Designed by Stacey McBride-Irby, Mattel’s So In Style dolls encourage mentorship, interest exploration, and career aspiration. Each 11-1/2- and 5-1/2-in doll has a combination of interests and favorite school subjects. Sold as big-sis/little-sis sets, they are also sold separately.
The little sisters are offered as a trio at Barbiecollector.com. Reasonably priced from $9.99 to $24.99, availability varies from immediate to August 14 and September 9, 2009. Note: I purchased the original two-doll sets from a Toys R Us store. At the time of this blog*, the description at Barbiecollector.com describes the art lovers as Kara and Kianna and the music-loving dolls as Trichelle and Janessa. My art-loving dolls are Trichelle and Janessa and the music lovers are Kara and Kianna. The school spirit dolls, Grace and Courtney, shown at Barbiecollector.com are the same dolls in the set I purchased locally. Did they change the molds of the others or is the website in error?
MGA Entertainment (the makers of the Bratz dolls) has caught the attention of collectors with their BFC Ink dolls. These studious best friends possess a set of different interests with journaling as a favorite activity. The 18- and 9-1/2-inch versions are available at Target and Toys R Us online and at their physical stores. In addition, MGA’s Moxie Girlz exude sweet innocence and are completely determined to succeed at all endeavors. With a retail of $17.99 to $29.99, their petite stature (approximately 10 inches) and their cuteness factor add to their appeal.
Spin Master’s LIV dolls, available at their own website, Walmart.com, and Wal-Mart stores, are “four fun-loving teens who love hanging out together.” Encouraging diverse friendships and individuality, these 12-inch dolls have 14-points of articulation. Posing them appears endless. They retail for $19.99.
As a rule, I rarely purchase play dolls, but dolls like these have changed my play-doll-buying perspective. Kudos to Mattel, MGA Entertainment, and Spin Master for returning wholesome dolls to the toy market for girls who play and girls who collect and play.
Walmart.com, an Ebates.com affiliate offers free site-to-store pickup. Join Ebates.com, link to Walmart.com from Ebates.com and receive 1% cash back on your doll purchases with free shipping to a store near you when you choose site-to-store pickup.
*The descriptions and images for S.I.S. Kara and Kiana and Trichelle and Janessa are now correct at Barbiecollector.com.
