Dollcraft

When I started collecting dolls, I felt hesitant about the Monster High line. I don't love inhuman skin tones or oversized heads, and short skirts aren't my thing (although I firmly believe people should wear what they want without being slut-shamed.) Also, they are super fancy and wear lots of make-up, and I'm kind of a plain girl. But, they are well articulated, and some looked interesting. But I could buy just one... right? My Monster High gang Cleo deNile was my first Monster High doll. I was drawn to her because she doesn't look like a monster. She's the "daughter of the mummy" but looks like an Egyptian girl who is still alive. She's gorgeous. I couldn't stop looking at her and photographing her. Next, I was a bit more daring- Robecca is a robot with adorable steam-punk fashion sense. But honestly, when I got her in the mail, I was disappointed. Her face is a little too much like Cleo's to be unique, and her unique aspects seem...

Barbie gets a lot of criticism. I'm glad that it seems like they have listened to some of that criticism as they are bringing out new "Curvy" dolls. However, it doesn't bother me that Barbie is skinny (or that Monster High dolls are even skinnier.) Although I certainly don't think that Barbie, Mattel, or other dolls are above criticism, I don't think this is a very useful criticism, and there's a better way to look at it. Thin, thinner, thinnest Why I Don't Skinny-Shame My Dolls 1. Barbie was never meant to be a realistic human being. She's basically a cartoon. Cartoons are known for having exaggerated features. And if we are talking about the Monster High dolls- they aren't even meant to be human. I don't know if Barbie has made some little girls feel bad about their bodies, but it hardly seems comparable to airbrushed magazine covers based on real photographs. Here's a good discussion about the subject. 2. Barbie wa...

While we are waiting on the new "curvy" Barbie, I wanted to review current available fashion dolls in a plus size category. I recently bought a Mimi Bobeck doll, a favorite collectable for those seeking fat fashion dolls. (I use the term "fat" because it is the preferred term of fat activists.  I don't call individuals fat unless I know that is their personal preferred term.) Although I don't require or expect many/any of my dolls to have realistic human proportions, I do want to have curvy, fat, and other shapes of dolls to in some way reflect that world we live in. I believe all bodies are good bodies. Mimi comes with a working bag and hand mirror; Drew gets a coffee mug and non-opening briefcase. Mimi Bobeck and Drew Carey are characters from "The Drew Carey Show," which aired in the mid 1990s. Their doll personas were made by Creation Entertainment in 1998. I never watched the show myself, but I found this nice essay about Mimi while ...