About Anne Hoffmann Expertise As a modest collector of appropriately vintage age, I'm good at identifying American vintage dolls (largely late 1940's-1970's) and have the interest and resources to research particularly challenging identifications. I would hesitate to make specific value estimates, however, as markets fluctuate and I am not a professional appraiser. I can recommend at-home repair methods and resources for particular repair instructions and supplies. I can differentiate repairs that will enhance or devalue the historical significance of your doll.
Experience For one, I am 58 and a life-long doll lover. I played with many of these dolls! I am an adult collector, hampered only by my inability to afford the high-end and rare collectibles. I do some doll identification for sellers on eBay and am in demand for local yard sale and church pricing of doll "finds". I like folks to be able to realize a good return for their offerings by correctly identifying their dolls for collectors. I am highly literate and like people as well as dolls! I was briefy a customer service associate for JC Penney (one of those "filler" jobs) and enjoyed resolving issues to customer satisfaction. I am retired and spend a lot of time studying dolls. On the down side, while having an excellent command of the English language, I am a poor typist.
Education/Credentials None for doll collecting. I was a draftsman and machine programmer for an architectural metal firm.
Question I have a 1988 Holiday Barbie. It is in the box, though the box is a bit damaged - some scuffs, creases and glue marks on the box. The doll has never been removed. I am thinking of selling it, but wonder about the value, and also if it pays to hold on to it as it will be 20 years old this Christmas. What do you think? Thanks.
Answer A quick scan of the 1988 Holiday Barbies offered on ebay reveals prices of well over $100.00 for those NRFB in perfect boxes. One in a scuffed box with top and bottom plastic box inserts missing is generating far less interest-less then the original price, in fact. It would seem the value is not in the doll, per se, but in the fact that the entire package is intact. Thus, the condition of the box for your doll deeply affects its present value.
Predicting trends in the secondary doll market is purely guesswork, but you ask for my opinion, so I would advise you to hold onto it for five more years. Then you could advertise it as a quarter-of-a-century old and perhaps capitalize on that fact, given that the package is not perfect.
On the other hand, I would not advise holding onto it much beyond that, unless you happen to love the doll for her look or the memories it holds for you. As a collector of vintage dolls, I think that values for this first edition of the "holiday" series Barbies will more or less equalize with other contemporary Barbie issues eventually, as the doll itself has no particular outstanding merit and the next generation of collectors will be inundated with pristine examples a doll that they do not remember with any particular attachment.
I rather suspect that the current mania for preserving these Barbie playdolls as immediate artifacts is effected by the astonishing value of a MINT original-issue 1959 Barbie. Everyone seems to be hoping for an eventual return of similar proportion on any "special-issue" Barbie.
The reason the first Barbie is going for so many thousands in mint condition is two-fold: she is remembered as a delightful and unusual (for the era) toy by many who were little girls at the time AND she was a favourite PLAY doll, so one in excellent condition is very hard to find. Barbie, patterned after the German Bild Lili gag doll, was a doll of truly astonishing sophistication to little girls of the late '50's. No doll up to that point in time had the straight-forward adult look of Barbie. Even the Ideal Revlon doll, quite a ground-breaking advance on adult-proportioned lady dolls, did not have the sheer sex-appeal of Barbie. Barbie even had a negligee! The original Barbie issue has therefore an historical value that has not been equaled by any doll since.
So many Barbie issues are being preserved against future values that the secondary market will be glutted with perfect examples. To a Barbie collector of the future, the first edition of some Barbies, such as the 1988 holiday Barbie, may retain an appeal. How much of an appeal is impossible to predict. Play dolls gain value as the generation that fondly remembers them as toys waxes nostalgic for those toys. If those dolls were kept stored away as future valuables, the nostalgia value for a vintage doll is largely obliterated. Rarity of perfect examples of this doll will not be much of a consideration.
By the 1980's, Barbie was a well-established play doll. There were no particularly outstanding advances to her design or artistry, and indeed, her huge wardrobe did not have nearly the detail or fine construction of the earlier clothing. Barbie is not an artist doll of superb sculpting, although recent editions evidence far more detailed attention to realistic sculpt and face paint.
I collect the ballet series of Barbies, due to a personal love of ballet, but I have to confess to displaying them without boxes, so that I can admire the dolls better. I also let my granddaughters and other reasonably careful little girls play with them. But then, to me, dolls are meant to be played with.
Curator or collector? One can be both, but it comes down to personal predilections, in which both a fascination with the artistry of dolls and the history of toys play a part. An extensive, well-documented and carefully selected collection, based on historicity and rarity, would be, of course, more valuable to future generations than a random collection of popular issues of a particular doll. As an investment, dolls do not generally garner appreciable remuneration in one's lifetime. There are flukes in secondary market trends, to be sure, but, again, prediction of future tastes in collectibles is largely guesswork.
I hope this helps you in weighing your options.
I would be glad to hear the opinions of other serious doll collectors, especially those with an interest in the historical preservation of the Barbie doll.
