Designer Mother Gothel Doll

Today was the day! After waiting since June, today the Disney Villain Designer collection doll arrived that I wanted: Mother Gothel! 

I had been saving my money for this doll and I was so glad that my wait was over! I had been given a sum of money, nearly the complete cost of the doll, from a fellow dance team member as a gift for graduating from graduate school back in June when I learned these dolls were coming out. The rest of the cost of the doll was not hard to come up with and the money waited patiently in a Rapunzel coin bank (of course, right?) for the day to arrive. Today was that day!

I got to the Disney Store early. I had been told a few weeks before that the edition sizes were larger for the Villain collection, in response to the chaos that the Princess collection had caused, and the way in which the dolls were to be distributed would also be different. The person's name would be put into a cauldron. Once all the names had been placed into the cauldron, one would be drawn, then another, and another until they were done. That would be the order in which the dolls would be handed out.

I had not been there for the release of the other dolls, so therefore I did not know if it was going to be crowded and crazy as the Princess collection had been, even though there were measures in place to keep it from happening again. To have fun, and since it was cold, I wore my real hair in a bun and wore my Rapunzel crochet hat.

I placed my name in the cauldron and my fiancee and I killed time walking the mall and having lunch. It would be two more hours before the drawing started. The walking helped to control the excitement that was stirring in me that I would soon have a Designer Mother Gothel doll to go next to my Designer Rapunzel doll.

I had already planned where I was going to put her. I had cleared off a shelf and Rapunzel was waiting on half of it. Mother Gothel would rest on the other half and between them would rest my HM Rapunzel Crown. It was a perfect plan in my head. 

I cannot deny that some part of me was not worried that I would not get a doll. What if they did run out at this location as they had with the Princess Collection before my number was called? I had been assured that everyone there would get a doll, but I was still so concerned. Looking back on it, I was really silly to worry.

At last the names were being called. Several groups of people were gathered to listen for their names. When the first name was called, it turned out to me mine! I laughed and grabbed the voucher then stepped up to the counter to pick up my doll. She came as the Rapunzel one had to me in the mail, in the acrylic case with a hard paper sheath with a bag with the designs of the other Villains on them. As it was with the Princess Collection, there was only one doll I wanted, and now I had her.

As I did with Rapunzel, I loved how Mother Gothel looked. Her hair style was a little odd; a sort of curly-haired beehive, but I suppose it was hard to put such curly hair into a different kind of style on a doll. Her hair ornament, though, was lovely. I could have lived without the leaf addition to the ornament, but the flower was beautiful.

The colors chosen were perfect for the character. The wine red was close to the color she had in the film and went very well with the golden trim and shimmering golden thread that made up the embroidered flower and the fringed train (resemblance to Rapunzel's hair, anyone?)

 

Other than her hair style, which really did not bother me as much anymore as it originally did, the one thing I am not too thrilled about is her pose. What is that? She looks almost as though she is slightly taken back by something, but her arms seem so awkward. I wanted to slide off the case and pose her arms differently, but I resisted. I still may go back in there and twist her lower hand so that it is facing downward to see if that helps reduce some of the oddness.

As with Rapunzel, I am still happy to have Mother Gothel in my collection. She is so much more beautiful in person than my images show, save for that silly pose.

My Rapunzel Limited Edition Collector's Doll Arrived!

MY RAPUNZEL DOLL IS HERE!!!

SQUEEEEE!!!!!!!

 

Okay, deep breath. Must make a post... Calm... calm... calm....

*clears throat.*

When she arrived, I was surprised to see how beat up the box was. Check out those images to your left. See how dented it is? Now, the box was a reused one (props to the seller for being green!) but I am not sure that the box was in -this- bad of shape when it got sent to me. Why do I think this? Well, if this is how the box looked imagine the doll inside. Are you collectors cringing yet? Take a deep breath and let it out. I opened the box, my stomach turning with what I might find inside. I was so worried that the box the doll came in would be destroyed. However, considering how this box looked, the doll's box was not too bad...

There were three noticeable dents in the doll's box, and all of then on the plastic sheets. Thus, there were little white marks on the plastic. *sigh* Well, the box would not be considered mint, but the doll inside was perfectly fine. To the right you can see one the damaged sections of the plastic. I circled them in red. It really is minor and while it would have been nice to have a mint box, I am not fretting too much. I know a lot of collectors who have taken the doll out of the box completely and done all sorts of things with it (in terms of pictures, undressing it, etc.) While my box may not be perfect, at least I hope to keep the doll that way.

The doll, by the way, is beautiful... 

 

Gotta love the reflection of the flash right on her face. The box she came in actually opens real easily without it having to be damaged. The damage would come if you tried to remove the doll from the box, but as I stated before that is not something I am going to do. I was super excited that I was able to open the box and look closer at the details of the doll.

