The Toy Box Philosopher on eBay...and Portraits of a Philip Heath Doll

I'm taking over the internet!  Today it's eBay, tomorrow--the world!  Bwahahaha!  Seriously, though, I have my eBay page up and running.  My call sign is "toyboxphilosopher." There's a button on the right hand side of the blog which is a bit annoying, but it should take you to my auctions any time you want.  My plan is to start all auctions at $1 with actual shipping.  I'll probably need to tweak things and try different selling methods (Buy it Now?  Longer auctions?), but I'm hoping this can be a way to clear out reviewed or extra dolls at fair prices.  Please feel free to offer advice or suggestions in the comments.  I am not a very experienced eBay seller.

To avoid this being a totally boring post, here are a few pictures of a favorite doll from my collection (who is not for sale on eBay).  She is Leisandra by Philip Heath:

Philip Heath's Leisandra.

The "Diamonds" Marilyn Monroe by Tonner Doll

I never thought I would own this doll.  I watched with interest when she was released at the Tonner Doll Company's Flights of Fancy convention back in May, but knew I couldn't swing the $350 price tag (which, of course, translated into $500 on eBay).  I was drawn to her not because she depicts Marilyn Monroe, but just because she is a rare type of release for Tonner--a 22" inch doll with a new face.  And it's a beautiful face.

On the discussion boards, this doll was met with a ton of criticism for not looking enough like Marilyn Monroe--specifically for not having Marilyn's voluptuous curves.  I am not a Marilyn expert, nor am I interested in finding the perfect Marilyn clone, so I'm a pretty easy audience.  I picture the real Marilyn as having had a tiny waist and a large chest, and this doll fits that image just fine.  She might be a bit too tall and long-legged, but that's about the only critique I can muster.  Despite the online discontent, collectors who saw this doll in person at the convention seemed to think she was lovely--some even used the word "stunning," and this made an impression on me.  Furthermore, I was downright haunted by her unique face.  I kept gazing at pictures of her online, wondering what she might look like in person, waiting to see if her price would drop.  She struck me as something special.

My favorite pictures of this doll were taken by Alison of The Fashion Doll Review.  Alison's pictures are colorful and artistic, and they triggered in me the doll collector's version of falling in love.  That sickness where you know you have to find a certain doll for your collection--somehow.  Coincidentally, Alison put her Diamonds doll up for trade, and I happened to have something I could offer in exchange.  So, in a dream-come-true moment, I got my Marilyn--and I even got the very doll in those gorgeous pictures.  So, with a million thanks to dear Alison (who is a total sweetheart and a blogging superhero...), I have this tall beauty in my house:

"Diamonds," 22 inch tall Marilyn Monroe by Tonner

The Limited Edition Merida Doll from the Disney Store

I posted these pictures of the 18" limited edition Merida doll from Brave over on facebook and on my Flickr photostream, but some of you asked me to show them here, too.  I'm leaving this doll in her box for now, so I can't really do a full review yet, but I did snap a few quick pictures of her.  The pictures aren't that great, since the box casts some weird shadows, but just in case you are interested, here she is:

18" Limited Edition Merida.

The Classic Merida Doll from the Disney Store

You might remember how excited I've been to see the Pixar movie, Brave.  My excitement stemmed mostly from my enthusiasm for Disney's last masterpiece, Tangled.  I haven't enjoyed a Disney movie that much since I was a kid.  I had high hopes for Brave, and for the the Disney Store doll line that would inevitably accompany it.  The Brave dolls have actually been out for way longer than the movie, which just opened last week.  Not only are the Disney Store shelves packed with Brave dolls right now (including the limited edition 18" Merida), but brand new versions of all of the other princess are available for $14.50 (or 2 for $22 with the current sale).  These new dolls are worth a look because they have different articulation and, it looks like at least Rapunzel has a new face mold.  I'll have to check that out.

