Sindy or Not

Today the weather has been wet and windy. Not nice for going out but good for cleaning Sindy dolls. Here are four more who may or may not be Sindy. They all got a bath and had their hair done. These girls used to live on my Sindy display shelf and will again as soon as I have one. While I did leave them dressed when I packed them up I did remove most of the shoes, bags and other small accessories and put them in separate box to keep them safe. They will get them back when we get the display done.

A Word About ID’s

As I mentioned in my previous posts I mostly use Petradolls for doll photos and markings, Our Sindy Museum, which is good for early Sindy outfit ID’s and a couple of other Sindy fan sites. I know Pinterest has loads of Sindy pictures but Pinterest is not great for articles. It’s like a virtual corkboard where you stick pretty pictures. Those of you who know Jenjoy of “All Dolled Up” may be aware that she doesn’t think that Petradolls is very accurate. She has done a lot of research and probably knows more than I do. I won’t argue the point. Of course the Petradolls website has not been updated for many years so it is quite likely that some information is missing or out dated but I do like the nice clear photos. I have always considered this blog more a place to share information than a definitive source. That’s why I always credit where I’ve got my information from.

Sizes

I did attempt to measure the dolls. I measure from crown to heel so my sizes did not come out the same as those listed on the website but visually there are big differences so I’ll let the pictures tell the story. It looks as if the mini Sindy on the left has the regular torso with shorter legs. Their big hair disguises it a little but there in a noticeable difference in the heights of these two.

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Bad Hair Days

I did not intentionally pick dolls with different hair colours but it is a good way to show the different colours that Sindy’s hair came in. Two of them have thicker, coarser hair than the Sindy’s I showed you last week. I had not attempted to try and sort out their hair in the past other than washing and combing it when I got them. I have trouble getting my own hair to look the same on both sides let alone my dolls but I don’t like to see Sindy with lop sided hair and her fringe going everywhere so I do my best. I gave them each a very quick dip in hot water, not boiling because I’ve read that the other hair types don’t take boiling water as well as saran. I decided that a couple of short dips was safer than just leaving them in it. After I’d done that I combed it out curled it around my thumb and wrapped their heads in cling wrap. Later I will probably work on their hair a bit more but as they are going back in their box for now I know I’m going to have to do it again anyway.

Shopping In The Rain

This seems an appropriate place to start. This doll is almost certainly a clone but quite a good one. She has a large, soft head and a blonde bob but curlier than Sindy. Her only marking is “Made in Hong Kong” between her shoulders. Her limbs are hard and non bending and she measures about 30cm tall. Her hair was fine so I just gave it a wash and combed it out.

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Sindy or a Clone

This next girl belongs to Naomi. She certainly looks like Sindy but other than “Made in Hong Kong” on her lower back there are no markings. Her body is a lighter weight plastic than most of the Sindy’s of that era but she has a very hard head with a wobbly neck. Her arms and legs are hard and don’t bend. My first guess was that she might be a New Zealand Sindy but she might also be a very good clone. I didn’t have to do much to her. I cleaned a few marks off her back and tried to fix her hair so it was a bit more even. She was wearing this version of “Weekenders” when Naomi bought her. No idea if it is what she came in originally.

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Dream Date

Pedigree did not make many dolls with black hair. Well I call it black, I’ve seen it listed as dark brunette. She has a small hard head which is very wobbly. I so hate handling these wobbly heads. I’m always afraid that they will come off in my hands. As you can see she has thick coarse hair which does not sit nicely at all. Her arms and legs are hard and non bending and she is marked “Made in Hong Kong” on the small of her back. She is very small compared to the other dolls. I measured her at about 28cms. I did manage to get her fringe to lie flat but I feel this hair could still use some work.

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Sleepy Time

This next Sindy is another one with a hard wobbly head. Her hair had been given a trim at the front so I had to create a new fringe out of what was left. It was also really dull and flat. I am pretty happy with how much better it looks now. I know the old photo is terrible. She has the same markings as the others and the same hard, non bending legs but her arms are made of softer stuff although I can’t feel a wire. She’s about 29cms tall. She is wearing Sleepy Time which I can’t believe I haven’t shown you. I’ll do a Friday Feature on her when I get all her accessories out again.

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As you can see there are a lot of variations in Sindy’s made in the mid 60s. I do love that about Pedigree, they didn’t waste anything. Everything got used even when they were changing designs or materials. Of course they were in the business of making children’s toys not collector items. It certainly gives collectors who like a puzzle something to think about. Next time I’ll have another batch of these older Sindy’s to share.