GREAT SHAPE BARBIE

YEAR: 1983

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: Fall 2004

MOLD: Superstar

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original obviously.

NOTES: I bought this doll back in 2004 when I was doing a museum studies class. I don't remember the exact project, but my idea was likely a Barbie exhibit, so I grabbed this doll to use as a prop for the presentation. I had Great Shape when I was little, but it was my neighbors who had this version with the little Walkman. Kid me loved how it actually opened and the little tape could come out. I've kept this girl in the box ever since, but maybe I'll open her up soon. 

LOCKET SURPRISE KAYLA

YEAR: 1993

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: November 2025

MOLD: Teresa

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1993 Classique Collection Flower Shower. Complete outfit worn.  

NOTES: While this is not my version of Kayla, I think this is one of the prettiest uses of the Teresa mold. 

SUNSATIONAL MALIBU BARBIE

YEAR: 1983

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: November 2025

MOLD: Spanish

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original. I have plans to get her something new. 

NOTES: Ah, the childhood favorite from my Barbie book! I really thought this doll was so pretty and she is. Mine has a couple little flaws, but I was happy to get her for a lower price. What a gorgeous face. My very first Barbie was the purple swimsuit blonde Barbie from this line. (This one is prettier.)

CALIFORNIA DREAM MIDGE

YEAR: 1987

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: November 2025

MOLD: Steffie

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1990 Jeans Weekend. Shoes are from Locket Surprise Kayla. Jewelry original.  

NOTES: Another California Dream cutie. I always love Midge. 

CALIFORNIA DREAM TERESA

YEAR: 1987

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed

PURCHASE DATE: November 2025 

MOLD: Spanish

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1990 Jeans Weekend line. Shoes are from childhood. The pair that came with the outfit were weirdly light considering this is a neon denim line. Jewelry original.

NOTES: Another Spanish mold! This might be the lightest Teresa I own, which is odd, considering she's in a California-themed line. She's still tan, just not as tan as other Teresas I have or the previous Spanish mold dolls. She's got a super cute face. I love her. 

BENETTON SHOPPING MARINA

YEAR: 1991 

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed

PURCHASE DATE: November 2025

MOLD: Kira

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original

NOTES: This is my other favorite purchase from this year. I instantly fell in love with this girl when I saw her on eBay, and was thrilled to manage to afford one. She was like half the price of the others being sold at the time. I love these colors. I think this is my favorite of all the Benetton outfits. Weird that I like the only pink and purple outfit when I usually gravitate more toward red, orange and green if they're offered, but this is just a fun outfit. I think maybe because it's a little less over the top than a lot of Benetton. She is absolutely stunning though. Right up there with Dana and Miko as a favorite with this mold. 

BENETTON KIRA

YEAR: 1990

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed

PURCHASE DATE: October 2025

MOLD: Kira

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original. I love the skirt material. 

NOTES: I recently became obsessed with the Benetton line and the Shopping versions seemed completely out of reach, so I got the first series Kira instead. I believe this is my only Kira mold doll that's actually named Kira! 

SUN GOLD MALIBU BARBIE

YEAR: 1983

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: October 2025

MOLD: Spanish

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1980 Best Buy #1468. I bought this for this doll to wear. I used to have what kid me called a robe in this same fabric. (It's actually a wrap dress and I'm on the hunt for a new one, but it's expensive.) The shoes are from childhood. 

NOTES: I had a Barbie book when I was a kid and I loved going through it, marking which dolls I'd want. One of them was the Sunsational Malibu Hispanic Barbie. This Sun Gold line came out after that one, but this doll is just as pretty, so when I saw her for a decent price, I went for it. She has very different hair from Sunsational, so though they're similar, the hair makes them quite different from each other.  

TROPICAL BARBIE

YEAR: 1985

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: October 2025

MOLD: Spanish

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1983 Fashion Fun "Everyday Outing!" #4804. Sandals are from my childhood collection. No shoes came with this dress.

NOTES: Ah, one of my two favorite new dolls from this most recent burst of Barbie buying. I love this girl so much. I think she may be the prettiest use of the Spanish mold. I was thrilled to get her for a decent price, as she's easily the most expensive of the Tropical line. For the early 80s dolls, the Hispanic versions of Barbie tend to be the most expensive from every line. I had to give her one of my favorite childhood dresses. I might still have my original, but I did rebuy this at a doll show in Memphis in the early 2000s. 

