Fashion Dolls 101

  We’ve already discussed how cute the little Barbie Minis are , but with the right accessories, they are downright adorable! Look how cute they are having a patriotic picnic! Is it Flag Day? July 4? Memorial Day? Veteran Appreciation Month? ?? Maybe they are preparing in advance for America’s 250th birthday next year ! Who knows! They are ready for any summer holiday! The little tree is an aquarium decoration and the pastry table with bunting is actually part of the packaging of a piece of bunting from Michael’s. And the figure in the back is actually one of the Monster High minis.  It will be fun to try to find more accessories for the tiny 3” figures!

~ Looking for something cute? Check out Barbie Minis at Dollar Tree for $1.25. ~  OK. Mattel got me. I found these adorable mini Barbies with varying body styles. At first I just got the three Caucasian figures with the more basic body styles. Then I went back for the black one and the chubby one which were the last two on the shelves at my local Dollar Tree.  .For just $1.25 at Dollar Tree, I should have bought them all, because I might have missed one by waiting.  I couldn’t wait to take them out of the package, and I immediately bought them a $1.25 tropical plant to pose with— Money well spent!  Then I ended up at another Dollar Tree 60 miles away a couple of days later, and what did I find? All the minis I said no to before plus some cute Monster High minis   So I grabbed the black one in the yellow dress and one of the Monster Highs and now I am kicking myself for not getting the heavy-set blonde (I thought I already had that one) and the odd one with ...

 It’s May 29 and Michael’s is already advertising Halloween—Lemax Halloween that is. The Halloween ad showed up in an email from the craft store chain today   “Psst … Get exclusive Lemax Spooky Town pieces EARLY” was the headline of the Michael’s advertisement in my e-mail this morning.  Michael’s, I like your stores but MAY is too early to be promoting Halloween!!! Really, just stop it. May is the time to promote spring, summer and patriotic decor. Put the spooky stuff down until fall. That is all. 

  It’s summertime! Do you know where your gnome is? Dollar Tree has summer gnomes in stock  I saw two styles: a teal gnome in a blue striped cap with goggles, flippers, and a silly floatie, and a purple gnome with a blue floral cap with sandals and a surfboard   These gnomes are cheaper-made than the previous holiday gnomes but still kind of cute in a whimsical way. I was able to remove the floatie and flimsy breathing apparatus from the teal gnome and I like him much better now. I plan to make him accessories over time to suit me   It would be nice to be able to display them with the patriotic gnomes for Memorial Day and other patriotic holidays, but to me the new ones look a bit cheaper. However, thethe patriotic gnomes look cheaper than the Christmas gnomes which have knitted caps.   Still, I like the sandals and hippie look of the purple gnome, and I may remove his surfboard and accessorize him myself, too. For $1.25 I can afford to experiment!  Intere...

Our recent article about Hello Kitty’s anniversary reminded me that Ty issued a collection of little girl fashion dolls in 2010 called Li’l Ones, along the line of Mattel’s little Kelly Club dolls. One of those dolls was a Hello Kitty Li’l Ones doll dressed in Kitty’s signature pink with the Hello Kitty logo on her pink sweatshirt and a miniature Hello Kitty figure as the doll’s toy. The doll comes with a pink hair brush, and pink tennis shoes to match her outfit.  Related: Hello Kitty on the Cover of Time Hello Kitty Celebrates 50 Years of Cuteness  Sanrio Introduces New Hello Kitty Products at Toy Fair Hello Kitty -- More than Just Dolls for Valentine's Day 

If you thought nutcrackers were just for Christmas, Michael’s would disagree! The craft store has a small selection of patriotic nutcrackers out on its shelves just in time for Memorial Day .  Dressed in both camo and formal attire, the formal nutcrackers hold the American flag. They only come on one height, two styles and two skin tones.  Also on display are these cute patriotic cloth animals dressed in their red, white and blue stripes.  Michael’s has other patriotic figures for sale, from gnomes to everything else. So if you need the perfect patriotic figure for Memorial Day, Flag Day, July 4, Veterans Day, or our nation’s 250th birthday, you know where to go!  Related: The History of Memorial Day: Sacrifice and Remembrance Faith of Our Fathers: Quotes from America’s Founding Fathers America Indebted (Memorial Day Poem) Patriotic Trivia Fire up the Barbie (doll) for Memorial Day - National Barbie Collecting Examiner