I’d heard of them, but since I’d never owned one I didn’t have the passion or emotional attachment to them that many American women have.
I should mention here that being from England I was not exposed to the Cabbage Patch Kid craze that stormed America in the 1980’s. I’ve developed these gems of wisdom as a result of having spiffed up well over a hundred of these beauties to date (and having screwed up a couple – sniff).
However, in order not to ruin your doll you do need to know what you’re doing so I’m going to give you my strategies for how to clean a Cabbage Patch Kid SAFELY. I mean really – these dolls are over 30 years old and they clean up beautifully! When I first started getting interested in the Cabbage Patch dolls that were commercially sold in the 1980’s I was pleasantly surprised to discover how amazingly resilient these Kids are. (Wayne-Face does not necessarily agree with this idea.)ĭon’t forget to check out my How To Clean A Cabbage Patch video HERE: A Little Bit of Cabbage Patch History Looking at the display cases of original Cabbage Patch Kids that were hand-crafted by Xavier Roberts starting in the late 1970’s I was shocked to learn that those dolls can sell today for up to $40,000!ġ) NEVER dunk a doll until you’re certain of what it’s worth in its original condition, andĢ) I definitely need to go to thrift stores more often in case I get lucky and find a valuable dolly treasure. Yes, that’s me in my favorite chair EVER! The top I’m wearing is one of my own creations. So my advice is to always, always, always check online to make sure the doll you’re about to rescue isn’t worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars in its UNwashed state!įor example, I recently visited Babyland General Hospital (the birthplace of Cabbage Patch Kids) in Cleveland, Georgia. Dunking a highly collectible vintage doll into hot, soapy water can be a disastrous mistake! Any damage done in the process can seriously take away from the value of the doll. In this article I’m going to teach you how to clean a Cabbage Patch doll so that she/he comes out spotless and spiffy.īut beware. When you find some old beauties sorely in need of a spa treatment for just a couple of bucks it can make your heart sing.
If you’re anything like me, visiting local thrift stores on the hunt for neglected dolls to rescue is a thrilling treat. I left disturbed and wanting to un adopt my 1983 cabbage patch.Do’s and Don’ts of Cleaning Old Cabbage Patch Dolls The only way this could have been creepier was if there was a Chucky doll come to life during the birth and ran around with a knife. My partner's face when the monotone, blank faced nurse cut the cord, was pricelessly uncomfortable, while everyone else in the room seemed to think this was all business as usual. Announced like an actual birth, Mother Cabbage gives birth while a, "licensed patch doctor or nurse" assists, including cutting the cord. There was a live birth from the magic crystal tree while we were there.
Determined, we proceeded inside where we were greeted by the welcome desk greeter who directed us towards the, "hospital floor", where, "nurses" (in scrubs) would help us if needed. The excessively large concrete cabbage head sculptures adorning the lawn should have been a signal to retreat. If childhood nightmares came to life, this place is it. After forcing my partner to go (he'd been previously & hated it), I was truly unprepared for how creepy this place is. What can I say? I was a child of the 80's & thought this would be a fun, nostalgic stop.