1968 Sindy Outfits and Separates
1968 was a wonderful year for Sindy, but also bittersweet. She got a fabulous new makeover, but lost her boyfriend.
Sometimes called the ‘New Look Sindy” she was restyled, with long hair, curled in a flip at the ends and with a side parting hence the name “Sideparts”. She had ‘real’ eyelashes and a twisty waist. Her 1967 box (shown left) was updated with a new paper wrapper proudly announcing the newly styled doll and pointing out that she came with a “lovely gift from Sindy”.
There were four new Sidepart Sindys boxed dolls. Each had a different outfit with a price to reflect the complexity of the outfit.
Sindy was given some great new clothes, and now you could buy her in four new outfits which replaced the original ‘Weekenders’. Each doll came with the gift, a new gilt-metal Sindy charm bracelet which Sindy could wear as a long necklace or which could be worn by her new owner. Sindy’s friends now included a charm of their own which could be added to the bracelet.
Although Sindy was now made in Hong Kong, for those sold in the UK she was packaged with some wearing Made in England outfits.
Sadly Paul was no more, but she still had Patch for company and a whole new group of friends who also have their own page on this website.
There are few things to note in the 1968 style leaflet:
- The black 1967 Leather Look skirt appears to have used the earlier 1963 Leather Looker name in error. The March 1968 Price List correctly lists the skirt as Leather Look.
- The style leaflet still referred to the light green long-sleeved turtle-neck sweater (Ref 12S74) that we have so far been unable to identify. The March 1968 Price List also refers to Ref 12S74 as Tee Shirt. This issue is also noted in the introduction to the 1967 Sindy page 1967 Sindy Outfits and Separates.
Fashion Girl (Ref 12 GSS1) (Boxed doll outfit)
A purple and purple-check, all-in-one cotton mini dress. It was designed to look like a mini skirt with braces over a short-sleeved top. The dress fastened at the back by two flat metal poppers, they can be black painted, white painted or plain chrome. It came with purple kitten heel court shoes. It was subsequently redesigned in pink (please see 1969 Sindy).
This boxed doll cost 26 shillings & 11 pence and was the lowest priced Sindy, along with Beach-time Girl below.
Beach-time Girl (Ref 12GSS2) (Boxed doll outfit)
A sweet, casual seaside top and shorts outfit.
The multi-coloured sleeveless fuchsia pink, orange, yellow and white striped cotton top was finished with yellow cotton bias binding around the neck. It fastened at the back of the neck with a flat chrome coloured popper. The top had two side vents and it was sewn up to Sindy’s waist at the back. A nice touch of detailing was that whilst the stripes were horizontal on the front of the top, the two pieces of fabric which made up the back were cut on the diagonal forming a chevron down the back seam (shown below).
The top was worn with yellow cotton Bermuda shorts which had a front fly fastened with a flat chrome coloured popper.
This outfit has also been found with flat white painted poppers. The outfit shown right has a chrome popper on the top and a white painted popper on the shorts.
For her feet there were yellow coloured daisy sandals. They are softer and brighter than the usual mustard yellow daisy sandals. Shown above for comparison, on the left is the soft yellow sandal and on the right the more usual harder mustard yellow sandal. These soft yellow sandals came with outfit and so we think they are right, but we would be interested to know what others have found?
This boxed doll also cost 26 shillings & 11 pence and was the lowest priced Sindy, along with Fashion Girl above.
There is a variation of this outfit. The top has a Baltic blue, orange/red, yellow and white striped pattern. The neckline is simply stitched and it fastens at the back of the neck with one dome shaped chrome popper. The Bermuda shorts are cut are little tighter and shorter, and fasten with one dome shaped chrome popper. This outfit has a Made in Hong Kong label. As it is a Hong Kong made outfit, we suspect this version probably came with the more usual mustard yellow daisy sandals.
An interesting aspect of the MIE top shown above is the yellow stand-up collar made of bias binding. Yet the Hong Kong version does not have this. It turns out that there is a second MIE version as shown left. This version has a white painted flat Newey popper, but it does not have the collar. It is made from the same fabric and is cut and stitched in a similar fashion to the first MIE version. After making a few enquiries with other collectors, we have found others which were made like this.
