Lissie & Lilly: June 2016

Tuesday, June 28, 2016

1960s Beforever Melody Ellison Doll Review

We are super fortunate that a fellow AG collector and good friend is visiting with her Melody doll and gave us permission to photograph and review her doll for L&L! Melody Ellison is the newest Beforever historical character from the 1960s. Her 3 books are already available, though the doll and her collection are rumored to be released in August. I know people are curious but please refrain from asking me where the doll is from, as I was asked specifically to not post that.

It's been several months now since we first heard of Melody, and I know some of the fervor has died down a bit, but I hope seeing these photos will get some of you excited again. ^_^ I want to stress that regardless of what these photos show, nothing is set in stone until AG officially releases her so please take this review with a grain of salt.

*DO NOT REPOST/CLAIM/COPY ANY OF THESE IMAGES PLEASE!*

(This includes Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, etc. You are free to link back to this post.)

Melody Ellison Doll Review:

Melody doll in box

Her hair comes in a black hairnet and a blue hair ribbon is part of her meet outfit.

Melody has the Sonali face mold (same as the Beforever historical character Cecile). She has the dark vinyl coloring (also same as Cecile) and brown pinwheel eyes.

Her arms have the protective plastic sleeves AG has been releasing with their newer dolls to protect the arms from shine marks.

She comes with ribbed socks and teal flats with bows.

Melody de-boxed! :D

The hair tag that comes with her says straight hair.

Close up of Melody's hair in net

Her bangs are a nice thin layer (similar thickness to Girl of the Year 2015 Grace's side bangs).

The bangs have a slight curl to them, though they got a little flattened in the box it seems.

Melody with plastic sleeves and hairnet removed.

Her hair is a little poofy straight out of the hair net.

Her bangs look a little uneven but this is because I hadn't had time to fluff them out yet. Later pictures will show that they are straight and even.

Melody does have textured hair (like the Beforever historical character Addy) and it is so soft and voluminous!

It is a little longer than shoulder length and offers a lot more styling options than Kit's short bob, while still being really easy to untangle and keep in good condition with the basic AG wire wig brush.

Now let's take a closer look at Melody! ^_^

You can see now that I've gotten her out of the wind and fixed her hair, her bangs are even. They are partially hiding her eyebrows but they are feathered eyebrows like all the new dolls.

We've already seen her meet dress a few times from when it first leaked. The bow can be removed with a seam ripper (not so easily snipped, it's held on by an actual seam instead of just one stitch) but I do like how the bow looks on the dress.

The width of the bow headband is about the same as the bow on her dress.

Her socks are mid calf length, ribbed, and white. Her shoes are teal flats with bow decorations.

Side view of Melody

You can see how thick Melody's hair is and how it lays really nicely. There is a little big of a flip at the end of her hair. It looks like it's layered here, but her hair is not actually layered (it just looks that way due to the headband holding back some hair).

Close up of side detail on meet dress

There is a little triangle "pleat" detail that's subtle but really makes the dress look cuter overall. ^_^

Side view of socks and shoes

Back view of Melody

*Note: This Melody has neck strings, though I must reemphasize that the actual Melody might have the hidden zip ties like Lea. Nothing is set in stone until AG official releases her.*

Close up of back of hair

You can see it is textured. I played with it for quite a while and speaking as someone that really struggles with styling doll hair, Meldoy's hair is wonderfully easy to handle. The textured hair is soft and silky, and hold styles really easily. Brushing it back straight is also super simple by just using the regular AG wire wig hairbrush. Please don't let this gorgeous wig intimidate you! It's so easy to handle for small hands, large hands, uncoordinated fingers, you name it!

I love that the collar does go all the way around to the back of the dress, since it feels like on so many of the modern AG outfits, the collars all seem to stop at the shoulders. The dress has a velcro closure. The houndstooth fabric is well woven and thick, good quality, especially relative to many of AG's recent offerings and I am impressed with the weight of the fabric.

Hahaha and of course... what we all have been dying to know... What color are Melody's undies?

White!

It seems like we saw all of her meet outfit except her underthings so I was curious, but it looks like her undies are similar to Maryellen's. Also, like AG's recent trend with their new dolls, Melody also has plastic wrap around her thighs for protection against sign marks.

Her ribbon bow headband is actually one piece, with elastic in the back.

One last picture of that gorgeous wig! *swoon swoon swoon* I styled the bangs a little differently here and brushed her hair forward, and voila! A new look! <3 I am such a sucker for thick, beautiful doll wigs and Melody's wig has really just won me over (just in case it wasn't already obvious). ^_^ Relative to my other dolls, when I brushed her hair, she didn't loose many hairs and the ends were still even after an afternoon of brushing.

