Steffi Love XL Family

Steffi Love XL Family is a family of four dolls—Photograph courtesy of Stacy Bailey-Ndiaye of articulated pov on Instagram.

Until last week, I was still looking for the Steffi Love XL family that is sold at Ollie's, possibly at Roses, and other stores that carry dolls by Simba. Ollie's is not within my driving range and there isn't a Roses here.

Stacy Bailey-Ndiaye deboxed her dolls and granted permission for me to share this photograph.

Too few dolls that represent the nuclear Black family are manufactured. When they are made, fewer quantities often exist than the readily available white counterparts. Another factor that contributes to the scarcity is that black versions are not stocked in all stores that sell the white version, or the black dolls sell out first because of demand or low quantities. <Sigh>

A fellow collector offered to check her North Carolina Roses store where the XL family was not available, but the following two Steffi Love dolls were. She purchased these for me. Thank you, again, RJ.

This basic Steffi Love boxed doll has a brown curly Afro, painted-brown eyes, and a closed mouth with pale pink lip color. She wears a sleeveless purple and white striped dress and purple crossbody bag.

A close-up of the basic doll's face better illustrates her curly-textured hair, light-brown complexion, and facial features.

Steffi Love Sunshine Twins includes the 11-1/2-inch Steffi Love doll, two twins dressed in dark or light pink rompers, and a pink baby carriage. Also included are feeding accessories for the twins.

The Steffi Love doll in the twins' set has the same hair color and hairstyle as the basic and XL Family dolls. The twins are bald.

On Ollie's website, their store locator revealed two stores near my brother's residence. He lives in the next major city away from me. After agreeing to go to either store for me, he asked me to first call to see if either store had the black XL family in stock. 

A cell phone photo taken at Ollie's shows one black Steffi Love XL Family and two white versions.

After calling the stores, I shared with my brother that the store closer to him only had the white family in stock. The other store had both versions but only one black XL family. Because they would not hold it at the counter for me at my request*, my brother literally stopped what he was doing and rushed to the store. While there, he texted me the above cell phone photo to make sure this was the one I wanted. The Steffi in this set has straight brown hair. I wanted the one with a curly Afro, but because I now have two other Steffi Loves with an Afro hairstyle, the straight-haired doll fulfills my desire for the black XL Family. (The daughter in the set I'll receive also has straight hair. The daughter's hair is loosely curled in the other black XL Family set.)

I told my brother not to make a special trip to bring me the doll. ("I'm not," he said.) He'll bring it the next time he comes to my city, and I will update this post with better pictures. 

*The Ollie's associate I spoke with said they could not hold items at the register because they are a deep discount store where items are sold on a first-come, first-served basis, which I understood. Thank goodness for brothers/family who understand your passion and will help you on your doll searches when asked.

Related Posts

Steffi Love Dentist

Vintage Thrift Store Steffi Love

©Black Doll Collecting/dbg

There are countless items to collect and write about. Black dolls chose me.

__________

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Naturalistas Paige

Naturalistas Paige is an 11-1/2-inch fashion doll with 3C hair.

Paige joins Liya and Dayna.

They use the same facial sculpt. Paige and Dayna have a medium complexion. Liya's complexion is the deepest.

Paige was preordered in April 2022 along with Liya and Dayna, also by Purpose Toys. Her arrival took a bit longer.

The back of the box describes Paige as illustrated in the next image.

Paige is a chemist who has designed a line of black haircare products that promote hair health.

Paige is seen in a close-up photograph. Her 3C-textured hair is styled in a side ponytail.

Like the other Naturalistas shown in this post, Paige has brown painted eyes, a nonarticulated body, and her shimmery dress has Naturalistas in raised letters across the chest. Paige's silver long-sleeved mini dress is accented by silver hoop earrings.

A pink clutch and...

...a pair of pink high-heel, open-toe shoes are included.

Paige cannot share shoes with Barbie; her feet are much larger.

Paige and the other Naturalistas were designed by DeeDee Wright-Ward whose headshot and bio are on the back of the dolls' boxes.

DeeDee Wright-Ward, the creator of the Naturalistas, is pictured on the back of the box.

The bio reads:

DeeDee Wright-Ward is an Entrepreneur, Business Development Executive, Founder of Purpose Toys and Creator of Naturalistas. Naturalistas is a sleek line of contemporary natural hair fashion dolls, created to uplift and celebrate children with coily, curly and natural textured hair. 

