1960's Pedigree Red Head Mitzi Doll - Sindy Friend
A few years ago I stumbled upon this doll online quite by accident, while trying to get an I.D for a Sindy I'd gotten in a bulk buy of dolls, and it was love at first sight!
What I didn't realise when I began my search for her is that she is stupidly rare and as a result, everyone and their mother's are also searching for her... which also means if found , she has an even stupider price tag attached to her *sigh*
I'd happily settle for just the head, as I'm not a collector who has to have everything, I don't want her because she is rare, or will make me money later on, I just collect the things that appeal to me, so quite often I pass up on other "Sindy Family Members & Friends" in favour of a valueless clone doll that I think I can make something of, but this girl, I just want because I've fallen under her spell!!
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Dream Date Outfit (complete with beret) - Original "out of box wear"
http://www.oursindymuseum.com/196768sindysnewfriends.htm |
So what is it tat makes her so rare & sought after? In a nutshell, there were less made, why? I have no idea, as to me she as such a beautiful face and I think if I'd have been bought one as a child instead of a Sindy, I'd have been just as happy, if not happier!
I suspect the Blonde version of this doll is much rarer as in the last 5 years, I have only ever seen three Red Head Mitzi dolls come up for sale on Ebay, but not a single Blonde one!
So what is the appeal? For me, it's mostly the awesome colour of her hair, it's not often you find dolls with hair so bright from that era, and then there's that face, it's so different to the other "teenage" dolls of the time,so beautifully sculpted and when dressed, she really does have an air of "chic" about her which is hard to define but very easy to see!
And so to her
"story":
Mitzi arrived from France in 1968 another addition to the ever increasing Sindy Set.
Available with either blonde or striking flame red hair, Mitzi had massive blue eyes and was given a basic Sindy body, with no markings. Being the same size as Sindy she could share Sindy's ever increasing stylish wardrobe.
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When sold she came in a cardboard box with with an Eiffel Tower charm and a free Dream Date outfit (see above photo) Below is the Blonde version of Mitzi in her original Dream Date Outfit, posed beside her box.
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| If this image belongs to you, please let me know so I can credit you. |
While she has the exact same face as the Flame Haired version, and is most likely much rarer, I just don't like her as much as the Redhead, that hair colour really seems to make something in Mitzi's face just ping out!
Finally though, one has come up on Ebay (pictures below), sadly well out of my price range, as although I am a "collector" and I would add her to my collection, I'm not THAT desperate to have her to complete my collection or whatever!
The photo above is a beautiful flame haired Mitzi which has recently come up on Ebay, I think she may have been given a slight haircut at some point, although the seller doesn't mention this and it could just be the way her hair is "styled", but it does look at little shorter than it should be when compared to the Mitzi in picture 1.
The seller wants £350.00 for her (Buy It Now) and has refused two offers already, so I guess it's £350.00 or nothing, but that does beggar the question, why put open to offers on the listing? Anyhoo, if you have £350.00 and you want to buy her, here's the link:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Rare-1960s-Sindy-MITZI-Doll-Flame-Red-Hair-/170936236184?_trksid=p3284.m263&_trkparms=algo%3DSIC%26its%3DI%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BFICS%252BUFI%26otn%3D21%26pmod%3D130792578473%26ps%3D54
******* 05/12/2012 - ********* UPDATE ON EBAY LISTING *******
I was just reading back over this post, and I thought "Hmmm, I wonder if she sold?" so I followed the link and went to take a peek.
It turns out she didn't! And it seems I am not the only person who wanted her but NOT for that price!
I have to say that given the financial climate at present, and it being so close to Christmas too, I am pretty surprised that the seller turned down 3 offers, but then again I of course have no way of knowing how much each of those offers were for!
While I was cropping my screen shot, I noticed the Seller had relisted, so I went back and checked out that listing...
Same thing, only one offer this time though, but I can't help thinking, that out of a total of 4 offers made, one of them must have come close to an acceptable price surely? And if not and if £350.00 is the only price the seller is willing to accept, then why not make the listing a Buy It Now or don't check the "Make me an Offer" box while listing!
This to me seems to sum up "The Curse of Mitzi" as I like to call it... She hardly ever comes up at auction, so when she does the Seller can pretty much set the price...any price, and more often than not, there is always someone with a shedful of cash who's more than happy to pay it.
The thing is most sellers are savvy to this and so they start the bidding much lower, and set a reserve, this makes loads of people sit up and think, "I can't believe that price, or that I can be the only one who's seem this listing.... Sod it, I'm going for it" and place a bid...
Then the fun really starts, as if a bidder has been the highest bidder on an auction that's ending soon, or even for a few days, they are more than likely to get into a bidding war, with the next person who bids, and the next etc, thereby pushing the price right up, as there is something very addictive about beating the person who has just tried to "gazump" you after you've been bidding on an item for several days and been the highest bidder for at least part of that time!
In this way, I have seen a Mitzi sell for over £500.00, who certainly wasn't in as good shape as this lovely lady!
Bid Wars are really what every seller wants on Ebay, otherwise every item would be down as a Buy It Now listing!
Setting a Reserve safeguards the seller in this situation, as if the item does not reach the amount they want at the end of the auction, it remains unsold. This also encourages bidders to save that seller and hope they re-list and in some cases to even bid more generously next time!
I've seen this time and time again with Mitzi, which is why I know I will sadly never own one, but I do have plans to make myself a Custom Girl as close to her as possible, and who knows, maybe one day I'll be in a Charity Shop and I won't believe my luck after rooting about in the toy bin and coming up with one!
Oh well, a girl can dream a?!!
