This is a Winx Club Bloom doll. I have no idea what that means (it says Nickelodeon on the box, so maybe she’s a cartoon?), but she was reduced to £6 in my local toy shop, so I brought her home with me.
I’ve been reading forums on customising dolls like Liv, Moxie and Monster High, but I thought it would be better to practice on a cheap doll before I effectively ruined something that a little girl might like to play with. I chose this one because I liked the shape of her face (I thought it might customise nicely into something pixie-ish), and because her proportions aren’t as ridiculously exaggerated as some other fashion-type dolls. She also has a little x-shaped hole in her back specifically for the addition of wings, so she might turn into a really nice fairy of some description.
Sadly she’s not very poseable, as she’s only jointed at the shoulders, hips and neck. This probably makes her useless for my original idea of customising her and taking photos, but it also hopefully means I won’t be too precious about having a few goes at repainting her face or replacing her hair.
Of course, what I really want is something like this beautiful Luts Super Senior Delf, but in the absence of a spare $546, I think Bloom will have to do!
If she’s barbie like, you can put limbs (arms are ok, legs are harder due to thickness) in boiling water and hold them there a short time until they are pliable. Wearing protective gloves (or pliers with tape/cloth on the jaws, or chopsticks, bend the limb, and stick it in a bowl of ice water to set the shape. Also possible, to cut the fingers apart with a sharp blade, and bend individual fingers.
Ooh, thank you, I’ll give that a try!