As for me, I brought two new Cabbage Patch Kids to live at Casa Pizarro. Mama is gonna kill me once she notices, but I'll die happy. These are my thirtieth and thirty-first Cabbage Patch Kids. This first boy's name is Matthew Tommie, but I call him Matt the Brat or just plain Matt. He is from Flagstaff, Arizona.
Matt has the #2 head, one that collectors have termed the "brat" head, hence the nickname "Matt the Brat." Indeed, Matt does look like he's got his own dirty little secret.
I'd best keep him away from Lucey Dena. These two look like they could be sneaky!
Lucey: Who, us?
Yes, you two! Lucey is quiet, but she's sneaky! The other Kids never know when she's gonna pull some stunt on them, though she never hurts anyone. But with Matt around, the pranks will probably increase in frequency.
Regarding other attributes, Matt is hiding a bald dome underneath his hat, but while he lacks hair, he does have his papers. Three guesses as to what his birthday will be! The first of which month? September, October, or November???
November! This means that Matt shares a birthday with Cara Raelean and Esmond Brant. I guess having all Cabbies born on the same day made it easy to send out those birthday cards. Jakks Pacific also sent out cards on a Cabbie's first birthday, but their birthdays weren't the same. So I bet sending out the cards was no small feat then. Matt happens to be very fond of birthdays, by the way...and other things!
For the sake of completion, and because I'm going to discuss the next Cabbie's clothes, Matt is wearing a knit set. These first hit the market in 1984 and were sold separately, but later dolls were sold wearing them. I don't know if this set is original to Matt, but he wears it well.
Shee-yoodie, it's too hot to be wearing knitwear, but Matt and Esmond Brant give no flying burritos.
I love it when a doll wears knitwear, though. Cabbage Patch Kids are already soft enuff, but those woolies add an extra layer of cuddle to the mix.
With that, I've got examples of all four of the first heads. #1 (left) is termed the "shy" face, and as I said above #2 is the "brat." #1 has no dimples, and #2 has two dimples and a long nose. Matt is only my second doll with a schnozz like that, by the way (Idalia Gale was the first).
Here's the inside.
The envelope was addressed to both Sharla and to "Kitrick Randolph," confirming that my doll's name was officially changed from one to another. I love this little peep into Randolph's past life, though! He clearly was loved dearly at one time, and now he will be again.
With that, I've got examples of all four of the first heads. #1 (left) is termed the "shy" face, and as I said above #2 is the "brat." #1 has no dimples, and #2 has two dimples and a long nose. Matt is only my second doll with a schnozz like that, by the way (Idalia Gale was the first).
#3 (left) is "happy," and #4 is "paci." I also call it "binky." #3 has a dimple on its left cheek, while #4 has two dimples and a hole for that binky. These first four are easy to tell apart.
Still no #30 in sight, but all in good time. I have a brat head and that's good. Matt is NOT Nathan and Esmond's brother, by the way. He's just a friend. They look cute together, though.
In addition to the Brat I also have something fairly rare, and that's even better. Matt's friend isn't a gaudy yellow, but he IS a Tri-Ang Pedigree Cabbie, and thus another foreign doll off my bucket list.
Tri-Ang Kids were made for distribution in South Africa and are hard to find stateside. In mint condition their prices are high as a cat's back, but my feller is not quite mint. Few Tri-Ang Cabbies are, for reasons I'll soon discuss. My new boy has two names, Randolph Fergus and Kitrick Randolph. His birthday remains the same on both papers. I guess his owner (a little girl named Sharla Finch) wanted to change his name at some point, but now the choice is mine.
Decisions, decisions. I like both names! Since both names incorporate the name "Randolph" I'll just call him that. Randolph comes from Diana's Patch and has thus been well-cared for, so for a Tri-Ang his eyes are...well, fair. Tri-Ang Cabbies have unstable eye paint that clouds and smears with time, and indeed Randolph's eyes are murky. They're supposed to be brown.
For comparison, Matt's eternally-smiling Coleco eyes are still bright. I love brown-eyed Cabbies!
