Mini Bratz + Mini Bratz Cosmetics Series 1: A Lookin' Bratz Review!
Hey Angelz!
Perhaps one of the most anticipated Bratz releases this year (or it was in my head, at least), the Mini Bratz dolls, playsets, and cosmetics are making their way to Target stores across the United States! The first display was found over a month ago, and Bratz fans—including myself—have gone feral since looking for them in their local Target stores since. I finally managed to find them last week at my local Target store and hit up some other Target stores in my area to find more, and even score an (empty) display box! Although I did not manage to get a full set of minis, I wanted to give y’all a detailed review with tons of pictures of the ones I did get! Keep on reading if you wanted to see more of this iconic Bratz release, including tips on how to get the Mini Bratz you’re looking for and where to buy them!
Please note that all of the Mini Bratz and Cosmetics featured in this article were purchased on my own and no free product was received. All opinions expressed in this review are my own despite not receiving free product, as they always are regardless.
THE PACKAGING
The capsules for each Mini Bratz are, in traditional Bratz form, trapezoid-shaped. On the front of the packaging, the “Mini Bratz” logo is featured in the center bottom portion while an iconic set of Bratz lips appears in the top left corner. On the back of each display capsule, a “B” icon with a halo and stars is present. When you open the capsule, it separates into two parts where you’ll find an MGA survey form and two minis are wrapped in paper featuring a “B” monogram design. The regular Mini Bratz have pink wrapping paper, while the cosmetics have purple wrapping paper. That same “B” appears inside as a sort of “stand” for your Mini Bratz item. The capsule doubles as a display for your minis. I enjoy the capsule doubling as a display piece because it makes the packaging more functional and aids in producing less plastic waste, as a result. Not only that, but I’ve seen many collectors use the capsules for storage for other things; doll clothing, shoes, accessories, important legal documents, car keys—you name it! The cosmetics has the same packaging, though it includes a small piece of paper on the right side that folds out to show the ingredients list for the makeup. The doll and playset packaging is purple with pink lettering, while the cosmetics packaging has pink packaging with pink lettering. Another way to distinguish between the two is the cardstock packaging; the dolls and playsets have a larger space for artwork, while the cosmetics have less artwork space and have a small “Cosmetics!” label on them under the “Mini Bratz” logo.
THE COSMETICS
I will be honest in writing that, as much as I love the cosmetics, I was the least excited for them. Now that I have them, I do love them yet they do not give the same excitement that the dolls and playsets do. I think the effort put into making tiny cosmetics should be applauded, and it is clear this was done to stir up publicity for the brand for making such a thing. Most of the cosmetics are bite-sized versions of the Revolution Makeup palettes they released last year, with a few tweaks here and there. And yes, the cosmetics are real! That means that each cosmetics can be used as real makeup, if wanted.
Each Mini Bratz Cosmetics capsule comes with three items: a mini shadow palette, additional cosmetics item (round compact, duo eyeshadow, mascara, or lipstick), and a clear vinyl makeup bag. There are twelve cosmetic capsules to collect, and I ended up getting eleven of them; the one I am missing is the large eyeshadow palette and mascara combo, though they are no different from the large eyeshadow palette that comes with the duo eyeshadow compact and mascara that comes with the wintertime icon palette. From what I have noticed, the color of the vinyl bag will indicate which character palette you may receive while each set of character art comes with a specific additional cosmetic item. Blue bags will come with a Cloe or monogram icon palette, pink bags will come with a Jade or Sasha palette, and purple bags will come with a Yasmin or large palette. First Edition artwork palettes come with round compacts, Wintertime artwork palettes come with lipstick, the regular icon palette comes with a duo eyeshadow compact, the wintertime icon palette comes with mascara, and the large palette can come with either the mascara or a duo eyeshadow compact.
As mentioned earlier, all of the cosmetics are real-working makeup. How is the quality of it? Well… it’s not high-quality makeup but it’s cute for what it is! I would say that the best part of the cosmetics is the packaging. I love how all of the packaging is detailed and each cosmetics item has unicarton packaging! The makeup itself reminds me of old Bratz makeup and the consistency is reminiscent of the Yummi-Land lipglosses. None of the makeup is truly pigmented, but that wasn’t truly expected considering its price point. The vinyl makeup bags are cute, though I don’t know if they’re necessarily needed. Despite the makeup not being fully functional and the bag being a strange add-on, I do appreciate the effort that went into making these! I do not know how the cosmetics portion of the Mini Bratz series can live on as they’ve used all the designs from the Revolution collection, though it would be cute to see them replicate older Bratz makeup like… the Lookin’ Bratz cosmetics from 2003 perhaps? Only the future knows what’s in store for Mini Bratz Cosmetics!
