Christmas is here again...well, it's not. But the dolls are!

  As usual the stores are way ahead of the holidays. It's not even Halloween yet, and the Christmas dolls are already showing up in stores. I recently saw all the new Holiday Barbies, (and Ken too these days!), at Meijer. 

  There's the required blonde Barbie.

  There's the African American/Black Barbie.

   And there's the Hispanic Barbie.

And lastly, there is Ken.

  I have never been much for blonde hair, or the blank expression of  most playline Barbies. This Holiday Barbie is no exception. I much prefer the more interesting face of the Black Barbie. I don't think this year's Hispanic Barbie is that attractive, so Black Barbie is my favourite this year. That frequently happens, although  there have been some pretty Hispanic Holiday Barbies over the years too. As for Ken, I don't like his hair, and he's one of those No Socks guys, (with a tuxedo?!),which I also can't get behind, so I can live without him. 

  Actually, I have never been into these big dress Barbies most of the time either. I have liked a lot of the collector Barbies with 'big dresses', but those were a bit more detailed than the playline dolls. It just seemed they put more time into the designs of the collector ones, which makes sense. But, as I say, I have never been that into the Big Dress Barbies, I am much more likely to be interested in the sweater Christmas Barbies, like this year's doll.

  

  This doll looks cozy and comfortable, which appeals to me. I think those are supposed to be pajama bottoms. Wearing your PJs all day on Christmas is allowed. Emma has planned for us all to wear matching Muppet Christmas Carol pajamas this year. That should be interesting. I'm five feet tall, and just about as wide, so we'll see if I can walk with extra long legs on the bottoms, or even pull the bottoms up.

  For those who missed the Christmas Mariah Carey doll, she's available at Ollie's again this year.

  There has been a bit going on around here. Ken spent a few days in the hospital recently, because of another UTI. He will never learn to listen to me when I tell him he's not drinking enough water. I have been busy wrapping Christmas presents, and have almost all my shopping wrapped already, including the stocking stuff. That sounds good, but a few years ago I had all my presents wrapped before December, and I just didn't feel Christmassy in December! On the other hand, I have been passing the wrapped presents off to Emma as I had them done, and now I don't have to haul  loads of presents out to the car in the cold and ice of winter, and tote them to Emma's house, where I reverse the process and tote them into her house in the snow and cold. So there is a positive too.

  There will be another post soon on some more doll releases of the Christmas season, plus some Halloween musings too. See you soon.

mmmmmmmm

Another Baby Dreams Velvet Skin Doll

   I did a post quite a while ago about Baby Dreams, the Velvet Skin Doll. Well apparently that was a doll that caught people's attention and interest, because somebody wanted to buy her right away. I sold her.. But people are still asking on a regular basis if I have another one. In fact, I got that question right after I bought another one this summer! I found her at a yard sale. So many people ask if I have one to sell, that I thought I should get her. So here she is. 

  Baby Dreams was made by Ideal in 1975. There were two versions. The first had a flocked face, arms, and legs. The second version only had flocking on her face and arms. This doll is the first version.

  Her flocking is in pretty good condition. These dolls can look pretty rough sometimes. 

   Both versions had a stuffed cloth body, so they were soft and cuddly. The bodies always look dirty, but they came in this weird tan colour.

She has a popped seam on one shoulder. I can fix that before shipping her, if the buyer wants me too. I'm pretty good at hidden stitches. It's one of my only sewing talents! 

  One of her sleep eyes sticks sometimes. It does work though, and her eyes are clear and bright.

She needs her hair done. Maybe conditioned a bit and combed.

 She doesn't have her original nightie.

  If anybody is interested in her, she's $40 plus shipping. Comment with your contact information, which I won't publish, and I'll get back to you.

Kaloo Dolls

  Before I  forget and this becomes old news, like the pictures I took of all the dolls in the massive clearance at Walmart, here are some cute dolls I saw at Barnes and Noble recently. They're called Kaloo.

  This one is Chloe.

  This one is Leonie.

  I couldn't find the names of the others online. I swear I took a picture of the back of the box too, but it's not here! 