I saw Brave on the day it was released.  I'm no movie expert, but I really enjoyed this movie.  It's not Tangled caliber in my eyes, but it's very, very good.  The Scottish accents and music are wonderful, there are numerous laugh-out-loud moments, and I almost cried a few times.  The animation of Merida's hair is incredible, as is the fur animation on all of the creatures.  Merida's horse Angus is amazing and realistic, though he doesn't have a personality like the Tangled steed, Maximus.  My kids and I agree that the plot could have been developed for another 15 minutes or so.  Also, I found myself wishing the movie would slow its frantic pace and let me look at the beautifully rendered characters and scenery a bit more.  I wish Disney movies weren't so frenetic--it's as though they assume kids have no attention span and the visual frame rate of a hawk.   In any case, I liked the movie well enough to be delighted that I have the doll.  She's a charmer:

Classic 12" Brave Merida from the Disney Store.

Monster High Skultimate Roller Maze Lagoona

Many of you voted on which Monster High Roller Maze doll I should de-box next, and Lagoona won with a whopping 48% of the votes!  I'm so glad you picked her because she is my favorite Monster High character.  Ghoulia was the second most popular pick with 18% of the vote, and poor Frankie came in last--but just by a hair (16% of you wanted me to open her).

Here's the lovely Lagoona!

Skultimate Roller Maze Lagoona.

La Dee Da Dolls by Spin Master

Well, I got my hands on a few of the newest dolls from Spin Master.  These girls have been causing a stir since they were displayed at the Toy Fair in New York last February.  They are called "La Dee Da" dolls, named after Dee, who is the fashion-forward leader of the pack.  The name of the line confuses me, though, because although it's catchy, don't people usually say, "well, la dee da" when they're being mocking and dismissive?  Sometimes even "la dee frickin' da?"  Are these dolls dissing me from inside the box?  Presumably not.  Perhaps it's just meant to be an upbeat, sing-songy name in keeping with the cheery appearance of the dolls.

Spin Master has a knack for manufacturing trendy products.  Bakugan toys, Tech Deck mini skate boards, the adorable Zoobles--these have all been highly sought after and impossible to find at times.  Spin Master is also, of course, the company that introduced us to the innovative and highly articulated Liv dolls in 2009, and then recently announced the discontinuation of that beloved line.  Given the company's track record,  I feel pretty sure that the La Dee Da dolls will be trendy, at least for a little while.

Because it seems like the La Dee Da line is being rolled out to take the place of the faltering Liv dolls, it is hard for me to evaluate these new dolls without directly comparing them to Liv...and Liv dolls are the sole reason I became interested in play dolls as an adult.  So.  I will try very hard to step away from my disappointment about Liv's discontinuation and cast a fair eye on these new kids, but you should keep in mind that I probably have a pretty big chip on my shoulder.  Anyway, meet Cyanne from the "Runway Vacay" line, who I bought for $19.99 online at Toys R Us:

La Dee Da "Runway Vacay Cyanne."

Monster High Skultimate Roller Maze Dolls Arrive!

It's been a while since I've seen a new Monster High doll--there hasn't really been anything new since the great granite Rochelle Goyle, who I reviewed back in April.  I guess April wasn't actually that long ago, but given the typically furious release pace of the Monster High dolls, it felt like a long gap in the action.  Today made up for that gap, though, because all of the roller skating Monster High dolls arrived at my doorstep.  I tried something new this time and pre-ordered an entire case of dolls from Entertainment Earth.  If you're not familiar with it yet, Entertainment Earth is a fun store with a huge variety of merchandise including Monster High dolls, Pullip dolls, Living Dead dolls, Tonner dolls, Littlest Pet Shop toys, a huge diversity of action figures and lots more.  My transactions with this store have always been reliable and professional.  They have excellent communication, which is especially nice with pre-orders.  I've also had a lot of fun just recreationally browsing their site.  Anyway, a case of Monster High dolls sounds impressive, like it should be a hundred dolls or something.  It's actually six dolls--the four dolls in the release and two duplicates.  I paid $80, or about $13 per doll, which isn't too bad.  Here they are:

Monster High Skultimate Roller Maze from left: Ghoulia, Lagoona, Frankie and Operetta.