Pop Life Barbie and Ken Gold Label Dolls – You Can Still Collect Them For A Reasonable Price
For Barbie doll collectors and folks remembering the groovy far-out 1960s clothes and hair, these gold label Barbies and Ken should be on your list. They are limited editions and one of the first Barbie collectible lines with the pivotal body styles. Their hip swivel chairs are what first drew me to these dolls. I admit I needed them for my Blythe dollhouse kitchen. I bought two of the yellow chars on eBay and while searching I became more and more enamored with the retro look of the dolls and ended up starting a collection.
Modern Barbies With a Pop Culture 60s Fashion Flair
I was just a little kid in the 1960s but I remember it pretty well. It was the age of anything goes. Fashions like big wide bell bottom pants and Nancy Sinatra's Go-Go boots. Fun and funky television shows like Mod Squad and Laugh-In. My mom's bright white lipstick and shellacked hard bubble hair-do. And waif models like Twiggy with her short hair bob and huge wide eyes. Pop culture at it's finest. And Mattel has created a line of Barbie dolls to pay tribute to the 60s.
Meet the Pop Life Barbie and Ken doll collection. Introduced in 2009 for Barbie's 50th anniversary, these are Gold and Platinum edition dolls, meaning there were a very limited number made. They are for collectors 14 years old and up and were designed by Bill Greening, creator of some of the most elaborate Barbies on the market. Pop Life Barbies have the Mattel trademarked Pivotal body sculpt with 12 points of articulation. They have ball joints at neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists and hips, and a partial rocker/crunch joint under the bust. This means they pose in gymnast level positions.
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Kelly Pop Life Red-Head Barbie
Here's Kelly, the red head with a black and white geometric psychedelic halter top and bell-bottom pantsuit. Her green hip-hugger belt and jewelry provide splashes of texture and color. Kelly has a Steffie face mold which is one of the most popular and prolific types in Barbie doll history. Look at those giant eyelashes!
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Christie and Barbie Pop Life Dolls
Christie and Barbie versions of the Pop Life dolls are wearing shift mini-dresses, one with a dropped waistline and one with an empire waist. They both have boldly colored fishnet stockings and thigh high white go-go boots. These dolls have the Twist N Turn face sculpt which is longer and thinner than Kelly's. They share the same cool jewelry and accessories styes as their Pop Life sisters. Barbie kind of reminds me of Barbara Eden from I Dream of Jeanie. And of course they each have a brightly colored mid-century swivel chair. I'd like to find one of those chairs in my size.
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Pop Life Ken is a Platinum version doll, and a Fan Club Exclusive, with less than 999 made. Pop life Ken is also a Platinum Label doll so he's pretty rare. Not sure if I'll be buying him. If only I had gotten into doll collecting in 2009 and could have found him in the stores. Now he's outrageously expensive. But look at that shirt and those white shoes. Wow what a swinging dude! Ken also has a Pivotal body so he's fun to pose. And so handsome. Christie, Barbie, and Kelly are swooning over him.
Amazon has him for sale and if I had the money I'd snap him up. Maybe I need to make my dolls start earning their keep, no?
Pop Life Dolls Market Price
Each doll in the Pop Life Barbie collection was priced between $50 - $60 when they first hit the store shelves in 2009, which is a lot for a Barbie doll. They have limited edition status and very cool elite packaging, and the Pivotal body was fairly new at that time. That and the 2009 50th anniversary was what Mattel was hoping would sell the dolls. In the beginning they weren't popular at all. I've heard of some collectors finding them in clearance bins after they were in the stores for about a year. Sigh.... But the good news is that most of these dolls can still be found on secondary markets like eBay and Amazon for about the same price as they were originally. My goal is to get one of each before they become ultra rare.
eBay Is A Very Good Place To Find Pop Life Barbie Dolls
Still A Bit Pricey But You Can Still Find These Dolls At Ther Suggested Retail Value
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Category: Barbie and Friends
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Retired Florida CPA who loves playing with and collecting dollhouses and dolls.Subscribe
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