It's December! How exciting is that? I love Christmas time so much, I love everything about it, (especially the advent calendar, you are never too old for it!
You might already know this, but I am going to be attempting "blogmas". (where you blog every day up until Christmas Eve) , so this is the first post.


The lovely people over at Homearama very kindly sent me two of their products, and I have decided to review them. This post isn't very Christmassy, but over the next 24 days, it will be a mix of Christmas, and not Christmas themed posts. Although, these product would make a perfect Christmas present for anyone, of any age, in my opinion! Anyway, enough rambling, lets get on with the review, shall we?
(Please note: even though I didn't purchase these items, this review will be just as honest as any other review done on my blog, I won't lie to you.)

First of all, meet Adam, The Doodles Man. he retails for £24 95, and on the Homearama website, and also the box itself, he is described as:

"the perfect companion to help you with your figure drawing. Made of stainless steel wire connected at the joints with aluminium rivets, his fully adjustable joints and limbs will hold any pose for as long as you need. He never rusts, never rests, never eats and never sleeps, so will always be on hand whenever you need him!"

Next, meet his companion, Rover, The Doodles Dog, like Adam, he also retails for £24.95, and he is described as:

"the perfect companion to help you with your figure drawing of animals. Made of stainless steel wire connected at the joints with aluminium rivets, his fully adjustable joints and limbs will hold any pose for as long as you need. He never rusts, never rests, never eats and never sleeps, so will always be on hand whenever you need him!" (pretty much the same as Adam)

Now, onto what I liked..
I love how unique these designs are. I've seen various wooden figures over the years, but never seen a wire one, until now! They are very quirky looking, and it's an alternative take on your average "wooden man". The variation of moves available is good, if not better than the wooden man.
Though considerably more expensive than the wooden versions, I think it's worth the money, as so much detail obviously has gone into making each of these perfect, and you really are getting the quality for what you paid, they are very sturdy.
Saying that, I am about to contradict myself, as at first, when I went to move their arms, legs, any body part, I felt like I was going to break it, and even though there is still some restriction in what way the arms and legs can move, I no longer feel like i'm going to break it, so just bear in mind if you are considering buying the product. You may think you're going  to break something, but it just needs a bit of "breaking in". (Is that the correct term?)
Another positive is that they are very easy to draw from, and it may sound weird, but because it's got gaps in it, unlike other mannequins, I find it even easier to see exactly where the body parts join together, and this helps me when drawing. They are definitely very easy to draw from.
I especially like Rover, the dog, as he is very unique, I have never seen a figure dog for drawing, and everything about him is great. They both look very pretty even just sitting on a shelf, or a table, as ornaments. Mine are currently placed on my shelves by my desk!


However with Adam, I found two minor things I wasn't so keen on. He doesn't come with a stand, like many other mannequins do, so I found it extremelly hard to get him to stay upright, and I found that I eventually had to lean him against something.
Also, his feet are very out of proportion, they really are massive! (bigger than his head.) But neither of these are major issues.

So to conclude, let's recap.
PROS

• Good variety of positions
• Unique, quirky, different designs
• Good Quality
• Very easy to draw from
• Look very nice as ornaments
• Will last a long time
• Dog in particular is unique, and perfect for drawing.
• Will make great Christmas presents for someone who is interested in anything artistic.