Holly Hobbie

Before writing the Toot and Puddle books, Holly Hobbie was known to little girls around the world as creator and namesake of the soft blue bonneted friend with a patchwork dress. I had Holly Hobbie books, sheets, pillows, flatware, and, of course, dolls. I loved the drawings - they looked like Little House on the Prairie with a touch of whimsy. The unruly hair and the crumpled clothing were sometimes more endearing than the shiny perfection of Strawberry Shortcake.

Anyway, I used to have a bunch of rag dolls, including the two pictured above, which were Carrie (in red) and Holly (in blue). I also had Robbie, the requisite boy, and this huge brunette rag doll, who I had thought was an earlier version of Holly Hobbie, in fact is another character named Heather. Her yarn hair would always fall in her face.

These were simpler toys, and very huggable. American Greetings is hoping to restart the doll line and has a preliminary website up.