Hilary's Cabbage Patch Clothes Closet
Learning about 1980's Cabbage Patch Kid clothing.
Information about Cabbage Patch Kid Clothing.
This St. Patricks Day I celebrated by purchasing a unicorn! Join me as I unbox my treasure at the end of the rainbow.
I bought myself a unicorn and it arrived in time for St. Paddy’s Day! Join me as I unbox the treasure at the end of the rainbow.
Meet Mateo Lucas (blue) and Patrick Dante (green).
Patrick is wearing my unicorn outfit!
How appropriate for St. Patrick’s Day.
Of course, what else was I going to name him? After all, he’s all about the green!
As Hasbro took over production of the Cabbage Patch brand, chaos ensued. Find out what collectors means by ‘transitional’ and how this is reflected in the clothing.
Transition: the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.
(Google Dictionary)
In this instance, we’re referring to the transition from Coleco to Hasbro as the manufacturer of the Cabbage Patch brand, 1989 – 1990. This progression, and the chaos it caused, can be seen in the tags used in their clothes. It occurs in five stages.
Coleco began using the location Amsterdam, NY, on their tags in late 1987 (I think) and continued until sometime in 1989. Then they switched to Gloversville, NY, the last known Coleco location used on their tags. Consequently, Gloversville tags only occurred in outfits that came out in the first 6-months of 1989. These outfits all have 9 – in front of their outfit code. (See Part 2: The Code Addition for an explanation). Some of the outfits produced in 1989 were designed earlier but weren’t sold until then.
The codes in these outfits have the 9 –, indicating they are also from 1989, but they are made by a different company. These tags have a Coleco-like clothing code and factory code but are now listed as being made by Hasbro out of Pawtucket, RI. They introduced a new factory code H101, likely intending the H to indicate Hasbro. This happened because Hasbro bought out Coleco in July of 1989 (Ref#3, p. 176).
Following along with the year labelling convention, if 9- is for 1989, then the 0 – would be for 1990. So, these outfits were sold in 1990. However, the tag looks more Hasbro-like than Coleco now. In addition, there are very few outfits with this code. The only outfits produced at this time were the BBB 400s. series (Future Post). These outfits are likely the last of the Coleco designs Hasbro used OR their first attempts at their own designs. My guess is the latter, as all four outfits in this series mimic the look of earlier Coleco-produced outfits.
By this stage, the tags are all Hasbro, and there are no codes on them at all. It appears that, although they considered or tried to keep using the Coleco coding system, they gave it up rather quickly, likely sometime in 1990.
By 1991, Hasbro was producing their own kids and clothes. None of the outfits are tagged. Some of these lines include Babies (BBBs), Babyland Kids, Poseables (replaced the regular kids), Birthday Kids, Preschoolers, Designer Line Kids and Kissin’ Kids. (Ref#2, p.104))
Although many dolls were sold in these two years, what most collectors refer to as a ‘Transitional doll’ is very specific and quite sought after, as few were produced. These dolls are an amalgam of Hasbro and Coleco parts. One might have a Coleco head, Hasbro body, and Coleco outfit. Or a Coleco body and head, but wear a Hasbro-tagged outfit. There are several possible combinations. (Ref#3, p. 176)
During the Transitional period, you could find odd packages of Cabbage Patch clothing and accessories that were being sold off by Coleco and Hasbro. For example, you might find a Coleco outfit on a Hasbro board and in others, it’s a mishmash of items that don’t belong together on what looks to be an unauthorized board, but isn’t. Hasbro used a variety of avenues to rid themselves of leftover stock. Refer to PTP: Packaged Outfits: Questions and (Some) Answers for more information.
Make way for “The Greatest Kids on Earth” and join us at the circus! These outfits have lots of bright colours and wacky hats. Which one is your favourite?
Circus kids came out in 1985 and like a lot of the specialty kids, did not sell well. Some may have been sold in 1987, but they were only manufactured in 1986. The series consists of six clown outfits (#100 – #105) and a ringmaster outfit. (see below) There are two versions of each outfit. The outfit names were created by Coleco.
Circus kids come with a distinctive box, hand tag, and birth certificate. They also came with a clown-themed poster in the box and a trading card in the birth certificate envelope. (Ref#2, p. 72) The original boxes were sort of tent-shaped but later boxes were more rectangular (see ringmaster box below). (Ref #3, p. 133)
They were made by the KT and P factories. I don’t think that each factory produced all six outfits, as I’ve only recorded one factory per outfit so far. However, different factories could produce A and B. These outfits are on the coding matrix but create a duplicate set of #100 – #105 numbers.
