On The Fourth Day Of Christmas...

Welcome friends!

At the end of the last post I mentioned that I might have some vintage goodness for you. You are going to LOVE it.

On the fourth day of Christmas my awesome dad gave to me...

Vintage Plantation Belle Barbie!

 

Plantation Belle is an outfit I got quite a few Christmas' ago. But I didn't have a complete outfit. All I had was the dress and the purse and hat. And the hat didn't have any stays on the side so it wouldn't have stayed on her head.

 

So my dad and I were looking at eBay when I was over to his house this last summer. I told him Plantation Belle was one of the outfits I really wanted to have the complete set of. But the petticoat was super expensive by itself so why not spend a little more and just get a whole new set.

So that's what he did. For a Christmas Present!

 

This is an original vintage Barbie Fashion that has been repackaged. But it is perfect and has the jewelry as well! There was just one question. Which doll to put it on? I didn't have any more vintage bodies to spare. So one doll had to be redressed. OH this was going to be a hard decision.

I thought about redressing Mood For Music. But I love this fashion so much.

 

I also thought about redressing Picnic Set but I wanted a ponytail doll for Plantation Belle.

 

Ideally I wanted a blonde ponytail doll but I only have two and they are reproductions wearing Wedding Day and Enchanted Evening so I can't redress them. So the brunette ponytail doll was the winner of the new outfit. She has been redressed twice so far! First was Wedding Day.

 

And then she wore Let's Dance. I had a HARD time taking this dress off of her because I love it so much.

 

But now she is wearing the new fashion and I couldn't be happier.

The pink graduated pearl necklace is just so perfect.

The sides of the hat I stuck in her hair to keep it in place.

 

 

The purse still has most of the beading intact. My purse I got a few years ago didn't have all the beading either.

 

 

The petticoat is so great! Has the little bow but unfortunately the snap closure had two of the same parts so I couldn't fasten it. So I just pulled it up as far as I could and the waist of the dress holds it in place so it doesn't slip down.

 

 

The hat is so perfect! No fraying at the end of the ribbons.

 

And I do have the pearl snake bracelet but it broke when I was putting it on her! I have some wire so I can restring it. Sad!

 

Also for Christmas I got this Barbie Trunk.

 

 

Definitely from the Superstar Era!

 

 

What was one of the items inside the trunk?

Vintage Allan!

 

This is not the bendable leg Allan so this doll is from 1964. And he came naked so we had to get some clothes for him!

I have a very small selection of clothes for Ken so I chose this shirt from the Lounging Around fashion. No yellow shorts though.

The ONLY other thing I had that matched was this pair of gray slacks from some fashion pak. As I said, my collection of clothes I have for Ken is very small!

And poor Allan is barefoot! Every shoe I tried to put him in came right off as they were too big. I don't have a pair of socks for Ken either so he's going to be barefoot for the time being.

And, because he is Midge's boyfriend, here he is with his girl! They are so cute!

So friends, what do you think of Plantation Belle and Allan? Have them in your collection? Let me know in the comments!

Well, that's all for today! Next post we will dive into what else was in the fabulous Barbie trunk!

Until then!

Giftages 2019 - Post 3

Hello friends!

I hope this post finds you well amidst of global turmoil. Prayers of happiness and health to you and all of yours. And boy, did my head cold sure pick a bad time to crop up! It's never a good time for a head cold but dang! :)

To lift our spirits I have another post of Christmas goodies that I know you are all going to fall in love with. Let's get to it!

Here are this years round of vintage deliciousness!

Our favorite guy, Ken! And look what he is wearing!

Honestly, right before Christmas I was looking at my beautiful vintage Barbie wedding party, sans groom.

I was trying to decide which of my more modern Ken dolls I could put up there with them so I could have a complete wedding party. And I knew I had a tux somewhere I could put on them. Then he arrived! Wearing Tuxedo #787. 

And how excited I was when I saw that Tuxedo was (almost) complete! With flower boutonniere and everything! He did not come with the flower for Barbie. You can tell that the bow tie elastic is a little stretched out but I can stitch that up real quick so it looks presentable. And this Ken has the flocked hair like my other vintage Ken however, this one is much more distressed. And his face is dirty. He needs a shower before his big day!
 

