With only three versions of this outfit produced, it’s difficult to find. Obtaining one with the hat is even more difficult! Learn all about this cute warm and cuddly outfit.
Summary of 500s Series outfits and a list of the outfits: The 500s Series
Description
This outfit consists of a top, bottoms, and hat; all of it knit. The top is a striped white and coloured pattern with eyelet lace that runs along the join between sleeve and trunk. There is an arched Cabbage Patch Kids logo patch on the bottom left side. The bottoms are solid coloured pants with ballooned legs with ribbed extra-wide hems. The hat is the same colour as the pants and has a pom-pom on top. This outfit came with regular lace-up shoes.
The colour of the logo patch does not appear to stay consistent across production. For example, both outfits below, 510A, are from the KT factory.
Coleco started selling this outfit in 1985. It likely ended production no later than sometime in 1986. If it is found on later kids, it was likely because the company was using up old stock.
Long-time collectors believe that this outfit only came in the four versions described below. I wonder if there is an orange KT version of 510A? If you have an outfit that is not recorded here, I would like to hear from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details, visit Taking Clothing Tag Pics.
> Fun fact: A prototype version of this outfit can be found in the 1985 Coleco Catalogue (p. 3, 17). As far as I know, a purple version of his outfit was never actually produced.
This is a great sporty outfit but the kids are always losing their leg warmers!
Summary of 500s Series outfits and a list of the outfits: The 500s Series
Description
This outfit consists of a dress, tights, and leg warmers. The dress has mesh sleeves and neckline. The attached skirt is pleated. The front has a silk-screened Cabbage Patch Kids arched logo above three hearts. I’m not sure which shoes this outfit came with, either pink striped sneakers or regular lace-ups.
#508A KT, Photo courtesy of Kat Perhouse.
It is believed that the outfit did not start being manufactured until 1986, instead of 1985 like most of the others in this series. Consequently, it has a shorter manufacturing time and is harder to find. There’s no known explanation for this. For details, refer back to the summary post. This outfit only came out on kids. If it’s found packaged, it was done during the ‘inventory clean out’ that happened later.
If you have an outfit that is not recorded here, I would like to hear from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details, visit Taking Clothing Tag Pics.
Factory Variations
I have only one factory, AX, to compare to the KT outfits. On the AX factory outfit (508B), the hearts appear to be slightly bigger, the skirt is hemmed differently, and it has larger skirt pleats.
Photo courtesy of Chris Hansing Tallman.
Other Information
> Fun fact: A prototype version of this outfit can be found in the 1985 Coleco Catalogue (p. 3, 16). There’s also a purple version on the 1st Birthday card. I don’t believe it was ever produced.
How to determine which knit sweaters may go with which bubble romper. It’s all in the details!
Like all of the clothing made for Cabbage Patch Kids, the sweaters used in the #9 Bubble Romper Outfit are susceptible to differences based on factory. Meaning, the look of the sweaters changes based on the factory that produced them.
These sweaters are not tagged. (For information on what part of a CPK outfit do come tagged, visit Where are tags in clothing located?) Consequently, it is difficult to confidently match sweaters to rompers.
To determine which factory made a sweater, take note of the following.
The tension and pattern of the knit.
The patterns that are used for the edges and hems.
The pattern and look of the decoration around the neck. (If there are any.)
The colour(s) used around the neck.
NOTE: The factory of manufacture for each sweater is noted in the caption of the picture.
OK FactoryP FactoryKT FactoryIC FactoryPMI FactoryAX FactoryUT Fctory; Photo from Chrisa Easton.JesmarLily LedyTri-ang Pedigree
If you have a sweater that is not pictured here, or you have a better picture than one used here, I would love to see it.
Yellow Sweaters
I believe that yellow sweaters were only manufactured by the OK factory and for the 25th Anniversary Kids (Play Along).
OK factory sweater25th Anniversary Sweater; Photo from Cathleen Mary.
Knit Booties
The correct knit booties will match the sweater. They will have the same tension and knit pattern. For more information visit Shoes: Knit Booties.
