Never Grow Up: A Mom's Guide to Dolls and More: Doll and Toy Reviews

Doll and Toy Reviews

11 comments:

KymDecember 11, 2011 at 9:04 PM
Hello, I just discovered the Journey Girls at Toys R Us. They are very pretty but I don't know anything about their quality and I can't find anything online. My daughter is six and has received a doll every year of her life for bdays and Christmas. She is now interested in the 18 inch "big girl" dolls. I love the AG dolls and I know we will be headed that way soon, just want to see how high her interest level is before I shell out the big bucks. Do you have any info/opinion on the Journey Girls Dolls? Thanx for your time :)
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Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle)December 12, 2011 at 12:41 AM
Hi Kym. Sadly, the Journey Girls dolls are one of the 18" doll lines I have yet to review. I can't give you too much info on these. I've seen them in person at our local ToysRUs. I think their faces are cute (especially Callie's), but I can't help you on quality or age appropriateness.

Their hair is rooted and did seem pretty thin (I could see parts of the scalp on one doll), but you'll run into this same problem with many 18" knock-off brands.

They also seem to be a bit slimmer than American Girl dolls, so some AG clothing might be big on them.

I wish I could give you more information! I'm hoping to invest in one of these the next time I have some spare change so I can give them a proper review! :)

I hope my small amount of info was able to help you in some way. If you do end up getting one, I'd appreciate hearing what you think!
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AnonymousJuly 19, 2012 at 5:29 PM
Hello! I came across your blogspot looking for 18 inch dolls for my daughter for her upcoming birthday. She wants an AG doll but she is only turning 6 and I would love to find the next best 18 inch doll for her that is not so pricey. I have spent weeks online looking at doll reviews and hours in local stores looking at dolls.
The three dolls I have found at local stores are: Our Generation Brand at Target, Journey Girls at Toys R Us and Madame Alexander Friends Boutique at Walmart. I have read a lot of your reviews. I was wondering if you had the chance to buy and review a Journey Girl? I have read mixed reviews on the JG dolls but I do think they look prettier than the OG dolls. Any advice is appreciated!! Thanks!! :)
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Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle)July 20, 2012 at 8:58 AM
Hi Anonymous! Thanks for commenting. I actually have a Journey Girls review post that's been in draft for over a month. I'll do my best to get it finished by this weekend, just for you. ;)

I can give you a few quick thoughts on the JG dolls. I agree with you that they are much prettier than the OG dolls (which are one of my least favorite off brand lines of 18" dolls, to be honest...the Springfield Collection from Michael's being a close second). The main issues with the JGs are:

1. They have awful hair (but pretty much every off-brand doll does, aside from the smaller Hearts 4 Hearts Girls line).
2. Their heads are a lot bigger and heavier than their bodies, and their bodies are made of a pretty thin material, so they tend to be top heavy and don't like to stand up very well. I don't know about your 6 year old, but mine would find this very frustrating.
3. They're a lot thinner than other 18" dolls, so many of the generic 18" doll brand clothing doesn't fit them correctly, especially around the waist.

Like I said, I'll try to get my review up soon so that you can have more details and see pictures.

Honestly, all three of the brands you mentioned have some sort of issue. On the OG brand, it's really just a matter of preference (I happen to not be a fan of their vacant expressions and football shoulders). The Friends Boutique dolls are really cute, but their poseable limbs can be difficult to work with, especially for small hands. I still think that of those three I'd go for the FB doll, though.

