WWOG: Early Retirement or Late Restocking?

MONDAY UPDATE:  AG website was updated this morning and so far all the items seem to be available again! The rumors still persist, including the French Bakery going into backorder status soon but for now all is well in Graceland!

Hang onto your Christmas stocking those of you who have made plans to pick up some of Grace's items closer to the end of the year because Grace's Welcome Gifts, her pink Opening Night Outfit, the classic Baking Outfit, and even her new Sightseeing Outfit are all listed as "no longer available" on AG's website!

We've seen website glitches and misleading stock information on AG's website before, so perhaps Monday morning the site will update and we will see these items back in stock or at least with a backorder date. However, a few small rumors have begun to surface about Grace's collection, such as AG stores not planning to restock certain Grace items once they run out and a rumor that Grace's French Bakery may go on backorder status soon.

With BF Maryellen debuting next week and a GOTY 2016 around the corner, will AG let the stock of Grace's quite large and expanded collection slowly move into sell out status? At this point AG is probably heavily invested in making sure Maryellen does well and is merely riding out the last quarter of Grace's reign. I can imagine the Grace doll and a core of her items being deliberately made available until mid-December, but if it is the case that the four items above do not return, it will be anyone's guess what will still be available to buy late in the holiday season.

Thoughts? I will keep an eye on AG's website--will need to add a retraction come Monday morning?

WWOG: A Big Ticket Tally

Grace's midsummer release items are now searchable on American Girl's website and it looks to be a fabulous set of items, for both girls and poppets everywhere. No official word on the release date, but the most popular guess is June 25th.

So a big drumroll for Grace's Whole World price tag tally (excluding dvd, books, and items for girls):

New for Grace Thomas (upper right of infographic) will be a Sightseeing Outfit (black-and-white striped top paired with a white skirt), her Sightseeing Accessories (red shrug, black boots and blue sunglasses), and her Sweet Hairstyles Set (bows and hair pins). This is a 1-2-3 win for AG, and I anticipate bringing all three home. 

Last fall I doubt many thought Grace's Whole World would climb above $1300 (we were so naive as we can see here). And I must reiterate: this $1307 price tag tally is for just Grace Thomas, her clothing and accessories. I deliberately left out some store exclusives for Grace, such as the doll sized Chef's Hat, Bonbon Tee, and Cupcakes that can be purchased only as an add-on when booking a Party-of-6 at an American Girl Bistro. Items for girls (books, dvds, clothing for girls, jewelry for girls, etc.) not included in the tally!

And it is rumored there are some more doll sized food items, though no details or images yet.

But let's not forget the terrific items for girls--this is probably my favorite GOTY release for girls! Anticipated midsummer items for girls that are now searchable/findable on AG's website are Grace Thomas's Sparkle Bow Tee and Grace Thomas's Puppy Tee, a delightful Grace's Bracelet with travel charms, a bright pink Eiffel Tower-themed Jewelry and Photo Keeper, a new book activity kit called Baking with Grace, the Grace Stirs Up Success soundtrack and dvd, and my absolute must-have from the girl sized range, the Parisian-themed Travel Case for Girls. 

Yes, the Travel Case is coming home with me immediately--as soon as I can verify the release date! What is on your wish list?

WWOG: Midsummer Report

So much to note about GOTY Grace this summer: her third book, her movie, rumored new clothing and accessories, and more!

On May 21, her third book Grace Makes it Great was released. 

Will the above outfit be part of an upcoming midsummer outfit for Grace? The striped top and white skirt has been seen on the grey market (Taobao.com), which makes this outfit a likely candidate. Also spotted was black boots with Grace's swooped heart design embroidered on them. Perhaps a boot-and-umbrella combo to coordinate with her Travel Coat? But when will these speculated items arrive?

How about on June 23, when her movie Grace Stirs Up Success launches?

