Review Time! Lottie Dolls' Fossil Hunter Lottie

  Hey! Today is a review post. I have to say beforehand that I took complete unboxing pictures,but they are on my computer. I can get it on as far as the pictures, but no internet. That means I can't send the pictures to Ken, and put them on his computer. I also have a bunch of things to do before I go to Georgia, so I don't have time to retake them. This will have to do.
  I was recently treated to two dolls for review by Arklu, who make Lottie dolls. Today's post is the first of them. Even though I received the dolls for free, I will be honest in my review, and tell you exactly what I think of the doll.
  First, let me tell you a bit about Lottie dolls in case you don't know. Lottie believes in letting kids be kids. I think kids grow up too quickly these days, and Lottie doesn't encourage precociousness with big lipped, over made-up, scantily dressed dolls. The dolls' bodies are "based on the average proportions of a nine year old child rather than an adult woman". The website also says, "Lottie dolls celebrate childhood and promote the empowerment of children by encouraging kids:
*to be themselves
*to play--imaginatively and adventurously
*to have fun!

Kids - in all their glorious, heart-warming and life-affirming diversity - inspire us every day:

• Kids who refuse to be put into boxes
• Kids who aren’t going to wait until they’re grown up, to change the world
• Kids who’ve decided that the moment is now!

And we want to encourage all kids – regardless of gender, ability or ethnicity - to follow all their dreams."    e toys and dolls are one in the same.

   Here's another quote from their website that I love.
"The reason why we have three male dolls in the Lottie Dolls’ collection? We want our toys to be representative of real kids’ lives and have lots of real-life boys and girls have fun playing together! Our boy dollhouse is the same as our girl doll house, all of our boy doll clothes fit our boy and girl dolls. We believe action figure toys and dolls are one in the same."
   I love that they encourage kids to use their imaginations, something I don't think kids do enough in these times of video games and such things. I like that they are dolls that are children. Kids try to be too old now,and having a child doll to see themselves in, rather than an adult, is good for them. Some of their dolls are based on ideas sent in by kids.Another thing about Lottie dolls is, they offer dolls that are not only ballerinas and princesses. Their dolls represent all sorts of things kids might be interested in, and encourage girls to be interested in things usually associated with boys' interests, like today's doll.
  When I was a kid I LOVED dinosaurs. I still do! I was always fascinated by history and science. I considered being a paleontologist or an archeologist  when I was little. That's not common amongst girls though. Girls have traditionally steered away from science and math. It was (stupidly) assumed that females couldn't be as good as males at things like math. These days it's been realized that girls can and should be encouraged to be involved in STEM activities. (STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and math.) The old stereotype is being fought, but sometimes there are backtracks, even in toys.  Remember the controversy over Talking Barbie from the 1990's saying, "Math is tough."?  (For the record, math was my best subject in school. It's not 'tough', it's just boring.)  I like that Lottie encourages STEM interests. (I think the character of Ellie Sattler in "Jurassic Park" probably helped little girls realize they could be a paleo-scientist too.) Fossil Hunter Lottie is an example of a doll that encourages STEM interests.  Her box says she's from the 'Gold Collection'.

I'm not sure what that is. It also has the Lottie slogan, "Be bold. Be brave, Be you." I like that slogan. Everybody should feel they can be themselves. The box has a handle, for carrying. There are little side windows in the box so she and her things can be seen well. The back of the box shows what she comes with. Her box was sealed with two small tape circles, which peeled up easily. The insert slid out with no problem. The shaped plastic that held Lottie was only taped on the back of the insert. What really held Lottie in was elastics around her neck and ankles. They can be broken when pulled, and the feet can be pulled out of the ankle one, so kids won't need scissors. Her accessories were taped to the insert. The plastic bags were taped closed. Easy to open.
 Fossil Hunter Lottie is a kid interested in fossils. To quote "Jurassic Park", she's "a digger". She has her tools: a rock pick...

... a trowel...

...and a magnifying glass.

The best thing about the tiny magnifying glass is, it actually works!

And she has her fossil finds.

  Also included are small cards telling the story of  Mary Anning.

Mary, born in 1799 is described by Wikipedia thus: "an English fossil collector, dealer, and paleontologist who became known around the world for finds she made in Jurassic marine fossil beds in the cliffs along the English Channel at Lyme Regis in the county of Dorset in Southwest England."
  Also included is a paper with information about female paleontologists,

On the back is various information, including advice on hunting your own fossils.

