Review: Barbie Fashionistas Va-Va-Violet

 As promised, the first of many, many of my Christmas haul reviews!

 

Here she is in her box

    So I'm not a big Fashionista buyer in general. They're cheap, but they're not articulated and I love all things articulated coming from a world of action figures. Non-poseable dolls frustrate me. I'm not gonna lie, I picked her because of her hair. I love the purple! Her outfit was not a consideration.

In purple, I'm stunning!

    Straight out of the box, the hair is a nice, even, light shade of purple, and very stiff. I have not touched it yet with a comb or anything to see if it turns into a more hair-like substance if you work on it, but I assume it does. Right now, it is sort of like a helmet, or a cartoon android woman headpiece. Which I find sort of cool.

Speaking of cool!

   I LOVE HER BOOTS. If I could afford a pair like this in real life, you could not pry them away from me. If I ever get around to it, I might hit the buckles with some model paint and give them just a tiny bit more detail, but otherwise they are perfect. So modern and youthful! Why can't the Curvy girls have boots like this?

    Somewhat less impressed with the dress...wait...

OH COOL.

It's actually a top and a skirt! It's also not that nasty papery cheap Dollar Store Doll fabric! It feels soft and real, and has a bit of stretch and drape to it. The more I look at it, the more I realize it has a funky, but not clashing, sense of style.
   

STRAP THAT THING DOWN.

    The necklace is my one big question mark. I get it, fashion-wise. I even understand why they package it with a giant rubber band tightly stretched through the doll's armpits (poor woman, the things we do for jewelry). But WHY OH WHY is it not removable at all? Every other Barbie necklace, bracelet, even most rings and some earrings are removable. But unless there is some secret password or magic combination I haven't found, this one is not, without taking Barbie's head off! I plan to carefully cut the back so that it can be hopefully used the way my other Barbie jewelry is, because I like to redress my dolls, but seriously...why? This is a fashion doll. People redress fashion dolls. This makes as much sense as molded-on clothing on fashion dolls. Just...WHY.

I have not had this doll for long (really just took her out) but my overall impression is "surprised". She surprised me with her personality and individuality. This is a girl who has her own sense of style, and likes to stay modern, but doesn't go with the pink and frilly flow of everyone else. She likes to feel pretty, but she also likes to kick butt. I feel like she needs a jacket to go with, but I am a jacket hoarder and would probably jacket my entire collection if given half an opportunity. I am confused by the permanent necklace? But I love most other aspects of the doll! I would also bodyswap her if I could, but I would bodyswap probably every Barbie in existence until they were all on M2M bodies. Definitely a good buy.