I didn’t have enough to do a whole post showing the snaps I sewed on and the hemming on Kirsten’s dress, so I thought I’d just do a quick commercial for the American Girl dolls…
The original 6 historical girls are being brought back for American Girl’s 35th Anniversary… Here is the link to their site with the 6 girls shown… I think they look pretty nice… I like Molly and Addy the best… I think they are very close to the original dolls… I’d like to see what you all think…
I’ll be back with more done on Kirsten’s dress tomorrow… I’m having a hard time getting painting AND sewing done in the same day…
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
I spent a little time on the AG web site, and took a closer look at Molly, Kirsten, and Felicity (all of whom I have). I think they did a pretty good job of replicating the fabrics and styles of the original outfits. The thing I noticed about Molly is that her hair seems lighter, and the color is a bit “flat”, if you know what I mean. Felicity’s hair isn’t quite as red as my doll’s (and, really, even the original Felicity’s hair wasn’t Really “red”, just reddish). I was a bit disappointed that, at least thus far, the only option is the doll with her accessories; no other clothing or accessories are available for the historical dolls.
Congrats on your recent auction, Jeanne! I see Julie’s outfit garnered several bids!
HI Charlotte,
I spent some time looking at the dolls too…trying to remember how the Pleasant Company ones looked…it’s hard to remember… now if there was a side by side…that might tell us all we need to know.
Yes, Julie’s set was shipped off this afternoon… and will be arriving soon…
Thanks Charlotte,
blessings, Jeanne
If you are on AGPT, there are some excellent real life photos of Samantha, Kirsten, and Felicity as well as close ups of old and new versions of each doll. The hair is the new fiber. The wigs look a little thinner.
I’m looking forward to real life photos of the remaining three. I’m hoping not to buy one.
Thanks Marilyn,
I’ll have to check out AGPT and see those pictures… and I’m also hoping NOT to buy one… the only one I don’t have right now is Josefina…and I’ve had 3 of her before…
Blessings, Jeanne
I can’t remember purchasing a new AG doll, although I did buy a Bitty Baby for grand at Costco maybe six years ago. Those living here are all eBay purchases. 🙂 I’ll leave it to the experts to compare the old and new, but I have a feeling those originals are probably favorites. It will be interesting to see.
Congrats on the auction, Jeanne. You go girl on those cabinets. 🙂
Hi Joy,
The majority of all my dolls are Ebay finds too… I may have bought 2 or 3 new… but can’t even remember which ones…
Today it was back to the roof today… well actually the siding on one of the ends of the roof pitch. We had to go out of town to get some more siding and my day has not been my own… boo hoo…
Thanks for the congrats on Julies set… It got mailed off today…
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne, thanks for this update. I am sure that many little girls and many adult collectors will be very happy about this.
I have a Pleasant Company Addy whom I purchased from a lady at the Lancaster Doll Show a few years back. Addy is in her original outfit and in great condition. I am happy to have her. She is my only AG doll, although she has twelve 18-inch sisters. It’s very crowded around the dinner table in our house (laugh).
Hi Dorothy,
This new set of girls will give people who wanted an “almost” original looking doll the opportunity to get one. I remember when the Mattel Felicity dolls came out… or maybe it was the Beforever Felicity dolls came out, I thought they looked awful… maybe they weren’t in person, but it wasn’t the Felicity I thought of when I saw that version…
Well, it seems like Addy must be quite special to you to be the only one… (except for those 12 pesky sisters of hers!) Maybe they aren’t pesky… :o)
Thanks Dorothy,
Blessings, Jeanne
It certainly is nice to see the original 6 AG dolls once again together! Although I wasn’t into dolls when they first came out, I did receive one of the first catalogs and thought they were wonderful for a girl to have, never thinking that I myself would one day own 9 of them as a grown up! I started collecting when AG was taken over by Mattel, so all my dolls are the later versions, which I prefer. I see that these reproductions don’t have the original pie bangs,, which I really didn’t care for, plus they are not so chubby. There is so much to learn about the dolls and how they have changed through the years! Molly was my first doll and is also my favorite, since she represents the 40’s, which I was a part of.
