AGIS Stands for Angels Garden International School. This is a line of dolls released in 1999 with larger, more anime like eyes. It was aimed more towards children. The following dolls were part of the series: Jenny, Ferice, Lilian, Valerie, Moe, Kyoko, Shou (boyfriend), Kana, Angeli, Jessica, and Airi
Brown Box Also known as the LE or Limited Edition friends. Starting in 1998, Takara released friend dolls in bathing suits with a little card and with a limited edition number on the card. No one is sure how many dolls each friend is limited to.
CG or Calendar Girl This is a series of dolls that was first released in 1996. There is a different Calendar Girl with a different theme for each month of the year.
The Castle Also known as Licca-chan Castle (see directions), is the factory in Japan where Takara makes many of its dolls. The Castle also sells exclusive "Castle Dolls" in its gift shop. The factory part of it was built in 1972. The store part of the Castle was first opened in 1993. From the front, it resembles a western style castle.
Gray Box Usually refers to the friends released from 1995 to 1996 for Jenny's 10th Anniversary. The dolls released were: Abel, Annie, Aya, Ellie, Elise, Erika, Francois, Jane, Judy, Julia, Juliana, Kisara (2 versions I believe, 1 with blond hair and one with light brown), Louise, Marine, Rie, Rosana, and Sheena. Gray Box is also sometimes used in reference to some of Totoco's dolls. Originally, Totoco did not have its own boxes and so released dolls in regular Jenny boxes. Sometime in 1997, Totoco started producing its own boxes.
Jenny Shop No longer in existence, it use to be the name of a shop in Harajuku that sold exclusive dolls and exclusive outfits. Many of the dolls that were created for the Jenny Shop are quite popular because they are very beautiful and were made in limited quantities.
Jenny's Club Usually refers to one of the official fan clubs run by Takara for Jenny and friends. It costs 1200 yen to join Jenny's Club and is currently only open to people living in Japan. As a member of Jenny's Club you receive the Nice Jenny newsletter and the opportunity to order the Nice Jenny Collection dolls by mail order. In the mid 1980's Takara released a series of bathing suit dolls introducing Jenny and friends called Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls. Frequently, this name is shortened to Jenny's Club, as Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls is a bit unwieldy. These dolls were released between 1986-1988. They were sold in pale gray boxes with large windows and the name of the friend written on the box and are not the same as the bathing Jenny Club S dolls.
Jenny's Club S Usually refers to one of the official fan clubs run by Takara for Jenny and friends. It costed 12000 yen a year to join this club. One had to be a resiednt of Japan to join this club. As a member of Jenny's Club S you get all of the benefits of membership in Jenny's Club (see above) plus several added benefits. A Jenny's Club S member has the opportunity three times a year to order exclusive Jenny's Club S bathing suit dolls which, were only available to members of Jenny's Club S. Members also received a Jenny's Club S Premium Excelina. Members were also given the opportunity to order a semi-custom made doll and to enter a raffle for a chance to go on the Jenny's Club S Castle Painting Tour. This club was discontinued in 2002. It was in operation for 3 years, 1999, 2000, and 2001.
Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls This is the name for the bathing suit dolls introducing Jenny and her friends from 1986-1988. Frequently, the name is shortened to Jenny's Club. The Jenny's Club Coordinate dolls are not related in any way to Jenny's Club.
Jenny Fashion Club This was the name of a magazine published by Nihon Vogue between 1986-1989. It was the predecessor of Jenny Magazine and the My Favorite Doll Books. Jenny Fashion Club contained simpler patterns than either of its two descendants.
Jenny Magazine This was the name of a magazine published by Nihon Vogue between 1989-1995. It was the predecessor of the My Favorite Doll Books.Jenny Magazine contained patterns as well as hair styling tips and directions for making accessories. They've been collected compendiums one can purchase.
Jenny Mates This is the name for a series of Jenny friends introduced in 1990. Unlike the Jenny's Club Coordinate dolls, this series wore various fashions supposedly representing the country the particular friend was supposed to be from. This was also the first time Jenny wasn't a member of the series. The Jenny Mates friends consisted of Erika, Elise, Louise, Francois, Rosana, and Abel.
Kiddyland A large chain of toy stores that sell many Jenny and Licca items as well as some items from NDR. The main branch of Kiddyland is located in Harajuku in Tokyo. (see directions
Licca Castle Please see the Castle.
Licca Club 67 In the basement of Hakuhinkan Toy Park in Ginza, (see directions) Licca Club 67 is run in conjuction with Takara and carries many Jenny and Licca items as well as several exclusives, including outfits, that were formerly Castle exclusives. There is an opportunity to design your own Jenny or Licca, post cards of the various friends, and every month exclusive limited edition bathing suit dolls are released. It also sometimes has Castle dolls in stock as well as doll class Liccas.
LE Also known as brown box friends. Starting in 1998, Takara released friend dolls in bathing suits with a little card with a limited edition number on it. No one is sure how many dolls this series is limited to.
MFDB Stands for My Favorite Doll Books. These are a series of sewing books put out by Nihon Vogue. There is one series for Jenny and friends and one series for Licca and friends. Even those who do not sewing can enjoy these books because of the wonderful pictures and a chance to see some harder to find friends. The back of each book has promotional pictures of upcoming doll releases.
NDR Stands for Noix de Rome, which, is the name of what was once two small shops in Tokyo that sell handmade outfits as well as bodies, heads and other items to make your own doll. Some of NDR's products have also been sold at Kiddyland as well as on the NDR home page.
Nice Jenny Usually refers to the fan newsletter distributed by Takara to members of Jenny's Club or Jenny's Club S.
Nice Jenny Collection This is the name for the series of dolls released by Jenny's Club available either by mail order from the Nice Jenny Magazine (Please see above) or at the "better" department stores, Totoco and Licca Club 67. These dolls seemed to be released three times a year and are usually released in groups of six.
PG Stands for Photogenic Jenny. This is a line of dolls that was first released in 2000. The Photogenic Jenny line used a new body which is similar to the body of the old Mattel Tutti dolls. The body is considered more photogenic because it is all one piece without any joint marks, it was discontinued in 2003, I believe.
SAJ Refers to the super action body Takara created so that their dolls could be more poseable. The SAJ body was first used in 1997 and was discontinued in 2000 with the creation of the photogenic body. Recently, it has started to appear again, though not on playline dolls.
Takara-bako Means "Treasure box" and was the name of Takara's on-line shopping page. Takara seems to periodically decide to offer dolls via this venue and so at some point might do so again. Generally, the dolls were released were either semi-order made or in limited numbers.
Takara The name of the company that manufactures Licca, Jenny, and all of their friends.
Thanks Fair For the several years, once in the summer and once in the winter the Castle has had a "Thanks Fair." During the Thanks Fair, all gift shop dolls were 10% off original price and the Castle releases lots of new and interesting dolls for those able to make it to the Castle. For those people who were unable to make it to the Castle (and requested one), a brochure was sent out 2 weeks after the Thanks Fair ended where people could order dolls from the brochure. You had to be living in Japan to order a brochure and to be able to order from the brochure. Recently, the Castle has been selling more dolls via their website.
Thanks Fair Catalog The name of the brochure Takara puts out for people who were not able to make it to a Thanks Fair.
Totoco A small store in Tokyo (see directions) which sells special limited edition dolls along with regular release dolls. Totoco is quite popular and sells out of its dolls quite quickly.
Volks A hobby shop (see directions) in Japan which sells bodies, heads, paints, outfits, and everything else you might need to create your own customized doll. Volks also sells lots of figurines, anime merchandise and prepackaged Takara items. A lot of people like the bodies you can buy at Volks because they have greater movement capabilities than the SAJ body. Recently, Volks has been carrying Azone (a clothing designer) outfits as well as several other lines of fashions. Many of their "Who's That Girl" fashions look quite fetching on Jenny and friends.
