When I was a little girl growing up in the 80s, Strawberry Shortcake was one of my favorite characters, right up there with My Little Pony. ;) Even though I never had any of the small dolls, I did have a few other Strawberry Shortcake items, and even had a Strawberry Shortcake-themed birthday party on my third birthday (as I shared in my previous post). So I guess it's no surprise that Strawberry Shortcake dolls and toys eventually worked their way in with my other collections. :)
Here are some pictures from my collection, obtained mostly through eBay and thrift stores. I also have some SSC tins, books, and other items, but for today I thought I'd focus on the dolls and figures.
Kenner:
Here is my entire collection from the Kenner era.
Back row: Angel Cake figure, Burrito (Cafe Ole's pet), Custard (Strawberry Shortcake's pet), Jelly Bear (Butter Cookie's pet). Figures in front: Mint Tulip and Marsh Mallard, Cherry Cuddler and Gooseberry, Apple Dumplin' (on her sled).
Back row (next to Jelly Bear): Blueberry Muffin figure, Hopsalot (Apricot's pet), Lime Chiffon figure, Souffle Skunk (Angel Cake's pet). Figures in front: Lemon Meringue, Lemon Meringue with Frappe Frog, Apricot with Hopsalot, Strawberry Shortcake.
Strawberry Shortcake, Apple Dumplin', Orange Blossom with Marmalade (in box)
Lemon Meringue and Huckleberry Pie
One of my more recent finds was this adorable Kenner Orange Blossom doll, still in the box. Someone on eBay was getting rid of her, and I got her for a very reasonable price.
Other views of the box:
Most of my figures came with this "Wonderful World of Strawberry Shortcake" display case. My mom and I found this at our local mall when there was an antique show there.
The display case unlatches and opens.
It has two shelves and cute artwork on the back wall.
Each of the shelves has these little pegs...
...and each of the figures has a little hole in the bottom. The holes fit over the pegs to hold the figures in place.
Kenner Wishlist:
-Pupcake (for Huckleberry Pie)
-Frappe Frog (for Lemon Meringue)
-Tea Time Turtle (for Apple Dumplin')
-Angel Cake doll (for Souffle Skunk)
THQ:
This is my one and only item from the THQ line. :) I actually was never that interested in the THQ releases, but my mom found this adorable Lime Chiffon, still in her package, at an antique store, and I thought she'd be a fun addition to my collection.
She comes with an extra outfit.
It was really neat seeing the back of her box and all of the stock photos there.
There's the blow-kiss doll I had on the right! :)
THQ Wishlist:
-Any of the Strawberry Shortcakes from this line (deboxed) :)
Bandai:
My Bandai collection is fairly small, too. I have Strawberry Shortcake and her pet cat Custard (purchased on eBay), Apple Dumplin', and a "Berry Sweet Wearables" Strawberry Shortcake and strawberry charm (all found at Goodwill).
Bandai Wishlist:
-One character (doesn't matter who) still in the box :)
Playmates:
I don't actually have any Playmates Strawberry Shortcake dolls yet, but Oldest Gal has started collecting them. Here are her two dolls. This used to be one of my least favorite lines, but it's grown on me after my research. ;) Since I now have at least one doll from every other line, I've decided I'd like to find at least one Playmates doll to join the party. :)
Playmates Wishlist:
-Flavor Swirl Strawberry Shortcake (to debox)
-One other character (doesn't matter which) NIB
Hasbro:
The Hasbro line is one of my very favorites, so I have a lot from this era. :) (It helped that this was the line that was still available in stores when I started collecting.) ;)
Lemon Meringue, Orange Blossom, Strawberry Shortcake
Blueberry Muffin, Plum Pudding
This is one of my most exciting dolls of the collection. Raspberry Torte was only produced two times by Hasbro in this size, and as such is super hard to find (you can easily pay $50 or more for a Raspberry Torte in good shape on eBay). This particular doll was in a lot on eBay for a great price. I'm so happy to have all six of the friends in both sizes! :)
Lemon Meringue, Orange Blossom, Strawberry Shortcake
Raspberry Torte (another rare figure), Blueberry Muffin, Plum Pudding
Plum Pudding, Strawberry Shortcake, Custard, Orange Blossom, and Lemon Meringue figures. I'd love to eventually find the Raspberry Torte and Blueberry Muffin figures that go with these. :) The Custard actually goes with the posable figures, but I put her in front so she would be more visible.
This is my amazing San Diego Comic Con exclusive Strawberry Shortcake doll from 2010, purchased on eBay after the fact.
The box has a shiny strawberry icon and opens with two flaps that fit over each other.
I love this doll because of her incredibly detailed outfit and accessories. Plus, she has Custard with her! To the best of my knowledge, Custard was never produced for this size doll in the Hasbro play line.
I have a lot of pictures of this particular doll, but I'll save them for another review post.
