Attention readers! I've received a lot of information and questions about the glue head problem. Presently, the only chemical product that seems to help in removing it from doll hair is Goof Off 2. If your Monster High or Disney Princess dolls start leaking glue, the very best thing you can do is Contact Mattel (bottom of page) and report the problems you're having. If enough people report the leaking glue problem and/or express concern, they'll have to do something about it. Thank you! (In the meantime, keep sending me photos and links. I'll add them to this section.)
A concerned parent - a mother in Yahoo! Asks worried about her children being exposed to leaking glue.
DollStuff.Net - Charles's pages about doll stuff - 'Weird Things I Found Inside Barbie's Head' (a good read about the Indonesia glue with several photos)!
A Flickr discussion - doll customizers asking about the prevalent glue issue.
Doll Head Glue Issues? - from MonsterHighDolls.com
DollStuff.Net - Charles's pages about doll stuff - 'Weird Things I Found Inside Barbie's Head' (a good read about the Indonesia glue with several photos)!
A Flickr discussion - doll customizers asking about the prevalent glue issue.
Doll Head Glue Issues? - from MonsterHighDolls.com
My personal summary of the problem: for reasons unknown the quality control used to regulate Mattel's products manufactured in Indonesia leaves much to be desired. All too often dolls leave the factories with crooked eye paint (dubbed 'wonk eye' on several internet forums). Besides this issue, dolls made in Indonesia have a yellowish glue substance meant to secure the hair inside the head after they've been rooted. This glue is often unstable and begins to disintegrate over time, perhaps hurried along by hair brushing, water, and/or warmth. I've personally owned several Indonesia-made Monster High dolls with the 'glue issue' and, within six months, the glue began seeping out at the hair plugs and destroying the doll's hair. All manner of soaps and cleaners have proven ineffective against it. I don't know if the substance is toxic or not, but it could be. I'd be very worried if I had small children and probably wouldn't let them play with Indonesia-made dolls if I felt the glue inside the doll's head.
Odd as the above is, dolls manufactured in China don't share this problem. They're rooted as Barbies have always been rooted - without the glue. It's not just Monster High that suffers this 'leaking glue issue' but all dolls manufactured with the glue - Disney Princesses, Barbies, the 2012 releases of Merida - these dolls were made in Indonesia and frequently have crooked eyes and leaking glue you can see running down their faces while they're still in their packages on store shelves. Another issue with Indonesia-made dolls appears to be the 'Data-face', referencing Data's skin-tone in Star Trek: The Next Generation. For no apparent reason, Indonesia-made dolls with initially fair skintones start to turn yellow. This is very apparent on a few Disney Princess dolls and Mattel's earlier release of Wee 3 Friends, which were also manufactured in Indonesia. Below you'll find some of my personal photos detailing these problems. If you'd like to contribute your own photos I'd be more than happy to upload them with credit. Also, if you have your own webspace or blog, I'd love to link your experiences with this shoddy manufacturing on here. You may reach me through the Contact tab at the top of this page. :)
Below is an Indonesia-made Spectra Vondergeist doll. When she first arrived (December 2011) her hair was light and fluffy- completely glue-free. Over time the glue began seeping from the hair plugs at the back of her head and wrecking her hair. The glue, being a greasy-tacky substance, causes the hair plugs to stand together. Before long, the doll began to look as though she'd been dipped in cooking oil. I tried dish soap, laundry detergent, Goof Off, Goof Off 2, nail polish remover - none of these chemicals fully removed the glue, nor did they eliminate the underlying problem. The glue is leaking from inside the doll's head. Even if a chemical were able to remove it, the glue would just carry on seeping out and ruining the hair.
In the last two images Kalli tried to show the 'Data face' issue. With the redhead Wee 3 Friends, the doll in the middle is a first release and fine, whereas the dolls on either side are later releases and have yellowish faces. In the final image there is an Indonesia-made Belle doll that has face pale-ing and yellowing, but none of these dolls have been exposed to the sun. There's no reason for the wonky pallor.
Odd as the above is, dolls manufactured in China don't share this problem. They're rooted as Barbies have always been rooted - without the glue. It's not just Monster High that suffers this 'leaking glue issue' but all dolls manufactured with the glue - Disney Princesses, Barbies, the 2012 releases of Merida - these dolls were made in Indonesia and frequently have crooked eyes and leaking glue you can see running down their faces while they're still in their packages on store shelves. Another issue with Indonesia-made dolls appears to be the 'Data-face', referencing Data's skin-tone in Star Trek: The Next Generation. For no apparent reason, Indonesia-made dolls with initially fair skintones start to turn yellow. This is very apparent on a few Disney Princess dolls and Mattel's earlier release of Wee 3 Friends, which were also manufactured in Indonesia. Below you'll find some of my personal photos detailing these problems. If you'd like to contribute your own photos I'd be more than happy to upload them with credit. Also, if you have your own webspace or blog, I'd love to link your experiences with this shoddy manufacturing on here. You may reach me through the Contact tab at the top of this page. :)
Below is an Indonesia-made Spectra Vondergeist doll. When she first arrived (December 2011) her hair was light and fluffy- completely glue-free. Over time the glue began seeping from the hair plugs at the back of her head and wrecking her hair. The glue, being a greasy-tacky substance, causes the hair plugs to stand together. Before long, the doll began to look as though she'd been dipped in cooking oil. I tried dish soap, laundry detergent, Goof Off, Goof Off 2, nail polish remover - none of these chemicals fully removed the glue, nor did they eliminate the underlying problem. The glue is leaking from inside the doll's head. Even if a chemical were able to remove it, the glue would just carry on seeping out and ruining the hair.
In the last two images Kalli tried to show the 'Data face' issue. With the redhead Wee 3 Friends, the doll in the middle is a first release and fine, whereas the dolls on either side are later releases and have yellowish faces. In the final image there is an Indonesia-made Belle doll that has face pale-ing and yellowing, but none of these dolls have been exposed to the sun. There's no reason for the wonky pallor.
Karyn provided the pictures you'll find below. I asked if they could be included here and she said yes. Her original post can be found here, and her commentary for the images reads as follows: "The glue is incredibly thick and waxy. It melts in heat and can ruin doll hair, which is a bummer for kids and collectors alike. Since I was using these dolls for customs, I felt fine taking their heads off and exploring the glue head issue a bit. The Gloom Beach Clawdeen became my La Camilla custom, and the Gloom Beach Frankie’s body was used for my Shadow Girl. I don’t know how widespread this glue issue is, because before seeing it in these dolls, I didn’t really know how bad things were. I’ve had some dolls have minor glue seepage, but none with the solid caps of glue found inside the Gloom Beach dolls from the Target five-pack."
I received the following images and commentary through my Contact form. (If you're a recent visitor to my site, please feel free to send me things via Contact, it allows you to include links and everything.) The following information is from Sloane (winksandgiggles) on Flickr. Her commentary will appear if you mouse over the images below.
"I emailed Mattel last Thursday, and will be calling them tomorrow to discuss it further (as per their instructions in their return email). I'm not optimistic about their willingness to fix the issue so if they try to refund me or replace the dolls without targeting the actual problem I plan on attempting to go to the media. Perhaps if I can get the story out in the public eye they'll listen." -Sloane
