Review of Brains and Beauty Dolls Nia

Brains and Beauty Nia and her personalized box.

The beautiful Nia by Brains and Beauty Dolls has arrived! This 18-inch vinyl doll, as previously reported, speaks 20 empowering phrases when her tummy (a cloth mid-section) is pressed. Nia has synthetic black locs, brown stationary eyes, and applied upper eyelashes. She wears a "Melanin" labeled tutu dress with purple sneakers. She has permanently inserted pearl stud earrings. 

As usual, I took photos of Nia's box and the unboxing process as illustrated next:

An illustration of Nia dressed in a separately-sold denim set is on the bottom front of the box with a speech balloon that reads, "I speak 20 empowering phrases."

A larger illustration of Nia is on the back of the box with another speech bubble that reads, "You are beautiful!" 

Below the back-of-the-box illustration is the following descriptive text:

I am outgoing, funny, 
honest, and creative.
I love to write. I have dreams of becoming a 
journalist while 
traveling the world.

Nia was attached at the neck and legs to the box liner with cable ties. Her lovely head of hair was protected with a black hair net.

Freed from the box, Nia posed for her first picture. Isn't she gorgeous?

Nia's removable voice box is in the back of her cloth mid-section inside a zippered compartment.

The length of Nia's locs and the zipper compartment that houses the voice box are illustrated in this photo.

Nia has manicured fingers...

...and manicured toes.

In the next two photos, Nia models the separately-sold denim jumper and posed for a close-up of her beautiful face.

The denim jumper has a distressed right knee area. Red faux suede shoes are included with it.

She is so pretty and I love her deep brown complexion.

Nia posed with her sisters Malia and Khari in the next two photos which are followed by a video of the dolls.

Brains and Beauty Dolls Malia, Khari, and Nia—their complexions are medium (Malia), light (Khari), and deep brown (Nia).

Facial close-up

Video Review

The Swahili meaning of the name, Nia, is purpose. One goal of Brains and Beauty Dolls "is to inspire little girls to embrace their uniqueness." Nia's addition to the doll line enhances the color spectrum representation of people of African descent and helps the company achieve its purpose. 

Visit the Brains and Beauty Dolls website. It's never too late or early to buy anyone a doll even if it's for yourself.  

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Khari's Video Review Can Be Viewed Now

Brains and Beauty Dolls Khari

The video below was published on April 15, 2019, with my blog review of Brains and Beauty Dolls Khari.  Unfortunately, I failed to make the video public.  I have changed the privacy setting to public.  It should now be viewable here as well as in the original blog review of Khari.  I apologize for this blunder.

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Khari by Brains and Beauty Dolls

Brains and Beauty Dolls Khari arrived in a beautifully designed box.

Khari by Brains and Beauty Dolls is 18 inches tall and made of vinyl with a cloth midsection that houses her voice box.  The second doll in the Brains and Beauty Dolls line, she uses the same head sculpt as Malia, the first doll by this company.  Khari’s complexion is lighter than Malia’s.  Her eyes are gray.  She has human hair styled in an Afro. 

This closeup photo was taken while Khari was still attached to the box liner.

Full-view photo of Khari, taken while she was still attached to the box liner

Box Graphics

The back of Khari's box has a quote that reads as noted above.

A graphic image of Khari is on the back of the box below her quote.

Out of the Box Photos

First out-of-the box photo

Khari's gray eyes are better visible in this photo.  Her dense black hair is a nonremovable wig.  Khari's ears are not pierced.

Her yellow Roman-style sandals complement her fashion well.

As illustrated, Khari wears a green, brown, orange, and white African-print dress with Roman-style yellow sandals. 

Undressed

Khari has been undressed to illustrate her cloth midsection.

In the back, the midsection has a zippered compartment that houses her voicebox.

This photo illustrates the unzipped midsection and voicebox.  A white tab must be removed before the voicebox will function.  The tab simply slides out. (Khari's voicebox compartment has more room than Malia's).

When Khari's tummy is pressed, she speaks 20 empowering phrases to inspire young girls to believe in themselves, to know that their complexion is beautiful, that they are beautiful, that they can be whatever they want to be, and other positive statements. 

Khari poses with Malia. Malia has been redressed in an Adora Dolls fashion.  This fashion is an example of other clothing brands made for 18-inch American-Girl-type dolls that fit these two.

