Boxes of Nostalgia

I spent half a day sorting through boxes in storage. I have gone through all of my Barbies at various different times, but it has been close to a decade since I really looked at every doll in my collection. There are the ones I remember in exceedingly concrete detail. And then there are the dolls that catch me unaware. I forgot they existed, I forgot I own them, I am in awe at the choices Mattel made over time. Here are a couple of the dolls I rediscovered today:

XFiles and Star Trek Barbie and Ken Gift Sets

How could I ever forget the pop culture crossovers of XFiles and Star Trek Barbie and Ken sets. I'm of the age that, yes, I of course watched both of these series. These two series remain iconic but were in the mainstream milieu in the 1990s in a way that Mattel saw a way to capitalize on a cross-marketing campaign. Does the fact that Barbie is the red shirt suggest that she is disposable? Or is it just that she looks best in red? And I also wonder why Mattel chose to connect Barbie to the original 1960s original Trek and not the popular-in-the-90's Next Generation series. And the XFiles Ken is not a typical Ken head; it shows a willingess to create new head models in that era.

I Left My Heart in San Francisco by See's Candies

This is one of those dolls that I have no memory of but takes my breath away. To me, this is the absolute best of the Barbie doll. It was a late-90s crossover with a well-loved American brand. But as the second doll in the series, it allowed for nostalgia, novelty, and creative beauty. I love everything about this doll - and that is in no small part because of my personal memories of buying my grandma hard caramels from See's Candies as a little girl.

As I sort through the 16-20 boxes of dolls, this is just a start to what I have found.

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I am Ken-in-Roller-Skates Years Old

This weekend a friend and I went through the clothes and the dolls that I played with as a kid (and she has an amazing memory on the clothes. This website is quite the resource if you're interested: BarbieWorld.it ). I had A LOT of Barbies and accessories. There was the Barbie pool, the piano, the three-story townhouse. I had an RV, an airplane, and a boat. And then there were the dolls themselves. Yes, I had lots of Barbies but there were also Skippers and Midges and Christies. But today, we have to talk about Ken. This is my first Ken Doll: Roller Skating Ken c.1980. The short tight shorts, the shiny purple jacket, the Addidas style roller skates. He's so retro, what's not to love? I can't pretend to remember why six-year old me needed a Ken doll at that point. I was never as gung-ho about the guys because for me Barbie was about Fashion shows and climbing mountains, and sleepovers. But there were definitely days Ken was part of their entourage. I didn't have Ro...

As Ready as I Can Be

Sunday is the Denver Doll & Toy Supershow . I reserved two tables in the fall. Since the holidays I have been pricing, sorting, organizing, researching, labeling, and generally getting my collection ready to sell. I learned how to use Canva to make a poster for the booth. I have a one-time sales tax license, a Clover for credit card sales, a QR code for Venmo, two printed inventories, and a slideshow of all the dolls I am bringing. Over the weekend my mom and my eldest turned my cross stitch patterns into kits to sell. If I'm not ready, it's not for lack of trying. In an ideal world, I will come home with empty boxes. In a more realistic world, I will come home tired, invigorated, having made new friends, and carrying a significantly reduced collection. Wish us (this is a joint endeavor. All hands on deck) luck!!

Barbies and Grandma

As a little girl, my Grandma was a constant presence in my life. She lived two hours up the road but spent most holidays and many summers with us. The summer I turned 12, she moved to town and lived in a retirement home up the street. She gave up driving, so there was lots of ferrying Grandma back and forth to our house. As a junior high kid, I would spend one Saturday a month at Grandma's playing board games, eating lunch, and talking at her for hours. She knew all of my friend drama and always asked after my friends even into college and later. Grandma had worked for the US Department of Defense, stationed in Germany, and she bought me many of my first Barbie toys. I had the 1974 Barbie Dreamhouse - complete with working elevator. I had the 1972 Barbie Friend Ship - complete with flight attendant cart and Ken's pilot's costume. But as much as I associate Grandma with my Barbie toys as a girl, this blog is really about a different side. Grandma liked her sweets and whenev...

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