Dolls and Doll-related Items for Sale

Monday, December 16, 2019

40th Anniversary Barbie

This won't be much of a review, since this is an older doll. But I wanted everyone to see pictures of this pretty doll I picked up a couple of months ago. I was fortunate enough to find her locally, so that I didn't have to pay shipping costs to get her.

Since she was made to celebrate Barbie's 40th anniversary, she's wearing a takeoff of Barbie's iconic black and white striped swimsuit. She has the Mackie face mold, and she came with two accessories, an anniversary bouquet of roses, and a miniature original Barbie doll. The miniature doll was actually my biggest reason for wanting to buy 40th Anniversary. The mini doll was supposed to be on the pink box next to Barbie, but one of the rubber bands had deteriorated, and the doll slipped down to the bottom of the box. A couple of rubber bands in here had fallen apart; this doll herself turned 20 years old this year!


She's got quite big ruffles at the bottom of her mermaid gown. I think the one ruffle is standing up so much because it was put in the box that way. Her shoes look nice, but the heels have bent in, as happens with a lot of Barbie shoes. Her skirt is unfinished on the inside, but I imagine Mattel was looking at this doll as strictly display.  She does come with a stand, but that skirt is so tight, I don't know if I could get her on it. And her gloves are pretty nicely cut.
I personally love the Mackie face mold, and this doll's makeup is fairly nice too, I think. I like her French twist up-do, although there's a little bit of a "space" in the back.



And I had to take a picture of a Barbie doll holding the mini Barbie, to give you an idea of scale (especially since the mini doll wasn't visible in the big box!)
This is a nice doll to add to my collection. I don't know how much you will see her with my other Barbies, as this doll looks pretty swanky as is, and I don't want to mess with her hair style. She'll probably be in a photo or two at some point, as well as the roses and mini Barbie. Speaking of which, my daughter just walked past my computer, looked at my monitor, and said "Is that a doll holding a doll?" with a little eye roll. But only a little one. She knows her mom's doll craziness, and as she pointed out, her dollhouse when she was little, had a mini dollhouse. :)

11 comments:

  1. She's such a beutiful doll! I love the make up, very late 90s. I do agree, I think this doll was made to be displayed, not really to be played with. That time was such a great Barbie era, or at least that's how I remember it. I wish that Mattel revisited the Mackie sculpt, I think it's a favourite amongst collectors.
    Take care!

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    1. I think that was a pretty good Barbie era too. Mattel was learning how to make good collector dolls, and although the Mackie face got used pretty heavily back then, I agree that the sculpt should get a comeback now.

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  2. Congratulations on a great find Barb, she's a lovely Barbie with a pretty face and excellent profile. Quite like the dress too, even though it's unfinished. Do you think you'll be able to straighten those heels? I hope so.
    Happy Christmas to you all.
    X

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    1. Thank you, Xanadu. I think the dress is a show-stopper; it's biggest flaw is that it is shedding glitter. I might be able to straighten the heels with hot water, or maybe if I pushed something between the heel and the sole for a while, to hold the heel out.

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  3. What a pretty Barbie. I had never seen her before. I do like her face.

    I really have to get my Barbie assessed. I think she is a number 3, blond ponytail, pearl earrings.

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    1. Thank you! I'd definitely get your doll checked out. It'd be interesting to see what she's worth.

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  4. She really is lovely. Around when she came out, you could get those mini Barbies with a mini reproduction Barbie storage case on a keyring. They were cool. I had one but don't know what happened to it.

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    1. I vaguely remember those key rings. I think I like this mini better because the box is cardboard, like a real box, and I don't have to worry about removing the key ring.

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  5. Beautiful, and amazing she is 20 years old!

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    1. Hi Chris! Thanks for stopping by! I visit your blog off and on, although it looks like you've put up a lot of posts since the last time I was there. I couldn't believe this doll was 20 years old myself!

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  6. Thank you! Mattel did a really good job with this one. I love the mini Barbie.

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