Article

My Vintage Dolls - Kenner Blythe - Peteena - Emerald the Enchanting Witch

My Kenner Blythe, Peteena the Poodle in a Bikini, and Emerald the Enchanting Witch dolls were just 40 years or so ahead of their time.

My fascination, or maybe obsession, with doll collecting, started a couple of years ago when I found a Kenner Blythe doll. I bought her to sell on eBay and make a quick profit, but when I got her home it didn't take me long to become quite enamored with her big head and color changing eyes. I had to know more. My research of Blythe told me that she was an obscure product of the early 1970s that was discontinued after only one year. And my investigation turned up a couple of other dolls from that era that didn't quite make the grade - Peteena the Poodle in a Bikini, and Emerald the Enchanting Witch. Of course I had to have them. Blythe, Peteena, and Emerald were each were flops when they were first released, but now are coveted by collectors everywhere. Let me introduce you to my little troupe of collectible vintage dolls. All but the Flickr photos are mine.

Kenner Blythe - How She Stole My Heart

I bought my Kenner Blythe doll from an eBay seller that ended the auction listing in the middle of the night. I get lots of deals that way. I do my shopping while others are asleep. Yay for the internet! My plan was to clean her up and flip her quickly to make a few dollars. I wasn't completely clueless about their value at the time, I just didn't realize how much she would come to mean to me.

When she arrived she was dirty and her hair was badly matted. She was also missing her eyelashes on one eyelid. Other that that she was in really good shape for a 40 year old gal. Her eyes still changed colors perfectly and her legs had no punctures in the rubber from bending her joints. Those are common problems with Kenner Blythe dolls.

I set about cleaning her skin with a magic eraser. And I very carefully washed her hair and then used lots of detangler product to comb out the knots. She lost some hair during the process and in the end I had to trim the ends a good bit. By this time I was becoming quite smitten with her oversized head and shifty eyes.

I had to check eBay again and see if I could find her a suitable new outfit before she went up for sale. I found several outfits, and then several more, and then some shoes, and a head scarf and hat in the requisite bulbous size. Well the rest is easy to figure out. She never went back on the eBay auction block. This little girl stayed right where she was.

Blythe Models Her New Fashions

Do you want to know more about Blythe Dolls and how they went from relative obscurity to worldwide phenomenon? I've written several articles to enlighten you.

A History Of Blythe - From 1972 Kenner To Now
Vintage Big-Eyed Kenner Blythe Dolls

Books About Blythe by Gina Garan

This is Blythe

Blythe Style

Emerald the Enchanting Witch - Another Doll From 1972 - Back From The Brink Of Extinction

Emerald the Enchanting Witch was made by Girls World, a division of Milton Bradley. She too was a one year wonder. She's 6 1/2" tall, with green hair, purple skin, and green blinking eyes. Many of the Emerald dolls you find nowadays have lost their ability to blink because they've gotten wet. Little girls love to give their dolls a bath, and once you got Emerald wet her blinky mechanism broke.

I was lucky enough to find 2 Emerald Witch dolls, both with blinkers still in tact. Their names are Phoebe and Fiona. It's hard to find clothes to fit the twin witches because their bodies are quite round. I found a doll seamstress in Sweden that creates clothes for her and ordered their dresses. The sunglasses are from Monster High dolls. Cute eh?

You can read about Emerald in detail here......

Emerald The Enchanting Witch Doll

Emerald the Enchanting Witch Dolls - In the Original Outfit and Their New Duds

Who Is That Sexy Poodle Doll? Peteena of Course

Peteena the Poodle in a Bikini was a completely misunderstood doll made in 1966 by Hasbro. She was, and still is poodle royalty, completely pedigreed, and a star in her own right. Somehow the toy buying public and the Hasbro Corporation failed to see it, and axed her after just one year. Poor Peteena.

She's re-surfacing these days in collections all over the world and competition is fierce to have Peteena grace your home. I've got 2 Peteena dolls, both with missing tails. Almost all Peteena dolls are sans tail, they were removable and after almost 50 years most have moved on to doll tail Heaven. Replacement tails are available online for $50, but my Peteenas turn up their badly scratched noses at spending that much for a non-functional appendage. Peteenas beauty radiates from within, not from her tail. And besides they would much rather spend their money on fashions and new hair.

Let me share the Peteena story with you....

Peteena Poodle In A Bikini Doll From Hasbro

Peteena Is Getting A Re-Root

Updated October 2, 2014

Do You Remember These Fabulous Toy Flops?

fitzcharmingMay 31, 2013

Yes yes AnamalousArtist! I had a Chrissie doll. It would be great to find another one. Thanks for stopping by.

AnomalousArtistMay 31, 2013

Great stuff! I love the dolls from this era, they were so unique...like..."let's have a doll that changes eye color!" Or, remember "Chrissie" dolls, where you could make the hair longer and shorter? I've only heard of the Emerald and Peteena dolls, never have seen them in person...they look really cool!

fitzcharmingMay 29, 2013

Thanks kimbesa, it took a few years for their adoring public to catch on