Average Shaming

1. I sometimes want to be average. Anyone who is not average knows that not being average involves more challenges. A lot of things, laws and belief systems have been designed with an average person in mind.
2. Mattel being not the original company to create curvy dolls only has to learn from the mistakes of the pioneers. Lammily was criticized partly for shaming the slim body type of Barbie. Mattel only has to learn the lesson and include more body types. Plus, smaller companies have less resources  to produce diversity in both dolls and fashion. 
3. The criticism on Barbie's body was already there long before the inception of Lammily. Mattel did not act on that so some other company had to. Should Mattel and the Barbie brand be disparaged? Definitely. They ignored the critics. They could have released the curvy Barbie long before but they just don't want to (for whatever reason) until they learned that it can be profitable. It's all about the money.
4. I just hope that the person who wrote the above entry didn't resort to average shaming. I didn't like that it implied being average is a bad thing that nobody wants. (I could have posted this entry as a comment to the original entry but I felt that would be shaming the person who wrote it. That is why the source was withheld.)

Unfair

If Mattel makes a doll using a small company's idea (even if Mattel's version has a lower quality, like less articulation), it is celebrated.

If a small company makes a doll like Mattel's (especially if it has lower quality), it's a knockoff.

Flake

As if my buyer's remorse on the Hervé Léger Barbie was not enough, one of the doll's bags is deteriorating. I just checked.

(Insert offensively creative rant against Mattel here.)

Yeah, haters gonna hate.

Topper Dolls

According to Who's That Doll?, these dolls are both Longlocks.

They have been in storage for a while now. They came nude and I wasn't in the mood to sew such small clothes. I got their fashion from another doll line. I forgot which one, They are wearing clone Barbie fairy shoes.

I got them from a swap with another collector from another country. I believe they were swapped for a Barbie size wig. I wish I can play with them more but I just have too many toys to play with. And to think I still plan to buy more toys.

I wonder if other people get that feeling that they have more than enough toys yet they want more.  I wonder if other people play with a toy while thinking of or wanting another toy to play with.

Friends

It should be apparent that I'm no millennial. I don't strive to get a number of likes or followers. It's easy to find people who has the same fashion sense or hobby as I do but I don't call them friends. Friends enrich each others lives by sharing their selves, their ideas and experiences. Who doesn't want that?  Who doesn't want meaningful relationships?

Negative

You may have noticed that sometimes, this blog leaves a negative aftertaste.  I can understand that for someone who has the same view as the posted commentary below, this blog can be unsavory. Not everyone is strong enough to handle a little unprettiness. It takes a lot to see the pretty in the "unpretty". We all have our weaknesses.

Maybe it's not about the ability to handle negativity but opting not to handle it. Real life has enough negativity that some people need respite. One word comes to mind: escapism. I have no inkling about the tragedies one underwent to resort to escapism so let's leave it at that.

I'm a self-confessed pessimist. If you give me a plan, I can usually come up with scenarios on how it will not work. The process of engaging the negative doesn't end there. The weak usually gets demotivated while the stronger ones come up with better plans. Be reminded that it was a pessimist who invented things like the parachute and the airbag.

Western culture values the positive over the negative. I prefer the the Eastern view of balancing both sides.

Do dolls really make you happy?

Let me rephrase the question. When the going gets tough, when you cannot sustain everything, which source of happiness will you let go first? Will your pet be the first to go? Will it be the family? Will it be your work? Will it be your jewelries? Will it be your car? Will it be your internet connection? Will it be your TV? Will it be your smart phone? Life has a strange way of asking the question. I have answered it a number of times. For me it's the dolls that I will let go first.

Messy fit

One of my fashion related pet peeves is ill-fitting clothes, especially those that could lead to a "wardrobe malfunction" (read:hello booobies). Sometimes, I'd like to tell others, "there is supposed to be a waist (for the sheath silhouette),"  or "I don't think there should be draping or ruching on the crotch (for pants)," or "her boobs are too small for that bodice, you can fit another set of boobs in there," but saying things like that can hurt feelings. So we participate in deluding one another by giving false praises. It's part of fitting in.

I like well-fitted clothes more than fitting in certain societies. I rarely leave praises so other people don't have to feel obliged to return the favor.

Sequinspamore

Happy is she who is wardrobe-malfunction-free.

Recreating Moments

Wait for It

There is no new toy release for the first two months of the year in our country, at least from the toy lines I'm interested in. It is a good time to rest from the mindless spending or one can use the time to look for older releases. Not being able to buy the desired toy right away is not the end of the world. Sometimes, it is just a test for the must needed ingredient for anyone's peace of mind, patience. 

The 4-inch Black Cat action doll was released locally last year. I held off buying then because of the price increase. She immediately vanished from the toy aisles and made her way to online sellers and toy conventions with a mark up. I didn't buy with the suggested retail price (SRP) and there is no way I'm buying with a higher price. I waited for the day some sensible seller got wise and realize that it's not going to sell at a higher price. I got it for for a price lower than SRP. 

Inspired by...

Sequinspamore

Find a reason to smile.

No.Fuzz.

Have. Enough.

Not yet enough...

Get. It?

You get the idea...

Stop. Hate.

More talk to follow.

Where. Here.

to be continued...