No March Meeting

Due to COVID-19, our March meeting has been canceled. Hopefully it will be safe to resume our meetings soon, but we will keep you updated on the status of our next meeting. In the meantime, please stay safe, and we hope to see you soon (when it’s safe)!

On the bright side, amidst all the self isolation, you can have some fun and try to experiment with some doll photography to pass the time, or finally get around to making that doll outfit you’ve been meaning to make. Feel free to share your doll photos with us (send to Melissa), or a picture of a doll outfit or project you’ve done and they can be shared on our website.

Creatable World: Gender Neutral Dolls

Mattel is launching it’s first gender neutral dolls, that are called Creatable World, where kids can customize their doll to represent themselves, or to create the doll any way they would like, in any fashion they would like. They come with short hair, and a longer wig, along with a few different outfit choices that they can mix and match, and thee pairs of shoes, and a couple accessories. They come in a variety of skin tones and hair colors, and both curly and straight.

 

 

Barbie Color Reveal Dolls

Barbie released a fun new surprise doll. It’s something akin to some of the LOL Surprise dolls, in my opinion, with having the big reveal to discover what doll you’ve gotten. You get a tube that hides everything, only to open it, and see a totally pink painted doll, along with some concealed packages. Inside the packages are your wig, shoes, and a skirt. You use the tube it comes in, and fill it with warm water, and put the pink doll inside. As the water touches it, the pink starts to fade away to reveal your doll’s painted on bodysuit, and her skin and hair. But then you rinse it off in cold water, and you reveal the next set of hidden details, like the true hair color, and her makeup.

 

Fresh Dolls

Some new dolls I recently learned about are the Fresh dolls, with a beautiful meaning behind them. They’re a new take on fashion dolls, with multiple points of articulation, and their own fashion line. Here is a blurb from their website, where the creator, Dr. Lisa, explains the story behind her dolls, along with some information about them:

Dr. Lisa, Creator of The Fresh Dolls, Fresh Squad, and Positively Perfect dolls

I am a mom and former professor.  I’ve always wanted to inspire young people. In 2003, I formed the World of Entertainment, Publishing and Inspiration (World of EPI) with the mission of spreading joy by providing children with dolls that inspire dreams, promote intelligence and build self-esteem.  Building self-esteem is the cornerstone of all the work I do, because low self-esteem can limit a child’s potential.  As a professor who had experienced low self-esteem, I quickly recognized it in the young women in my classes.

One day while watching an updated doll study, I saw a beautiful little mocha skinned girl say she didn’t think the brown doll was pretty because its skin was nasty.  She then touched her own hand and said, “just like mine”.  As my heart broke and tears flowed down my face, I said, “Oh my goodness this begins in early childhood.”  At that moment, I knew I had to create dolls for multicultural girls.

For four years, I’d carried the dream of creating a multicultural fashion doll line in my heart. I wanted older girls to see multicultural beauty reflected back to them during play.  In 2017, FRESH was launched.  They are called FRESH because they’re a new perspective on dolls.  These dolls have custom blended skin tones, beautifully authentic facial features, trendy fashions and hairstyles that include, braids, afros, afro-puffs, wavy and curly styles.  FRESH doll bodies are specifically designed to be more representative by having fuller hips, thighs and more realistic waists.  I designed the dolls to be poseable so girls could dream of what they want to become while posing, bending, and playing with their dolls.  Since traditional dolls clothes will not fit these shapely bodies, FRESH dolls have their own fashion line that is “elegant with an edge”.

Everything we do at the World of EPI centers around love and self-esteem.  We love all children. We love creating dolls that honor the beauty and intelligence of multicultural children. We are here to support you in raising beautiful, confident children with unlimited possibilities.  Anytime a World of EPI doll is purchased, a donation is made to a national charity that supports and uplifts children.  When you take a doll home to the amazing child in your life, present it to them with a loving kiss.  In turn, I hope each doll gets tons of hugs and kisses, too.

Dr. Lisa

Meet the Fresh Dolls. I heard about them, and then remembered seeing them at some local Dollarama stores. It appears in the US, anyway, that they’re available at Wal-Mart, and aren’t badly priced, however I have yet to see them at any Wal-Marts here, but I’ll be keeping my eyes open, just in case.

Here is the Fresh Squad, their male dolls to go along with the female Fresh dolls. I have to say, I love the look of these dolls and the different faces and hair.