The fabrics of her dress are quite soft. The deep purple details on the skirt are flocked in velvet. There are crystals galore, and I am a girl who loves her crystals. The hair is made of at least two different types of material. Some of the strands are straighter and more blonde while the others are slightly crimped and are more golden to mimic her hair when it glows when she sings in the film. She comes without shoes, since for the majority of the film (you know, the good parts before she was made just another plane-Jane with a horrid hair cut) she does not wear them. In her hand she holds a hair brush. It is perfectly detailed to match the one in the film as well as one that was made into a necklace (which of course I also own!)

The final surprise came when I found out what edition number she was. For some collectors, the closer the number of the doll is to 1, the more valuable she is considered. When I got her, I did not care what number she was, so long as I had her! I had seen dolls on eBay with their numbers in the 3,000 - 5,000 range. The doll's certificate of authenticity was found when I opened the box and it revealed her number:

 1752! It did not mean much to me that she had a low number, but I was amazed to see a doll with this low a number. Had she been in the top ten or even top hundred made I might have been even more excited.

Now, Rapunzel sits on my Tangled shelf with all my other Tangled items; dolls, home made crown, homemade flower, pins, and other items. For now, my collection feels complete, even if it isn't. (I didn't want the wedding doll with her nasty short hair.)

There is another doll coming out in October that I am stalking... Who knows... Maybe she will join my collection as well...

The Collection Grows

In 2010, Disney released an animated movie called Tangled. It was a retelling of Grimm's Rapunzel. While there were some things about the movie I did not like, overall I found it to be a lovely story; heartwarming and visually beautiful to experience.

That same year, the Disney Store released a special edition 17 inch doll for the film. Her attire was slightly different, with elongated sleeves versus the one she actually wore in the film, but this assisted in making the doll more beautiful and more elegant. The doll also has several crystals over the bodice, skirt, trim, and the ends of the pink cording on the bodice. I thought she was beautiful, and I wanted her, given her going rate on eBay ($250 - $700), I figured she was not meant to be. That did not keep me from waiting and watching.

In February 2012, the Disney Store released another version of the Rapunzel doll: the wedding doll. While the gown was lovely and the crown beautiful, her hair was butchered into the ridiculous bob she ended that version of her story with and that turned me off to it completely. I saw the doll in person, looking it over, but the hair was so terrible I could not get past it. I decided then that I did not want the wedding doll and would keep my hope out to get the first released one.

My collection of Rapunzel items grew slowly. The ladies at the local Disney Store began to call me Rapunzel and knew me as that name for the items I bought, the long hat I crocheted, the costume I made, and my own hair (though it does sort of annoy me when women with hair above at least knee-length are called "Rapunzel;" even more so if their hair is only my length [42 inches.]) The ladies would tell me when new things were coming out; when there would be a new this or that. More often than not, they knew what things I did like and what I did not like so they knew what to let me know what was coming out. For example; when the wedding pascal plush came out they let me know, but when something such as children's clothing or more of the accessories and other items came out, it was not brought to my attention.

On June 22, 2012, Disney and Pixar released their new film BRAVE. While my fiancée and I were walking the mall, we stopped in and peeked at the new Merida Limited Edition Doll. One of the ladies at the store asked me if I had seen it (the doll.) I said I had and that while Merida was a lovely doll, I was still hunting down the Rapunzel one from 2010. The lady joked about how she understood how I felt about the doll and me wanting to save my money and put it towards the Rapunzel one: "If this was Mulan," she said, "I would be tossing down my credit card and charging it right then and there!" Leaving the Disney Store, I glanced back at the Merida LE Doll and wondered if I would ever see the Rapunzel I was looking for.

That night, I sat at my computer and I looked over eBay at the Rapunzel dolls. The search was flooded with the wedding dolls that it seems all these people who bought them early to resell at a higher price could not move, and a few of the precious purple-dressed one I was searching for. My funds were limited; I had a certain amount of money I could spend as a gift from my aunt for my graduation. I sighed as I looked at the prices on my purple princess: $715, $635, $330, and so on... all not including the shipping cost. I kept scrolling further and further down the page, not really expecting to see anything... and then there she was.

