“That’s right,” said Addy. “We going home together.”

here's confetti carnival! i love lalaloopsy dolls so expect more :P

This is part of a series in which I am posting clips of my larger project by decade as I finish them. For more about this project, or to ask me to include your doll or OC, check out my pinned post.

Previous posts:

17th century

1700-1739

1740-1769

1770-1799

1800-1849

1850-1899

1900-1949

The OCs in this post that are mine are He-Mei and Florence, Gertrude and Mabel, Hattie and Mattie, Diya and Medha, Bernice and Lawrence, Tammy and Donna, Ben and Rain, and Shazmeen and Liora (they're in pairs because I did the Best Friends series based on @americangirlstar's suggestions, and in the process created a Best Friend for each of my own characters). Francesca, Honoka, Chela, and Karine belong to @autistickirstenlarson, Lilyann belongs to @kirstenlarsons, Violette belongs to @getintothesun, Charlotte belongs to @gardner-n-pardner, Hope belongs to @Lorsdolladventures, Francie belongs to @futuristicsaladparadise, Alice belongs to @mapleleagirls, Remy belongs to @americangirloftoday, and Adrienne belongs to @addywalkerstan. Also I should have been mentioning it all along, but a very large number of the poses are from @adorkastock. If you'd like your historical doll or OC included in this project, HERE'S THE LINK; more detail about that at the end.

While putting together previous installations I became aware that I have the birth dates wrong for several of the canon characters. I'm planning a redo for the canon character set, eventually, so please do let me know if I'm wrong about anyone. I might already know, but since I have pretty severe dyscalculia as well as ADHD it's not bad to have the info available in multiple places.

I also feel that I should repeat the statement I made before that I had a hard time finding accurate, non-exoticizing references for Kaya, Speaking Rain, and Singing Bird's wardrobes without embarking on a level of research way beyond the scope of this project. If someone is reading this who has familiarity with and access to visual references for 20th century Nimiipuu, Salish, and Dakota/Lakota clothing, and the time and patience to help me understand them, I would be very interested in learning.

1950s

Addy Walker: 96-99 Sarah Moore: 96-99 He-Mei Hsieh: 85-94 Florence Coburn: 85-94 Lucy Morgan: 85-94 Gertrude Levy: 75-84 Mabel Kaplan: 75-84 Medha/Mahtab: 73-82 Diya/Nasreen: 70-89 Harriet Shapiro: 65-74 Matilda Greene: 65-74 Samantha Parkington: 56-65 Nellie O'Malley: 56-65 Rebecca Rubin 46-55 Ana Rubin 46-55 Alice McDougal 46-55 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 42-51 Francesca Vitale 41-50 Bernice Wright 35-46 Lawrence Ross 35-46 Dinah Hope Bellini 36-45 Kit Kitteredge 28-37 Ruthie Smithens 28-37 Lillyann Bonney 20-29 Nanea Mitchell 19-28 Lily Suda 19-28 Emily Bennet 18-27 Molly McIntire 17-26 Honoka Oishi 11-20 Adrienne Davis 6-15 Maryellen Larkin 6-15 Davy Fenstermacher 6-15 Chela Suarez 0-8 Val Porter 0-8 Melody Ellison 0-6

I actually kind of love how some of the canon outfits translate to the '50s. Kit's pencil skirt vs. Ruthie's crinoline, Samantha in pedal pushers, old lady Addy making one last appearance in her sash, Nanea's two-piece sun suit. Some of the Agblr OCs really shine in this one too, though: Francie's puffy apron over narrow dress was fun to imagine, as was Francesca's trendy pantsuit and Lillyann's summery hats.