Question: So when was Jenny first released?
In 1980 in an attempt to gain a larger market share Mattel teamed up with Takara to create a new version of Barbie for a Japanese audience. This partnership lasted until 1985. As Takara's new version of Barbie was selling quite well when the partnership ended, Takara didn't want to discontinue her. They felt that their doll looked different enough from the original Barbie by Mattel that as long as they changed her name, they would be able to legally continue production of their doll. Takara changed her name to Jenny and thus Jenny and friends were born.
Question: When were the various friend dolls first released?
When Jenny was still known as Barbie, she had a friend named Ellie and a friend name Flora. Frequently these two dolls are referred to as "Old Flora" and "Old Ellie" because they used different face painting masks and different face molds than the current friends named Flora and Ellie. Of course if there is a Barbie, you need a Ken. Takara also made a version of Barbie's faithful beau.
In 1986, Jenny was introduced in a bathing suit series of dolls called "Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls." Along with Jenny, the following friends were also released in this series, Julia, "Old Flora", Sheena, Jenny Marine (who later in 1986 became just Marine), and the new version of Ellie. Ken was updated to become Jeff, Jenny's first boyfriend.
In 1987, Kisara was introduced as was Olive. Jenny also met everyone's favorite playboy Raph.
In 1988, there was a new release of bathing suit dolls called "Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls." Only Jenny from the 1986 "Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls" was re-released at this time. Along with Jenny, the following new friends were also released in this series, Meirin, Judy, Lisa, Aya, and Annie. There might also have been a Kisara released at this time.
In 1990, Jenny found a bunch of new friends from various countries in the Jenny Mates series. There was no Jenny released as part of the Jenny Mates series, just a bunch of new friend dolls. These friends were Rosana, Elise, Abel, Fransois, Louise, and Erika. In 1990, Timotei was also introduced in connection with a shampoo in Japan called Timotei. Timotei introduced Jenny to her cousin Charles, a Scandanavian prince.
In 1991, Jenny met her twin in a matter of speaking, Chelsea.
In 1992, Jenny met Jane and Rie. Ellie started a club, "Ellie's Club" with the following friends as members, Ellie herself, Kisara, and a new friend, Lina. Tom entered ready to fight Jeff for Jenny and Jane introduced Jenny to Mike.
In 1994, Jenny met Juliana at a disco club. The club was named Juliana, like the doll, in 2000 nduring a licensing disagreement Juliana was redubbed 'Jenny's friend'.
In 1997, Jenny made some more friends. In ballet class, she met Sherry. Jenny also started a new modeling club with the following members, Jenny herself, Ellie, a new version of Flora, and Naomi. Jenny also met Mille Feuille.
In 1998, Jenny met Mitsuki in the 'Street Pop' series. Jenny also met Laura.
In 1999, Jenny made a host of new friends. In the Spring, she met Kaori. Jenny started school at AGIS, where she became friends with Lilian, Valerie, and Ferice. Jenny also had 2 new friends introduced at the Jenny Festa that Fall, Susy and Julirisa.
In 2000, Jenny made some more friends at AGIS. She met Kyoko and Moe along with a new boyfriend Shou. She also made some friends who shared her new Photogenic body, Shion and Lobelia. Towards the end of 2000, at AGIS, she also met Angeli, Jessica and Airi (who liked to dance). Jenny also made friends with Nanako Hoshizawa, who worked at 7-11 and was thus a 7-11 exclusive.
In 2001, while attending AGIS, Jenny made friends with Kana. While going to Fashion School, Jenny met some more PG friends, Tamaki, Sayaka. Tomoki, a new boyfriend is also part of the PG line though he doesn't have a PG body.
In 2002, I don't think any new friends were released.
In 2003, the Calendar Girl line released new friends Chihiro and Aiko.
In 2004, the Calendar Girl line released new friend Sayuri.