Purpose Toys partners with entrepreneurs, providing the resources necessary to succeed. Our mission is to produce "Product with a Purpose", which we hope to deliver with Naturalistas, who encourage every coily and curly hair kid to "Be Proud of Your Crown".

If I ever debox them, these three Naturalistas will display well together.

At this time, I have decided against purchasing Grace (the influencer). I do plan to buy one of the Pixie Puff Naturalistas (probably Penny). Penny will allow me to round off the collection with a light-skinned Naturalistas doll.

#ad for Amazon buy links

Read my review of Liya here. 

Read my review of Dayna here.

©Black Doll Collecting/dbg

There are countless items to collect and write about. Black dolls chose me.

__________

Thank you for reading. Comments that are not spam are appreciated. Spam comments will not be published, so don't waste your time. To contact me directly regarding dolls or any of my posts, please use the contact form on the right of the home page, which is visible in "web view." A link to web viewing should be visible at the bottom of this page.

If you're not already a subscriber, visit, "like" and follow the Black Doll Collecting Facebook page or bookmark the Black Doll Collecting home page and visit on Tuesdays and Thursdays when typically new posts are published.

Check out what I am selling here. 
Check out my eBay listings here.
Please follow my sister blog Ebony-Essence of Dolls in Black.
*New*Visit/Follow DeeBeeGee's Virtual Black Doll Museum
Donate here to support this blog. Thank you!

Estrela's Classic Susi On the Swing of the Track

Classic Susi On the Swing of the Track, is a reproduction of Estrela's 1974 Susi. The many ways Susi No Balanco Da Pista can be posed are illustrated on the back of the box.

Made and sold only in Brazil, the Estrela company has relaunched the 1974 version of their 12-inch Tammy look-a-like, Susi On the Swing of the Track (No Balanco Da Pista). I purchased my doll from an eBay seller at probably three times the doll's retail in Brazil. I know I was price-gouged, but I wanted to add Susi to my collection. So, I bit the bullet. To ease the pain of the gouge, shipping was free (that alone would have cost an extra $38). So, I don't feel so bad about the price I paid.

My Introduction to Susi

A 1970s Susi by Estrela is seen in a photo shared by Rossano Gomes.

I was first introduced to Susi by Rossano Gomes in September 2009, who shared the above photo of his redressed 1970s Susi by Estrela. About his Susi, Rossano wrote:

Estrela first produced SUSI in the 60's as a reproduction of Ideal Tammy and there were only white Susi dolls. In the 70's Estrela changed the doll face and put glass eyes in it and produced the black Susi(s) dolls. They are very rare (I only knew about 4 of them in all my life-) and I bought 1 of them ([see my] first picture).

Informed of the Susi Relaunch

In late July 2022, Facebook doll-friend, Denise Tortorici Farinsky, informed me that Estrela was going to reproduce Black Susi. I waited with bated breath for further information and joined a Facebook Susi group to obtain additional information about the doll's relaunch. 

My Susi

My doll was packed with care and shipped promptly.

Susi traveled from Brazil secured inside her original box that was nested inside a cardboard manufacturer's box with an extra layer of thicker cardboard wrapped around it and bubble-wrap-lined plastic as the outer layer.

"Susi Classica" is on the front of the manufacturer's box (as seen in this picture after the extra cardboard for shipping protection and the top layer of bubble wrap were removed).

The back of this box lists three versions of Susi with stock numbers and the dolls' names. No Balanco Da Pista, which means On the Swing of the Track, is checked.

Zoomed-in view of the back of the box

This is one of Susi's first photos out of the shipper.

Susi's box does not have a cellophane pane, which makes it easy to photograph the doll in the box.

A close-up of her lovely face while still attached to the box liner was taken.

Susi wears a stylish replica of her original 1974 fashion.

A doll stand is included.

A child-size silver bracelet with a pearl embellishment is also included with Susi.

Her curly Afro, her heavy blue eyeshadow, her amber-colored stationary eyes, and Susi's coral lip color were all en vogue in 1974.

Classic Susi poses for a height comparison with a 1960s Tammy that I dyed and painted brown several years ago. 

As illustrated in the photo above of Classic Susi, she is taller than Ideal's Tammy from the 1960s by about half an inch or more. Susi's curly hair adds to her height. 

