LEXY

She came from Amazon in a plain brown box, so no one outside the house was the wiser that this sixty-something grandmother bought another doll, not even the UPS guy.

This one is from the Madame Alexander “Favorite Friends” series. Her title is “Hanging with Friends,” but that doesn’t matter. I chose her for her face and not her outfit. In my opinion, Madame Alexander (MA) dolls have the most beautiful faces. I’ll call her Lexy.

 

My awareness of this particular line of dolls was refreshed through the book, “Crochet for Dolls” by Nicky Epstein. The poise of the MA dolls is so right for modeling Epstein’s classy designs. The desire to have one in my sewing studio blossomed when I bought the book.

This doll is designed somewhat differently from the American Girl (AG). Both are 18-inch “little girl” dolls. The AG has a cloth body which shows when she wears sleeveless shirts and scoop-necked tops. It’s also responsible for her plump figure. The MA doll is designed so that her upper chest is vinyl while her lower body is cloth. She’s slimmer than the AG, and her design makes her more pose-able. And – she’s a third to half the price of the AG, which is also appealing. She comes without a defined storyline, and I like that, too. Little girls (and their adult crafting partners, such as grandmothers and great-aunts) can use their own imaginations to develop a doll’s story.

Well, I could have purchased her through Madame Alexander, and I’m sure that would have been more supportive of the company, but as a crafting grandmother satisfying a whim, I bought a discounted model through Amazon. I do notice, however, that “discounted dolls” may have quality issues. Reading the reviews, some dolls are perfectly perfect while others have problems, such as uneven haircuts, which indeed Lexy exhibits. I was taking a chance and I knew it, but it’s not an insurmountable problem. I've already trimmed her up a bit. But -- what's the scenario that puts a doll in the box with such a poor haircut? It almost seems deliberate.

I figure when I permanently change my address and my family comes to clean out my clutter, they’ll have an easier time disposing of dolls, fabric, and patterns than other things I might collect. There’s always a girl who needs a doll and a grandmother who could use fabric and patterns. (And no, I don’t promise not to buy another one.)

 

And here – for their fans – a couple of other special faces. KW