And now the newly announced partnership with Williams-Sonoma also features Grace:  

Join Williams-Sonoma and American Girl® for a hands-on baking class inspired by Grace™—the 2015 Girl of the Year™! Each student will learn Grace’s favorite French Madeleine recipe, then finish the pastries with dark chocolate, white chocolate, and a few other toppings. We’ll also make and decorate sugar cookies from scratch. Each child will take home a special American Girl® goodie bag! $30 per child.

As for Grace's current offerings, GOTY Grace still has us waiting…as her items continue to be placed on backorder online and the in-store availability of her items also continues to fluctuate.

Since the early weeks of her release in January, we have seen many of her items bounce in and out of backorder status. As of today, four of her items once again show up on the website as temporarily out of stock:

Grace’s Travel Set – backordered until June 19

Grace’s Pajamas – backordered until June 26

Grace’s City Outfit – backordered until July 2

Grace’s French Bakery – backordered until July 10

On my last visit to AGPSF on May 23, Grace's Travel Set was out of stock and its mini display left empty. And I can't remember the last time I've seen the French Bakery displayed or available in store.

Since her debut month, almost every outfit and accessory for Grace has shown up at least once as backordered. This began in January when her big ticket item, the French Bakery was temporarily out of stock in stores and online and her Pastry Cart soon followed.

Some fans have met this ongoing backordered status of Grace's collection with skepticism—could AG be manipulating buyer purchasing behaviors by making the items seem in high demand? Or perhaps it is a matter of AG being more conservative on how much stock they manufacture, store and stock—after all, on December 31st of this year Grace officially retires and any leftover stock becomes a financial liability.

(Above: Travel Coat but no luggage!)

For myself, the constant changing status of item availability of Grace’s items has affected my purchasing timeline. With GOTY Isabelle, I did not worry about completing my collection until early December of her year. With GOTY Grace, while logically I am confident that her wardrobe and smaller accessories will remain available into the first weeks of December, I have made the majority of my purchases much earlier in the year and I may complete them when her next release of items arrive this summer (not confirmed, but highly anticipated).

Interestingly, the box Grace now comes in has a small design change. Like the new Truly Me doll boxes, her box now features a picture label on the lower right hand corner.

For fans of Grace and/or her collection, when do you plan to complete your list of GOTY 2015 related purchases this year? Are you excited about the possible new summer release items for Grace, or are you already"burnt" out on Grace's World?

And finally a question I barely dare to ask...when will we discover the first hints of GOTY 2016? Are we ready for and enthused about another round to begin sometime in the coming months?

WWOG: Opening Night

Grace takes a twirl in front of the camera in her pink Opening Night outfit!

The Opening Night dress is tulle mesh over a sequins. The dress is set off by a velveteen waist band that is attached. I especially like the asymmetrical layered tulle detail on the skirt. The capped sleeves are lightly elasticized at the bottom and slip easily over her hands.

The shoes are excellently constructed and slip on easily. There are no buckles or velcro closures on the shoes--instead there is hidden elastic inside of the silvery straps.

The headpiece is jaunty and crisp. It is a bit over the top but in fitting with all of the Parisian themes, with the flared fan reminding me of hair pieces worn by can-can dancers.

Fun, festive, and flirty, this is an outfit that a bit forward but still retains a classic look. Construction was solid and the design of the shoes particularly good. Grade: A

WWOG: Paris Accessories

Grace Thomas' collection is somewhat unique in that it has two clothing based accessory sets. The first is the Welcome Gifts set which features Grace's pink beret. The other accessory set is her Paris Accessories set which features her polka-dot purse. While there are things to like in each set, neither is a major hit here--at the end of this post I will mix and match for a hypothetical perfect set.

The polka-dot purse construction and design are both great. The faux-leather strap is sturdy and the buckle construction looks realistic (though uses velcro for closure).

The purse is even lined and I very much appreciate that extra touch. I also appreciate how big and roomy this purse is--it feels like a purse made for travel. One could fit a map, a book, a camera, and all sorts of other touristy needs in it. 