Another thing I noticed between all of the palettes is that the Cloe and icon palettes share the same colors, the Jade palettes share colors, the Sasha palettes share colors, and the Yasmin palettes share colors. So, in theory, there aren’t really many shades between all of these palettes as most of them are re-used between characters and designs. The other compacts and lipsticks seem to be the same shades or at least very similar, as well. I should also mention that all of the palettes have a plastic sticker to protect the shadows from bacteria, and it can be easily reattached which is a nice touch.
COSMETICS VS. REVOLUTION PALETTE COMPARISONS
One of the fun aspects of these mini palettes is how cute they are in comparison to the life-sized palettes that came out last year! The regular-sized Revolution palettes have eighteen shades, while their mini counterparts have fourteen; the large regular-sized Revolution palette has 27 shades, while its mini counterpart has fifteen. The shades between the Revolution and mini palettes aren’t very similar, and the only real similarities between them are the designs and packaging. However, the Mini Bratz Cosmetics are not part of a Revolution collab and only use the designs from it with small tweaks. The First Edition palettes are the most similar in terms of design to their mini counterparts, while the Wintertime palettes share the same colors as the First Edition palettes except with Wintertime Wonderland artwork.
I find it really cool that MGA made mini versions of the Revolution palettes, especially because the dolls can “use” them and have their own makeup! I have included comparison pictures of the mini palettes and their Revolution counterparts. I also included a comparison of the round compact and the Genie Magic Fabulous Fortune-Telling compact that came with Burger King kids meals in 2006, because it reminded me so much of it!
the DOLLS ‘N’ PLAYSETS
For me, the most exciting part of the Mini Bratz launch is the dolls! Not only did MGA reproduce mini versions of the dolls, but we also get a few playsets and an iconic electronic product! Each capsule comes with two items: two dolls or a doll and a playset/electronic item. All of the pairings in the gallery feature the dolls that come together in a capsule. The only dolls that I have not found yet are paired as follows: Rock Angelz Yasmin and Tokyo A Go-Go Collector’s Edition Kumi; Flaunt It! Sasha and Wintertime Collection Jade. In then gallery, I have included pictures of each mini set I unboxed, and included unboxed pictures of items I got doubles of.
I have to admit that, as much as I love regular-sized Bratz dolls, seeing these minis has ignited something new in me for the brand. Seeing MGA create brand-new products (albeit being based on older products) is so exciting to me! When Bratz was set to come back in 2018, I truly thought we were getting some form of blind-box Bratz products in the same vein as L.O.L. Surprise!—I even had dreams about it! I am shocked it’s taken six years since the launch of L.O.L. to get Bratz in blind-box form. I am obsessed with mini things and have long been a fan of the Bratz figures and keychains that came out back in the mid-2000s (see the “Collectibles” pages of the Bratz database pages), so this release was right up my alley!
Mini Bratz and Cosmetics Size Comparison
Each Mini Bratz doll and item comes with detailed replicas of their original counterparts, and includes a mini replica of the product that can be removed from the box. Similar to how the capsules can double as displays to reduce plastic waste, the boxes for each Mini Bratz item give collectors an incentive to keep the plastic boxes because the doll or item can be placed back inside! I will note that the artwork of the front and the back of the boxes are printed on the plastic, and the backgrounds of the boxes are removable cardstock pieces.
I am so impressed with how well-made and detailed these Mini Bratz are! You can tell a lot of love and care were put into making these. Some of the dolls are prone to have some issues (clock my unboxed Flaunt It! Yasmin’s face), but I’m sure MGA’s Customer Service Support can help some people who are dissatisfied with the quality of their doll. Otherwise, I’m in love with these! My personal favorites are Funky Fashion Makeover Sasha, Tokyo A Go-Go Sasha and Cloe, the Twiins, and the Electric Funk Luscious Lip Phone!
DOLLS ‘N’ PLAYSETS VS. ORIGINALS COMPARISONS
While I don’t have all of the original counterparts to the Mini Bratz, I did want to include a gallery of some comparisons between the minis and their OG counterparts!
It’s amazing to see how faithful the Mini Bratz are compared to their original counterparts. The screenings used on the mini dolls don’t seem to be a replica of the original dolls, but rather a “one size fits all” screening used across all the mini dolls.
MINI BRATZ VS. COSMETICS SIZE COMPARISON
Just in case anyone was curious, I have included a picture of how the Mini Bratz dolls compare in size to the Mini Bratz Cosmetics shadow palettes!
