Loft to Love

Dear Readers,

How was your weekend?  I had a day off on Monday because it was Labor day!  I met with my relatives for lunch and then I stopped at Target to buy a few things (you can't go to Target without buying something...) and then I saw this fantastic dollhouse!

It's called the Loft To Love or the Lori Dollhouse made by OG.  It's intended for 6 inch (15.24 cm) dolls and include a kitchen set and working lights in the kitchen.  To learn more about this dollhouse and the Lori dolls, you can go to LoriDolls.com (however, the website does not seem to be working yet).

The dollhouse does not come with any dolls or other pieces of furniture.  The pricing is as follows:

Dollhouse: $49.99

Each furniture sets: $12.99

Each doll: $9.99

Each doll outfit: $6.99

I only bought the dollhouse and one set of furniture.  I will explain why later.

The dollhouse itself has a very modern design.  Two floors plus a rooftop patio.  It seems made of medium-density fibreboard (MDF) (I don't know for sure, I am just guessing) with wallpapers on the outside.  I think the wallpaper would get damaged easily it it gets wet but it is sturdy enough for children to play with.

I love how it comes with a kitchen!  All the appliances are completely removable and all drawers do open.  The ceiling has two lamps that work with batteries.

I have always been looking for a dollhouse that would fit my Strawberry Shortcake dolls!  She looks a little small for that kitchen though.

Here below is a photo of other dolls for size comparison.  It think the Chelsea and Picco Neemo dolls are the right size for this dollhouse.

The dollhouse comes with a catalog with a few pictures of the furniture sets and dolls.

I didn't really like the furniture sets except for the desk set and the patio set (which I will try to find tomorrow).   The living room furniture were very simple and I didn't really like the colors.  And I already had a bed set that could fit for this dollhouse so I only bought the desk set.

Chelsea is perfectly to scale with this dollhouse and the furniture.

Here below are some views from outside the house to show you how it looks. 

I like this dollhouse very much because it is sturdy and the design is really modern!  The stairs are a big hit with the children!

I didn't buy the dolls because I already had other dolls at home that would fit this dollhouse but they seem very nice and well made!  The extra outfits (sold separately for $6.99) is a nice touch! 

There were also a ballet studio and a trailer van made by the came company but I didn't get them.  It was however very tempting because it looked so beautiful!  I think this new line of dolls will become very successful and I hope they come up with more sets in the future!

Disclaimer: All opinions are my own. I was not paid or received gifts to write this or mention any store or website.  

miWorld Mrs. Fields Cookie Shop

Dear Readers,

This weekend was over in a blink.  I really wanted to make a full review of the miWorld Mrs. Fields Cookie Shop because so many people had requested information about it.  I squeezed in as many pictures as I could take in-between cooking, cleaning and watching the kids.  Anyhow, I wished I had more time to do it but many projects are scheduled so this will be a very concise review!  

Dimensions: 7 3/4 inches wide and 8 inches tall (or 19.5 cm wide and 20 cm tall).

The counters and stool were in between 1:12 scale and 1:6.

The food items were a little bigger than 1:12 scale.  They are comparable to a lot of the Re-ment minis I have but not as detailed and are made from rather flimsy plastic.  The trays and cookies are very very thin (as in almost flat).  

The set is packaged very securely in a colorful cardboard box with pictures of other mall sets.

The content is listed on the front of the box: 2 wall pieces, 1 floor piece, 31 accessory pieces.

 The side of the box gives a more detailed account of the content:

• 12 chocolate chip cookies
• 6 sugar butter cookies
• 1 plate
• 1 hot chocolate cup
• 1 cookie cake
• 1 cookie display and display cover
• 3 cookies trays
• 1 cash register
• 1 display counter and display cover
• 1 counter
• 1 bar stool
• 2 walls / 1 base

Not mentioned on the box but it should be noted: there are stickers provided to complete the look.  Those stickers do not stay put and they come off constantly while I was taking pictures. 

VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WITHOUT IT, THERE WILL BE A GAP BETWEEN THE WALLS: there is a tiny piece to connect the top of the walls.  Included is also a long piece to be used if you want to connect another store to yours.

Content is packaged tightly inside the box.

And here is what it looks like once set up.  It looks pretty but do you notice something?

