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Barbie doll wiki: Books you should know

In this week I’d like to blog about books, or better books you should have in your collection. I’m sitting in the middle in a heap of books while writing.  I can tell you from my long term collecting experience that it’s a big advantage to have some books as reference. I have not only one book but almost a shelf of Barbie doll books. The topics are very different.

There are Barbie doll books for identification, books about Barbie history, books about Japanese Barbie and their clothes, Barbie books similar to catalogs, Barbie books about clothes, books about her accessoires and books in Japanese (no joke) about Barbie. Okay, I also have two German editions but do they count? They were some of the first books I found about Barbie doll as a collector. In times before amazon.com was known worldwide it was not so easy to get every book you wanted ( especially if they were written in English). Of course you could try to get them with the help of local book stores but hey, it was not as easy as you might think. I think I got my very first Barbie book in 1998 and it was a coincidence that I found it.

The possibility to talk to other collectors, who had books, was very helpful. That’s how I found out that there were books similar to catalogs. It was certainly helpful knowledge. I can recommend you lots of books but I think it’s useful to put them in categories.

Barbie books for id

In this paragraph I’d like to introduce you to some of my favorite Barbie doll books. Books for identification (often similar to catalogs):

  • The Ultimate Barbie doll book by Marcie Melillo
  • The collectors encyclopedia of Barbie dolls and collectibles by Sibyl DeWein and Joan Ashabraner (first published in 1977, I have the 1992 updated version)
  • Skipper: Barbie doll’s little sister by Trina Cottingham and Scott Arend ( for Skipper, her early fashions, Tutti and Todd and their fashions)
  • Barbie doll photo album from 1959 until 2009: identifications and values by Michael Augustyniak
  • Barbie doll around the world 1964 – 2007: identifications and values by Michael Augustyniak ( incomplete but nice)
  • Collector’s Encyclopedia of Barbie doll by Michael Augustyniak ( about collector Barbie dolls)
  • Collector’s Encyclopedia of Barbie dolls exclusives 1972 -2004 by Michael Augustyniak
  • Collectibly yours Barbie doll by Margo Rana
  • Identifying Barbie dolls by Janine Fennick
  • The wonder of Barbie dolls and accessoires 1976 – 1986 by Paris and Susan Manos
  • The world of Barbie dolls – an illustrated value guide by Paris and Susan Manos
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The Ultimate Barbie doll book by Marcie Melillo #barbieid #barbieidentification #barbievintage #barbiemod #barbiesuperstarera #skipperbarbie #barbieskipper #barbiebook #bookbarbie #barbiebookshelf #busybfromgermany

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ollector’s Encyclopedia of Barbie dolls exclusives 1972 -2004 by Michael Augustyniak #barbiecatalog #barbiecatalogue #barbiebook #bookbarbie #barbiedoll #barbiebookshelf #busybfromgermany

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In which books you can find fashions and accessoires

In this second paragraph I’d like to give you some titles about Barbie fashion and accessoires

  • Barbie doll fashion Vol. I, II and III ( from 1959 until 1979) including all fashions
  • Barbie in Japan by Keiko Kimura Shibano (special made fashions for the Japanese market, written in English)
  • Japan Barbie Yasuhiro Sekiguchi Collection (written in Japanese)
  • It’s all about the accessoires by Hillary Shilkitus James
  • The Complete & Unauthorized Guide to Vintage Barbie(r) Dolls – 3 Edition by Hillary Shilkitus James
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Barbie fashions Vol III by Sarah Sink Eames #barbiefashion #barbiebook #bookbarbie #collectorbook #barbiebookshelf #busybfromgermany

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Japanese Barbie books written in Japanese

In the third paragraph I’d like to give you some names of my Japanese Barbie books. I can’t tell you if they are the only ones in Japan but they sounded interesting to me any my thirst to get to know new things.

  • ??????????????????????? (Babi to watashi ? kisegae doresu o tsukuri tsudzuketa hansei-ki) by Fumiko Miyatsuka
  • ??????????? ( Babi kara hajimatta) by Yukiko Kanno
  • Twist Barbie (yomiuri kara-mukkusiri-zu) by Mineo Takami

The Japanese books are not so easy to get. The book by Fumiko Miyatsuka is currently available through amazon.jp. You need a credit card to buy the book but the shipment is very fast. I think my copy arrived within a week or less. The other books were a bit harder to get. You need a Japanese address to buy the other books over the marketplace. There are special forwarders who are specialized in shipping goods abroad. I used tenso.com for my orders and the books arrived at my house within two months. I used the cheapest shipping method because I have to pay taxes for the shipping costs too. I know it makes no sense but it is this way in Germany.

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( Babi kara hajimatta) by Yukiko Kanno #barbiejapan #japanesebook #japanesebarbie #barbiehistory #barbiebook #foreignbarbiebook #bookbarbie #barbiebookshelf #busybfromgermany

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My list of books written from employees, the founder itself and the history of Mattel

In the fourth paragraph I’ll give you some names of books from employees of Mattel, the company history itself and the founder. Let’s start with the founder. Again I’ll give you a list.