What do you all think of Miss Melody? Is your heart beating quicker? Your wallet feeling lighter? :D I cannot recommend her enough, especially after reading her books, which I really suggest you all try to do before her official debut! Her character is strong and sensitive, and her doll is so sweet and beautiful, with a versatile look. The one I reviewed seems to have an exceptionally gentle look and it will take all my willpower to return her but I can't wait to pick out my own Melody to join the L&L household later this summer!

Sometime in the next few days when I have a moment, I will post comparison photos of Melody. If there is time, I will work on a Dress Up Gallery for Melody, though I may not have her for enough time to complete it before I have to send her back. You can "follow" the blog by clicking the blue "Join this site" button on the right sidebar to be notified as soon as new updates are posted, and you can "Like" L&L on Facebook where I usually post the updates pretty quickly. Thank you all for taking the time to look at the review! ^_^

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All 1960s BeForever Melody Ellison Leaks/Info/Photos:

Link to Photos of 1960s Beforever Melody Doll in Various Hairstyles:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/07/photos-of-melody-with-various.html

Link to Comparison Photos of Melody, Addy, & Cecile Dolls:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/07/comparison-photos-of-melody-addy-cecile.html

Link to 1960s Beforever Melody Doll Review with Photos:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/06/1960s-beforever-melody-ellison-doll.html

Link to Photos Possible Red Polka Dot Birthday Dress for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/05/photos-of-potential-red-dress-for-truly.html

  ->Link to Detail Photos of Red Polka Dot Dress Modeled on Sonali Doll:
  http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/06/photos-of-red-dress-for-beforever.html

Link to Photos of Potential Gold Bow Dress for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/05/leaked-gold-dress-for-beforever-melody.html

Link to Photos of Potential Gold Coat, Hat, & Gloves Set for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/05/leaked-photos-of-coat-for-beforever.html

  ->Link to Collector Detail Photos of Potential Gold Coat for 1960s Beforever Melody:
  http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/05/golden-coat.html

Link to Photos of Blue Pajama Top for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/03/photos-of-1960s-beforever-melodys_28.html

  ->Link to Photos of Complete Blue Starry Pajamas Outfit for 1960s Beforever Melody:
    http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/06/leaked-photos-of-beforever-melodys-full.html

Link to Photos of Rainbow Play Outfit for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/03/photos-of-1960s-beforever-melodys.html

Link to Stock Photos for Doll & Floral Peplum Dress for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/02/stock-photos-for-melody-doll-floral.html

Link to Photos of Doll & Collection for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/02/1960s-beforever-melody-doll-collection.html

Link to Journey Book Cover Illustration for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/01/journy-book-cover-for-1960s-beforever.html

Link to Book 2 Cover Illustration for 1960s Beforever Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/01/book-2-cover-for-1960s-beforever-melody.html

Link to Potential Release/Debut Date for 1960s Beforever Melody Doll & Collection:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/1960s-beforever-melody-ellison-release.html

Link to Photos of Pet Dog for 1960s Beforever character Melody Ellison:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/photos-of-1960s-beforever-melody.html

  ->Link to Collector Detail & Comparison Photos of Pet Dog for 1960s Beforever Melody:
  http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/01/photos-of-1960s-beforever-melodys-dog.html

Link to Photos of potential store debut gift & name for 1960s BeForever girl modeled on dolls:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/photos-of-black-1960s-beforever-melodys.html

Link to 2nd potential leaked outfit, Floral Peplum Dress, for BeForever 2016:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/11/second-potential-leaked-outfit-for.html

->Link to Photos of 1960s BeForever Floral Bow Dress modeled on Truly Me #26 doll:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/11/photos-of-1960s-beforever-floral-peplum.html

Link to 1st potential leaked outfit, Green Plaid Dress, for BeForever 2016:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/10/first-leaked-outfit-for-2016-beforever.html

->Link to Photos of 1960s BeForever Green Houndstooth Dress modeled on Kanani doll:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/11/photos-of-1960s-beforever-green.html

->Link to Photos of Melody's Green Meet Dress modeled on Truly Me #62 doll:
http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/06/photos-of-truly-me-62-in-beforever.html

Link to information about the 2016 BeForever historical character's book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/08/girl-of-year-2016-beforever-2016-new.html

->Link to Cover Illustration & Back Cover Summary for 1960s BeForever Book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/1960s-black-beforever-character-melody.html

->Link to Book 1 Chapter List, and Book 2 & Journey Book Titles & Summaries:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/1960s-beforever-melody-ellison-book.html

->Link to Specific Details about Melody, her family, and story from Book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/specific-details-for-1960s-beforever.html

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Photos of Samantha Red Dress, Prototype or Re-release?

For the past few weeks, this outfit has been showing up quite a few times on eBay. It appears to be Samantha's dress from her Beforever Holiday Set which retired from the website at the end of last year, with a slight change to the fabric. Prototypes and frankenoutfits (AG pattern outfits made with scraps of other left over fabric) have been known to appear on eBay so I initially didn't pay it much mind. However, this outfit has now appeared multiple times, to the extent that I wonder if AG is planning on re-releasing this outfit, slightly changed and selling it by itself without the matching tea set that the old holiday set was bundled with.

A wonderful fellow AG fan who purchased one of these altered dresses took multiple photos comparing it with the red plaid dress that was part of Samantha's Beforever Holiday Set bundle, and kindly gave us permission to share the photos. I have posted them below with some of her comments and observations included in the captions.

*Do not copy/repost/claim/use these photos without written permission.*

Comparison Photos of Samantha's Red Dress:

Here are the two dresses side by side. Samantha on the left is wearing the revised dress that leaked on eBay, and Marie-Grace on the right is wearing the original dress that was bundled in the Holiday Set. Both dresses are the same length and same cut with a different fabric. It also seems the sleeve of the original dress (on Marie-Grace) is lined and the revised dress on Samantha is not.

According to the lady who took the photos, the color is similar to the color of Samantha's Beforever hairbow (that comes with her meet outfit). The red hairbow that came with Nellie's Holiday Outfit is a bit more "true red" in comparison to this dress. Her outfit came with just the red shoes, no hair accessory or white tights, though it is possible if this outfit is re-released, it will come with these additional accessories.

Front of Dress

She describes the fabric texture similar to Cecile and Marie-Grace's summer dresses (which I believe is taffeta, like the material for a windbreaker jacket). Samantha's earliest Cranberry Christmas Dress feels a bit softer in comparison.

Back of Dress

It has a velcro closure and pre-tied bow.

The outfit came with the red shoes that the doll is currently wearing, but their color is slightly off and just a bit too bright. The lady who purchased the outfit believes it could possibly be a case where the seller just included the shoes because the seller thought it would match, not that necessarily the final version of this outfit will include these shoes.

The shoes included by the seller are compared to the shoes from her Special Day Dress, which are more of a dusty rose/mauve. In the first photo and the last two photos, Samantha is wearing the black shoes from Rebecca's Holiday Outfit.

As stated previous, the lace at the wrist cuffs are not lined in this outfit. It looks from the photos like the two lace patterns on the cuffs are different, but they are the same, The fold on one of them is a little off (which might be the reason this outfit could be a factory reject).

Overall, I have always liked this dress and I think it will be nice for people who missed out on Samantha's Holiday Set to be able to pick up this version. However, I doubt that I personally will be picking up this outfit since I already have the plaid version bundled with the Holiday Set. Hopefully AG won't be bundling it with anything this time as I think the higher prices of the bundle set is a deterrent for those who only want part of the bundle.

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Link to eBay Auction: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Doll-Clothes-for-American-girl-18-inch-red-dress-suit-/191887959696

Friday, June 10, 2016

Photos of Truly Me #62 in Beforever Melody's Meet Outfit

It seems like we've been waiting forever for the release of AG's newest Beforever historical character, Melody Ellison from the 1960s, to be released later this summer. As we whittle away the hours til we can finally see her in person and she is available for purchase, here are photos a fellow AG collector shared with us of how her meet outfit looks on the medium vinyl colored, Sonali mold Truly Me #62 doll!

*Do not repost/copy/claim/use photos without written permission.*

Photos of Melody's Meet on Truly Me #62:

Both Melody and Truly Me #62 have the Sonali mold.

Melody has dark vinyl coloring and TM #62 has the medium vinyl coloring.

Melody's eyes appear to be brown while TM #62 has amber pinwheel eyes.

Their hair is about the same length, but Melody's hair will be textured and she will have bangs.

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All 1960s BeForever Melody Ellison Leaks/Info/Photos:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/photos-of-black-1960s-beforever-melodys.html

Link to 2nd potential leaked outfit, Floral Peplum Dress, for BeForever 2016:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/11/second-potential-leaked-outfit-for.html

->Link to Photos of 1960s BeForever Floral Bow Dress modeled on Truly Me #26 doll:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/11/photos-of-1960s-beforever-floral-peplum.html

Link to 1st potential leaked outfit, Green Plaid Dress, for BeForever 2016:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/10/first-leaked-outfit-for-2016-beforever.html

->Link to Photos of 1960s BeForever Green Houndstooth Dress modeled on Kanani doll:

Link to information about the 2016 BeForever historical character's book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/08/girl-of-year-2016-beforever-2016-new.html

->Link to Cover Illustration & Back Cover Summary for 1960s BeForever Book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/1960s-black-beforever-character-melody.html