  The official website for these dolls says this:

Kaloo dolls from France feature ultra-soft Tendresse characters with embroidered details and machine-washable fabrics, ideal from birth through imaginative play years. Each doll has a unique personality with ribbon neckties, long legs for easy gripping, and comes in an elegant gift box. Choose from diverse characters in sizes from small to XXL for nursery décor or companionship.

  They're really cute. If I had a little kid to buy one for I would. I saw these at Barnes and Noble, but they are available online.

  See you soon.

Kaloo dolls from France feature ultra-soft Tendresse characters with em

What I Got at the Doll Show

   Okay. I'm finally getting around to showing you what I bought at the doll show the other week. I was really good. I spent little money, and bought little things. They were some of my favourite little things though. 

  Let's start with these mystery dolls.

  When I picked them up I assumed they were Baps dolls. And you know I love Baps dolls. Then I noticed that their feet were different from Baps dolls' feet. The dealer explained that they belonged to her friend, who collects Baps dolls, and that they were Baps knockoffs. Then the friend showed up and confirmed that she had about 100 Baps dolls, and that these weren't Baps, but Baps wanna be's. The dealer had already knocked their price down before I got there, and knocked it down again for me. I thought they looked so much like Baps dolls, and anyway, they would be interesting as Baps knock off dolls.  So I bought them. But after looking up Baps dolls after the show, I think the dealer and her friend may have been wrong. I think they are Baps. The unusual lags and feet are just like those on Baps puppet dolls. The difference seems to be that the puppet ones have a rod in their feet, so these guys, if they were Baps puppets, should at least have a hole in their feet where the rod was. There are no holes though. 

  The other thing that makes me think they are Baps, is that on the bottoms of their feet it says, 'Made in US zone Germany', just like Baps puppets of the same era.

  The closest characters I can find are for the kids. They look like they are probably Hansel and Gretel. The Hansel and Gretel I found online are very similar, including Hansel carrying a bag like this, and Gretel wearing a head scarf and her arm was bent just like this doll's, only there should be a felt purse/bag hanging from it. I can't find a doll,or puppet that matches the lady though.

  The first thing I bought were these Caco dolls.

  The mom is about 5 inches tall.

  She's going to need her leg rewrapped. I can do that.

  They both have the lead feet but she has plastic hands. The lead feet means they are older. Her plastic hands tell me she's not as old as the kid though. Even my Caco dolls Kay and Jeffrey have plastic hands and feet, so they are younger than both of these.

  The little guy looks to be a boy, even though he's dressed in pink with blue trim.

  He looks small next to the mom, but he is probably the same size as Kay, or maybe bigger. He's way bigger than Jeffrey.

  He's really cute, but the hooded snowsuit look will limit how he can be used in stories, and in the dollhouse.  

  I found this little suitcase. It has to have come with a Bob Hope or a Bing Crosby doll, because it's covered with 'Road' movie travel stickers. I can't find the doll it might have come wth anywhere online though.

  It was only $3, and it had some stuff in it.

  For 50 cents I got a nice silk hanky. It is very thin, and would make a great curtain for a dollhouse.

  The Caco dolls were cheap. The Baps dolls were pretty cheap. And the last cheap doll I got, which would normally have cost me more, was this Tiny Town doll.

    You might have seen my other Tiny Town dolls. I only have a couple, which I got by accidental cheap prices, (I think it was accidental at the doll show at least. My first one was an Ebay purchase, and they didn't know what it was.)

  This one is a Scots doll, with all the traditional accoutrements.

  The faces were hand painted on these dolls. They are known for being painted by the same lady who painted the Nancy Ann Storybook dols.

  She has lead feet.

  The dealer made me a good deal because she said these dolls don't sell for what they used to. They still seem to sell for a good price online though. 

  And that's all I bought! I'm so proud of me! There were some things I was tempted by, but they were big, and I didn't need to spend the money. Ken will okay anything because he says he, 'wants you to be happy'. So I had to rein myself in. Yay me! And I still got three of my favourite types of dolls.

  Next time we'll see some yard sale finds. See you then!