Monday, November 28, 2011

Integrity Toys Spring Kissed FR:16 - a review

Spring Kissed FR16 by alington
Spring Kissed FR16, a photo by alington on Flickr.
A recent addition to my Integrity Toys collection is the W Club exclusive, Spring Kissed, the first of the brand new line of FR:16 dolls, which replaces the AvantGuards brand. Spring Kissed was one of the W Club exclusive doll choices for joining this year, 2011, and she has just shipped. Extras were made available to Club members for a price of $160, and that is how mine arrived to me.

The reason I purchased this doll primarily is because of her face. She has a new face mold, which to me, in real life, has some similarity to Poppy Parker. Her facial screening is elegant and simple--reminding me a little of a Monogram doll--with applied lashes, soft metallic peach lips, brown eyes, and neutral shimmery eyeshadow and ultra soft blushing.

Her hair is lovely--long, blonde and mostly straight with a tiny bit of bend. It is styled in a side part, pulled off her face with a miniature braid. The light color of the hair, just behind the front style, appears to be rooted just a tad bit thinly, so I think I will leave the hair styled as is--just in case you think of taking your doll's hair down.

The doll is on a newly redesigned FR:16 body. I wasn't able to attend the Jet Set convention, but I thought I'd heard that the FR:16 bodies would be something like the new FR.Squared bodies. Spring Kissed is jointed at the hips below the torso, but her belly and torso are a single piece and beautiful. She is also jointed under the bust to allow for slouching and natural posing. Her hands are removable, and her elbows and knees, while surprisingly single-jointed, provide for over 90 degrees of movement. And the joints look really good, too. The doll included only one pair of hands--her left with open, separated fingers (she wants a ring, I think), and the right with the ability to hold something (such as a cocktail).

Additionally, she feels really sturdy without being too heavy, and her joints move smoothly and hold poses well without being swingy. She can kneels securely, too. She's got a fantastic body. I love it! Also, it's a model body, and slim, but it isn't too skinny. Her thighs and calves have shape, and she has a lovely curve to her body as well. Her feet and hands are well-proportioned to her face.

My least favorite thing about this doll is probably one of the most practical things about her: her feet. She has articulate ankle joints, separated toes, and also a joint at the toe as well. It allows for her to wear almost any size or shape or slope of shoe--open or closed toe--even those thong sandals. But bare-foot, she's not my favorite. And honestly, while her bare feet give me the willies just a little, I think the ability to be able to wear some many shoes (look at the stilettos she's wearing!) probably overrules any qualms I have about her feet.

Her shoes--WOW. They are actually woven. With zippers up the back and faux tan leather on the sides. And the tallest heel I've seen for a while. Just gorgeous. Additionally, she included subtle rhinestone earrings.

The outfit includes short tweed shorts, woven from cream, orange, yellow and gold yarns, which match the elegant overcoat perfectly. I can see these pieces worn with a fluffy silk blouse in gold or tan, or the coat paired with a taupe or shimmering sequined skirt. But the best basic piece of the outfit is the simple tee she wears underneath. At first, I thought it was just a sheet cream colored tee. But no--underneath lurks a lace lining. It's such a subtle detail, and such a delight to discover: it brings this doll up to such a real-life experience. I'm really thrilled.

Finally, you may have noticed some Christmas decorations in my house lately. It's because Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year! For the cats. And they do love climbing the tree and eating the birds. That, and the tree gives you some amazing Bokeh shots. :)

For additional photos and larger sizes, visit my Flickr album.

UPDATE: Dreamcastle Dolls currently has this doll on consignment. She's never been removed from her box at a bargain price of $185. Great deal!
Spring Kissed FR16
Full-length shot of Spring Kissed
Spring Kissed FR16
Spring Kissed posing
Spring Kissed FR16
Spring Kissed's boots

1 comment:

  1. She really looks great! I'm looking forward to handling her a little and seeing if I like her "feel". I like that you mentioned that she is a little heavier than the old ones. They always seemed really light to me.

    ReplyDelete

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