Culture Magazine

Walking the Toy Aisle

By Ashley Brooke, Kewpie83 @KewpieDoll83

It’s time for another installment of ‘Walking the Toy Aisle’!  For the past few months, the toy aisles have looked like this:

Current State of Many Toy Aisles

Current State of Many Toy Aisles

Finally, new product is hitting store shelves, albeit mostly aimed at the preschool market.  Here are a few things that I thought looked new, interesting or just plain strange.

MiWorld Sketchers

MiWorld Sketchers

MiWorld Mrs. Fields

MiWorld Mrs. Fields

PHOTO_20140806_162220#1

MiWorld extra

Looks like MiWorld did well enough to get some new stores!  I’m excited! The Sketchers?  Love it! And the mall accessories, like the vending machine and photo booth? Awesome! Have you guys in other countries seen these in your stores?  Have the released any stores specific to your country?

Barbie Styling Head

Barbie Styling Head

This Barbie Styling head is here, because every time I see one of these, the hair is crazy. At first, I chalked it up to being returns, but I have yet to see a styling head in good shape. I mean, look at that poor Barbie head on the right.  Hey, Mattel, don’t forget about quality control.

A New Skipper

A New Skipper

New Skipper promo image

New Skipper promo image

The back of the box featured this Skipper

The back of the box featured this Skipper

I’m always excited to see new Skippers, even if they all look the same.  The Tiki Hut Skipper has (and I fully admit, I could be reaching here) darker, slightly more intense eyes than usual.  The Skipper advertised on the back of the Tiki Hut box is what excites me the most, though.  Her hair is in a ponytail!  That’s different and new and stylish!  (She is, once again, saddled with a Kelly, er, Chelsea doll.  What do we need to do to get her paired with a Stacie?!)

Girl Scout Barbie

Girl Scout Barbie

As a former Girl Scout, I really want this Girl Scout Barbie.  I really wish they had come out with the other sisters in uniforms for Brownies, Juniors and Cadets.

Disney Anna and Elsa dolls

Disney’s Frozen 18″ Anna and Elsa

These were shelved right next to the 18″ Princess and Me line at Toys R Us.  That, and the inset eyes, made me believe they were part of that line.  Currently, though, they’re being marketed as Disney’s Frozen Anna and Elsa, with no mention and a slightly different price than the Princess and Me line.  I think this Elsa looks great, don’t you?

Monster High

Monster High

Monster High

Monster High

Monster High

Monster High

I was happily surprised to see some movement on the Monster High shelf.  It’s been a while since new products have found my local store shelves!

Moxie Girls

Moxie Girls

I have to give Moxie Girlz a lot of credit. They survived a toy season that left a lot of other lines in clearance bins, very much to my surprise.  Think about the number of doll lines we lost this past year– Pinkie Cooper, La Dee Da, Liv (though it seems they were officially discontinued back in 2012!) to name a few.  The fact that these guys are still on shelves, even if in dwindling numbers, is a positive thing!

Adorabble

Animal Babies

How cute are these plush Animal Babies?  Look at their humungous eyes!  They remind me of large Beanie Boo’s.

Pound Puppies

Pound Puppies

Pound Puppies

Pound Puppies

I will always be nostalgic about the original Pound Puppies packaging.  The current box is a lot like what I remember my Pound Puppy coming in.  Of course, this new Pound Puppy seems to be half the size of the original line!

Little Lalaloopsy

Little Lalaloopsy

Lalaloopsy Baby

Lalaloopsy Baby

There were so many new Lalaloopsy items!  By far, they have expanded the most out of any line I  saw last shopping trip! First off, Spoons Waffle Cone is adorable! I’ve always liked the large Ice Cream themed Lalaloopsy, so I love that they have made a baby version!  I thought I’d share this Diaper Surprise Lala with you, too, because there is just something really adorable about the design!

Really little Lalalooopsys

Lalaloopsy Tinies

Lalaloopsy Tinies houses

Lalaloopsy Tinies houses

I shouldn’t be surprised with this Lalaloopsy Tinies line, as we’ve seen a lot of different lines branch out into ‘Squinky‘ sized toys.  The houses for these very mini Lala’s are pretty neat!  I don’t think I’ll be buying any, but I’m sure they’ll find an audience.

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy Girls

Lalaloopsy vs Lalaloospy Girls

Lalaloopsy vs Lalaloospy Girls

Lalaloopsy just amped up their cuteness level! These 1/6ish scale Lalaloopsy Girls are adorable.  I want one– actually I want all four!  My favorite is the blue girl, with the winter theme.  Seriously, I love these!

Laloopsy

Lalaloopsy Color Me

Cute and totally novelty, but I’m sure some of you have wanted to design your own Lalaloopsy!  This Color Me Lalaloopsy is perfect for crafting your own doll!

Mooshka

Mooshka

Mooshka

Mooshka

Mooshka

Mooshka

I am so glad Mooshka survived their first run.  While I don’t own any, I always admire them.  My new favorite might be Glory, the red haired ballerina/fairy in the first photo.  The animals are really cute, too.

So that’s it!  I am happily surprised at the number of new-ish items I saw this time around.  What new things have you seen while walking the toy aisle?  What are you looking forward to from this list? Share your thoughts below!


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