American Stories Pioneer Barbie 1994

I can’t believe this is my first post of July but I’ve been busy dealing with the equipment that refuses to cooperate, preparing for a family getaway and dealing with so many other things, so my blog grew a few cobwebs. I was planning to take a doll with me and take a few photos in my old park but forgot to do that. Anyway, the eighteenth century building in the heart of the park was undergoing renovation and a long overdue one. Now it will be in use again and everyone will have access to it. No doubt I’ll take my dolls there when it’s ready and photograph them inside as well. Now on to the doll of this post, she’s been in my collection for several months already but somehow I lacked inspiration to scribe a few words about her. She belongs to the American Stories collection that’s very popular in the US.

American Stories series was produced for three years and it consists of eight dolls. They’re an ambitious line of dolls whose tasks was to familiarize kids with American history. The first dolls to come out were the Pilgrim Barbie, Pioneer Barbie and Colonial Barbie from 1994 (a brunette, a redhead and a blonde). The boxes, although pink, had some lovely graphics to present the proper context the dolls were set in. You would find some unusual accessories in the boxes, such as a basket with apples or corn as well as a little booklet setting Barbie in historical context.

the source: https://barbie.mattel.com/shop

 the source: https://barbie.mattel.com/shop

 

From what I know, the dolls cost about $30 which seems a lot considering the times but there was quality and uniqueness behind the price. In 1995 three more dolls came out and these were Pioneer Shopkeeper, Civil War Nurse as well as American Indian Barbie with the Superstar headmold. 1996 wraps up the series with Patriot Barbie and American Indian Barbie #2 (Teresa headmold). It would’ve been great to get a Ken doll in the series, but alas, there were none. In a female-dominated world of Barbie women tell the history. I’d love to own the Shopkeeper and the Superstar American Indian Barbies and I even had the chance to purchase them but I was late and someone else bought them before me. Some other time.

 the source: https://barbie.mattel.com/shop

 the source: https://barbie.mattel.com/shop

 the source: https://barbie.mattel.com/shop 

My Pioneer Barbie had been available and at a great price too for quite some time. Perhaps she couldn’t find a home because she’s not the most captivating beauty in the world. I flipped countless photos of her and they made me perplexed. How could Mattel spoil such a beautiful headmold with this awful face paint? Let’s face it, Pioneer Barbie isn’t pretty and that’s something you don’t hear often when people are talking about Barbie. So what’s wrong with her face? She’s very pale almost pink, but that’s not what bothers me. The green of her eyes is strangely dull and the grey eyeliner makes it even more noticeable. There’s some hint of beige eyeshadow on her lids and all this would have given her a very placid, washed off look if it weren’t for the lipstick. I guess whoever gave her that look had something very particular in mind and that was a certain amount of authenticity. After all, women of that era wouldn’t apply make-up, they were far too busy farming and bearing children amongst other things and all this set in harsh conditions of the New World. That lipstick is not only ugly but also out of place. When I look at her face it makes me think of a clone doll and not a genuine Mattel product and that says something. However, there’s also something about the doll I find hard to define but although her face paint is far from perfect, there’s some sweetness about her and her expression. She’s lovely and innocent and I look past her imperfections and see a doll I cannot dislike. In fact, she pushed back some of my obvious DotW beauties and stands proudly in the front row of my cabinet so that I can see her whenever I enter the room.

This is all very confusing and makes it a little hard to understand how you can purchase a doll you actually find unattractive, almost ugly and like her very much despite of all. But the truth is, Pioneer Barbie found a path straight to my heart. I’m a compassionate creature and I thought no one would actually want a doll like that plus I have a soft spot for redheads. And since we’re talking about hair, she has much to offer in that department. Her hair is kanekalon and it clearly hadn’t been brushed before but since it started to turn into dreadlocks worthy of Bob Marley, I had to intervene. This is some fine kanekalon and it cooperated as I shaped it into nice and shiny sausage locks. See for yourselves, the hair is gorgeous.

Now we all know Mattel isn’t always accurate when it comes to the Dolls of the World outfits but I trust they took more care with the American Stories dolls’ attire. To an untrained eye the dress of my Pioneer looks authentic. It pretty much covers the doll head to toes promoting modesty and it’s very well designed. The design was also executed with care and Mattel would not cut the corners here. The fabrics are great quality and there’s no room for the nasty Velcro, you get plastic and metal snaps. The bonnet is my favorite part, it’s lined with peach, silky fabric and trimmed with off-white lace. The ribbon doesn’t untie but you can take the bonnet off easily because a single metal snap holds it. I love the floral pattern that continues on the dress. The dress itself is equally well made, the off-white front of the dress lacks no detail in a form of pearl beads imitating buttons as well as a thin line of that peach satiny fabric. The bottom part of the dress is also decorative – the light frilly bottom and the peachy section add some variety here. I wish I still had the accessories but I’m pretty content with the doll herself. She reminds me of Doctor Quinn.

As usual, one doll makes you crave for more and in this case, my determination to get the Shopkeeper and the #1 American Indian is stronger, but upon a closer look, I love the Patriot and the Civil War Nurse almost as much. A wish list is like a Lernean Hydra – you chop off one head, you get two or three more!