Pleasant Company | ResaleQueen Kris and Betsy Smith http://www.resalequeen.com This is the keyword feed for Pleasant Company. The Resale Queen is Betsy Smith a reseller and junker wise beyond her years. She is a mother of two with hard working nerd husband. She can tell you nearly anything you need to know about resale or finding that item that you desire the most. en-us Palegroove Studios 2004-2010 No Croncast, Kris, Betsy, Comedy, Parenting, Funny, Palegroove, Croncast, eBay, Goodwill This is the keyword feed for Pleasant Company. The Resale Queen is Betsy Smith a reseller and junker wise beyond her years. She is a mother of two with hard working nerd husband. She can tell you nearly anything you need to know about resale or finding that item that you desire the most. She likes it thrifty! This is the keyword feed for Pleasant Company. The Resale Queen is Betsy Smith a reseller and junker wise beyond her years. She is a mother of two with hard working nerd husband. She can tell you nearly anything you need to know about resale or finding that item that you desire the most. She likes it thrifty! http://www.resalequeen.com/images/croncast_itunes.jpg Pleasant Company | ResaleQueen http://www.resalequeen.com This is the keyword feed for Pleasant Company. The Resale Queen is Betsy Smith a reseller and junker wise beyond her years. She is a mother of two with hard working nerd husband. She can tell you nearly anything you need to know about resale or finding that item that you desire the most. She likes it thrifty! Betsy Smith - Resale Queen info@palegroove.com http://www.resalequeen.com Palegroove Good Advice on Finding American Girl Dolls for Cheap Online http://www.resalequeen.com/rss/18DYD6CGw5IskC/Good-Advice-on-Finding-American-Girl-Dolls-for-Cheap-Online_American-Girl_Pleasant-Company.php Blog I have some advice for you guys if you are hunting online for  American Girl items on the cheap.  My daughter has 7 of the dolls and I also buy them all the time to sell.  The most I have ever paid for a doll is $30, but that was for Lindsey the first girl of the year which I sold for $250.  The last one I bought was Elizabeth for $1, the lady didn't care because her overindulgent mother-in-law had bought it as a gift for her daughter.  People always ask me how do you find American Girl stuff at garage sales?

Well, this is how:

1. Craigslist, if you just go onto Craigslist for your local area and click the link for "for sale" type "American Girl" into the search box at the top of the page.  You will find American Girl dolls not only for sale in the "items for sale" section but also the garage sale section.  Since Craigslist is free and newspapers charge per word some people go into great detail in their listings and by typing "American Girl" into that top search box you will pull up all the listings that have American Girl stuff.  Another bonus of finding it at a garage sale, no shipping cost!

People also are selling American Girl stuff in the classified and while some is kinda high Ebay priced, I found a woman selling 6 dolls and an Armoire for $125 for everything, she was a mom who thought played with dolls werent worth much and didnt want to mess with Ebay.  Check this frequently because there are frequent posts and the stuff goes fast!

2. Ebay, I know everyone says Ebay is so expensive.  Well, I have to tell you when I need $40 for groceries I put up American Girl dolls for buy it now $40.  So when you are searching on Ebay, modify your search by checking the "Buy It Now" listings box on the left side of the page and "Just Listed" as well- if someone puts up Jess for $45 it will be gone fast.

Also for some reason people call American Girl stuff AG on Ebay, as though the Ebay search bot magically knows that this is American Girl, so if you type AG doll into the search box you are going to get a lot of homemade clothes a gramma made that "fit AG dolls" but you will also find dolls listed without American Girl in the title which are going to have way fewer people finding them and thus have a lower sales price.

Some sellers list dolls as Pleasant Company, some sellers think Pleasant is spelled Pleasent, a frequent mistake so check that too.  Sellers also sometimes only list the dolls name like their whole title will be "Kit doll" no AG/American Girl/Pleasant Company. So keep an eye out for that.

3.  Did you know that Goodwill ( as in the thrift store/charity) has their own auction site?  When people bring in great stuff sometimes they pull it to the side and put it up on their auction site.  If you go to shopgoodwill.com there is a round search icon on the top right of the page, click that then type in American Girl or Pleasant Company and there are always dolls on this site.  You do have to register for to use the site, but it is a pretty easy Ebay-esque type of deal. 

