Angel Face Barbie 1982

05.12.2018

I try to avoid unplanned purchases, though I’m always very happy with unexpected arrivals. But these only divert me from my wish list which is already vast and extensive. So I’ve decided to organize it and divided the dolls I’d love to have into three categories:

1. Possible
2. That might be difficult
3. Don’t be ridiculous, you’d have to go starving

And to my astonishment one of the “that might be difficult” dolls that I’d been salivating over for months was put out for sale by one of my regular vendors. I didn’t hesitate a second because the doll is none other but the Angel Face Barbie 1982 herself! Angel was in a very good condition and still wearing her stock outfit and her ring which is very rare for dolls this old. I could bid for her, but I preferred not to risk losing so I snatched her before someone else did.

My Angel Face was manufactured in the Philippines but I don’t know if she was produced by other sites, however her facepaint bears all the characteristics of the gentle Philippine brush that but caressed my beloved headmold. The doll looks half-conscious actually, her eyes are simple blue with navy blue pupils and same color eyeliner with two little eye lashes. The grey-green smoky eye shadow adds to the dreamy look. Angel is visibly blushing so we may speculate what she’s day dreaming of or perhaps she’s like my Hime with her tendency for late evening booze… oh well. There’s but one blemish to her face and that’s her raspberry lipstick that oozed to her lip corners and a bit to her teeth but I can forgive her that, she’s really older than myself! Her complexion is very fair, just like with my Standard E/C Barbie.

Angel’s facepaint makes her immediately recognizable, but so does her hair which is absolutely unique. The beautiful, shiny and silky saran is two toned – blonde and chocolate waves are let loose and I could attempt at styling the hair to the near factory condition but I actually like it best the way it is. As always, when I await a doll’s arrival I admire her photos online and try to read every piece of information available. Some other collector mentioned purchasing the doll with a different hairstyle – the hair was still two toned but it was also curled tight. The doll didn’t have a side part and her hair was brushed back exposing a large forehead, not very becoming.

Angel’s dress is a masterpiece! It’s a sort of plain Victorian style that brings Anne from Green Gables to my mind. The top is made of beautiful lace with puffy sleeves and the pink ribbon on the wrists and the front part. There’s a Camea “broach” on her neck part that’s actually a piece of fabric and it’s quite fragile, used dolls most often come without it so I’m very happy mine hasn’t lost it as it goes very well with the overall style. The dress has a black velvet “belt” at the waist and it closes with two metal snaps. The bottom part is a very simple and slightly shiny pink polyester. I have no idea why it’s pink, the dress would look far more romantic in blue or pale green, but pink has its charm too.

As to her accessories, the doll still has her clear plastic ring with a rhinestone – my favorite Barbie jewelry type. She never had any earrings though. She no longer has her shoes, the simple open toes that would snap and get lost, but I had a pair of Day to Night pumps that go nice with the dress, so Angel will be wearing them until their rightful owner is purchased and that may take a while. Angel Face also came with a headband, a set of dolly sized hair accessories – a brush, a comb and some clips as well as a brush and a comb for the owner, all lost now. The most interesting of her accessories was a beauty compact in a form of a purse that I’d love to have, because it’s very charming. It contained a “mirror” as well as two eye shadows and a blush plus an applicator for you to use on the doll to make her even more beautiful as the below commercial informs. I hate those things that destroy a doll! Why?! The same goes for Paint’n Dazzle Barbie and those horrible fabric paints that damage her amazing outfit. Anyway, apparently Angel Face was a collaboration with the Pond’s cosmetic brand that had a beauty line called Angel Face, but that’s not confirmed.

Angel face is gorgeous, so gentle and ethereal, just like Sweet Roses PJ and I’m very happy I managed to add her to my collection. A little bonus below – my superstar classics, for now because I plan to extend the set by several dolls, but they all belong to the “that might be difficult” and “Don’t be ridiculous” categories so it may not be soon. For now I’m so pleased with the four ladies – Angel Face ’82, Crystal Barbie ’83, Peaches’n Cram ’84 and Magic Moves ’85 (production dates). They all look beautiful, but I think that Magic Moves is still my favorite. My dolls are finally displayed in a temporary cabinet that I dragged from the old apartment, but unfortunately I don’t have enough stands so there’s more still cramped in plastic boxes. Enjoy! 

Babysitter Courtney 1990

13.11.2018

Much as I love the 1987 Skipper headmold in each of its three forms, it’s taken me a long time to finally add Courtney to my collection. But she’s very rare in my country and if for some strange and inexplicable reason she happens to be for sale, the price is always outrageous and discouraging. Ebay offers a much wider variety and the prices are more reasonable as well … if you happen to live in the US, which I don’t, so I need to add the very high shipping costs and customs fees which combined, double the price of the doll itself. Very nasty indeed, but I can be patient if I have to and I waited and searched and in the end I found her. There she was, cute and sweet and for sale in my own country (hoooorayyyy), for bidding – no buy now option (oh noooo) and two other participants eager to get her too ( oh well ). I identified the doll momentarily as the Babysitter Courtney 1990 – one of my top 3 Courtneys ever so I joined them and I battled fiercely and relentlessly, and in the end no-one was more astonished by my victory than myself.

Now some historical facts – Courtney was first produced in 1988 as a part of the Teen Time series as a brunette counterpart to Skipper. Courtney entered Barbie’s universe as Skipper’s best friend and shared her headmold and body type, her eyes would vary between brown, green and blue depending on a series. She was released once a year with an exception of 1992 till 2000 when she was discontinued but within those several years she changed her image twice. The first modification took place in 1995 when her headmold changed to the “Pizza Party” which is slightly more mature and more realistic looking. Her body at that time remained unchanged, however it was slightly modified in the 1996 Phone Fun series as her right arm was bent so that she could hold her phone by the ear. In 1996 she changed completely as the Teen Courtney. She grew up pretty much to the height of Barbie and was given a new headmold. She was still a brunette, but there were some copper streaks to her hair and a year later she was a redhead all the way.

