Léonie Maplelea Girls Review and Giveaway

I was recently offered an opportunity to review and giveaway a product from Maplelea.   For those of you who don’t know Maplelea Dolls– think of American Girls with a Canadian flair.

I have stumbled on their website a few times since Jasmine came to the world and dreamed that one day she could have one.   She is now four years old and I know that she will enjoy spending time with the one I picked for her.  

I had two options I could choose one of the original Maplelea Girls or I could select a doll from their new collection titled Maplelea Friends.   Though the Maplelea Friends have a much larger selection of dolls which reflect the diversity of Canada’s population, I decided to go toward a specific girl in the Maplelea Girls.  I chose Léonie for our review.   Why?   Well it is quite simple.   My husband paternal grand-mother had the name of Léonie.   His grand-parents moved from Quebec to Northern-Ontario and I myself was  born and raised in Quebec.    Jasmine has never met her great-grand-mother Léonie unfortunately.   But when I told my in-laws about this opportunity and showed them the Léonie doll on the website, they just couldn’t believe that she was dressed in red which was the favorite color of my father-in-law’s mom.

 
2004 – 90th Birthday of Léonie Lussier (with my father-in-law, my husband and my two oldest kids, Alexandre and Dominic)

What are the Maplelea Girls?
Before there were Maplelea Girls, there was Avonlea Traditions. Avonlea Traditions Inc. is a Canadian owned and operated company founded in 1988. Avonlea began by developing products based on Canada's ever-popular storybook character, Anne of Green Gables and quickly secured a position as the world's largest distributor of products based on this famous storybook heroine. Avonlea Traditions grew beyond “Anne” to design, produce and distribute a large range of award-winning dolls, fine collectibles and giftware.

In 2003, after more than a decade of research, Avonlea Traditions introduced the Maplelea Girls, a line of high quality, Canadian-themed, 18” vinyl play dolls with story journals. Three years later, Avonlea Traditions sold all its other product lines so it could focus exclusively on the Maplelea Girls. The Maplelea Girls line has experienced rapid growth in recent years and offers an ever-increasing range of products specially designed for girls aged 6 to 12. 

This fall, the company is introducing a new selection of doll for your little girl - The Maplelea Friends – which was created to represent the diversity of Canada’s population.   This new line of dolls offers a wide variety of hair, eye, and skin tones from which you can choose.   The dolls come dressed with a graphic tee and corduroy skirt, footless tights and silver shoes designed with a maple leaf detail on it.   The dolls are similar to the MapleLea Girls.   Twelve different styles are available this year. 

Parents will be pleased to know that considerable Canadian talent has gone into creating the Maplelea Girls. All sculpting, designing, researching, writing, illustrating and translations are done by Canadians. The dolls, journals and accessories are all safe, meeting both American and Canadian standards and are regularly tested by independent third party laboratories to ensure compliance.

Our Thoughts
When I first showed my mother-in-law the doll on the iPhone of my husband while visiting them her first reaction was “Oh my goodness, look at what she is wearing Gerry!” to which my father-in-law answered without even looking “Red clothes.”  They couldn’t believe that the doll’s name was Léonie, that she wears red clothing and that she had an heritage from Quebec.  They loved it right away without having even held it in their hands.

When I received the package I had to wait a few hours before being able to put my eyes on Léonie.   The package itself it out of this world.   Once I remove the paper ribbon from around the box, I proceeded to lift the cover of it.   I was immediately in awe, lifting the box and Léonie looked at me with her bright hazel eyes.    The eyes are magnificent, the hair smooth and radiant.   She was beautiful.   The face, arm and legs are made of vinyl but move easily from the body.  The body part is made of soft material that is very nice to hug and squeeze.    Her clothes are stunning – with red boots that looked like leather, a skirt that combines an underwear and the top that is perfect for her body.     Inside the package, I also found a beautiful blue journal containing pages about Léonie and blank ones to fill out for my daughter.   And if you worry about language the journal comes in both official languages!   And each time you purchase a new outfit for the doll, you will also get new collectable and blank pages for the journal.