One of the most frequent stores selling their American Girl stuff this way: the Madison, WI store where the annual outlet sale used to be held and just down the road from  Middleton, WI where the company began and where the outlet store is and the current annual sale is held.



Tags: American Girl Pleasant Company American Girl Doll Doll of the Year ]]>I have some advice for you guys if you are hunting online for  American Girl items on the cheap.  My daughter has 7 of the dolls and I also buy them all the time to sell.  The most I have ever paid for a doll is $30, but that was for Lindsey the first girl of the year which I sold for $250.  The last one I bought was Elizabeth for $1, the lady didn't care because her overindulgent mother-in-law had bought it as a gift for her daughter.  People always ask me how do you find American Girl stuff at garage sales?

Well, this is how:

1. Craigslist, if you just go onto Craigslist for your local area and click the link for "for sale" type "American Girl" into the search box at the top of the page.  You will find American Girl dolls not only for sale in the "items for sale" section but also the garage sale section.  Since Craigslist is free and newspapers charge per word some people go into great detail in their listings and by typing "American Girl" into that top search box you will pull up all the listings that have American Girl stuff.  Another bonus of finding it at a garage sale, no shipping cost!

People also are selling American Girl stuff in the classified and while some is kinda high Ebay priced, I found a woman selling 6 dolls and an Armoire for $125 for everything, she was a mom who thought played with dolls werent worth much and didnt want to mess with Ebay.  Check this frequently because there are frequent posts and the stuff goes fast!

2. Ebay, I know everyone says Ebay is so expensive.  Well, I have to tell you when I need $40 for groceries I put up American Girl dolls for buy it now $40.  So when you are searching on Ebay, modify your search by checking the "Buy It Now" listings box on the left side of the page and "Just Listed" as well- if someone puts up Jess for $45 it will be gone fast.

Also for some reason people call American Girl stuff AG on Ebay, as though the Ebay search bot magically knows that this is American Girl, so if you type AG doll into the search box you are going to get a lot of homemade clothes a gramma made that "fit AG dolls" but you will also find dolls listed without American Girl in the title which are going to have way fewer people finding them and thus have a lower sales price.

Some sellers list dolls as Pleasant Company, some sellers think Pleasant is spelled Pleasent, a frequent mistake so check that too.  Sellers also sometimes only list the dolls name like their whole title will be "Kit doll" no AG/American Girl/Pleasant Company. So keep an eye out for that.

3.  Did you know that Goodwill ( as in the thrift store/charity) has their own auction site?  When people bring in great stuff sometimes they pull it to the side and put it up on their auction site.  If you go to shopgoodwill.com there is a round search icon on the top right of the page, click that then type in American Girl or Pleasant Company and there are always dolls on this site.  You do have to register for to use the site, but it is a pretty easy Ebay-esque type of deal. 

One of the most frequent stores selling their American Girl stuff this way: the Madison, WI store where the annual outlet sale used to be held and just down the road from  Middleton, WI where the company began and where the outlet store is and the current annual sale is held.



Tags: American Girl Pleasant Company American Girl Doll Doll of the Year ]]> Sat, 25 Oct 2008 15:47:58 -0400 tag:resalequeen.com,732 I have some advice for you guys if you are hunting online for  American Girl items on the cheap.  My daughter has 7 of the dolls and I also buy them all the time to sell.  The most I have ever paid for a doll is $30, but that was for Lindsey the first girl of the year which I sold for $250.  The last one I no American Girl, Pleasant Company, American Girl Doll, Doll of the Year, How to Clean American Girl Doll Skin http://www.resalequeen.com/rss/XPkRnlT4NgK7vZ/How-to-Clean-American-Girl-Doll-Skin_American-Girl_Clean-American-Girl-Doll.php Podcasts  
How do you remove that gross layer of kid grub from AG skin?

I use Magic Erasers, they are totally remove the gross grimey stuff leaving clean limbs behind.

How do you fix their hair?

