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!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving, from Pilgrim Barbie!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Canadians! Hope you're having a relaxing long weekend with lots of turkey and other delicious things!

As a little tie-in, I decided to take some pictures of a doll I've had in my possession for a few months now, but hadn't yet opened. Back in June for my birthday, my friend Maggie gifted me a few of her own Barbie's from the 90s, and one was Pilgrim Barbie, from the American Stories Collection. Now...this doesn't totally fit in with Canadian Thanksgiving for obvious reasons, but hey, close enough, right?

In addition to my usual review photos, Barbie came with me to Thanksgiving dinner and posed in a few places around my aunt's gorgeous house. So let's get to it!

Barbie Fashionistas!

Barbie is really doing a lot of amazing things lately! Sure, there's still lots of the classic Barbie pink on the shelves, with standards like fairies and mermaids and princesses, but amongst that, there is a lot of interesting stuff to be excited about. One of those things is the new line of Fashionistas, Barbie's lower priced priced line of more "realistic" fashion dolls. These are the dolls that are dressed more like regular people, in clothes you might see in magazines or in the mall, and this new range that's hitting the shelves now? They are exceptionally gorgeous!

Remember this promo photo? I feel like it's been circulating for AGES, and I was so glad when the dolls finally started hitting shelves. This is an incredibly diverse range of dolls, with a lot of races and styles represented, and I love it! I haven't seen all of them on shelves yet, but I did pick up two this past weekend, so click through to see which two I brought home!

Christina Revamps! A new series, starting with Christie!

So, I've decided to try something new over on my YouTube channel! From time to time, I pick up dolls at the thrift store and fix them up, and I decided to try filming a bit of the process and seeinf it was something people might be interested in. My first go was a Christie I found at Value Village for $2.99, who wasn't in bad shape, but definitely needed some love.



Let me know what you think!

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire "Effie Trinket"

Well, I have had this doll sitting around in her box since I got her in August, just waiting for her turn in front of the camera. I have no idea why I waited so long, but since Mockingjay came out this week, I figured it was the perfect time!

I decided to just do a video review for now, but I may take some photos of her and Katniss in the future, since I don't think I ever actually reviewed my Katniss Barbie either! If you're interested in having a look at Effie, check out my video below!

And for those of you who aren't into the video thing, stay tuned! I have a lot of great stuff coming up, and I'm just trying my best to find the time to work reviews into my new schedule. I think I've figured out how to take photos at night as well, so that'll definitely help out! 

As a sneak peek, check out this picture of what I got on my epic toy hunt to Toronto yesterday!

I've also got Monster High's Bonita Femur AND the Student Disembodied Council 5-Pack, so there's definitely lots of good stuff coming up, plus, Christmas is just around the corner, and I bet Santa will be bringing me some dolls! :P

Hope everyone is doing well! What dolls are on your Christmas list?

FanExpo 2014 Haul!

Just a quick post to let you know that I posted a video showing my haul I got at FanExpo this year! I'll be doing full blog posts on the two dolls, and let me know if you'd like to see detailed posts on anything else, I'm happy to do it!

Thanks for watching!

Life in the Dreamhouse Nikki (plus her fashion pack!)

Today I've got a bit of a two-for-one for you! I finally picked up Life in the Dreamhouse Nikki, and I couldn't help but grab her fashion pack too, so I'm going to be reviewing all of that in one post. I've been seeing the Dreamhouse dolls around less and less, and seeing Nikki even less frequently, and I was starting to get worried I might miss out on her! She's the last of the Dreamhouse dolls that I really love and feel like I need, and she was the last on the shelf at Toys R Us, so I feel pretty good about my decision!

This will probably be a quicker review, since I've looked at a few of these Dreamhouse dolls before, but there will definitely be lots of pictures of Nikki's beautiful face!

Stick around to see more of the gorgeous Nikki!

Guest post: Victorian Elegance Barbie

Today I have something different and, I think, pretty exciting for you! A friend of mine from grad school, Maggie, contacted me a little while ago about doing some posts reviewing her small collection of vintage collector Barbie dolls, and of course, I said yes! Today, I've got the first one to post, and with that, I'll hand it over to Maggie, on the other side of the jump.

Life in the Dreamhouse Barbie

Today, I have yet another Life in the Dreamhouse doll for you, but this time, it's the lovely Ms. Barbie herself! Thanks to the Wal-Mart clearance section, Barbie joined my collection for $10, which is definitely a more than fair price for how nice I think these dolls are.

