She was really wanting these dolls badly and was not disappointed at all at. She played with it non-stop.
There seems to be a million strings and things to cut your way through to free the doll from her package, so a need to be patient.
The doll it really very pretty. Very lifelike inserted eyes instead of painted on eyes, they really add a nice touch of realism, and are very well done.
The wigs, my daughters main desire to play with really are also nice and I was surprised. The hair is very soft and silky. I like that all extra wigs come with a "wig head" to store them on, an when not in use, also useful for combing them out.
You will probably need to trim them after your brush them to cleam up some rogue long pieces. It is also very apparent they were cut with a machine, The straight wigs particularly are choppy and even a bit jagged looking, but not something my daughter noticed at all.
At first it seemed a bit difficult to change wigs, there is a hole in the doll's head and a plastic peg in the wig. Then the directions point out you can push your fingers on the wig to pop the wig a bit inside out to easily insert the wig on the doll's head. My Daughter has not needed any help changing the wigs or clothing.
The joints in this doll are pretty wild!! this doll has knee-caps, and rotating wrists and ankles. Very impressive how lifelike you can make movements!! I think that is my biggest concern, how durable are they. My daughter always has played very respectfully with her dolls so I am not as much worried about her breaking it as I am friends who can get a little over-enthusiastic. SO far I can't really see any problems.
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This review is from the perspective of an adult doll collector and diorama builder. I am not a parent, and this review is not from or for a child's perspective.Every time I would cruise the toy aisle, looking for new, cool Barbie items, I'd leave disappointed by Mattel's new trend of overly pink and glittery, poorly painted, helmet hair headed, cheaply made stuff. Then one day, I noticed the Liv dolls. At first, I was a bit put off by them because of their slightly larger than usual heads. However, I loved their eyes (Which most people find creepy. They are inset, not painted on. But hey, that was the same fate that big headed, doe eyed Blythe suffered and look at her now!) They grew on me each time I'd visit the toy aisle, until finally I took the plunge and bought Daniela and Sophie (and I have since bought Katie).
Their bodies are articulated, so they can actually sit properly without falling over like a drunk sorority girl (*cough*cough*BabsImlookinatyou*cough*cough*), and they can even stand on their own (with a little patience). They just feel and look better made than Barbie does. Barbie does have an articulated doll on the market currently The Fashionista series but again, they pale in comparison to the Liv dolls.
I am very pleased as an adult doll collector with the quality of the dolls and their accessories so far. I am very aggressive with the articulation, and I have yet to break one of the dolls. That's not to say that the will not snap like a twig if you really try, but they endure my torture and are not delicate.
There are two waves of Liv dolls the first wave of Katie, Sophie, Daniela and Alexis come with an extra wig. The second wave come with various accessories and their pet dog. Personally, I prefer all the wave 1 dolls with the exception of Daniela. I prefer Wave 2 Daniela. She has a much cuter face and outfit, but that is just my personal preference. I wish Liv dolls existed when I was a kid! I would have saved every penny I had and bought them instead of Barbie.
The wigs are reasonably priced at $5.99 and the first wave wigs come with a wig stand. Be aware that the second wave of wigs no longer include the cool wig stands. So, if you find some of the first wave wigs on clearance (which I've started to see), I'd snap them up for that reason. The wigs are very soft and silky, unlike the glued down helmet hair of the new Barbie era (Mattel what is up with that?) Also, unlike Barbie, if your little girl decides to give Liv a haircut, you can get her a new head of hair for $5.99! Ah, I remember my first and last Barbie hair cut. The wigs come in really cool colors like pink, purple, green, blue, blonde, platinum blonde, blonde with colored highlights and brunette with colored highlights. There are lots of choices!
The accessories and outfits are super cute and do not look cheap or slutty (and the clothes are not cheap one outfit costs $9.99 and sometimes you can find three outfit packs for $14.99 at various stores.) Don't buy from online auctions as they price gouge. You can get Liv stuff at brick and mortar stores and online retailers for reasonable prices. It just takes a little effort.
In my opinion, I think Liv dolls are real competition to everyday Barbie. I have collected and played with Barbies most of my life, and I never thought that I'd see a line of dolls come this close to toppling the reigning queen of the doll world. While I still carry a soft spot in my heart for the ol' gal, and I do love the retro re-releases and the collector series, the mainstream Barbies and accessories have just lost that umph for me.
Bravo, SpinMaster, Bravo! Give Mattel a run for their money!
Best Deals for Liv Dolls - Sophie
This doll was a gift for my granddaughter for her 10th birthday. The doll is actually quite attractive, the clothes are stylish and modern, her accessories are very interesting (especially to a 10 year old) and the articulation of the body joints is really quite amazing. We loved the fact that the wig can be removed and "Sophie" can go from long hair to a buzz cut instantly. There is a piece of paper attached to the back of the cardboard explaining the trick of how to place the wig on the doll's head again after it is removed the first time. The accessories which come with the doll are very, very small, as is to be expected for a doll of this size so the choking/hazard warnings should be taken very seriously.There is one very important thing you will need to take into account when opening this package. Do not expect to have your child playing with this product immediately. Every single loose item attached to the doll, or even an item which MIGHT become loose, is anchored down with incredibly thin, clear filament line which takes some hard work to remove. And a sharp pointed instrument! Even this doll's hair was anchored down. After the wrestling match involved in removing "Sophie" from the packaging was finished I then had to find and pick up all those tiny pieces of filament in order to throw them away.
The doll is really quite marvelous and my grandgirl absolutely loved her from the first minute she saw her, but there are many, many tiny pieces of accessories and the packaging was quite a struggle to deal with. Especially with an excited 10 year old jumping from one foot to the other waiting for me to get all the tie-downs cut!
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