I can’t imagine painting AND sewing on the same day! It would be one or the other for me!
HI LInda,
When did you actually get your first doll? I don’t think I ever asked you that… I think the dolls you do have are just perfect and they seem to love being photographed by you in the many many outfits you put them in… :o)
Well, I never made it to any painting today… we were shopping for vinyl siding for our house… one of the triangle sides, up by the roof, to our house needs to be resided… and we had to go out of town to find what we needed… it was an all afternoon affair…
Thanks Linda,
Blessings, Jeanne
Hope your painting goes well, Jeanne. Can’t wait to see your finished kitchen. It’s been fun seeing all the neat renovations you and George have done over the years.
Wish there was an AMG store nearby so I could see up close the new historical girls Mattel brought back. It looks like Felicity got the duller red hair compared to the original Felicity’s bright red hair. 🙁 I’d considered getting Molly but only if Mattel did a good job on her. * Like I really need another doll!!
HI Paula,
Well, I can tell you how my painting went… I didn’t… we had to make a run for some vinyl siding for part of the house up by roof. We had to go out of town to find it… so no painting as of yet, BUT the day’s not over yet! :o)
I think we all must be saying that to ourselves… ‘Like I really need another doll…” I wonder who will give in?
Thanks Paula,
Blessings, Jeanne
I’m right there with Linda on starting to collect dolls late, Molly being my first for the same reason, remembering the 1940’s, and bought just before they last retired her. All the rest of my nine AG dolls, like Linda’s, were eBay finds including an original Pleasant Company Felicity and the last one being Kirsten in perfect condition. I’ve never changed her clothes but I’ve bought furniture for her, for Molly, Felicity and Addy and a Caroline bed. It’s a toss up as to whether I like the dolls or the furniture better.
I knew you’d tie in the bodice with the rest of the dress color-wise. I know you’ll celebrate when the last stroke of that paintbrush occurs! Very soon now before it gets too warm. Glad the auction went well. I put in some common labor time myself yesterday as I’m replacing two vines on the patio, exchanging very old jasmine vines for Sizzling Pink Fringe Flower vines (Loropetalum Chinese), a plant I had never seen before at a nursery.
HI Susette,
You and Linda are almost the same with your doll collecting… late to get them, the same number and Molly, being a favorite because of the 40’s! I’m a bit like you… I like the accessories and props for my girls very much too! :o)
Congrats on getting some new plants added to your already pretty patio! I hope you had fun doing it and love how it looks now… or will soon…
blessings, Jeanne
The only AG dolls I have are Wellie Camille and mini Julie and Molly. I really don’t need any more 18″ dolls but I always loved Samantha. The AG dolls came out when my daughter was little and I got one of the first catalogs. But she was never interested in dolls, even Barbies, so sadly no AG dolls joined the family. I’m really not sure I have the room for another “big” doll. MA Gracie and MA Natalie take up the 18″ doll space.
I wouldn’t have the stamina to do painting and sewing in the same day let alone the time to do it. Right now I’m finally working on the quilt for my new grandson. I hope to have it finished before he starts college. Right now he’s still in a bassinet but getting close to moving to his crib so I thought I needed to get going on it. I crocheted afghans for all my other grandchildren and great-grandchildren but Dionne had a theme for this nursery so I decided to do a quilt with the theme. It’s my first quilt and, even though it’s much like sewing which I’ve always done, there’s enough difference in technique that I keep looking things up and checking out the internet for information. I manage a step a day.