Jenny also has several celebrity friends which, as far as I know have only appeared once. Jenny made friends with Yumi and Ami of Puffy, Yoshikawa Hinano, the idol singer, and Yumi Katsura, a Japanese designer,
Question: So how do you tell Marine from Excelina from Jenny?
Generally, the best rule of thumb is going by the color of the eye shadow the doll is wearing. Jenny always has white eye shadow. Jenny's eyelashes are also always the same color as her pupil. This is not true of Marine. Excelina has two extra lower eyelashes that Marine and Jenny do not have.
Question: What are the themes of the Calendar Girls?
The Calendar Girls started in April of 1996. (The Japanese School year starts in April which is probably why Takara started the CG year then. I also think April use to be the first month of the Japanese calendar before they switched to our western system.)
The April 1996-March 1997 Calendar girls each contained a birthstone card but were dressed in outfits meant to evoke the months the girls represented. Thus February is pink haired and wearing a pink and red outfit with lots of hearts and June is in a bridal gown. If one collected all the cards and mailed them to Takara within a month of the series ending, Takara sent back a special Premium Excelina.
In April 1997-March 1998, the Calendar Girls each contained a birthflower card and were dressed in outfits meant to evoke those flowers. Like with the previous Calendar girls, if one collected them all, there was another Premium Excelina one could send away for.
In April 1998, the Calendar Girls each contained a new birthstone card and this time were dressed in outfits meant to evoke those birthstones. February is dressed in an amethyst colored gown and July has meshed crayon red and orange hair to evoke rubies. Unlike earlier CG girls, this time Takara used the Jenny 18 mold rather than the regular Jenny mold. Once again, there was a Premium Excelina one could send for if all the cards were collected.
In April 1999-March 2000, Takara introduced Calendar girls with open mouths and the Jenny 18 mold. Unlike previous series, this series was not very popular because of the open mouths. Part way through the series, Takara scrapped the open mouth and switched to closed mouths again. The theme this time was birthday cocktails and each CG had a cocktail card and was dressed to evoke that cocktail. There was also a Premium Excelina available if all the cards were collected.
In April 2000, Takara tried another experiment, using Jennys with different expressions. So, some of the CG girls have closed eyes, or winking eyes, or just look like a regular Jenny. The theme for 2000-2001 is music. The girls are dressed in outfits meant to evoke different types of music There was a Premium Excelina available when the series ended in March 2001.
In 2002 January, a new Calendar Girl series started up. This time it included Marine, Kisara and 18 Jenny. The theme was costumes. I personally think this is one of the nicer Calendar Girl lines. There was a Premium Excelina available.
2003, was a line of Calendar Girls with a school uniform theme. Despite my not owning any of them, this was my favaorite Calendar Girl series. I hope to at some point pick up the Mitsuki or some of the costumes. The Premium Excelina had toyokalon hair and wore a graduation robe.
2004, is themed around costumes for various eras. The final doll of this series was not produced due to copyright issues.
Personally, I think the last 3 years the calendar girls have been excessively pretty and the costumes have been so much better. Kudos to Takara for turning this into one of my favorite lines of dolls being produced.
Takara has not sold any dolls in this line in 2005.
Question: My dolls' box has bar code sticker that says "1980" is that the year it is from? My dolls' box says "Takara Co. Ltd 1996" on the front is my doll from 1996 then? Finally my LE friend is wearing a bathing suit that says "15th Anniversary." 15th Anniversary of what?
The number on the bar code sticker (For those interested it is the last number above the bar code and has a "-" before the number. ) is the price in yen. So your doll's box is telling you that originally it cost 1,980 yen at a department store. (It would be less at Toys R Us though.) All playline released dolls have their original price on their box.
