Peaches'n Cream Barbie Taiwan II

It’s been a year since Magic Moves and Peaches’n Cream (both made in Taiwan) joined my collection. Upon their arrival they presented a state of criminal neglect and it seemed as if dust and dirt had been their faithful companions for these past two decades. Once they were Mattel’s true stars and I made every effort to restore their glory long gone, or at least some part of it. When their former beauty re-emerged I became very fond of them but there was still something missing. The charm of the 80s manifested itself in the dolls’ outfits and these were sadly not there. So I made a decision: I’d get their original gowns or I’d leave them as they were but I’d purchase their Philippine sisters. It took me just a couple of months to find my Magic Moves, but the Philippine Peaches’n Cream is rarely available and one dressed in her beautiful peach dress usually commands an exorbitant price that is usually not reflected by the doll’s condition. As for the dress alone, I’d rejected so many auctions because they were usually damaged. The doll appeared quite unexpectedly and so well within my reach – in my country. She was in a great condition, just a bit dusty, but she wore her dress almost without blemish. Her arms were wrapped with one of the two shawls. But that’s not all – Barbie’s jewelry was complete and I mean complete, even the necklace. The only thing that was missing was her shoes and her hair was tied with a ribbon that would do nicely for her red/orange belt. But I didn’t jump at the opportunity, because her face revealed a Taiwan version, a very beautiful one, but Taiwan nonetheless and I avoid doubles. I yielded two days later and I’m excused because she’s no ordinary doll, right? So here she is, my second Peaches’n Cream 1984 made in Taiwan.

What a nice surprise it was when it turned out that my two Taiwan Peaches aren’t identical after all. But this is something that could be expected. Back in the old days, behind every facepaint there was a human being, not a machine. The paint was applied by hand with a use of a set of stencils so the dolls may vary and in this case, they do. The second Peaches’ eyelashes are more pronounced but her eyeliner is thinner, more subtle. The color palette is also slightly different – the colors of the second Peaches are warmer, her eyeshadow is more violet than blue. The lipstick is the same but there’s more blush to her cheeks too. As to the dolls’ hair, the color is almost identical, but the forehead line is different. Now the hair had never been brushed and the original curls were still there but they were tangled. The hair had to be washed, because it was dirty and though I was reluctant to intervene here, it could not be avoided. However gently I treated the once lovely curls, I destroyed them. After the usual hair treatments I curled the hair anew. They’re not perfect, but I’ll be working on them some time soon.

Barbie’s hair held a surprise for me, or several. For one thing, the reddish-orange ribbon turned out to be her belt adorned with the lovely flower. I’m very happy because the belt is usually missing with the second-hand dolls. The other surprise was her hairpins – there were two of them and Barbie’s previous owner must have put them in her hair before shipping her because the pictures didn’t show them. The shoes were a replacement but they match the dress very nicely. As to the jewelry, as I mentioned it was complete – the ring and earrings reflect the light in a very lovely manner, but it’s the necklace that’s my favorite part of the whole set. It looks so fragile and it’s held just by two tiny hooks, I’m astounded it hadn’t been lost! In general, the doll looks just as if she was just taken out of her box, played with for a little while and then forgotten.  

I was a little afraid if the actual condition of the dress would be acceptable because there were no close-up pictures attached, but my fears turned out to be groundless. The dress is almost without a blemish and this is rarely to be seen because the gown is made of fabric so fragile and prone to damage that it seems almost impossible for it to have survived all those years. There are no tears, no holes in the many layers and the torso part is beautifully opalescent. The dress closes with metal snaps and there are some additional ones discretely placed on the gown to attach the shawls. It looks very romantic.

And here are both of my Peaches, I’m so happy to own them and I wouldn’t like to part with any of them. I like the fact that their dresses are different and I styled their hair differently, this way they’re easily told apart. The second Peaches will keep her dress and accessories unchanged, but the first one is a gracious model and there are already two contemporary fashon packs waiting for her to present them. I feel like I can have a cake and eat a cake.

Dolls of the World Thai Barbie 1997

In my previous post I mentioned that I’d continue with DotW and today’s doll belongs to this amazing series. She’s Thai Barbie 1997. She joined my collection just a day before I published my anniversary post so she’s in the pictures and she’s waited quite a while for her presentation. At last here she is. Now purchasing her wasn’t easy contrary to her wide availability and low price. To keep a long story short it took three auctions before she was mine and the first one was very unfortunate. She was listed at a low price and I was the only bidder, but before I could pay for her, her owner sent me an email apologizing that he forgot he’d sold her already and he'd only listed her accidentally and such. I hate such practices! When you put out a hardly popular doll you may expect that the starting price may be the final one. Another seller turned out to be more honest so without a further ado, Thai Barbie.

