Fleur doll variants - Part 1: 1981 and 1982

The biggest task of all for a collector is to identify a doll, if she comes loose and nude. If you follow my blog, you have for sure read my post about Fleur Identification (see here). What I tried is to make a chart that makes it possible, to identify a loose Fleur doll or at least to narrow the possibilies down to only a few. I tried to simplify Fleur! However, the longer I collect and the more I talk to other collectors, the more I find dolls that don't match my chart. Because Fleur is not a simple doll!  And here is the reason why:

Otto Simon did more than one edition of most of the dolls, some were even produced over several years and each edition might have gotten a new facemold, facepaint and even hairstyle. Some did get a new box, some not. Sometimes the outfits had also new tweaks.

That's why I need to add much more dolls to my identification chart, to make it really work...which on the other hand is not simplified anymore but gets more and more complicated.

This blog post is about all the variants of dolls, that were made that I have seen so far. Most of the pictures from this post are borrowed from Worthpoint.com, a site that shows past Ebay listings. Sadly Worthpoint does not show the owner of the original listing, so if you find a photo of your listing here, please write me a mail (see bottom of page) and I will link to your Ebay profile or remove it if you wish!

As far as I could find out, the first 80s Fleur dolls were sold in a dark green box with a cardboard flap at the site that showed a promo picture of the doll inside. This box was probably used untill 1983 and in late 1983 switched to a dark green box without the cardboard flap that often showed a small promo picture of the doll at the front (but not always).

If you want to see all headmolds used for Fleur dolls in the 80s, click here.

Headmolds which I refer to in this blog post are:

Ballerina facemold: First headmold of the 80s, small head, pointy chin, small eyes with usually long lashes, that are not strongly curled. Azure blue eyecolor. Usually small, red lips. The very early dolls could have tiny lips. Usually flat back of head. The vinyl often tends to darken a bit and the early heads are mostly hart. Blush placed on the lower side of the cheeks.

Aerobic facemold: Second headmold in the 80s, head still smaller than late Fleur dolls but wider than Ballerina face. Usually flat back of head. Oval eyes with azure blue eyecolor (untill 1984). Early dolls with the Aerobic mold had usually long lashes like Ballerina mold and small red lips. Later dolls with this mold (from 84) had shorter lashes that were more curled upwards shaped like a fan, a navy blue eyecolor and bigger lips. Vinyl could be hart or soft. Blush placed on the lower side of the cheeks.

Bighead facemold: Rare headmold, head is very big, comparable to the latest Fleur dolls from 1987 in size, but made of very soft vinyl. Typically azure blue eyes and subtle eyeshadow. Oval eyes with long lashes. Small lips that tend to fade.Flat back of head. Blush placed on the lower side of the cheeks. On photos it can be easily confused with the Ballerina fcemold.

Fleur dolls, that were introduced to the market in 1981 probably all had the Ballerina facemold and all came on the Ballerina body (click here to see all body types Fleur dolls had).  They were mostly sold in dark green boxes with a cardboard flap at the side. 

Dolls released in 1981 were: Rainy Day (1980), Ballerina, Kitties and Parade.

Rainy day Fleur was actually released in 1980. However, because she already has the typical sweet 80s Fleur face and resembles the dolls, that were made in 1981, I added her too.

Of Rainy Day exist at least two variants, both with the Ballerina head and body, but one with a sidepart ponytail and one with the typical Fleur flip hairstyle. It is possible, that they were released in different years. Both variants had the same box with cardboard flap that shows a promo picture of Rainy Day Fleur in red. As far as I have seen, she was only made with the Ballerina headmold (but it doesn't mean that any other variant doesn't exist). She can be identified by a glue residue that is on her head, because the hat was glued on. However she is not the only doll with glue residue...

She was made in three different colored outfits, in red, blue and brown. There are many variants of the dresses, that Fleur wears underneath her coat.

