Oh, Steffie, you’re so fine
You’re so fine you blow my mind! Hey, Steffie! *clapclapclap* Hey, Steffie! *clapclapclap*
My love affair with the Steffie head mold began with this doll, Hispanic Barbie from 1979.
Yes, her name is unfortunate in that some people consider the term offensive. But I love this doll and have for decades. She lives in my closet in the Golden Dream Barbie case. I’ve had her at least 35 years! And she is bee-yoo-ti-full! Not only is her raven hair to-die-for, but the Steffie face with the understated makeup is sweet and gorgeous.
I adore her outfit and accessories, too. The choker with the rose is such a unique detail. I also remembering it emerging as a fashion trend in the early ’90s.
Above are the accessories she’s not wearing: necklace, a different way to customize her earrings, and a hair comb. The comb is my favorite! Always has been. Another unique accessory.
Apparently I lost one of her earrings in a grocery store parking lot when I was around 5 years old. The story — which my mom still tells! — goes that I completely flipped out and we spent an inordinate amount of time looking for it. But we did find it! And that’s why her accessories have ever since been imprisoned in this teeny lil’ Ziploc.
I wonder if she’s so beloved because she reminded me of my favorite pre-school/daycare teacher.
Other treasured Steffies in my collection include:
Hawaiian Barbie (1982)
PJ from the Barbie & Friends set (1982)
OOAK Rogue
OOAK Lara Means
Oshogatsu (Happy New Year Japanese) Barbie #2 (~1995)
Sweet Roses PJ
Dream Date PJ
Parisian Barbie (1979)
Parisian Barbie (1991)
Life in the Dreamhouse Midge
Wow, I thought I’d have a lot more than that! Perhaps my collection is weighted more heavily toward my second favorite head mold, the Mackie/closed mouth. I may have to do a post on that, too.
But my wish list of Steffie face Barbies I’d like to have is probably a mile long!
Barbies Anonymous
I may have a Barbie addiction.
I’m supposed to be careful about spending money on more Barbies. I’ve also pretty much run out of room to store them. But somehow these two darlings followed me home from Big Lots.
I thought they were reasonably priced, but truth be told they ended up being bought as an early birthday present for me from a loved one. So I didn’t have to worry about the finances so much. But I still have no rooooooooom for them! Thankfully only one will remain boxed (which hogs more space, IMO) while the other I will be turning into a custom doll. Even though I have at least six doll projects at varying levels of completion already in progress.
The side of the box(es).
The backs of the boxes.
So even though I’ve been trying to be more responsible about my collecting and storage space, I was quite surprised to find two Barbies at a discount store that I just fell in love with. They kind of made my day. I’m very grateful to the angel who gifted them to me!
Takara Takara doll
Subtitle: When Mascots Go Wrong
I’m actually not sure if this is a Takara Barbie or a Takara Jenny, but here’s an absolutely adorable doll dressed in a very problematic outfit. I wonder if her official name is something like Takara Mascot Barbie.
The idea is a neat one: dress Barbie/Jenny in an outfit celebrating her parent company, Takara. The problem is Takara’s mascot at the time (mid-’80s), Dakko-chan, an offensive golliwog figure. Dakko-chan has been redesigned, but I remain conflicted over this doll in my collection from Japan.
Take away the mascot all over her outfit and you’re left with some pretty wonderful ’80s fashion: cropped striped overalls with oversized pockets, sleeveless layered shirt, ankle boots, and big earrings.
The crest on her overalls reads “Dakko-Chan Club/Since 1960.” This is a common detail added to Japanese fashion. I’ve seen it on shirts and jackets: “The [Whatever] Club/Since 19[XX]”
She’s such a sweet looking doll, but OHMYGoodness whyWHYwhy those earrings? I mean, I know why, but it’s unfortunate.
And here’s a closeup of the offending earring: a pink Dakko-chan dangling on a white flower. The flower can be worn alone as an earring, but with the mascot literally everywhere else on this outfit, changing the earring doesn’t help much.
The print on her shirt features the mascot along with the name “Dakko-chan” in bold red caps.