And they can all be carried in Fossil Hunter Lottie's back pack. The back pack is made of felt. It has straps with buckles, but they are just for looks. Seems to me it wouldn't have been much harder to just make the buckles usable. Even as a kid, I liked realism.

The bag closes with Velcro.

On the positive side of that subject, the  backpack has tiny real side pockets, and Lottie's things can actually go inside.

Lottie is 7 1/2 inches tall.

  She wears a blue shirt with a pink insert at the neck, and a picture of her fossil find on the front.    .

She also has khaki cargo shorts.

The pockets on the sides are real, not just for looks. She could really put stuff in them. Small stuff, but stuff.

Both the shirt and the shorts close in the back with Velcro. I like the Velcro Lottie Dolls uses. It's thin, so there's no giant lump on the doll's back,(or between the back pack and flap, for that matter), and yet it holds really well. Why don't all doll manufacturers use this kind?
  Lottie's other large piece of clothing is her vest. It's green, with a yellow lining with white polka dots.

I like most of the clothes on Lottie dolls. They're cute, and well made, and even use cloth with a weave that's actually in scale in most cases. I like the look of this vest, but it doesn't lay well. It wants to hang open and looks too bulky to fit properly. I think it's lining is too thick or something.

Her shoes are brown ankle boots, the type worn for hiking,etc.

She has orange and white striped socks too.

The socks make the boots fit very tightly. They're hard to get on and off. I was afraid I was going to break the doll's leg trying to get her boots back on. (A kid might really do it.) The boots could have done with one of those slits up the back that make them easier to get on and off.
  She has a khaki hat too, It fits on her head well, and stays on.

The doll has a very cute face, with a tan skin tone, big brown eyes, and long, straight, dark hair.

With her big eyes, she reminds me of an anime character.

Lottie dolls don't come with combs or brushes, but this doll's hair is easy to comb. And even I can't mess it up!

Her knees bend, but not much. It would be nice if they could bend a bit more, but this type of doll leg just doesn't. Even Barbie's don't bend much any more. Back when they bent very realistically, the plastic contained dangerous chemicals that made it more pliable. That was stopped, which is a good thing, but that's why they don't bend as well these days. Lottie's legs bend enough for her to look okay sitting down. I guess that's all she needs.

Her legs can also move out to the sides. Her arms swivel too, so she has quite a range of movement with them.

She can wear her backpack, and carry all her stuff in it.

  I wish her arms bent so she could use her accessories better. I don't think kids would have a problem with her though. She offers plenty of play possibilities.
  You can find Fossil Hunter Lottie on their website HERE. All in all, she's a cute doll, with fun accessories, and a great idea behind her. I like her clothes. I like that this doll arrived in a smaller box, with less packing than the Sammi doll I received a few years ago. She's cuter than the blonde Lottie I have. You can see her, and read my review of Junior Reporter Sammi by Lottie Dolls HERE.  I still think the $24.99 price is a bit high for a small doll and accessories, but the reason could be that the company is based in Ireland. The unusual themes of some of the dolls make the price seem more worth it. I would have bought this doll for Fuzzy way back when. Of course, what would have happened would have been that Fuzzy's Fuzzy the Doll would have stolen the accessories.
  To read more about the story behind Lottie dolls click HERE. You can go to the Lottie Dolls website HERE. Sign up with your email and receive updates about new doll releases. Your kids will be allowed to take part in competitions and suggest ideas for new dolls, accessories, and activities, Your child can also receive free printables weekly. Click HERE to join Club Lottie for free printables, offers, and news. Click HERE to read the Lottie blogs, with some good insight on why more childlike and diverse dolls are healthy for kids. 
  That's this review finished! I hope you enjoyed it. I was trying to get things done early because I had to leave for Georgia to help Lori move.. I was worried I wouldn't get the month's play set post in time, or the Doll Book of the Month Club post done before I left, since I would be gone when it was due to be posted But I worked my butt off, and got all three posts done before I left, and scheduled them to go on while I was gone. Then, of course, none of them posted like they were supposed to. but now I am all caught up. There will be another review post  soon, a post on my Georgia adventures, and very soon, a review of the latest from Maru and Friends. Stay tuned!