Since I've Been Gone...

Well, I've certainly let this slide, haven't I? I had never intended to take so long of a break, but I definitely needed to step back for awhile. Even though I started this blog as a creative outlet during a time when I was in a pretty rough place and needed it as a distraction, I let it become something that was stressing me out! I was bringing home new dolls and feeling like I couldn't open them until I had good lighting to do a video or take photos, and even then, unless I had the time to take all the review photos, I couldn't put the dolls on display...That certainly wasn't the point of this endeavour! Even after I decided to take a break for a while, I still felt guilty every time I opened a doll without doing a review first, which is beyond silly. This is something that I started doing for me, and I want to get back to that, and stop worrying so much about the details.

All that said, I decided to sit down today and take a few quick photos of some of the dolls I've picked up in the last few months, and it felt good to be back behind the camera! I think going forward, I just need to relax a little bit. Maybe more posts showing off dolls and some of their details, without being quite as in depth as I can sometimes get. Celebrate what it is I love about this hobby, without stressing myself out again! I'd also love to do some more creative photo shoots like I've done in the past, taking dolls on road trips and outside, once the weather is better, and I think those would be fun additions!

Here's hoping I find some new energy for this place, because I certainly haven't lost my love of dolls! If anything, it's stronger than ever, and there are new things on the horizon I am very excited about! But for now, click through and have a look at some of the things I've gotten while I've been away!

Firstly, I, like so many other people, was super excited to hear about Barbie getting new bodies! I was even more excited when they started turning up in stores here in Canada in the middle of February! Since then, I've already bought FOUR: two curvy, one tall, and one petite. I loved adding all of them to my Fashionista collection, but my heart mostly belongs to the curvy girls.

I still haven't picked up Posea from Great Scarrier Reef, but after watching the movie, I decided I NEEDED Toralei. I'd had my eye on electric eel Frankie since she was released as well, and thanks to a sale, I was able to grab both for a great deal!

A couple of totally new characters also made their way onto my shelves! I was really looking forward to the Brand Boo Students line coming out, and Isi and Kjersti here are the reasons why! I haven't picked up Batsy yet, but I'm sure she'll be coming home with me eventually.

This one was a great steal! Here in Canada, collector's Draculaura isn't an Amazon exclusive, but is available in Toys R Us and Walmart. The trade off is that when she was released, she cost $70. That was way too much for me, even though I thought she was totally beautiful, and maybe even worth it. Slowly her price started coming down...$50...$40...and finally, TRU put her on sale for $19.97, and I snapped her up for that amazing price! She is really something incredibly special, and it makes me a bit sad that I don't think she was as successful as Mattel had hoped, based on the difference in quality in the images of the (presumably) follow-up Skelita. Not that the Skelita doesn't look beautiful, and I definitely want her, but the quality (and price!) gap is clear.

Another amazing deal was these two! This was one of those sets that was never at the forefront of my mind because while I this it's very cute (especially Lagoona's disco romper and curly pony, and Gil's mask instead of helmet!), I already HAVE a roller skating Lagoona, and I have multiple Gil dolls. Well, Walmart.ca had it for $13, and in just about 48 hours it was on my doorstep, and I'm glad! Turns out, they're both adorable in person, and well worth the $13.

Wait...how did this get here? :P I walked away to get more dolls, and came back to this! Merlin wants to be a model! :D

I'm noticing a trend here of buying things on sale...TRU finally put these on sale for about 50% off, so I snapped them up! I only had one version of each of these ghouls before buying this set, so it felt like a good purchase. Plus, I LIVE for Viperine's snake fringe bag and booties!

You guessed it, another sale! Weirdly, the very same day I found the Ghoulebrities, I went to Walmart and found this set on super clearance, and I'm glad I did! As cool as their Gala versions are (well, Elle anyways, and to an extent, Luna...) for new characters like these, I'm glad Mattel also put them out in something closer to a "basic" look. They fit in much better on my shelves, and I thought their Gala versions were a bit "much", even grading on the Monster High curve! This was another $70 set up here though, so waiting was definitely the ticket!

Finally, in terms of dolls anyways, is this gorgeous lady! Another purchase I successfully waited out at the Disney store, the only doll from the new Cinderella movie I actually bought. Not even Cinderella! I think this Fairy Godmother is just stunning, though I do kind of wish I had a Cinderella to go with her now...

The biggest and most ridiculous I added to my collection in the last few months, however? The best deal of all at $50, down from nearly $200...

 The Deadluxe High School! Yes, it's massive. Yes, I have nowhere good to put it. But do I love it? YES, I sure as heck do! Sometimes I just sit down in front of it and look at it. It makes me feel equal parts insane and happy, and really, isn't that what obsessive collecting is all about?

If there's anybody still here reading after all these months, thanks for sticking with me! And if there's anything in this post that you would like to see get its own post, let me know, and I can see about making it happen! I'm not sure exactly what forms reviews will take from now one, but we'll figure it out together!