Before I publish any post I try to make a thorough research, however I haven’t found any information whether there’s any other edition of Thai Barbie. It appears she’s the only one. It seems Mattel paid Thailand and Poland equally little attention – unless I’ve missed something. I discovered Thai Barbie quite by accident when I was flipping photos of the ever elusive Korean Barbie doll. I thought her outfit overall great, but the doll’s face was just captivating. The Oriental facemold is always beautiful, but the facepaint that Mattel applied to it – so simple and modest enchanced the natural beauty of the headmold’s features. The doll’s eyes are narrow, just like they should be and the lovely hazel gaze needs nothing more than the faint smokey eyeshadow. Yet Barbie’s facepaint is by no means deficient in color or too placid, her lips are vivid red. Her hair is quite unique – cut short and just held in a ponytail and well … stiff like hell for the product that the company applied.

I’ve made some effort to study the outfit, but the topic exhausted me completely. Dance is crucial in Thai culture and it requires a special outfit to perform it. To further complicate the matter, each piece has its own name and meaning in the ritual. So I won’t bother copying all the Wikipedia content on this subject and I’ll be using simple vocabulary as befits an ignorant person. So Barbie’s wearing a skirt, long, fitting and elaborately patterned. The green cape that covers her shoulders is tucked in the skirt in the front and it hangs low at the back. It holds its shape beautifully. But apart from being so rich and regal, Barbie’s outfit holds some surprise. Underneath the cape, there’s a simple, orange top made of lurex, so when you strip her of her headpiece and cape, she can be stylish and elegant in a more contemporary and day to day way.

The most distinct part of Barbie’s entire outfit will be her headpiece in a form of a „golden” temple that has been secured to her head with three tabs shot right through her skull. How cruel that is! I cut them off to remove the headpiece but they’re still there and in order to get rid of them I’d have to take her head off which I’m reluctant to do. Anyway, her jewellery is boring to death! Mattel gave her some generic earrings and a matching ring plus some Lame bracelets made of some scraps of the material to minimize waste. Thai Barbie has no shoes and Mattel informs us on the box that traditional Thai dancers perform barefoot. Be that as it may it wouldn’t hurt to give her some shoes. Since I like to keep my dolls in their original condition and customizing fascinates me not, she remains the only doll in my collection without shoes. But she’s got her stand which she gave to  another doll, and I also took off her headpiece because it makes her one extra inch taller and she doesn’t fit in the space on the DOTW shelf. That’s ok, because she’s still very pretty.

So far I’ve managed to collect 4 Oriental dolls, and here they are: Japanese Barbie, Malaysian Barbie, Thai Barbie and Nia.

Dolls of the World Norwegian Barbie 1995

As it turns out, there’s been no superstar Barbie on my blog since May, an error that needs immediate correction. So I ran to fetch one that has been long overdue, and here she is, my Norwegian Barbie 1995.

Norwegian Barbie is much more beautiful in person, and no picture does her justice, and I’ve failed to capture all those minute details that completely change the overall look of the doll. For one thing, her lipstick has a pearly hue and her eye makeup is much more detailed that I previously thought. Smokey pink and purple eyeshadows mingle beautifully and I only noticed that upon a closer scrutiny once the doll arrived. I also didn’t pay enouch attention to Barbie’s pale complexion and her glorious saran hair that is styled with simplicity in two twirly braids while the rest is let loose and falls gently below her waist. I don't know how all this somehow escaped me at first and I didn't rush to buy her sooner, but now that she belongs to my collection, I'm happy with my new arrival.

Now Barbie’s outfit is interesting because you probably know that two versions of the blue dress can be found - with purple or red flowers. The dress itself can also come in two shades of blue or purple-blue. I was sure there was nothing interesting behind those variations and once the Chinese ran out of their fabric stock, they simply used another one pattern and that’s that. It turns out I was wrong. There were actually two editions of Norwegian Barbie – mine is the first one produced in 1995 only to be reintroduced a year later but in a slightly different dress.

Norwegian Barbie seems to be a prelude to today’s tendencies in Barbie’s fashion – a deception that manifests in one-piece outfits that while in box give an impression of being separate. So, unfortunately, the waistcoat, the shirt and the skirt are in fact, one thing. It’s lazy and lame and I would expect a little better in collector’s edition, not to mention that it’s slightly discouraging in play line too. One thing I need to admit – Mattel used good quality fabric when they could’ve  practiced economy in that area too. They also put much effort in hiding the fact that the waistcoat and the skirt aren’t separate, so it’s overal not so noticeable. The outfit is pretty detailed too – the satchel or purse is a nice extra touch that makes the outfit a tad more interesting.

 

The accessories to the outfit include a headpece that has been attached to Barbie’s head in a truly barbaric manner – with plastic tabs shot into her head! Talk about ouch! Barbie’s shoes are the classic 90s pumps wich I like a lot and they never make me bored. Her jewellery is very plain save the ‘silver’ locket that attracts attention, just like the Irish Barbie’s camea broach, not to mention the Moroccan Barbie and all that gold that she drips in! I’ve purchased Norwegian Barbie in used condition, but she’s perfect and she even came with a stand which is something I always appreciate. Every so often I need to make a choice whether to buy a doll or restock doll stands, so I’m always happy when a doll arrives already with a stand.

As I can never buy a single DOTW, there are two more to come very soon