Skipper

Back when I was but a wee little thing, I got so excited whenever Barbie and Skipper got something new to wear. I mean, new clothes for Barbie or Skipper or even Midge mean't that I could retire the old rags that they'd been wearing for decades. Well days, anyway.

And they had some snazzy clothes... Barbie had a knit blue skirt and matching sweater while Skipper had the same outfit in pink. (I had the very same outfit in green... because, well, I thought I was Skipper.)

Barbie also had a beautiful pink robe and gown, Skipper had a matching robe and pjs. She even had adorable little "scuffies."

Barbie had a black, sparkling evening gown with a tall microphone she could sing into. Skipper... well she didn't have anything like that. She was too young.

Barbie had a beautiful red velvet coat and hat. Skipper had a red velvet coat as well and a red and white dress quite similar to her older sister's.

MY Barbie and Skipper, however, had almost none of the above clothes.

Either my parents were poor... or stubborn... or cheap... or something. My Barbie and Skipper usually wore hand made clothes. My Barbie and Skipper must've been from the wrong side of town. My Barbie and Skipper would've died of embarrassment if they'd ever realized this.

Recently, in all the boxes and packages that are currently stored in my garage, I found my beloved Skipper. There she was. And in somewhat decent shape. Still wearing that famous red swimsuit that she was born in. And she still had all of her hair. (Chatty Cathy can not make that same claim. She's missing an arm and a leg as well.) But Skipper, well, she looks pretty darn good. For a doll her age. She must be approaching 50.

As good as Skipper looked, her clothes could not make the same claim. The few clothes I did find for her were NOT in the best of shape. And no amount of TLC is going to bring them back to life. Honestly, her cute little pink sweater (the one that matched mine) must've made a good meal for a couple of moths. Or one meal for a big, fat moth. Who knows.

So, what did I do?

Ebay.

Yep, Ebay. Ebay can do it all. Ebay can solve all problems. Ebay can steal your money. You know, I love Ebay... When I'm not buying coats, I'm buying doll clothes. And actually, the two tie together nicely. Because, well...

Skipper is now the proud owner of a beautiful red coat and red velvet hat. Yep, Skipper is stylin'. Skipper also scored a white, lacy slip, pretty little socks and a host of other clothes that I never got to have when Skipper was a young girl.

But she and I just bought new coats on Ebay! How cool is that?

The saddest part? I'm just as excited now as I was back then when I finally did get a new outfit for Skipper.

Why doesn't Rick care?