Saturday, November 17, 2012

¡Hola!

Hi everyone! I just wanted to let you all know that I didn't get eaten by bears or rabid squirrels! Haha.

New post coming soon! I think I'll showcase my Disney pins collection, and do a review on some new pins I got today. See y'all soon! ;)

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

That's right, folks! It snowed here yesterday into last night and I woke up to a winter wonderland! It was so beautiful! I woke up early and took some pictures,(good thing, too since its practically all gone now. :(  ). So here is a sneak peek! I will make a longer post hopefully tomorrow with the rest of the pictures and something else to entertain you all. ;) .



Till next time! 

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

And at last, I see the light!

That's right, peoples! The power is BACK!!!!!!!!  YAY!

Woooohoooo!

 I get so much excitement now out of flipping the light switches on and off around the house, its crazy. :) It feels so great having heat and power back!



 I'm telling you folks, Disney did not lie. I have seen the light and my fog has LIFTED.  It has for our whole family, really. After a week without power, some of us get a little touchy...




You all know what I mean...


*ahem*


So,...

I hope you all are well and exercised your constitutional rights today! :D


You who are over 18 get to choose our next President!

YAY!
What happens to you and your family over the next four years, depends on what happens in this election.

Personally, I'm not a fan of either of the candidates whole-heartedly.

I agree with Romney on quite a few issues that are very important to me like abortion and gay marriage, but his campaign has its faults, as does Obama's.

I can't wait until tomorrow to see who you all chose!
( Honestly, I think it is going to be Obama, but you never know)

 I have a feeling that these next few years are going to be very important for our country. I just hope we will make the right choices...


I'll see you all soon! :)

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Tonner Disney Showcase "TANGLED" doll review




 Alright guys, so still no power, but the library really is a beautiful thing folks. Its warm and it has power and wifi, plus vending machines. :)

Anyways, I was able to charge the good camera yesterday at a relative's house, so I took some pictures today to add to this review.

So here is my attempt at a really large, cool title for this review:

Tonnerdoll  Disney Showcase Collection "TANGLED" 16" collectible doll Review:

Yeah.. not as fancy as I would have hoped, but it'll do.


In 2011, the Tonner Doll Company released a 16" character figure from the Disney film Tangled 
( a fantastic movie by the way, so go see it if you haven't seen it). The film tells the story of Rapunzel and a thief named Flynn Rider. 

I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't seen it, so go see it. Do it now!

*Ahem* back to the review.. 

The doll that Tonner released in 2011 had Rapunzel with her long, blonde flowing hair as she is seen throughout most of the movie. The doll is now sold out and archived on Tonner's site.

(Images from Tonnerdoll.com)
She retailed for $189.99.

In August of 2012, the Tonner doll company showcased its fall/holiday collection among other new character figures including dolls from the recent film The Hunger Games, Tonner released another Rapunzel doll this time it was called "Tangled". 

It is virtually the same doll, but the skirt is slightly different in color and her hair is braided as it is in the film during the "Kingdom Dance" and "I see the light" numbers. 


(Images and product description from Tonnerdoll.com)

$189.99
Product Description
*International Shipping Restrictions apply - Click 'Read More' below
  • Dressed Tonner Character Figure™ 
  • Face includes hand-painted details
  • Fine quality vinyl and hard plastic
  • Rapunzel head sculpt
  • 16" Flat-foot Ellowyne Wilde™ body 
  • Tyler skin tone
  • Green painted eyes
  • Blonde non-removable saran wig  of long braided hair with multi-colored flower hair decorations
  • Custom-printed satin blouse with lace trim 
  • Custom-printed satin skirt 
  • Matching ballet slippers 
  • Stand 
  • LE 1000


She also retails for $189.99.

Now, being a teenager, I really could not afford to spend quite that much money on my doll, so I searched the web for a better price from one of Tonner Doll's retailers that are listed on their site. 
Through my efforts I found Dreamcastle Dolls to be the best option for me. She was selling TANGLED for $162 plus shipping. Carol at Dreamcastle dolls is phenomenal and was willing to hold my doll for me after I made my deposit until I had the funds to buy her. It turns out it was un-necessary, but the fact that she was willing to hold the doll for me is amazing. She is sold out of TANGLED right now, but you can buy her from Tonner Directly for 189.99, or from one of their other retailers such as Lonestar Dolls.

I received my doll on Wednesday October 31st, 2012 during the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. If it was possible to harness excitement as electricity, boy, I would have lit up the entire county. I opened the cardboard shipper box and saw the blue box with the stripes that read "Disney showcase collection" and I flipped. I was so excited. I was also trying to work the video camera at the same time, so if I ever decide to show you that video, you'll know why it is like it is. So I shook open the blue box, (slightly reminded of opening my first American girl doll Addy in 2003) and peeled back the tissue paper. I sighed; she was so beautiful. I reached out and touched her hair and her face and her perfect little outfit... :)  I grabbed the Cannon Rebel Ti, and took some photos of her in the box and then.... it DIED. I was so upset, so then I took my Kodak and took some video of me opening her and some photos outside. You can see those photos here.  I have been taking this doll EVERYWHERE. (Well, everywhere we actually go since we have no power and New Jersey is in a devastating state right now) This doll is my Woody, or my Jessie from Toy Story. I love her so much. She might even be my favorite doll, over all nine of my American girl dolls. 


