Barbie Clothes Identification

Tags

• The earliest Barbie clothes made by Mattel have tags with black lettering on white cloth that display the words "Genuine Barbie" and "Mattel," according to Elizabeth Anderson, a longtime Barbie collector in Indiana. Anderson said that if the clothing is for Ken or another of Barbie's friends, it will say, "Genuine Ken" or "Genuine [whatever the doll's name is]." Newer Barbie clothing items have tags made of white cloth with pink or purple lettering or other colors. They still say "Genuine Barbie," but they typically do not have the Mattel name. Sometimes they also have a stylized letter "B" along with the "Genuine Barbie" designation.

Fastenings

• Early Barbie clothing items have zippers, snaps, buttons and buttonholes, Anderson said. The type of fastenings on clothing with genuine Barbie tags give you an idea of when the item was manufactured. Newer items, manufactured in the 1980s and on, have Velcro fasteners, Anderson said. Older items, provided they are in good condition, are highly collectible and, therefore, worth more money than newer items.

Clothing Styles

• The Barbie dolls of 1960s and 1970s wore more dresses and pantsuits than today's Barbies. Now the stylish doll wears more short skirts, shorts and sportswear that would not have been seen in the 1960s and 1970s. Colors are another indicator of whether the Barbie items are vintage or contemporary. Anderson said the bright pinks, purples, greens and golds that were popular in the doll's early years, along with the print patterns that look like the mod contemporary styles of that period, are louder than today's more muted colors.