In all likelihood, it was this slightly simplified version which was used as the template for the Hong Kong variation.
Ice Skater (Ref 12GSS3) (Boxed doll outfit)
Skating Girl (Ref 12S05) was re-introduced in 1968 as a boxed doll outfit called Ice Skater. Essentially it was the same outfit as the original version introduced in 1963, but this Sindy was dressed in the Hong Kong version of the outfit.
A circular felt skating skirt and matching red cotton jersey tights. A red, white and black striped jumper with white ribbed cuffs, neckband and waistband. There was a matching hat and scarf which could be found with red or white wool pompoms. It also had the white felt mittens with red over-stitching and white skating boots with silver blades (please see 1963 Sindy Outfits for a fuller description).
This boxed doll was more expensive and cost 29 shillings & 11 pence.
Miss Beautiful (Miss Sindy) (Ref 12GSS4) (Boxed doll outfit)
A spectacular outfit consisting of an empire-line, long royal blue velvet dress. It had long sleeves with bell cuffs lined with a stiff matching netting. It fastened at the back with two flat metal poppers. With it came a white silky ribbon sash which had “Miss Sindy” printed on it in black. The sash fastened with a little dainty gold stud similar to a split pin. She also had a pearl necklace (the same as the one used for ‘Come Dancing’) and a silver crown.
She wore black kitten heel court shoes on her feet.
Like ‘Fashion Girl’ this dress can be found with a variety of poppers. They can be black painted, white painted or chrome coloured (see photo above). There is even a version with white plastic poppers.
This boxed doll was the top of the range Sindy and she cost 31 shillings & 6 pence.
We know of four variations of this dress, as well as the royal blue, there is a pink velvet version, and a dark red velvet version with two flat black painted poppers. There is also a red, fine needlecord version of this dress.
There is some debate as to whether these crowns were metal or whether they were plastic. Metal shown left and plastic right.
Given the number of dresses seen, the number of metal ones are very scarce by comparison. We know for certain that the royal blue version originally came with a metal crown. It appears that the pink & red velvet and the red needlecord versions came with a plastic crown.
This outfit was renamed ‘Miss Sindy’ in 1969.
Housework (Ref 12S25)
A complete Spring cleaning outfit plus all the cleaning tools Sindy would need to do the job properly.
Her outfit consisted a pair of beige drill trousers with a front-fly opening fastened by a brass coloured metal popper. On top she wore a bright orange, short-sleeved cotton shirt with a round collar, turned-up sleeves and two white & yellow gingham patch chest-pockets. The shirt fastened at the front with three brass coloured metal poppers.
She had a white & yellow gingham frilly half-apron with ties of the same material and two orange patch pockets. She also had a matching headscarf. On her feet she wore brown flat lace-up shoes.
The tools were wonderful replicas of cleaning tools of the time. A grey cylinder vacuum cleaner. It had a white and grey hose with a floor attachment. With a white lead and a grey three pin plug at the end of it. There was also a brown broom, a real turkey feather duster on a brown plastic stick, a red plastic bucket and a tin of Ajax scouring powder.
Rainy Day (Ref 12S26)
Described as “the most up-to-date colour combination”, this bright red and yellow outfit is now very hard to find in good condition.
It was made of soft coloured vinyl with bonded seams and with a indented ‘stitch’ pattern decorating both the edges and the yellow trim detail. The wide coat is bright red with a yellow collar, attached belt and two large patch pockets. It fastened with three brass coloured metal poppers. For her head a yellow Sou’wester with three rows of indented ‘stitching’ decorating the brim.
There was also a pair of yellow Bermuda shorts with front-fly opening fastened by a brass coloured metal popper and the same indented ‘stitching’ at the waist and on bottom of each leg. The yellow of the hat and shorts matched the trim on the coat.
A pair of red knee-high boots completed the outfit.
White Winter (Ref 12S29)
A beautiful white fun fur outfit.
The coat was a collarless knee-length white faux fur coat lined with white taffeta. It fastened with two sewn-on metal snap fasteners.
For her head a matching Cossack hat. It had a white hat band made of white ribbed nylon,
White calf length plastic boots trimmed with fur completed the look.
Town and Country (Ref 12S31)
Trouser suits were “in” and Sindy was always the first to wear the latest outfits. Naturally she had one in a groovy 60s pattern in apple-green and orange that was described as “way-out”.