My mother advises washing doll hair in fabric softener so I am going to give it a whirl on the old Pleasant Company Molly I bought for a dollar today.  I will let you know what I find.


Tags: American Girl Clean American Girl Doll Pleasant Company ]]> 
How do you remove that gross layer of kid grub from AG skin?

I use Magic Erasers, they are totally remove the gross grimey stuff leaving clean limbs behind.

How do you fix their hair?

My mother advises washing doll hair in fabric softener so I am going to give it a whirl on the old Pleasant Company Molly I bought for a dollar today.  I will let you know what I find.


Tags: American Girl Clean American Girl Doll Pleasant Company ]]> Sat, 23 Aug 2008 18:49:28 -0400 tag:resalequeen.com,692    Dont you just hate it when you see that promising peek of tan cloth body at a garage sale and get all excited only to find the poor American Girl doll you have pulled out of the stuffed animal bin looks like it should be begging for 35 cents a day on late night tv? How do you remove that gross layer of kid grub from AG no American Girl, Clean American Girl Doll, Pleasant Company, , American Girl Dolls & Ebay: A Love Affair http://www.resalequeen.com/rss/RuTGoHo0NejyPN/American-Girl-Dolls-_and_amp;-Ebay:-A-Love-Affair_American-Girl-Lindsey_American-Girl-pre-mattel-doll.php Podcasts loved them and have been looking at them on ebay. Could you do a ReSale Queen on the American Girl dolls?  What should I look for?  Is it worth it to invest in an older doll or should I just buy new?  What do you think?"

I love American Girl dolls too- that is the whole basis for their success I think.  They totally appeal to mommies as well as kids. 

As a buyer you have to make a decision.  Are you taking the Beanie Baby route- buying the dolls as some sort of investment your kid can retire on at 19, or are you buying dolls for your daughter to fall in love with, to drag along on her adventures and to make her best friend.

Or maybe you just are wondering whether the older dolls are higher quality and you just want the coolest little best friend for your daughter.

To help you determine which path to take I am going to give you a little background on how these things are listed on Ebay and what you can expect to pay for each classification.

American Girl was the brilliant idea of a Wisconsin teacher.  She started Pleasant Company in 1986 with a catalog.  The reason a lot of people think dolls from this period are higher quality is because they were made by the Goetz company in Germany, a respected doll manufacturer.  These dolls are tagged made in West Germany.  The earliest dolls also had white bodies.  Remember that when she started there were only 3 characters Molly, Kirsten and Samantha- so if your daughter wants one of the newer characters like Kaya then you cannot buy a "vintage" one.

On Ebay a white bodied doll which is the rarest of the older girls can sell for over 500 if it is in the original box with all tags in mint condition.  Check out completed item 320040707406.  Also valuable are accessories produced during this early period as they are perceived to be of higher quality than current ones.

So the next batch of dolls were made in West Germany but had regular flesh colored bodies, the side tags on these dolls also state Made in West Germany, though they are not as highly sought after on Ebay because they are more common.  Expect to pay between 50-100 depending on the character, clothing, and of course condition. If you are interested in purchasing one of these put pre-mattel American Girl into the Ebay search box.

In the early 90's dolls were still made in West Germany, then production was moved to Hungary for a year then finally to China were they are made to this day.

In 1998 the Wisconsin teacher sold the company to Mattel.  Pleasant Company as a name disappeared and the company was renamed American Girl to better utilize brand recognitiion.  This helps to date any accessories or dolls you may find second hand, anything marked Pleasant Company irregardless of where it was produced is pre-mattel.

Now what's with the whole pre-mattel thing? Well I guess people freaked when she sold the company- like Mattel was going to Barbieize American Girl- cheapen the brand and the quality.

Mattel has definitely expanded the line of characters as well as produced movies and other stuff to publicize the brand.  There are also the American Girl stores now which are really fun if you haven't gone.

I have both pre and post Mattel American Girls and personally I don't see a huge quality difference.  Please don't email me and tell me I am wrong- it's just my opinion.

The dolls retail in the AG stores or catalogs for around $87 new.  If you can do better than that on Ebay and your child doesn't mind a previously enjoyed doll then go the Ebay route.  I wouldn't personally spend $100 just to get a pre-mattel doll for my child to play with.

