Holly Hobbie Doll Story

Who doesn't remember the exquisite little rag-dressed girl wearing a gigantic bonnet? I myself wanted to dress like Holly Hobbie and, believe it or not, I still love her clothes!

This fantastic little character appeared for the first time as illustrations on greeting cards. Because of the popularity of the character, Knickerbocker Toys quickly licensed the artwork and started the production of rag dolls made after the drawings; which would become a worldwide favorite.

I myself remember that we had Holly Hobbie stickers that we would stick to everything, and whether children or teenagers, we were proud to show our Holly Hobbie stuff at school.

The author of Holly Hobbie's books was born Denise Holly Ulinskas and got married to Douglas Hobbie in the early 1960's.

Holly Hobbie is a writer and illustrator and, while she writes the well known Toot and Puddle books, her most popular hero is the Holly Hobbie character, created in the late 1960's.

40 years ago, Holly Hobbie sold the marvelous Holly Hobbie character, a rag dressed little girl wearing a big bonnet to American Greetings, a holiday greeting cards supplier.

This artwork based on Holly Hobbie herself would become one of the most popular little girls and dolls ever.

Holly Hobbie doll and character evolved over the decades and the rag-doll became a teenager. Her patchwork dress became blue jeans and blue t-shirt while her floppy bonnet became a cap.

From Richard Dubelman's book titled "The Adventures of Holly Hobbie" to "Holly Hobbie and Friends" movie, the doll changed entirely until it became a 21st century Lolita.

Nowadays, Mattel produces Holly Hobbie dolls with the "Holly Hobbie Clubhouse Girls" collection that includes Holly Hobbie, Amy and Carrie sold with a few accessories and each doll comes with a pet.

Another collection is "Design My Style" that would provide to fashionista children with a lot of pleasure.

The little girl wearing a patchwork dress and a giant bonnet has become so famous that fashion artists like Laura Ashley took inspiration for their collections - long pastel printed dresses, floating around women and so country style.

But fashion wasn't the sole field that was caught by the Holly Hobbie craze: the exquisite little girl appeared on many products like dinnerware, bed linen, china, dolls and much more!

Holly Hobbie collectibles are selling very well and for highly expensive prices on auction sites such as eBay.

All pictures, except the second one, are courtesy of Greeting Cards 4 You. They allow free use of their materials, therefore I strongly advise you to go to their site to download the pictures.