Made of thick drill cotton, this outfit consisted of a suit with a collarless, long-sleeved jacket which fastened at the front with two brass coloured dome shaped metal poppers.
She then had the choice of a matching mini-skirt or trousers. The mini-skirt fastened with one brass coloured dome shaped metal popper at the back of the waist. The trousers had a front-fly which also fastened with a brass coloured dome shaped metal popper.
Under the jacket, Sindy was given a sleeveless, roll-neck top in apple green thick drill cotton. It fastened with one brass coloured dome shaped metal popper at the back of the neck.
Sindy also had a choice of footwear. For the mini-skirt she had a pair of shiny black knee-high boots. For her trousers a pair of apple-green flat lace-up casual shoes.
This was the first of Sindy’s Mix n Match outfits
We do have this very interesting outfit to show you, which some believe to be a variation of Town & Country.
It is cut very similarly, although the jacket on this version is more shaped than the original, which is cut straight down from the armpits. It is also a slightly tighter fit.
Whilst we are inclined to believe it maybe a variation because we have seen it in a clothing bundle lot on eBay with the green top, boots and shoes. But we have never seen it Mint in Box. As yet we have not found one with a label, whereas the original Town & Country is labelled as Sindy.
We also respect that some old school collectors do not accept this as being genuine Sindy. All we can really say is, it might be, but as yet its authenticity is unproven. Unless you know otherwise, in which case do let us know?
Casual Frock (Ref 12S80)
An elegant low-waisted dress made of a purple silky fabric. It had a crew neckline and no sleeves. The hemline was edged with a contrasting fuchsia pink silk fabric. The dress fastened with a brass coloured metal popper at the back of the neck.
To decorate the dress, there was a fuchsia pink hip-height belt, with a gold buckle. It was attached to the dress with two purple silk belt loops.
For her hair, a matching fuchsia pink Alice band (not shown).
Hat, Bag and Shoes (Ref 12S81)
Lovely accessories to complete Sindy’s outfits.
- A turquoise, dark blue and gold block print wide floppy brimmed hat trimmed with a coordinating turquoise blue binding,
- A white patent handbag with a real opening flap with separate compartments which was decorated with a blue strap and a gold metal buckle, and
- A pair of black kitten heel court shoes.
Two Tone Frock (Ref 12S85)
This dress was apparently inspired by the famous “Mondrian” dress by Yves Saint Laurent. It was a very fashionable four-square, colour block dress. Orange and pink was a popular colour combination in the late 60s.
This mini dress had crew neck and no sleeves. It was made of panels of pink linen and tangerine silk. The dress fastened at the back of the neck with one brass coloured dome shaped metal popper.
Pack A (Ref 12S86) Party
Sindy’s party pack and a way for Pedigree to use up excess items. In the description and picture in the style guide, this pack consisted of:
- the portable record player (from Dream Date),
- two Coke bottles (from Bowling) and,
- the Dollybeats pop poster (from Paul’s Time Off).
For Sindy herself there was a pair of white kitten heel court shoes and the necklace (from Bridesmaid).
However, we have an unopened version of Pack A (shown right) where the gold clutch bag from Dream Date has been substituted for the necklace and it hasn’t got the shoes.
We have heard from another collector who has the same pack as the one shown right, so perhaps this was the pack that was actually sold rather than the one described in the style guide. If anyone has a different party pack we would be pleased to hear from them.
Pack A (Ref 12S86) Riding
This pack contained extra accessories for Sindy’s riding interest. The pack contained:
- her hard riding hat,
- crop,
- brown flat lace-up shoes (which were all from Pony Club)
For Sindy’s horse:
- two blue grooming brushes and the blue curry comb and,
- a rosette (which were from Sindy’s Horse)
Pack A (Ref 12S86) Shopping
This pack contained extra shopping accessories:
- the red PVC bag,
- umbrella and,
- two oranges (from Shopping-in-the-Rain),
- two Coke bottles (from Bowling) and,
- Patch’s wellington boots (from Patch’s Sou’wester).
Pack A (Ref 12S86) Walking
This pack contained:
- Ringo the dog, his lead, bowl and bone (from County Walk) and,
- Sindy’s red knee high boots and umbrella (from Shopping-in-the-Rain).