  • Dream Doll – The Ruth Handler story written by Ruth Handler and Jaqueline Shannon
  • The story of Barbie by Kitturah B. Westenhouser
  • Barbie her life & times by Billyboy
  • Dressing Barbie by Carol Spencer
  • Forever Barbie by M.G. Lord
  • Barbie (R) Talks by Gwen Florea
  • Barbie – A visual guide to the ultimate fashion doll by Mattel
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Barbie her life & times by Billyboy #barbie80s #80sbarbie #barbiecollecting #billyboy #barbiebook #barbiebook #busybfromgermany

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Books missing in my collection

There are some books I don’t have like

  • Barbie and Her Mod, Mod, Mod, Mod, World of Fashion by Joe Blitman
  • Francie and Her Mod, Mod, Mod World of Fashion by Joe Blitman
  • Barbie Forever ( not available in Germany yet, but I preordered my copy)

Of course I can’t tell you if these books are useful or not since I don’t have them in my collection.

That’s my whole book collection at the moment. I hope that my lists are helpful to some of you. I put photos of all my books in my instagram account.

Why I recommend buying Barbie books

Now I’ve given you the list with all the Barbie books I have in my personal bookshelf. I think it’s important to own books about Barbie dolls. You can make yourself independent from other collectors. I love to read in books and especially in Barbie books. You can learn a lot from them. That’s also one of my focus points. I like to learn things from books. You can use them as encyclopedia. One can help other collectors with knowledge. I know there are lots of collectors who start to collect and then immediately stop again. Forget this group. If you’re really interested in the topic buy books. They are helpful. They are fun. Go, buy and learn.

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New Barbie and Barbie body projects

Can you imagine that you find yourself in a maze and don’t know how to get out? That’s how I feel sometimes when I get new parcels for new projects.

  • In a positive way you can leave your every day life behind you for a while and spend time with Barbie dolls.
  • It can also feel a little bit like “Hey, there’s so much work to do.Why don’t you move your ass?”
  • Sometimes I also feel like a gold digger from the last gold rush, you know somebody who can’t stop to work because when you don’t work today you don’t have anything to eat tomorrow. ( I know a strange imagination)
  • What makes it even harder is the fact that I’m still looking for a full time job (I wonder if there is the right job somewhere for me. The last job interviews were rather deterrent than inviting)
  • Hey but nevertheless I continue working on my projects and on new videos, guys. Do you know these feelings?
  • I have a new lot that I’d like to show you . Here are some pics for my new Barbie and Barbie body projects …
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Here’s one of my new #barbieproject, a #tntbarbie from #1967barbie that I’m going to #restore. Does anyone of you know the name of the #barbiehaircolor? #Happy to hear from you #love #busybfromgermany #barbiedoctor #barbiedoctora today with a #modbarbie #barbiemod

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These two #standardbarbiedoll (s) from Europe were also in the lot. I want to see if a #barbiehack I heard about in the last months really works or not. #staytune if it works or not. Be surprised what #busybfromgermany plans with theses #70sbarbie dolls. #barbiemod #modbarbie #superstarbarbie #barbiesuperstar #love #barbielove #barbielovers

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In the last part of my lot you see two #skipperbody (s) , a Barbie body with #philippines #marking , a #funtimebarbie head and a #skipperhead as well as #two #skipperbody (s). I’m not sure at the moment what to do with this part of my #barbielot but I’m convinced that I can make new #exciting #videos for you from it. Do you have any wishes what you want to see`#loveyou #busybfromgermany #barbie70s #70sbarbie

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Do you like unicorns?

It started last year when I was doing my first hair studio and it a great success. So this year for Barbie dolls 60th anniversary I decided to do something really special. I did a reroot with my version of the 60th anniversary Barbie doll. In my opinion the dolls offered are all a bit boring… not really exciting, nothing I’d like to buy. Boring somehow maybe. Since you know I love to do things myself I decided to do a very special Barbie doll. I wanted to do this project earlier this year but then I suddenly found a payable Talking Barbie and I started the repair series with my Talking Barbie. Then I realized that some of you thought I maybe had forgotten her but it was not the point. I’ve been busy working in the real world too. Youtube is not the only construction site I work at at the moment. When I had a little more time and two days off I decided to start with the hair style for my so called “Unicorn” Barbie since her reroot was very colorful. She has lots and lots of hair that was not as cooperative as I hoped it would be but you can see what I’ve done so far here

and here

More videos about to come in the next weeks. She also needs a repaint. So stay tuned in and be curious since the repaint will be very different from the last one.