One reference noted that these outfits came on P, KT and OK kids. In this case, the OK kids wouldn’t match their outfits. What combination is your Circus kid? (Ref#2, p. 72)
There are several different tags from both factories. This is likely due to changing trends during the production period.
Each outfit comes with a pair of clown shoes, socks, and a head accessory. The shoes are stamped on the bottom with a factory code, and one shoe from each pair will be a squeaker. The socks are always made of brightly coloured silky material and are quite a bit longer than regular socks. In addition, the socks have no distinctive top edge.
As with all the specialty outfits, these outfits were eventually packaged and sold separately from the dolls. In addition, you can sometimes find individual pieces of these outfits in ‘lot’ packages. Leftover Jesmar stock dolls were also dressed as clowns and were sold on the Canadian Market in bilingual boxes. (Ref#2, p.72) I don’t remember seeing a clown in a ‘regular’ box, but it could have happened. Many other specialty outfits were sold this way in later years.
Along with the face mask, headgear, socks, and shoes, each outfit includes the following:
This outfit is the only 188 I have recorded, and for some reason, was coded separately from the clown outfits. This outfit was worn by both boy and girl dolls. The doll came in a circus box with a Circus Kid birth certificate and included a black megaphone. I am unsure if these dolls came with a poster.
The outfit includes a black bowtie, a red velveteen jacket with tails, a fancy white shirt with ruffles down the front, a gold and red vest, white satin jodhoppers, high black boots, and a large black top hat.
The boots are factory labelled on the inside rim and are easily confused with the Russian World Traveler boots. The more obvious differences are the detailing and the height. The Russian boot is shorter than the ringmaster boot.
These are the photo from the 1987 Coleco Catalogue. It looks like they used actual outfits for these pictures, which is unusual.
Worn by Designer Line kids and other 1988 and 1989 kids, Chunky Sneakers and Saddle Shoes are very sought after and colourful. Find out more!
Summary Post about Cabbage Patch Shoes
These full-form vinyl sneaker-shaped shoes came with all Designer Line Kids outfits (1989) and may have come on kids wearing the Hasbro version of outfit #812 and two Hasbro transitional poseable outfits.
There may also be additional Transitional outfits that came with these shoes, of which I am unaware. In addition, during the Transitional period, Hasbro and Coleco were selling off inventory, so outfits may no longer have come with just one type of shoe. There may be more than one type used for these outfits, including the Chunky Sneakers.
I have not yet seen Chunky Sneakers that were separately packaged. Separately packaged DL outfits sold in the late 1980s either did not come with shoes or may have come with Saddle Shoes (see below).
Beyond their distinctive shape, these shoes also have a pattern on the bottom and no factory indicator on the inside of the shoe.
Chunky Sneakers are often confused with Saddle Shoes, which came out about the same time (1989) on a few outfits, Coleco and Hasbro. There seem to be two versions, one with real laces in the top two holes and used by Coleco, and one without laces (holes not punched through) and used by Hasbro.
Outfit #809 may have come with these shoes, and some of the #812 outfits (Coleco version) came with them. I believe that the Hasbro tracksuit outfit also came with them. There may be more; this list is likely not complete. These shoes also came separately packaged.
Their most distinctive feature the is CPK logo located on the bottom of each shoe.
Photo courtesy of Cheryl Parker.
Chunky Sneakers are also confused with Chunky Toddler Shoes. They look similar but are smaller and only came on some Transitional and Hasbro Toddlers. (Future Post)
The remainder of the 800s series toddler outfits that came out in 1988. I can only find a few, do you have one I don’t have recorded?
Toddler Outfits Summary Post
Toddler Outfits 870s Series
These outfits are all copyrighted from 1987 but were sold in 1988, as indicated by the 8- in the clothing code. (For more information about these codes, visit: Part 2: The Code Addition)
It appears that these outfits were all produced while Coleco HQ was located in Amsterdam, NY, with production stopping before they moved their headquarters to Gloversville, NY, in 198
I’ve recorded two outfits in the 880s and four outfits in the 890s. There may be more outfits on either end that are unidentified. As with the 870s series, the first outfit, outfit #888, came only on boys. (The girl’s version is outfit #119. It is structured differently and doesn’t have the stars.)
I have no letter C recorded for any of these outfits and no more than four options for any outfit. This leads me to theorize that there are only four versions of each outfit: A, B, D, and E. I have no idea why they skipped C. I theorize that the outfit planned for this letter wasn’t approved.
These outfits came with regular white lace-up shoes.
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. To understand clothing codes, factories, and variations, please refer to these posts: 1st Blog – Why do this project?, What are Clothing Tag Codes?, Factories and Companies
If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. You have a 501D OK that is pink, not yellow.) I would like to hear from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details, visit Taking Clothing Tag Pics.
Although the outfits look like they may have multiple pieces (e.g. a shirt and overalls), they are actually all one piece.
Outfit #873 looks very similar to toddler outfit #892, except the ruffle goes all the way across.
The first set of outfits that came on ‘The Kid in the Middle’, Toddlers!
Toddler Outfits Summary Post
Toddler Outfits, 880s – 890s
These outfits are all copyrighted from 1987 but were sold in 1988, as indicated by the 8- in the clothing code. (For more information about these codes, visit: Part 2: The Code Addition)
It appears that these outfits were all produced while Coleco HQ was located in Amsterdam, NY, with production stopping before they moved their headquarters to Gloversville, NY, in 1989.
There are at least six outfits in this series, but there may be more after #875 that are unidentified. Outfit #870 came only on boys, and the girl’s version is outfit #874. There may be as many as ten different versions of each outfit (A – K). This means I need a lot more information!
These outfits came with regular white lace-up shoes.
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. To understand clothing codes, factories, and variations, please refer to these posts: 1st Blog – Why do this project?, What are Clothing Tag Codes?, Factories and Companies
If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. You have a 501D OK that is pink, not yellow.) I would like to hear from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details, visit Taking Clothing Tag Pics.
Do not get outfit #875 with dinosaur pattern fabric confused with the Dino Overalls for regular-sized kids (#807). The latter is very HTF and very sought after. The toddler outfits, not so much.
Although the outfits look like they may have multiple pieces (e.g. a shirt and overalls), they are actually all one piece.
Outfit #873 looks very similar to toddler outfit #892, except the ruffle goes all the way across.
Toddlers, the kid in the middle, may have come out late in the 1980’s but still had some wonderful outfits. Learn about them and how they transitioned into Hasbro Preschool Kids.
870s: 1988 Toddler Outfits Pt. 1
880s – 890s: 1988 Toddler Outfits Pt. 2
135 – 139: Coleco Transitional Toddler Outfits (Future Post)
116 – 120: Hasbro Transitional Toddler Outfits (Future Post)
Packaged Splash’n See Surprise outfits (Hasbro)
“It’s been almost like 1983 revisited, and if you don’t believe it, one collector actually witnessed people fighting over toddlers!”
(Ref #4, 12/88, Vol.3 Issue 4, p. 1)
The popular 13” kid in the middle came out in 1988 and sold until 1990 when Hasbro changed the name to Preschooler for 1991. (Ref #2, p. 98) They then sold until 1992. (Ref #1, p. 35) This means there are three versions of Toddler dolls:
Coleco Toddlers only used certain head moulds, and #4 was only used for a short time. All #4 Toddlers appear to have come with the BBB pacifier. (Visit CPK Pacifiers for details). (Ref #3, p. 167) Toddlers came with new hairstyles, and new hair/eye combinations (Ref #2, p. 98). Hasbro Preschool Kids came with even more new head moulds and hair/eye/freckle combinations. (Ref #1, p. 35)
‘Transitional Period’ Toddlers can be wacky combinations of Coleco and Hasbro parts, clothing, and accessories.
The first Toddlers produced in 1988 were entirely made by Coleco and wore outfits numbered in the 870s – 890s. They were all made in Amsterdam, NY.
Note: All the Coleco Toddler outfits were produced by the OK factory, one of the few factories still in production at this time. Therefore, there are no factory differences to note.
The 130s series was designed in 1987 along with the 800s series but wasn’t sold on kids until 1989. Most of these outfits were produced for Coleco in Amsterdam, NY although a few were produced by Coleco in Gloversville, NY. So far, the Gloversville outfits appear to be later letters; F and after. They were likely produced in early 1989 for a short time, so there won’t be many of them. Gloversville outfits will always be newer than Amsterdam outfits. For more information on how this works, visit: Tag Codes and locations: 1987-9 and Transitional Period – A Summary.
The series, 116 – 120, is from the Transitional Period and was designed and sold in 1989 by Coleco or Hasbro (Pawtucket, RI). For more details about these outfits and the time period when they were sold, visit Transitional Period- A Summary.
Coleco Toddlers came with regular white lace-up shoes. Then, as Coleco transitioned into Hasbro, they started to come with Chunky Toddler sneakers and or coloured lace-ups. I’m not sure if these shoes showed up simultaneously or if there was a specific period for each. Eventually, Preschoolers only came with coloured lace-up shoes (unless the outfit matched with white shoes.
Just like all the Coleco material that wasn’t sold by the late 1980s, Toddler outfits ended up in packages to be sold separately from the dolls. At first, the packages said Coleco on them. Later, even though they’re sometimes still Coleco outfits, the packaging says Hasbro. Eventually, they were Hasbro outfits, like those in the 116-119 series. I believe that last series was never out on kids, it only came packaged.
In my opinion, Hasbro Preschool Kid outfits are generally of lower quality, as they were produced using thinner fabrics and clowny graphics. They don’t have the same detail and care that Coleco-manufactured outfits have. These outfits did not come packaged.
Preschooler outfits can be easily identified because they come in six different themes: time, numbers, colours, alphabet, shapes, and animals. All preschooler outfits appear to come with matching coloured lace-up shoes. (Ref #1, p. 35)
Visit HERE to read about these outfits.
They’re mistake gives us another opportunity see behind the scenes of outfit production.
A few months ago Stephania Blum found a rather unique and interesting outfit and I wanted to make sure everyone had a chance to see it. Although Coleco outfits are generally well made using good materials, sometimes weird stuff crops up.
She figures they accidentally used the beginning or end of a fabric roll to make the blouse area of this Frilly dress (4L CC).
Another collector, Laura Fulton, ran it through Google Translate.
After some research, the text seems to say the following:
Trueran – a type of poplin fabric; can be dyed
White: colour
Shanghai, China: location it was produced, perhaps? Shanghai is on the coast of the East China Sea and producers would have had easy access to the ports there. (Update Note: Google translate didn’t quite get it right, the word Lixi is not there. Special Thanks to Kylie Redfern for the new information)
This is a CC factory outfit so it never came on a kid. It’s just a fluke that they used the fabric in such as way that it was completely legible!
Thank you for sharing your find Stephania.
If you love something, set it free . . .
See who returned to me!
I’ve had almost 1000 CPK pass through my hands since I started recording my collection. Some stayed, but most have found other homes with people who love them. This is Amber Casey, kid #91, adopted around 1997 from a flea market. She was my third Bean Butt Baby and came to me in a cute little yellow dress.
At this time, I was a teenager and knew next to nothing about Cabbage Patch Kids except what I could find on internet WebRings. It wasn’t much, but I soaked it all up like a sponge.
Over time I moved into my own place and continued collecting. Eventually, I just didn’t have enough room to keep all the dolls, so I started to adopt some out. Amber was amongst them, likely finding a new home sometime between 2012 and 2014.
My mother has always been an enabler for me. She often finds dolls at thrift stores or yard sales, and it’s wonderful! In March she sent a picture of yet another kid she’d found at a thrift store in town. She was dirty but a non-poxy BBB kid, so I was excited. It would be more than a month before I would finally get home to see her in detail.
I was surprised to see that the dress the doll was wearing was a VHTF Thailand BBB outfit. It was the same as one I had accidentally sold many years earlier, without knowing what I had. I never thought to own any of those outfits again, so this was very exciting.
NOTE: Thailand BBB outfits were only identified within the last year.
Later that day I was showing my sister a picture of the ‘outfit that got away’ and the replacement Mom had found. Our conversation went something like this:
Sister – “Isn’t that the same doll?”
Me – “Of course it’s not. I sold that doll like 10 years ago!”
Sister – “But look, it’s got the same mark on the head and stain on the dress. It’s smaller, but the stain is in the same spot. Where did Mom get it?”
Me – “At the local thrift store . . .”
Of course, she was right. I quickly looked up my records on the BBB with the rare outfit that I had adopted out, and it was the same doll, down to the “rust coloured mark” on her head.
“If you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours.
Kahlil Gibran
If they don’t, they never were.”
Apparently, I’ve been collecting so long I’m starting to adopt kids I’ve already adopted out! I think I’ll keep her this time. Welcome home, Amber Casey.
A wonderful and skilled member of our Cabbie community has gifted Amber the remainder of her outfit! I knew it was almost impossible to replace those pieces and so did this collector. She too was missing a few BBB pieces she never expected to find, so she decided to knit them herself with wonderful results!
As a beautiful surprise, she offered to knit me the bonnet and pants I was missing for Amber’s outfit as she has an original she could copy. She did so and mailed it from the other side of the world! It arrived just when I needed a major pick-me-up.
I am happy to reintroduce the newly renamed (with her permission) Amber Zoe! She’s my little ray of sunshine!
Dressed to impress (in the last 1980s) these kids have outfits that were all the rage. This is the second set of outfits that were carried on by Hasbro.
Jump to – Series 1: 150s
These kids came out in 1989-9, during the Transitional Period. Hasbro also sold them for a short time from when they took over production in July of 1989 and into 1990.
“According to the 1990 catalogue, these Designer Line Kids had “the cool, casual look that children like for themselves . . .Their new outfits are the latest and greatest fashion designs, and their yarn or nylon hair is fashioned in the hottest looks around.” (Ref #2, p. 104)
They came with new hairstyles, both yarn and cornsilk, and some new head moulds were introduced with these kids (#36, #44, #45). For more details, refer to the sources listed at the end of the post.
These kids came standing in a special box with a new design. In the US they came with a special purple DL birth certificate but in Canada, they came with the regular 1987-89 certificates. I’m not sure about other countries. They, and their outfits, were made at the P factory; however, they don’t generally end up with pox. A few of the early DL kids came with a new ‘artistic’ Xavier Roberts signature, but it was quickly changed back to the original.
Numerically, there are two series of Designer Line outfits, the 150s and the 170s-180s. The 150s outfits came out first and the 170-180s came out second. For an explanation of how we know, visit Transitional Period – A Summary.
Each series has six outfits, and there are five versions of each outfit (A-E).
These outfits came with chunky sneakers and white underpants for boys or panties for girls. In this series, the panties may also come in different colours.
UPDATE: Designer Line outfits put on later kids may also have come with Saddle Shoes.
Finally, these outfits came packaged by Hasbro, but the 150s series did not. Consequently, of the two DL outfit series, this one would likely be easier to find.
These outfits were likely made by Hasbro, who may not have been as diligent at making sure the same accessories always went with an outfit. I just don’t have enough evidence to show that the socks and shoes that came with each outfit were entirely consistent. It’s possible that the accessory colour changed based on what they had available. If you have a MIB kid that doesn’t match my records, please let me know!
This outfit consists of a jacket, dickie, striped dress shirt, slacks (solid colour), underpants, socks (I think), and chunky shoes. I’m pretty sure this outfit came with socks, but I’m not completely sure!
This outfit consists of a sweater jacket, sweater, and skirt (made of sweater material). The shirt has a large decal on the front that is a triangle or rectangle, and the skirt that is a solid colour. It comes with undies, chunky shoes, and socks. It’s very similar to outfit 183; the only real difference is the jacket.
This outfit consists of three pieces, chunky shoes, socks, and undies. The prints used are all colourful and crazy!
This outfit consists of two pieces, socks, chunky shoes, and undies. The first piece is a long jacket that’s half a solid colour and half a pattern and has rucked pockets. The second is a set of coveralls with a waist tie and three buttons up the middle front.
This outfit consists of a leather jacket, sweater, and slacks. It comes with socks (I think), shoes, and underpants. The sweaters all have a large decal on the front. Some of them say CPK Airborne Division.
This outfit consists of a jacket with large solid-coloured pockets, a sweater, and a skirt (made of sweater material). The shirt has a large decal on the front that is a triangle or rectangle, and the skirt is a solid colour. It comes with undies, chunky shoes, and socks. It’s very similar to outfit 179; the only real difference is the jacket. It’s possible that they all came with gold socks.
My goal is to record every version of every outfit that was produced. With each outfit above is a record of the outfit versions I have recorded. To understand clothing codes, factories, and variations, please refer to What are Clothing Tag Codes? and Factories and Companies.
I appear to have many of the outfits recorded, but if you have an outfit that is not recorded here, I would like to hear from you. This includes any differences in accessories. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details, visit Taking Clothing Tag Pics.
DL kids and outfits can also be found in ‘regular’ kid boxes of the same time period.
These outfits showed up in the Coleco Catalogues in 1989 and Hasbro catalogues in 1990. Many of these outfits were never produced or were done in other colours.