Not too long after the visit at my in-laws mentioned above, they came over for supper and I had the opportunity to show them the doll. The first reaction of my mother-in-law was that the box was quite heavy and that it was very sturdy. Then she proceeded to open the box with my father-in-law next to her. Both were in awe with the doll. They took her in their hands and admired all the details. My father-in-law made sure that all limbs were working well and started changing his voice to make her talk. It was precious to see this since he has a gift of making the kids laugh when doing that. My husband and I were laughing because it is so natural for him to do that when he picks up any kind of doll or stuff animal.

This doll is definitively a special doll for any girl.   Even though these dolls are designed for kids ages 6 to 12, I think that a mature 5 years old can take good cake of one of them.   Each and every one of the doll are fabulous and would please any little girl in your life.   I chose Léonie for personal reasons as you have read above and also because my daughter has the same color of hair.    I’ve decided to do a little vlog so I can present Léonie to all my readers via video.   Please watch this and continue reading for the giveaway!



Here’s another thing I have discovered from MapleLea.  They offer a special spa program (actually it is a doll replacement program) for whatever accident might occur to the doll – whether the puppy chewed on a leg or the younger sibling ripped an arm off.   You have to undress the doll when sending her in a suitable packaging and ship it to Avonlea Traditions with the amount of 56$ plus 9$ of flat shipping for a total of 65$.   The doll (a new one that is) will be returned after spending two days (business days that is) at the spa – refreshed and looking wonderful.   She will also wear a comfy spa gown and matching slippers as well as get new pages for the journal.    I find this replacement program very original and out of the ordinary.    

The price tag attached to such a doll is 99.99$ Canadian.   Yes it is pricey but when you look at the quality offered for the doll and how it is made, I totally understand the price. And the fact that they offer a flat fee for shipping is interesting as any little girl in Canada could have a loved one order it online.   Now you question might be “Honestly, Canadianladybug, would you have purchased such a doll for your daughter?”   I have to say that more than likely not because we don’t have that kind of budget for birthdays and Christmas (we have four children plus five nephews and nieces).   However, I might consider such a purchase for my daughter simply because her birthday (which is Dec 19th) is very close to Christmas assuming she would understand that this big present is for both celebrations.  

Jasmine will indeed get this doll for her birthday and I promise to post her reaction to this beautiful doll soon after.   An update with her reaction will be posted on Canadianladybug Reviews! near Dec 19th.

Now dear reader would you like to win one of the MapleLea Girls?   If so continue to this special giveaway that I am having in November.

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GREAT NEWS!  
A GIVEAWAY FOR MY CANADIAN READERS…

Since I chose one of the original dolls, I was informed that my giveaway will be for one of the six original dolls at the choice of the winner.   You will be able to choose between Alexi, Brianne, Jenna, Taryn, Léonie and Saila. The company will ship directly to the winner before Christmas.  However, please note that this giveaway if for Canadians only (or Canadians living abroad but can provide a shipping address in Canada). All you have to do is follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter widget below.

 
 

I will draw the winner on November 26th and send an email to that person. Don’t forget to leave your email address in the first mandatory comment as this will allow me to contact you!  The person has 24 hours to reply to my email.   In the event the person doesn’t reply within 24 hours, I will choose another winner.    Once the winner replies to my email with their delivery address and phone number, I will send the information to my contact at KidsStuff PR which in turn will inform MapleLea Girls so that the doll can be shipped and received before Christmas!

Have Fun and Good Luck everyone!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
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Where can you find the Maplelea Girls? Maplelea Girls are not found in retail shops for the simple reason that the company keeps its costs down by selling directly to the consumer. Plus many Canadian girls do not live near retail outlets that sell high quality specialty toys. By offering a flat $9 shipping fee for any size order traveling anywhere in Canada, all girls have equal access to the product line. Orders can be placed online at www.maplelea.com or by phone at 1-800-668-4339 24 hours/7 days a week.
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Disclaimer: Thanks to KidsStuff and MapleLea Girls for sending me the above mentioned product for review purposes and for offering this incredible giveaway to my readers. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.