Who wore it best?

Finally got an outfit I have wanted for years! - The 1967 Sear's exclusive 'Velvet-teens' ... (Nothing as groovy as a velvet pantsuit and a ruffled blouse! Reminds me of Marianne Faithfull, and - on a cheesier note!- even Susan Dey from the Partridge Family... Even a bit of Austin Powers!) but couldn't decide on who should wear it. The outfit was photographed in the Sear's wishbook on a similar blonde TNT to my one on the right, (See the actual 1967 wishbook page below!) but I think TNT Stacey looks just as 'smashing' in it.  What do you think?

Autumn Leaves

One of the funkiest, (furriest!) and most far-out looks from Barbie's Mod era would have to be 'Fur Sighted' from 1970. For something so 'funky',  it's so well constructed and fabricated, and exquisitely detailed... This was always on my wishlist right from the beginning, and I never thought I would have both the orange and red versions, (I've read that the red version is harder to find than the orange one.) Note that the tufts of fur on the red outfit are a little darker than on the orange one. I also love that textured crepe they used for these outfits, as it looks so sophisticated, but LOVE that metallic 'zig-zag' patterned top the most (that's identical to both outfit variations.) Speaking of being identical-  I recently got a gorgeous Titian nape curls Talker, and was amazed to see that she was actually the 'twin' to the brunette version I got years ago (Their heads are virtually identical; - exactly the same shape, size, skin tone and make-up on both! Even though they both look a little different in these shots.)                                                        
I was pruning the trees in my yard as they had gone crazy due to all the rain and was about to throw away all these beautiful golden leaves, but then thought I just had to use them in a shot. Then I remembered that I hadn't really photographed these outfits yet, so here they are, glowing in the early winter sunshine. (Autumn came late here!)

Rainy Days And Fridays ...

I know it's supposed to be 'Rainy Days And Mondays', but it's Friday here and it HAS been raining on and off, so it was a perfect excuse to get my JUST arrived Chris (Tutti's best friend!) in her very cute rain gear:- 'PUDDLE JUMPERS' from 1966/67! Skipper is showing her around in her very groovy 'FLOWER SHOWER', also from 1967. The raincoats are among my favourite outfits for all the Barbie family, so maybe Barbie, Francie and some of their friends will don theirs soon...

Bedtime stories

"Would you like a bedtime story, Tutti?" Marlo (looking dreamy in 'Night Clouds' from 1968) asks her baby sister, who is busy brushing her hair.

Yes, my Barbie 'Family' is now complete, with Barbie, cousin Francie, little sis Skipper and now, baby sister Tutti, released in 1966 and available in the US throughout the Mod era... (available in Europe and Canada for years afterward, up until 1980.) This one is in near-mint condition and was bought from a dear friend, (Thanks for selling her to me, Deany! :) ) She was part of the fab playset, 'Night-Night, Sleep Tight!' and is in her original sleepwear, complete with still sewn-on slippers. Her friend 'Chris' will soon be joining her! My new platinum haired 'standard' Barbie looks on (the head was another purchase from Dean!) while she wears Julia's 'Pink Fantasy'. Sweet dreams, Tutti! ...

1968 Stripes!

Two big trends from 1968: - the gorgeous-coat-over-dress look in matching fancy fabrics, and STRIPES, especially when they're enriched with streaks of gold, (and is it any wonder that stripes are big again for this Spring/Summer? They always look right...) Here's two favourite outfits from that year, worn by my two newest and favourite blondes. Marlo TNT is rocking a minty version of 'Dancing Stripes'... LOVE the quirky details of this outfit, like the gold shoulder straps on the dress and that fabulous froth of hot pink lace at the hem. While TNT Stacey is jazzing it up in 'All That Jazz', complete with her sparkly tights and orange bowed flats. (I'm obsessed with the bow flat shoes and have them in lots of colours! Canada's Eatons catalogue from 1968 also featured Stacey in this outfit. See below ) This one is dedicated to my close fellow collector friend, Dean, who adores any outfit with those tiny gold ball buttons!

Also please enjoy this TV ad  that showcased some other 1968 Barbie fashions - (one of my favourite years when it comes to Barbie... Love the 'photo-shoot' theme of this ad!) :

A flash of MOD lightning ...

By 1969, the 'Mod' movement was in full swing ... colours were never brighter, shapes were never slicker, textures were never shinier and patterns, whether they were Op Art or 'Pop', were FAR-OUT! Francie was the grooviest Mod chick in the Barbie family, so she took full advantage of these swingin' new styles... One of the most Mod out of them all (and one I ALWAYS wanted to get!) was 'Pink Lightning' from that year, which was repeated in 1970. Consisting of a wonderful textured knit romper in the hottest pink with gold chain and green diamante detail, over hot pink hose and ankle boots, topped off with a fab car coat colourblocked in hot pink and orange 'pleather' lined in pink, and finished with a cool Carnaby Street cap and crazy, kooky 'bubble' sunglasses, (The original were pink and green, but these hot pink ones work just as well, I think,) TNT Francie loves wearing this as it makes her the hottest and hippest Modster around! (I added the little pink circle bag, which was a gift from a dear fellow collector friend. Thanks again, Ingrid!)  Needless to say, this was a really fun shoot, and Francie, as always, was the perfect Mod model! What's your favourite Francie outfit?

Francie's FUR-OUT!

We all know that Francie’s outfits were always bright, swingin’ and MOD … however, there was one outfit from 1967 that still had a whiff of the early 60’s ‘Couture’ elegance of Barbie’s wardrobe; - ‘Fur Out’.  It has all those elegant Couture details, such as a deep cherry red satin lining in the coat and a wonderful black textured vinyl made to look like pony skin on the waist and on those very groovy spats or ‘go-go gaiters’ as they were called in the 1967 Sear’s Wish book. They have the tiniest black seed pearls for buttons and I don’t know whether any young child would have had the patience to put those on  as they are REALLY difficult to! (It took me three goes, even with tweezers! Small fingers would have just as much trouble, I would expect.)  It was also one outfit that I had always wanted to get, but never thought I would, as while the coat is not that hard to find, the other pieces usually are, and it’s almost impossible to find the complete outfit all in one go. I managed to find one set with nearly all the pieces - even the ‘leather’ mittens and the HTF  black buckled flats! (Notice she’s not wearing them in the Sear’s catalogue photo… must have been too hard to put on!) – Here is everything except for the cord belt, which I easily made with suede cording. My new Minty Francie is all set for Winter in her new favourite outfit. Take a look at some more of Francie's groovy, kicky wardrobe from 1967 in the TV ad below: