Byul Rhiannon: Review

I'm not the biggest fan of Byul and there are very few that I find to be cute. Most pictures of her that I have seen don't seem to quite paint her in the most flattering of ways, but I have heard people say that she just doesn't have a face that photographs well, so when my husband had won Byul Rhiannon (who, by the way, is a limited edition of 2,000) in an auction, I was a bit curious as to what she would look like in person. When she had finally arrived, I still didn't know quite what to make of her. It wasn't until my husband had unbound her from her packaging that I began to see her charm! She really does have a sort of endearing and babyish look to her!

Byul Rhiannon Comes With:

- Lace hat with feather and ball chain embellishments

- Steampunk mask that straps around her ears and ties at the back of her head

- Dog tags

- Fake black leather top with two golden belts and sleeves lined with organza

-  Striped arm warmers

- Sheer, ruffled pants made from organza (?)

- A golden bag with studs and functioning zipper

- Umbrella

-  Gold painted platform shoes

- Byul Rhiannon's trading card

- Doll stand

- Limited Edition Certificate

Pros:

- Cute, subtle orange faceup and uniquely painted lashes!

- Very affordable price!

- She has beautiful bright orange eye chips that really stand out!

- She comes with a lot of accessories that you can use to change up her look a bit!

- Her parasol is functional and can open and close easily! The rod is also sturdy and made of metal!

- Shoes have a strap across the ankle that help keep her shoes on her feet and prevent them from falling off!

- Eye mechs work well! No stiffness when moving them from left to right! (May vary from doll to doll.)

Cons:

- There are lots of loose threads that are hanging off of her stock outfit and it kind of gives it a sloppy appearance, in my opinion. This also may make the material prone to unraveling, so it would be best to be careful with that.

- Her dog tags are a pain to put on, being so tiny. You may land up spending a lot of time trying to pick up and string her tags back onto the chain before you manage to actually put it on her.

- Her body is very loose and floppy. (May vary from doll to doll.)

- Her wig is frizzy and gets frizzy easily and constantly needs fixing every time you try to pose her.

Neutral:

- While the zipper is functional on her bag, it's filled with stuffing and cannot be used to store things in unless you choose to remove it, but then it would loose it's plush appearance.

- It's a hassle trying to pose her with her parasol open.

The Verdict:

If you're a fan of Byul and steampunk fashion, I think she'd be worth getting. Despite her being limited edition, she's priced cheaply and you can find her on amazon for under $100, which is a pretty amazing deal considering all that she comes with too! However, her overall stock outfit can seem like a bit too much for some and can be overwhelming and even a bit frustrating to deal with, so keep that in mind before purchasing her.

Pictures of Tourmaline, my husband's Byul Rhiannon:

Pullip Chloi: Review

Words cannot describe how excited I am over Chloi! She arrived just yesterday and I can't help but glance over at her and giggle like a little girl! She is my second grail, and having her in my collection makes me feel like I'm over the moon! Originally though, I had wanted Clara, but I had changed my mind and decided I liked Chloi a little more as I thought her headband looked better and that the green would be a nice change from all my pink and purple covered dolls. Needless to say, I do not regret choosing Chloi one little bit! She's gorgeous, and I feel so fortunate to have her!

Pullip Chloi Comes With:

- Headband with bendable bunny ears and a ribbon that ties around her head

- Embellished tulle choker with studs, feathers, rose, and ribbon

- Two removable lace sleeves

- Strapless green and black tiered dress complete with lace, tulle, and bows

- Matching purse with gold ball chain handle

- Sheer dotted knee high stockings

 - Plastic green heels with straps

- Sheer black netted underwear

- Pullip Chloi's trading card

- Doll stand

Pros:

- Beautiful emerald green glitter eyechips!

- Pretty faceup with subtle green eyes hadow in the crease, peach blush, and peachy pink lip gloss! Her lashes are painted brown, with added white lashes at the top of her eyes.

- Her lids are painted shimmery green with no eyeliner! Most dolls have a strip of eyeliner near their lash line, but Chloi doesn't have that.

- Gorgeous brown wig! It's soft, and has absolutely no wig netting showing through! Overall, very nice quality wig! (May vary from doll to doll.)

- Extremely detailed stock and accessories!

- Bendable ears are fun to pose and can be used to convey different emotions when posing her for pictures!

- Great working eye mechs! Opens and shuts with no issue and eyes move from side to side with ease! (May vary from doll to doll.)

-Type 4 body!

Cons:

- Headpiece is a hassle to put on her. It slides around easily making it not only an annoyance to position it on her head just right, but the process can mess up her hair a bit.

- Her choker is fastened in place by a ribbon and can become untied easily.

- Her stock has the potential to stain her body.

-  Her dress sometimes slides down and has to be pulled up back into place.

- She is very costly and hard to find. Part of this is because she is a limited edition doll from 2010 and has been long sold out.

- Some parts of her stock are pretty delicate and can tear if you handle them too roughly.

Neutral:

- Her hair doesn't have as much curl to it as her stock photo shows. In person, it looks more like the bottom half of her hair is styled in very loose waves. It still looks very nice though.

- Her shoes are very similar to Bonita's, only green. They are a little loose on her feet but generally seem  to stay in place, partly in thanks to the ankle strap.

The Verdict:

Chloi is stunning and gorgeous! Anyone would be lucky to have her! If not for the price, I would say she is a must-have doll. (Most listings I found have her priced from $350-$470 and above.) However, if you really are set on getting her, my advice to you is to keep looking and shopping around for her until you find a good deal. I found mine on ebay by chance and I bid on her, and to my surprise, no one else placed any bids and I ended up winning her for $200. You never know when you're going to get lucky and stumble across on an amazing bargain!

Pictures of Esmeralda, my Pullip Chloi:

Still in box

Grails!

I am beyond elated because my Pullip Chloi had just arrived today! I had decided to call her Esmeralda, because her eyes glitter and shine just like emeralds! She, along with Helena, my Pullip Bonita, are two of my grails that I thought I wouldn't ever be able to get! I feel so lucky to have gotten such a good deal on them, especially with Chloi, who I had won off of an auction, which, to my surprise, no one else had bid on! To have them both right now is like a dream! If I can just get my hands on Celsiy, my grail collection will be complete!

 To those who are reading this and are in pursuit of your own grail (or grails), I would like to lend you some encouragement. No matter how rare the doll you're looking for, or whether or not your doll is limited edition, do not lose hope! Keep on searching and remain patient, and sooner or later, you will find them for a great deal! Good luck!