The "Takara Co. LTD (and then year)" is the year that particular doll was first released. Jenny and Licca both have their original release dates, 1986 and 1967 respectively and on later boxes the date Takara thought about changing/changed their respective molds. (So a current Jenny's box says "Takara Co. LTD 1986, 1991" and a current Licca's box says "Takara Co. LTD 1967, 1987." If your Jenny box just says "1986", then your doll is Pre-1991. ) So for example Erika would say "Takara Co. Ltd. 1990" while Julia would say "Takara Co. Ltd. 1986." It is possible you could have the first release of a particular doll, but not necessarily true. To know if you have a first release of a friend please see "Question: When were the various friends released."
"!5th Anniversary" is celebrating the 15th Anniversary of Jenny being created. Jenny's first year was 1986 and so 2000 was her 15th year. Because the LE Friends are part of the Jenny line, they too are celebrating Jenny's Anniversary. The first set of LE friends wearing 15th Anniversary bathing suits wore pink bathing suits. Subsequent release have been wearing black bathing suits like Pre-2000 LE Friends. The newest friends released in 2001 no longer say 15th Anniversary (as it is now Jenny's 16th Anniversary) and have patterned one piece bathing suits.
Question: So what is this about Toys R Us being cheaper?
Unlike in the United States, Toys R Us has markedly lower prices than other toy venues. A doll that is 2200 at a department store will be 1900 yen at Toys R Us. A LE friend regularly 2500 yen, will be 2000 yen. (This is not including tax.) Toys R Us has also carried various exclusives, such as the High School Licca series, Miss Jenny and Gracy Jenny series. Toys R Us does not get in all merchandise. Nice Jenny Collection dolls are not sold at Toys R Us, and since prices are lower things can sell out very quickly at Toys R Us. They will not wrap your purchases at Toys R Us.
Question: So where can I buy Takara dolls?
Frequently, there are Takara dolls for sale on eBay. There are are also quite a few people who sell them on the web. Please visit the Takara Links section of this site, to see a list of dealers. Biscuit's Club sometimes sells some of the harder to find dolls at cost. However, Biscuit's Club is not in the business of selling dolls. There is also a list of dealers in the links section there.
Question: So when was Licca first released?
In 1967, Takara first released Licca. The original Licca looked quite different from today's Licca and is referred to as 1st generation Licca.
Question: So how many generations of Licca are there?
From 1967-1972, the Licca which was sold in the stores is referred to as 1st generation Licca.
From 1972-1980, the Licca which was sold in stores is referred to as 2nd generation Licca.
From 1980-1987, the Licca which was sold in stores is referred to as 3rd generation Licca.
From 1988-present, the Licca which is sold in stores is referred to as 4th generation Licca.
In 1992, a fifth generation Licca known as "Pinky Pink Licca" was sold in stores, but she wasn't terribly popular, so Takara continued to use the 4th generation head mold.
Within each of these generations, there are many slight variations. For anyone truly interested in this matter, please look for Futaba Nakamura's wonderful book Licca and Other Japanese Fashion Dolls.
Question: Does Licca have a family and if so what are the names of its members?
Licca has a mother named Orie Kayama, introduced in 1970 and a father named Pierre Kayama nee Miramonde, introduced in 1989. Pierre liked Orie's last name so much, he took it for his own, what a modern guy!
Licca has an older sister named Rie, who was introduced in 1972. Rie worked as an international airline stewardess. As the Licca family tree developed, Takara realized Orie was too young to have a daughter as old as Rie, and Rie disappeared from the family.
Licca has twin younger sisters introduced in 1974 named Miki and Maki.
Orie must be rather fertile, because after having twins, she later gives birth to Licca's triplet younger siblings Kako, Gen and Mika in 1987. I hope Orie and Pierre don't have quadruplets next.
Licca also has grandparents on her father's side, Helene and Albert Miramonde. Helene was introduced in 199? and Albert was introduced in 199?. Albert is a Castle exclusive.
When Licca went to France in 1998, she met her cousin Charles.
In the future, Licca gets married to a fellow named Frantz and in 2001 at the age of 34 Licca has her daughter, also named Licca.
Question: When were the various friend dolls first released?
Like Jenny, Licca has a lot of friends. Takara seems to release a particular friend for several years and then moves on to completely new friends. Izumi and Isamu are the only friends to have survived more than one generation.
