jujsky Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Can you believe it? This is the 3rd year in a row they've retired one of the historical dolls and in that time they've only introduced one new one. I'm NOT happy. DD just got Felicity this summer and I was hoping to have years to buy her outfits & accessories :mad: She has such a great story too & is the only doll from anywhere near that time period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scrub Jay Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Thank you for posting this! My 5 years old DD is very interested in the American Revolution so I always thought we'd end up getting her Felicity. Maybe I'll do some early holiday shopping.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluemongoose Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Can you sew? These are free: http://www.agplaythings.com/AG%20Patterns/DollDressPatterns.html Plus many of the pattern brands at the store have colonial doll clothing patterns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 What a bummer. I think Samantha's one of the others that has retired? I remember my little sister telling me about that. Samantha was "my" doll, lol. I was going to have Felicity be my dd's - she looks so much like her. Bummer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romeacademy Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Oh, bummer! My twins were hoping for these dolls for their birthdays next year. I don't know why they keep retiring the cool older dolls. I have to say I'm underwhelmed by the Julie doll they brought in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2J112903 Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Felicity was one of my favorites! I had no idea they were retiring any of them. I guess this is what happens when you don't have a little girl, huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujsky Posted September 1, 2010 Author Share Posted September 1, 2010 Yeah, they retired Samantha 2 years ago & Kirsten at the end of last year. I can sew clothing, but I was hoping they would keep all of her accessories & issue more. We actually have 2 Felicity dolls, but I'll be selling one sometime soon (I won an auction lot that had several retired outfits & a couple of accessories after DD got her doll & figured I could sell the doll & still have a killer deal on the outfits). I was really, really hoping they would get more of the tea sets in stock & I'm disappointed that I won't be able to get that for her. I'm not willing to pay the inflated prices the tea sets are going for on e-bay right now!!!!! Guess we're going for a knock-off ;) I'm thrilled with the Rebecca doll they came out with last year. She was the only doll DD ever showed interest in & she shares my daughter's heritage. I wish they would come out with more historical dolls though. They should only retire one if they have another one waiting in the wings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebug42 Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 My daughter just got Elizabeth last week. I better get on the ball and get her some outfits. I don't know if we will be able to afford Felicity before the end of the year though. I will have to put my MIL on the case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bamagirl Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Oh no! I just rented the Felicity movie and checked the book out this week for my dd...it's our first taste of American Girls and she is already obsessed, I was planning to get her the doll. I better start looking for a deal quick! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Dd15 has Felicity and Elizabeth, a bed, table and chairs, the horses, a gazillion outfits (some I sewed), the tea set and several other accessories. She really wanted the carriage from years back. The dolls now live in dd10's room, with her Molly, but I catch both girls playing together every once in a while :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Can I say how unimpressed I am with AG since Mattel bought them out? I'd be willing to bet that Kirsten, Samantha, and Felicity were better sellers than the ethnic dolls (Addie, Josefina, Kaya, and now Rebecca) but you don't see the latter being discontinued. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Can you believe it? This is the 3rd year in a row they've retired one of the historical dolls and in that time they've only introduced one new one. I'm NOT happy. DD just got Felicity this summer and I was hoping to have years to buy her outfits & accessories :mad: She has such a great story too & is the only doll from anywhere near that time period. It is an interesting shift in focus. As I remember the story Pleasant Rowland wanted to create a book and doll linkup that would attract girls to history at a stage where they were still into dolls. As I look at the AG website it seems like so much of the emphasis is on the modern, which makes the dolls just another doll in my mind. There is no linkage to the books or to the history. I don't see what makes the AG dolls that unique now except for a level of detail with the accessories (and that is detailing that you used to have in the Muffy the Bear series). I also find that the dolls that have been eliminated seem to skew the emphasis of the historical collection toward the modern. I guess I'm glad that I still have patterns for historical outfits from Vogue and Simplicity from years ago. I only have sons, but perhaps I'll end up as the aunt who sews. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nakia Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 We got a letter in the mail today with the news. I think it really stinks. I am so glad that my oldest has both Felicity and Elizabeth, all their clothes, and most of their accessories. We have bought it a little at a time over the last 5 or 6 years. My middle has Samantha and Nellie and most of their clothes. Samantha and Nellie were my favorites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaissezFaire Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 I hate that they keep retiring our favorites! We have Samantha, Kirsten, Felicity and my 7 year old is getting Kit for her birthday. My girls always get one for their 7th birthday. I don't know who is going to be left for my 2 year old when she is 7. :( I do NOT want to get her Julie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imprimis Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 It is very disappointing. For me, the historical dolls and books are what set American Girl apart from every other doll manufacturer out there. I sent them an email relaying my disappointment. I just don't understand this move. I do hope there are other dolls in the planning stages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujsky Posted September 1, 2010 Author Share Posted September 1, 2010 I got a response from customer service just a little while ago. They said they were sorry that I felt they were shifting their focus to the more modern dolls (ummmm....maybe because they ARE!) and they feel the historical dolls are fundamental to the AG line (then quit retiring them!). They went on to say that in order to produce a good historical doll that they need 3 years of development (then if you ARE going to retire dolls how about doing it every 3 years when you issue