Like Ideal's Tammy, Classic Susi has flat feet and a teen body. She was not designed to be a mature-bodied doll like Mattel's Barbie.

I am thoroughly pleased that Susi is almost an exact replica of the 1974 Susi On the Swing of the Track. From her soft curly well-rooted 'fro, her heavy blue eye-shadow, and '70s fashion, I love Susi from head to toe. 

Read Susi's curated installation in DeeBeeGee's Virtual Black Doll Museum here where a full description of the doll and additional information about the Susi brand is documented.

©Black Doll Collecting/dbg

There are countless items to collect and write about. Black dolls chose me.

__________

Thank you for reading. Comments that are not spam are appreciated. Spam comments will not be published, so don't waste your time. To contact me directly regarding dolls or any of my posts, please use the contact form on the right of the home page, which is visible in "web view." A link to web viewing should be visible at the bottom of this page.

If you're not already a subscriber, visit, "like" and follow the Black Doll Collecting Facebook page or bookmark the Black Doll Collecting home page and visit on Tuesdays and Thursdays when typically new posts are published.

Check out what I am selling here. 
Check out my eBay listings here.
Please follow my sister blog Ebony-Essence of Dolls in Black.
*New*Visit/Follow DeeBeeGee's Virtual Black Doll Museum
Donate here to support this blog. Thank you!

Naturalistas Dayna

Naturalistas Dayna by Purpose Toys is an 11-1/2 inch vinyl doll with a medium brown complexion.

My beautiful Naturalistas curly-haired Dayna just arrived from Target and she is back in stock on Amazon. https://amzn.to/3P4m4Gl #ad

Her hair is different from the prototype doll's (seen in the next photo), but if I fluff it out (finger comb it) after box removal, it can look like the prototype doll's hair.

When I saw real-life pictures of Dayna shared by other collectors, I didn't know which Naturalista she was because her hairstyle is so much different from the prototype.

Close-up of Dayna's lovely face.

Dayna has a medium brown complexion and dark brown rooted curly hair, described as 3C. She uses the same head sculpt as the other Naturalistas and is not articulated beyond the five usual points (head, upper arms, and upper legs). 

Dayna, like Liya, has brown painted eyes and a closed mouth with dark lip color. She has appropriately full facial features and a quite pretty face. 

She wears a full-length form-fitting gold shimmery sleeveless gown, clear stud earrings, and holds a gold "Naturalistas" personalized clutch. "Naturalistas" is also printed across the chest area of the dress, which has cutouts on the sides. Her tan high-heel open-toe shoes are attached to the box liner. Naturalistas have huge feet. They will not be able to share shoes with Barbie.

Additional Pictures:

The length of Dayna's hair is illustrated in this photo and the next.

The Naturalistas brand across the chest of the dress, Dayna's clutch, and shoes are illustrated in this photo.

Dayna's headshot and bio are on the back of the box.

Dayna's Bio from the back of the box reads:

I'm Dayna

Dayna is an LA native and owner of "Naturalistas Luxury Hair Salon". With a degree in business (and training from a top beauty school), Dayna is a leading Celebrity Natural Hair Stylist. A business woman and celebrity favorite, Dayna's much admired career has earned her the nickname "The Coil Whisperer."

Dayna's motto: "Be Proud of Your Crown"

Her hairstyle is defined as wash n' go. Her hair type is 3C.

The five proposed dolls in the Naturalistas line are illustrated on the back of the box. I have not seen Grace for sale anywhere.

DeeDee Wright-Ward, the creator of the Naturalistas, is pictured on the back of the box.

A headshot of the founder of Naturalistas, DeeDee Wright-Ward, and her bio are also included on the back of Liya's box. The bio reads:

DeeDee Wright-Ward is an Entrepreneur, Business Development Executive, Founder of Purpose Toys and Creator of Naturalistas. Naturalistas is a sleek line of contemporary natural hair fashion dolls, created to uplift and celebrate children with coily, curly and natural textured hair. 

Purpose Toys partners with entrepreneurs, providing the resources necessary to succeed. Our mission is to produce "Product with a Purpose", which we hope to deliver with Naturalistas, who encourage every coily and curly hair kid to "Be Proud of Your Crown". 

Dayna and Liya

Dayna and Liya are seen in a headshot comparison where their complexion difference is also illustrated.  Read Liya's review here.    

©Black Doll Collecting/dbg

There are countless items to collect and write about. Black dolls chose me.