A lot of the flocking is gone in the back too. And mold? I'm going to have to be very careful when I go to clean him. 
 

The shirt is dirty but is made out of the same sturdy cotton material as Barbie's one piece playsuits. It will brighten right up with a soak in the Oxy Clean. His cummerbund also has the same issue as the bowtie, stretched out elastic. So that will need a quick couple of stitches as well. 
 

Both shoes and both socks too!
 

This Ken and Tuxedo is just too perfect! I can't wait to clean him up and get him on display. There is a Ken outfit that is called "Here Comes The Groom" and the tuxedo is grey in color but with the 2009 reproduction of the Barbie Wedding Day Set, Ken is wearing this outfit not Here Comes The Groom.

barbie.mattel.com

If I would have gotten either Tuxedo or Here Comes The Groom I would have been happy. Yay! 

Ken does have one issue however. As he is in poor shape, his arms kept falling off! You should have seen my mom and I trying to get poor Ken in this outfit to begin with. How do you keep a vintage Ken's arms on? Can't glue them as then they won't move. Ideas friends? 

And Ken got a small assortment of clothing! Hooray!

Sleeper Set #781! No accessories however (The clock, cinnamon roll and glass of milk.)
 

This shirt is actually a sleep shirt from an ensemble called Breakfast at 7 from 1969-1970. I wish I had the entire thing! Maybe I can piece it together someday.

Sarah Sink Eames via barbie.mattel.com

Original Ken outfits! Solid red shorts, red shorts with white stripe and the candy striped shirt. I think Ken came with the shirt after his "reboot" in 1969. Please, correct me if I'm wrong here!

Pennant from Campus Hero #770. Original outfit also came with sweater, slacks, socks and shoes.
 

Sport Shorts #783. Three socks and one shoe. HA! That doesn't really work, I think I might have some brown shoes in the accessories that would work for this. 
 

The identifier on the bag these pants were in said that they were from the 1961 Pak Slacks. However those slacks in 1961 only came in tan corduroy or khaki green and these are definitely not either of those. I think these might be from the 1964 Pak Soda Date. I'll have to look into this one more!
 

One glove that said it was from Ski Champion #798. However Ken had black mittens. This is most likely from Barbie's Ski Queen #948.
 

Vintage 1970's Malibu Ken green shorts!
 

Pak - Sport Shirt from 1962
 

And lastly - Pak Red Vest. It's the same vest in Ken's outfit Victory Dance. There is no way to identify the two from what I've read. 
 

And that's it for Mr. Ken! I love all the new outfits I got and I can't wait to put him on my shelf. Since we aren't going on our vacation for Spring Break this year (boo!) and it's SNOWING outside, I'll get some time to pop him up on my shelf with the rest of the wedding party...once he gets a bath. 

And ideas for how to keep his arms on? :)

Do you have any vintage Ken's in your collection? Have a favorite outfit of his? Let me know in the comments!

More vintage goodness coming up. Until then!

You Are Cordially Invited to...

Welcome to the Fashion Show! Barbie and her friends are modeling the hottest fashions...some with a vintage flair! 

I've been washing dolls, I've been crafting, I've been doing laundry, I've been shopping. I've been BUSY! I've also been digging way WAY back into the closet where my dolls are stored. It's underneath the stairwell in our house and let me tell you, with an 8 month pregnant belly, it wasn't easy! Digging in tubs and boxes in confined spaces. But I found what I needed. So here is the fruits of the labor!

First we have "The Trio."

This is California Dream Midge, Teresa and Barbie. I received these a few years ago and have been wanting to take them out. I finally did! This was the first Midge doll in my collection and I just love her. Especially her cute little roller skates! The socks are Barbie's but just didn't like the look on her so I gave them to Midge.

Teresa has some awesome yellow kicks with yellow and white socks.

Now, according to the back of the package, Barbie is supposed to have the same sneakers as Teresa but only in white. That is not what she came with. She came with the generic low top Barbie sneakers in yellow. Like the ones these ladies are wearing.

And they did not look good with socks at all. So she got All American Barbie's second pair of Reeboks! They look much better. 

Now we have Sun Set Malibu Skipper modeling Sunny Pastels!