Fun in the sun! Everyone likes these cute sun suits, so much that they are highly replicated!
Summary of 500s Series outfits and a list of the outfits: The 500s Series
Description
This outfit consists of a cotton blouse, cotton romper, and a white terry cloth bucket hat. The blouse has slightly puffed sleeves and is a single fabric pattern. The romper has a lace-edged bib front with the curved Cabbage patch Kid logo on it. It also has two rows of lace running across the backside and acting as ruffles. The straps close with velcro. The hat is made of white terry cloth and has ribbon ties to hold it on. The outfit came with regular lace-up shoes.
#505J OK, Photo courtesy of Kat Perhouse.
Coleco started selling this outfit in 1985. It likely ended production no later than sometime in 1986. If it is found on later kids, it was likely because the company was using up old stock.
If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. You have a 506A 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.
> Fun Fact: This outfit is one of the most commonly replicated CPK outfits. Consequently, you can find it in a variety of colours and patterns that Coleco never intended. They can also come with different styles of patches on the front.
Felicity is wearing a wonderful handmade version of the Sun Suit. It was a gift.
This outfit is wonderful for a day on the water! Deck your water baby out in the Sailboat Dress and enjoy!
Summary of 500s Series outfits and a list of the outfits: The 500s Series
Description
This outfit consists of a cotton ‘swing’ style A-line dress with matching bloomers. It has a sailor collar with a ribbon bow, lace, and rick-rack. The same rick-rack runs along the bottom hem. On the left side of the skirt is a sailboat patch, with an arched Cabbage Patch Kids logo patch over it. The bloomers match the dress fabric and have no trim around the leg holes. This outfit came with regular lace-up shoes.
#504B AX
There’s some debate about when this dress began being sold. Although it has a 500s series number, most of which started being sold in 1985, Coleco may not have started selling this outfit on dolls until 1986. (Ref#3 p. 399) It likely ended production sometime in 1986 as well. Consequently, it would have been produced for a limited amount of time. If this outfit is found on a later kid, it was most likely the company getting rid of ‘older’ stock.
If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. You have a 504A OK that is yellow, not pink.) I would like to hear from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details, visit Taking Clothing Tag Pics.
Factory Variations
> The Collar: The Taiwan factory collars appear to have an extra flap section with rick-rack that the China factory collars do not.
AX Factory CollarChina Factory Collar
> The Lace: It seems that the lace used by the Taiwan and China factories is different. It’s hard to tell, but it appears that the KT and P factory lace are the same, while the AX lace is different.
AX (Taiwan) factory laceP (China) Factory laceKT (China) factory laceTwo photos courtesy of Gia Levato.
> The Rick-rack: The location of the rick-rack around the skirt hem seems to change based on the factory. KT is right along the hem edge, AX is about 1cm away, and P is the furthest away from the hem.
Photos courtesy of Gia Levato and Nicole Sorensen Barnes.
> Foreign: I am only aware ofJesmar, of all the foreign factories, producing a swing-style dress. For information on identifying a Jesmar version, jump to Identifying Jesmar Clothing.
JesmarJesmar
Other Information
> Fun fact: This outfit can be found in the 1985 Coleco Catalogue (p. 5). It looks very similar to outfit #504B, but may in fact be a prototype outfit like so many of the others in this catalogue.
Quaint, cute, and often confused with a Cornsilk dress of the same name! Count the patches, you’ll see the difference!
Summary of 500s Series outfits and a list of the outfits: The 500s Series
Description
Cotton dress with tights. The dress is a pinafore style, with a ruffle visible at the bottom and a flower patch at the neck. The ruffle and the sleeves are one pattern/colour, and the main portion of the dress is another. There is a curved Cabbage Patch Kids logo on the left side of the pinafore section of the dress. The dress is paired with tights and lace-up shoes.
502D
Coleco started selling this outfit in 1985. It likely ended production no later than sometime in 1986. It may be found on later kids, but this was most likely the company using up old stock.
If you have an outfit that is not recorded here or does not match my information, (e.g. You have a 502D OK that is yellow, not purple.) I would like to hear from you. Information is best sent in the form of pictures. For details, visit Taking Clothing Tag Pics.