a new one?) and then went into details about when Samantha, Kirsten, and Felicity were issued and how they are still "alive" in the archives and their stories can still be read. Yeah that's fantastic, but what about people who have the dolls and can no longer buy the outfits and accessories? As far as how long they've been around, so what? There is a whole new generation of little girls who are just starting to experience these dolls or haven't yet experienced them, and now they can't other than through the stories. I always wanted Samantha, and figured if I had a little girl that was the doll I would buy her. By the time my DD got into these dolls she was already archived :tongue_smilie: I think more people should write to customer service and express their displeasure. Maybe if they hear from enough people they'll get their heads out of their butts and stop retiring all these dolls. I accessed customer service on their website. I will say they were prompt -- I heard back the same day & I honestly wasn't even expecting to hear back from them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujsky Posted September 1, 2010 Author Share Posted September 1, 2010 Can I say how unimpressed I am with AG since Mattel bought them out? I'd be willing to bet that Kirsten, Samantha, and Felicity were better sellers than the ethnic dolls (Addie, Josefina, Kaya, and now Rebecca) but you don't see the latter being discontinued. :glare: As much as I adore Rebecca, you are probably right. I thought Samantha and Felicity were two of their most popular dolls. I never had one of these growing up, and DD's are new, but I have heard from many people that the pre-Mattel dolls were much higher quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hannah C. Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Actually, they were about to retire Felicity a couple of years ago. Then they brought her back. I guess too many people complained. Felicity was one of my favorites as a kid. She's also the oldest time period wise. I own Samantha, who was retired. My doll is in pretty good condition so she'll probably end up being collectible at some point, heh. Sadly, they don't display the retired historic dolls at the AG stores, but they do display the "Girls of the Year." I thought it was interesting that they retired Samantha (a rich white girl) and introduced..Rebecca?...- the Russian Jewish immigrant. I kind of wondered if that was purposeful or just how they decided to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldskool Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 When AG retired Samantha and Nellie a sales person told me that the company planned to bring them back in a few years, but who knows if this was just a rumor. This is the second time that they retired Felicity and my girls are really disappointed. It just feels like a marketing ploy. Lesley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1bassoon Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 There has been much weeping and gnashing of teeth at my house. . . My dd17 is disgusted with AG now. She says they've sold out. I'm inclined to agree. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cathmom Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Hopefully my daughters are used to this by now and won't get upset... One of mine was nearly hysterical when she found out they were retiring Kirsten - she had been waiting for a movie about her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 I wonder if the goal is more to replace the *stories* than the dolls per se. Kirsten's story had a whole lotta death in it, if I remember correctly, which is probably historically accurate but perhaps doesn't hold so much mass market appeal. Don't forget Mattel's experience with Barbie - there are *zillions* of Barbies, and collectors are never "done" in the way they can be now (to some extent) with AG (via eBay, etc.). The more different dolls Mattel puts out, the more they can sustain the sales, because folks can't get the current stuff second hand, if you see what I mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujsky Posted September 1, 2010 Author Share Posted September 1, 2010 Actually, they were about to retire Felicity a couple of years ago. Then they brought her back. I guess too many people complained. Felicity was one of my favorites as a kid. She's also the oldest time period wise. I own Samantha, who was retired. My doll is in pretty good condition so she'll probably end up being collectible at some point, heh. Sadly, they don't display the retired historic dolls at the AG stores, but they do display the "Girls of the Year." I thought it was interesting that they retired Samantha (a rich white girl) and introduced..Rebecca?...- the Russian Jewish immigrant. I kind of wondered if that was purposeful or just how they decided to do it. I had no idea they tried to retire Felicity a couple years ago. That was before DD was old enough to be interested, I guess. Maybe they revived her partly because of the movie? I see your point with retiring Samantha/introducing Rebecca. I LOVE Rebecca though & so does DD. Of course DH IS a Russian Jewish immigrant, so it's DH & DD's culture :D I always thought Samantha was so beautiful though. Like I said, way back before DD was into dolls (and before they introduced Rebecca who was a no-brainer for us when we chose a doll) Samantha would have been my doll of choice for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 It just feels like a marketing ploy. That's just what it is. When they retire a doll everyone rushes to buy it. Then everyone wants to buy the new doll. Well... grandmothers, anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 NO! My baby girl shares one of those names. She is only 2. I was looking forward to getting the matching named doll for her when she was older! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeW88 Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 We have 9 AG dolls. 2 Felicitys, Kirsten, Samantha, Molly, Kit, Kaya, Marisol and 2 modern dolls. Plus all of their stuff (at least for the historical dolls). And, I mean ALL of it. Yes, my dd was the only granddaughter on BOTH sides and my MIL had 3 boys. :lol: Anyway, we have been collecting AG since 1987 (before I was even married my MIL was buying me them...she had all this pent up desire to buy girl things she could finally unleash). I will say that the pre-Mattel dolls and accessories are of a MUCH higher quality than the ones they have available now. They have retired so many different accessories, clothes and other items that they used to have. They were so much more historically oriented in previous years. I LOVED the AG Historical Club and Kits that they promptly discontinued when Mattel took over. And, yes, they DID retire Felicity once before. They brought her back after about 3 years. No explaination at all. As the pp said, "They sold out." Of course, if I were Pleasant Rowland, I probably would have taken the $795 million, too. Diane W. married for 22 years homeschooling 3 children for 16 years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the4Rs Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Boooo...my daughter loves Elizabeth. I can't fork out that kind of money in such a short amount of time. Oh well. Nothing good ever lasts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.