DISPLAY CAPSULES
LEFT-TO-RIGHT: Lil’ Bratz (2002), McDonald’s Happy Meal Bratz (2003), Amy Goes Shopping/Fashion Passion Pen Topper/Easter Egg Surprise Mini Bratz (2003), Wintertime Wonderland Ornament (2003), Easter Egg Surprise Keychain (2004/2005), Lil’ Bratz Cake Topper (2005), Sporty Flair Mini Ornament (2005), Sporty Flair Ornament (2005), Holiday Katia Ornament (2006), Lil’ Bratz Funk House (2006), Itsy Bitsy Bratz (2006), Ice Champions Ornament (2006), Lil’ Bratz Reboot (2008), Easter Egg Surprise Doll (2013-2016), Mini L.O.L. Surprise! O.M.G. (2021), and Mini Bratz (2022)
As stated earlier in the article, each capsule separates to give collectors the opportunity to use them as displays for their Mini Bratz or Cosmetics! I have included pictures of how the dolls and cosmetics look displayed in their capsules. Some stock pictures—as well as the pictures I took—show the capsules stacked on top of each other. Please keep in mind that the capsules do not connect, so be careful when stacking them as they may fall if misplaced.
SIZE COMPARISONS TO OTHER “MINI” BRATZ
If you’re a seasoned Bratz fan, you may know that Mini Bratz isn’t the brand’s first venture into creating pocket-sized dolls. Although not a complete chart, I have decided to be crazy and create a comparison chart of many incarnations of mini-sized Bratz throughout the past twenty years. Check the picture and click to enlarge to check them all out, and see how they compare is size to the latest Mini Bratz scale! I also included a bonus L.O.L. Surprise! O.M.G. mini to see how their scale compares to Mini Bratz!
PLACEMENT GUIDE
You might be wondering: “How can I get the capsule I want without buying multiple and risk getting duplicates?” Thankfully, my friend Joshua (@nu.royalty on Instagram) has created a placement guide of the larger display featuring the cosmetics on the top-half and dolls on the bottom-half. Please note that, while this placement guide is accurate, it is only accurate for untouched displays. There is no guarantee that people won’t move things around on the display. Each big display contains all twelve cosmetics sets with no duplicates (unless you count the large shadow palette and mascara dupe set), and twenty-eight doll sets with several duplicates. You can view the placement guide for the big display at this link.
There is a smaller “box” display for the dolls, but there has been no placement guide made for it yet as of the date this article was published. On that note, it is unknown if the cosmetics will receive a similar display as one has not yet been spotted.
WHERE TO BUY
The Mini Bratz release has been a bit chaotic as there has been no official release dates (they’ve just been popping up in Target stores sporadically) nor has MGA stated any information about where they will be sold outside of the United States. For U.S. folks, you can order the Mini Bratz and Cosmetics from Amazon (shipping times are a bit long at this moment) or chance going to a physical Target store to see if they have them in stock. Walmart has the Mini Bratz and Cosmetics listed on their website, but they are unavailable to order; it is also unknown if they will pop up in physical Walmart stores at this time. While no information on what an international release may look like, it may be a good idea to contact MGA’s international offices for more info! Both the Mini Bratz and Cosmetics retail for $9.99 USD.
OVERALL THOUGHTZ
Overall, I’m gagged by the Mini Bratz! This release has made me eager for even more Bratz minis, and we may see some this holiday season as MGA plans to release a Flashback Minis Advent Calendar later this year! As for the cosmetics, I’d be okay if they ended after this series unless we get to see more cool designs in the future. I’m hopeful we’ll be seeing more dolls, playsets, and maybe more random merchandise produced on a mini scale; don’t forget that the original Mini Bratz description included Formal Funk, which we didn’t see in Series 1, so hopefully we see that in a future release!
Per a Toy Insider article about the Mini Bratz launch, this brand will be a sub-brand to a bigger MGA brand that will be called “MGA’s Miniverse”. The Miniverse brand is expected to include other mini versions of MGA’s various brands. It may be a safe bet to say we’ll see mini Rainbow High or Little Tikes toys in the future, or even mini versions of past MGA brands like Moxie Girlz or Novi Stars if we’re lucky! The possibilities of what can join the Miniverse are endless, and I’m glad we’ve gotten Bratz to lead this new brand!
If you’re interested in checking out an archive of nearly 10,000 Bratz products—including every product referenced in this article—with hundreds more being added soon, check out the Lookin’ Bratz database!
To keep up-to-date on MGA’s Miniverse brand, follow them on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok!
Stay tuned to LookinBratz.com for more news on the Girls with a Passion for Fashion, and make sure to check out Lookin’ Bratz on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok for more scorchin’ Bratz content and news!
Keep an eye out on the Lookin’ Bratz YouTube channel for a huge unboxing video of the Mini Bratz!
xoxo
