Barbie Basics Face Molds/Variants

[magkelly]

I ran into an interesting thing today while I was out and about. I've kind of been wanting the model #5 Basics Kayla for a while now but every one I saw here was a bit messed up paint-wise. The left eye on all of them was just a bit wonky and I must have looked at 4 dolls locally at one point or another. 3 of them each one was the only #5 in the store and they were all at full price when I saw them. (At my local TRU, Target and Walmart respectively, all of them had the same major paint issue.) Only once have I see one at TJ Maxx and she was still $17.99 and yes, she was messed up too.

Then today I went into TJ Maxx looking for a Christmas present for a someone and I saw they had gotten more of the first BB sets in so I checked just to see what might be new. Much to my surprise there were not one but two #5's! One of them looked just like the ones I'd seen, wonky left eye, but the other was quite a surprise because not only was she absolutely perfect, no wonky eye, she had much darker hair and much darker lips than any of the others I'd seen. Her skin is very translucent compared to the ones I've seen too. It's almost like she's another doll!

Needless to say I grabbed Ms Perfect to add to my Basics collection. But it really got me wondering how much variance there might be with some of these. So far I've got the redhead tanned Kayla from the jeans collection, the brunette Steffie with the green eyeshadow from the black dress collection, the blond Midge, and now this Raven Kayla. I mean to get the 3 boys at some point plus maybe the one AA Target girl with the afro look. I'd rather like the 3 articulated ones too, but those are just way too pricey for me.

This is the first time I've seen such a difference in face paint with these. I've seen some Basics dolls with messed up hair but never completely different face paint. Anyone else collecting these? Have you run into any major variances besides this one? I'm just curious. The only other thing that I've noticed so far is that the dark Ken sometimes has lighter eyebrows, but that's about it...

[Dark Angel]

Wow, that's pretty weird. I've never noticed any differences, but I guess I'm not looking that closely. But I will now!

Lol. I'll be standing in the store for an hour holding two Barbies, looking back and forth from one to the other.

[Jobee]

Funny, in action-figures, variances make them more collectable.

[magkelly]

Barbies too. Big mistakes can mean a doll is worth more later though any nice Kayla tends to be a doll that Barbie people want. They're seen as highly collectible. She's a very popular sculpt. The prices on some of them once they're out of production can get a little insane actually. My Secret Spells Kayla in particular she's a seriously coveted doll by some people. I'm glad I bought her when I did actually because I don't think I could afford her now. I've seen her going on Ebay for some nasty sums.

I don't really buy them because they are potentially collectibles though. I just love them, all the different sculpts, skin tones, the personalities. It's fun to find new ones I don't have. I tend to like a really varied, multicultural collection of dolls and I think my Barbie collection really demonstrates that.

I'm very, very picky about what dolls I add to it. If I find a bunch of dolls and a particular doll doesn't really grab me it doesn't end up in my collection. I just give it to a kid I know. I had a lady from the local doll group over for lunch once. She said I had the most interesting Barbie collection she'd ever seen for a mostly playline collector. Made me proud that did, smile.

[magkelly]

Just added another Barbie Basics Steffie to my collection today. Black dress, carrot redhead. Marked down to $5.50 at TJ Maxx. I had to borrow the $$$ off my aunt I was so broke, laugh, but I couldn't say no to her for that price. She was the last one of that first series that I really wanted and hadn't gotten as yet. She's such a pretty girl. I'm looking for a body to swap her on now. She's getting a nice one.

[Evelien]

$5.50?! What an awesome price!

[magkelly]

TJ Maxx and Marshall's have had the black dress series 1 and 1.5 girls and their accessories for a while now for $10-$13 but I suspected that after Christmas they'd be marking them down and I was right. There wasn't much of a selection left though. I just happened to be in there earlier and saw the Steffie and I had to go there. I have a thing for redhead Steffie Barbies that goes all the way back to the TNT girls. I've always wanted a real one but the real redhead TNT's are pretty expensive.

I was a bit obsessed with getting the 1967 repro there for a while. Took me a few years to find one that wasn't messed up and that I could afford but I finally snagged her and articulated her. She's on a Liv body. I have a Birthstone Miss Peridot Redhead Steffie in my boxes too somewhere and I have the auburn Basics Steffie with bangs. I'll probably put them out all together now. They all have different shades of red hair so that will be nice, a little redhead Steffie quartet.

[Evelien]

Wow, here in the Netherlands they're still quite expensive.
I'm not into buying Barbies myself but I love looking at the Basics dolls every time I see them in stores <3

[magkelly]

I could just kiss my aunt. They went to the flea market today without me and she got me 2 more Basics girls. $5 a pop. From the jeans collection. There's a blond Theresa and a Lara/Drew brunette with the short banged bob. I just about jumped up and down like a kid when I saw them. Theresa has always been a favorite sculpt but all my Theresa Barbies are brunette. The blond Theresa is just gorgeous. I adore the Drew/Lara sculpt but so far I only have one Barbie with that face, a Fashion Fever Drew and even she's got issues. She's got spots I've been unable to remove with anything on her forehead even with zit stuff so finally having a really nice Drew sculpt Barbie is totally awesome. Except for the 3 guys those were actually the only girls I didn't have that I really fancied from collection 2.0 so I'm a very happy camper right now. Now, if I could just snag those boys and the one articulated blond from the 3.0 collection....