Overall, what were your thoughts on the Luvabella doll? What did you think of her reactions and expressions?
When we first unboxed the Luvabella I thought she was rather scary looking, but I think that’s down to the realistic features of her face. She is unlike any other doll that we have seen.
I wouldn’t call her a blonde, more of a pale ginger colour, and the texture of the hair is quite odd. I feel that a better feature would be a small amount of faux hair, or even just a soft fuzz. The sticky shiny hair seems to pick up bits of fluff and hair from the carpet quite easily.
Once we put batteries in to the doll we were blown away by the expressions and the way the doll interacts with her accessories. There is quite a motor sound coming from within the doll as she moves, but DD didn’t seem to notice, and I certainly got used to it or was distracted enough by the features of the doll for it to not be an issue. One of my favourite things about Luvabella is that she doesn’t cry, and her audible reactions are more realistic than other dolls DD has played with. She previously has had a Baby Annabelle that I regularly turned off for crying non-stop, and a Baby Wow (aka worst thing I ever bought) which had the most annoying wailing cry. With Luvabella she is either happily chatting away, or “asleep”. Perfect! The baby babble was lovely and quite realistic, and interspersed with the occasional real word as she interacted with the different accessories, which DD loved listening out for.
This is the only battery-powered toy that DD has ever had that I haven’t had to secretly switch off in order to avoid a migraine. Generally kids toys are loud and repetitive to keep them engaged, but Luvabella is engaging without being annoying. Win! The only reason I turn Luvabella off is to reserve battery life because she gets through them pretty quickly! A usb recharging port would be a great addition.
How did your child interact with their Luvabella doll and her accessories? What was their favourite thing about Luvabella?
DD’s favourite thing about Luvabella is the way she opens her mouth for food when you put the spoon near her, and turns away when she’s full. She loves the fact that Luvabella asks for more food too.
She has to get me to use my hands for peek-a-boo (or has to use a blanket) as her little hands aren’t able to cover Luvabella’s eyes very effectively. It doesn’t stop her from loving trying though, and she gets a real kick when it works!
I’ve lost track now of the various animals that Luvabella has randomly said when DD holds the lamb near her, but I hear DD shouting “Mummy, Baby Rose (her name for Luvabella) just said giraffe!”. I am sure that she gets as much excitement about Luvabella learning a new word as she will about her little brother learning words when he gets to that stage.
A separate outfit (ideally pyjamas and a day outfit) would be a lovely addition to the doll too. DD (and most children her age it would seem) love getting dolls undressed and redressed, so a second outfit would have gone down a storm!
Did your child display any nurturing behaviours whilst playing with their doll? If so, what were they?
DD was as protective of Luvabella as she is of her little brother. Whereas other dolls have been dragged around haphazardly, Luvabella is carried carefully! I think this is due to the realistic features of the doll, as well as perhaps the fact that I told DD that she was expensive!
DD was quick to give Luvabella a name (her favourite name in fact), Rose. She occasionally mentions something that ‘baby Rose’ has done and family members get confused as to who she is talking about.
Luvabella gets her own “bed” (a tea towel on the floor, plus another tea towel as a blanket) at night. DD gives her a bedtime bottle (originally encouraged by me, but now a big part of our nighttime routine) and Luvabella also sits in on our usual bedtime story.
It’s a shame that Luvabella doesn’t have a nappy. DD has put a real baby nappy (one of her brothers) on Luvabella, even though it doesn’t really fit. I think that for most children nappies are an intrinsic part of looking after a baby.
I was trying to show some of the features of the doll to my parents when they visited, but DD quickly took over and, after showing people how to feed Luvabella, she is very quick to show them how to listen for the heartbeat (my parents found this plus the realistic features to be a little creepy (Chucky may have been mentioned), but DD absolutely loves the heartbeat feature!)
Would you recommend Luvabella to a friend or family member? If so, why? If not, why not?
If a friend was looking for a new doll for their child then I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the Luvabella dolls. Especially if a friend had a child and had a baby on the way too, then I think that a Luvabella would be a fantastic way to prepare the child for the new arrival.
I wouldn’t originally have bought the doll for DD at RRP, but they may partially be because I have been scarred by terrible purchases such as Baby Wow. Luvabella is definitely worth the price of 2 Baby Wows!
Thank you very much to Mumsnet and to Luvabella for picking us for this opportunity. DD squealed with excitement and had trembling hands whilst trying to unbox her. It’s fair to say that she was over the moon to be chosen for this product test.