Dramatic New Living Skipper - Very Best Velvet Gift Set - incl. Japanese Living Skipper Doll
1970/71 "Dramatic New Living Skipper ‘Very Best Velvet Set’ #1586
In 1970 and 1971 Sears sold a "Dramatic Living Skipper Very Best Velvet Set" #1586. This was the only gift set with a Living Skipper. The box resembled the "Perfectly Pretty" gift set, but the graphics showed a Living Skipper skipping rope in front of a shop. Skipper came with a clear plastic X-stand.
The doll included was unique to this set and was dressed in the same swimsuit like the #1147 Living Skipper and the 1970 #1117 Dramatic New Living Skipper. She came with a velvet orange dress and coat, yellow pantyhose (rare) and yellow flats made in Japan.
The doll's hair is shorter and lighter than the hair of the regular Living Skipper but darker than the hair of the rare pale blonde Living Skipper doll. She was produced in Japan. Her markings are different from the markings of the other Living and Dramatic New Living Skipper dolls, and she was slightly taller. Marking: © 1969 MATTEL INC JAPAN U.S. & FOR. PATD OTHER PATS. PEND. PATD IN CANADA 1967.
Skipper's head was softer than the ones of the Living Skipper dolls made in Taiwan and looks similar to the the TNT Skipper’s heads. There are Japanese
Living Skipper dolls with medium brown and with dark brown eyebrows. Dark brown eyebrows are more common.
This gift set is very hard to find. The Dramatic New Living Skipper doll made in Japan is very rare and harder to find as the Japanese Straight Legs Skippers.
Please note the box is marked JAPAN on the left side at the bottom.
Picture from the Sears catalogue:
This doll sold on eb.. for 264 US $ in January 2018 (good condition) and for 400 US $ (excellent condition) in another online auction in 2018 (doll only - no clothes or other gift set items).
You can find more photographs of this pretty doll as well as of other Japanese Living Skipper dolls on my website "Emily's girls" (Special Vintage Skipper Dolls from my private collection):
More info on Living Skipper dolls (incl. the Japanese Living Skipper):