apple white – Dolls On A Whim

First there were Monster High dolls, but Mattel has done it again. They continue to produce high quality doll lines with exquisite detail and high grade fashion, mixed with top-notch aesthetic execution. If you’ve seen any of the Monster High dolls (or watched the webisodes online), you’ll see similarities in the quality of the dolls as well. No big surprise since Mattel launched Ever After High (or EAH for simplicity) as a spin-off web series to Monster High, but I’m pleased they are holding the line on what makes up a quality doll. Both doll lines are fantastic. They specialize in detail and quality in all the key doll features: clothes, hair, and accessories. Now it comes down to, do you like monsters or fairy tales? (I like both!)

Now about Miss White, the star of this doll post. Apple White is a bubbly and optimistic “Royal” who dutifully serves the Tradition of all fairy tales that have come before her. She is in line to be the next Snow White, after all, so there is some pressure for her to live up to her mother. At this point, she serves as Study Body President at her school, Ever After High (EAH), where she learns proper princess etiquette and how to mingle with her subjects. Overall, she is kind to everyone, even commoners, and she maintains an attitude that everything will work out just as it should.

Mattel Ever After High Apple White Royally Ever After queen

Future Queen Apple White. Apparently to become queen one must straighten their hair to be taken seriously?

Apple does not wish the Storybook of Legends to be changed and tries to convince her “Rebel” friend, Raven Queen, to follow the footsteps marked out for her– a destiny that will make Raven the next Evil Queen, thus fulfilling Apple White’s story to come. A trifle selfish I think, especially when Apple benefits and Raven must become the monster who is ultimately defeated. But this is only the beginning of their story…

Hair, face, & makeup:

Though Apple White is fair in most ways, her hair veers away from the stereotypical black of “Snow Whites” before her. Instead, she has a full head of bouncy blonde curls that fall down the length of her back. It could be she inherited them from her father? The hair type is soft and mostly manageable–possibly made of Kanekalon or nylon. As with most curly-haired dolls, I did not brush it much in order to keep the factory curls intact. As it happened, what little brushing I did perform seemed to loosen the curls a bit.

As the stereotype continues, this Apple White doll is no exception to the fair skin typical of her royal lineage. She as the fairest plastic of them all! Though it is a bit vampire-esque, her ivory color does contrast well with the red of her lips and her entire ensemble. Some stereotypes are fun to emphasize and too classic to change.

Ever After High dolls all have a distinctly broad-shaped face, as opposed to the thinner, gaunt type of Monster High doll faces. I’m not sure why Mattel decided on “cherub” shaped features. Maybe they wanted to differentiate the two doll lines? The wider EAH faces do look softer, maybe to compliment the childish fairy tale theme. So, other than some chubby cheeks, there are other features of note, such as the beautiful makeup decals.

Apple’s eyes are large, round, and loaded with black eyelashes. Her irises are blue, but there is a hint of purple along the top of each eye to give the impression of a lidded shadow. Her eye shadow might be called the “smokey” look, starting with a silver lining from the inner corners over the eyelid, then tapering into a charcoal hue around the outer corners. The tell-tale color of her lips are indeed red, but not the traditional ruby red. The doll designers maintained a subdued medium red-almost-pink color, instead of a striking bolder red. A wonderful additional detail is the three silver dots on her bottom lip to emulate reflective lip gloss. This character may be the next stereotypical Snow White, but she’s not garish by any means. When you’re a high-schooler (as she is) you make it your business to know popular beauty and fashion trends.

Clothes:

Apple White’s clothing style is a bouncy knee-length dress with stockings and stiletto heels. Around her torso is a gold and white plaid bolero with a turned-out high collar and puffy short sleeves. Very “imperial queen”. Underneath is a bright red top with a black fringe across the neckline. This top is sleeveless and stops right at her waist where it connects to the fancy, flouncy skirt.