In 1968, Izumi became Licca's first friend. This Izumi is not the same character as the present Izumi. Licca was also given a boyfriend in 1968 named Wateru. Licca, Izumi and Wateru were such good friends they were referred to as the "Licca-chan Trio."
In 1970, Licca was given a role model, a slightly older girl who was also named Licca. This older Licca is frequently referred to as Lady Licca. Lady Licca had two good friends named Aya and Jun.
In 1971, Izumi's younger sister Kurumi was introduced and Wateru's younger brother Goro-chan was introduced.
In 1973, Licca found some new friends, Patricia or Pat-chan, and Harumi. Licca became such good friends with Pat-chan and Harumi they were referred to as the "Licca-chan Trio." This is the second generation Licca-chan Trio.
In 1976, Licca found a new boyfriend named Masato.
In 1977, Licca made a new friend named Lina. Two friends were also created for Licca's younger sisters named Momoe and Junko.
In 1979, Licca met another girl named Izumi. This Izumi is still around today making her Licca's longest surviving friend.
In 1980, Licca became friends with a girl named Hitomi.
In 1981, Licca got a new boyfriend, Isamu. This is the same Isamu who is still around today.
In 1982, Licca became friends with a girl named Mayumi.
In 1983, Licca found some new close friends, Chiemi and Kaori. Licca became such good friends with Chiemi and Kaori they were referred to as the "Licca-chan Trio." This is the third generation Licca-chan Trio.
In 1984, Licca made two new friends Fanny who has a small dog named Lond and Melny.
In 1985, Licca became friends with Sayaka.
In 1986, Licca found a new friend named Nurse-chan.
In 1987, Licca became much closer friends with two of her already existing friends Izumi and Isamu. Licca became such good friends with Isamu and Izumi that they were referred to as the "Licca-chan Trio." This is the 4th generation Licca-chan Trio.
In 1987, Licca became friends with Palette F.
In 1988, Licca became friends with Pururun and Yumeka.
In 1995, Licca became friends with Miho.
In 1996, Licca became friends with Ribbon.
In 1998, Licca met Charles' (her cousin) French girlfriend, Chocolat. I guess Takara thinks French people people like to name their children after food.
In 1999, Licca became friends with Kira and Aki.
In 2000, Licca made no new girl friends however, she and her friends met a bunch of boys. These were Shou, Atsushi, Kakeru, and Takumi.
In 2002, Licca made friends with Mii and Moe.
There are also several Licca sized dolls that have been released by Takara. In 1993, a Licca sized Anne of Green Gables was released and in 19?? a Licca sized Sara Crewe from A Little Princess was released. Licca also has had several maids working for her family including Tete-chan and Mai. She has also had 2 teachers and a doctor.
Question: So where can I buy Takara dolls?
Frequently, there are Takara dolls for sale on eBay. There are are also quite a few people who sell them on the web. Please visit the Takara Links section of this site, to see a list of dealers. Biscuit's Club sometimes sells some of the harder to find dolls at cost. However, Biscuit's Club is not in the business of selling dolls. There is also a list of dealers in the links section there.
There are several different types of bodies Takara has released for Jenny and friends. The original body is referred to as the Jenny 17 body. This is supposed to be what Jenny looked like at 17. In 19??, Takara released the Jenny 18 body. This body is suppose to be Jenny at 18. The Jenny 18 body has a collar bone and is a bit taller than the Jenny 17 body. In 1997, Takara released the SA body. This body was more poseable than either the Jenny 17 or Jenny 18 body. In 2000, Takara released the PG Jenny body. Takara has been used the PG body a lot until 2002 or 2003.
The first Jenny sewing publication was Jenny's Fashion Club published between 1986-1989.