Randolph's muddy eyes aren't any fault of Diana's, of mine, or of anyone's really. Indeed, he probably had the life of Reilly with Diana, as he will with me. Faulty eye paint is sadly an issue common to all Tri-Ang Cabbies. For example, Diana's gaudy yellow has the same problem; I think her eyes were blue at one time, but now they're dark. I freaking love Diana's gaudy, by the way; she's got that hair, and Diana redressed her in an outfit that looks freakishly authentic. That doll is a gem.
I'm sorry to say that I don't know as much about Tri-Ang Cabbies as I should. I know about the unstable eye paint, I know that bright yellow hair is most sought after by collectors, and I know that flowered overalls are...either rare or highly desired by the same collectors. I also know that like Jesmar Tri-Ang monkeyed with hair and eye color combos a bit, and like Candela Laura I appear to have gotten one of these. Randolph's hair is "rust"-colored and loopy, and according to one of Diana's lists rust hair is not so common. However, to me Randolph's hair looks...well, it kinda looks like Coleco's gold shade. Whadda y'all think? That's Idalia Gale's hair, by the way; I don't yet own a Coleco with gold hair.
Regarding foreign hair colors, this YouTube video shows Tsukuda and Lily Ledy Cabbies with hair that doesn't follow the Coleco color matrix. Thus all four of the foreign manufacturers apparently played by their own rules. I like that; it makes the foreign Kids more like little individuals. For the record, two of the Kids in the linked video, a Jesmar girl and a Lily Ledy boy, have a lovely shade of blonde hair called "champagne." It's very fair hair, but it has a subtle pink tint like Aurora's hair does. I know now what hair color is going on my radar! I'm not closing the door on a gaudy yellow either, but I'm also not holding my breath, LOL! Diana also mentions a shade called "taffy"...I wonder what that looks like? Probably another shade of wheat; wheat hair has a lot of variations. 
Okay, moving on. Like Jesmar, Tri-Ang only used head molds #1 through #4, with Randolph's head being a #1 head. I have three other Cabbies with this head (yep, three!), but they're all babies and all bald so it's all good.
Of the first four heads the #4 is my favorite, and normally I feel very meh about the #1 head...but I like it a lot with hair! I said above that #1 is called the "shy" head, but of my four dolls with this head Randolph is the only one who lives up to that name. So far, that is. He may just be tucked in his shell, as new dolls often are.
Moving to clothes, Randolph's eBay listing said that his getup is handmade, and a fine getup it is! None of my other Cabbies are quite this dapper.
Bow ties are cool! LOL, Diana apparently made this outfit herself. The striped bits are rippled, giving the overall fabric a nice texture. Randolph's little tie is sewn to his shirt, which is good. Sandy McCall's tie had loosened elastic and thus it's a pain to keep it straight. Overall this is a lovely, soft outfit, perfect for a Cabbie to sit around in...or play in, take your pick.
...and a Christmas boy, Timothy Alan.
Those are nice names! In addition to those items Randolph's first birthday card is here...in English and Afrikaans!
All four of the foreign markets lost their license in early 1985, thus why no Tri-Ang Cabbies have popcorn hair, grasping hands, or any head other than the first four. Sigh...can y'all imagine a gaudy yellow popcorn girl? That would be a dream come true for me. But it wasn't to be, and Idalia Gale and Beryl June are perfectly good popcorn girls without sunshine locks. For reasons unknown Beryl June has become a favorite among my Failbook friends.
But nope, no Tri-Ang would be a popcorn unless someone customized her. But that's alright, I've got a Tri-Ang doll and I'm very pleased with him. Here's how Matt and Randolph look together; they make a cute pair.
I envision them as the stereotypical Tommy/Chuckie sort of pair; Matt is bold, fearless, and a little (a lot?) mischievous, while Randolph is cautious, thoughtful, and very on the shy side. He's also not word-perfect in English, but Candela Laura has already said she'll help him with that.
Now...I need to cut out the buying! That's thirty-one Cabbies, and unless a Tsukuda or a Lily Ledy turns up for a steal I need to quit for awhile, LOL.
Love,
RagingMoon1987
Now...I need to cut out the buying! That's thirty-one Cabbies, and unless a Tsukuda or a Lily Ledy turns up for a steal I need to quit for awhile, LOL.
Love,
RagingMoon1987
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