Ebay is  a cool place to find all the retired play sets.  This is where the brand has really excelled in quality- ever tried to put a Barbie doll on a Barbie chair- it takes concentration and luck to get Barbie furniture to function.  American Girl stuff has wonderful detail and quality.  Even the things I find at garage sales years later are in awesome condition.

Look for the current sets on Ebay as well they are generally cheaper on Ebay than in the catalog.

How are people doing that?  For one thing there is an American Girl outlet store in Appleton Wisconsin and you see a lot of Ebay items from that area since people go to the outlet then sell the stuff on Ebay.  I haven't been to the outlet yet so I don't know if it's super cheap.

Another fun thing to collect in the American Girl collection and something that has done well on the secondary market is the American Girl doll of the year.

This started in 2001 with Lindsay, the only Jewish doll American Girl has come out with.  Lindsey's in the box can sell for around $300- I was lucky enough to buy mine at a garage sale for $25.  If you are not picky about the box thing expect to pay $125-$150 for an out of the box gently played with Lindsey and 80-100 for a naked played with one.  She was only out for the year then retired December 31st.

Christmas 2003 brought Kailey an environmentalist- worth about $130 on Ebay. She was retired 12/31/04.

12/2004 brought Marisol a dancer doll with an Hispanic face mold- same as Josefina.  She was also retired promptly, and Jan 1st of 2006 about a million hit Ebay.  She is easier than the earlier dolls to find new in box I think a lot of people bought her to resell so mint in box is more common for Marisol plus it hasn't been that long since retirement.  She is still worth around $150 new in box.

For 2006, there is Jess.  Her story places has her paddling around Belize in a kayak for some reason.  She is not yet sold out- still available on the AG website for $87.  If you think you might want one buy them now last year Marisol sold out in very early December.

For 2007, the doll is going to be Nicki Fleming a Colorado girl who lives on a ranch and trains service dogs.  Rumor has it she will have brown curly hair and blue eyes.  She will be available soon.

I personally like the dolls that have been loved, they have more personality than the new in boxers.  My favorite doll has Kool-Aid tinted hair and Sharpie tattoos as well as a bad haircut- dolls like this aren't worth much on Ebay maybe $25-$35- but hey that's why I'm the resale queen.

Tags: American Girl Lindsey American Girl pre-mattel doll American Girl Retired Resale Queen Buy American Girl Dolls ]]> loved them and have been looking at them on ebay. Could you do a ReSale Queen on the American Girl dolls?  What should I look for?  Is it worth it to invest in an older doll or should I just buy new?  What do you think?"

I love American Girl dolls too- that is the whole basis for their success I think.  They totally appeal to mommies as well as kids. 

As a buyer you have to make a decision.  Are you taking the Beanie Baby route- buying the dolls as some sort of investment your kid can retire on at 19, or are you buying dolls for your daughter to fall in love with, to drag along on her adventures and to make her best friend.

Or maybe you just are wondering whether the older dolls are higher quality and you just want the coolest little best friend for your daughter.

To help you determine which path to take I am going to give you a little background on how these things are listed on Ebay and what you can expect to pay for each classification.

American Girl was the brilliant idea of a Wisconsin teacher.  She started Pleasant Company in 1986 with a catalog.  The reason a lot of people think dolls from this period are higher quality is because they were made by the Goetz company in Germany, a respected doll manufacturer.  These dolls are tagged made in West Germany.  The earliest dolls also had white bodies.  Remember that when she started there were only 3 characters Molly, Kirsten and Samantha- so if your daughter wants one of the newer characters like Kaya then you cannot buy a "vintage" one.

On Ebay a white bodied doll which is the rarest of the older girls can sell for over 500 if it is in the original box with all tags in mint condition.  Check out completed item 320040707406.  Also valuable are accessories produced during this early period as they are perceived to be of higher quality than current ones.