Factory Variation
As I only have two factories recorded as producing this outfit, there is very little factory variation to note. The only difference I can observe is a slight variation in how the lace is applied.
Other Information
~ At least two of these outfits came in interesting variations. I have confirmation that 502H and 502J came with two additional versions that had fabric with embroidery patterns on them. They all have the same code and are essentially the same, but the embroidery makes them different. All the embroidered versions I am aware of were produced by the OK factory. The plain versions were produced by at least the OK and IC factories.
502H502J
~ Another OK difference is the sleeve fabric. Most are regular fabric. A few are more corduroy-like fabric. I’ve seen this with C & K so far.
Similar Outfits
? #167 – Cornsilk Country Dress (Cornsilk Series 1) Take note of the number of patches and the location of the lace. In this outfit, the bottom ruffle is different than the sleeves.
Every girl needs a pair of Fancy PJ’s for PJ parties. These popular frilly PJ’s bring it!
Summary of 500s Series outfits and a list of the outfits: The 500s Series
Description
Cotton two-piece outfit. The top is a short dress with a large bib-shaped piece edged with lace at the front. A curved Cabbage Patch Kids logo patch is on the bib section. Lace also runs around the bottom, neck, and sleeve hems. The bottoms are made of the same colour fabric and are footed. There is a band of lace and a flower patch located at the ankles.
501D OK
Coleco started selling this outfit in 1985. It likely ended production no later than sometime in 1986. It may be found on later kids, but this was most likely the company using up old stock.
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.
Factory Variation
As I only have two factories recorded as producing this outfit, there is very little factory variation to note. The only difference I can observe is a slight variation in how the lace is applied.
These 16 outfits came out from 1985 to 1986 and are some of the most beloved for CPK collectors. It includes the Teddy Bear Overalls, Portrait Dress, Snowsuit, Country Dress, Apron Dress and more!
There are 16 outfits in this series. This equates to between 140 and 150 different versions of the outfits. They came on regular kids from 1985/1986. They can also be found on later kids and in separate packages as Colecogot rid of overstock between 1987 – 89. Photo courtesy of Rebecca Russell.
It’s believed that most of the 500s Series came out in 1985 but that some came out in late 1985 or 1986. It is interesting to note that the outfits believed to have come out in 1986 are also those considered harder to find. This makes sense as they were likely manufactured for a shorter period of time.
Like other Series, certain letters seem to have been produced primarily by specific factories. I call these the Primary Factory for each letter. For example, I think the KT factory produced the letters A and B (if they produced the outfit). Other factories may have made them, but not always consistently.
To the right are my theorized primary factories.
It would appear that not every letter was created for every outfit. In fact, we are quite sure that one outfit only has four options while the largest number for one outfit seems to be between 10 and 14.
For some outfits, there’s more than one version of a code. This is generally caused by variations between factories. This is why it is vitally important to look at both the clothing code AND the description when determining if the outfit has been recorded. For example, the IC version and the KT version might look slightly different.
AX FactoryKT Factory
Taiwan factory outfits (e.g. IC, AX) have been recorded in the 500s Series; however, they are rather rare. At this time, the Taiwanese factories were more focused on producing specialty outfits.
The PMI factory only operated for one year, between 1984 and early 1985. As a result, it only produced 500s Series outfits for a short length of time. (Ref #3, p. 30) Consequently, PMI outfits in this series are the rarest to find. I am unsure how many 500s Series outfits the PMI factory produced. I have a record of only three, the Snowsuit, the Multi-coloured Jogging Suit, and the Aerobics Outfit.
Courtesy of Kat PershouseCourtesy of Jodi’s Punk PatchCourtesy of Vera Burford
Tags
The clothing tags in these outfits are generally in either the shirt or the dress piece. The single exception is the windbreaker outfits, which are labelled in the jacket.
The P and PMI factories continued to use stickers for their codes (for details visit HERE). This can make it very difficult to record the complete code. We know that it was made by the P factory but don’t know the letter. If you have an outfit from these factories with the sticker, please check if it is recorded!
