Pullip My Melody (Pink Version) Review

Easter seems like an appropriate time to finally finish this review on Pullip My Melody Pink Version. I was able to add her to my collection in July 2023. I unboxed her last Easter, and this review has been in my drafts since then. Formerly, I have been somewhat apologetic about not publishing reviews quickly enough after getting a new doll, as if I was somehow obligated to do so. However, now I think delays like this might even be beneficial: in addition to first impressions, I can share my actual experiences, for example, if I have encountered any problems with the doll or the materials. However, for My Melody, that is not the case – I have not experienced any problems with the doll, and I adore her equally as much as when I first got her. 

My Melody Pink Version was one of those releases that instantly piqued my interest when I got back to doll collecting after a hiatus. Her face-up is so pretty and expressive, and My Melody is one of my favourite Sanrio characters, along with Kuromi and Cinnamoroll. Additionally, despite being a relatively new release at the time, she was already very popular, and I saw so many cool customized dolls of this model.   

Unboxing 

My Melody still in her box

All the My Melody details on the box are so cute!

More details on the side of the box; the box design features even the gingham pattern of the dress!

The text on the back promises great attention to detail and mentions pink and light blue ribbon motif, ears on the headdress, and ribbons on the eyechips. 

Face-up 

Her make-up's colour palette mainly consists of hues of warm brown, with vivid pink lips and blush standing out. The lips are glossy and are painted with a gradient effect. There is heavy blush on the cheeks and also some on the chin and forehead, making the face-up look lively and cute. Her expressiveness is what really makes her stand out: upward turning eyebrows paired with the heavy blush, a puppy- or doe-like droopy eyeliner, and general softness of the eye make-up give her a memorable, innocent and gentle look.

Her eyechips are black with dark purple bows in the middle. I am glad the bows are not too prominent: while they are on point for My Melody's character, the dark eyes play well into her innocent, doe-eyed look. This effect would be lost if the bows were too distracting or flashy.  

Half-closed eyes: I feel this setting makes her look even more calm and gentle

The eyelids are pink and have bows and hearts painted on them. I must confess that I have not always been that keen on patterned eyelids: I found them pretty and admired the super-detailed paintwork on some custom dolls, but did not think they were something that would fit into my collection, if that makes sense. However, so many of my favourite releases have them that I have had to change my opinion on them, haha. 

Wig 

She has a bob cut, curled toward the back of the head, and longer, curly pigtails. The pigtails imitate the look of droopy bunny ears, which I think is fun and creative: this way the doll's head can maintain the same bunny-like "silhouette" even without the headdress. The wig is on the thinner side, with the net showing, for example, near the pigtails, but it could be much worse. The overall quality of the wig seems good, and the fiber feels soft and silky.

Bows

The bows are attached to the wig by simply pushing the ends of a wire into the pigtails. They can be used to cover the elastics and thread used in the pigtails, but then, on the other hand, the wires are more difficult to hide. (However, I have had this same problem with many stock hair clips on Pullip dolls, so I am starting to question if this is just a skill issue, haha.) I think this could have been improved by using pink wire that matches the wig colour instead of grey.

 Outfit

In addition to bows for her wig, she comes with a headdress, cape, dress, apron, tights, shoes, plushie, the collector's card, and the stand. 

 

Full outfit

I am very happy with her stock clothes: they are carefully designed, and the quality is great. A variety of fabrics and textures is used, and different materials are matched beautifully, such as the light pink velour used on both the headdress and the cape. In addition to matched textures, there are other repeating motifs in her outfit, like beads on the apron and cape, blue bows on the headdress, dress, and shoes, and cohesive colour scheme across all pieces. Many different kinds of frills and laces are used, and there are not any quality issues such as poorly finished off threads. All the materials feel thoughtfully selected, high-quality, and well-suited for their purpose, which I greatly appreciate.

Headdress

Her headdress is probably my favourite piece in her whole outfit! The inner side is made of the same gingham-patterned fabric used in the dress and it is adorned with several layers of lacy frills, while the outer side is made of the same pastel pink velour as her cape and is similarly embellished with beads. I love the large bows and the bunny ears! The ears have wires inside, allowing their shape and position to be adjusted. 

What I truly appreciate is that the creators have taken some creative freedom with the character design, focusing on certain characteristics and not trying to recreate the whole design, for example, My Melody's hood. Changing the hood into headdress and cape allows to capture the essence of My Melody's character even better than strictly following original character design would have, while still preserving the most important aspects of the character (like the bunny ears).  

Cape

The cape is made of the same light pink velour decorated with frills and beads as the headdress. This creates unity across these pieces, mimicking My Melody's hood. The hood is one of the crucial features of My Melody, along with pink colour, either flower or bow accessories, and – most importantly – that she is a bunny. Adapting some characteristics to something new like this while keeping the inspiration and references to the original character obvious is what makes the doll's design great in my opinion. 

Apron

The apron is decorated with lace, ruffles, and beads, and on the back, there is a large bow that covers the velcro fastening. While I like the apron a lot, I also appreciate that there is an option to wear the dress without it which adds versatility to the outfit.

Dress

The fabric of the dress has a gingham pattern with bow motifs. There are flower-shaped faux buttons on the collar, and her bunny tail is sewn onto the back of the dress. There are in total four different types of lace used in the dress, and the built-in petticoat's organza ruffles peak out from underneath, making the hem look extra frilly and layered. 

Shoes and tights 

I like how the creators have been committed to repeating the motifs also in the shoes, but to be honest, they might be my least favourite part of the outfit. The shoes are slightly oversized, chunky, and feel a bit cluttered with details. I think less would have been more here: simple shoes with a clear, elegant silhouette, and maybe one or two real ribbons would have worked better, in my opinion. On the other hand, sturdy rubber shoes are less likely to break apart, so I can see that playing a part in design choices.

The tights have a ribbed pattern and feel durable. They are nice, simple and versatile, which makes them very borrowable for my other girls (my dolls live in a communal household :P).

Plushie 

I always think plushies are a lovely addition to doll's stock accessories. However, I am not entirely convinced by the fabric choices for this one. The microfibre fabric used for the face and body makes the plushie look a bit flat. I think using a fabric similar to the plushie's hood or the doll's headdress would have made the plushie appear plumper, fluffier and cuter. Maybe they tried to create a clear contrast with other fabrics, or maybe this was the easiest material to attach the plushie's face to? The bright pink colour also does not quite match the doll's colour palette, but this, too, might be an intentional attempt to make the plush stand out more? 

The bow is also a bit odd: I get that the round shape in the middle imitates My Melody's original cartoonish bow, but to me, it looks like a glued-on, flat circle of fabric and inferior to simply using a normal bow. That said, I think plushies are always a nice extra for a doll to have, despite all the nitpicking. :-) (Although I guess at least some of it was warranted, given that they made some changes for My Melody Lilac Version.)

Summary 

Despite being a relatively recent release (August 2020), I feel she has already secured her (well-earned) place among the iconic Pullip releases due to her memorable face-up and character design. I especially appreciate the balance between faithfulness to the source material and adapting it to something new: the character is instantly recognizable, but the outfit is original and interesting enough to work also as a stand-alone design that does not require knowledge on Sanrio to be appreciated. All in all, her face-up is vivid and expressive, there is beautiful cohesion across the pieces with a variety of matched fabrics and motifs, and the quality of her stock clothes is great overall. By all measures, she is a remarkable, well-executed release.

(Almost) everything that happened in 2025

I have not been very active on the blog this year, even though a lot has happened during the year. Thus, the last post of the year will be a kind of recap, with a lot of photos taken during the year but not posted on the blog before. I will also look back at last year's recap post and the plans I made for this year, seeing which parts came true and which did not. Lastly, I plan my goals for the next year.