Hasbro Wishlist:
-Blueberry Muffin and Raspberry Torte figures to go with my others
-Bloomin' Berry Garden Orange Blossom (still in the box)
The Bridge Direct:
Strawberry Shortcake is my only doll from this era so far. I don't have a wishlist yet. I'd like to see what else they come up with first! :) I'd love it if they'd release a non-rock star Raspberry Torte doll, since she has my favorite scent (and the rock star Raspberry Torte doll still smelled yummy).
The Whole Gang:
Collecting Strawberry Shortcake dolls is something I really enjoy. It brings me back to my childhood and how much I loved SSC then. :) I love the bright colors and yummy scents these dolls have.
I'm excited to see what the future will hold for the line. Hopefully, the dolls from The Bridge Direct will be successful and Strawberry Shortcake will continue to delight little girls for years to come. :)
What a lovely collection! Does the scent fade over time? I adore Blueberry Muffin from Hasbro but scents on dolls are a bit too much for my nose. I will buy her if the scent fades though. :) Do you have any pictures of your birthday party? I'd love to see your cake and decorations! (Without anyone in the pic for safety.)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sunny! :) I have found that the scent gets fainter over time, and having the dolls out on display in the open air seems to help the scent diminish more quickly. When I had the dolls in a drawer, I would get a burst of scent every time I opened it. Now that they're out on my shelf, I can barely smell them.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, Oldest Gal's party was in the era before my digital camera and before I was blogging. I have pictures somewhere, but I have no clue where they are, and they're not digital. :} If I manage to dig any up, I'll try to share them here. :)
You've got a really nice Stawberry Shortcake collection going--your photos make me want to head down to the thrift store and root through the figure and doll bins right now (actually, that's exactly where I'm going after I finish up on the computer for the day)! I really like that little display cabinet for the smaller Kenner figurines; I've never seen that particular item before. I hope you're able to acquire some of the SSC items on your wish lists in the future--it's always a treat to stumble upon a vintage treasure that you've always wanted in the thrift store aisles.
ReplyDeleteI take it you don't care for the villains as you haven't made any mention of the Purple Pie Man or Sour Grapes? I'm fond of the Purple Pie Man (he's an ineffectual goof anyway, just like most cartoon villains).
I also never knew that the THQ SSC dolls had a paper doll thing going on until I studied your photos of the cardback closely. I love paper dolls (actually just paper art in general), so, it always excites me when 3-dimensional "real" dolls incorporate paper dolls into the mix as accessories (like some of the recent MGA Mooshka cloth dolls do).
I had that MGA Yummi-Land girl, that I mentioned before, in a bag, and, just like my Strawberry Shortcake girls, when I took her out the other day, to try her dress out on the MGA Novi Stars Mae Tallick doll that I bought earlier this week (it fit!), I noticed that the Yummi-Land girl had miraculously become fragrant again too! So, that's my advice to anyone who's scented dolls, Strawberry Shortcake or otherwise, don't smell anymore; put them in a sealed bag for several weeks, and you might be surprised at the results. Obviously, the odor won't be as strong as when they were new, and it probably won't last, but it's an easy way to revitalize them for a bit if you want to give your nose an olfactory trip down memory lane.
Reading your various SSC blog posts this week just made be remember that I once bought a painted wooden Strawberry Shortcake "measuring pole" (for lack of a better term--it was one of those ruler things, attached to a base, that kids stand against to see how much they've grown each year) for a buck from a Senior Center sale, years ago, and then gave it to one of my school teachers, who was an antique dealer in her spare time, and when she sold it, she got me about a $19 profit on it, which was cool of her. I never saw another one of those again, and, now, I kind of wish that I had held onto it.
Thanks, Mark! It's been fun piecing the collection together bit by bit. :)
ReplyDeleteI love my little display cabinet, too. I've seen it a couple of times on eBay, but that's about it. :)
I've never really been a fan of villains, no. I'm more of the protagonist type. ;)
I think it's a neat idea of THQ to include a paper doll with each real doll. I've always loved the SSC artwork, too, so it's fun to have it on a paper doll. :)
Thanks for sharing the great tip about reviving the scented dolls' smells, too! I'll have to try that sometime. Except for my Bridge Direct doll. I think I'll just let her scent fade. ;)
That SSC measuring pole sounds really cute! I've done that before, too...gotten rid of things that I later realized were more rare than I thought. :} You can't hold onto everything, though...that's something I've learned through this hobby. These days, I try to acquire slowly and sell even slower, making sure I really want to have something in the first place, and making sure I want to get rid of something before I let go of it. ;)
I love strawberry shortcake so much! I'm hoping to get the new ones you showed on this post from bridge direct. Do you know where they sell them and how much they cost?
ReplyDeleteHi Adelaide! I know the SSC dolls from The Bridge Direct are supposed to be in Walmart, Target, Kmart, and Toys R Us. So far, I've only seen them at Kmart. At Kmart, the dolls ranged from $7.99 for individual dolls to around $20 for the big styling dolls. They might be slightly cheaper at places like Walmart. :)
ReplyDelete