The dress skirt is where her outfit really stands out. It is evocative of an apple shape. One might say the dual-layered skirt was inspired from a blossoming flower or perhaps the outer peel of an apple. The top skirt layer is fringed with the same black lace as that of the bodice. This layer also echoes the plaid patterns of the bolero and has added white abstract filigree. The bottom layer of the skirt is a deeper red and is adorned in gold royal-patterned filigree.

Underneath the dress are full length black fishnet stockings that cover down over her toes. Apple’s stilettos are another intricate item on this doll. They are bright red in color with three gold straps topped with yet more bows. (At this point I think only those of the “Goldie Locks” tradition could rival her for sheer number of bows.) The heels are apple-shaped (complete with a stem and leaf mold) and sit high on what appear to be drill-shaped stiletto spikes? A very intriguing shape. Some metaphor having to do with drilling to the apple core?

Accessories:

This Apple doll comes with a number of awesomely-detailed accessories. Starting from the top is the crown headband– an interesting contemporary twist. I believe Apple may have called it her “casual tiara”. The golden crown is evocative of European royalty, as evidenced by its bulbous shape. Centered in front of the crown is a red bow, both of which are attached to a red headband. Perfect for a modern princess.

The charming bow theme continues into her earrings and ring. Both accessories are topped with a large golden bow. The earrings each have a golden ball ornament hanging from the bow. Very sweet.

Apple’s golden necklace seems to be a mish-mash of balls and other abstract pieces. Not one of Mattel’s finer EAH accessories. Screen caps from the webisodes suggest that her necklace is actually multi-layered and is made up of many strands. The doll’s necklace, however, appears to have been left in a kiln to melt… There is at least one distinctive detail on this accessory– the bow attached to one side of the necklace.

The bracelet is without much embellishment. It could almost be considered a bracer due to its width. Also gold in color (as is the continuing theme of high royalty), it is lightly studded on each end.

The most outstanding accessory piece has to be the red apple-shaped purse she carries. With all those studs I wouldn’t be surprised if she used it as a weapon! It is spherical all the way around. The purse does not actually open, but its purpose is clear. Apple would probably store apple-scented perfume and lip gloss inside if she could.

Last there is the stand and the brush, both done in a gold tone. I included them as accessories because both are of high quality, more so than ordinary doll stands or brushes. Both have the EAH logo, or a piece of the logo, brandished on the facing. This particular gold stand is primarily for “Royal” students at Ever After High (silver is seen more often with “Rebel” EAH students). The shape of the stand’s base is the exact logo in its entirety. The brush is done very well and is in the shape of a key. It’s all part of the “unlock your own destiny” theme of this franchise. The key shape and detailing are fairly ornate. It’s a great accessory piece to add to the doll line. A very clever memento to throw in.

Additional Details:

As with Monster High, the Ever After High dolls all have a great range of articulation–eleven points to be exact. However, with Hunter Huntsman I have found that he has two additional points of articulation, one in each of his ankles. So generally, the female dolls seem to be missing the ankle joints, but high heels come at a sacrifice I suppose. Speaking of which, with a greater number of articulation points comes the problem of loose joints. There are usually at least one or two joints that have been loose in about half of my EAH dolls. I’ve noticed posing can be a problem, especially trying to balance an item on the arms. The degree to which the joints can turn is high. Some joints like the elbow and wrist can pivot in 360 degrees. Others like the knee turn side to side, about 180 degrees. The neck can twist 360 as well of course, but when it comes to up and down movement it is very limited. Bummer.

And also due to the similarity of the Monster High dolls, clothes and even body parts can generally be exchanged between the two doll lines. I have heard depending on the mold type this may not always be the case. Some dolls are a little broader, taller, or shorter and this can make a difference in whether a shirt fits or an arm is proportional to the doll’s height. As far as I can tell, this Apple White doll is an average doll in the series standing at approximately 10.5 inches. She is not of the shorter female model (like Madeline Hatter or Lizzie Hearts) and is not of the taller model (like Cerise Hood or Duchess Swan).