So the next batch of dolls were made in West Germany but had regular flesh colored bodies, the side tags on these dolls also state Made in West Germany, though they are not as highly sought after on Ebay because they are more common.  Expect to pay between 50-100 depending on the character, clothing, and of course condition. If you are interested in purchasing one of these put pre-mattel American Girl into the Ebay search box.

In the early 90's dolls were still made in West Germany, then production was moved to Hungary for a year then finally to China were they are made to this day.

In 1998 the Wisconsin teacher sold the company to Mattel.  Pleasant Company as a name disappeared and the company was renamed American Girl to better utilize brand recognitiion.  This helps to date any accessories or dolls you may find second hand, anything marked Pleasant Company irregardless of where it was produced is pre-mattel.

Now what's with the whole pre-mattel thing? Well I guess people freaked when she sold the company- like Mattel was going to Barbieize American Girl- cheapen the brand and the quality.

Mattel has definitely expanded the line of characters as well as produced movies and other stuff to publicize the brand.  There are also the American Girl stores now which are really fun if you haven't gone.

I have both pre and post Mattel American Girls and personally I don't see a huge quality difference.  Please don't email me and tell me I am wrong- it's just my opinion.

The dolls retail in the AG stores or catalogs for around $87 new.  If you can do better than that on Ebay and your child doesn't mind a previously enjoyed doll then go the Ebay route.  I wouldn't personally spend $100 just to get a pre-mattel doll for my child to play with.

Ebay is  a cool place to find all the retired play sets.  This is where the brand has really excelled in quality- ever tried to put a Barbie doll on a Barbie chair- it takes concentration and luck to get Barbie furniture to function.  American Girl stuff has wonderful detail and quality.  Even the things I find at garage sales years later are in awesome condition.

Look for the current sets on Ebay as well they are generally cheaper on Ebay than in the catalog.

How are people doing that?  For one thing there is an American Girl outlet store in Appleton Wisconsin and you see a lot of Ebay items from that area since people go to the outlet then sell the stuff on Ebay.  I haven't been to the outlet yet so I don't know if it's super cheap.

Another fun thing to collect in the American Girl collection and something that has done well on the secondary market is the American Girl doll of the year.

This started in 2001 with Lindsay, the only Jewish doll American Girl has come out with.  Lindsey's in the box can sell for around $300- I was lucky enough to buy mine at a garage sale for $25.  If you are not picky about the box thing expect to pay $125-$150 for an out of the box gently played with Lindsey and 80-100 for a naked played with one.  She was only out for the year then retired December 31st.

Christmas 2003 brought Kailey an environmentalist- worth about $130 on Ebay. She was retired 12/31/04.

12/2004 brought Marisol a dancer doll with an Hispanic face mold- same as Josefina.  She was also retired promptly, and Jan 1st of 2006 about a million hit Ebay.  She is easier than the earlier dolls to find new in box I think a lot of people bought her to resell so mint in box is more common for Marisol plus it hasn't been that long since retirement.  She is still worth around $150 new in box.

For 2006, there is Jess.  Her story places has her paddling around Belize in a kayak for some reason.  She is not yet sold out- still available on the AG website for $87.  If you think you might want one buy them now last year Marisol sold out in very early December.

For 2007, the doll is going to be Nicki Fleming a Colorado girl who lives on a ranch and trains service dogs.  Rumor has it she will have brown curly hair and blue eyes.  She will be available soon.

I personally like the dolls that have been loved, they have more personality than the new in boxers.  My favorite doll has Kool-Aid tinted hair and Sharpie tattoos as well as a bad haircut- dolls like this aren't worth much on Ebay maybe $25-$35- but hey that's why I'm the resale queen.

Tags: American Girl Lindsey American Girl pre-mattel doll American Girl Retired Resale Queen Buy American Girl Dolls ]]> Wed, 08 Nov 2006 10:23:32 -0500 tag:resalequeen.com,31 "My daughter wants an American Girl doll for Christmas.  I've always loved them and have been looking at them on ebay. Could you do a ReSale Queen on the American Girl dolls?  What should I look for?  Is it worth it to invest in an older doll or should I just buy new?  What do you think?" I love no American Girl Lindsey, American Girl pre-mattel doll, American Girl Retired, Resale Queen, Buy American Girl Dolls