In 1989 Nihon-Vogue started publishing Jenny Magazine. This magazine was released three times a year and is extremely popular because of its wonderful patterns as well of its wonderful use as Jenny and friends as models. The magazine was published until 1995. In the late 1990's the Jenny Magazines were reprinted as several large volumes. Each volume contained several issues of Jenny Magazine. Because Jenny Magazine was so popular these volumes have also been quite popular.
In 1995 Nihon-Vogue started the My Favorite Doll series of sewing books. There is one My Favorite Doll Book series for Jenny and friends and one for Licca and friends.
Along with all of these pattern books, several other books have been published about Jenny and friends and Licca and friends.
Licca and Japanese Fashion Dolls first published in 1997 is an excellent resource for anyone interested in learning about the different generations of Licca. (See Licca and Friends)
Licca-chan's Perfect Data Catalog also first published in 1997 is a bible to Japanese Licca collectors. It has many pictures of 1st generation Licca as well as facts about Licca and her family and pictures of Licca's many friends and family members. (See Licca and Friends)
For those people more interested in Jenny, there is Jenny Collection, which contains pictures of various versions of Jenny as well as information on her friends.
Published in 2000 and with many pictures of the PG body is the book, Jenny. It has many picture of Jenny posing for the camera.
2001 saw the publication of two Jenny books, one of which is even partially written in English. The World of Jenny was written by Rudi Teruel and David Wu and is the only Jenny book I have seen partially written in English. Takara released a book entitled The Complete Jenny Files which shows pictures of nearly every friend doll that has been released as a playline, Jenny Shop, Totoco, Takara-bako and Licca Club 67 doll at the time of the books publication. Both books are wonderful references. Some of the pictures in The Complete Jenny Files are from promotional materials and the actual doll produced look different, and there are exclusive dolls that for one reason or another did not make the book. (I personally own a 1998 Totoco released Erika which is not in the book.)
Question: So what is the difference between Jenny's Club and the Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls?
Jenny's Club is the name of the official fan club Takara created for Jenny and friends. Three times a year Nice Jenny Collection dolls are released through the Nice Jenny Newsletter. The Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls is the name of a series of dolls released during 1986-1988. The series introduced various friend dolls. All the members of Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls, which, is frequently shortened to Jenny's Club were released wearing bathing suits.
Question: I have a doll in a white box without any windows that says "Jenny's Club" on it, what sort of doll is this?
This doll is a Jenny's Club S doll. The exclusive bathing suit dolls released through Jenny's Club S for Jenny's Club S members only say "Jenny's Club" in red on the box. These are distinguishable from the Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls as they do not say "Coordinate Doll" on the box. They also do not say the name of the friend on the box nor do they have a window to see the doll inside. The Jenny's Club S dolls are all numbered and are made in the quantity requested by Jenny Club S members.
Question: So what is the difference between Jenny's Club and the Jenny Shop?
Jenny's Club is the name of the official fan club Takara created for Jenny and friends. Three times a year Nice Jenny Collection dolls are released through the Nice Jenny Newsletter. The Jenny Shop was an actual shop located in Harajuku that went out of business sometime in the 1990's. It sold special exclusive dolls in limited numbers as well as original fashions. In some ways, it was very similar to Totoco. Totoco still sells some of the Jenny Shop fashions at doll shows in Japan.
Question: So what is the difference between Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls and the Jenny Shop?
Jenny's Club Coordinate Dolls is the name of a series of dolls released during 1986-1988. The series introduced various friend dolls. All the members of Jenny's Club were released wearing bathing suits. The Jenny Shop was an actual shop located in Harajuku that went out of business sometime in the 1990's. It sold special exclusive dolls in limited numbers as well as original fashions. In some ways, it was very similar to Totoco. Totoco still sells some of the Jenny Shop fashions at doll shows in Japan.
Question: I live in the US, can I order from the Thanks Fair Catalog?
No. You can not order a Thanks Fair Catalog. Only people within Japan can order from the Thanks Fair Catalog.
Question: How are outfits chosen for Castle dolls? Or I have a Castle doll wearing outfit x and I saw another doll wearing that same outfit does that mean they are the same doll?