->Link to Book 1 Chapter List, and Book 2 & Journey Book Titles & Summaries:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/1960s-beforever-melody-ellison-book.html

->Link to Specific Details about Melody, her family, and story from Book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/specific-details-for-1960s-beforever.html

Thursday, June 9, 2016

Photos of Red Dress for Beforever Melody or Truly Me

A lovely fellow AG collector was able to purchase the red polka dot dress that leaked on eBay. She took several photos of the details of the outfit and how it looks modeled on her Sonali doll, and kindly sent them to us to share here. It's still unknown what line the dress is for, though judging from the photos, I no longer think it's for the Bitty line. Originally, my guess was for the Truly Me line. However, several people have speculated this could be a dress for the 1960s Beforever character Melody, who is debuting later this summer. The collector who shared the photos also believes this to be for Melody due to the length of the dress and the neckline, though it would work wonderfully as a modern outfit as well. ^_^

You can view the original post wih the eBay auction photos here:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/05/photos-of-potential-red-dress-for-truly.html

Collector Photos:

The doll modeling the outfit is Sonali, a "best friend" character doll to the 2009 Girl of the Year Chrissa. Both Sonali and Melody have the Sonali face mold, brown eyes, dark vinyl color, and dark hair, though Melody's hair will have bangs, is textured, and shorter compared to Sonali.

The outfit came with the dress, headband, and shoes.

Close up of the headband. It a perma-tied bow and there is elastic in the back to help it stretch and fit the doll's head.

There appears to be elastic around the waist of the dress, with an upright bow decoration sewn into the side. The bow have two layers. I can't tell from the photos if the bow can be easily removed with a seam ripper or not.

The shoes that came with the outfit are simple, red/pink mary janes, though there is no guarantee they are correctly paired with this outfit, as sellers have been known in the past to include whatever shoes they feel fit the outfit, whether they are part of the same set or not.

Aside from the bow detail, there is not much more in the way of decorations on the dress. It is fairly simple in terms of print and design. To be blunt, I did not like this dress at all when I first saw the eBay photos of it. However, now that I've seen how it looks on a doll, I find myself actually really liking how this dress looks. It's quite bright, and I think it would be very flattering on Melody if it ends up being for her. ^_^

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All 1960s BeForever Melody Ellison Leaks/Info/Photos:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/photos-of-black-1960s-beforever-melodys.html

Link to 2nd potential leaked outfit, Floral Peplum Dress, for BeForever 2016:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/11/second-potential-leaked-outfit-for.html

->Link to Photos of 1960s BeForever Floral Bow Dress modeled on Truly Me #26 doll:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/11/photos-of-1960s-beforever-floral-peplum.html

Link to 1st potential leaked outfit, Green Plaid Dress, for BeForever 2016:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/10/first-leaked-outfit-for-2016-beforever.html

->Link to Photos of 1960s BeForever Green Houndstooth Dress modeled on Kanani doll:

Link to information about the 2016 BeForever historical character's book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/08/girl-of-year-2016-beforever-2016-new.html

->Link to Cover Illustration & Back Cover Summary for 1960s BeForever Book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/1960s-black-beforever-character-melody.html

->Link to Book 1 Chapter List, and Book 2 & Journey Book Titles & Summaries:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/1960s-beforever-melody-ellison-book.html

->Link to Specific Details about Melody, her family, and story from Book 1:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2015/12/specific-details-for-1960s-beforever.html

Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Leaked Photos of Beforever Melody's Full Pajamas Set

Back in January of this year, we saw a blue top leak on eBay which was later revealed to be the shirt top part of the 1960s Beforever character Melody's pajamas, to be released later this summer. Just a few days ago, what looks like the whole outfit for the pajamas leaked on eBay, though of course with AG, nothing is certain til AG releases it. :D

You can view the original post with the detailed photos of the top here:

http://lissieandlilly.blogspot.com/2016/03/photos-of-1960s-beforever-melodys_28.html

Original eBay Photos:

It looks like aside from the top, the bottoms will be shorts, and there will be cute pom pom slippers included as well. I don't know if there will be an extra hair accessory, but judging by other Beforever sleepwear, I am assuming not.

From the leaked photos of the top in January (you can view them by clicking here), we know the buttons on the top are actual working buttons, and not just for show, which is always a detail I love. ^_^

I wish there have been a close up photo of the pom pom slippers, but either way, this set will be coming home with me. I love the color and space print, and the slippers are adorable. This looks like something I would wear myself and I'm curious to see what the matching girl inspired version will look like! :D

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Link to eBay Auction: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Doll-Clothes-For-American-Girl-18-Inch-OUTFIT-/252406267002

All 1960s BeForever Melody Ellison Leaks/Info/Photos: