brekkebenden - Hilary's Cabbage Patch Clothes Closet

PTP: Patch Particulars (Pt. 2)

Part 2: Information specific to each embroidered patch (applique) used on CPK outfits.

Please read all of this as if someone was saying “At this point . . . .”, as further information may change these results over time.

For information on any of the outfits mentioned here, jump to the 1983 Series Summary

Teddy Bear Patch

Picture of a teddy bear embroidered patch on a teal corduroy background. The bear is brown with dark brown outlines, pink heart on the chest and pink mouth and nose.

Correct Outfit(s): Sleeper (#2) & Cord Outfit (#5).
Most frequently ‘incorrectly’ found on: Elephant rompers (#7), Kitty Track Suits (#6)
It has also been found on: Ducky Dress (#11), Bib Dress (#15) (only once)

The Sleeper patches have a yellow and gold colour scheme, whereas the patches on the Corduroy Suit have a brown and dark beige colour scheme.

Both versions of the patch were used as ‘incorrect patches on other outfits, but I have a higher percentage of the lighter ones recorded as used in this way.

The Taiwanese factory patches also come in both light and dark, but their patches are generally much darker in colour.

Light coloured bear courtesy of Lynne Finley.

Cat Patch

Picture of a cat shaped embroidered patch on a grey background. The cat is white with beige outlines, green eyes and a pink mouth and nose.

Correct Outfit: Kitty Track Suits (#6),
Most frequently ‘incorrectly’ found on: Ducky Dress (#11)
It has also been found on: no other outfits
It has NOT been found on: Sleeper (#2), Cord Suit (#5), Elephant Romper, (#7), Bib Dress (#15)

There appear to be two versions of this patch. One has a light-coloured outline and the other a dark outline. There does not seem to be any pattern as to when a factory uses the light or the dark version.

Once again, the only exception is the USA patch. Although there is a USA patch that looks like the others (where the face is badly rendered), another version has a green mouth, black eyes and pink whiskers.

2nd picture is courtesy of Sarah Bennette-Renaud.

Elephant Patch

Picture of a elephant shaped embroidered patch on a red corduroy background. The elephant is light grey with a darker grey outline.The toes and ears are pink.

Correct Outfit: Elephant Romper (#7)
Most frequently ‘incorrectly’ found on: none stand out at this time
It has also been found on: Kitty Track Suits (#6), Sleeper (#2), Cord outfit (#5)
It has NOT been found on: Ducky Dress (#11), Bib Dress (#15)
UPDATE: An elephant has been found on a bib, but no details are available
on if it’s original or had been added later.

Each factory seems to have produced both a light outline and a dark outline version.

There are two types of trunks, one S-shaped and one C-shaped.

The C-shaped trunk has only been found on TSU and OK outfits with the ‘incorrect’ patch (as in, not Elephant Rompers). These OK patches are also lighter than most of the other OK patches. Interestingly, they are also found on aftermarket outfits. Jump to Plentiful Patches Part 1 for more information.

Duck Patch

Picture of a duck shaped embroidered patch on a white knit background. The duck is white with a yellow outlined for the body and head, and orange outline for the bill and feet.

Correct Outfit: Ducky Dress (#11)
Most frequently ‘incorrectly’ found on: Elephant Romper (#7) & Cord outfit (#5)
It has also been found on: Sleeper (#2), Bib Dress (#15)
It has NOT been found on: Kitty Track Suit (#6)

There appears to be little variation in the appearance of the duck patches. The only differences I can see are in the colour of the thread used to make the feet and bill. Some thread is slightly darker than others.

Giraffe Patch

Picture of a giraffe shaped embroidered patch on a white background. The giraffe is white with orange outlines. The mane, antlers and tail are yellow and it has beige dots on the body.

Correct Outfit: Bib Dress (#15)
Most frequently ‘incorrectly’ found on: none stand out at this time
It has also been found on: Kitty Track Suits (#6), Cord outfit (#5), Ducky Dress (#11), Elephant Romper (#7)
It has NOT been found on: Sleeper (#2)

This patch does not seem to have been used ‘incorrectly’ very often but has been found on almost all the ‘patch’ outfits.

There do not appear to be many factory variations in the appearance of this patch. However, this is very difficult to determine, as bibs are very easy to switch from outfit to outfit. P factory giraffes may have slightly darker dots than the OK factory giraffes.

The only exceptions I’ve found are the USA patch and the TP patch.
The USA patches look significantly different with gold edging, a silver tail, and red body dots versus the OK giraffes with orange edging, a yellow tail, and beige dots.
The TP patches have very dark orange outlines and very dark spots. The tail is a dark golden yellow and sticks up.

