Continuing Swimsuit Saga

 

In the continuing saga of the "Black Francie Clone Swimsuit," I was browsing auctions and found the  same fabric on this little "Bottle Baby" doll:

Just in case you weren't convinced this isn't a Mattel product.

The Mystery of The Floral "Black Francie" Swimsuit

 

A few weeks ago, I bought a lot of clone-type dolls in an auction.  I like clones, and I was having fun going through the stuff that came with them. 

One doll stood out a bit.. her swimsuit looked... familiar...

"Oh neat!," I think, "It looks like "Black Francie's" swimsuit!  Neat!"

So, I got to googling, and low-and-behold, several websites were claiming this swimsuit was a rare variation of Black Francie's original swimsuit.

Now, believe me, I would LOVE THAT TO BE TRUE.  I would LOVE to own a rare and impossible-to-find Francie swimsuit.  I would love to tell you that I found an impossible-to-find Francie swimsuit in a $17 auction.

However, I can guarantee you this cute swimsuit is NOT A MATTEL PRODUCT.

This is a clone swimsuit.  Is it made to look like Black Francie's swimsuit?  100% definitely yes.  Is it made by Mattel?  100% definitely no.

I'm going to tell you how I know, since other websites that picture this swimsuit do not give any additional information.  Let's learn all about the MYSTERIOUS, ULTRA-RARE, BLACK FRANCIE, FLORAL SWIMSUIT.

- First of all, this swimsuit is only referred to online, by uncited sources.  It doesn't appear in Joe Blitman's Francie Book, not even the vaguest mention.  Mr. Blitman is arguably the world's most Franci-est expert on Francie.

- It doesn't appear in Sarah Sink Eams's Barbie Clothing Book, maybe the most complete Barbie fashion book ever written.

-  Heck, it doesn't even appear on Mattel's Website.

-  This swimsuit has SNAPS.  Francie's swimsuit has BUTTONS WITH LOOPS.

-  The straps are different.

-  In my opinion, Francie's swimsuit is more of a boy-short bottom, while this is more of a brief.

-  IT IS DEFINITELY NOT TAGGED FRANCIE.  Francie's swimsuit is tagged.

-  The quality is not like Mattel's.

ANYWAY, so where did this swimsuit come from?

The clone I found it on is a "Made in Hong Kong," type, possibly PEGGY ANN.  Was it her original swimsuit?  Maybe.  I haven't found one in package to prove anything.

Was this swimsuit ever sold on a African-American / Black doll like Francie?  Maybe.  It's possible some company made a knock-off type doll to compete and copied the swimsuit too.  Again, no in-package examples have been found.

Enjoy a few more pictures of this cool swimsuit:

The doll I found it on, probably a "Peggy Ann" or Peggy Ann type.

Front view, off of the doll.  The fabric is very cute.  It's not poorly made, but it's not up to Mattel standards.  It's quite fragile and not sewn very well.  The red part is definitely cotton.

 

ANYWAY... mystery... sort of solved?  It's not a Francie swimsuit, but I'm intrigued to find out where it came from.

If anybody out there knows, please let me know!  If anyone has an example mint-in-package, PLEASE help let's solve this mystery for good.

PS. Since we're talking about Black Francie, I'd like to remind you that Black Lives Matter.  Please support social justice and equality in your community.

My First Barbie (1980)

I picked up this 1980 My First Barbie for very cheap, and yesterday I cleaned her up.  I wasn't thinking much about it, I just washed her hair and her face.  However, I was so surprised!  She looked pretty she looked when she was finished.

For what it's worth, 1980 My First Barbie really was MY first Barbie.  These dolls are so nice, because they are easy to dress and have such a pretty, young-looking face.  That verry late 1970s, fresh-faced look... before the heavy makeup of the 1980s took hold.  They have very nice, long hair that stays soft.  There's enough there for a little girl to braid or put in a ponytaill.

One note, she was advertised as being "easy to dress" and overall, she is...she has legs and arms that are slick hard plastic, so clothes go on easily.  Her legs don't bend, and her arms only go up and down and not sideways.  So, yes, very easy!  But... that swimsuit.. it is so difficult to figure out how to put on the doll.  I had to look at tons of pictures online just to get her dressed, and I still don't think I have it tied correctly.  I remember playing with this doll as a child so maybe I had more sense then than I do now.

Anyway, picking up this "junky" My First Barbie has made me want a "new in box" one, even though I still have mine from when I was a child.