First off, let me just say that Tonner has great packaging. After the LE Cinderella glass slipper fiasco, I was thrilled to see that the display stand was wrapped up and placed to the side of the doll and that the shoes came in their own separate plastic baggie. This packaging is simple, yet it looks good. Take note, Disney.












 I love her face paint. It is very well done and detailed. The color on her lips is just right and her expression is perfect. From different angles she could be seen as smiling or being serious. Her face is what attracted me to this doll the most. I love the LE Rapunzel dolls that the Disney Store has put out so far, but this one really looks like Rapunzel. This looks like the real Rapunzel as said of the previous version by the Toy Box Philospher in her review of Tonner's previous Rapunzel doll. And I understand just what she means. Disney store's dolls look like barbies. This doll looks nothing like a barbie; she looks as real as Rapunzel can get while still holding a strong resemblance to the animated character from the film.









 

Her hair is probably her best feature. After all, she is a Rapunzel doll. Her braid is gorgeous. It is prone to flyaways though, so keep that in mind. The flowers are fabric and look to be connected by a string that is braided into her hair. Her braid is very long and movie accurate. It almost reaches the floor but stops just above her ankles. The thing I liked the most about Tonner's previous Rapunzel doll was that her hair was free, and that meant that I could do whatever I wanted to do with her long, long, long, hair. But since I missed out on that doll, when I saw this one I jumped at the chance. I won't get to play with her hair, but I love it just the way it is. I wouldn't suggest trying to take her hair out of its braid, (who knows what havoc that would unleash) for those who may buy this version to try and do that. You could try... But I don't know how successful you'd be, and come on, that braid is gorgeous. 

"Kingdom dance" and "I see the light"are my two favorite scenes in Tangled







Excusing the opening number of "When will my life begin".

So, this doll is perfect for me. I love doing hair, especially on my dolls, but I don't know how I'd handle all of this hair if it wasn't braided... :)


                                                 

                                                     





                                       





She has fully posable hands and she sits extremely well. 

Yes, she is sitting on the fence. I am shocked and amazed that she sat so perfectly and did not fall. I was afraid I would have to trespass onto my neighbor's yard to get her back! 




 Look, no hands!



Due to her having Elloywne Flat feet, she does not have ankle joints, so her ability to be posed while standing is a bit limited, especially since her hair weighs quite a bit for her. 


















 Her outfit is amazing. Rapunzel's outfit is not a one piece dress; it is actually a jacket piece and a skirt. (I had thought it was one dress originally) The detail on the corset is incredible. The lace used for trim on the neckline and the edge of the top is beautiful and so like the movie. It closes with snaps in the back also. The sleeves are made of a sheer material and also have lace at the cuffs.






The skirt is beautiful. The detail is superb. It is made of the silkiest material and has an underskirt layer with lace on the edges. The print on the skirt is exactly like the one Rapunzel wears in the movie.


To my pleasant surprise she also has painted nails and toes! Rapunzel is barefoot for the entire film in Disney's Tangled, but here in the real world, we realize that  its cold and the ground is dirty and gross and that it is hard for her to balance barefoot, so she wears the adorable little shoes that were provided for her by Tonner almost 24/7





Like I said these shoes are adorable and somehow they magically make it easier for Rapunzel to stand on her own without the display stand that came with her. She even has little undies under her skirt. You have no idea how happy that made me. I really can't stand it when companies make dolls without underwear. I know they're dolls, but come on, they represent people and they NEED undies! Kay? 



My Punzel has just been exploring around the house and the backyard. She is very adventurous. Guess that kinda comes with the territory after being locked up in a tower for 18 years... 













As you can probably tell, I LOVE this doll to bits and pieces. She is my very first Tonner doll and not my last. I cannot explain how much I love this doll. This doll is Rapunzel. 


The Tonner Ariel doll...

              Not so much. But then again, I haven't seen her in person. I'd love to get her since Ariel is actually my favorite princess, ( I know right, it doesn't seem like it) but I'd have to see her first. 


Well, back to Rapunzel. This doll gets an A++++++++++++++ ( the pluses are infinite) from me. :) The only issues I have with her are the flyaway hairs ( a given) and her flat feet causing her to not stand up too well on her own. Other than that she is absolutely perfect and if you are interested in her...


Go and BUY HER.


End of story. :)






Thanks for looking everyone!  I hope you all enjoyed the review! I'll see you all real soon!