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!

Teen Fun Workout Skipper 1987

One of my plans for 2020 was to complete the Teen Fun Skipper series and this I managed to do this month because I was only missing Workout Skipper. Thus I finally own all of the 1987 Skipper dolls. I’m so happy!

I’d been putting the purchase off although I’d seen some second-hand Workout Skippers available and at a good price. The problem was I wanted the saran variant and with the outfit in a good shape. Unfortunately, Skipper’s body suit is made of the kind of fabric that rubs off revealing the ugly grey layer underneath. Sometimes, even getting a brand new doll doesn’t guarantee the perfect condition of the body suit so you might open the box and be disappointed by what you just bought. Mine is fine though

I like the color combination of the box. Skipper looks so lovely in her yellow outfit against the purple background, it was almost a shame to unbox her, but that wouldn’t be me. I had to take her out of her box. There was some “paper work” waiting for me, namely two catalogues, cardboard cutouts, some stickers, the instruction manual as well as an invitation to join Barbie Club. The manual came in handy because it explained what the green accessories next to the jump rope were. Those are leg weights. The set also came with a pair of dumbbells, a jump rope, a mat and a brush.

Skipper came with a lovely outfit that just shouts the 80s. There’s a pair of yellow leggings, a short top, a gold body suit, wristbands, a headband and a pair of leg warmers. There are two versions of the top, it’s yellow and white with either black or gold stripes. Skipper’s also wearing a pair of light yellow tennis shoes. I love how the outfit comes with multiple and separate pieces and the body suit has a plastic snap.

Skipper herself is just adorable. She has a head full of tight curls in a very warm shade of honey blonde. The hair is a little flat, crushed by the box, but that’s to be expected after three decades in a box. She reminds me of Olivia Newton-John in Grease.  All of the Teen Fun Skippers have the identical facial screening and only the colors differ. Workout Skipper has a strange combination of foam green and a bit of yellow in her eyes with just a touch of purple eye shadow, but it looks really well.

All in all, I find Teen Fun Skipper series very unique in terms of the facial screening, they’re easy to identify. As far as, I know all the 1987 Skipper dolls, including the Teen Sweetheart Skipper, come with saran or kanekalon hair. I can’t be sure if that’s true for the Cheerleader because I’ve been misled by online pictures many times already, but I’m certain as far as the other three are concerned. It was especially hard to get the saran variant of the Teen Sweetheart. Furthermore, all four share the same problem – spotty vinyl of their legs. That’s very common for the early Skippers and mine are an example of that phenomenon, but that’s something I knew at the time of purchase, so I won’t despair. So here’s all of the Skippers produced in 1987, don’t they look adorable?

Fashion Avenue Lingerie

I’ve gone nuts with Barbie lingerie of late, but is it my fault that great deals just poped up one after another? And could I just let them pass? I couldn’t, or I’d certainly regret that. On one of the facebook groups I belong to, one person announced he’d be selling a large collection of Fashion Avenue sets and at a very good price. I would’ve taken them all, but I’ve got to eat. So here are two that I purchased.

The first set is the Fashion Avenue Lingerie #14292 from 1996 and it’s brand new. The lovely box was designed to look like a shop window and it consisted of two sets of clothes. Peaches’n Cream is wearing a lavender nightdress trimmed with black lace. The nightdress has a slit at the bottom on one side and it looks very much “grown-up” and authentic.

Magic Moves is presenting a blush pink bra and panties also with identical trimming as the nightdress. It was such a struggle to put the panties on but Barbie needed some exercise anyway. Her mechanism is a little faulty and if I don’t switch it on and off and put her arms up and down every once in a while, it just refuses to work. So she made some ominous noises and … she’s fine again. And you would have thought that you ought to go gentle with such an old doll.

Mattel would add some accessories to their lingerie sets like a brush, a comb and a pair of shoes. This one contains some black simple pumps but they seem too heavy for the pastels so the models are wearing some shoes from my other fashion packs. I have no idea where the lavender heels came from, but they’re so lovely with the pearly finish. The set also came with a catalogue.

The set below came second-handed but still in a pretty good condition. The Fashion Avenue Lingerie #14290 from 1995 consisted of a body suit, a pair of stockings, a purse, a comb and a pair of open-toe heels. Mine is incomplete, but the most important parts are still there, though the stockings have some tiny holes. The set was very inexpensive and I’d wanted to have it for a long time, so I’m very happy with it.

Of course I had to put out my girls for a group photo but I forgot I also had the other elements of the white Fancy Frills as well as some Steffi Love underwear, but oh well. I love Fashion Avenue, I feel they’re really good quality compared to what we get nowadays. There’s still one set that I’d love to have and that is Fashion Avenue Lingerie #18093 from 1997 but it’s pretty expensive so unless I come across some really good deal, I’ll have to do without it. It’s pretty though, don’t you think?

The source: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/barbie-fashion-avenue-lingerie-peach-501523956