A listing for the Rapunzel doll I have been looking for for under $170; only a $65 mark up from the original sale price in 2010 from the Disney Store. The person selling her had a 100% positivity rating for nearly 450 sales over their eBay lifetime and was located within the United States (this doll was released worldwide.) As I read over the doll's description it stated she was still in the box and unopened. Her edition number was unknown as the card that tells you that information is inside the box and the person did not want to open it. Further reading revealed why the doll was being sold:

        "I'm currently training for a half marathon and raising $1000 for Alex's Lemonade

        Stand for pediatric cancer research as part of the endeavor.  40% of the purchase

        price for the doll will benefit this very worthy cause (tax-deductible!). :)"

My eyes darted to see how many people had bid on her so far. Five. There were over twenty hours left in the auction. I added it to my watch list and waited. As the time wore down, I kept checking in to see if there were any bidding wars or things that would turn me away and make the dream of finally getting my doll a reality. My anxiety rose as the minutes ticked away and the internet speed in my house started to decline. The page was not refreshing as easily and the countdown clock started to not show the right time; lagging by a few seconds. A few seconds in eBay time is like the difference between life and death.

On eBay I am one of those persons that most people do not like. I refer to myself as a shark. I have dealt with sharks on other items in the past and while I was aggravated about losing those auctions, I could see how effective it was to be a shark. I am not always this way with items I try to get on there, but for things I have been searching years for I am more cut throat. I waited... circled... waited.... circled...

At last, the counter hit under 15 seconds. I entered my bid; a few dollars higher than the price on there and clicked the bid button. It stalled a moment, asking if I was sure, and when I hit yes the timer ran to zero. I was convinced in that moment I had waited too long to act, but as the page refreshed I saw in large text at the top of the screen on a green band: You won this auction.

Shaking like a chihuahua in the snow as the adrenaline coursed through me, I could not believe it. I had my doll and for way, way less than people were trying to mark her up for. Not only that, but she was helping a good cause. Now, the hard part: waiting. Waiting for her to arrive. At least in the mean time, I can make some space on my Rapunzel Collection Shelf for her.

Designer Rapunzel Doll

Those eyelashes make me giggle.

It was a madhouse when Disney released the Designer Princess Collection. The manager at my local Disney Store told me about how much chaos there had been. She said people had run to the store in such a mass that they could hear them coming down the mall before they could see them. People were fighting and dolls were selling out in a few hours on they day they were released.

I had missed the release of the Rapunzel doll because I had to be at my internship that day. When I had gone later to see if the Rapunzel one was still around, I was informed she had sold out the fastest of any of the dolls they had had there at the time. I tried to tell myself she was ugly; tried to say I hated her dress and her pose and everything about her. It was hard to lie to myself.

I haunted eBay for a while to just stare at her and look over the different images people took and used for their sales. I also searched Google images and found myself annoyed at people who not only de-boxed and undressed her, but actually removed her eyelashes and repainted her face. I love OOAK dolls and make a few of my own from the open edition dolls that they sell at the Disney Store, but to use a LE doll for one... it was painful.

One side of the bag.

I continued to look online at persons who had purchased the dolls to sell online. Many people had hiked the price of the doll up and over $500. There was no way I was going to buy a doll for that much money when she had sold for $60 at the store.

I continued to wait and watch and wait some more until I saw the doll listed on eBay for just a tad over her original price. I used my typical technique of watching the auction for it's duration to ensure the bidding did not get out of hand and I managed to pick her up in the last few minutes of the auction.

Waiting for her to arrive was like torture. Waiting for anything you are excited to have coming to you is torture! When she finally arrived, I opened the box and found a folded bag with the other Designer Disney Princesses on it atop an acrylic case shielded by a heavy paper sheath.

The CoA and doll's number.

I was all over the imagery on the box. Three of the four sides were relatively the same; showing various cropped versions of the Rapunzel design with the most ineresting side of the sheath showing croppings of the design with little notes beside them. Once removed, the doll was exposed in all her glory. The back of the acylic case had another image of the Rapunzel design and also contained the CoA with the doll's number.

I loved how Rapunzel looked. I thought the designer rendition of her was adorable, though I am not sure I would have designed the dress she was in. It was definitely different and I am a person who tends to like different. It was one of the nicer dresses in the collection (though I really only disliked Ariel's dress.) I thought the dress had too much pink in it for Rapunzel though. In Tangled the main color of her dress and color scheme was purple with pink accents. They seemed to have reversed the colors for the dress and I was not too sure if I liked that. Further, the gems on her corset-bodice only covered the front. For an LE doll, you would expect them to continue all the way around.

Another thing I did not like about the doll was her choice in accessory. A mirror? Really? A mirror... There was so much in that film that they could have done! She could have held a hair brush, she could have held a small purse in the shape of Pascal, or (my favorite idea) she could have held a lantern or a lantern-shaped purse. Why a mirror? Were they playing on vanity? The mirror did have the same design to it that her hairbrush did in the film, but I think I still would have preferred to to have a different accessory.

Overall, I am still glad that I found her. She will be the only princess from the Designer Princess Collection that I acquire on my own. I would not be against another from the collection as a gift, but she was the only one I wanted.