Some OK tags in the 500s Series also have stickers. I think this was done when they ran out of a tag and needed to use the tags for another outfit. They just covered the original code with a sticker showing the new one.
Shoes
As for shoes, they were specific to the outfit. Certain outfits came with certain shoes, but there were only three options: Sneakers, Mary Jane’s, and lace-up shoes (sometimes called high tops).
Note: The names I used for these outfits are either used extensively within the CPK Community I frequent or were created by myself where no consensus seemed to exist. If you have another possible name, please contact me.
CPK Sneakers were manufactured by Coleco throughout the entirety of their production. However, the characteristics of the shoes varied by factory and over time.
Hong Kong Shoes
For a definition of ‘Hong Kong Kids’, jump to the Glossary.
In the beginning, when production took place in Hong Kong [HK], the shoes had a very distinctive look. In general, they can have a number of these features but do not need to have them all.
The stitching is VERY prominent.
They have a thicker feel to the vinyl. In some cases, the vinyl did not mould well and may have a runny look on the inside.
Some are extremely hard vinyl. VERY hard.
Not all HK shoes have black text in the heel, but if it is black, it’s likely an HK shoe.
They tend to look less finished than other shoes. The edges look more like they’ve been cut out, or the vinyl around the edges has been trimmed.
HK shoes are more likely to discolour and get pox than later shoes.
The bottoms are ‘bumpy/textured’.
The body is bumpy (see below).
Hong Kong shoe vs. later shoe
OK HK Shoes – very hard & very malleable – very prominent stitching – The tongue is not cut out (or is partially cut). It is formed as part of the shoe. – textured body and bottom – laces are thick and not very long
P HK Shoes – The text runs vertically, not horizontally, in the heel. – I have not found any P with black text. – The vinyl is very malleable.
KT HK Shoes – I am unable to comment on specifics. I don’t have any in my collection. Photo courtesy of Christy Gann.
Post HK Shoes – 1986ish shoes
After the ‘experimental’ Hong Kong period, the shoes became more uniform but still had many characteristics that varied by factory. It can be very difficult to ‘match’ shoes. You THINK they should match, but when you put them side by side, they are nothing alike! They aren’t the same shape, colour, texture, etc.
Most of the shoes have the factory indicator and the words HONG KONG stamped on the inside by the heel, on the bottom. The factory indicator can be inside a circle or not.
After production moved to China, the shoes became more uniform in appearance but continued to vary by the factory. Indeed, as more factories began production, the amount of variation increased.
1987-1989
Although there are quite a few colours available, many did not show up until 1988 and 1989 (Transitional period). They came on later kids and wearing outfits 800 – 815 and as separately packaged accessories.
Photo courtesy of Hayden Crocket.
It seems that Hasbro did not continue to produce or use sneakers.
The sneakers come in three different stripe patterns.
#1 – the most vertical #2 – slightly more angled #3 – the most angled
Some factories, like P, appear to have produced all three patterns. Others did not. For example, all the OK sneakers I have use pattern #1.
Stripe Colours
The first sneakers came in only two colours, blue and pink.
In 1985 they started producing additional colours. For example, the stripes on the All-Stars Kids sneakers often matched the colour of the uniform, so colours like red, green, black, and navy blue show up. I believe that most of these shoes were produced by the FD and IC factories. At the same time, both coloured and white striped shoes were produced for Sports Collection outfits (CY and FD) and by the UT factory. Do you have UT shoes with coloured stripes? I have only seen white.
All-Stars outfitSports outfitSports outfit photo courtesy of Victor Cortez.
Some colours were produced in varying shades. I believe this was caused by factory variation and changes over time. For example, the PMI factory seems to have very distinct pink and blue colours.
In some cases, the same factory produced different shades of colour. For example, these two P shoes are varying shades of pink.
The Rainbow
Here are all the colours, and their variations, that I have owned. I know that I am missing yellow and hot pink.
Update: Brown stripes came with the Padre’s baseball outfit. Special thanks to Margaret Granato and Jennifer Pelfrey.
