you never know what's inside
Maybe you are interested in starting a Vintage Barbie collection too but you have no idea how to identify the early Ponytail Barbie dolls with all variations of Make up and hair colors. Here are two pics that might help you. I found them recently and think they are very useful.
This week I felt like doing a little fashion show with one of my Midge dolls. I really like the idea that I can combine the fashion I like from the 60s to the 90s to one’s heart’s content.
I have heard many of my fellows collectors talking about this topic. To be honest it’s no easy to answer the question. Is it a good store of value? Is it a bad store of value? Should we consider it as store of value?
In my opinion we shouldn’t consider it as store of value. I collect Barbie dolls because I like the option to have a possibility to have fashions from the most different decades in one room. I don’t collect because of the monetary value. It’s the most important reason to have fun with your collection.
Like I promised in the last weeks, here’ s part two of the Haute Couture series. This time it’s number #7204 , that also had the name “Firenze” in some countries.
Today I have only a pic for you. I thought it might be a good idea to show you some of the 1980s fashions because the documentation is very poor and you have to search for hours. So here’s the start of a new series. This outfit is called #9150. I don’t know which of the two bags originally belongs to the outfit but I assume it’s the one between the outfit. I got it with the two you can see.
Recently we learned that this year there will be a Repro Totally Hair available because the Totally Hair Barbie celebrates her 25 anniversary. Unbelievable but true. I take this opportunity to post some personal thoughts since I like the Totally hair Barbie, the one that was named Ultra Hair in Europe and Canada. After watching the commercial in TV back then and reading about her in the Barbie Journal, a booklet that was similar to a catalogue, and available at an Barbie shop I wanted her, wanted her, wanted her. From a point of view as a grown up not really understandable but the commercial was made for children. She was made for children with a colorful taste and she was not the only Barbie we had. By the way, here’s the link to the commercial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dPoMmtvXW0&list=PLHgw1rWxs_lmc0VACw0cGu8Rremm-KWix
Anyway, she was in my childhood the doll that came with a delay. After her release in Europe a dealer in my hometown made a special offer. I think it was back then 30DM/15€ (German marks, long gone now) and I wanted her as soon as I saw her in the ad. Later the day we tried to buy her but she was sold out. The demand was so high we had to wait two weeks until I got her. An incredible long time for a child in 1992.
Many years later I sold almost all my playline Barbie dolls when I became a Teenager and I sold her because her hair was not so beautiful anymore although I never really played with her but in my early 20s I bought another Nrfb version of the doll to be sure that the hair stays in perfect condition. So that’s my personal story about my Totally Hair Barbie doll.
Here’s a pic.
In the last weeks some researchers did some research in behalf of the Toy Museum in Nuremberg how to store old Barbie dolls the best way. The researchers found out that it is the best to store the old dolls in a cool, dry and dark environment. Here’s the link to the German article http://www.deutschlandradiokultur.de/spielzeugmuseum-in-nuernberg-barbie-forever-young.1008.de.html?dram:article_id=379793 .
I don’t know if this was published in English speaking countries too. If it’s not you can use google translator for reading it.
Well I haven’t bought much stuff in the last weeks but yesterday arrived a new Barbie doll. And I have new pics for you. She is the Birthday Barbie from 1996. I learned that she was also sold in Europe. I thought she was a USA only doll. This was a big surprise to me. And finally a new doll from the 1990s. Yay!
Anyway, here are some pics. I hope you like them.
I’m sorry for neglecting my blog but I hardly bought anything in the last months. Nevertheless I have two new girls that I want to show you. They are Benetton Barbie and Benetton Marina (no idea why a girl with Asian background is called Marina). Anyway I saw them when I was a child and suddenly I had the wish to have them in my collection. I found them accidentally within a short period of time. I like the bright colours of their clothes. So 90s like but also very cool and they remind me of my own childhood. I think they were available in Europe/Canada only in 1990/1991.
I wanted to show you my finished projects two weeks ago but I had not very much time to post. So here are my finished projects from 2015. Last month I finally found two bodies for finished heads.
So here are … a fish tail and a braid crown.
