Colorful, frilly dress common native outfit in Brazil

"Lembrança do Rio" is Portuguese for "Memory of the River."

My mother wasn't fond of my doll collecting, but in the 1980s a friend of hers brought her a small souvenir doll from when he visited Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  The doll is what is known as a dress-me doll.  Mom's little 6-inch-tall doll would probably be considered stereotypical and politically incorrect today, but she is still very pretty and colorful.

All that is on her feet is a pair of burgundy straps, while the soles are glued to a wooden stand.  She wears lacy underpants and there is a stiff net slip under her skirt.  The main problem is her arms, which are attached to her shoulders by a rubber band running through the top of her torso.  The arms come loose very easily.  There are no markings on what I can see of her body.

 

Instead of pantaloons like most souvenir dolls,
she wears lacy underpants.

The tag on the bottom of the stand simply says, "No 8."
I don't know if that is the model number of the doll or the price in cruzados.

Her clothes are glued onto her rather than sewn.

My collection started with a Korea souvenir

The back of her hair and her dress
are just as elaborate as the front.

My doll wears the hanbok,
a gown worn at festivals in Korea.

We went to the World's Fair in Knoxville, TN, during summer 1982.  I don't remember much of it, except that I bought a souvenir charm the shape of a flame and a souvenir glass, both of which I still own.

I also still own a souvenir doll from the Korea exhibit.  She was the first doll I bought as an adult collector, a year or two before I started buying Barbies.

My doll is 9 inches tall and is made of papier-mache or a heavy fabric.  She is posed on a wooden stand.  There is nothing written on the stand.  I don't know if there are any markings on her, as her clothes are sewn and glued onto her.

Every souvenir doll from Korea wears a shawl or a shirt with the same multicolored stripes and a gown called a hanbok.  I wrote about her in a previous column, which you can read here:  https://skippercollector.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-korea-souvenir-doll_12.html

Tiny doll brought from France in 1980 or 1981

My Barbies are jealous of her feather boa.

Her tiny hatbox does not open.

This doll is smaller than she looks.  From the top of her hat to the hem of her skirt, it looks like she is 8 inches tall.  However, when you look under her skirt, you will see that her legs are much shorter.  From her scalp to her toes, she is actually 5 1/4 inches tall, smaller than a Dawn doll.

A friend went to France in 1980 or 1981 and brought me back this doll.  She has no name.  I don't know if there are any markings on her because her gown is sewn to her body.  She came with a little white hat box that says, "PARIS."

For such a tiny doll, it is unusual in that she has sleep eyes.  She is all hard plastic.

There's no way this doll could ever can-can!

My Maria doll is from the 1990s

 

Maria dolls are abundant but each one is unique.
I named mine Pilar.

My sister brought me a Maria doll
from Mexico in the 1990s.

2023 Sunny Days Barbie tent with deceptive pool

I think that only toddlers
could actually fit
inside the Sunny Days Dream House tent and ball pit.

This ad for the Barbie Dream House Pop Up Tent by Sunny Days Entertainment was in the 2023 Hammacher-Schlemmer catalogue.  The indoor tent is meant for little girls, not dolls.  The house is too oversized for an 11 1/2 inch doll and too undersized for the new 28-inch Barbie doll.  It's probably the right size for an 18-inch SuperSize doll.

What initially threw me in this ad is what I thought was a swimming pool.  It is the correct size for a regular fashion doll and would be perfect for 11 1/2 inch dolls to swim in.  However, it is a ball pit, which I didn't realize until I saw other listings for this tent on the Internet.  Even as a ball pit, it would be a disappointment for children, though, as there are only 20 balls, not nearly enough to surround oneself in.

I wish Mattel would make a swimming pool this size for Barbie that could actually hold water.

I've not looked for any of these tents in person so I don't know how sturdy they are.  They sure are eye-catching, though!

Last of the talking dolls had different problems than earlier ones

The original Mattel Talking Barbie and family dolls were last sold in 1972.  They were called Talking Busy dolls and consisted of Barbie, Ken and Steffie.  Barbie had short straight blonde hair.  Steffie was also blonde, and she was the first doll to have what was then called a shag haircut.  I own Talking Barbie only.

The girl dolls were different from any other doll Mattel had yet made--the haircuts were the most obvious sign.  They had the regular talking doll legs that could be crossed, the talking doll body, the Living Barbie soft bendable arms, and hands with opposable thumbs so they could hold things.  There was also a separate line just called Busy Barbie and Busy Steffie; they didn't talk but they did have the Living Barbie arms and the opposable thumbs.

Talking Busy Barbie wore her sexiest outfit yet, an electric blue satin pair of overalls with very short legs, and an attached cerise red tricot turtleneck.  In other words, her torso, neck and arms were completely covered but her legs were very exposed!  Too hot to wear in the summer and too cold to wear in the winter.

The long-sleeved blouse had another purpose--to hold on her arms.  This particular line didn't have the leg and hip problem but rather they were with the shoulder attachments.  Of course, the little thumbs were also prone to breaking off, but I am fortunate on that my doll hasn't had that.

These dolls were made in Hong Kong and had 29 holes on their backs.  The outfit has a tag that just reads "HONG KONG".

Talking Busy Barbie also came with green laced boots
and small accessories that she could hold.

The talking doll body was not designed
to coordinate with the Living Barbie shoulder and arm.

My Talking Busy Barbie's right arm will not stay on,
while her left arm has completely frozen to her shoulder
and is immobile.

I've heard of having a screw in the hip, but this is ridiculous!

The first Talking Barbie that I bought as a collector had a 1970 body and a 1968

Who would wear a gold mesh coverup to the beach?
Is Barbie going to a party at Hugh Hefner's house?

ponytail.  This was in the early 1980s at the Ferguson Hills Flea Market in Westwood in Cincinnati in the mid-1980s.  A previous owner had drilled holes in both hips and inserted screws to keep her legs on the torso.  However, the screws worked well because this Barbie can move her legs and sit down.

She is the only 1970 talking doll that I have.  I finally got a head to match the body.  Her hairstyle was changed to a lower, shorter, curlier ponytail.  Her outfit was a white vinyl bikini and a long gold mesh vest, much too nice to wear to the pool or the beach.  I don't own any of the bikinis; they are hard to find.  However, the gold vests are a dime a dozen.  Like the white mesh 1969 vest, there is only a tag that says, "Hong Kong."

This Talking Barbie has 29 holes in her back.  Both the body and the head were made in Hong Kong.

The 1970 Talking Barbie looks fantastic in 1456 Lemon Kick, also from 1970.
It's a shame that women no longer wear lounging outfits.

I personally prefer the face and hair of the 1970 Talking Barbie
as compared to the 1968 version.

Here you get a good view of the screw and bolt that were inserted in Barbie's hips.
The staining is from the duct tape
that was placed around her to hide to screw.