To say that Date Barbie 1982 is a doll
long awaited is an understatement. The search for her began on day two
of my collecting. The reason why it took me so long to find her was
that the doll is hardly available on my local auction portals and
although Dream Date comes in great abundance on Ebay, I set certain
criteria that I would not abandon no matter what. I would accept nothing
less than a doll made in the Philippines with hair in good condition
and dressed in her stock outfit. It would be great if she came with her
earrings, the ring and the shoes would be missing – that I was sure of,
but I wouldn’t mind their absence. And forget about her additional
accessories. The price limit would be a decisive factor of course.
Having that in mind, I searched and searched and at long last, I found
her!
Dream Date Barbie series needs no
introduction, but I’ll do it anyway because it gives me great pleasure
and joy to talk about these excellent dolls. The line was manufactured
in 1982 and it consisted of 3 characters: Barbie, P.J. and Ken. I’d love
to have Ken in my collection for his dark hair and all the elegance
that surrounds him, but it’s Barbie and P.J. I longed for. P.J. is
extremely hard to get as she’s so gorgeous that collectors fight for her
and fiercely too, even if she pops up nude, dirty and bitten. And I can
understand them all too well. Both ladies differ in terms of their
headmold and hair color but their outfits are identical but for the
color scheme so they go really well together. By the way, I love the
promo picture supposedly taken in NY and there are WTC towers in the
background. The three dolls were also released in a slightly less
elegant but equally appealing version in the Barbie and Friends giftset
1982. Can you imagine so much beauty in one box? Dream Date Barbie was
released once more in 1989 as a special convention edition – Barbie 30
years in Seattle that was to commemorate Barbie’s turning thirty! The
doll’s dress isn’t as spectacular as the original one, but it’s the same
doll.
the source:http://www.flickriver.com/photos/barbiecreations/5108527734/
the source: http://steffiedolls.wikifoundry.com/page/1983+Barbie+and+Friends+Gift+Set
the source: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/dream-date-barbie-1989-30-years-1074998399
Later on, Mattel produced Dream Date
Skipper in 1990. The doll is quite interesting, she’s wearing a blue
transformation gown and she comes with some wigs, but there seems to be
no connection with the 1982 line. Then Mattel came up with an idea that
it would be great to release a board game in which Ken would take Barbie
on a date, a Dream Date, nothing less. The game was produced in 1992
and to be perfectly honest, I like the idea. The game costs quite a
penny though. Of course, Dream Date Barbie is very much iconic so she
got her reproduction in 2015. The doll is not an exact copy of the
original release, but she’s managed to capture the charm and glamour of
the 80s to be sure. There’s just one more doll worth mentioning in
relation to Dream Date Barbie and that is Fruhlingszauber Barbie 1983
that is an exclusive release for Germany. She’s wearing a very lovely
spring themed gown, but the doll herself is very much like Dream Date.
the source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/julia-yvonne/6783476563
the source: https://barbie.mattel.com/shop/en-us/ba/gold-label/dream-date-barbie-doll-cht05
Just like many other Barbie dolls of the
early 80s, Dream Date was being produced both in the Philippines and
Taiwan at the same time. So it follows that various dolls may differ in
terms of eye facepaint as well as the color intensity and the head
vinyl. However, when browsing for this doll on ebay, I had the
impression that each Dream Date was slightly different. Finally, I found
my dream Philippine that was definitely meant to belong to my
collection. The doll’s facepaint is so soft and there’s mildness in her
expression. Her eyes are purple and so is the smoky eyeshadow that
graces them. Theres just a hint of blush on her cheeks and her lips are
peach color and very thin. The doll is just precious! There’s but one
tiny flaw to her face and that is a small paint chip to her left eye.
That must have happened in the shipping, because the auction photos
didn't show that. I can live with it, I never said my Dream Date had to
be perfect anyway. Her gorgeous golden, saran hair looks as if it had
never been touched by a brush and certainly her part line looks very
much factory condition. It’s evident nobody has ever tampered with it.
Her hair was greasy and sticky when the doll arrived but I’d expected
that as the previous owner had concealed nothing in the doll’s
description. As to her body, Barbie’s feet have those very pronounced
toes, so characteristic of Barbie dolls of the early 80s. Her knees bend
up to three, which adds to her posability. The legs were a little
sticky but baby wipes solved the problem.
Dream Date Barbie’s extravagant outfit
is as good as new. In fact, I doubt anybody had ever played with her.
It’s probably neither surprising nor original to say that it reminds me
the magnificent dresses that Alexis and Crystal of Dynasty would wear.
Apparently, the old producers came up with an idea to make a film
version of the old soap opera set in the 60s and relating the events
from the main characters youth. I wonder about that. I doubt it would be
nearly as good as the real thing, but I’d see it if it really appears
in movie theaters. Anyway, the top of the outfit is a separate piece. It
ties at the back of her neck and it’s made of wool with sequins
attached to it. The top has but one flaw and that’s the lack of any sort
of snaps or Velcro. The top doesn’t open so you want to be extra
careful when removing it. It also has a tendency of loosening up over
the years but you can’t deny it’s stylish in the very 80s way.
The skirt is poetry! It’s made of a
thick and sturdy kind of polyester with purple piping to add some
contrast and dimension to the ruffle. The purple belt with a rosette
detail is a part of the skirt and so is the very long ruffle that you
can style in as many as ten different ways and there was an instruction
manual how to do that. I’ve tried different ways and although I feel I
haven’t used its full potential, I had lots of fun literally playing
with it. My favorite styles are the original one with the ruffle rolled
on Barbie’s right arm and the one with ginormous peppelum. The skirt has
a slit to the left side to expose Barbie’s pretty legs.
Barbie also came with her complete
jewelry and that is of my most favorite type – the rhinestones set in
clear plastic look like new, they’re certainly not scratched and when
they catch sunlight, they reflect it creating a rainbow of colors. The
presence of both earrings and the ring surprised me a great deal but the
shoes even more so. The open toe heels won’t stay on Barbie’s feet no
matter how hard you try. They would constantly fall off during the
photoshoot despite the fact that the doll was supported by a stand for
most of the time. I can’t imagine that a child would avoid losing them
which supports my idea that the doll had never been played with.
However, Dream Date lost her additional accessories, such as a brush or a
hand mirror in Barbie size, but I never expected them so I don’t miss
them at all. Anyway, if you were wondering what they look like, the
above commercial shows them all. Apart from the tiny paint chip the doll
seems to be perfect, doesn’t she. But she’s not, otherwise I wouldn’t
be able to afford her. The price was so low and tempting because there
are some spots on her right leg. They’re covered by the skirt which is
probably why they appeared in the first place. My idea is that the
polyester prevented the vinyl from “breathing” so the spots appeared,
but the left leg, where the slit in the skirt is, seems to be perfect
and there’s no discoloration whatsoever. The spots don’t bother me, if
they do, I can always rebody the doll. So far, I’ve been excessively
pleased with her.
Dream Date Barbie is extremely popular
amongst collectors worldwide to the point that one may feel there’s just
about too much of her everywhere. But I can see why she’s so loved.
She’s just excellent and she’s one of the most beautiful dolls in my
entire collection that is probably not very extensive so saying that
“she’s one of the most beautiful dolls I’ve ever seen” sounds more like
it. I must have taken about 200 pictures of her to reject a half of the
amount and I still couldn’t limit their number to 20. Fearing I might
run out of space on this blog, I uploaded some of them on my flickr.
But I can’t help it, her foggy facepaint, her glorious hair, her
magnificent outfit, the jewelry… I love it all. See for yourselves if
she’s not worth all the attention she gets.
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