Karito dolls vs. american girl dolls

[calv]

anyone have both? I believe the Karito dolls are 21" tall but fit into 18" doll clothes. they look cute. would love to hear more about them.

[kcimato]

We don't have the Karito dolls but have seen them IRL. I think they are cuter.

[mnosky1]

A big part of the interest in AG for my DD7 is the books and stories (the historical dolls) and playing and talking about them with her friends. She has a wish list of of about 6 dolls and I suggested she had enough money now to buy an off brand doll (like target brand) and she said no one would no that doll's story when we play! For the girls, there just seems no sub for the Ag dolls. But accessories and stuff, it's no big deal, in fact her and her friend just made closets out of cardboard boxes and love them. We have the horse from Target.
And sorry, I don't know anything about the other doll brand (gives me something else to check out!)

[greatcanuk]

Here's what I know--
Just as the "gimmick" with the American girl dolls is the historical tie-in, the "gimmick" with Karito Kids is that the dolls represent girls that from different countries and that a percentage of the doll's price goes to a charity that your child chooses. Both dolls retail for about $100 and comes with a book, although you can find Karito Kids for less.

Check out this photo comparing a Karito Kids doll and an American girl doll side by side (scroll down half way to see the comparison):
http://www.justmagicdolls.com/meet/karitokids/karitokids.htm

Here are some quotes in the accompanying article that describe some of the dolls' differences:
"The designers of the [Karito Kids] dolls had obviously taken great care in creating dolls that would look the part of a girl from China, or Mexico or Kenya -- not just taken a generic face and changed the wig, eye and skin color and clothing."

"As you can see, the Karito Kids doll is several inches taller than an American Girl doll and slightly slimmer. The arms and legs are jointed in a similar manner as the American Girl (rounded upper limbs that fit into cups on the torso, held in by elastic cording). This means that, like American Girl dolls, the Karito Kids are very poseable and stand well on their own. The vinyl breastplate, however, gives them a more poseable head and allows them to wear fashions that look odd on an all cloth body doll, such as low neck lines and tank tops."

My personal take on the Karito Kids vs. American Girls issue--
Although almost as expensive as American Girl, to me Karito Kids is a better value for what you get, partly because you're not paying for marketing. Also, I didn't want DD to get sucked in by the whole American Girl experience (e.g. perusing the catalog and circling everything). I bought the My Generation doll wardrobe from Target (which is amazing for the price), but bought the American Girl hangers (these ended up being the best value for 18" doll hangers anyway). Some people end up buying several American Girl dolls as friends/sisters--total cost, yikes! I got a BFC Ink. doll as a younger sister instead. The face is also realistic and the body is fully poseable, so it's a nice complement with different features, to an expensive Karito Kids doll, for only about $30. This is the one I got: http://www.amazon.com/BFC-Ink-Large-Doll-Yuko/dp/B003AQWUVS

HTH,
Camille

On a side note, I'm Asian and never had Asian dolls growing up; so now that they're available, I'm obsessed with buying them for my daughter. However, it's still difficult to find Asian dolls with realistic faces. The Asian face sculpt on the Karito Kids doll is absolutely beautiful. If I had to choose a Just Like You doll from the American Girl store, the one that looks most like my daughter has straight dark hair and standard eyes--definitely not the one that is "supposed" to be Asian.

[calv]

Here's what I know--
Just as the "gimmick" with the American girl dolls is the historical tie-in, the "gimmick" with Karito Kids is that the dolls represent girls that from different countries and that a percentage of the doll's price goes to a charity that your child chooses. Both dolls retail for about $100 and comes with a book, although you can find Karito Kids for less.

Check out this photo comparing a Karito Kids doll and an American girl doll side by side (scroll down half way to see the comparison):
http://www.justmagicdolls.com/meet/karitokids/karitokids.htm

Here are some quotes in the accompanying article that describe some of the dolls' differences:
"The designers of the [Karito Kids] dolls had obviously taken great care in creating dolls that would look the part of a girl from China, or Mexico or Kenya -- not just taken a generic face and changed the wig, eye and skin color and clothing."

"As you can see, the Karito Kids doll is several inches taller than an American Girl doll and slightly slimmer. The arms and legs are jointed in a similar manner as the American Girl (rounded upper limbs that fit into cups on the torso, held in by elastic cording). This means that, like American Girl dolls, the Karito Kids are very poseable and stand well on their own. The vinyl breastplate, however, gives them a more poseable head and allows them to wear fashions that look odd on an all cloth body doll, such as low neck lines and tank tops."

My personal take on the Karito Kids vs. American Girls issue--
Although almost as expensive as American Girl, to me Karito Kids is a better value for what you get, partly because you're not paying for marketing. Also, I didn't want DD to get sucked in by the whole American Girl experience (e.g. perusing the catalog and circling everything). I bought the My Generation doll wardrobe from Target (which is amazing for the price), but bought the American Girl hangers (these ended up being the best value for 18" doll hangers anyway). Some people end up buying several American Girl dolls as friends/sisters--total cost, yikes! I got a BFC Ink. doll as a younger sister instead. The face is also realistic and the body is fully poseable, so it's a nice complement with different features, to an expensive Karito Kids doll, for only about $30. This is the one I got: http://www.amazon.com/BFC-Ink-Large-Doll-Yuko/dp/B003AQWUVS

HTH,
Camille

On a side note, I'm Asian and never had Asian dolls growing up; so now that they're available, I'm obsessed with buying them for my daughter. However, it's still difficult to find Asian dolls with realistic faces. The Asian face sculpt on the Karito Kids doll is absolutely beautiful. If I had to choose a Just Like You doll from the American Girl store, the one that looks most like my daughter has straight dark hair and standard eyes--definitely not the one that is "supposed" to be Asian.

oh wow. thank you very much Camille for all the great info/links. :) Off to finish reading!

[MamaKath]

Camille, that is a great link, lots of info!!!

To OP- can you ask the recipient of the doll? My dd has always had very specific tastes and likes for dolls. She doesn't like the faces and lollipop head appearance of the Karito dolls. Another one we have looked at is the My Twinn though it is bigger and won't fit the AG clothes. Goetz makes a doll that is similar to the AG but with a solid body. The hair is really easy to maintain though. Just another thought, they can sometimes be found at Tuesday Morning for a good price. :)

[Uno-Mom]

Never head of the Karito dolls (I'm not exactly in the doll loop!) but I followed your link.

Wow - I hope those replace AG dolls by the time Sprog is older! All the AGs look cookie-cutter to me. The faces on the Karito dolls actually have some character and ethnicity!

Please, AG lovers, don't flame me! :)