Dear Readers,
As mentioned in my earlier posts, I will write about my first Licca Castle dolls!
Licca Casle dolls are manufactured at Licca Castle in Fukushima (about 4 hours by bus from Tokyo). They are not available at toy stores like other TAKARA and TAKARA TOMY Licca dolls. They are available at Licca Castle events held in major cities. The colorful-haired Castle dolls (the ones I purchased) are not sold online, and are only available at Licca Castle and their events.
As mentioned in my earlier posts, I will write about my first Licca Castle dolls!
Licca Casle dolls are manufactured at Licca Castle in Fukushima (about 4 hours by bus from Tokyo). They are not available at toy stores like other TAKARA and TAKARA TOMY Licca dolls. They are available at Licca Castle events held in major cities. The colorful-haired Castle dolls (the ones I purchased) are not sold online, and are only available at Licca Castle and their events.
I never thought I would like a blue-haired and pink-haired doll but I immediately liked them when I saw them on the Etsy shop!
Each doll came in a separate bag. Included in the bag are:
- A dress
- A hat
- A pair of shoes
- A pair of earrings
- A hairbrush
- A certificate
The certificate is like a Thank You Note from Licca: "Thank you for visiting Licca Castle today. I'm glad that you made a pretty doll. She will be your good friend."
The reason the word "MADE" is mentioned is because at Licca Castle, you can choose a doll, dress, earrings, shoes and hat to make your own doll. The certificate is only given at Licca Castle in Fukushima.
I noticed the hair of the Licca Castle dolls are a lot silkier and smoother to the touch than the other regular Licca dolls.
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| I am suddenly thinking about Cousin It for seam reason... |
Another difference is their facial features. The regular Licca doll bought in store looks very similar to the Licca Castle doll but here is a close-up of their face so you can see the slight differences. Licca Castle seems to have fuller lips, and bigger, rounder eyes. The face mold seems to be the same but the make-up is different.
Their body looks also similar except for the brand which you can find on the back of the Licca dolls. On the back of Licca Castle are the words: "TAKARA JAPAN".
My two Licca Friends dolls bought from an online toy store in Japan has the mention "© TOMY MADE IN CHINA" on their back. Below is Sakura-chan's back.
My Licca student doll was bought from an online store from Hong Kong and on her back are the words: "TAKARA CHINA".
Apart from the words on their back, their hair texture and their facial make-up being different, I don't know if there is other differences between the dolls. They have the same proportion and their body look the same to me. Some say the dolls in China have harder arms and head but I have not noticed to be honest.
I was curious to see if the clothes would have the same kind of tags too so here are the difference.
The Castle Licca dress has a tag saying: "Licca Castle Made in China".
I was curious to see if the clothes would have the same kind of tags too so here are the difference.
The Castle Licca dress has a tag saying: "Licca Castle Made in China".
The clothes I bought from the Licca Collection from a Japanese online store has this marking instead: "MADE IN CHINA ; TAKARA TOMY ®".
I love the concept of choosing a dolls characteristics, I think that is why the American girl became so popular. They are lovely dolls ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks Jane. I think personalization adds a lot of appeal to the dolls. But they do have quite a large selection and there are many dolls I like very much! Ah which to choose!
DeleteI LOVE these dolls! I love the pink and blue hair! Lucky you!
ReplyDeleteI am eyeing the red-haired one too but she is further down the list of my other priority dolls ^_^ Hopefully I'll get her one day!
DeleteWhat darling dolls, Jane Cherie! You must be over the moon with happiness! xo Jennifer
ReplyDeleteOh I am Jennifer! I really had never imagined I could have owned one of these dolls!
DeleteHello from Spain: Licca is very cute. I like her long hair in pink . You have a great collection.. Keep in touch
ReplyDeleteThanks Marta! My collection is really tiny though!
DeleteThey are very pretty!! I even like the coloured hair, it seems to soften them, that and the different make-up. I can imagine you are very happy. Cherish them well ;-)
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Véronique
Thanks Veronique! I am quite pleased with them! Very unusual colors for hair and I am so so conservative with my dolls LOL but I like this splash of fantasy in these dolls!
DeleteI'm just crazy about dolls =) And these are very cute! I love the eyes!! I collect Vintage Barbie dolls, and several new ones too ;) But I thought I had stopped that, I haven't got the space for them.. but I might have to buy a doll like this too... even do I'm crowded by doll houses and Barbie dolls all ready =)
ReplyDeleteHannah
Hi Hannah! Space is a big problem for me too! >.< I would love to have a room just for my dolls and dollhouses!
DeleteThank you for all the pictures, especially the close up of the two faces and describing the differences between them! They are so different and sometimes it's hard to say just why - the thin lips and flat eyes of the doll on the left? or the skin tone and blush of the doll on the right? The doll on the right is cuter in just about every way, you would almost have to say her eyes are bigger, not just clearer - both her lips and eyes are bigger and it makes a big difference in how sweet she looks.
ReplyDeleteThank you Susan for your comment! I think the details indeed do make the Licca doll sweeter and more attractive!
DeleteI know this post is over 2 years old, but I want to say thank you for the comparison. I bought a Licca castle doll and was thrilled with the quality, I love everything except for the limited movements of the body. So I bought a separate Licca head and an Azone body, intending to create a perfect doll. This time I was disappointed and thought might be I bought a fake Licca head since it was similar but not the same, and the quality is significantly lower. At least now I know I didn't buy a fake. Will have to buy a new Licca castle doll to harvest her head, though.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment Mia! I am glad you found my post useful. I hope you can get a better doll next time! I usually keep my Licca with their body except for two for which I use a Pure Neemo body and an Obitsu body.
DeleteHi Jane Cherie :-)
ReplyDeleteMay I kindly ask if your Licca Castle dolls had a terrible smell? I also bought one from Found In Japan, and the unpackaged doll smells so INTENSELY strongly of plastic and vinyl. So do some of the shoes that I bought in the same order. Is this normal?
I put the smelly shoes on one of my Blythes for half an hour, and now the smell seems to be permanently attached to my Blythe o_O.
So bizarre.
I've never bought a Licca before, so I thought I'd ask you. I hope you can spare a moemnt to reply :-)
Hello, no it's not normal. My dolls didn't smell anything. I didn't buy another doll from "Found in Japan" since 2014 though. I don't know anymore what dolls they sell nowadays. I am buying occasionally Licca dolls from Amazon and Ebay but not Licca Castle dolls though. Sorry you had such a bad experience. Maybe you can air the doll and shoes outside to get rid of the smell? I noticed that when I bought dolls from a smoker's house before, there would be a smell too so I usually air out my doll outside (in the shade and not in the direct sun or heat) and the smell will go away! Good luck!
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