I bought this one off eBay and it was complete. I do have her little socks however, Skipper socks are SO HARD to get on. I even brushed some talc powder on her legs to help but it didn't. So I gave up. Besides, it's a sundress so it's okay. I love the little purse and this outfit was in mint condition! And all the sequins were intact so that was one thing I factored in when purchasing this outfit. 

I remember seeing Sunny Pastels somewhere and just loving it.

Here we have the most fabulous couple ever. Barbie wearing Friday Night Date and Ken wearing Dreamboat.  

Dreamboat was one of the "stinky" fashions I bought at the garage sale last summer. There were two reasons I put him in this outfit. First, my vintage Ken clothes (well, Ken clothes at all) are scarce and second was because of this set. 

www.manbehindthedoll.com

I thought this was so perfect. This is the "Friday Night Dream Date" reproduction. I could not get the platter to stay in Barbie's hands and I don't have the original Ken Dreamboat pants, shoes or hat but it works out well!

And I don't have the Barbie ponytail doll so I used this doll

This is the Barbie Fashion Queen and since I have plenty of bubblecuts in my collection, I pulled out my mom's wigs that she played with as a child and used the platinum blonde one. It took some finagling to get it to stay in place but it's working. I think I need some Barbie sized hair pins.

I also washed her dress. I DO NOT recommend doing this with the jumper! The red on the top of the birdhouse is not colorfast and bled onto the other part of the birdhouse and above it on the jumper. But the wash did brighten up the corduroy! 

Ken's clothes were good and not stinky anymore so I didn't have a problem putting him back in these. And I'm going to need to sew another snap on the back of his pants. It tore off and his pants fall down if I move him around too much. But this Ken looks identical to the one in the reproduction, that's cool.

Here is where the crafting comes in! I got these doll stands at a garage sale. They are not Fashion Doll Stands, so they are a little large for the dolls and had ugly wood bases. So I used fabric and Mod Podge and covered them. Some fabrics I had worked well and some I had didn't. These are the ones that didn't work so well but they covered up the wood so I'm happy with these. 

I was anxious to dress someone permanent for the adorable Little Twin Stars Outfit I bought recently. I remembered I had this doll. 

This is Totally Nails Teresa. I picked her up at the thrift store (for the fabulous purple hair) and then gave her a wash and boil dip but we still had some frizzy hair. 

Conditioner. Totally use conditioner (or liquid Downy) after the wash.  

MUCH better and perfect for the fashion show. Here she is in her outfit!

I have lots of purple shoes and I had some where the color matched the skirt perfectly. However I just wasn't feeling them with this outfit. So I chose these light blue mermaid/seashell/butterfly shoes that also matched with some colors on the skirt. 

Remember this girl? My mom had a random head in her collection. So years ago I put the head on an old Gift Giving Barbie body. The neck didn't fit quite right but it was okay. 

Well I read on The Fashion Doll Guide that Theater Date was supposed to be on an American Girl style doll. Not sure why but I put the outfit on her. Jacket needs to be pressed back into shape but it's perfect.

I was concerned with the fact that Gift Giving Barbie had bent arms and vintage dolls have straight arms. Rebody!

The skin tone doesn't match that well and the neck is still a little small but overall it works good!

The white top had a spot on it so it went in the wash and came out pristine. And anyone have any ideas of how to keep a pillbox hat on these dolls?

This brunette bubblecut doll is wearing Picnic Set!

Since I had almost the complete outfit I just had to dress a doll in it! I did have some trouble getting the hat on all that hair. I had to press it down pretty hard and it doesn't sit like it's supposed to but I still love it. 

Even has all the items intact on the hat. So perfect. 

The doll was one I received a couple of years ago and she was wearing Plantation Belle. I debated getting the other pieces of this outfit. I still might get them as I have some of the rare pieces, the hat and purse. I just need the petticoat, jewelry and gloves.

 

This oh-so-perfect bubblecut doll is wearing Sweater Girl. This outfit is so perfect for her. 

This is the one with the broken neck joint. So how did I fix it? Just a pipe cleaner quadruple folded. She has a slight bobble head but it's not noticeable if you don't move her. It works perfect!

I also looked for her accessories like the knitting bowl and scissors. But didn't find any at a good price. 

I think this next fashion is one of my most favorites. Remember her?

That had...

And we dressed her in...(to cover her slit ankle)

She got a new outfit!