GLITTER BEACH JAZZIE

YEAR: 1992

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: August 2025

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original

NOTES: I think this may have been the last Jazzie produced. She's gotten a makeup upgrade and this and Sun Sensation look a bit older than previous dolls. 

SUN SENSATION JAZZIE

YEAR: 1991

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: April 2025

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original

NOTES: A friend collecting Jazzie got me to take another look at her and I ended up adding two more girls to my little collection. Jazzie's own line didn't last, but she hung around for a bit in the cheapie swimsuit lines. 

ISLAND FUN TERESA

YEAR: 1988

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: June 2023

MOLD: Spanish

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1982 Fashion Fun "Romantic Nights" #5712. This dress is interesting because it came in multiple shades of blue. I love this dark blue for Teresa. The shoes are part of my childhood collection.   

NOTES: Got this one shortly after Cool Times. I love her long black hair, but the quality of it right out of the box is not great. It's not the waxy vintage feel of earlier 80s dolls. It's just rough quality wavy hair. She's adorable though. 

COOL TIMES TERESA

YEAR: 1989

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: June 2023

MOLD: Spanish

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original 

NOTES: After finding those dolls in the toy store, I bought a couple vintage pieces on eBay. This Teresa is one of them. She sparked my love for the Spanish mold, though I only recently really started buying them. 

INLINE SKATING MIDGE

YEAR: 1995

PURCHASE CONDITION: Unknown

PURCHASE DATE: 2010ish

MOLD: Diva

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1985 Rockers fashion #1175. She's wearing all of it. Earrings are original. 

NOTES: Agh, this one should have been back before Teen Courtney, but oh, well. I can't remember what condition she was in when I got her, but I wanted more Diva mold dolls and ended up grabbing her, likely on eBay. 

HEART FAMILY KISS & CUDDLE

YEAR: 1986

PURCHASE CONDITION: Boxed 

PURCHASE DATE: May 2023

MOLD: Steffie

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original 

NOTES: My neighbor had this doll when I was in fourth grade and I adored her. I always loved the Steffie mold and this dress appealed to kid me a lot. So I finally got around to adding her to my collection a couple years ago. 

WESTERN FUN NIA

YEAR: 1989

PURCHASE CONDITION: Used 

PURCHASE DATE: 2023ish

MOLD: Kira

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1983 Fashion Fantasy "Romantic Valentine" #4812. I still have my original dress and shoes, but that choker is long gone. I love this one. It's very 80s girly Barbie. 

NOTES: Nia was the third doll I found at the toy store. Her hair is a little frizzy, but I think it's the best of the three. I may get a boxed Nia someday as an upgrade, but this one is perfect for wearing another childhood fashion favorite. 

BARBIE AND THE ALL STARS TERESA

YEAR: 1989

PURCHASE CONDITION: Used 

PURCHASE DATE: 2023ish

MOLD: Steffie

OUTFIT DETAILS: Original. 

NOTES: Teresa is not in the best shape. Pretty sure her bangs had a little cut. But she's the hardest to find of the All Stars line and I was not leaving her in the store. I plan to get her another childhood lingerie set once I'm back to buying. 

BARBIE AND THE ALL STARS MIDGE

 YEAR: 1989

PURCHASE CONDITION: Used 

PURCHASE DATE: 2023ish

MOLD: Diva

OUTFIT DETAILS: 1983 Fashion Fun "Soft and Lacy" #4807. Little me loved lingerie sets and this one was a favorite. It's got really cute panties. 

NOTES: I was shocked to find several vintage Barbies at my local toy store. They were in played with condition, but still good and many had a lot of original outfit pieces. I definitely was not leaving this Midge behind. I'm not a big fan of the All Stars outfits, so she got redressed in my current project of upgrading fashions I owned as a kid. 

RIO DE JANEIRO SKIPPER

 YEAR: 2003

PURCHASE CONDITION: Unknown 

PURCHASE DATE: Possibly 2010

OUTFIT DETAILS: Barbie Diaries Courtney top. Choker I think is a Skipper Fashion Avenue piece.

NOTES: I'm playing the lazy card on this one. I remember nothing about buying this girl or about these clothing pieces. I did a brief search, but came up with nothing, so this one will have to be a mystery or maybe I'll be really bored someday and try to hunt down the outfit.