The biggest doll-collecting news of early 2025 was Timeless Tresure re-release of Seila in March. Seila being my very first and the holiest grail, you can imagine how exhilarated I was by announced re-release. However, due to several delays in production and shipping, I did not receive her until October. I did not mind, though; I was just overjoyed knowing that my grail was finally on her way! :D I will write more about her in a separate post next year in order to keep this recap brief. 

I did not take many photos during the winter, and my first proper photoshoot of the year was not until April (not counting e.g. taking photos for doll reviews). I thought My Melody was just perfect for an Easter photoshoot, since she is very Easter-coloured and well, also a bunny, haha. (Is this too on the nose??) 

I also took some non-seasonal photos to be posted beyond the Easter season (which I am finally doing now):

Being able to utilise this My Melody Re-Ment in the photoshoot made me really happy! :D

Cherry blossom season: my favourite time of the year! This time, I took photos of my Amaterasu Nendoroid. Ōkami is an extremely nostalgic game to me, and cherry blossoms and Amaterasu make such an iconic combo. I am also slowly trying to learn how to take better photos with my phone.

 Late spring, I also took photos of Selina with apple blossoms:

   

In August, I got to pre-order another grail as Timeless Treasure re-release of Nosferatu was announced. I have not received him yet, but he is apparently going to be shipped soon – I am so excited! 

A couple of years ago, when I returned to the hobby after a long hiatus, I made myself a promise to try to participate in doll meets. In October, I finally attended a meet for the first time in a very long time at Nippori. Seeing other people's dolls and creations in real life was really cool! :-)

Another season I did not want to miss was Halloween. I am actually really happy with how these photos turned out, especially the latter. Although, due to an unfortunate angle, only one "ear" of his cat-ear beanie is visible, making it look more like a black elf hat, haha. (Too bad I did not notice this until I was uploading the photos.)

Halloween was also the first time I took photos of my Kuromi. I find it funny that the first photos of My Melody were taken during Easter, and the first photos of Kuromi during Halloween, both celebrations being perfect fits for each character's colour scheme and aesthetics. Drafts of reviews for both My Melody and Kuromi are currently works in progress and will be posted probably next month. 

Practicing using phone camera again:

Kotae Expo in November was one of the highlights of my year. I attended a doll meet on Saturday and Green's doll photography workshop on Sunday. 

For Saturday, I made Tilda a new outfit inspired by details of my own coord (such as blouse with an embroidered collar):

Some photos from Saturday's meet:

It was delightful to see so many uniquely styled dolls, and I had so much fun talking with everyone! 

For Sunday, I made another outfit for Tilda, this time matching my coord even more closely:

The doll photography workshop was fantastic: Green was super knowledgeable and helpful with everything! :-) I got a lot of good advice, and we got to use this awesome set up he had brought to the expo:

The end of the year was really eventful time for my doll collection with Pullip Momori, Cassie, and Yami joining the crew. I will make separate posts for each of them later. I also bought two Miku figures and a few Re-Ments, some of which I got to make use of in these Christmas photos:

This is actually one of my all-time favourite photos so far! 

Although the next photo did not turn out as I imagined, I wanted to share it anyway, because I like the idea and the setup. Now that I know what I would do differently, I might try retaking it next year and see if I can improve it. 

The yearly tradition of photographing my dolls in front of the Christmas tree:

The last photo of the year (yay, snow!):

 

Looking back at last year's goals, I can say that this was a successful doll year. Here is some reflection on them, along with plans for next year:

 

Doll collection 

 

I managed to get two of my grails (well, one is still on the way, but anyways). It was fun to read my one-year-old speculations about possible Pullip re-releases, being half-hopeful, half-sceptical about Seila. :D Currently, I am more hopeful than sceptical about Ende's re-release, since she is the only one missing from the vampire family. Knowing how popular Natsume, Lyla, and Glen are, I am keeping fingers crossed for their re-releases as well. Unfortunately, given that both Alura and Kühn were released as exclusives, them getting re-releases is probably unlikely. 

