Disney Star Darlings: fashion dolls with substance (review + giveaway)

At five years old, dolls feature quite heavily in Miss J’s play. She loves assigning each one their own unique personality, and dreaming up creative role play for her growing collection. She usually gets completely swept away with them into her imaginary world; I love listening in on the adventures, and often get drawn into playing a part in the hilarious things those dolls get up to.

With dolls always featuring on Miss J’s wish list, I tend to keep an eye out for new ranges and styles. There are some that seem too grown up or just not right for her, and some that we really love.

A few weeks ago, we discovered the new Disney Star Darlings stories and short videos. Not long after, we got to try out the accompanying range of dolls and have been taking a look at three of the characters from the gang.

Star Darlings fashion dolls are based on the characters from the Disney Star Darlings animation and book series. The Star Darlings are twelve girls who live in Starland, the brightest star in the sky and the place where all wishes go before being granted.

Their mission is to save Starland by going on top-secret missions to Earth, where they must generate the positive wish energy Starland needs by helping wishes to come true. You can find out more about the Star Darlings story here.

As you can probably tell from this back story, the Star Darlings are strong, brave girls who work together as a team on their adventures. Each girl has her own unique personality and look, and the fashion dolls really reflect this approach.

The dolls are very good quality, fully poseable, and beautifully detailed. Miss J commented that they all have different expressions, and as a big fan of all things magical, she loves their shimmery skin and sparkly features. I think their multicoloured hair is great fun, and it’s lovely that it’s styled to suit the dolls’ character rather than each doll being a carbon copy of the next.

For Miss J, a big part of playing with dolls is tinkering with the outfits and accessories, and there’s certainly plenty to keep her busy here. Their clothes have lots of detail and embellishment, plus a good dose of sparkle. Each doll has her own unique accessories too; for Sage this is a star pendant.

I really like the fact that each doll also has a different musical instrument; giving them an obvious hobby makes them feel more real, and not just all about the clothes and accessories. Libby’s hot pink keytar is Miss J’s hands-down favourite, and she’s keen to get one of her own.

I think Disney have done a clever job of appealing to quite a wide age range with these dolls. Miss J loves the role play and dressing up element, but I think the fashion-focused styling and the variety of personalities will appeal to older children as well. Take Scarlett, for example: she has an edgier style and stronger colours in her outfit.

We’ve had lots of fun with the Star Darlings dolls, and they’re firmly established in Miss J’s adventures with her ever growing collection of dolls. The musical instruments have definitely inspired some new themes to her play, and of course the outfits and accessories are being swapped and shared too.

For me, it’s refreshing to see a range of fashion dolls that has truly different-looking characters. There’s a real range of personalities to choose from, which means children can find a doll to suit their own favourite style and character. I can see Libby, Sage and Scarlett being key players in Miss J’s gang for a long time and I imagine further characters may creep on to future birthday wish lists.

Disney Star Darlings Starland fashion dolls from Jakks Pacific retail at around £19.99 and are suitable for children aged 4+. Will they be on your child’s wish list this year?