I really don’t like doing something for the first time. I remember when I first bought my embroidery machine. I read a lot of things before I started but all they did was stress me out so I gave up researching and just sat down and started doing. I found that all the “make sure you do this”, and “don’t forget about that” just bogged down my brain and when I got to actually doing things it kind of all fell together. You obviously can’t embroider anything without first filling a bobbin and you find out pretty quickly that you want to fill as many as you can before you start, Once you get hooping down pat, there’s really not much that can go wrong that can’t be fixed. In all my years of machine embroidery I only had to throw one t-shirt out. I forgot to make sure part of it wasn’t under the hoop. When I went to remove it I had to cut it apart. No way to save that one. Once I was doing an applique embroidery of the back of a caboose. The main piece slipped and left a small gap between the back and the roof. I just got a piece of trim and sewed it where the space was and it looked like bunting on the old campaign trains.
A beautiful day here today. In the low 70s and little humidity. Like I said, I love May. It’s my last chance to breathe for six months.
HI Barbara,
I looked for a pretty Samantha and found the BeForever ones had the prettiest coloring. When I found the girl I wanted, I didn’t even think twice about it… She is very pretty… just saying…
I loved it when you said you hoped to have it done before he starts college… he’s in a bassinet right now… that made me laugh! You sound like me on some of my projects! :o)
I used to stress over things like you did and found just digging in and doing something was the best approach…
Sounds like a very pretty day there… we had one too… maybe your weather will stay nice with low humidity for a bit longer…
Blessings, Jeanne
While it’s nice to see the original six back on the website, they are an easy pass for me. Addy looks quite close and Josefina fairly so. Molly seems to as well viewing side by side photos.
Felicity and Samantha are too altered from the ones I love. I love the fuller German faces, soft eyelashes, and chubbier bodies. I prefer the pie bangs at least on Samantha and Kirsten, so there’s that as well. I think it really comes down to how you see a doll first. I didn’t have them until much, much later, but I did see catalogs prior to Felicity joining in 1991. If I ever get Kirsten, Addy, ot Josefina I would want a 1993 first release Addy, a 1997 first release Josefina, and for Kirsten a white body. The WB version of her is gorgeous, especially the eyes. I am curious whether there will be anything special beyond the dolls with their accessories.
HI Laura,
I was wondering what you thought of these 6 newly released dolls… I did see on the website that Felicity was already on backorder… she was the only one… I guess a lot of Felicity’s will be coming to mommies soon. That’s nice to know…
I think they are a much better looking doll than the ones that Mattel came out with earlier… the Felicity in the bright turquoise dress… I didn’t care for her at all…
I bet they are waiting to see how these historical dolls do before they decide if anything else will be offered for the dolls…
Thanks Laura,
Blessings, Jeanne
I’m immune to the reissued dolls. Maybe. The only 2 dolls I bought new, I have sold.
Yesterday was another full day of driving. Now we are back at Dad’s and I’m here till memorial weekend.
I was asked what the bride and bridesmaids wore at the outdoor wedding. All the apperal had a traditional look.There were 13 bridesmaids and an equal number of groomsmen. Plus the flower girl and ring bearer! The bridesmaids all had dresses with the same fabric and color, a dusty blue, gray. The styles of them had lots of variation. Halter, one shoulder, 2 straps, etc. There was a lot of variety in a cohesive way. They all wore flat sparkly sandals and their hair up. The groom and groomsmen all wore matching blue suits and matching casual shoes. They were brown leatherwith thick white soles. My dad said they were all tennis shoes, but they were much nicer than that. The bride had a beautiful white lace dress that sparkled in the sunlight. It had spaghetti straps and was close fitting to about the knees, where it flared out with a short train. Her hair was up in a low bun and the veil was attached under the bun. She wore sparkly flat sandals as well. I’m hoping someone uses a wedding picture for a Christmas card. I’ll at least see some of the pictures, as the bride’s grandma is my Aunt that I do lunch, thrifting and antiquing with.
HI Julia,
You don’t mean you sold Kennedy and McKenna do you?
What kind of plans do you have for your dad now? What will you be doing?
Thanks for telling us a little more about the wedding party and their attire… that part sounds pretty typical and very pretty… wow 13 bridesmaids? That’s a big party!
Maybe you can snap a picture of a picture if you do see any…so we could see them too?