1960s

He-Mei Hsieh: 95-99 Florence Coburn: 95-99 Lucy Morgan: 95-99 Gertrude Levy: 85-94 Mabel Kaplan: 85-94 Medha/Mahtab: 83-92 Diya/Nasreen: 80-99 Harriet Shapiro: 75-84 Matilda Greene: 75-84 Samantha Parkington: 66-75 Nellie O'Malley: 66-75 Rebecca Rubin 56-65 Ana Rubin 56-65 Alice McDougal 56-65 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 52-61 Francesca Vitale 51-60 Bernice Wright 45-56 Lawrence Ross 45-56 Dinah Hope Bellini 46-55 Kit Kitteredge 38-47 Ruthie Smithens 38-47 Lillyann Bonney 30-49 Nanea Mitchell 29-38 Lily Suda 29-38 Emily Bennet 28-37 Molly McIntire 27-36 Honoka Oishi 21-30 Adrienne Davis 16-25 Maryellen Larkin 16-25 Davy Fenstermacher 16-25 Chela Suarez 9-18 Val Porter 9-18 Melody Ellison 7-16 Karine Bedrosian 0-9 Julie Albright 0-4 Ivy Ling 0-4 Tammy Sussman 0 Donna Kim 0

Honestly I really love those 1965 evening gowns. Lillyann and Adrienne came out particularly elegant. I also had a ton of fun with the spring outfits, especially Maryellen's bridesmaid dress and Molly and Emily's matching ruffles.

1970s

Gertrude Levy: 95-99 Mabel Kaplan: 95-99 Medha/Mahtab: 93-99 Diya/Nasreen: 80-99 Harriet Shapiro: 85-94 Matilda Greene: 85-94 Samantha Parkington: 76-85 Nellie O'Malley: 76-85 Rebecca Rubin 66-75 Ana Rubin 66-75 Alice McDougal 66-75 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 62-71 Francesca Vitale 61-70 Bernice Wright 55-66 Lawrence Ross 55-66 Dinah Hope Bellini 56-65 Kit Kitteredge 48-57 Ruthie Smithens 48-57 Lillyann Bonney 40-59 Nanea Mitchell 39-48 Lily Suda 39-48 Emily Bennet 38-47 Molly McIntire 37-46 Honoka Oishi 31-40 Adrienne Davis 26-35 Maryellen Larkin 26-35 Davy Fenstermacher 26-35 Chela Suarez 19-28 Val Porter 19-28 Melody Ellison 17-26 Karine Bedrosian 10-19 Julie Albright 5-14 Ivy Ling 5-14 Tammy Sussman 1-9 Donna Kim 1-9 Tina D'Amico 0-4 Courtney Moore 0-2

Chela's Bata Cubana really shines in this decade, but there are really a lot of fun ones going on in the 70s. I like how Lillyann's holiday dress translates to an older woman's flowing 70s evening gown, and I enjoyed how Adrienne's spring dress came out too. With canon characters I liked Maryellen's spring dress and Melody's natural afro and platform heels.

1980s

Harriet Shapiro: 95-99 Matilda Greene: 95-99 Samantha Parkington: 86-95 Nellie O'Malley: 86-95 Rebecca Rubin 76-85 Ana Rubin 76-85 Alice McDougal 76-85 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 72-81 Francesca Vitale 71-80 Bernice Wright 65-76 Lawrence Ross 65-76 Dinah Hope Bellini 66-75 Kit Kitteredge 58-67 Ruthie Smithens 58-67 Lillyann Bonney 50-69 Nanea Mitchell 49-58 Lily Suda 49-58 Emily Bennet 48-57 Molly McIntire 47-56 Honoka Oishi 41-50 Adrienne Davis 36-45 Maryellen Larkin 36-45 Davy Fenstermacher 36-45 Chela Suarez 29-38 Val Porter 29-38 Melody Ellison 27-36 Karine Bedrosian 20-29 Julie Albright 15-24 Ivy Ling 15-24 Tammy Sussman 11-19 Donna Kim 11-19 Tina D'Amico 5-14 Courtney Moore 3-12 Ben Eichenbaum 0-4 Rain Einhorn 0-4 Remy Blake 0-2

The thing about the 80s and 90s fashions is that once we get into my actual lifetime I can feel the fabrics viscerally while I'm drawing them. There's soft knits, thick denims, stiff cottons and staticky polyesters, and from this point onward they somehow feel more real. And of course the formalwear, with what I once considered an aspirational number of ruffles. I was half tempted to include myself in the timeline.