Pack B (Ref 12S87) Holiday
Sindy’s holiday pack and a way for Pedigree to use up more excess items. But this is another pack that doesn’t appear to match the style catalogue.
This pack was supposed to include two pairs of shoes for Sindy. A pair for daisy sandals for beach wear (from Seaside Sweetheart) and a pair for evening wear (her black & gold, kitten heel sandals from Dream Date). But the unopened pack shown here does not.
It contained instead:
- a brush, comb & mirror set in different colours (from Undie World and/or Sleepy Time),
- a toothbrush, toothpaste and soap (from the Sindy, and the Paul or Patch bedtime outfits),
- a red toilet bag (from Paul’s And so to Bed),
- a pair of green lens sunglasses (Seaside Sweetheart or Winter Holiday) and,
- a holdall, but it is not the BOAC airline bag shown in the style catalogue, but the grey bag with the Paris sticker (from Happy Traveller).
We would be very interested to hear if anyone has anything different in their pack.
Pack B (Ref 12S87) Picnic
Another strange little pack loosely associated with picnics. It contained:
- a brush and comb (from Undie World and/or Sleepy Time),
- a pair of green lens sunglasses (Seaside Sweetheart or Winter Holiday),
- the pink flask and white mug (from Paul’s Motorway Man),
- an orange (from Shopping-in-the-Rain),
- Sindy’s brown flat lace-up shoes,
- a pair of white nylon socks and,
- the denim duffle bag (from Paul’s Time Off).
Pack B (Ref 12S87) School
An accessory pack for Patch. It contained:
- her satchel, pen, pencil, ruler, ink and exercise book (from Patch Schooldays),
- a diary (from Sindy’s Lunch Date),
- an orange (from Sindy’s Shopping-in-the-Rain),
- either the pink or blue flask (we have seen both in unopened packs) and white mug (from Paul’s Motorway Man) and,
- her ballet shoes (From Swan Lake).
If you have this pack and would be happy to share it with others please get in touch.
Pack B (Ref 12S87) Traveller (aka Travelling?)
The Traveller pack (which may also have been called “Travelling”) contained;
- a pair of Sindy’s brown flat lace-up shoes,
- her newspaper from Shopping in the Rain,
- a pair of her green lens sunglasses (Seaside Sweetheart or Winter Holiday) and,
- her camera and bag from Happy Traveller.
An ideal travelling kit for its day!
Career Girl (Ref 12S88)
A long-sleeved mini dress made of thick pink cotton printed with orange polka dots. It had white cotton sewn-on cuffs and a matching button-down collar fastened with two minute white buttons. The dress had two shallow patch pockets (one on each side). The dress fastened up the front with three white painted poppers.
For her feet Sindy was given a pair of black kitten heel court shoes.
Mini Gear (Ref 12S89)
A trendy turquoise-blue suedette mini-skirt which fastened at the back of the waist with one black painted metal popper.The skirt was fashioned with slits in the material at hip height. These slits formed tabs to hold a black shiny plastic hipster belt with a gold buckle.
There was a coordinating black long-sleeved ribbed jumper with a turtle-neck which fasted with one black painted metal popper at the back of the neck (which is very similar to Patch’s ‘Easy Life’ jumper).
Black flat lace-up shoes completed the outfit (not mauve shoes referred to in the leaflet).
Sindy's Wardrobe Trunk (Ref 12SA14) (Scenesetter outfit)
Summery Days variation (Ref unknown)
With Sindy’s Wardrobe Trunk there was an additional outfit of a dress and a pair of shoes. We have also seen this dress Mint in Packet (MIP) sold as a Separate.
The dress was a variation of the ‘Summery Days’ dress (see also 1963 Sindy). A short-sleeved cotton shift dress printed with a green and orange-hued multi-check. The print also had a five petalled yellow flower with a white centre and a brown stalk and two leaves in an orange circle. The dress was trimmed at the neck with a green/brown grosgrain bow. It fastened at the back with two chrome coloured flat metal poppers.
In the Wardrobe Trunk is a pair of Sindy’s white sneakers.
Sindy’s Wardrobe Trunk can be found here 1968 Sindy Scenesetters
