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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Every Doll Should Have A Happy Ending...

I waffled back and forth quite a bit about whether to write this post in English or Spanish, but I have decided to do an English version and then a Spanish version a bit later. It's important for me to practice my second language, and also to show my appreciation for the origin of my new, precious dolls.

The thrifting trip started like any other trip. Afner was having great luck finding all sorts of fun, vintage electronics, and I was sadly, empty handed. He assured me that, "I feel the vibes, you are going to have good luck at the next place." Well, he was almost right. It wasn't the next place, but the one after that has given me one of the top five greatest thrift store finds.

Let me set the scene for you: We are on Freedom Drive, at the Goodwill Outlet (yes, they have an outlet, and bless them, they sell everything by the pound), where all the toys are thrown unceremoniously into a plastic bin that is about 20 feet long by 4 feet wide. The first thing I spotted was an older Gotz doll, which in and of itself would have been a nice score. Then, I saw a familiar looking leg sticking out of the pile. I pulled the doll out, and it was a blonde Prima Perez. I was so excited I could barely think. I continued looking a little further down the bin and, as if I weren't lucky enough, there was a brunette Prima! I'm sure this is why defibrillators were invented. I collected myself as best as I could, and took the dolls to check-out. In total, I had two Primas, the Gotz doll, and a Battat doll. My total was $6. Over.The.Moon.

My new girls, in their found state.

Quite the mess.

On the drive home, I started to think about how sad this find actually was. As far as I have ever been able to tell, these dolls were produced and sold only in Mexico. For a family to move to the US from Mexico, and bring these dolls with them speaks volumes about the importance of these dolls to whomever they belonged. It makes me wonder what kind of situation led these dolls to Goodwill. A foreclosure, death, or eviction? Or did someone just grow up and get rid of them like old, worn out toys? At any rate, they have a permanent home with me now. The amount of grime that covered the girls was extensive, which could mean they were very well loved or terribly neglected. It was time to work some magic.

The Spa Area

All of the Perez dolls were made with a really strange open/close eye. The metal cup which holds the eye is very prominent in the face, and does not seem to be coated with any protective substance. Because of this, I firmly packed cotton balls into the eyes, and taped them on so that no water would get in them and cause rust.

Close up of the eye protection. It's just like the tanning bed!

The first thing I did was scrub HARD with a magic eraser to get rid of the grime. You can see the in the pic below the difference between the cleaned leg and the dirty leg. 

Top leg is uncleaned, bottom leg has been scrubbed.

I also washed the hair with laundry detergent, and for the brunette, I used some fabric softener. The hair is good quality, and stands up well to being brushed and washed. After some drying time, they were ready to be dressed and welcomed into their new home.

After being cleaned up.

I am, unfortunately, a terrible seamstress, and have no time to practice due to grad school right now, so they are dressed in BFC Ink outfits. 

My pretty Primas :)

Love this girl and her purple eyebrows!

I am really fortunate to have found these dolls, especially because I never would have expected to find one in this country. It just goes to show that you really can find anything at Goodwill.

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