Asian Dolls

Heidi Ott Jade (?)

Heidi Ott Jade (?)
Heidi Ott offered an 18" Asian doll who was part of the un-jointed, cloth-bodied Faithful Friends collection and whose name may (or may not) have been Jade. She is extremely rare, so details are scarce. She had light skin, dark eyes, and long, uncharacteristically-Asian, wavy brown hair. Below are other images of a "Jade" who was re-wigged to look more Asian. She can very, very rarely be found on secondary market sites and usually for no less than about $75 and upward of $100 and more.

 

Maplelea Friends Dolls

Maplelea KMF9 and KMF10
While the original Maplelea girls don't include an Asian doll among them (so far) two 18" Asian "Maplelea Friends" are available for purchase, KMF9 and KMF10. KMF9 has medium light skin, brown eyes, and long, straight, dark brown hair worn with bangs/fringe. KMF10 has medium light skin, brown eyes, and medium length dark brown hair with an off-center part. Both dolls cost about $100 CAD ($76 USD) from the Maplelea site, though they can also be bought at other online market places like Amazon or eBay for somewhat inflated prices.

FAO Schwartz Avery and Gotz Asian Hannah

FAO Schwartz Avery and Gotz Asian Hannah
FAO Schwatz Asian Avery (by Gotz) and Gotz Asian Hannah use essentially the same Gotz Asian model. The main difference is in their hairstyle. Avery's straight black hair is worn in a chin-length bob, either with or without bangs/ fringe. Asian Hannah has much longer, wavy black hair with bangs/ fringe. They each have brown eyes and medium tan and/or light tan skin, and their face paint may vary slightly. They are slim 18" vinyl dolls.

Avery, who is now retired by FAO Schwartz, can be easily found used on the secondary market for about $30 - $60. Asian Hannah is available from the Gotz website and other online doll markets for about $130 - $150. She can also be found new on the secondary market for about the same price.

My Twinn Asian Dolls

My Twinn Dolls Berkeley and Cai
My Twinn offers a number of Asian face sculpts in both the 23" and 18" size. All of the dolls are now retired as My Twinn has closed down their website, but some can be found on the secondary markets for a wide range of prices, depending on the condition of the doll. Some of these dolls are quite rare, others are less rare. Only a search through the secondary marketplace will reveal which dolls can be found. A buyer can expect to pay anywhere from $20 to $200 or more.


18" MY TWINN
Some of the 18" versions of the 23" dolls (which My Twin debuted in 2013 to compete with the popular 18" doll market) can also be difficult find. At the time of this writing, certain 18" Asian Twinns, like Cai and Berkeley, may be more common on the secondary market, while others, such as Kim and Pearl, may be less common. Some of the remaining 18" Asian Twinns, if they even exist, may be extremely rare.



Karito Kids Wan Ling

Karito Kids Wan Ling
Wan Ling from China is the Asian Karito Kid doll. She was introduced in 2007 with the other five Karitos. Karito Kids are 21" tall but close to most 18" dolls in their general width. Ling has light tan or beige skin, brown eyes, and straight black hair with bangs/ fringe. She has a vinyl chest plate so she can wear thin shoulder straps, and her head also pivots on its neck.

Ling was retired in 2011, so she can't be bought retail anymore. But she does make the rounds on the secondary markets fairly frequently where she can be bought new or used for $35 - $100 (or more). She can also be found new in online shops like Amazon, though her price there is somewhat inflated.

Tenderhearts Girls Olivia

Tenderhearts Girls Olivia
Paradise Galleries' Tenderhearts Girls are five dolls of (mostly) different ethnicities, with Olivia being the Asian doll. She stands about 17" tall, and like her Tenderhearts pals she has a non-jointed cloth body fitted with an armature for poseability. (Only her arms above the elbows and feet above the ankles are vinyl.) She has long black hair with bangs/ fringe, worn in two braids. Her eyes are brown. She shares a face mold with her Tenderhearts friend Maria. Her original retail price was $50. She is now retired and can be very hard to find.

One or two of Olivia's Tenderhearts friends will sometimes make an appearance on eBay used, though Olivia seems very rare. Amazon however will sometimes sell Tenderhearts Girls, including Olivia, for about $30, brand new.

Carpetina Ana Ming

Carpetina Ana Ming
There are two "Asian" Carpetina dolls, Ana Ming and Kohanna. Ana Ming is of Chinese ancestry with light skin, long black hair, and brown eyes. She retails from the Carpetina website for about $85. Kohanna is less of a standard Asian doll and more of a anime-type Japanese school girl so she does not have typical Asian characteristics.  Her hair is light brown/ auburn and her eyes are hazel. She also retails for about $85 from the Carpetina website. Both Ana Ming and Kohanna are slim 18" dolls


JAPANESE SCHOOL GIRL KOHANNA

Kidz 'n' Cats Miu

Kidz 'n' Cats Miu
Mui is the Kidz 'n' Cats contribution to the Asian doll market. She does not have uniquely a Asian face sculpt however, as she shares the "pouty" face mold with several of her Caucasian KnC friends, including Alyssa, Mareike, and Amelie. She is an 18" slim doll, full vinyl, and has 11 joints for maximum articulation. This makes her ideal for both kids and adult collectors. Mui has medium skin, black fringed hair, and brown eyes. She can be bought on popular online doll markets, including eBay, for a steep $160 - $180 or more.

Make Me Your Friend Lily

Make Me Your Friend Lily
Hobby Lobby formally had "Do-it-yourself-poseable-18"-doll-kits in four different models of different ethnicities. The Asian doll's name was Lily. Lily has long black hair (originally caught in high pigtails that might leave permanent bends in the doll's hair) with somewhat sparse hair plugs. She has pale sallow skin and brown eyes. Her face mold is unique among the other MMYF dolls. The assembled body looks very similar to that of Springfield dolls, but with a long Velcro closure in the back.

Hobby Lobby retired these dolls kits a few years ago, so Lily may be difficult to find. Some of her doll-kit friends may occasionally show up on the secondary market for between $10 and $30 (original un-assembled price was $20) but Lily is extremely rare. (My Lily is the only one I have seen in a year and a half of browsing the markets. She was purchased for $15 in like-new condition.)

Paola Reina Mei, Lis, and Lui

Las Reinas Mei
Spanish doll manufacturer Paola Reina offers three Asian dolls from among their collections: Las Reinas (The Queens) Mei, Soy Tu (I am You) Lis, and Las Amigas (The Friends) Lui. Mei is the largest at 23.6" (60cm). Lis is in the middle at 15.7" (40cm) and little Lui is the smallest at 12.5" (32 cm).

The dolls are available in Europe and the Americas from their respective Paola Reina websites. Mei retails for about $115 (USD). Lis retails for about $60 (USD) and Lui retails for about $44 (USD). The dolls are also available from online markets like Amazon, Etsy, or eBay, though with generally inflated prices. 

  
SOY TU LIS

 
LAS AMIGAS LUI

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