Today’s “Do a Pick” game features the following:
- Best Buy 3343/8620 (the midi skirt with straps)
- Best Buy 3206 (the long skirt with bonnet)
- Best Buy 3208 (the business suit)
You’ll notice the thumbnail for today’s video and the first bullet above seems to imply that there’s not a hard-and-fast rule about which Best Buy number matches the midi length skirt that has a ruffle and straps. I must admit… I struggled with this one!
If you look at the page from the brochure below, you’ll see that the purple arrow points at the correct outfit, which has been labeled Best Buy #3343. The turquoise arrow points at a blue dress with Best Buy number 8620. So what’s the deal-ee-oh?
![In a lilac striped frame, we see a page from the Barbie accessories brochure from 1975, which is cited as “Brochure Citation: Mattel, 1972, THE BEAUTIFUL WORLD OF BARBIE, [Brochure]. Mattel. (1972).” Listed among the many Best Buy outfits are #8620, which is a navy blue dress with leg-of-mutton sleeves and a red ribbon tied at the waist. This dress’s best buy number has a turquoise arrow pointing to it. There’s also a purple arrow pointing at Best Buy fashion #3343, which is shown as a multicolored skirt with a ruffle and suspender-like straps. This skirt is worn over a short-sleeved white blouse that has small puff sleeves. This skirt is midi length, and both the ruffle and the straps match the skirt’s floral multi-colored pattern.](https://i0.wp.com/chellywood.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Brochure-Image-from-DoAPick-Do-a-Pick-Videos.jpg?resize=720%2C514&ssl=1)
There must have been a typing error in this brochure. Does anyone know the story behind this? Were the packages labeled with the numbers swapped? Or did Mattel have a misprint?
Feel free to leave a comment with the information you’ve heard about this wacky switcheroo!
At the end of today’s video, I also mentioned my Spoonflower fabric store. Feel free to click on this link to go exploring there.
My #DoApick shorts on My YouTube Channel are a blast from the past! They let you choose from retro dolls and their clothing items and/or accessories, while imagining a fun playtime adventure from a bygone era.
Join the fun! Leave your “pick” in the comments!
Here are 3 ways you can help support my website and YouTube channel:
- Buy something from my online store on ChellyWood.com (including fabric, buttons, snaps, zippers, etc.)
- Buy something you need or want from my Etsy store
- For teachers or librarians, purchase something from my Teachers Pay Teachers store
Disclaimer/Credit/Affiliate Marketing Statement:
Please note: when you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include Amazon, Etsy, and the eBay Partner Network. As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. To learn more about how my website uses affiliate marketing, please visit the website’s Privacy Policy page.
To honor the trademark rights of the doll companies mentioned in this blog post, I am including links to their websites here. Please feel free to visit their website and consider purchasing one or more of the dolls mentioned.
Vintage Barbie dolls are products that were once offered by Mattel, which holds the registered trademark for them (™). They can sometimes be purchased from Mattel as reproductions. Please visit the Mattel Toys website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.
To learn more about Mattel’s vintage Barbie dolls, please click here. Disclaimer: ChellyWood.com is not affiliated with Mattel, but Chelly personally enjoys designing clothes to fit the dolls their company has created.
Brochure Citation: Mattel, 1972, The Beautiful World of Barbie [Brochure]. Mattel, Inc. (1972).