A Collector's Joy: Out of the Box with Barbie

Yes...I admit it. I have taken collector toys out of the box. Serious toy collectors reading this probably just fainted because they know that the value has just been cut in half.

It's not as bad as it sounds, though. Out of 125 collector Barbie dolls in my personal collection, approximately 12 are out of their boxes on display.

Part of the fun for me is being able to "play" with my dolls. I know - a thirty-something still playing with Barbie? What can I say? I'm just a big kid!

Some of the collector Barbie dolls I have taken out of the boxes include designer dolls by Bob Mackie and Nolan Miller. When I purchased these Barbie dolls in the mid-1990's they retailed for around $120 each.

Many of these types of designer Barbie dolls are hard to display in their boxes. They do not have the see-through fronts and you can't see the dolls. To me it seemed foolish to spend all of that money to not be able to enjoy and look at the Barbie dolls daily. So out of the box they came and into a glass curio they went!

Collecting Barbie was a hot collector toy eight years ago but since then, the secondary market prices have dropped dramatically. But that's okay for me because I don't collect Barbie in hopes of them being worth a lot of money someday. I collect Barbie because I just like them, enjoy the hobby, and love "the hunt" for that great find at toy shows and auctions.

There are advantages to the secondary market prices being low on Barbie right now. Of course, not from a seller's standpoint but definitely for the buyer. Over the past few years, I have picked up some great Barbie pieces for little money at toy shows. Barbie dolls that retailed for $80 and up when they first came out I have purchased for as low as $20 NRFB (never removed from box).

Over the summer, I purchased several Barbie dolls, many collector dolls, for $5 - $10 each at a yard sale! What a find! I was like a kid in a candy store and took advantage of the great bargains. The best $10 deal out of the bunch was Crystal Jubilee by Bob Mackie from 1998 - NRFB (see picture above).

Collector toys from the 1940's, 1950's, and 1960's of all kinds still bring a decent price. Toys from that era are getting harder and harder to find still with their original boxes. What possesses a small child to keep the box? As adults, we see the need for it and we can appreciate it. But as a child, the main focus is to get the toy out of the box and to play! It amazes me the mint condition of collector toy boxes from 50 or more years ago that I will see. My husband still has the boxes from his Matchbox cars from the 1950's and 1960's!

Whether you are adamant about keeping your collector toys and Barbie in the box or out, what really matters is that you have fun and enjoy your collections as much as I have!