Sunday, April 9, 2017

*UPDATE* Downsizing

As was previously stated, I have been actively downsizing my collection. I am still a fan of American Girl, but maybe I should clarify that it's the Pleasant Company American Girl Collection that has my heart.


There's something so charming and heart warming about the original concept and original girls.
  


It seems AG is straying FAR FAR away from the original ideas. I do love and appreciate some of the more recent releases, but as I downsize it's apparent I will be pruning things down to the core of PC AG collection. 




32 comments:

  1. PC dolls & things were amazing!! I wish BeForever could branch off on its own. Attention to detail and high quality shouldn't be confined to the past. I also miss having more time to save up for AG treasures.

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  2. I agree. The Pleasant Company AG dolls are the best.

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  3. My daughter has lost interest in the AG dolls. She is getting older but I think the dolls just don't get her attention as they did before. She is still enjoying the books but I don't think the dolls are connecting to the books like they did before.

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  4. I am not under standing stamps on neck it seems to me pleasant company written large print with a small c are early and pleasant company was still used after mattel took over in fact pleasant company is on the new Logan and it has always on Kaya.The very old dolls do have the soft lashes and some of the faces have lost color.Also lead findings were left out of ties for safety reasons.

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    1. You're correct. The earlier dolls have PLEASANT COMPANY c on their neck, with flat neck strings and sift lashes. As Melody mentioned "Kaya's mold was designed under Pleasant Company. It doesn't surprise me that all Kaya's have PC".
      AG is using more face paint now and started with Grace GOTY15. The PC had little to no face paint. The products have gone through several changes, but the quality is what has SUFFERED the most.

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  5. I agree with you. It seems that Mattel had seen some other vision, perhaps since the beginning. The Dolls had a purpose, and the stories were so well thought through as to how they were presented, which seems, to me, the 4 seasons, birthday, Christmas, what the future was going to be like. This is something that kids experience and can compare the modern times with the time period presented. The books had the pictures and the historical section in the back. I love that even the Historical mystery books and the other mystery books did as well. It was like living with them for a year. Marie-Grace and Cecile were the first ones to deviate from this format, and I don't feel the same connection like I do with the others. I don't feel it with MaryEllen and Melody. Most of the dolls they sell are 'modern' dolls, based around what is in fashion, so I feel that the fashion changes and that AG says I should move on to perhaps another doll. Like the GOTY, buy a 'special' doll and her high priced collection, and then next year we'll have another. It reminds me of holiday Barbie, and I have noticed that each year there have been several in the clearance section for months after Christmas. It is no wonder that the girls get disinterested. When AG choose to head down the path of 'Barbie' marketing and selling practices, they made AG dolls something ordinary. Now seems that AG is faced with selling the doll based on brand name.

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  6. I personally don't like were AG is going either. I haven't bought anything yet this year because the quality has gone way down and the packaging is turning into Barbie boxes. I know Mattel makes both but AG used to have such a distinct quality that you couldn't even compare the two.

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  7. Yes I agree. Doll collecting is not a nod to the concept of the good old days. For most people Pleasant Company and American Girl was comforting in their connections combining doll play with literacy. Every now and then I see AG trying to keep the concept going, but not as much as they used to. It is hard to explain how something can change but not for better and still keep holding on to what was good. My collection is at a standstill at this point which my purse is grateful for. But it is difficult to not miss the old products which were so well made and embrace...plastic, light weight cardboard and dare I say permaunderwear as a plausible solution to better sales. Yes, maybe this is too old school of me to even compare PC to AG, however I have seen this same issue brought up with the Star War series and other collectors of collectables. I can understand your need to downsize really I do. I am looking to older toy manufacturers and antique shops for inspiration for my new direction. AG may be an every now and then splurge but not to the extent to the Fandom that I had before.

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  8. Too bad we can't start a campaign..."Bring Back Pleasant Co!" I wasn't even born until after the Mattel takeover, I never got to see the glory days. Is Pleasant Rowland still alive? If she is, I bet she's broken-hearted to see where her beloved company has gone.

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    1. She is and has moved on! In a twist of irony, she's been accused of taking something and making it not accurately historical either (a whole town basically). Look her up!

      Also - I really wanted to answer your question from my intelligent posterior with "Hopefully making a new doll line" ;)

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  9. I agree with you, Rhonda. Pleasant Company was where it started for me. Recently I have been acquiring some of the old catalogs (I could not hold onto them when we had kids and were moving around). They take me back to a feeling of discovery, of living history through a beloved character. I have always been an adult collector, and like you, my interests are more and more focused on filling in my PC collections. I do not understand AG/Mattel's marketing. When they announced they would re-issue Felicity, I thought that I would go to the store and buy her... it would be wonderful to give my PC Felicity a twin! Then I discovered that since I don't live near the major stores... There would be no Felicity in the store for me to look at. So, my choice was to travel to New York? Or order online. And we all know that quality control has been shaky, lately, so buying online didn't appeal to me, traveling to NY is expensive... My solution? I found Felicity's new meet outfit on eBay and bought it. Then I ordered the accessories and underwear from AG online. Don't know if it will fit original Felicity, but it will fit one of my dolls who can time travel back to the 18th century to be a friend of Felicity. I saved money, saved space in my collection, and will enjoy the outfit. I doubt the new Felicity would have stood up in comparison to my original... no need to feel bad about that now! I'm very sorry for the direction AG/Mattel is going.