I'm excited to have an actual Barbie in my collection for the first time since I was a kid, so click through to see more!

Life in the Dreamhouse Raquelle

After I picked up Life in the Dreamhouse Midge, it didn't take long for me to go back for this lovely lady! There was only one Raquelle left and she was on clearance, so it was meant to be, right?

What I love about these LITDH dolls, is how much personality each of them has. From Midge's sweet face, to Teresa's goofy grin, all the way to Raquelle's sassy smirk, each of this dolls is entirely their own, and that's a great thing to see! It really captures the fun atmosphere of the webisodes, and makes the dolls stand-out on the shelves.

What makes Raquelle stand out? Click through to find out!

Lammily: A welcome addition to our doll shelves?

This post is a bit different from the usual content of my blog, but the more I look at what other people are saying about this particular doll, the more I want to weigh in as well. 

Discussion of dolls (especially Barbie) and body image is nothing new. As long as there has been Barbie, there have been people who think she's too thin, and that she sets an unattainable standard for little girls that they then feel like they have to live up to. This criticism has also been leveled at Bratz, Monster High, and probably just about any other fashion doll line out there that is marketed towards young girls. There have been attempts made in the past to make larger bodied fashion dolls, and they've never really taken off for various reasons, but artist Nickolay Lamm is giving it another shot.

Meet Lammily, the doll who tells us that "average is beautiful."

(all images from Lammily's website)

Life in the Dreamhouse: Midge

Apart from a small collection of character Barbies (Wicked Witch of the West, Batgirl, Katniss, 60's Catwoman), I haven't really paid much attention to the Barbie line since I was a kid. I loved Barbies, and I had tubs full of dolls and clothes, but when I was a teenager, I gave them all to my best friend's little sister. I don't really regret it since my dolls were well played with, and definitely wouldn't be display quality now! I think the only one I'd like to still have is the brunette Totally Hair Barbie, because I remember being so excited to have a Barbie that had the same colour hair as me! Not a Teresa, or another character, but actually Barbie, with brown hair! It's the little things when you're a kid, isn't it?

So what's changed? Well, Life in the Dreamhouse got me. I started seeing the dolls on shelves awhile ago, and I thought they looked really great. Nice outfits, good hair, and I loved their applied eyelashes! Plus, their faces really have a lot of personality, and that's a nice bonus! I was totally happy just looking at the dolls in the store, until a few of the webisodes were added to Netflix and I thought I'd check them out. Famous last words, because they are hilarious and really clever, and I was hooked!

Even before I'd watched the show, I was most excited to see Midge back in the line-up of dolls. I've always had a soft spot for Midge for some reason, and it's no different with this doll. I finally took the plunge and grabbed her when the Life in the Dreamhouse dolls went on clearance at my Wal-Mart, and there was only one Midge left. She was destined to be mine!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, fellow doll lovers! I hope everyone found something they'd been wanting waiting for them under the tree. I know I did!

I'll definitely be reviewing Clawdia, and maybe the others too if anyone is interested. I also picked up Scaremester Jinafire and Cerise Hood from Ever After High just before Christmas, and I'm working on reviews of those as well! Lots of good stuff coming up soon on the blog, AND I got some gift cards too, so there may be even more! Very merry doll-mas to me!

Hope everyone is having a great day with their friends and families! What did you find under the tree this year?

A Very Barbie Christmas

As a general rule, I don't consider myself a Barbie collector. I love to look at Barbies, and as a kid I certainly had more than my share, but as an adult, they don't usually align with my tastes. I make exceptions for character Barbies, like my beloved Batgirl, 60's Catwoman and Wicked Witch of the West, and the Life in the Dreamhouse line has been calling to me, but that's about where it ends. Except when it comes to Christmas.

Sneak peek at the Barbie tree!

Years ago when I was just a kid, my aunt bought me the very first Hallmark Celebration Barbie ornament, which are designed to match the holiday Barbie doll that Mattel releases each year. In that instant, a collection was born, and this year I bought myself my 21st Barbie ornament. This year, the reins for the Barbie holiday ornaments have passed from Hallmark to American Greetings, and I was curious to see how the ornaments may change with the new manufacturer. This isn't really a review, really more of a show and tell, but I think it'll be fun. If you're curious to see what 21 years of Barbie ornament collecting looks like, stick around for lots of photos!