Rosie needs to have a certain kind of look to pull off her scenes. She has to be young – younger then most “teen” dolls; she has to be sweet; but she also has to be a little mischievous. That’s a lot to ask of a doll.

This picture, from her first episode is a good example of the fine line Rosie has to walk.

A more mature-looking doll would appear to be unironically admiring herself in the mirror – Rosie’s expression manages to avoid that trap. A young but merely sweet doll might appear to be more wistful – looking forward to the time when she’d be able to pull off this look. Rosie gets it just right – she’s having fun playing with the reflection of herself, but she’s perfectly happy to remain a kid is a big girl’s dress.

Finding the right doll for this role took me more time and trial-and-error than my other dolls. Where Daisy was an obvious choice, and Camellia volunteered for her role, I didn’t end up finding any dolls who could play my younger doll.

I’d previously purchased some Lottie dolls. They’re the right age, but they don’t project any real personality.

Here’s a Lottie doll in a fairy scene. The fairy, and even the fairy horse, are both emoting like mad, and they’re totally stealing the scene from the doll.

I auditioned a Kurhn doll for the part – here she is with a few Lottie dolls –

But, no matter where I put the camera, she never seemed to be looking at it. Also, she’s just permeated with this very sad air. I’ll have her appear in some sad story, but I just can’t write enough heart-breaking tales to keep her busy.

The Blythe doll seems young enough – so young that I’m forever swaddling her in blankets.

But she’s so far to the imp side that she’s lost all her sweet. Plus, as my son notes, she’s a little creepy (in an adorable kind of way).

The Licca doll is all the way to the other side – she’s so full of sweet, that there’s no room for imp.

There’s one more doll that I tried out who, for various reasons, I couldn’t cast. But, she’s so terrific as what she is that I’m giving her a recurring roll in Rosie’s stories. You’ll meet her in Rosie’s next episode.**

Finally, I circled back to a doll I’d auditioned at first in the Daisy role. She’s actually meant to be an adult, but Andrea (from Wildflower dolls) put her on a smaller body and gave her a more kid-like paint job, and that’s where I got my Rosie.

As a side note, the enormous scruffy dog that seemed way too big for Daisy seems just perfect for the much smaller Rosie. Go figure.

** Rosie’s co-star arrived in the mail this weekend with her head completely severed from her body. Either Rosie’s story is going to go all horror, or I’m going to have to find another doll to play the role.