Hearts for Hearts Nyesha & Surjan

After doing my piece yesterday on budget friendly dolls, I discovered that the Hearts for Hearts dolls have been discontinued. So hear ye, hear ye, get out to your local Toys R Us or Target and get what's left if you don't already have one. I have decided to do a feature piece on two of them today: Nyesha and Surjan. The dolls began shipping out last October, so I stalked my local Toys R Us and Target until I found them stocked at Toys R Us. There were only two of each doll, and I bought all four, two for me and two for a friend who also collects them. I have not seen them in stores since. Without further adieu:

Nyesha and Surjan

Nyesha close up

Surjan close up

Nyesha represents a girl from Harlem, whose father is Mexican and whose mother is African American. Surjan represents a girl from Nepal who was sold into slavery. One thing I like about this line of dolls is they represent real girls, and the real struggles that girls around the world face everyday. The dolls are absolutely beautiful as well.

I am not sure why Playmates decided to discontinue these dolls. They seem to be very popular with both collectors and children, and it just doesn't make sense to me. The only thing I can come up with, and keep in mind this is pure speculation, is that maybe they just cost too much to make. The quality is much better than what I have found with other similarly priced dolls. In fact, the only quality issue I've seen with these dolls is that the eyes start to turn purple on some of the older dolls. To be honest this is not something that bothers me that much, as it happens to lots of dolls (remember all those older Himstedts whose eyes turned pink?). At any rate, the rumor is that the creator of the doll is trying to take the dolls to another company, due to the lack of marketing and subsequent discontinuation by Playmates. I certainly hope she is successful and that we will see these dolls in plentiful stock at stores again soon! In the meantime, as I said above, if you want one, now is the time to get out and find one! Good luck!!

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Doll Collecting On A Budget

Collecting dolls can be a very expensive hobby. It seems like there is always some new edition of a collectible doll, or there are 3 concurrent preorders for dolls that top $500...and how do you choose between them?!! There are alternatives to spending loads of money on dolls, and I'm going to share a few tips with you (tips that I don't always follow but should).

1. Instead of buying a new doll, buy accessories for the dolls you already have. There are many wonderful artists on Etsy making dresses, jewelry, and even furniture at reasonable prices for your dollies. To check out some of my favorite shops, click here!

2.To satisfy your craving for a new doll, choose an inexpensive, high quality doll. I have quite a few favorites of these.

Hearts for Hearts Dolls

Hearts for Hearts dolls are great quality dolls that are educational as well as culturally accurate (if this is the correct way to describe it). One of the things I love the most about them is their variety: they don't just give the same facial mold a different hair and eye color, they actually have different molds for the different dolls. Aaaaand...you can get a brand new doll at your local Target for less than $30! Certainly easy on the wallet.

Another personal favorite of mine are the Disney Animators' Collection Dolls:

With a price of $24.99 each, these dolls are absolutely wonderful. They have such sweet faces, and they have an artistic quality to them which makes them appreciable by adult collectors. Sometimes, they even go on sale for $20 each! There is an entire following of these dolls dedicated to customization, and that could be a fun avenue for a collector on a budget. The doll isn't so expensive that ruining it would also mean financial ruin, so you can relax and have fun with these dolls!

3. Learn to make something for your dolls. There are tons of great tutorials out there on the internet to help get your creative juices flowing. I personally love making doll swimsuits out of colorful socks. A pack of 6 pairs of socks will set you back about $7 at Walmart, and you can make TWELVE doll swimsuits! Yay!

A sock swimsuit I made

4. Enjoy the dolls you already have. This can be easier said than done. Part of the point of me writing a blog post each day is to force myself to appreciate what I already have, while taking my mind off allllll the amazing dolls that are out there right now, just begging to be purchased. You could start taking a photo a day of your dolls, write a blog, clean up an old doll, and the list goes on. 

What do you think? Do you have any tips for collecting on a budget? I'd love to hear about your tips in the comments!

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Lesly Famosa: La Hermanita de Nancy

Once upon a time, I ordered all my Nancy dolls from El Corte Ingles in Spain, but they discontinued shipping service to the United States. I went for quite awhile without getting any new Nancy dolls. Nothing puts a damper on collecting like an impossible situation where you cannot buy what you want. The other day, I decided to cruise over to El Corte to see what was up with them. And guess what? They are shipping to the US again! Woo hoo! There is a difference now. In the good ole' days, I could order pretty much however many Nancy dolls I wanted for one flat shipping cost. Now, there is a limit of 3 kilos for 40 Euros. It's not as good as it was before, but it's not terrible. As soon as I found out they were shipping, I just had to place a "test order". I ordered two Lesly Famosa Communion dolls, one for me, and one for a friend. They arrived from DHL within one week, which was a lot faster than the previous orders I had placed. I checked their weight, and they were about 1.5 kilos. The Nancys will be heavier, so I'm thinking I will probably be able to order Nancy dolls in the future 2 at a time.

My sweet Lesly

I was really happy to finally get a new Lesly. I have an older Lesly, but I bought her out of desperation to have one (because she was for sale here in the US), and she is in really terrible condition. Her hair is a nightmare that I don't even know how to begin to fix.

My Two Leslys

My new Lesly does have a few flaws. First off, although this isn't inherently a flaw, she is made in China. That was disappointing. I have found consistently that the Nancy dolls made in Spain are of much superior quality from everything from their plastic to their clothes to their hair. This Lesly is no exception, and the most notable issue she has is that her shoes are way too big. They will not stay on her feet. When I pick her up, the shoes just fall right off. I think I will be able to get her some tights or socks and that will fix the problem, but they should be a little snugger than they are. Her legs are also a little unevenly sized, which is not atypical for the other Nancys I have. Otherwise, I really love her and she's such a cutie. I'm so glad I finally got the opportunity to add her to my collection. 

For those that don't know her, Lesly is Nancy's little sister, and she's about 12 inches tall. Here's a photo of her with some other dolls so you can get an idea of size:

Little Darling Elsa, Lola from Berdine Creedy, Lesly, and Hearts for Hearts Tipi

Lesly will definitely need some new clothes, because I'm not a huge fan of the communion look. It looks like she may be able to share with some other dolls, but I haven't had the opportunity to have a fashion show yet. 

If you're on the fence about Lesly, I would say you should have one if you are a Nancy collector. Even though the quality isn't perfect, this is a good way to get a nice, clean Lesly doll to add to your collection.

How can you resist this sweet little face?

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