Petites are genuinely not part of the Blythe hobby that caught my eye at first. When I first started collecting Blythe and being active in the community, my emphasis and eye was on the Neos. They were bigger than Petites, and had the pull string, and honestly I just didn’t think much of Petites at all. Sure, I got my hands on a couple of Hasbro LPS Petites, but then I never did much with them. Creating for them was a pain because they are just so small that I felt like I was going cross-eyed attempting to knit for them. Tiny arm holes are not my favourite thing to do.

It really wasn’t until Lark that I gave Petites a second look. Lark is different, of course, as she is customized. At the same time, I remembered that there was a nursing-themed Petite out there and couldn’t for the life of my remember what she was called. And I eventually tracked her down, and bought her – Intensive Care (a.k.a. Chickadee).

If I were to compare a stock LPS and a stock Takara Petite, I would say that they’re very, very similar.

Both are the same size, very much similar facial features, but I find that the Takara’s features are smaller than the LPS’s. Smaller head, smaller eyes, smaller nose and mouth, smaller ears, and smaller hands.

The LPS lacks some features that come standard with Takara – their eyes don’t move and their legs aren’t bendy, although I didn’t know the second feature was a feature with Takara until I got my own.

I think they both have their charms. LPS Petites are certainly more affordable, especially in the North American market, as they were mass produced and easily accessible in a large variety of stores that carried Littlest Pet Shop. Compared to Takara Petites, LPS are still more affordable (and you’re more likely to stumble on them in a thrift store than you are the Takara Petites). Takara Petites are often more expensive, and were much more limited in production so they’re just more costly. That isn’t to say that they’re not cute, because I do think that I would like another Takara Petite in the future. I’m quite fond of the fact that they have ‘sleep’ eyes and I find it makes them even more endearing.

Do you collect Petites? Do you prefer LPS or Takara Petites more?

This is Pipsqueak, Shrimp, and Lark (from left to right) – the littlest of my Blythe collection. The tiniest of the tiny – two are LPS Petites, one is a Sirenita custom Takara Petite. I really don’t have any other clothes for them – I should work on that.

And then there is Intensive Care – who is still in her box and still without a name. I should work on that as well! But to fit in with the others, I do think she needs a “small” name as well, any thoughts?

Do you have any Petites in your Blythe family – either Hasbro’s LPS or Takara? What have you named them?

In 2010, Hasbro released Blythe as part of “Blythe Loves Littlest Pet Shop” with Blythe as a pet sitter to tie in with the animals. The size and overall style is very similar to that of the Takara Petite Blythe dolls. The biggest difference is that the Hasbro version of the Petite Blythe has stationary eyes, while the Takara Petites have eyes that close when laying flat (much like the ‘sleepy eye’ dolls that have been sold for decades).

The LPS Petites stand at approximately 4.5″, making her significantly smaller than her Neo Blythe or Middie counterparts. She wears the same size clothing as her Takara sisters, but their small size means that it’s more difficult to sew clothing for them and, as a result, there are less people who actually create Petite Blythe-sized clothes.

The eyes on these dolls are fixed. While Takara, Ashton-Drake Galleries, and Kenner Blythe dolls have their pull ring, Middie Blythes have a dial, and Takara Petite Blythes have ‘sleep’ eyes – the eyes on a Blythe Loves Littlest Pet Shop doll do not move. The direction that they look in is the way they’ll look in, short of customizing them.

The heads of these dolls do pop off quite easily, they have a simple ball joint that allows for some range of option in their head and tilting. The arms and legs turn, but there are no points of movement for the elbows or knees – this is also true for the Takara Petite dolls.

The Blythe doll sold by Hasbro now is a better representation of Blythe Baxter, the main character from the Littlest Pet Shop television show. Due to her cartoonish looks, she looks less like a copy of the Takara Petite Blythes and more like her cartoonish self and reminds me a lot of the new Polly Pocket dolls with their rubbery clothing. It is still possible to find the original LPS Blythe dolls, if you do a little searching in shops or online.

Shrimp’s wearing: jacket/stock, scarf/stock.
Eden’s wearing: helmet/chelleshocks, romper/unknown.

The Middie and the Petites don’t get nearly as much camera time here as their big sister counterparts! Pocket-friendly and adorable, here’s a little bit of love for the smaller dolls today!

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I wanted to share some recent photos that I took at a recent meet – just sharing some happy today.

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