Collecting Vintage Barbie Dolls

Vintage Barbie Doll and wardrobe

Collecting Vintage Barbie Dolls and clothing is a fun and rewarding hobby.  Most of us are drawn to the items that we loved and cherished from our childhood.  If you are like me, you don't have many (or any) people in your life who even "get" the fun and passion vintage Barbie collecting, much less have an ounce of interest.  ("You paid HOW MUCH for that"?)

I have created this special place to share our stories and collections with others who share our passion for vintage Barbie.

If you have a question about identifying a Barbie doll or item, do not use this form, go to Vintage Barbie Identification.

Share Your Vintage Barbie Collection & Stories

Feel free to share anything about your collection here - your favorite dolls/ensembles, your stories, even what attracted you to collecting or how you got started.

What Other Collectors Have Contributed

Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...

I TRULY DO LOVE THIS WEBSITE!! 
Good Evening! I truly do love this website! Came across it tonight and got a huge lump in my throat and tears in my eyes when I finally found my doll! …

I LOVE BARBIE 
My childhood was an ok one, it had its ups and downs like everyone elses, but i could escape into a wee world with my sindy doll, and eventually when i …

The Sisterhood of Barbie 
I am having so much fun reading the stories of how we all fell in love with our Barbies. I am also in the over-50 age group. Fun and very nerve-wracking …

Saturday Matinee 
I found the wonderful world of Vintage Barbies just a couple of years ago. Had only one doll in my childhood and one outfit. The ones at the pic I have …

Thank You from a Visitor 
I just want to thank you for the time and effort that this site must take on your part. I find this source invaluable as a (reluctant) Barbie "Afficianato" …

A Barbie Collector's Mini Barbie Dioramas 
Hello: Just wanted to share my Barbie "Cottage Industry", inspired by my wife who like you was born the same year as Barbie and still looks like her too. …

Barbie Fan - I became a collector before I was born! 
Ever since I was a little girl, I have always loved my barbie dolls. I became a "collector" before I was born because my mom bought some in case she got …

"Boys don't play with Barbie" 
I was the youngest of three, 10 years and 9 years younger than my siblings respectively. My mom and dad really could barely afford the "accident" to begin …

My Girl Barbie - It's Like Christmas Each Time.... 
a few years back i had a brief hospital stay when i came out of anestesia my mom was holding a barbie she found at a local thrift shop i felt at ease as …

I don't know a time when I was without Barbie! 
I don't remember exactly when I started playing with Barbie, but it must have been when I was old enough not to swallow the shoes! My first Barbies were …

Forgot how much fun it was to play with Barbie 
I too had an original Bubble Barbie from 1962. She was stored in my attic before I was married and I brought her along with her clothes to my home 26 …

My Barbie Story from a Australian Vintage Barbie Doll Collector 
In the sixties my mother bought me a Barbie doll after she noticed how much I liked playing with my American neighbour’s Barbie and Ken dolls - she had …

Finally! 
Yours is absolutely, no question, THE go-to site for Barbie facts. I am an ebay seller, and you are invaluable. Thanks a million times! Thank you …

Where and how should you store vintage Barbie dolls? 
I have an original 1959 Barbie and Ken with original cases (not boxes). They are in relatively good shape, kept in a finished basement with heat and air …

A Vintage Barbie Collector Shares Her Story ... 
My mom bought my sister and me ( she is 3 years younger) 1 brunette bubblecut, 1 titian midge and a painted hair Ken (all 1963s). I must have only been …

How much fun is this?!? 
I received my first Barbie, a blond bubblecut, for Christmas 1962, along with a pattern to make her clothes. My aunt, who gave her to me, said that the …

Holiday Barbie Collector with Grandma's help 
I was never a big Barbie fan. I grew up in the late 80's and early 90's. I was one of only 2 girls in a neighborhood so playing with Barbie was a "rare" …

Thanks for the memories... 
I'm not a doll collector, but I was an only child and taught to "take good care of things". My dolls are played with, but in good condition. So when …

Thanks for the memories... 
I'm not a doll collector, but I was an only child and taught to "take good care of things". My dolls are played with but well taken care of. So when …

Birthday Present 
So, I don't think that I can call myself a real collector, since I only have one doll. It's a bubblecut in box from 1962. I was bored one day, and started …

A New Collector & Her Memories 
Hi, My only Barbie Doll as a child was given to me in 1963 by a friend who had just received a brand new one for her birthday (my parents could not afford …

New Vintage Collector 
I love this website. I stumbled across it two weeks ago and have purchased 7 dresses on ebay since. I'm naturally buying those I loved as a girl but was …

Restoring a childhood collection... 
I had a pretty difficult childhood and we didn't have much spare money. So when I was given a huge suitcase of Barbie in the early 1970s (that my stepmother's …

Born a Doll Lover 
I can't remember a time when I didn't have a doll of some sort in my hand, any size, from teeny tiny to large ones, I loved them. My grandmother had her …

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A bargain or memory? 
I was at a church auction today and purchased a blue Skipper case full of 3 dolls, a red hair, blonde hair and I think her name is Scooter. It has every …

Ken summer job 
No story, only a photo

Ken as GI 
Some photos of KEN as GI.

My Barbie Revival 
My first Barbie doll (blonde bubble cut) was bought for me for by my parents whilst we were living in Canada. We returned to England in 1964 and I often …

I never really stopped collecting 
I received my first Barbie doll in 1963. A bubble cut, who I still own today. I also have the house and airplane I received just a few years later. …

My 1958 Blond Ponytail Barbie 
I am a only child and my mom was divorced when I was 3. My dad lived in another state so he rarely saw me. In 1958, when I was 5, he came to Cal. to visit …

Crazy About Barbie 
I got my first Barbie when I was almost 12 years old. She was a platinum blonde. My best friend and I played Barbies until we were in our teens!!! I …

Collecting Vintage Barbie & My Inner Child 
The countless hours I spent as a little girl in an isolated Newfoundland outport village were spent playing with my few Barbies. I had a Live Action …

Always Loving Barbie  
Well were do I start, as a young girl I can remember my older sister's beautiful swirl ponytail Barbie on her duchess, and always being in love with it, …

My Barbie Christmas Tree 
Two things that I love and enjoy are Barbie Dolls and Christmas Trees. I put a tree in every room for the holidays. I have had a Barbie tree for many …

I Waited 30 Years for Dinner at Eight 
When I first became interested in vintage Barbie, I bought a vintage Bubblecut doll on eBay and then my first ensemble, Dinner at Eight (from 1963). …

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