__________

Thank you for reading. Comments that are not spam are appreciated. Spam comments will not be published, so don't waste your time. To contact me directly regarding dolls or any of my posts, please use the contact form on the right of the home page, which is visible in "web view." A link to web viewing should be visible at the bottom of this page.

If you're not already a subscriber, visit, "like" and follow the Black Doll Collecting Facebook page or bookmark the Black Doll Collecting home page and visit on Tuesdays and Thursdays when typically new posts are published.

Check out what I am selling here. 
Check out my eBay listings here.
Please follow my sister blog Ebony-Essence of Dolls in Black.
*New*Visit/Follow DeeBeeGee's Virtual Black Doll Museum
Donate here to support this blog. Thank you!

Darice Fashion Doll for Crafts

Darice fashion doll for crafting, circa 1980s-1990s

As a collector of Barbie clones and competitors, I made an offer on this Barbie competitor after seeing it in an auction listing. The offer was accepted.

My Fashion Blogger Sindy

Stock Photo of Fashion Blogger Sindy

The name on the box is Sindy Fashion Store Playset. Sold only in parts of the United Kingdom, (but made in China), I have her thanks to a wonderful doll friend. They know who they are, and I've already thanked them several times for getting Sindy for me. 

I opened the shipping package the morning after Sindy arrived and was and still am thoroughly pleased.  I took several pictures of the doll in the box before opening it. The following three are the best of the several initial photos.

The initial photo illustrates Fashion Blogger Sindy in the unopened box with the backpack and laptop visible through the cellophane.

A large illustration of Sindy is on the back of the box. A removable wrap-around piece of cardstock on the lower box illustrates this Sindy and others.

A close-up headshot while still in the box

I gingerly removed all the adhesive stickers that held the lower wrap-around piece in place and those that held the box closed before removing the doll and accessories from the box and photographing additional box details.

This is the front of the lower wrap-around cardstock. On the far right, Sindy is shown with the doll box decorated with the fashion display cutouts that are included.

 

The back of the lift-out box lining contains cutouts to create a clothing display with rack and hangers.

Fashion cutouts and a mannequin or clothing form for displaying the fashions are on one sheet of heavy cardstock.

This is the flip side of the fashion and mannequin cut-out sheet.

The open box illustrates store shelves and clothing racks.

Next are out-of-the-box photos of Sindy and her accessories.

Sindy poses in front of her undecorated box with her three accessories.

A backpack, a laptop, and a Sindy Fashion booklet are the accessories. The laptop can fit inside the backpack.

Wearing her backpack, Sindy strikes a pose...

...and takes a final headshot.

Spreadsheet Entry Description

11-inch vinyl fashion doll with articulated elbows, wrists, knees, ankles, and the usual other five points has brown side-glancing painted eyes, slightly parted lips painted coral, thickly rooted waist-length brunette curly hair held away from the face with a lavender cloth headband. Each earlobe has a preplaced area for piercing. Sindy wears a purple-trimmed silver lamé jacket, a lavender T-shirt that circularly reads "Since 1983" above and below the centered "Sindy" registered signature. A purple and lavender tulle tutu, black and metallic-silver leggings, and purple mock-lace sneakers complete her fashion. Accessories include a black vinyl backpack that can accommodate a gray plastic laptop, and a Sindy Fashion booklet that contains a quiz, puzzles, crafts, fashion design activities, haircare instructions, and other dolls and accessories to buy. At the beginning of the booklet, Sindy introduces herself as Fashion Blogger Sindy. The box transforms into a fashion store with box graphics, fashion and mannequin cutouts, and hanger and rack cutouts. Licensed by Pedigree Toys and Brands, 2021; manufactured by Kid Kreations, Ltd. Mulberry House, the doll was made in China.

So she is actually Fashion Blogger Sindy as indicated in the accompanying booklet.

dbg


There are countless items to collect and write about. Black dolls chose me.
__________
Thank you for reading. Comments that are not spam are appreciated. Spam comments will not be published, so don't waste your time. To contact me directly regarding dolls or any of my posts, please use the contact form on the right of the home page, which is visible in "web view." A link to web viewing should be visible at the bottom of this page.

Check out what I am selling here. 
Check out my eBay listings here.
Please follow my sister blog Ebony-Essence of Dolls in Black.
*New*Visit/Follow DeeBeeGee's Virtual Black Doll Museum
Donate here to support this blog. Thank you!