However, my one complaint about the purse is that it is made of cotton, perhaps mimicking the coated cotton trend in upscale purses--but this polka-dot purse is primarily white and I am concerned about its ability to stay bright and white.

The Paris Accessories also comes with fingerless gloves with a bow detail.

The coin purse is underwhelming and cheaply constructed with a regular ribbon as a wristband. The coin purse does not close, so it is not a very realistic or practical mini purse. Even the metro pass barely fits into it.

I enjoy the credit card like metro pass as well as other similarly constructed offerings from AG such their library cards and bus passes.

Finally the set includes her lip gloss. I can not determine how or why it is that her lip gloss has her name on it. The cap does not come off, so this is a prop only. 

The lip gloss is cute, but it is primarily something to toss into her purse and forget... Though to be fair, when I was ten years old I was fairly obsessed with lip gloss. Anyone remember the giant sticks of Lip-Smackers by Bonne Bell in about ten thousand different flavors? How about the lip gloss sticks that came with attached chains and could be worn like necklaces?

The Paris Accessories are underwhelming overall, though the polka-dot purse is striking. In a similar way, I was also underwhelmed by Welcome Gifts set. If I could create a perfect small accessories set for Grace Thomas, it would consist of

*raspberry colored beret (matching Grace's Meet skirt and similar to Ivy's beret)

*raspberry or gray infinity scarf

*polka-dot purse

*working wallet or better constructed coin purse

*Metro card & euros

As is, with both of Grace's accessory sets I almost can create this perfect set. I am off to Etsy to search for an infinity scarf!

WWOG: French Bakery - Part IV (Pastries & More)

So many accessories with the French Bakery! Today we are going to dive into the second and third goodie bags. Our accessory count so far stands at 20...

The second goodie bag is full of primarily baking sheets, pans, and utensils.

A mixing bowl branded with the La Patisserie logo.

Baking sheet. I really like the slight scalloped edges of the pan.

Torte pan.

Cupcakes pan--looks like the real thing, just smaller.

A faux-silver serving stand. This is quite light weight and plastic, but I think it will blend well in a full bakery scene.

The all important whisk and spatula.

Two fancy plates.

Four paper napkins (though I count this as a single accessory). They arrived slightly bent at the upper corner. The material used is similar to paper crepe and replacements could be made rather easily.

A half-dozen eggs. The eggs are not removable.

A single bottle of sparkling water. Really? Couldn't spring for at least a pair? I predict many parched customers for Grace.

One fancy serving tray.

And the final item of the second goodie bag is this super darling rolling pin. The accessory count now is at 34 (20 + 14).

The third goodie bag was filled with all the pastries for the shop. Again, I am unusually tickled by the "DO NOT EAT" stickers.

A slab of dough!

The dough makes a little more sense when paired with the rolling pin.

Raspberry macarons.

Red and silver sprinkles. The caps are glued on, which makes sense as the sprinkles are metallic confetti pieces. (DO NOT EAT! LOL)

Raspberry torte (x2)--this is an identical torte to the single one included in the Pastry Cart.

Chocolate torte (x2), another repeat from the Pastry Cart.

Key lime tart (x2)! Yum. This one does look almost good enough to eat.

Chocolate tart (x2) above and raspberry tart (x2) below are also repeats from the Pastry Cart. And the next few items are also repeats.

Four cupcakes.

More macarons.

Two baguettes.

Two croissants--finally something new again. These look amazing. The croissants complete the third goodie bag. The count for accessories is now at 60 (20 + 14 + 26). All we need is one additional accessory to meet American Girl's claim of "More than 60 Accessories!"

Look at what was hiding in the stove unit behind the bottom doors! A pink domed stand. It is quite alarmingly bright and plastic, but it gets the job done. 61! Ding! Ding! Ding!

The hard work is finally done. Next we get to set up and play with La Patisserie.