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Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Box Opening: Barbie Style Doll - Millie

 I don't usually do box openings, but I was so excited for the debut of the new line of Barbie Style dolls, that I wanted to do a full review of my impression of the first in the line of these dolls. I have long been a fan of the Instagram account @BarbieStyle and was one of the followers who clamored for Mattel to grace our collections with the beautiful dolls we saw on those pages. I loved the sophistication of the look of the dolls on the Instagram account and wanted my dolls to at least have the very well made clothes you saw on the dolls that graced those pages! I could not help but notice that almost all of the dolls appeared to be Made-To-Move as well! So, when Mattel announced the launch of the dolls and gave us the opportunity to vote on what the first dolls would look like, I jumped at the chance. I will tell you, though that this first doll was not dressed the way the I envisioned her. At any rate, I found the doll to be done very well and I was not disappointed and was pleased to use my $20 coupon from the Signature club to purchase her. So here we go!

When you open the outer box, you are greeted with a very nice box protected with tissue paper. Don't worry, no photos of the tissue paper, but here is the box:


The box is a sturdy cardboard with a very nice marble design suitable for a photo background. Next, here is what you get when you open it up!


The inside of the box had side flaps with very nice artwork depicting the doll like you would see her on the pages of the Instagram account. The center of the box contains the two outfits and accessories on either side of the doll. The doll itself  has a shaded panel hiding most of her body so as to keep the secret for just a little longer! The side panel artwork is very well done, so let's take a quick look at it:


The left panel has a dressing room scene so you can see what the doll and the outfits and accessories look like. Barbie is dressed in the pink suit. I wish they had included that chair!


The right panel shows the doll on a street dressed in the blue dress a black jacket as well as a closeup portrait of her.

Now it is time to see what is behind that shaded panel!


Upon closer inspection, you can see that Barbie is wearing a pair of underpants and a T-shirt. The clothing is held in with a plastic form shaped like the clothes. No little plastic do-hickies (what are those called?) holding them in, so no damage to the fabric when taking the clothes out of the packaging. Very similar to the how they packaged the Creatable World doll clothes. The doll, however, did have the standard fastening technique used in all of the Signature dolls. 


The tri-sectioned divider comes out to reveal a sleek marble patterned wall that can easily be used as a background for doll photography.

Now let's take a closer look at the doll and the clothing.


Her face is well done. No eye pixelation. Her make up is soft and not overdone. Very much the modern, natural woman.  You can see that the hair has waves, it is tied back and it is held in place with a hairnet. 


Before dressing the doll, I wanted to take a closer look at the jackets. They are both lined and well sewn. The black "leather" jacket has a working zipper.


I took her hair out of the netting and dressed her in the pink suit and gray sports shoes. The suit is nice, has working pockets and fits well. You do need to remove the underpants to get a smooth closure of the pants when tucking in the T-shirt. The pants Velcro in the back. Her glasses are perched on top of her head and she is holding the black vinyl purse, which does open so she can put her phone and a few other small items in it as well! The hair is set in a beachy wave that is a very popular hair style today. 


Finally, I dressed her in the sheer blue chiffon dress with a gathered waist and a strappy loosely gathered top. The skirting has a sheer white underlining. I paired it with the black leather look jacket and the black high heeled shoes. 

Over all, I really like this set. I might have chosen a suit in a color other than pink, but this is Barbie! I do think the blue chiffon dress and black jacket ensemble is well done. The clothing is well made and I like the understated makeup and the modern wavy hairstyle. And she is Made to Move! It shows me that Mattel is listening. This doll definitely has walked right out the screens of the Barbie Style Instagram pages! I believe the set is price fairly at $100 US and I see her already on the secondary market at prices ranging from $140 to $185. I would rank this set as 4.5 stars out of a possible 5! 

I have seen photos of the next 2 Style dolls that are supposed to be released soon. The first is a black doll with an original MTM doll body and the third is a Curvy MTM. I will most likely purchase them as well!

I hope you enjoyed this review! 

See you next time!







16 comments:

  1. She's so pretty! I'm really enjoying her as well. I'm not going to get any of the others, so I'm looking forward to your reviews.

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    1. I know you and I think a lot alike when it comes to the critique's of the Barbie dolls! I will certainly review the others when I purchase them. As a side note, I am hoping that you continue to feel better. So glad you were able to add a comment here this time too!

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  2. Hi Linda! So glad you enjoyed my review. I truly do love this doll. I know many collectors didn't think much of her, but to me, this is the direction Barbie should be going in. I hope to see more dolls walking off of the pages of @BarbieStyle! I would certainly not mind if the prices came down a bit though, LOL!

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  3. Hi Phyllis,
    What a great review! I don't have an Instagram account so I hadn't seen this version of Barbie before and I must say, Mattel look like they are finally beginning to lift their game. I like everything about this set except for the use of the dreaded Velcro.
    Big hugs,
    X

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    1. Ahh, yes the velcro. I was glad that they at least stepped it up with an actual working zipper on the black jacket! Thanks for your comment.

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  4. Great review. I was wondering what material the doll is made of? Vinyl or silk stone? I like the clothes. I only collect the 1950 face but this doll is pretty,

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    1. She is vinyl. I love this doll. I do like 50s and 60s dolls too and have several in my collection.

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  5. Hi Phyllis! I was really waiting to read a review on this doll, so I'm really glad you wrote this.

    I do agree that this line is a fantastic idea. Since they started the @barbiestyle account, people have been begging for them to put some of the dolls on sale, or at least the fashions. One of the reasons why I want to learn how to sew doll clothes is to recreate some of the fashions from their Instagram. I also like that you can use the packaging as a photo background. I wonder if future dolls will have different backgrounds, it would be fantastic.

    I do think that 100$ is a fair price, if you consider that some of the Star Wars dolls retailed for 100$ and they didn't come with extra fashions. I wish they kept the same price in Europe, because here they retail for 130€, which is 150$ and that's quite pricey. If I get one doll from this line, I'll try to get it on sale or use a coupon. As for now, I'm going to pass on this Millie and wait until the black one with the Goddess sculpt is released.

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    1. I am starting to get back to some sewing. I do have a couple of projects in mind, that I will call "Inspired by". I will most cetainly post more about that here!

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  6. What a lovely review. Thank you Phyllis. Wow...I thought Mattel did a super job with the packaging. In this era of pandemic lockdowns and fatigue, it must have brought a smile to your face when you received that box and open it up to see such a lovely set-up. All in all, I think Mattel did a pretty good job on the the doll and her wardrobe, as well.

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  7. Yes and I am happy to see that they will be releasing more of these. I love the @BarbieStyle instagram account and can't wait to see what else they bring us from that site!

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  8. Congratulations on getting this lovely doll, Phyllis! Thanks for sharing a detailed review of her. I thought of getting her, but I have the BMR1959 tall Barbie. So I might let this one pass. Hmmmm ... thinking.

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    1. I love her! I think the price point is a little high, but I did it anyway and will order the rest of the series. I hear that the BMR dolls have been discontinued. But there is a new series coming out called Barbie Looks. There are 6 dolls in the series all on MTM bodies and priced at $19.99 I have managed to order 4 of the dolls on Amazon. I will be doing a post shortly on the arrival of the first one I received.

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  9. VERY nice! Now I know I really want all of them. Thanks for the review! Wish me luck on getting them!

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    1. I am glad you enjoyed my review. You should have some luck getting her as she is still available on the website. Watch for my next post as I will deboxing the first doll I received on the new line Barbie Looks Dolls! More in the next post on that.

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