 

These six are the only older releases I am actively searching for, although if I happen to find Shinku for a good price, I might consider getting her. Then there are some models like Alfred, whose face-up I really like, but I am not that interested in the model as a whole or in owning their stock clothes. For these models, I am hoping to find a good deal on ones with missing accessories or such. Among newer releases, I find myself interested in Claudia and Eclata. However, Eclata already seems difficult to find, but then again, she is one of those models I would not mind getting incomplete if it means a more affordable price.

 

I actually surprised myself by not getting the re-released Bloody Red Hood. She is one of my all-time favourite releases and, in my opinion, one of the most iconic Pullips. And yet I just did not feel this re-release was a necessary addition to my collection specifically. Strange. We will see if I end up regretting this decision later. 

 

Nonetheless, I am currently very happy with my collection, and I believe that next year the focus will be more in customization. Last year, I planned to get new wigs and chips for Albireo and ReonHardt. I did find them suitable wigs, but they were both currently sold out, so I am waiting to see if they get restocked or if I need to find alternatives. I actually managed to get them new chips, although I have not changed them yet. I am going to do that once I also have the wigs ready. 

 

Anette (Meg) also got new chips and is currently waiting for her new wig to arrive. Once I get to changing them, she might also get the new obitsu I bought earlier this year. This is the first obitsu I own, so I am excited about all the new posing possibilities for photos and to see if I think rebodying is worth it. If so, some of my older dolls may also get obitsus. 

 

I also got new chips for Vivian (Classical Alice Sepia), but she too is waiting to get a new wig first; I have not found one with the right colour and style yet. I have plans to customize Cassie as well, but that might be postponed, as I want to prioritize other dolls and also photograph her with stock Callie first. I am also dreaming of making my first full custom doll, but due to the discontinuation of MIO kits I do not think that is going to happen anytime soon.

Sewing et cetera

I am happy with this year's sewing projects as well – it seems that doll meets are good for me also this way; wanting to finish a new project before a meet is a great motivator, haha. I am especially happy that I tried new techniques like embroidery. Next year, I want to expand my skills even further. For example, I recently got back into needle felting after a very long time, and I am already thinking what I can felt for my dolls. Maybe mittens? My collection is urgently missing winter clothes. In addition to those, I want to make more clothes for my Taeyangs and Isuls, who have been seriously neglected (so far, I have only made them scarves, hats, and other small accessories). 

 

I am also planning to try to sew clothes in different styles: Each of my dolls has their own aesthetics, hobbies, and lifestyles, and I want their "wardrobes" to concretely reflect that. For example, Anette being into upcycling, customizing clothes, and crafting in general, I would like to make her clothes with unique embroidery. This will not be an easy or quick task: it will take time to study different styles, think about my dolls' characters more thoroughly, find suitable materials, and maybe also learn new techniques. Creating clothes in styles I am not used to also means stepping out of my comfort zone. However, I feel that details like this will add a new layer of storytelling to my photos.

 

 

Photography 

I am also really happy with the progress I made in photography this year. One of my goals was to use props in a more diverse way, and looking back at photos I took this year, many of them do feature props of some sort. I am glad that I have managed to collect some basic prop essentials, like doll-sized furniture; I feel they make photographing indoors so much more interesting and fun. Next year I want to, in addition to collecting Re-Ments, craft some distinctive props myself and, more importantly, make a Pullip-sized roombox. 

 

Another goal was to incorporate more fantasy themes into my photos. I have not done this as much in practice as I have in planning new projects and seeking inspiration from e.g. books and games. Still, I do feel I have managed to attain a certain whimsical, storybook-like atmosphere in some of my photos, which I think aligns with that fantasy theme goal. I have also experimented more, avoiding relying too heavily on familiar angles and compositions and other habitual approaches. (I feel like playing Infinity Nikki has actually helped with this: in addition to obvious outfit inspiration, I have had fun with the in-game camera, playing with angles, lighting, and so on without actually having to put any physical effort, haha.) I think the next step toward more lively, whimsical and fantasy-like photos is utilising fishing line more in my setups. That is something I will focus on next year.