These two girls are perfect companions.  They "play" and display well together while empowering girls to "dream big!"

View my short video review of Khari below.

As indicated in the video, Khari and Malia are available at brainsandbeautydolls.com.

Related Link:
A Mom Created These Beautiful Black Dolls To Teach Our Kids Self-Love

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Preorder Khari for a 15% Discount with Two-Payment Offer

Until August 25th, those who preorder Khari, the second doll in the Brains and Beauty Dolls line, will enjoy a 15% discount.

The doll retails for $89.99.  With the discount, the breakdown of the preorder cost is:

$76.50
  11.00 (flat rate shipping for US residents*)
   5.07 (tax)
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$92.57 (total cost)

Again, preorders must be placed by August 25th to qualify for this offer.  A two-payment option will be available at checkout.

Khari is 18 inches tall with beautiful, stationary gray eyes and real kinky Afro hair.  Like Brains and Beauty Malia, she has a half cloth body, movable head, and limbs.

Khari is joined by Malia to illustrate their different complexions.

Khari's and Malia have different complexions as illustrated in the above photograph.  Like Malia, Khari speaks 20 empowering phrases and comes with a pair of gladiator sandals and an African-print dress.

*Non-US residents should inquire about shipping costs before placing an order.

Click/tap here to ===>Preorder yours today.<===

https://www.brainsandbeautydolls.com/product/doll-khari/ 

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Brains and Beauty Malia Review

Brains and Beauty Dolls Malia

Recall this guest post where the creator of Brains and Beauty Dolls, Niya Dorsey, introduced the 18-inch doll, Malia, that speaks positive affirmations of empowerment.  After a long anticipatory wait, the dolls have been produced and shipped to those who helped fund the Brains and Beauty Dolls Kickstarter campaign.

Before removing Malia from the box, the beautifully designed box was photographed:

The side panel contains three affirmations:
Believe in yourself.
Empower one another.
Achieve all your goals in style.

Malia is illustrated on the back of the box with a conversation bubble above that reads:
I am beautiful inside and out.  I am a leader and a motivator.  I love fashion.  I want to be a CEO of my own company and a fashion model.

Malia, still attached to the box liner in this photo, is eager to be released.

Undressed for body exam

To get a full assessment of the body construct and quality, Malia was undressed.  The vinyl is of high quality and the doll is quite sturdy.  The mid area of the body is cloth.  The voice box is located in the cloth area and is accessible in the middle of the doll's back.

Malia's voice box is housed in a small compartment in her back which zips closed.

This is a closer look at the voice box area.  Because my doll was one of the first 100 dolls purchased, she bears the creator's signature, located on the right in the above photograph.

The square voice box is shown in these two photos immediately above and below.  Before the doll can talk, the white tab in the voice box needs removing as shown next.  If the voice box is lying flat inside the compartment when the doll arrives, avoid removing it.  Because the compartment is so tiny, if the voice box is removed, it is difficult to reinsert.  Just remove the white tab.

After the white tab is removed from the voice box (by simply pulling it out), with the voice box positioned inside the cavity correctly and the back zipped closed, pressing the stomach and/or back or both will activate Malia's voice.

Malia is casually dressed in a white dress with a pink heart in the center of the bodice.  The skirt of the dress has pink polka dots.  She wears a light blue brushed denim jacket that has three-quarter length cuffed sleeves.  A pair of chestnut faux suede UGG-style boots complete her fashion.

The back of Malia's boots contain the Brains and Beauty logo.

Malia's dress is cute enough to be worn without the jacket, as illustrated here.  

Malia has pierced ears.  Upon arrival, her pearl stud earrings, with the backs in place, were in her ears.   I removed the backs and reinserted the posts into her ears (with the earrings in the lobes, the backs are not able to be placed behind the posts because Malia does not have a full earlobe).  Caution:  The earrings might fall out easily; therefore, parents of small children should heed the warning on the front of the box shown below:

The warning reads:  Choking Hazard
Small parts.  Not for children under 3 years.  (The earrings are the small parts.)

Malia's fingernails and toenails are nicely manicured and pedicured.

I did not do a physical body comparison between Malia and an American Girl doll.  However, AG Julie's casual 1970s-inspired fashion and shoes fit Malia as though they were made for her.  It's safe to assume that she can wear other clothing made for American Girl dolls.