 Parade Fleur was first made in 1981 with the Ballerina mold sold in the box with cardboard flap. Later,  she was reissued with the Bighead facemold with still long lashes and tiny lips. The second version also came in the box with cardboard flap, so I suspect that she was released in 82 or early 83.

I found two more bighead Parade dolls loose, and the seller asured me, that these were childhood dolls and for sure Parade. My collector friend Patricia Ruiter also bought a brunette doll in the Parade outfit. The doll was completely new and still had the golden thread, where the baton was attached to, around her wrist. She also has the same very soft big head. 

The first edition of Ballerina had the Ballerina facemold with small lips. She was made with two outfit variants, a white and blue ballet dress and matching ballet shoes. She was sold in a dark green box with the cardboard flap.

She was reissued probably in 1983 in a box without the flap. She still had the Ballerina facemold, but her lips were bigger and the hair was longer. The second edition was only made wearing the white dress as far as I know. 

I recently found a Ballerina Fleur with the Bighead facemold. This version must be rare, as this is the only one I have ever seen so far.

Dolls , that were introduced to the market in 1982, were made with the Ballerina facemold and ballerina body and came in the box with cardboard flap. However, most of these dolls were reissued in 1983 (and maybe even 1984), and the second (and third) versions of these dolls could have either the Ballerina facemold or the wider Aerobic facemold. 

Dolls first released in 1982 were: Popstars, Florida, Shopping, Sunny Day and In Concert.

The first edition of Popstar Fleur was released in a dark green box with cardboard flap, these are much harder to find these days, so they were probably just a small edition. These dolls could have had the Ballerina facemold, but I am not entirely sure, because the picture I have is very small. It is also possible, that they were sold with the Ballerina mold and with the Aerobic facemold, which was introduced in this year.

The second edition of these dolls was sold in a simple dark green box. These dolls have usually the Aerobic facemold with azure blue eyes and long lashes. These dolls could have been sold in 1983 and maybe also 1984.

Popsrtar Fleur was available in a silver or a gold costume, each in threee haircolors: blonde, brunette and ginger.

I have also found an odd doll on Worthpoint. It is a Popstar Fleur sold in a light green box without any name written on it. As far as I know, Otto Simon (or BT Toys) used these boxes at the end of the Fleur era, to sell out old stock, because they have changed Feur's appearance and boxes completely in 1988 into the New Look Fleur. It is hart to tell from this angle, which facemold the doll in light green box has.

Florida is a doll that is hart to find but very easy to identify because of her tanned skin color. As far as I have seen, she was only made with the Ballerina facemold and came in a box with flap. I don't own a boxed Florida Fleur but Fleurdolls.com made a blog post dedicated to Florida Fleur. So please go to here (extern link), to see more photos of a NRFB one!

Florida Fleur was made with three haircolors, a pale blonde, a brunette and a ginger.

Shopping was probably sold only in the box with cardboard flap as far as I have seen. She was first released with the Ballerina facemold in 1982 and reissued in 1983 with the Aerobic facemold. The outfit was the same. She also has glue residue on her head, like Rainy Day Fleur. However her hair was shorter than Rainy Day's. Shopping Fleur with the Aerobic facemold seems to have bigger lips than her Ballerina counterpart and fading eyebrows.

Sunny Day Fleur was first released in a box with cardboard flap with the Ballerina facemold and tiny lips in 1982. She was later reissued with the Aerobic mold in 1983, probably in the same box although I have no proof for that. The second edition has bigger lips. She can also be identified by glue residue on the top of her head.

In Concert Fleur was released in 1982 in a dark green box with cardboard flap. Her first (and maybe only) release had the Ballerina facemold with very tiny red lips. She can be easily identified by her sidepart hairstyle. There is only one more doll with a similar hairstyle, Famous Fashion Fleur first released in 1984. 

In Concert Fleur usually has a lot of hair styled into a half ponytail. The gown was made in two variants, one has the strap on the left and one on the right shoulder.

In the next blog post I will present you the variants of Fleur dolls first released in 1983 and 1984.