My Courtney arrived in a very decent condition, her face was dirty but her saran hair still very soft and silky. Her fringe was nowhere to be seen and needed a lot of work and effort in order to resurface. The bangs are rooted in the second row, the first row is the regular length, and for the doll to regain her fringe I had to criss-cross each hair plug! One hour, two bleeding fingers and much swearing later the doll had her fringe again, though it was fierce and unruly like Wet’n Wild Skipper’s! It’ll still need some work, but for now I’m at least satisfied with the pigtails. The doll couldn’t be more adorable and the dark hair give the big-eye mold an entirely different look. It also goes very well with her two-toned green eyes and the two lower eyelashes make her eyes smile. She’s very perky. Her make-up is minimal but she is wearing some smoky baby blue eyeshadow- an absolute must for the dolls of that period and a vibrant pink lipstick.

 

The doll is lovely and my only regret is that she didn’t come complete in her own outfit and with her accessories. Instead, her previous owner put together a top belonging to the Trendy Teen fashion #774 and an unidentified skirt or apron, no shoes of course. I’d promised myself that if I won the auction, I’d buy her a fashion pack I’ve been salivating over ever since I bought my very first Skipper doll. It’s already arrived but I’ll dedicate a separate entry to present it as it’s worth it, but for now my Courtney is wearing a lovely Pet Pals dress and a pair of random shoes because I cannot bear a doll with no shoes in my collection. I think that this dress does become her.

Courtney’s stock outfit was very simple and that’s what I love about it. It consisted of a puffy sleeve top and a skirt both white with neon green and pink splotches all over them. Her shoes were of course viciously green. I’d love to have her accessories as well and my favorite piece is the green Walkman that could actually open for you to place a miniscule cassette inside which would probably be lost within the first hour of playing with the doll but I appreciate the idea, the effort and the attention to detail. Courtney is a babysitter in this series so of course she comes with an infant dressed in a pink ruffle one-piece. Good luck hearing the baby’s cry with that Walkman on. Skipper went all the way, Mattel gave her a boombox so no chance of sleep for the baby unless the soothing voices of Backstreet Boys lull it to sleep. Anyway, Courtney was also given a bottle of milk, a container of baby powder, some soap on a tray, a tiny blanket, a rattle, a doll for the baby and a sheet of punch-outs. The below commercial shows all these treasures and there’s Skipper of course. The series also included AA Skipper.

My Courtney doll has already joined her friends and made me want to include even more Courtneys to my collection. I’d love to have them all, but my favorites are Teen Time Courtney 1988 and Cool Crimp Courtney 1993. Of course the Cool Tops Courtney 1989 is lovely too, and then there’s Kevin and Skipper AA, and … oh dear!

Dolls of the World Moroccan Barbie 1998

16.08.2018

My collection has recently expanded in terms of the various headmolds that I added to it. Not so long ago, my very first Ken 1988 arrived followed by my first Oriental doll 1980 and Christie 1987. As far as Christie is concerned, I’d long wanted to include her in my collection and there were many prospective candidates as the mold was very popular back in the 80s and 90s. They were all stunning, beautiful dolls but Moroccan Barbie 1998 beat them all.

Why did I chose her? She’s absolutely unique. She’s instantly recognizable for her unusually fair skin tone that makes her so much different from all the Christies in the world. Technically, I shouldn’t call her Christie, because she belongs to the amazing series called the Dolls of the World. Moroccan Barbie was also produced in 1998 and to the best of my knowledge released a year later, so she’s younger than the dolls I typically choose, but she still bears all the features of my favorite Barbie era – the click bending knees, TNT waist, the 90 degrees bent arms and the Christie 1987 mold.

The doll must have been a result of an inspiration! She’s captivating and ethereal, her expression is full of serenity and harmony and when I look at her it seems to me there’s some kind of mystery about the doll, I find it hard to describe. Her hazel eyes are dreamy and her makeup isn’t distracting – the thick eyeliner adds depth to her look and the light, metallic pink line makes it more vivid. The lips of the headmold have been sculpted as naturally ample though the effect varies depending on how the facepaint interprets the mold, but this time they were made incredibly full and the outcome is even more striking for the glossy lipstick. They’re parted in an enigmatic smile. The cute dimples are characteristic of the mold. Barbie’s hair is actually two toned – the black mingles with very thin, subtle brown streaks but it’s hard to capture in a picture.

As to the doll’s dress, I admit I know too little of the culture of the region to fully appreciate its beauty and complexity. However, it’s evident the designers spared no effort when creating it and the result is breathtaking! The orange-magenta combination makes it impossible not to stop for a moment to admire it. The exotic pattern and golden elements add dimension to it. The metal snaps that close the outfit reveal high quality.

Barbie surely likes to accessorize, but this lady exceeds all possible limits. Apart from the customary ring and a pair of earrings, whose design by the way is exceptional, two medallions grace her. The outfit is pure perfection as is the doll with all her trinkets, but my favorite part of the doll (except for just about everything) are her shoes! Like what?! Amazing!

Moroccan Barbie is captivating and breathtaking and makes me think it would be fantastic to have another Christie molded doll but this time with darker skin tone and preferably in a to-be-rescued condition. I’d love to try to restore such a doll! In the meanwhile, me and “Christie” went out for a little walk and in the city jungle we met … a tiger!