Oh how perfect is this? The tights were HARD to get up over that ankle and the other leg has a broken bendy knee joint. So yeah. She's never getting out of this one! But this Winter Holiday outfit is TOO PERFECT! 

Remember last time how I mentioned that the jacket was stiff. I had a hard time getting it on her and an equally hard time getting the sleeves of the hoodie in the jacket too. But I managed. This doll stand has a very tight grip so it was awesome to have it grip the jacket and hold it in place.  

I bought the gloves off of eBay. I wasn't aware that they are vinyl and it was difficult to get them on her hands as after years they had smooshed closed. I used a hair dryer to get them pliable so I could get them on her! They still aren't fully on so I'll have to work on them some more.  

Also remember how it's silly to have open toe wedges with footed tights on a winter holiday? So I gave her some kickin' boots! This also helps to keep her broken ankle stable. 

A couple of years ago I got this Midge. 

She was wearing some pieces from Tennis Anyone? but the skirt was not from that outfit. That was from a fashion pak. And underneath was not the outfit from Tennis Anyone? either. It was the scoop neck play suit from this fashion pak.

www.pinterest.com (via eBay)

So it got a nice wash and I put it back on her. With this adorable item I bought from eBay. 

She is wearing Barbie Baby-Sits and I just had to get the apron. It's just too adorable. 

And she is holding the baby and has a bottle ready to go in her pocket! This outfit is just too perfect!

She has another stand that I covered in pink fabric. Didn't work out too well but it's okay.

I brought out this doll from storage to display. My OOAK bride doll. 

Someone made this doll from a generic Fashion Avenue bride gown and did the hair. It's just too pretty to be stored away! A tan beauty.

This hair is done extremely well and I love the train!

My most favorite doll of all. She has to be here too! My mom's original Twist and Turn Barbie. Unfortunately my son got a hold of her and she did the "splits" and cracked her vinyl through the crotch area. Thankfully her leg joint popped right back in. She is now not allowed to have her clothes changed unless they go over the swimsuit. 

Sweet sisters wearing Satin fashion pak mix and match pieces! I got the pink sparkle a couple of years ago with the other vintage dolls. Sandi was wearing the Satin n' Rose outfit but, because of the color of her earrings, I changed her into the light pink and put the magenta on the other doll. 

Don't you just love this skirt? I tried to press it as best as I could with a cloth over it but after I saw that the sparkles were coming off on my ironing board, I decided to quit. It will flatten out over time I'm sure. 

I don't have a shirt that goes with this. It's the same design as the magenta one (one shoulder with a bow) but I didn't see anything on eBay that was either in good condition or the right price. So I put on her the leotard from the Ballet set I have. 

Sandi also got a condition treatment to help with her course hair. It worked well! But she has a weird root job so her hair sticks out funny on the right side of her head (right underneath the hat.) And I also need to trim some ends from her hair!

Again, any tips to keep the pillbox hat on? It's so cute on Sandi!

The other sister was wearing the original vintage fashion from my mom's collection Aboard Ship. This was my mom's favorite outfit and I could have kept her in it but I decided to change it up.

She is now wearing the Satin n' Rose from 1964.

I washed the entire outfit as it was dirty from many years of play. This was one of my favorites to put on my dolls. I tried to press the pieces as best as I could but again, stopped as I didn't want to ruin the fabric. 

I thought it gave it a little different flair to have the skirt over the pants. I even have the sparkle open toe heels!

And these two stands are the ones that turned out the best. The fabric took really well to the mod podge over the wood. 

She is always the belle of every fashion show and one of my ultimate favorite dolls. My ex got her for me deboxed but I love her just the same. The Enchanted Evening Reproduction. 

Gorgeous blonde ponytail.

And the cute sparkle shoes!

This bubblecut I found at the thrift store years ago. She is wearing the original from my mom's collection called Matinee Fashion.

One of my favorite outfits for sure. And so beautiful on this doll.

This stand turned out well however, the fabric I used was a dark crimson red and turned magenta when I mod podged it. 

Vintage Ken wearing Terry Togs is also included in our fashion show. He got some blue painters tape on the bottom of his feet to keep his slippers on. I was afraid I was going to lose one!

And last but certainly not least. This awesome trio.

