Update: Don’t miss the Giveaway for your own So Truly Mine baby doll from Ashton-Drake!!  You’ll find the Giveaway here.

Ashton-Drake sent me the So Truly Mine baby doll to review.  I can’t wait to show you all the details and as always, all opinions are my own!  Here is Part 1 if you missed it.  Be sure to keep an eye out for a fun surprise I’ll be sharing very soon.  It’s something you won’t want to miss!!!

Ashton-Drake is known for their beautiful high-end collectible dolls.  The So Truly Mine baby doll is new to their collection.  It is unique because it has the quality and features of a collectible doll and is designed for play.  Which is amazing because they’ve brought together the best of both.  So Truly Mine is a doll that can be enjoyed in childhood and cherished beyond.

We are going to take a close-up look at all the aspects of the So Truly Mine baby doll.  Before we get started though here are the basics.

Ashton-Drake So Truly Mine lifelike baby doll

• 15″ baby doll
• for ages 3+
• 6 combinations of hair and eye colors
• posable
• vinyl with a cloth body
• RealTouch® vinyl
• hand-painted
• weighted to feel real
• price $99.99

I love how the doll comes in a variety of hair and eye color combinations.  You can choose blue or brown eyes.  For the hair color you have the choices of blond, light brown or dark brown hair.  (See the different combinations here.)

Our doll has brown eyes and blond hair.

A Sweet Face and An Artist’s Hand

When I first saw the this doll in person I was amazed by the face.  The expression and details, with the creases, dimples and shaping, is sweet.  You can see the artistry in every aspect of the face.

Ashton-Drake dolls are designed by artists.  The artist for the So Truly Mine doll is Linda Murray.  You will find her name stamp on the back of the doll’s head.

The doll has many lovely details, starting with real lashes (instead of painted on).

The lips are detailed and textured to look so realistic.

I love how the baby’s mouth is slightly open.  I think it adds to the play value because the baby looks like she’s ready to babble some baby sounds, open her mouth for a bottle or eat from a baby spoon.

The head is slightly textured with lines for hair.  The hair has been hand painted on.

I love how the hair has a different shades, further giving it a sense of texture and a realistic element.

Slightly blushed cheeks and forehead breath life into this little face!

I Want to Hold Your Hand

The hands and feet are soft and flexible (as well as the arms and legs).  The curved open hand is perfect for hand holding. (As shows by my 3 year olds little hand!)

You can see the hand-painted features on the hands and feet.

The nails are glossy and the tips are white.  There is a slight blush to the back of the hands and on the feet.

Posable Possibilities

The So Truly Mine doll is posable.  This is referring to the wire that connects the arms through the shoulders and chest.  This basically means the doll can bend at the shoulders and hold the pose.  I will show you the arms in different positions.

This is the position the arms were in when the doll arrived.

They can also lay out flat, side to side.

The arms can overlap, laying across the front of the chest.

The arms can be up.

Bend the arms in any combination to get a unique pose.

Another aspect of the doll being posable is that it is soft and flexible and can be bent into different positions.  It can’t always hold the position but the flexibility of the doll adds to the play value.

For example the doll can’t hold it’s thumb to the mouth but you can easily bend the arm into this position for her to “suck her thumb”.

Basic Construction

The body is cloth with a soft fill.  The head is hard and solid with the RealTouch® vinyl on top.  The arms and legs are a soft and flexible RealTouch® vinyl.

The doll is weighted in her bottom with a heavier fill.  The distribution of weight makes her feel like a real baby in your arms.  The weight of the fill also helps the baby sit up.

The legs are sewn across the joint, where they attach to the main body.  This seam acts as a joint.  It helps her leg bend well to aid in sitting.  The seam also separates the fill of the soft vinyl legs from the main body fill.

Here is another view of how the leg attaches to the body.  I have to say this construction is quite different from the other cloth body dolls we have.  Once I saw how well the doll can sit I could see why it is made the way it is.

Another detail in the construction that you can see in this photo is the way the legs, arms, and neck are attached to the cloth body.  On the inner leg you can see the end of a sort of zip tie covered in fabric.  Once again I am not an expert in doll construction but thought this detail was interesting.  Everything is snug in it’s place and seems like it will last well.  The head and arms are connected similarly with the same type of zip tie.

The So Truly Mine doll sits really well.  There is no adjusting, you just sit her upright and she stays really well.  I absolutely love this about her.

Some of our other baby dolls easily fall onto their backs and don’t sit well without leaning on something.  This doll sits independently and is pretty steady.

Clothing

She comes in a stretchy knit romper and a cloth diaper (shown in photos above).  The romper velcros in the back.

Price

The So Truly Mine doll costs $99.99.  That price is definitely on the high end for a play doll.  That being said there is something about quality.  We used to buy a new baby doll for our daughter every Christmas for years.  That’s because she adored baby dolls and her baby doll from the year before was falling apart.  We could have easily spent more and then had a doll that lasted even beyond her childhood years.   It’s definitely something to think about.

The artistry and attention to details with the So Truly Mine doll match’s the price.  This is an exceptional, unique and beautifully made doll.

Life

The So Truly Mine doll is one to cherish and take care of.  There is some responsibility with that.  There are some life lessons in there.

1. Take care of the things you have.  As opposed to everything is disposable and replaceable.
2. Be responsible.  Know the proper way to care for the baby doll.  Where do you keep her when you are done playing?
3. Be gentle and kind.  This isn’t a real baby but we are playing and modeling real life, so practice gentleness and kindness with that play baby.
4. Enjoy and Love.  This baby was made for play, so don’t just keep her on a shelf.  Enjoy her, love her and play with her!

That about sums up all the details of the So Truly Mine lifelike baby doll.  I hope this review was helpful, informative and fun.  So Truly Mine is a beautiful doll that will be enjoyed and loved for years to come!

Feel free to ask me any questions about the So Truly Mine dolls in the comments below!

Stay tuned for some exciting news! I have something fabulous to share with you!

-Anna