Although I was born in 1991, Barbie dolls from the 1980s represent my childhood. Many of my sister and my first dolls were from the 1980s, such as Dance Magic, Cool Times, Doctor, and Ice Capades. All of our earliest Barbie dolls, with the exception of my sister's '89 My First Barbie, were second hand gifts from my grandparents. It's actually rather sad when I reflect on just how new our childhood Barbie dolls were when they were dumped at the Salvation Army, grabbed by my grandparents, and then given to Colleen and me. What's even more alarming is the fact that the dolls looked a heck of a lot more old that they were. Most dolls who are only three or four years old (in some cases these dolls were only two years old) do not look like the way our dolls did. Alison and the creepy Skipper (who we no longer have) had hair cuts, Christina was balding, and Frostin, a 1990 Hawaiian Fun Barbie, was not only missing half her hair, but was also on a limp body! But to my two year old self, this was natural...I never questioned the condition my dolls were in, I simply learned to love and accept them for how they were. I think the fact that my first Barbie was an abused, second hand doll is the main reason why I have an innate fondness for flea market hunting, and why nothing tickles me more than fixing up an abandoned doll.
Without even realizing it, some of the first dolls I began to collect were from the 1980s. At the age of nine, I began to informally collect dolls. Up until that point, I simply bought dolls that I wanted to play with. However, as I got to be a little older, I started buying dolls on the premise that they were interesting, even if I didn't plan on playing with them. It was around this time that I took an interest in how Barbie changed over the decades. My family did not have the internet at our house at the time, so I had to rely on boxes and pamphlets for research. It didn't take long for me to spot the obvious changes in the Barbie logo through the decades. I associated the "fancy" lettering on 80s merchandise with "older" Barbie dolls. I noticed that some accessories were made of different types of plastics, that Barbie brushes looked different, and that older clothing used snaps instead of Velcro. When I was twelve years old, Dad bought me a 1976 SuperStar Barbie doll, who was boxed, at a flea market. After opening her, I observed that her ring and earrings were very different from my 90s dolls. I also noticed that her body was strikingly unique too--she had a very pink skin tone, her plastic was lighter weight and "cheaper" feeling, and she had defined toes on her feet. Later that same year, I found a nude Day-to-Night Barbie at my local flea market, who I named Sheryll. I thought it was interesting that Sheryll, like Shayla (my SuperStar), wore this unique jewelry and had defined toes. I didn't know at the time that Sheryll was actually from the 80s, not the 70s. I did notice that Sheryll had an entirely different facial screening from Shay--she had very detailed eyes with a million, defined eyelashes.
As I got older, I continued to buy dolls that looked like Sheryll. For some reason, her odd, almost "ugly" look drew me in. These unique dolls seemed special to me and I always considered finding one a "major score." The old clothes these dolls wore were always so soft and sturdy. I had never seen these materials used on 90s Barbie clothing. The outfits were more flexible, which made dressing dolls a breeze. Not to mention I preferred the metal snap closures to the persnickety velcro on newer fashions. One of my biggest pet peeves has always been velcro--nothing is worse than a beautiful, delicate doll outfit getting ruined by it's OWN velcro! By the time I was 13, I had managed to acquire quite a few of these "special" Barbie dolls. The majority of them I had been lucky enough to find in two cases at the Salvation Army.
Before I officially began collecting dolls again, my eighteen year old self went through a phase of wanting to identify all my childhood dolls. Sometime during the spring of 2010, I purchased Marcie Melillo's Ultimate Barbie Book. I was very eager to know who the exotic dolls like Sheryll were. I was quick to discover that they were all from the 80s--the same decade as most of my early childhood Barbie dolls. This made me even more infatuated with the 80s dolls, even though I had subconsciously been in love with them since I was twelve. It's no surprise that many of the first additions to my collection as an adult were 80s Barbie dolls. Among some of my very first "adult purchased" Barbie dolls were Cool Times Midge, Cool Times Teresa, Gift Giving Barbie, and Animal Lovin' Barbie, just to name a few. Nowadays, I have a fairly substantial 1980s Barbie collection including many dolls, fashions, and a few playsets. These dolls are some of my most prized Barbie dolls, and I find it nearly impossible to resist buying them. At the flea market I always, without fail, buy pointless duplicates of both dolls and clothes. The Barbie dolls from the 80s seem "vulnerable" to me, so I can't help but want to give them a loving home, where they can "retire" and be pampered. Like with Bratz, I seem to be naturally drawn to Barbie dolls from the 1980s--in both cases, I fell in love with them in my "tween" years, and as an adult, my obsession has only continued to blossom!