Here is what I put on my beautiful black ponytail doll. Wedding Day! There was one reason I put my ponytail doll in this fashion. Well, two reasons. I love this gown and I have the Hallmark Ornament with the same hair color!

She (her head) spent a few days in the spa getting treatment for green ear. I would love to put the pearl earrings back in her but don't want to risk green ear again. I knew the CLR treatment wouldn't get rid of the green completely but it did diminish it quite well. Here is the "not as bad" side.

And the "really bad" side

I took a bracelet (I think) and stretched it out to make a necklace. I tried a triple strand pearl necklace (like the one on Enchanted Evening) but it just didn't look right. I don't have any gloves for this one so I'll have to get some. 

This torso photo, you can see where the rip is in the lace. I had to be very careful putting this on her! Those doll thumbs can be deadly to lace. 

A few years ago I got this Midge.

I wasn't sure of what she was wearing. It seems to be an Indian type of dress (the scarf and the jewel on her head are typical of traditional dress in India.) It was sewn on her so I had to take the seam ripper to it. But her hair was absolutely perfect. She was the best one to wear the Orange Blossom Bridesmaid dress. 

The gloves are actually from the Bride's Dream dress I got this Christmas. In fact, the cellophane that the gloves were in wasn't even opened. These gloves are brand brand new! Never been worn! 

My mom had Orange Blossom in her collection but I didn't have the lace overdress. The yellow sheath dress is on another doll buried in the depths of the boxes under the stairs. So I just bought new on eBay. 

The lace got a soak in Oxy Clean and turned out beautiful. The waist seam is coming undone however, that is an easy repair. I mainly purchased this one because of the veil. It is in mint condition. And it is just perfect for Midge.

This stand turned out exceptional with the beautiful gold fabric.

And the most adorable flower girl ever! Skipper is wearing Flower Girl. I bought this one off eBay as well and gave it an Oxy Clean soak. 

I need to repair the bows at the top. I had a very hard time getting them tied and clean. I untied them so I could scrub them white but realized that maybe they aren't supposed to be white but yellow. I'll need to pick up some of this tiny ribbon. Then I can add ribbon to the headdress and bouquet too.

barbie.mattel.com

This Skipper doll is not wearing original white shoes but the yellow goes nicely. I bought this dress mainly for the intact headband, gloves, and bouquet. 

So pretty. And surprisingly her socks were not that hard to get on! Unlike the ones that came with Sunny Pastels.

Laundry also included these pieces.

I tried to get the rust out of the duplicate hoodie from Winter Holiday. It didn't come all the way out so not sure what to do about it. I don't think it will ruin a doll if I have it on someone. Not sure how it got like that!

Resort Set got cleaned too! The white shorts were really dirty but that type of fabric (the same fabric on my Baby Sitter Midge body suit) really holds up well and cleans easy. The shirt is also super clean and nice! I debated dressing a doll in this one too. However I wanted the hat that goes with it and really, the hat needs to be on a ponytail doll. I have ONE ponytail doll and as shown above, is wearing Wedding Day. 

And the seller who sent the Babysitter apron added a little goodie. A booklet of fashions and a shower cap from Singing in the Shower. The elastic is a little stretched out but still a really great piece to have! I might have to get the rest of it so she can match Ken's Terry Togs.

I created lots of space on my shelves so all of these beauties have a permanent place to be displayed. Hubby made a riser so all my dolls can be 2 deep.

Well, that's it for the fashion show! All these dolls were excited to be dressed in their new spiffy fashions. And vintage doll clothes are terribly expensive on eBay! I tried to find ones that were not more than $30 a piece. I can't afford upwards of $70-$100 for one fashion set and I certainly don't need it NIB. And some repairs I can make myself (like the replacement bows on Skippers Flower Girl dress.) 

Hopefully I can find more vintage dolls (or reproduction dolls) to put the rest of these fashions on! The raincoat was a very close contender for dressing but was just too expensive trying to put the pieces together, especially for the umbrella! And definitely need a Ken for the wedding day set. I might pull out one from my collection to go with her. Can't have a bride without a groom!

What do you think friends? I had so much fun playing with these and got them all spiffy before the baby comes! Let me know which ones are your favorites! And if you have any ideas of how to keep the pillbox hats on, I'm all ears!

Until next time!