Friday, October 26, 2012

Blast From the Past- American Girl Dolls


Were any of you out there as obsessed with these dolls as I was?  I can still remember getting my first catalog randomly in the mail from Pleasant Company in the early 90's, when they still had the original three dolls. 

From the beginning I coveted the Samantha doll, although I really loved Kirsten and Molly as well. I remember how in awe I was of their clothes and accessories and how everything was so detailed. Back then you could even buy clothes in your size to match the dolls' outfits.



My parents wouldn't buy me a doll that expensive, so my Mom told me to save my money and buy one for myself. It took me a few years, but I was ecstatic when I finally got her.  Since the outfits were pretty pricey, my Mom bought the patterns to make some of Samantha's clothes and surprised me one Christmas with four of her outfits. I'm so lucky that my Mom is an awesome seamstress, because looking at these dresses you'd never believe they didn't come straight from the company.

I still have Samantha and she is still in amazing condition.  I even told my Mom this year that I still want to build on my collection, even though the whole Samantha collection was retired several years ago. 

To be honest, I'd still like to get several of the other dolls, but I think that's going to be years in the making.

So, did you have any of the American Girl dolls?  Which dolls were your favorites?


14 comments:

Unknown said...

I had Samantha!! I loved her so much.. Unfortunately, one day I was brushing out the 'tangles' in her hair (a little too hard) and partially beheaded her.. Lol it was so traumatic!! I'm sure you can imagine..

Dana said...

Funny, I had never heard of them! M has a couple and too many accessories to mention. Sadly, she only plays with them in spurts and usually only when we suggest it to her. We just received the over-sized Christmas catalog. The "stuff" is all so dang cute!
M has Rebecca, the girl from NY, and Cecile, the girl from New Orleans. My fav is Kit, but Kit doesn't interest her.

tootie said...

Ha! I had Samantha, too! :)

Anonymous said...

We had the books but never had any of the dolls! I hope to get one for Em one day.

Jen @Marine Wife, Mommy and Life said...

I remember these!!!!!! I had some sort of knock off one when I was younger and then after watching chucky she went into a box....
New Follower via GFC!! Hope you'll come by and follow along too if you'd like. :)

~Jen
http://wifemomworklife.blogspot.com/

Tori Bella said...

Aw man! I totally didn't have one but I wanted one so bad! I died when I went to the Mall of America earlier this year and made my boss go in to the store with me.

Shoshanah said...

I had a Felicity. I got her right when she came out, (I mainly picked her because she was new) but wound up falling in love with her. I had a doll of today too, and when I found out they were retiring Samantha I had to buy her, so I know how 3. I can't wait till I have a daughter some day so I can buy more (specifically Rebbecca the Jewish doll) someday.

Melody said...

I have a Kirsten; I got her when I was about 45. :) Mary read all the "Meet" books, and decided on Felicity. Grandma was going to give her one for Christmas, but Kaya debuted that year. Other Grandma gave her Kaya and most of the "stuff." (As an only granddaughter, she is spoiled that way.)The next year, the first Grandma gave her Felicity. Later, she got Elizabeth, too. We used to go to the American Girl Store every year around her birthday, which is in Feb. She would save her Christmas money, look at all the options, and, over lunch in the tea room, decide what to buy. It was very sweet!

Melody said...

Abbey's comment reminded me that Mary kindly lent Felicity to a girl who was going to an American Girl sleepover, but didn't have a doll. She...broke Felicity's leg off. :S So Felicity needs to go to the AG Hospital!!

Kim said...

I had Molly! It took me a while to get her too. Before I got her I read the whole collection of books. My mom always reminded me of how expensive she was so I took very good care of her. She still hangs out in a trunk I have in great condition. I always dreamed of giving her to my little girl when I have one. Thanks for the memories! :)

Lou said...

haha i loved the dolls. i was obsessed i have every original doll two samanthas actually! for my birthday in middle school i went to a american girl doll fashion show! It was so cool. i have kept all my dolls cause they are collectible and worth more! some arent made anymore!!

Lexilooo said...

I had Molly! I will cry if she's retired. The new dolls just aren't as special, I think. I was also thinking that I'd like to complete her collection too, so I could give her to my daughter someday!

Sarah said...

I have Kristen, Josephina, Felicity, Samantha, and Kit. My mom has some of them too, lol. She is definitely one of those ladies that loves dolls...and I'm kind of like that too though they live at her house because my husband is not a fan. ;) They still do the little girls clothes btw! They have a few stores now, in the Mall of America, up near Seattle, and LA (probably more but those are the ones I can remember!). The stores are such an amazing experience, all the little girls so excited! It's really cute and I hope someday to pass the tradition on to my future (fingers crossed) daughter. :)

Whimsy said...

I have Kirsten! She is lovingly tucked away for my future children to play with. I love the American Girl Doll line - especially that they all come with an educational background story.

I always wanted the matching clothing, but never did get any. :-P