 

 

Other plans 

My other doll-related plans for this year included updating the blog theme and writing doll profiles. I have neglected those, but when it comes to blog's appearance, I am happy with my decision to switch to writing only in English: although I have published only one post in English-only before this recap, I already feel that changing language has helped creating a more polished look for the blog theme and menus. On a related note, I am having a bit of identity crisis with my current nickname and URL. I changed it earlier this year, and while I like it more than the previous one, it still feels a bit like a placeholder. I hope to find a nickname that better captures my aesthetics and sources of inspiration. This will probably require some further introspection regarding my style, like looking for recurring themes in my photos and such. I think it would also help with a new blog theme, having something to build around. 

I have also finally managed to name several of my dolls, which is already progress to their profiles! :D I am currently stuck on word building, specifically with deciding if I want my characters to be part of the same world and if not, how to divide them. My dolls have already many established relationships (who is related to who, who get along well, who do not, etc.) and splitting them up would disrupt that network, but then again, having only one world is somewhat limiting – what if I want both a realistic world and a fantasy world? Perhaps I should not worry about that too much for now; if my photos diverge from a later established "canon", I can treat them as crossover episodes or taking place in alternative universe, haha. 

That's all for now! Here is short summary of my most important goals for 2026, in no particular order:

1. Finish writing doll reviews currently in drafts and be more active on this blog in general. (That includes reading and commenting on your blogs more actively...)
2. Attend doll meets again.
3. Make lots of doll clothes and explore different styles.
4. Try new things in photography. 
5. Continue customizing dolls and developing their characters. 

My dolls and I wish you a happy New Year! See you next year!

Isul Black Mao Review

This is another post that has been waiting in my drafts for quite some time. I actually got my Isul Black Mao two years ago, shortly after the model's release. This release is one of the few that immediately felt like a must-have addition to my collection. Even after two years, I am still amazed by all the delicate details of the face-up and the high quality of the stock clothes. More about those later in the post, but firstly, photos of the box (as usual):

A lot of cats and other fitting details on the box

The flap of the box

On the back of the box, there is information about the creators of the doll, Kanihoru and Mitsubachi.

The side of the box

The box opened

Still in the box...

His face up is so pretty :o

Black Mao has eyeliner similar to other Maos, but with a bolder wing. His eyeshadow has grey tones (with a hint of petrol blue?) and a muted orangish brown matching the shade of his matte lips. The eyebrows are light and have individually drawn hairs, creating a natural and delicate look. The painted-on eyelid creases are shaded with matching greyish brown colour, while the eyelids have a pretty dark brown gradient. (His eyeliner, eyeshadow, and eyebrows actually remind me a lot of Kuhn's, whose face up I also really like!) 

 

My favourite parts of the face up are the use of shimmering gold on his painted-on eyelids and the mole above his left eyebrow. I wish details like this were more common in Pullip designs – I think moles, freckles, or alike add realism and personality to a doll design. :-)

The face-up

 

Eyes closed

 

His eyes have cat-like pupils, and their colour changes from silver-grey to dark brown depending on the lighting (see, for example, the following photo and the one two photos back for comparison). The chips even appear to have a hint of green shine in certain lighting? Anyway, the eyes have this really cool shiny and colour-changing effect, which I unfortunately could not fully capture with photos.  

His wig is actually two-coloured: the lowest row of wefts on the back and the sides of the wig are light grey. The secondary colour is most visible on the back of his head, although it remains quite subtle even there. It can be seen slightly from the front as well, which is a nice touch. Overall, the wig is good quality: the wig cap is not showing, there are no loose strands of hair, and the texture feels silky.

 

A close-up of the eye chips

 

I am impressed by the number of clothes and accessories that come with the doll (and by how detailed they are)! There is a suit jacket, trousers with belt and chain, dress shirt, tie, pair of boots, harness, turtleneck shirt, T-shirt, scarf, face mask, pendant, stand, collector card, and, of course, a pair of cat ears.