Castle dolls are put in whatever outfits the Castle happens to have a lot of. Sometimes identical dolls will be wearing different outfits. I have seen the Castle use leftover Calendar Girl outfits, leftover playline outfits, left over Baggie Coordinate outfits and older outfits. I have even seen a few Castle dolls wearing Licca and Isamu outfits. You can not identify Castle dolls or for that matter any Takara doll by the outfit they are wearing. The fastest way to identify a doll, is by looking for their mold number and then narrowing the field based on which dolls share a particular mold number. More recently released Castle dolls have their names written in English on the box. One can also tell the friends apart by their eye prints. Once you collect dolls for a while, it becomes easier to identify the various friends.
Question: So where can I find these mold numbers?
Helene's list has been moved to Larraine's site
Question: So what is a Jenny Festa?
Sometimes in honor of a doll's anniversary Takara will hold a Festa (short for festival) at one of the big department stores in Japan. At a Festa, exclusive dolls are available and sometimes there are displays of older dolls.
Question: So how limited are some of these dolls?
How limited a doll is can really vary. There have been dolls produced at the Castle in numbers as low as 20 or 30 dolls. Regularly released playline dolls are often released in rather high numbers. Totoco dolls are generally limited to 100-500 dolls.
Question: So which dolls have been released as part of Jenny Club S and what do they look like? Also how can I get one of those Jenny Club S dolls and how available were they?
The first release of Jenny Club S dolls was in February of 1999. The first series consisted of a Tom with dark skin and dreadlocks, (just like 1992 Tom) a dark haired fair skinned Rosana, and a pale skinned blond haired Annie. In July of 1999, the next three dolls were released, a fair skinned blond haired Erika, a fair skinned brown haired Olive, and a fair skinned blond haired Charles. In November of 1999, the next three dolls were released, a fair skinned blond haired Jane, a medium skinned, that brownish red Takara always uses Mike, and a dark haired Kisara.
In February 2000, the next three dolls were released, a tan skinned blond haired Elise, a tan skinned blond haired Abel and a tan skinned dark haired Ellie. In July of 2000, the next three dolls were released, a pale skinned silver haired Naomi, a pale skinned brunette Mille Feuille, and a pale skinned silver haired Charles. In November 2000, the next three dolls in the series were released, a pink haired fair skinned Julia, a fair skinned brunette Mitsuki, and a fair skinned blond Sherry.
In February 2001, the next three dolls were released, a brown haired fair skinned Kyoko, a medium skinned tone Tom with blond hair and a medium skin toned light brown haired Mike. In the summer of 2001, a dark haired Louise with fair skin, a dark haired Lina with medium skin and a dark haired Raph with fair skin were released. In the Fall of 2001, a dark haired Mitsuki with fair skin, a dark haired Susie with fair skin, and a dark haired Tom with medium skin were released.
Despite the fact that the S Club no longer exists, in 2002, there were new bathing suits available for order. Those dolls were a Kisara with tan skin and short brown hair, a blond Jenny, and a Jeff with brown hair. In July of 2002 a red haired Raph, a fair-skinned Elise (2nd one) with blond hair and a fair-skinned Judy with silver hair were released.
The Jenny Club S dolls were only available for a 1 month period to be ordered by members of Jenny Club S. Takara only made as many dolls as orders were placed. At the moment, Takara is not taking orders for ANY Jenny Club S dolls. The only way to buy any of these series is on the secondary market. Some of them were quite popular, and can command high prices. Jenny Club S could only be ordered by members of Jenny Club S and currently membership to Jenny Club S is only available to those in Japan.
Question: So where can I buy Takara dolls?
Frequently, there are Takara dolls for sale on eBay. There are are also quite a few people who sell them on the web. Please visit the Takara Links section of this site, to see a list of dealers. Biscuit's Club sometimes sells some of the harder to find dolls at cost. However, Biscuit's Club is not in the business of selling dolls. There is also a list of dealers in the links section there.