1990s

Samantha Parkington: 96-99 Nellie O'Malley: 96-99 Rebecca Rubin 86-95 Ana Rubin 86-95 Alice McDougal 86-95 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 82-91 Francesca Vitale 81-90 Bernice Wright 75-86 Lawrence Ross 75-86 Dinah Hope Bellini 76-85 Kit Kitteredge 68-77 Ruthie Smithens 68-77 Lillyann Bonney 60-79 Nanea Mitchell 59-68 Lily Suda 59-68 Emily Bennet 58-67 Molly McIntire 57-66 Honoka Oishi 51-60 Adrienne Davis 46-55 Maryellen Larkin 46-55 Davy Fenstermacher 46-55 Chela Suarez 39-48 Val Porter 39-48 Melody Ellison 37-46 Karine Bedrosian 30-39 Julie Albright 25-34 Ivy Ling 25-34 Tammy Sussman 21-29 Donna Kim 21-29 Tina D'Amico 15-24 Courtney Moore 13-22 Ben Eichenbaum 5-14 Rain Einhorn 5-14 Remy Blake 3-12 Nicki Hoffman 0-9 Isobel Hoffman 0-9 Shazmeen Malik 0-8 Liora Blickman 0-8

Hi guys! I’ve been really busy lately (all good things- life has been being kind to me) but I did find the time to re-read Minuk’s book for the first time since I was a pre-teen. And it holds up even better than I thought it would. Get yourself a cup of tea and a snack because this is a real beast of a post. 

For those of you that don’t know, I am Yup’ik, like Minuk. Her relatives are from quite a bit further up the Kuskokwim River than mine. When Minuk came out, my cousin was just the right age to rope our family into American Girl. There are two, possibly three, Minuks waiting for me, and one might be coming into my possession soon. Unlike most toys, Minuk was a special doll, and when I got to hold her, it was with clean hands and under an adult’s watchful eye. I was captivated by her little body, her detailed clothes and tiny braids, and her wistful, sad, sideways gaze. I loved her lips and earrings. She’s definitely my favorite doll from the GOML line, and the fact that she represented Yup’ik culture and heritage set her apart- there’s not much in the way of Yup’ik media out there, especially when I was little.

With my personal sappiness out of the way, let’s dig in to the book. It made me cry then and I was pretty close last week. I didn’t realize it was written by Kirkpatrick Hill until a few months ago. I had a near-complete collection of her books as a kid, and she’s written some fantastic kids literature focusing on Alaska and Alaskan history. She’s a white native Alaskan (born and raised in Alaska) but not Alaska Native (ancestors crossed the Bering Strait and ate a lot of berries in a lot of bushes). (In a state full of transplants, the distinction is important.) However, she was raised in a family with lots of Alaska Native relatives, including older step-relatives who relayed a lot of oral history to her as a history curious kid. Personally, I think she does an A+ job of tackling the culture and history of Native Alaska, informed by decades as a teacher in the bush. It might have been nice to hire a Yup’ik author for Minuk, sure, but Hill does a phenomenal job and I don’t think I would want to lose Ashes in the Pathway for anything.

Spoilers past this point!!!! (And some very depressing plot.)

There’s an air of negativity on AGblr right now that to me, feels driven by a desire to one up each other’s criticisms and find the worst thing about this release.

Do I have criticisms? Yes. But I’m seeing a trend towards not just criticism but taking frustrations at AG and extrapolating them into exaggerated versions of fandom caricatures of AG’s behavior as a brand, like a game of fandom telephone.

These dolls will make a lot of kids very happy. They’re unique. They incorporate new storylines, add diversity (and I’m seeing a lot of collectors interpret diversity as physical attributes when it’s really not), and bring back classic traits that AG hasn’t used in a while. They’re from an interfaith household. They have a loving relationship with each other. They have awesome bedroom accessories and adorable illustrations. They’re Jewish girls whose story does not fixate on that as a core tenet of their identity, whose story integrates their faith into the broader tapestry of American culture, and I wish AG had included that in their segment on why they’re important.

Merry Munchies