Picture of a USA version of the giraffe patch on a white bib. — USA Patch

Bunny Patch

Picture of a bunny shaped embroidered patch on a grey corduroy background. The bunny's look has an oriental influence. It is white and wearing a red outfit and has red in it's ears.

As noted in Part 1, this patch is very rare. I have only recorded it on Kitty Track Suits (#5), Elephant Rompers (#7), and Ducky Dresses (#11) so far. I have seen it in yellow, red, and blue.

Sheep Applique

As noted in Part 1, this patch is very rare. I have only recorded it on bib dresses. I have seen it in white, yellow, and red. I have three instances of this patch on early Coleco outfits, and one (in red) on a Tsukuda outfit. At this time I have only found it being used by the OK factory.

PTP: Plentiful Patches Pt. 1

The 1983 regular kids clothing series uses the cutest patches, but it’s like holiday elves lived in the factory! Sometimes the patches aren’t on the outfits they’re supposed to be!

Informative Note: It turns out I’ve been using the wrong word to describe these things. I have no idea where I learned applique, but they’re actually patches.

Embroidered patch: a piece of embroidery that is created by using a fabric backing and thread. They can be attached with a pin, sewn on, or affixed with more modern methods such as iron-on, dryer heat-activated adhesive, and velcro backing. (Ref)
Applique: ornamental needlework in which pieces fabric in different shapes and patterns are sewn or stuck onto a larger piece to form a picture or pattern. (Ref)

There are 6 or 7 PATCHES that were used on six of the 1983 Regular series Coleco outfits.

Each of the outfits that came with a patch generally came with a specific patch on it.

Blue terry cloth outfit #2 with teddy bear patch. — #2 – Teddy Bear

Beige corduroy outfit #5 with a teddy bear patch. — #2 – Teddy Bear

However, occasionally, the patch found on an outfit isn’t the ‘correct’ one. No one is quite sure why this happened, but here are a few theories:

During production, they ran out of the ‘correct’ patch and just grabbed whichever one was closest at hand and used it.
It was done intentionally, for reasons unknown.
Some of the ‘incorrect’ patches may have been replacements for those that had fallen off. However, as so many MIB kids with incorrect patches have been found, this cannot explain all of them.

As button ducky dresses and outfits with transparent buttons have been located with ‘incorrect’ patches, this practice must have started quite early in production.

The majority of the ‘incorrect’ patches I have recorded are on OK outfits, with a scattering on P outfits. I have only one Taiwanese factory outfit recorded with an incorrect patch, an AX outfit. The rarity of this find can also be attributed to the fact that Taiwanese clothing is not as abundant as China factory clothing.

The ‘Foreign’ Patches

Some of the patches engender questions. The bunny patch and the sheep patch are greatly questioned.

Grey kitty track suit with light pink trim and a bunny patch. — Bunny

Blue bib dress with red and yellow flowers with a lamb on the bib. — Bunny

I have recorded the bunny patch on Kitty Jogging Suits, Elephant Rompers, and Ducky Dresses. Although rare, they can be found.

I’ve found this patch on early 1983 and 1984 kids, both examples on outfit 15J OK. It has also been seen on a Tsukuda . (Jan 2023)

Outfit #15J OK, blue with red and yellow flowers and a bib with a red lamb patch. — Courtesy of Holly Spencer.

Almost all the bunny and sheep patches have been found on OK outfits; only one has been found on an AX outfit. It would appear that both have an East Asian influence in look and/or use. Although they appear to be legitimately CPK, the bunny, at least, can also be found on aftermarket outfits.

Yellow overalls with a red bunny applique and a red, yellow, and green striped shirt. It is in a box and was made by the Little Mommy Doll Fashions. — Courtesy of Callie Anne

As noted above, this does not preclude the outfits from being genuine CPK. There’s evidence of aftermarket outfits using ‘genuine’ CPK patches. For example, this Sunshine Kids outfit, produced by Playmates, has an elephant patch.

Boxed white dres withblue pattern and elephant applique. It is a Sunshine Kids outfit and a yellow box. — Courtesy of Holly Van Warcup

Both the Shilllman Company and Playmates manufactured their toys in Hong Kong (Ref), the same place Coleco could have acquired their patches from. It appears that more than one toymaker used the same supplier!

Interestingly, all of the elephant patches on ‘incorrect’ outfits (aka not Elephant Rompers) have a trunk shape that matches the trunk shape of the Tsukuda and aftermarket outfit patches.

Could all these elephants have come from the same supplier? Maybe the elephants on the ‘incorrect’ outfits were a last-minute order or ordered when their regular supplier ran out. Jump to Part 2 for details

Either way, the bunny parch is rare on CPK outfits and the sheep patch even more so.

Preemie Elephant Romper, #13

Only one preemie outfit has a patch, the preemie elephant romper (#13).

Mint green preemie elephant romper outfit.

I have never seen an ‘incorrect’ patch on this outfit. This is likely because either by the time it was being produced, they had found a way to stop this problem, or because it was being produced with other preemie clothes, none of which used patches. This meant there were no other patches to draw from if they ran out. Interestingly, all the outfits that I have recorded have the S-shaped trunk patch; none use the C. This strengthens the argument that the C-shaped trunk patches were ‘secondary’ to the S-shaped ones.

Continue to Plentiful Patches Part 2 for detailed information on each Patch.

Preemie Outfit #12 – Bunny Outfit

Unique among the preemie outfits for cut and fabric, it also hides the secrets of the Jesmar Preemie outfits.

Main graphic with a baby pink background and the words #12 Bunny Outfit. It also has a doll dressed in a blue version of the outfit.

1984 Preemie Clothing Series Summary

Description

There are three pieces to this outfit, and it is made of terry cloth (well most are). The entire outfit is one solid colour except for the underside of the beak of the bonnet and the accents on the bunny top.

The top has a bunny head on the front, which acts as a pouch. The features are done in coloured thread.

Footwear: Regular white shoes and socks

12J WS version of the bunny outfit. It is white with navy blue accents.

Most versions of this outfit were most likely sold only from 1984 – 1985. Some packaged versions may have sold later than that, and the Jesmar versions appeared in 1987 (Refer below).

Version Information

My goal is to find every version of every outfit that was produced. Below is a record of each version of this outfit that I have, up to the date indicated. To understand clothing codes, factories and variations, please refer to the suggested readings below.

If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. you have a 12D OK that is pink, not yellow, I would appreciate hearing from you.) Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details on the pictures required, jump to Taking Clothing Tag Pics.

Variations

> Jesmar Preemie outfits: There are three versions of this outfit that came out in early to middle 1987 (Ref#4, 1987, Iss. 9, p.4) and came only on what are called Jesmar Preemie. They are velveteen and the only versions of this outfit made in a fabric other than terry cloth. For more information, visit here.

> The bunny face and details of the outfits vary slightly by factory.

The OK factory outfits are very distinctive. The ears are tacked up with an almost invisible stitch, the mouth is badly zig-zagged, the eyes are oval-shaped, and the ears are folded ‘in’ not flat ‘out’.
The P and SS outfits have round eyes, ear folded ‘out’ not ‘in’, and the ears are tacked up with a distinctive stitch.
The WS outfits look a lot like the P and SS outfits except the top of the are sewn all the way across, not just held on by a stitch.

> Mimic Outfit: 25^th Anniversary Preemie version – This outfit came out only in white with blue accents. The most noticeable difference is the beak of the hat, which is patterned on the bottom and on top. It is likely that the back closure only extends halfway down, but I have not seen it to know for sure.

25th Anniversary Play Along Preemie new in box. It is bald with brown eyes.

Lions, tigers, and . . .bunnies? Costume Sleepers

Well, this isn’t candy, but they’re still sweet!
Happy Halloween!

There are six costumes sleepers that were produced by Coleco.

These cute outfits came out in 1985 and were only sold separately packaged until . . .

Picture of a mouse CPK costume inside a yellow CPK box. it is on a cardboard frame that looks like a sleeping kid with blond hair. — Photo courtesy of Jenna Richardson Pryor.

. . . later, in 1986, as Coleco was clearing out stock, they could be found on boxed kids. (Ref#2, p. 90, Ref#4, 1986 Iss. 3, p.5)

Picture of a brown eyed cabbage patch doll dressed in a white lamb costume inside a 1985 Cabbage patch box.

They are two versions of each sleeper. The first set that came out had only the green Cabbage Patch Kids logo on the right breast. They were all made by the IJ factory in Korea. The second set also had an embroidered crest of their animal on the breast under the logo. These were made by the LF (China) and IJ (Taiwan) factories. The LF version of the second set is easier to find. I’m not even sure if IJ made all of the second set.

The ‘double tag’ seems to be the earliest. The square version is most likely the newer one. I am unsure why some were coded with a sticker.

The most obvious difference between the IJ and LF versions is the crest. On the IJ version, it is embroidered directly to the fabric. In the LF version, it is an applique that is glued on.

Spooktacular Video Up!

This was taped as part of the 2020 online Spooktacular Cabbie Event.

I discuss my project, my final goal, how you can help, and how it helps you. I then answer questions on a variety of topics including cornsilks, twins, factory codes, and more.

Spooktacular Session Part 1

Time and Topic Index:

3:00 – Explanation of clothing tags and clothing codes
5:30 – Variations in outfits
6:40 – Why this information is useful to you
7:50 – Ultimate goal of the project
9:15 – How you can help
10:40 – HTF kids and valuation – Why I don’t record this
11:50 – Disclaimer
21:40 – Tour of ‘Cabbie Closet’ and how I store clothing
19:05 – Accessories with codes
21:30 – Twins (more at 22:50)
24:40 – Specialty Kids
25:00 – Cornsilk outfits (more in Part 2)
28:20 – Glasses
28:25 – USA Outfits

Spooktacular Session Part 2

Time and Topic index

0:00 – Button duck dresses
1:50 – HTF and Rare discussion continued
4:00 – Cornsilk and Homophone outfits continued
7:50 – How the numbers work, other matrices, and missing numbers
14:10 – Matching factory codes – dolls and clothes
18:00 – Codes on stickers (P, PMI, IC)
20:30 – Value and HTF discussion continued
24:20 – Defuzzing clothes (continues at 27:15)
25:00 – HTF BBB outfits from Thailand (Visit for updated information)
28:25 – How to search the blog (there’s a page too)

Preemie Outfit #11: Romper with Vest

What a dapper young man in his vest and cap!

1984 Preemie Clothing Series Summary

Description

This is a three-piece outfit. It comes with a one-piece short-sleeved romper that is white on top and patterned at the bottom, a sleeveless vest that matches the romper pattern and has two ties at the front, and (generally) a white cap.

Footwear: Regular shoes and socks

Example of preemie outfit #1 that is navy blue and white gingham pattern.

This outfit was most likely sold only from 1984 – 1985. Some packaged versions may have sold later than that.

Version Information

If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. you have a 11 B that is pink and white gingham, not green and white gingham) I would appreciate hearing from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details on the pictures required, jump to Taking Clothing Tag Pics.

Variations

> Mimic Outfit: #711 – This outfit is structurally identical to outfit #11 except that there are no ties on the vest. It doesn’t come with a bonnet but did come with knit booties instead of shoes and socks. Special thanks to Sarah Galt for first bringing this outfit to my attention.

Picture courtesy of a Francesca Pilgrim Smart

> So far, the P and FD factory outfits have the clothing tag in the vest. The OK, WW, and SS factory outfits have the clothing tag in the romper.

> I have only one example where the hat is made of the same pattern fabric as the romper, an FD factory outfit. All the rest are plain white.

Picture of preemie outfit #11 which is a light teal blue and white gingham, however, this one, has a matching hat instead of a white hat.

Preemie Outfit #10: One-Piece

A one-piece outfit that’s perfect for play time.

Main graphic that has a mint green background and black text that says "#10 One-Piece". it has a picture of an AA doll wearing a blue and white version of the outfit.

1984 Preemie Clothing Series Summary

Description

This is a two-piece outfit.

One-piece outfit. It has a white yoke and sleeves while the remainder of the outfit is patterned, generally vertical stripes but not always. There’s lace around the yoke, sleeves, and leg holes. There is a small white ribbon bow in the middle bottom of the yoke.
Bonnet. It is the same pattern as the majority of the outfit with a lace frill running inside the bonnet about 3″ back from the front edge.

Footwear: Regular shoes and socks

Sample of outfit #10, 10C OK, showing both pieces. It has a white yoke and sleeves and the rest is yellow and white striped. The bonnet is yellow and white striped.

This outfit was most likely sold only from 1984 – 1985. Some packaged versions may have sold later than that.

Version Information

If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. you have a 10C P that is pink and white stripes, not purple and white stripes) I would appreciate hearing from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details on the pictures required, jump to Taking Clothing Tag Pics.

Variations

> There are differences in the lace based on the factory. The OK and WS factories used the same lace, but the SS lace used different lace on the one-piece but the same lace as the others on the bonnet.

> Mimic Outfit: # 710 – This outfit is almost identical to Preemie outfit #10. I cannot see any differences except that some may have come without the small bow. This came with knit booties I think, not shoes. I’m unsure as I do not have tags for those outfits.

A picture of mimic outfit #710. It has a pink blouse and pink sleeves, the remainder is pink and white striped.

> 25^th Anniversary Preemie outfit: Appears almost identical to Preemie outfit #10. I have not handled the outfit and cannot observe any differences from a picture. This outfit is pink and white striped.

Picture of a 25th Anniversary preemie in box with a lemon blonde tuft and purple eyes. The outfit is pink and white striped.