Friday, October 3, 2014

Fun Finds Around Town

I'm not sure how things are looking in your own towns and cities, but things are definitely gearing up towards Christmas in my neck of the woods.  Here are a few goodies I've found locally that might interest some of you. :)  By the way, some of the photos in this post are not as high in quality, as they were taken with my cell phone (which is NOT a smartphone). ;)

My first recent find was at Walgreen's, of all places.  (Incidentally, it can also be a great place to find older mini Lalaloopsies.) ;)  My mom and I popped in to find some "Lice Shield" lice prevention shampoo after the whole head lice ordeal, and of course I walked through the toy aisle. ;)  I was so excited to find this ginormous Fluttershy brushable for just $9.99! :D

So cute! :) 

Here she is out of her box.  Hmm, I need to work on that mane a bit. ;) 

She stands at approximately 8 1/2" tall, which is a lot bigger than the standard Fashion Style ponies (like the Fluttershy in front on the left).  She towers over the regular brushable-sized ponies (like the little Fluttershy in front on the right).

She also looks ADORABLE on my Fluttershy shelf with my other Fluttershys:


Another great My Little Pony find this week was at Walmart.  They finally got in the Wave 11 blind bags! :D

I was so excited to see this overflowing box! :D  There was another box next to it, too.

Armed with my codes from the Strawberry Reef Blind Bag index, I started sorting through to find the ones I wanted.  I was even able to help another mom with a little pony fan of her own.  She saw me studying each bag carefully and asked if they were numbered or something.  We had a great visit, and she went home with three Breezies and Royal Pin. :)  I went home with Flash Sentry, Cheese Sandwich, Royal Pin, Cloud Chaser, and one Breezie (I'd found most of them before she approached me). :)

Here's a look at this series' packaging.

Here they are!  Sorry, I couldn't find Royal Pin and Cheese's collector cards. :}

I was really looking forward to adding Cheese Sandwich to my collection.  They did a great job capturing him in figurine form. :)  I would love to find one of these to give to my brother as a gag gift for Christmas.  (He's a big Weird Al fan, and was not that thrilled when he heard that Weird Al voiced Cheese Sandwich.) ;)

Here is Lilac Breezie.  I have to say, I'm not that impressed with the G4 renditions of the Breezies.  Especially when you compare them to G3's versions (which you can see HERE).  I don't care for the way these new Breezies' eyes are painted or the way they're designed.  It took me quite a while to get her to stand.  She's very top-heavy, and her legs are rather weak and flimsy.  I can't see the wings lasting very long with kiddos playing with them, either. ;)

Here's her collector card.

Flash Sentry in pony form.  Unlike a lot of MLP fans, I actually enjoyed Flash in the first Equestria Girls movie, so I was looking forward to adding him to my blind bag ponies.

His collector card.

Cloud Chaser shares a mold with Flash Sentry and the previously released Thunderlane.

Cloud Chaser's card.

Here's Royal Pin, who shares Shining Armor's mold.  I really like the way they painted his eyes.

Little Gal asked me to take a picture of Royal Pin and Rarity together.  She's decided they make a good couple, since they're both unicorns and his card talked about how he liked making fashions for his friends. ;) 


For those of you into American Girl and other 18" dolls, Costco is the place for you. ;)  They have some great things in stock.

The first item I saw was their AG pet display:

The pet sets are $29.99 each, and include a food and water dish for the dogs as well as an activity book.  The three options are the "Funky Terrier", the "Fancy Pomeranian", and the "Preppy Sheepdog".  I'm not 100% sold on the names, but I do like the pets themselves. ;)

The Sheepdog and the Pomeranian are my favorites.

The other exciting Costco find has to do with BeForever.  I'm really bummed, because I took a picture of the BeForever display with my phone as well, but I forgot to save the photo before I put my phone back in my pocket. :}  Thankfully, my mom picked up one of the sets for herself, so I'm still able to share a few pictures.

This is what Costco has in stock: sets of all three BeForever books, a cloth and metal bookmark, and the coordinating mini doll with a plastic doll stand.  They are selling for $39.99.  If you're looking for both a new mini doll and the new books, this is a great deal.  The books sell for $10 each, and the mini dolls are $25 each, so you're getting a discount of around $15.  The only downside is you don't get the little mini book the mini dolls normally come with.

Here's a better look at adorable mini Sam (who happens to be on backorder until November on the AG website).

She came with her two regular books and her Journey book (the "choose your own adventure" story).

Here's a closer look at the bookmark...

...and the metal rose charm at the end.

My Costco had all of the current BeForever mini dolls with their books:  Caroline, Samantha, Rebecca, Addy, Kit, Kaya, and Julie.  If you're in the market for these dolls and the new BeForever books and you have a Costco in town, you might want to swing by and check it out. ;)

I was thrilled to see the return of Madame Alexander dolls with nice faces at Costco this year. :)  As many of you may already know, the "My Life As" dolls from Walmart recently changed their face molds.  For an excellent review on the new dolls, be sure to check out Emily's post on The Toy Box Philosopher HERE.  The two most interesting things I learned from Emily were that the My Life As doll heads now only turn from right to left instead of tilting at different angles, and that the Madame Alexander Company is no longer producing the My Life As line. :{

While the new My Life As faces are cute in their own way, I really prefer their previous molds...which just happen to be the molds used for the Alexander Girlz dolls at Costco this year:

So adorable!