Here’s Barbie/Jenny’s cute little flower ring. I do love the huge pockets on the overalls with the yellow dart.
I haven’t been able to find any information on this doll. I would love to know if it’s a Jenny or Barbie and especially the name of the doll. Please comment if you know anything about her.
UPDATE
I found two sites with more information about this doll. On a whim, I searched for “Dakko-Chan Club,” and it turns out that’s the name of the doll. She’s a Jenny and apparently a rare one. The blue boots are not native to this particular doll. You can see in the photo below that she’s wearing pink high-top sneakers (which I do still have).
Inviting Twilight’s Alice in
So I recently invited the Alice from Twilight Barbie into my home.
I really, really love her. She is GORGEous. I’ve loved her since I saw her in the Toys R Us clearance aisle for $15. Yes, that’s right. The doll that is currently on eBay for $175 and up was within my reach for fifteen smackeroos. But did I buy her then? Nooooooooo. I put her on my Christmas wish list, and of course she was snatched up before Santa could procure her for me.
But I consider myself lucky to have one at all, despite her price above rubies.
I believe this is my first Barbie with the Drew head mold. Not the biggest fan of the Drew face, but it really works for me on Alice. Check out those golden eyes!
What caught my eye about this doll was her neat look with this peasant-type blouse under the vest, with the choker (featuring the Cullen family crest, I’ve since learned). I also find her insouciant hairstyle quite appealing.
Even her totes casual black jeans and black ballet flats strike my fancy.
I think even non-Twilight fans would agree that this is one of the prettiest Barbies ever. I’m not going to cop to being a Twihard or not, but I will say I’m an Alice-Barbie-hard.
Merry holidays!
Happy holidays from me (Remy), Barbie, and 1988!
Isn’t her hair just absolutely INSANE? And insanely awesome?!?
I hope everyone has a wonderful winter :)
Got Midge?
Ever since I saw the California Dreamin’*** California Dream Midge, circa 1988, with her new-and-improved Steffie mold face, I’ve wanted a Midge of my own. Well, I finally got her!
It’s Life in the Dreamhouse Midge. This photo doesn’t really do her justice. She’s prettier in person (for one, her lip color isn’t so garish.)
I actually first wanted this doll because of her adorable heart headband. It wasn’t until I actually had her for a bit that I remembered my 26 years of longing for California Dreamin’ California Dream Midge (which, if memory serves, I first saw in a Hills store).
Check out her super cute red bow bracelet. I also adore the pattern and colors on her dress.
Her really pretty shoes. OMG shoes.
Closer look at her headband. And her rooted eyelashes are a nice touch.
Welcome to life in my dreamhouse, Midge!
—–
***I actually kinda like my renaming of the doll to California Dreamin’ Midge ;)
Chinoiserie dream
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was such a Barbie devotee that when I lived in Japan as a child, I only wanted Takara Barbie dolls, not Takara Jenny — even though they were identical twins!
However, circa 1986, I saw something so amazing that I had to make an exception to my “Barbie only” rule: Takara Jenny’s “China Dress” outfit from the “Collector’s Dress” series.
I’ve long adored this Chinese-style dress called a cheongsam or qipao. I wonder if this doll outfit is where my love affair began.
This is actually a Takara Barbie doll modeling Jenny’s outfit. The gold and the peach colors are surprising — and beautiful together. The pattern is lovely.
Here is a closer look at the collar and closures.
This is a card that came with the fashion set.
A side view.
Close-up of the slit to the thigh (there is only one, on the right side). Her shoes are one of my favorite parts of the ensemble: clear with gold glitter!
Above is the front of the package the dress came in. I can’t believe I kept it! The outfit cost 2200 yen, which is about $22 nowadays. Back in the ’80s, that was about $11. Kind of expensive for a girl, back then, but I do think this whole set is worth it. Especially because there’s more! The accessories…
Gold folding fan with white fur trim and a ruby-like bead accent on the wrist strap. (The fan doesn’t actually fold open or closed. It is flat.)
