Marguerite Grace Thomas

I'm kind of struggling on where to start for this one. Hmmmmm.

I'm really not a fan of changing dolls' names if they come with one. It's a personal preference but I kind of feel like when I buy a doll I'm buying the whole package. Personality, looks, name; it all comes together. But when I bought this year's Girl of the Year I knew that the name would have to go. We already have a Grace here and I really can't see any other doll as my Grace. So I would like to introduce you to the newest member of our little gang here. Marguerite Grace Thomas:

Or Maggie for short!

Now the name Grace is part of why I bought her. My middle name is Grace and it was my grandmother's name so it's pretty special to me! I just can't have two. So Maggie it is!

Here is Maggie in the box. Her book was in the usual plastic holder. I haven't started it yet (I've been busy with my bad book club and haven't had a chance) but I really like the cover art!

I did order her with pierced ears. So they shoved her earring package under the book and between her legs!

I like this set of earrings:

It comes with Eiffel Tower dangles, a pair of heart studs and a pair of bow studs. The bows are my favorite!

I assumed that they would use one of the pairs of studs in the package after they pierced her ears. But she actually came with an additional pair of heart studs:

I was pleasantly surprised! Also I know there were a bunch of rumors about her earrings being a different size from the normal ones but as far as I can tell they aren't. I tested this with Mia Wren and they were able to swap earrings easy.

Maggie also comes with a charm bracelet:

I LOVE this. It comes with 6 charms: a french bulldog, a suitcase, a macaroon, the Eiffel Tower, a postcard and a heart that says Paris on it.

It sits perfectly on her little wrist:

Like I said up there, I love this thing. I have a fascination for charm bracelets so this was a win before I even got my hands on it. That being said, it's really nice. It's got a good weight, the clasp is pretty easy in my opinion, and the charms are well made and well painted. I don't see any defects on mine! Total win!

Here is Maggie out of the box with her hairnet still on:

And finally with with the hairnet off, hair brushed and charm bracelet secured:

I love her hair.

It's very smooth and shiny. She's got these adorable, side swept bangs which I think work well with her face. As far as the style goes I'm not a huge fan of the braid, just because I know that section will be kinked when I take it out, but still I think it's cute.  The thing I love most about Maggie's hair is the color!

She's got this lovely dark brown hair with thick streaks of caramel.

It's hard to photograph and it's not like glaringly obvious from far away but it adds so much depth and richness to her hair. Seriously, her hair reminds me of a caramel filled brownie. Very appropriate for her!

Maggie has light blue eyes and freckles! She, like Mia, has a unique freckle pattern. Below you can see her freckles with Kit's (representing the standard pattern) and Mia:

They are smaller than Mia's and more uniform in shape but they spread across her nose and cheeks. Unlike Kit's, who are mostly at the sides of her nose and across her cheeks. It's a small difference but I like them!

Maggie also has some pretty unique eyebrows! The closest to them I could find in my collection are Kaya's eyebrows:

But still, Maggie's are a lot thicker. I really like them! I think they give her some more personality.

Maggie's Meet Outfit is pretty simple. We'll start with the shirt:

It's a white t-shirt with the Eiffel Tower and some glitter, among other things.

It has a tag on the sleeve that said Grace and American Girl.

The skirt is dark pink. It's almost a mauve? And it is very soft.

It's decorated with a black, faux leather bow:

And has an elastic waist:

It also has a Grace tag in the back:

They started doing these tags with Isabelle and I was surprised when they continued it with Grace. She's not a fashion designer after all, but I think I like it. If just because it makes knowing what outfits belong to her easier.

She comes with a pair of plain pink panties with white elastic:

No symbol but that's okay. The only complaint I have with these is that I kind of had a hard time figuring out which side was the front when I went to put them back on. Otherwise they're perfectly fine!

I really like her boots:

They are soft grey ankle boots with cute little bows:

They have a hard sole and slip on and off. They're well constructed and just stiff enough that getting them on and off is easy!

I also purchased "Grace's Welcome Gifts." This set includes a beret, Eiffel Tower cookies, a bouquet of pink flowers, a box of macaroons and three post cards.

We'll start with the beret:

It's pink felt decorated with an embroidered heart and sequins:

I mostly got this set to get the beret and to be honest I don't like it. I mean it's okay but I don't like how it sits on her head and I think that Ivy's beret is better. But it completes her outfit so I got it!

The Eiffel Tower cookies are in an adorable mesh bag with a bow. I wanted to take one out but I know I'd never get that bow back in place!

The bouquet is cute. It's bunch of pink roses wrapped in a paper cone. I like the dots on the paper but I don't feel that its really durable. I see this thing getting destroyed pretty fast in the hands of a kid!

The macaroons come in a nice little box:

It does open:

Which is something I liked a lot!

The macaroons come out:

But all in all are kind of disappointing. They are well painted and well sculpted but they are also one big piece. That kind of cuts down on the play value for me; though I do understand that separated they would be easy to lose and choking hazard. Maybe if the box didn't open I would like them better but it was like oh cute box! OH! It opens! Eh, it's one piece. It's just okay.

I was really surprised but this, but my favorite things in this whole set are the postcards!

There are three postcards. Each one has a different picture on the front. And!

Each one has a different message written on the back!

They are written to her grandparents and her friends. They also have different stamps and addresses! I don't know why but I just think these things are SO cute! I love all the details. Easily my favorite part!

Here are a few pictures of Maggie:

Outside with the leaves I need to rake!

Here is her pretty face:

With her very bright pink lips!

And one more outside:

All things considered, I really love this doll! I like that she bakes, because I love to bake! I love that we (now) share a middle name. I love that she has new freckles and new eyebrows. I especially love her hair. Her jewelry is amazing and the earrings were worth the extra money to me. I like her outfit and....okay maybe I have a slight geeky confession. Maggie is exactly what the daughter of my favorite crack X-Men ship (Cyclops and Husk) would look like. Yeah, I'm really glad I got her!

Now I'm a little more ambivalent about the welcome gifts. I'm glad I got them because I'm a completest but at the same time I really wish I had just got the beret off of E-bay. Then again I enjoyed playing with the post cards. But still, I would say if you're an adult collector don't bother with the welcome gifts. They're just okay.

I really like the rest of the collection for Grace and will be getting most if not all of the clothing. So look forward to that! Next time however we will be talking about a new project! My sister/bff sent me her Lissie for a makeover and you can read her post all about sending Lissie to me here. I'm so excited to get started! Till then!