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The biggest annual Barbie Convention in the USA took place

I think by the end of the last week I saw the first pics from the biggest annual Barbie Convention that took place in Kansas City, Missouri this year. I wish I could go to one of these big Barbie USA Conventions too but at the moment it’s way too expensive to fly over the Atlantic Ocean, stay there for a week ( a longer trip would probably be cheaper) and buy Barbie dolls. Even the smaller Barbie Conventions in Germany are not cheap. At least that was my experience when I visited the Barbie Convention in Hamburg, Germany in 2010. It was nice but the dolls were very expensive but to come back to our point the big annual Barbie Convention in the USA … here are some pics that are amazing and we can even enjoy them without spending money.

I hope you like them. The conventions take place every year in another place in the USA. A doll club is every year the host of this event. There is of course more than one convention every year. We also have some smaller ones here in Europe but special Barbie dolls are not made for them anymore. In the 1990s there were several special Barbie dolls even made for these events. Sometimes you see them here and there on ebay or in shops.

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Repaint and summer heat don’t fit together

Last week I did a repaint in the blurring summer heat. It was not just a repaint for me but one I plan to make a video about and it was so hot that the thinned acrylic color dried very fast. Let’s say it dried faster than one could paint. This has never happpened to me before but it was a very interesting thing to see. I really had to paint very fast. I prefer to do it in a slow way. This was a new experience to me. Interesting but not to refer to any beginner of repaints. Nevertheless I managed it.

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Funny video from Swiss television from the 1960s

You know when there’s a new product on the market you find lovers and haters. Some of the haters obviously made a video in the pre-Christmas time of 1965 and asked girls what they liked on Barbie doll. The comment in the background is hardly audible. There’s music playing … way too loud in the foreground but even if it’s not perfect it’s funny to watch… of course we all wanted to live out our sexual fantasies of the early puberty — no doubt.

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A rare swimsuit from Spain

Some of you know that I like the Congost Barbie dolls from Spain. Last year I got a Tropical Barbie from Spain but she came naked. I had the chance to get it via a Spanish Barbie collector. She arranged it that the swimsuit landed in my collection. I really like the color. It’s very different from the US version but hard to find. What makes the swimsuit different from its US version is the pattern. It’s more yellowish than the normal version while the US version has more black in the fabric. It is as elastic as the sister but it is much rarer and harder to find. You may ask yourself why. I think it is due to a smaller quantiy that was produced in spain. I was told that it is hard to find Spanish Congost Barbie dolls in good condition because the production was done cheaply and many children customized their dolls. That means the children cut the hair. I have also seen dolls with missing hands or legs. I know it’s weird. Dolls in good condition are not so easy to find. I don’t know anything about the prices but maybe they could be the missing link why some of the Spanish Congost dolls and fashions are hard to find in good conditions.

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Spanish Tropical Barbie in original swimsuit



Phillipines
Left and middle pic show the US versions of the swimsuit
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A very dissatisfying adventure with DHL

I bought two Barbie dolls from the USA by the end of May. I awaited the arrival of my dolls in these days. Last Friday I got an e-Mail from a big auction house stating that my parcel would have arrived. Unfortunately I got no notification from any postal service in the last weeks. You can only get your parcel when you have a notification. In my case I never got one and I wasn’t able to pick up any parcel, It was indeed the case that the parcel landed in Germany but it was stored in a DHL hub somewhere in another state than I live in. Obviously my parcel layed somewhere several hundred of kilometers.

Nobody felt any responsibility for sending it at least to the city I live in. So my parcel was in a hub somewhere but nobody shipped it to my city and shipped back after 3 weeks with the statement “unclaimed” the USA. I couldn’t even stop it because the shipping status hadn’t changed for weeks and I couldn’t locate my pacel. Suddenly the seller answered my e-Mail and was not very helpful. I wanted to know why my parcel shipped back without being delivered but instead I got my money back. That was definitive not what I wanted….

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Rumors about the bancrupcy of Mattel?

In the last weeks there were rumors about a predicted bancrupcy of Mattel within one year. It was predicted by a guy named Isaac Larian. I had to google the name because I never heard of him. He has a toy company of his own and made Mattel obviously an offer for a fusion.

This is what I found about the topic online https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/13/mga-ceo-isaac-larian-says-mattel-will-be-bankrupt-within-a-year-or-so-after-takeover-bid-is-rejected.html

Is the rumor true? Only time will tell… let’s keep our eyes open.

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One Barbie doll, so many different make up variations

In the last days I saw a Magic Curl Barbie on Instagram and I wrote a comment that I have three of them and each is a bit different. You never see twins. Every doll is a bit different may you consider make-up or hairline. Maybe it comes from the fact that each doll was still kind of hand painted. I don’t regard the difference as something bad but just as something that we can see. Here are some pics of my dolls.

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First Magic Curl Barbie I got
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Second Magic Curl Barbie I found
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Magic Curl Barbie in box

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Comparison of my Magic Curl Barbie dolls



What do you think? All a bit different huh?