Malia has a very sweet face.  Her brown eyes are stationary.  Her human hair wig is thick with nice coily curls. It only requires finger combing. Except for the wig being farther down on her forehead, I cannot see the difference between the production doll's appearance and the photos I viewed of the prototype.  I am pleased with the quality of the wig, the clothing, and the doll's overall sturdiness.  The medium brown color of the vinyl is beautiful.  The voice box compartment is small, which makes it difficult to reinsert the voice box, if removed.  Removal of the voice box should not be required.   If the doll is owned by a child, parents might need to assist with removing the voice box tab and zipping the back closed to ensure the voice box remains properly positioned.  The earring backs should be removed as they serve no purpose.  If owned by a small child, the earrings should be permanently removed.

Overall Assessment:  Malia was made to inspire girls to "embrace their uniqueness, individual beauty, intelligence, culture, and leadership ability."  The doll's empowering phrases will certainly do that for girls.  I love the doll and support the company's goal of empowering girls, encouraging them to dream big and to know their worth through doll play.

Learn more about Malia from the Brains and Beauty Dolls website.


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Black Friday Sale: Brains and Beauty Dolls

Click the Pre-Order image or here and enter the coupon code:  blackfriday to save for one day only, Friday November 24, 2017.

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Guest Post by Brains and Beauty Dolls

Malia is an 18-inch talking doll by Brains and Beauty Dolls

Niya Dorsey, the creator of Brains and Beauty Dolls contacted me about her new line of 18-inch dolls. I invited her to share the inspiration behind the dolls.

"One day my one month old daughter and I were at home in the bed cuddling, as I stared at her beautiful face and started to talk to her. I told her how beautiful she is, how I couldn’t wait to have tea parties with her, get a mani-pedi together and how I want her to grow up and follow all her dreams, become a leader and so on. Suddenly, I got an epiphany, a doll is a girl’s best friend. I didn’t remember seeing or having a doll that had the beautiful features of girls of color. 

"I wasn’t big on the Barbie dolls and the other dolls I had as a child.  I would just feed, change their diapers and comb their hair. It wasn’t always easy styling their hair either. I decided I don't want a doll that teaches my daughter how to be a good mom, I want a doll that encourages her to believe in herself and to achieve her goals no matter what. At that moment I decided to create a doll for girls of color all over the world. 

"I created an 18-inch doll whose look was based on my daughter's features. First, I reached out to other mothers and asked, 'If you had to say something encouraging or positive to your daughter, what would you say?' I took my time and read every response and created a list of twenty empowering words. As a result, I created a doll that speaks encouraging words. I believe the right words are powerful and encouraging and have a positive impact on our little girls' lives.

"Today, many young girls suffer from low self-esteem due to society’s negative perceptions, bullying, and lack of encouragement. I want to help develop self-awareness and positive self-esteem in the lives of little girls with the help of my dolls.

Made of vinyl with a cloth stomach that houses her voice box, Malia is a perfect companion doll with comb-able human hair.

"I designed the doll to have real human hair to allow little girls to play with hair that is similar to their own, that is fun and easy to style. I named the company Brains and Beauty Dolls because our dolls represent intelligent and beautiful young girls everywhere. Our tag line is:  believe, empower and achieve in style. I want them to believe in themselves, empower one another and achieve their goals in style. 

"Our goal is to inspire little girls to embrace their uniqueness, individual beauty, intelligence, culture, and leadership abilities.

"Brains and Beauty Dolls aspires to create different dolls and accessories.  This September, we will run a kick starter campaign for our first doll Malia, and hope to unlock some other dolls as well."

Brains and Beauty Dolls Contact

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/BrainsandBeautyDolls/

Website:  https://brainsandbeautydolls.com/

Currently the Brains and Beauty website shop includes T-shirts, a girl and doll pajama set, and a book entitled, You can Be Whatever You Want to Be.

KickStarter Campaign
The Early Bird Special Pledge price for Malia for the first 100 contributors is $80 and the first 100 contributors at this level will receive an autographed doll!  After that goal is met, the campaign price will be $90 for the doll. Go here to preorder Malia or to otherwise contribute to the Brains and Beauty Dolls Kickstarter Campaign, which will run for 33 days. Let's help Ms. Dorsey make Malia a reality by contributing and/or sharing the link to the campaign.

Once again, here is the link.

PLEASE NOTE:  If the campaign is not fully funded, your credit card will not be charged.

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