember not being terribly interested in the Girl of Today dolls when they first appeared – I didn’t really want a doll that looked like me, and while I had a character I wanted in doll form, they didn’t have one that looked like her. (Hilariously enough, they do now - #49 is a dead ringer – but that character is long abandoned.) The accessories, though – I wanted those!
This is a very heavy set! The stand is metal, and very sturdy. The violin case is sturdy as well. The books are neat – they’re shrunk-down versions of actual books. (This is one area where AG’s accessories stand above their competitors – their books are actual miniature books, instead of covers and blank pages.)
Here is Nadira modeling the set.
The violin itself is plastic. It doesn’t sit entirely well on the doll’s arm, and has a tendency to fall off if you look at it the wrong way. (This tendency makes me okay with the plastic construction – a wooden instrument would have cracked by now!)
The bow is plastic, and also doesn’t sit well in a doll’s hand. I ended up securing it with a clear elastic.
Nadira is also modeling part of my other surprise – the Cozy Sweater outfit! I mostly wanted this for the sweater, which is lovely. I love the tunic length and the semi-cowl neckline, and the heathered pink color is so pretty. The knit is soft, too – AG needs to make this in women’s sizes, I’d snap it up.
The leggings are basic capri-length leggings – nothing special, but a good mix-and-match piece. The boots are cute, but they’re probably going into my sale pile – I can’t see any of my girls wearing them.
The last surprise – an addition to Team Pullip! Well, this was kind of a surprise, anyway. I had a day off work in November, and my husband had told me “I’m expecting a package today, but don’t look at the return address, or you’ll know what it is!” So I come home from running some errands, and there’s a box on the porch, and…I don’t even have to get out of the car to see that it’s from PullipStyle. They slather every flat surface in bright red FRAGILE stickers! My husband was a bit put out, but I consoled him by saying I had no idea which Pullip it was – I had three on my wishlist! This beauty happens to be Pullip Youtsuzu.
Her hair is scary-elaborate.
I stared at the various hair ornaments in utter confusion before figuring out how it all went together! The back hair is very stiffly gelled in its updo, and I am making no attempt to take it down.
Her clothing is amazing – once again, Pullip knocks one out of the park. It’s supposed to be traditional Japanese garb, and they are taking “traditional” seriously. There is not a single bit of Velcro, or a single snap, or button, anywhere. Everything ties on, from the silky blue under-robe to the outer layers, held in place by an obi sash. I though the outer layers were all separate, so they could be mix-and-matched, but it turns out they’re all sewn together at key places. An extra obi is included, to mix things up a bit!
Her shoes are tiny little Japanese sandals. Aren’t they adorable?
Now, I had put Youtsuzu on my Amazon wishlist for the purpose of customizing her to be Pullip Mulan, the next addition to my eventual goal of Pullip All The Disney Princesses. My husband, upon seeing me looking at wigs, did his best kicked-puppy expression and said “You’re not going to customize this one, are you?”
“Well, I did put all those Pullips on my wishlist for the express purpose of customizing…”
[Husband’s kicked-puppy expression deepens] “But…I chose this one because she was so cool-looking.”
So now, I had a dilemma. Do I keep Youtsuzu as-is to please the husband, despite the bit where I wouldn’t have considered her if not for the custom potential; or do I forge ahead with my plans?
I put Mulan in her boot-camp outfit (thank you, Disney Store’s Twice-Upon-A-Year Sale and Extra 25% Off Weekend), and pinned back her front hair to get an idea of how she would look.
And then I fell in love. She just looked so little and cute and – well, I hate the word “spunky”, but she looked spunky! And the more I looked at her, the more I realized I could have it both ways. Pin back her hair, change her clothes, and she’s Mulan. Take out the pins, change her back, and she’s Youtsuzu. Her wig isn’t entirely perfect – the bangs are the biggest offender – but it’s close enough, and the benefits of not seeing my husband’s kicked-puppy expression are totally worth having an imperfect wig.
And, the Pullip story continues...but that will have to wait for next post!
1 comment:
The bangs are cute! She looks darling as Mulan.
How do all the hair things fit in her hair? That cushion thing looks like it's the same size as her face!
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