 

All clothes and accessories

The harness is fastened with a tiny side-release buckle at the front and is made of textured pleather. Pleather as material is always a bit concerning due to its known tendency to deteriorate, but to me the material used here feels less stiff than what I have previously encountered on Pullip stock outfits, so it is possible that this one will not start to flake as usual, but time will tell. For now, I am just going to admire the details.

 

The outfit he has in the box (+ boots)

The suit jacket cannot be closed, but it has small buttons and embroided fake buttonholes. Thanks to good pattern design, the jacket sits well, and it even has pocket flaps (although no real pockets).

 

The suit jacket

The dress shirt has small beads on the front as fake buttons and is actually closed with velcro. His tie is fastened with a small hook on the back and has a tiny tie pin on the front. 

The dress shirt

 

I am really impressed with his trousers: there has been a lot of attention to detail and functionality. Firstly, the belt is functional and removable, as is the chain. Secondly, the trousers have seams, belt loops, and pleats just like actual human-sized trousers, and there are real side seam pockets and also faux pockets on the back. Not sure how useful functioning pockets on doll clothes truly are, but I think they show that the producer is willing to go the extra mile to include thoughtful details that the collectors would appreciate. Additionally, it is fun to know that if you wanted to pose a doll with hands in pockets for a photo, you could. :-D

Note the details and functioning pockets!

 

I am also really happy with his boots. They fit well and securely, which is not something to be taken for granted (sometimes I feel that most Pullip releases have shoes that are too big). Furthermore, like the trousers, the boots are very detailed. They have intricate texturing, including the seams and even creasing around the ball of the foot, and the soles are translucent, mimicking certain types of real boots.

 

Boots with an amazing level of details for stock shoes

The cat theme continues in the print of his T-shirt

The cat ears are made of fluffy black fabric, and one ear has a chain accessory on it. I guess cat ears are an essential part of a cat-themed outfit, but I am not sure how much I am going to use them, as I do not think they add that much to the whole look. The ears have a somewhat costume-like look, and I am not sure if this is intentional. They are a bit shapeless and do not look that clearly like cat ears. Additionally, the hair clips used to attach them are somewhat difficult to hide completely. Everything else being so detailed and realistic, I feel like the ears stand out a bit from the overall look (and not necessarily in a good way), but then again, if the point is him being dressed up as a cat and not being an actual catboy, the costume-like look makes sense. 

 

His other accessories include a face mask and a scarf. The mask's inner side is white probably because black fabrics are known to be prone to staining plastic. The scarf has a visible stitch pattern that works really nicely in this scale. Its texture gives the feeling of a real miniature scarf – an actual scarf turned small – and not just any small piece of fabric. I am very pleased with this sort of details!

The cat ears, the face mask, and the scarf

 

Both his T-shirt and long-sleeved turtleneck feel like nice quality, and I am happy with how many clothes he has (much like previous Mao releases). In addition, all his clothes can be easily mixed with one's existing Isul wardrobe, as they are somewhat basic – in a good way! (I think it is refreshing for a release to have well-made everyday clothes instead of a set of statement pieces for a very specific aesthetic or setting, although there is a time and place for everything.) I feel like Black Mao's stock outfits are almost an entire capsule wardrobe on their own, haha. 

 

Even his pendant – a coin featuring Queen Elizabeth II – is detailed enough to have readable text on it.

In summary, this doll has an amazing level of detail in both his face up and stock clothes. Everything feels well-made, and I appreciate how a sense of realism is achieved not just with the details, but also with the use of different materials and textures (e.g. stitch pattern on the scarf, pleather in the belt and harness, and jersey shirts). I feel like it all has been carefully designed to look right in this scale. Attention to detail and showcasing artists' recognizable styles and aesthetics are exactly what I expect from Creator's Label series. I love Mitsubachi's designs, and I am glad to have Black Mao in my collection as well.