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    1. Hi Marcia, I think you made the right choice. I felt the same way about travelling to Chicago to purchase Felicity. I had promised my daughter we would get her so I ordered her and well, it is nice to once again have her (we sold one that we had purchased on the secondary market bc it wasn't as described)but the quality is nowhere near even the last one of Mattel. The eye color is different, the face mold is slightly off, and of course no neck strings; but the main issue is the body. The fabric is a LOT thinner, with a satin feel to it and you can see/feel the seams and stuffing. NOTHING like the other dolls that are currently sold in store. I would think that if they were making her a sort-of "special edition/re-release" in a smaller quantity, then they would use a higher quality fabric. We, too, are enjoying the dolls we have and are continuing to be very picky about what we add to our collection. -RainingCats&Dolls'Mom

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    2. Chills.....You're SO RIGHT on these points! And when you say "I doubt the new Felicity would have stood up in comparison to my original..." NO WAY! The BF Felicity is a pretty doll with a generic face. PC Felicity had a UNIQUE face - original quality.

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  10. I am loving your PC girls and your pictures, Rhonda! They are wonderful.

    I think it's great that you know what you want to focus on while downsizing. You seem to have a good idea of what you want your collection to look like going forward. At least it may help make the process a little less daunting!

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    1. Thank you. If you open up an older AGC catalog, THAT is what I am trying to focus on. I too get caught up in the new releases, but the "newness" passes and it feels redundant.

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  11. I truly understand how you feel. We only spent Gift Cards at American Girl Doll Place Houston Store this year for my Birthday, I added about 50 in cash. But they could have had so much more. It really hurt me how little regard they have for Loyal Customers. My Birthday or My Daughter's did not include anything special from American Girl. Now that they have system for tracking perfectly what each customer is spending or returning it is really sad to know the truth. My Daughter still helped them to earn income from people who invested in gift cards. But they missed out on a lots. I wish they had done a good job with The 1st African American Girl Of The Year, then we would have held Our Party at the Store and all gifts would have come from the Store and my Daughter's outfit also would have been from the Store. I love what Pleasant R. started but Mattel is taking it away from us it seems to me.

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  12. I've been watching the secondary markets to improve my collection too! I am not a brand only gal but I do the love the quality of the PC AG and wish I had gotten more the first go round (but who knew Mommy would be the ultimate collector and not the DDs?). So fun to see what others have!

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  13. I am sad that it has come to this. My hope though, is that American Girl stays in business so that it can continue to inspire girls. Madelon

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  14. I've been enjoying your photos of your original dolls. I'm in Canada so my first visit to an AG store was back in 2006, when I bought Samantha. I wish Mattel had stuck with the historical collection too. I love history, plus the books used to have beautiful pictures and now it's just text. (so boring) The AG boutique stores recently came here to Canada, so I was ecstatic I didn't have to buy an expensive plane ticket to see the dolls, but I'm sad at how it's changing, although I still adore the dolls and accessories, as I mostly look at them.

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  15. By the way Rhonda, your dolls are beautiful and remind me of a living catalog. I do not blame you for wanting to downsize and focus on quality products for your PC dolls especially. I hope you continue to find joy in your collection and inspiration since you have inspired so many to continue to collect dolls through your blog. Good luck on your ongoing mission and keep us informed of all the changes.

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    1. Thank you Ticia, that is exactly what I hope to capture this final year of LADL - living catalog features of beautifully crafted dolls, that tell a story.

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  16. My first is a transition doll. Melody is stamped Pleasant Company. It's another reason I have been hesitant to send her to the hospital for tightening. (With recent reports she is definitely not going.)

    Anyway, Kaya's mold was designed under Pleasant Company. It doesn't surprise me that all Kaya's have PC, but it does surprise me that Logan was not re-branded. Kind of indicates AG is getting lazy. (Not that there haven't been other indicators.)

    One of my favorite things about the early line was the attention to detail in the accessories. Scale was better and materials too. Kirsten's pioneer school lunch box is huge compared to Julie's. Also the American Girl of Today was encouraged to write her own story making her own place in history. The Truly Me and Girl of the Year dolls don't seem to have the same draw, though they are still beautiful compared to some other 18" doll brands.

    Too the books. The best part about the historicals was the part at the end with timelines and real photos and news from the time of the setting. Little museum pieces. Maybe that didn't appeal to all the little girls but I know some really enjoyed that section.
    ~Xyra

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    1. AGREE! The collections were book based, focusing on bringing the books to life. There was attention to detail and all of the girls got the same things each time for their era. (Birthdays, school supplies, pets, etc)

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  17. Sadly, I agree with the comments about changes AG has made to their lines and the poor quality that is now commonplace. Especially what seems to be a lack of attention to detail in the BeForever historical line. My daughter and I have collected for MANY years. I'll have to say that recent releases have made us rethink our collections. I, too, want to downsize and stick with the originals I still have but want to reduce the rest to a more manageable collection. Does anyone know of a good charity that I might be able to donate to? I keep thinking there should be a place where girls who can't afford AG dolls could find them. Really looking for a place where girls who have been through something like a flood or fire and have lost an AG doll they cherished could be given one. I feel more strongly about giving a girl an AG doll to replace a lost one rather than trying to make a profit from my collection. Does anyone have any ideas for me?

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    1. I recommend donating to The Butterfly Ministry. They take AG dolls to girls in foster care. You can find them on Facebook.

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    2. The Broken Doll is now taking donations too. i think they would love to have ones donated that don't need a lot of TLC.

      https://www.facebook.com/4TheBrokenDoll/

      ~Xyra

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  18. Thank you for your suggestions! We will definitely look into them.

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