Here's a closer look at this doll's sweet face.  My favorite Madame Alexander 18" doll face mold is still the previous Alexander Girlz mold (the same face mold as Maggie's), but this one is a close second.  I'm not surprised the former mold is not being used at Costco anymore since the MA company has now started using it for their Favorite Friends dolls.

The back of the box shows all four dolls available.  The six pieces mentioned under the picture include the doll herself, a raincoat, a dress (which is completely hidden under the coat), tights (or they  might be stockings...I'm not 100% sure), boots, and an umbrella (which seems slightly small for the dolls but looks great when folded up).

Each of the dolls have at least a slight wave to their hair, which means it will be harder to keep nice and maintain (these dolls are not known for their hair).  That being said, their outfits are adorable and they are priced quite reasonably at $24.99.  The other thing I see as an advantage is it looks like they do not have the odd, rubbery flexible legs and arms of the My Life As dolls.  This makes them easier to pose and less smelly. ;)  Usually when the dolls have this posable feature, it is advertised on the box, and the box said nothing about bendable arms and legs.  Yay! :) 

I hope I've helped you with some shopping spree ideas, either for yourselves or for some early Christmas shopping for others. ;)  

Next week and throughout the coming month I'll be plugging away at my draft posts.  Here are a few things you have to look forward to:

Mini BeForever Addy review! :D

Lalaloopsy Tinies Walmart Exclusive Set review.

A look at the three outfits my mom bought at AG Place.

Um, so I kinda caved when I saw these sets on Disneystore.com and went ahead and spent my Disney gift cards. :}  They just came in the mail today, and I can't wait to open them and take lots of pics! :D

Funny thing is, one of the reasons I got the wardrobe sets is that I missed this set.  Well, the day after I placed my order, my aunt happened to be at our closest Disney Store and they had ONE SET of these original mini dolls!  She agreed to pick one up for me, and my mom was a sweetheart and paid for them. :D 

So, reviews galore coming your way!!  Which one are you the most interested in reading about?  Which of my fun finds around town has you the most excited?  I look forward to hearing from you! :)

18 comments:

Smaller Places said...

Frozen mini-dolls, please! They look to be dollhouse-sized (5-1/2 to 6 inches), so I'm very curious.

So that's what's up with the drugstore ponies! The big new CVS in Scottsdale had some, but CVS is so erratic in what toys it stocks that I hate to suggest anybody go there for a purpose. This one had Swap Mart Beauties (my name for off-brand Barbie fakies because they are all over the Park 'n' Swap) in two-packs with additional dresses, too.

Karina B said...

The AG pets look adorable! Looking forward to your future posts! :)

AddyLovesWolves said...

Wow! You got some nice stuff!

Meritre said...

Oh, Frozen mini dolls! All your finds are really nice but those minis are my favourites (partly thanks to the Pocket Princesses: http://amymebberson.tumblr.com/). I love these little gals and if I ever get to a Disneystore or Disneyland I'll be sure to pick them up. I'm already hoping for lots of pictures of them, for I collect the photos. (Better than nothing if I can't have the real ones, at least I can have tons of photos and they are for free. I also have a story for them in my mind)

Minis Sams dress is so beautiful! Simple yet so pretty!

Sorry for babbling so much but I got so excited when I saw them! I really hope you will like them :)

(PS: Beastsbelle, you were right about the scented dolls, I just didn't know their english name, in my language they were simpily called cake dolls)

Jan said...

I think I'm probably most excited to read the Anna and Elsa Wardrobe set review, but I love all of your reviews!!
:-)

And your new Fluttershy is adorable!! :-)

Jan <3

Manta said...

You got the mini Frozen dolls!!<3 :)

Ok, so I'm probably most excited to see your review of those, but honestly I'm excited for all the reviews.;):)

P.S. My sister's and my DS order still isn't here yet. Boo.:P It's supposed to arrive Monday, though I think.:)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Okay, it sounds like the Frozen mini dolls had better be my first review for next week! ;) Works for me!

Smaller Places, I'm not sure why the drugstores have a unique stock of MLPs (I haven't seen the big ones anywhere else here), but I always try to remember to check them every once in a while.

Karina, I really like the new pets, too. I haven't added one to my collection yet, but I'd love to have Coconut or the Sheepdog someday. :)

Thanks, Adelaide! It was a fun week. :D

Meritre, I've read the Pocket Princesses too and love them! :) I'll be sure to include lots of photos for your collection. ;)

I like mini Sam's dress, too.

And no need to feel like you're babbling. I love long comments! :)

The dolls you described sounded like the cupcake dolls. I always loved how they smelled. :)

Hi Jan! I'll get the review up as soon as I can next week. :)

I love my Fluttershy, too! :)

Sorry you're still waiting on your Disneystore order, Manta. I think I placed my order last Friday, so it only took a week to get here. In the past, it used to take a week to process and then another week to arrive. I was thrilled to get them so soon! :)

Thankfully, Monday isn't too awfully long to wait. ;)

Aileen said...