I hope you and your dad have a nice visit…
blessings, Jeanne
Thank you so much for the wedding detail. Sounds lovely. I’m sure the bridal party was comfortable wearing sandals and the guys those brown casual shoes. Sounds like a fun wedding. Glad you’re back after that very long drive. So nice you can be there for your dad.
Thanks, Julie, for sharing details of the wedding. You don’t see large wedding parties like that too often any more!
The soft blue-gray color of the attendants’ gowns would be a nice backdrop for whatever flowers they carried, as well as setting off the bride’s gown beautifully. I like that they all chose their own gown styles!
I was bad, I ordered Kirsten, lol! No, she’s not the original, but she’s close enough, fullset with shiny hair, no silver eye, no marks, stains, smells nor chews. 🙂 Now she will need dirndls!!!
Now Melody,
NOBODY on here is going to think you were bad for ordering a doll…and like you said, she’s brand spanking new, has shiny hair, no silver eye, stain and mark free, no chewed up fingers or toes and the only thing she REALLY needs is clothes… (dirndl’s especially! **sorry, shameless plug!)**
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, don’t worry, I will be watching the auction for the dirndl you’re working on now! I think she would love to have it. 🙂
Wonderful! Hope we get to see some pics. 🙂
Congratulations Melody, I love Kirsten as well. I am so glad you ordered her. You will have to let us know how cute she looks. My original Kirsten I purchased in 1989 at 30 years old and she basically has strawlike hair. It is very thick and not real shiny but she is made very well because she was made in W. Germany back then. I will one day give her rosier cheeks, not too rosey, but healthy rosey and maybe touch up her lips a bit. I keep her out of the sun to prevent silver eye. Hope Kirsten arrives soon. You can find some Lanz of Salzburg flannel material online and make her a long flannel nightgown. I made one for my Kirsten years ago. I love dirndls don’t you? I wore one when I got married in Frankfurt Germany back in Dec 1982, 5 days before my 23rd birthday on 14 Dec. It was such a magical time living over there. Congratulations again.
I think it is great that they brought the first six dolls back, even if it for a limited time. There is no temptation for me as I already have all six of them, not originals, but all Pleasant Company except for Josefina. Josefina was always my favorite, and I didn’t have one for the longest, so my husband bought her for me for Christmas one year. Of the new ones, Addy and Josefina look the prettiest to me, but I don’t need more dolls. I don’t have time anymore to sew for the ones I have so no new dollies for me.
HI Carolyn,
I am just like you… I had ALL of the six but I let Josefina go last year… I always loved her too, but she wasn’t that popular among with the bidding…
How sweet of your hubby to buy her for you…
I don’t have time to sew for all of mine either… but we can’t use that for an excuse… :o)
Thanks Carolyn,
blessings, Jeanne
I remember you telling us how you painted your cabinets in a pretty detailed post a few months ago. Little did I know I would need those instructions. My daughter moved and she wants to paint her 1980’s wood cabinets. Will the same method and paints you used be OK over the finished wood cabinets?Would you remember which post had that info?😳🥴
I’m going right to the AG website and check out the old and new dolls….how fun!
HI Kathie,
I will send you that post again so you can read it…it’s not an in depth tutorial, but a summary sort of… the difference between your daughter’s cabinets and mine is, mine were unfinished raw red oak wood…I’m sure hers have some kind of finish on them… stained or painted and that will ALL have to be sanded down to bare wood in order to paint them… my friend did that. It’s a LOT of work… mine was a lot of sanding too, but between coats of primer and paint to get the oak wood to stop looking fuzzy… I used Sherwin Williams Pro Classic Interior Acrylic Latex paint in a semi-gloss… It’s the turquoise gallon can… It has a smooth enamel like finish… but the wood grain still shows through, but you can’t feel it. It’s as slick as glass… You might ask for some help at the paint store when it comes to painting finished cabinets.
The link to the post is below…
Painting and Pattern making and playing
Thanks Kathie,
blessings, Jeanne