My set is INCOMPLETE!  The cookie cake, hot chocolate cup, 2 chocolate chip cookies and 1 sugar cookies ARE MISSING FROM MY PACKAGE!  And I am sure it didn't roll down the floor because I emptied the content in the box itself to make sure I would not lose any piece. - UPDATE: THE MISSING ITEMS WERE IN THE BOX GLUED to the outside shell!  Look at my 2nd picture in the clear round bubble! Silly silly me! >.<

But fortunately for me, I did buy two Collector Packs ($2.99 each) when I purchased the Cookie Shop.  Each pack contains different items to complete your Cookie Shop.

One pack had 6 triple chocolate cookies, a bag, a pumpkin chiller (the cup with the cream on top), and the other pack had one cookie cake, a box to go and 2 small hot chocolate cups.

Now my set looks somewhat more complete.  The set is fine but the bar stool is useless because it's so flimsy.  Nothing can sit on it or it would topple over (well except maybe a tiny minuscule item like a micro lalaloopsy).

Here is a close-up.  Can you see how thin those cookies are?

But the most pressing question: how does it look with dolls in it?  Here below are pictures that will speak for themselves.

It won't fit well with the  Sylvanian Families :/

This Mimiworld doll is so cute with this background!

Yikes!

Don't mind Stacie's weird pose.  It was the only wait to make her stand.

Miki-chan and Maki-chan are a good size for this store.

Princess Tulip is grumpy: "You already know I am too small for this..."

Poor Madeline is much too big!

It's getting more interesting now.  Can you imagine a big mall for those darling Strawberry Shortcake dolls?  This is a perfect setting for them!  

Ah jackpot!  Of all the dolls, the one that suits this set the most is a Picco Neemo from Azone that I had paired with a Little DAL's head (do you recognize Lady Foxy)?

I apologize for her terrible hair day but I hurriedly put her on that body so I could show you the size comparison.  She didn't even have clothes of her own yet so I grabbed a Kelly dress because it was the only thing that seemed to fit her.

Overall, I am happy with the miWorld Mrs. Fields Cookie Shop.  For $14.99, you get a colorful room box and actual furniture and miniature food.  But let's see the pros and cons in detail.

Pros:

• Affordable price
• Very easy setup
• Nice counters
• Glossy stickers
• Colorful walls 
• Great for 5-6 inches dolls
• Accurate miniature of the shop

Cons:

• Incomplete package (my bad, I found them!)
• Flimsy bar stool
• Cheap plastic miniature
• Stickers do not stay put

Would I buy another set?  I would.  I want to try a set which has a chair and not a bar stool to see if it would be better.  Apart from the missing items, it was a very nice roombox full of realistic-looking minis.  The counters alone can be very useful for other dioramas, especially if you don't use the stickers and leave them blank.

When I was a teenager, my favorite place to meet up with my friends was the mall.  I have no doubt children would love to re-create the mall environment with these mini sets.  My own niece has bought her own this weekend.

I have a few dolls that don't fit in any 1:12 or 1:6 scale diorama so the miWorld Mall is a very good option.  I am thinking about gifting them to my daughter who loves Strawberry Shortcake so much.  But it will have to wait until she is at least 7 years old (which is the recommended age) because I think this set is too detailed for her now.

From the point of view of a miniature collector, I am not too impressed by the cheap quality of the trays and cookies but I feel I got what I paid for so I am not disappointed.

The scale is totally strange and it does not fit many of my dolls.  But it will fit my Picco Neemo and other 5-6 inches dolls like the Ai-Dolls and other BJD tiny dolls.  In case you are wondering,  I could not feature my Ai-Doll Phlox today because I couldn't get her to wear her dress (I'll talk about that another day LOL).

I hope my review was helpful to you and will answer some of the questions you had concerning this miWorld miniature mall.  So what do you think after you saw the pictures and read my post?  Will you go ahead and buy it for yourself (or for your children)?


EDIT: I looked over my pictures this morning and noticed the cookie cake and missing items in front of the package in the clear plastic bubble!!!  After work I checked the box again sure enough, it was still glued to the outside of the box in that clear bubble!  How silly of me!

Disclaimer: All opinions are my own. I was not paid or received gifts to write this or mention any stores or website. You may find a better store in your area.