I knew you would come through with pics of the new Alexander Girlz! lol I'm kind of disappointed that they have the same face mold as the Walmart dolls though. I guess I was hoping for something new. I do like that they don't have the rubbery limbs but won't be buying one cuz of the hair. I prefer straight hair.

Nina said...

I love that Fluttershy! She's so adorable! So is Lilac Breezie:)

I've never seen those AG pets before. Interesting. They are cute, though!

I can't wait for you Mini Addy review, either! I love the new mini Addy, so I think she'll have to come home soon;)

Have a great day!:D

Unknown said...

Thanks for all the great pics. I also saw the AG mini doll and book sets at Sam's club. I was bummed about the lack of mini books, so I made my own. The template and tutorial is available on my blog at dollsonadime.com.

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Lol, yep, as soon as I saw them I had to snap a picture, Aileen! ;) I also wish they'd used straight hair; a curl of any kind makes this hair harder to manage since it's not the best quality. :( I don't mind the face mold since it's no longer being used at Walmart, and they had a really awful face mold at Costco last year. ;)

Hi Nina! I'm loving my new Fluttershy, too. ;)

I think it's fun that Costco got some exclusive AG pets. Usually the pets sold at Costco are the same ones sold at AG!

My mini Addy review should be up soon! :)

You have a great day too!

You're welcome, Suzanne. Thanks for stopping by, and thanks for sharing about your mini book tutorial. That looks like fun! :) I'm going to add a link to the actual post HERE so people can find it. :)

Nanagram72 said...

Well, I got so excited at Target today as they had the MLP surprise packs. Of course, this being the first time I had ever done this, I thought they were the new ones and here they are Wave 10, the glitters. Were any of those HTF's? I have a feeling the ones I did not get are the HTF ones. And here I thought I was having a great day. Not a super fan of glittery things. It was fun reading about you going thru them all. I am sure some cast glances my way. They also has LPS ones but I had no clue how to tell anything, so I left them alone.

Any of the Wave 10 one REALLY cute? (Probably the ones I didn't find???) LOL!

Anyways, glad to find your blog and I will have to read back some. I did see a blog post from a couple or so years back where you introduced your dolls. How many do you have now? Any Holy Grail dolls?

Aileen said...

I have one of the sets from Costco from last year. I got it on Zulily. It's a cowgirl doll and a horse. The horse seems to be the same one sold on the Madame Alexander website for $50 and the doll is exactly like my Playwonder Isabella doll except with different hair. Considering I got the doll and horse set for $36, I thought it was a great deal.

honeysucklejasmine said...

I can't wait to read your reviews of the Frozen mini dolls! :-D

Anonymous said...

For older lalaloopsie dolls...check out ShopGoodwill.com , they have lalaloopsie sets aaaaalllll the time for really really good prices. im not a lalaloopsie fan, so I don't know if they'd have ones you're looking for, but it's worth checking out ;)

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Hi Nanagram72! So sorry it took me a while to respond to comments. :} Thanks for stopping by!

Sorry for your disappointment over the Wave 10 MLP blind bags. Hopefully Wave 11 will make their way to your area soon. :)

I haven't heard anything about the Wave 10 ponies being hard to find. If you'd like to see all of them (and see the codes for Wave 10), you can check out Strawberry Reef's Blind Bag Index. I linked it in the post, but I'll link it again HERE, just in case. ;)

I'm so glad you're enjoying the blog. :) I honestly couldn't tell you how many dolls I have between all the different types I've started collecting. ;) I'm up to thirteen American Girl-sized dolls (some of which are Gotz and Madame Alexander).

Hmm, grail dolls...that's a toughie. I would love to have a Lenci doll someday (the same type of doll that was used for Edith from "The Lonely Doll" series). It would be great to eventually be able to afford some of the higher-end limited edition Disney Store dolls, too (Belle, Rapunzel, Anna in her winter clothing, and Elsa in her coronation gown, especially). I'd love to have a Tonner Ellowynne Wilde doll someday, too. I'm pretty much set on 18" dolls for now...especially since I'm running out of room for them. ;) I'm sure I'm forgetting something, but that's enough dreaming for now anyway. ;)

Hope you have a great weekend!

Aileen, $36 is a great deal. I feel bad that I called the molds "awful"...I just remember them being not nearly as attractive as the mold I was used to. I had the opportunity to see them in Tuesday Morning the other day, and while they're still not a mold I care for as much, they're not as bad as I remember. ;)

P.S. I LOVE Zulily.com! You can find some great deals there. :)

Thanks, honeysucklejasmine! Hope you've had the chance to read them by now. :)

Thanks, Anonymous. I've enjoyed shopping there before, but that was back before I was into Lalaloopsies...I'll have to check it out again! ;)

amy t said...

I just got a flash sentry and a big wig wave 11 blind bags at dollar General. And i also got a rainbow dash one to

Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle) said...

Congratulations! :D