Numbers
Some of the shoes have numbers near the factory code. I think these numbers are related to moulds, but I really don’t know. What I do know, is that there are lots of numbers and a matching pair does not have to have matching numbers. One shoe can be 1 and the other 4. Numbers are most often found in shoes produced by the Taiwanese and P factories.
Disclaimer: The following observations have been made based on my collection. I welcome any information and will not hesitate to make revisions as needed.
OK Shoes – They are thin and flexible with a tongue that is the same size as the opening. – The text is raised, comes in two font sizes, and is sometimes blurred. – They tend to discolour and become sticky more than others. – They only appear to use stripe pattern 1.
P Shoes – They tend to stay very white, and the stitching is very prominent. – The tongue is smaller than the opening. – The text is raised and very clear. It is generally vertical along the length of the shoe. Numbers used: 1, 2, 3, 4 Stripe Patterns used: 1, 2, 3
KT Shoes – They feel like OK shoes but with a very thin top edge. Some are extremely malleable. – The tongue looks to have been formed as part of the shoe and then cut out. – Some material is missing, making the tongue smaller than the hole. – The text is raised. – The bottom and inside are VERY smooth. – Some of them have the ‘Jesmar’ shape inside. Stripe pattern: 1
PMI Shoes (small sample size) – The feel and stitching are similar to OK shoes, but they tend to say while like P shoes. – The text is a large, well-spaced PMI that is generally very legible.
IC Shoes – They are rather hard, with little flexibility. – Moderately prominent stitching – The tongue is similar to P shoes. – The text is raised and very clear. They say MADE IN TAIWAN and have numbers underneath. Stripe patterns: 2, 3 Numbers: 2, 3, 5
UT Shoes (small sample size) – They feel and look like IC shoes. – Text is clear, in a small font. Numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 Stripes: 2
FD & CY Shoes – They feel and look like IC shoes. – Text can be VERY large or rather small. FD Numbers: 1, 4,3, 6,9, 12 CY Numbers: 3, 4 Stripe Pattern: 2,3
Recently, a collector showed me a pair of shoes with writing on the inside that they had never seen, and honestly, neither had I!
Inside each shoe is PRC enclosed in a rectangle. The IC and Taiwan that would normally be there are only faintly visible like they’ve been rubbed out. For some reason, they changed the shoe mould. Why?
Picture courtesy of Dixie McLaughlin.
There have been two theories put forward.
It stands for Professional Regulation Committee. They believe that this label was put on the first 50 to 100 examples of the product to denote that they are samples. (FB Conversation, Feb. 9, 2021)
This may be what PNC stands for, but I’m really not sure. I could only find references to this body in relation to legal areas in Ontario, the US, and the Philippines. None of the legal areas they deal with specifically relate to physical product samples themselves. Also, no other CPK product has this label on it that I am aware of, even though MANY different ‘specialty dolls’ were produced by Coleco. Finally, these sneakers had been out for years before these shoes came out. The only difference might be the colour of the stripe.
2. The PNC stands for the Peoples Republic of China.
The history of Taiwan is long and complex. During the 1980s, Taiwan was being held under Martial Law by the KMT government. However, in 1987, martial law was lifted, and governance started moving toward democracy. However, there was a segment of the population who wanted to unify with China, both before and after martial law was lifted. (Source) I’m not sure this is a reasonable theory either. Unless someone with these political leanings got control of one of the clothing factories for a time, I have no idea why they would change the shoe moulds like this.
Based on the scarcity of these shoes, I theorize that they were only produced at one of the Taiwanese factories, likely for a short time. As they appear to have come primarily on All-Stars Kids, that would mean they were produced sometime from mid-1984 to 1985. All-Star Kids were primarily produced by IC factories.
Photo source unknown.
Do you have a theory? Or maybe some evidence to put toward one of the current theories? I’d love to hear about it!
Special thanks to Dixie McLaughlin, Patty-Fisher Sheahan, and Christie Mounce Racine for their assistance with this topic.
For more information on CPK Sneakers jump to Shoes: Sneakers
Photo courtesy of Rebecca Russell.
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Photo courtesy of Christy Gann.