How far away is your daughter's birthday? I happen to be a big fan of the Madame Alexander Girlz dolls that normally come to Costco around Christmas time (they look just like my Maggie doll). They still have awful hair, but they have really sweet faces and are pretty compatible with AG and other generic 18" doll clothing and accessories. If you've read a lot of my reviews, then you've probably seen them. Just a thought. :) If your daughter's birthday is really soon, though, that idea won't work. :}

I hope this helps at least a little. :) I'll get my review up as soon as I can. And feel free to contact me if you have any further questions. :)
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StephanieJuly 20, 2012 at 4:10 PM
I posted above as Anonymous..I'm new at posting on blogs and didnt see the option to put my name lol! Thanks so much for your quick response!!
I sadly do not live near a Costco!! Don't see many in the south.
I have now come up with a fourth possibility ... I believe they are called Precious Day Dolls by Gotz. I was told Gotz used to make AG dolls back in the day. There is one Gotz doll in particular that looks amazingly similar to an AG doll, her name is Jessica. Same AG face and build, just no two front teeth showing like most of the AG girls. Have you heard of these Gotz dolls?? I couldn't find a local retailer for them so they may sadly be discontinued at stores.
I agree the OG brand dolls have an expressionless face!! I noticed the Journey Girls' eyes do not close...I'm wondering if my daughter would be upset about that!!
I will keep checking back for your detailed review on the JG dolls! :)
I love your site! You have done a great job and have been very helpful with your detailed reviews. I will send anyone I come across who is also searching for dolls your way!! :)

-Stephanie
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Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle)July 20, 2012 at 4:28 PM
Thanks so much Stephanie...I love meeting new readers and being able to help others with their doll questions, especially when it comes to info about dolls that are a little easier on the budget. ;)

I love the Precious Day dolls! I used to have Elisabeth, and my Gotz Little Sisters Tess doll has a very similar face mold. I was looking over my review posts because I thought I'd done one about the Gotz dolls. I couldn't find it though...that's silly of me! I do have a link to an eBay seller and fellow blogger that got me interested in them in the first place, though. She has a very helpful guide about them here: http://reviews.ebay.com/18-Gotz-Dolls-identifying-them-AG-doll-alternative?ugid=10000000007150885

I don't think you can get them locally (although sometimes the newest versions show up at Tuesday Morning stores), but you can sometimes find them on eBay or Craigslist. I would definitely recommend the Gotz dolls...they've got beautiful faces and are lovely, high quality dolls. :)

Have a great weekend! :)
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AnonymousDecember 26, 2012 at 6:55 PM
Hmm... I was wondering if you had a Journey Girls review here. I did not see one, but there are so many links it's hard to tell!
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Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle)December 27, 2012 at 8:58 AM
Hi Anonymous. I'm sorry, the Journey Girls Review was not on here. :} Thanks for bringing it to my attention...the review is now under the 18" Doll Reviews section.

I try to add my review posts to this page as soon as I finish the post, but every once in a while I miss one.

I'm sorry if you find this page overwhelming. I've tried very hard to make it as easy to use as possible. All of the reviews are divided by category, and each category is in alphabetical order. I hope this helps!
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AnonymousFebruary 28, 2013 at 11:38 PM
Oh! One more fun thing!
Apparently, all of the AG face molds are not completely symmetrical. For the Jess mold, one of her eye openings is cut slightly bigger than the other. On at least one other face mold, one of the ears sits slightly higher than the other (I suspect it's Josefina-- I SWEAR one of Elizabeth's ears is higher (though it could just be that her earrings are off)).
Apparently, there are two reasons that AG does this. First, real girls' faces aren't completely symmetrical, either, and this helps with the "realism" of the dolls. Second, it apparently helps to prevent knock-off companies from counterfeiting the dolls.
Anyhow, I thought you might find that interesting, and my guess is that it could be fun to play "spot the difference" with each AG face. :)

Sorry for the two long comments in a row. :)
Thank you again for the fun blog, and I hope your girls will get better soon (and that you won't get sick)!

--Anonymous :)
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Hannah Prewett (beastsbelle)March 1, 2013 at 6:44 AM
Hi Anonymous. I'd noticed that about the Jess mold, but I didn't know about the uneven ears. :)

Thanks for commenting. Don't ever feel the need to apologize for long comments, by the way. I love hearing from my readers, and I've been known to leave some pretty long comments myself. ;)

Thanks, the girls are starting to feel better, and so far I haven't caught it. Let's hope it stays that way! ;)
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UnknownDecember 26, 2017 at 7:43 AM
Hello, can you please do a review of LOL Surprise dolls? Thanks!
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