White fur stole and gold evening bag. Doesn’t she look like she’s about to go on a date to the opening night of a Chinese opera?
And above is the back of the package, which is a real treat in that it’s a mini-catalog of the other offerings in the “Collector’s Dress” series: Ballerina, Boxing, School Dress, Tennis, and Golf.
Made in Japan
Introducing my Takara Barbie collection. I was such a loyal Barbie collector that when living in Japan in the ’80s I would only buy the Takara Barbie, not Takara Jenny — even though they looked exactly alike! Here is the prize and jewel of my Takara Barbies, Kimono Barbie (Japanese Traditional Style):
Isn’t she darling? IIRC, she was the most expensive of the ones I bought/got bought for me.
Here’s a close-up. Note her earrings.
Take a look at her super kawaii heart-shaped pink(!) ring:
Here’s a great thing about the Takara B’s: the stand braces in front and behind the legs. Tricky to get them in there, but makes for a very secure display situation. Note her shoes, called geta:
Finally, a preview of the rest of my Takaras. I’ve got future posts planned for them:
Stay golden
One of my top three faves from childhood — probably why she’s still around more or less intact — is that billion-dollar beauty, Golden Dream Barbie:
She reminds me of Elvira from Scarface, although Elvira’s style was not nearly this ostentatious. Maybe Golden Dream Barbie is a flashy girlfriend of Elvira’s ;)
Her box has seen better days, but I think it’s an indication of how favored she was that I didn’t discard it. I kept her numerous (oh-so-much fun) accessories in this pink My Melody case.
Speaking of cases, probably my favorite one ever:
Here’s our golden gal on the way home from the discothèque after dancing her feet off:
I loveloveLOVED her clear Cinderella-ish shoes:
Welcome to the dollhouse
One of the newest members of my Barbie collection is this P.J. from the 1982 Barbie & Friends gift set. I’ve been after her for a couple of years now, after seeing her in a collector’s Flickr photostream.
I love all my Steffie-faced dolls, but I’m thinking she might just be the prettiest. It’s a nice bonus that her outfit is double adorable, too. Her natural make-up look adds to her comeliness. (Wishing I had a better camera to share this and my other beauties with you…)
You’re a Superstar; yes, that’s what you are
Here is my Japanese Superstar Barbie collection, a trio of lovelies:
When I was a kid, my parents got me these dolls when we lived in Japan. I had no idea they are rare or sought-after or really anything special (other than to me personally) until I came across this Flickr pool of Japanese Barbie Exclusives. I didn’t even know they’d made more than three types of this Barbie. Oh, how I wish I’d kept them in their boxes — or even just kept the boxes!
Holy Catwoman Barbie, Batman!
For the record, my favorite Catwomen are Michelle Pfeiffer and Julie Newmar. You can find some great custom Barbies/dolls of both. I happened to be having a ’60s Batman marathon when Mattel released the Catwoman from the TV show Barbie. I couldn’t decide whether to get her. While I appreciate the idea behind having ’60s characters (like Mad Men) use ’60s head molds, it broke my heart a little that the doll didn’t resemble Newmar — and I’m not even a stickler for the doll resembling the actor, preferring “Barbie as” the character. Plus, I’m very partial to two face molds in particular: Steffie and Mackie/closed mouth. (In fact, I never realized my collection heavily skews to Steffie mold until I learned about the different molds several years ago. Here’s an excellent primer: http://kattisdolls.net/KDold/facemold.htm)
Well, I ended up getting her. At first I just got her (a) before she became available only on eBay for a zillion BatBucks and (b) because I at least wanted her outfit to perhaps make my own custom Catwoman. But for now I’m keeping her MIB.
Meow, my precious kittens…
Latest additions: Mer-Barbies
Most recently added to my Barbie collection are these two dolls from A Mermaid’s Tale 2: Ambassador Selena of the Arctic and Ambassador Kattrin of Asia.
In 2003, I passed up a mermaid Kayla doll I liked, hoping to get her later:
She is now rare and going for over $100 on eBay with bid competition.
Lesson learned, methinks ;)
The Barbie Aisle 