Dream Sale! Dream Sale!

It's time again for the Barbie Dream Sale. There's usually some awesome deals! Get shopping!

The Barbie Dream Sale begins 12:01 am central on Sept. 22 and ends at 11:59 pm central on Sept. 28.

Here's the fine print from Mattel:
For Gold Label dolls, limit five (5) of each Gold Label doll per order. Discount not valid on previous purchases. Prices exclude shipping and processing and any applicable sales tax. All discount offers exclude Barbie Fan Club membership, club dolls, gift wrap and gift cards. Must be 18 years or older to order. Offer valid while supplies last.

Fashionably early savings begin at 12:01am CT 9/22/11 and end at 11:59pm CT 9/23/11. The discounts are as follows:
Thursday 9/22 ONLY: Enjoy 25% off every regular priced doll, fashion and accent you purchase in the online shop. Plus, enjoy an additional 25% off already-reduced items within the Special Offers shelf in the online shop. These Thursday-only discounts will appear in shopping cart.

Friday 9/23 ONLY: Enjoy an additional 25% off already-reduced items within the Special Offers shelf in the online shop. These Friday-only discounts will appear in shopping cart.

Saturday 9/24 - Wednesday 9/28: Shop within the Special Offers shelf in the online shop to save as much as 67% off original prices. Dream Sale prices as indicated on shelf page and individual item product pages.

Say Goodbye: I Like Rectangles

Choosing not to keep these dolls actually was pretty easy, because without them, I have the potential actually to keep more dolls overall. Why? Because they don't have 90-degree angles.

Dolls with "inventive" packaging are cute, but darn if it isn't hard to keep them balanced on a shelf. More often than not, they end up taking too much space and collecting lots of dust in their nooks and crannies.

Dolls in nice, rectangular boxes are easy to store. My collection is like a massive game of Barbie Tetris. I just need to find which pink boxes fit best together on the same shelf. 

It's Beginning to Look...

...a lot like Christmas!

At least in the toy aisle in Target it is.

I saw this year's holiday Barbie for sale already at my local Target store. Pretty classy, don't you think?

I love the green and gold combination. The style of the dress is very interesting, too. So many times the holiday Barbie has a large, puffy ball gown. What looks to be a slender, long skirt coupled with a dramatic cascade of fabric over it is keeping with the same idea but presenting it in a completely different way. Nice.

Say Goodbye: Damn Mouse

I am not a fan of Disney.

Here's a good primer as to why. I suggest picking up the book. (Or any of Carl Hiaasen's books. The man is hilarious.)

Not being a fan of Disney makes it difficult to be a fan of these dolls. See my problem?

Two of the three actually are wearing tiny Mickey ears and, apparently, the dolls have been on recent visits to one of the parks. The third is just a celebration of the mouse himself.

It's not the best mash-up of brands, in my opinion.

Disliking Disney as I do, how did I come by three separate Disney-themed Barbie dolls? No idea. I could not tell you how each of them came into my possession, which is another problem.

If I had to pick, I'd choose the doll below as my favorite of the three, simply because it's the oldest and has been in my collection the longest.

Ring-a-Ding-Ding

I'd like to tell this Barbie, "I Get a Kick out of You."

Mattel is releasing a Frank Sinatra Barbie. I really like this trend of a cross-dressing Barbie done up as iconic men. First Elvis, now Sinatra. Let me just say, "Fly Me to the Moon"!

Barbie's look is inspired by Ol' Blue Eyes himself. She doesn't look like "The Girl Next Door" here. The doll's custom, fitted houndstooth suit is paired with a black tie, white shirt, orange pocket square and must-have fedora. Barbie's got a bit more bling than Frank, with some sparkly earrings. I very much would like to own her high-heeled saddle shoes.

I love the deep-red lipstick, too. It's a great contrast with the masculine, tailored clothes.

I think she's put a spell on me. It's "Witchcraft"!

She will be available in September.

I think a lot of Barbie fans will be saying "It Was a Very Good Year" of the 2011 doll releases.

Say Goodbye: Ralph Lauren Barbie

Remember way back in the spring when I talked about the difficult task of trimming down my collection? Well, I trimmed it. And while I haven't made many steps since them to get the dolls out of the basement and to a new home, I have earmarked which will be leaving and separated them from the general population.

Why do some dolls stay and others go? The decision is based on a variety of factors, I found. Namely, I tended to keep the dolls that 1) were pleasing to look at and 2) had fond memories attached to them. Conversely, the ones with fugly make-up and clothes and no memories (or bad memories) got cut.

Here's the first in my "Say Goodbye" series: Ralph Lauren Barbie. She's a Bloomingdale's Limited Edition doll from the mid-90s. She's quite lovely. Dressed in slacks, a RL blazer with crest, she comes with a great camel coat and plaid purse. The clothes are a bit bulky and thick and do nothing for her figure. But her makeup is nice and she's got lovely dark hair (let's hear it for brunettes!).

So why isn't she staying?

My not-so-favorite aunt gave her to me. My seriously unpleasant aunt. My do-I-really-need-to-see-her-at-this-family-event? aunt.

So every time I look at her, I think of that aunt. I can't help it. The association is burned in me forever, and it makes me like the doll less.