1977 Scenesetters
Compared to 1976, 1977 was a fairly quiet year as Pedigree consolidated upon last year’s new furniture scenesetters. Instead it introduced a number of “smaller pocket money play situations” and “mini scenesetters” providing additional accessories for Sindy. The “mini scenesetters” were described as “superb detail for indoor and outdoor play.” Two of the three sets were outdoor sets and their inclusion in the Sindy range might very well have been determined by the scorching hot summer of 1976.
To summarise the existing scenesetters that were previously shown in 1976:
- Sindy’s Home (Ref 44543) was still available and it still came with its cardboard cutout furniture. The Pedigree literature still used the 1976 publicity photo and interestingly following the 1976 launch of Sindy’s new scenesetters, the trade catalogue now headlined this item as “Sell one – they’ll come back to furnish it”. They now described the cardboard furniture as “designed to act as an inducement to buy the “real thing”.
- Her bedroom furniture was now photographed showing 1976 outfits and still consisted of a Wardrobe (Ref 44502), the Bed (Ref 44503), Dressing Table (Ref 44505) now shown with the aqua patterned fabric, and Bedside Table (Ref 44506). The ‘Bedroom Gift Set’ Ref 44544 consisting of the Wardrobe, Bed, and Dressing Table was still available.
- The updated and new lounge furniture was not shown in the style leaflet (probably there just wasn’t room to show everything) but they were shown in the trade catalogue as the Armchair (Ref 44520), Settee (Ref 44522), Hi-Fi (Ref 44545), and Rocker (Ref 44554). Sindy’s lounge was shown in the Sindy Home photo in both the trade catalogue and the style leaflet.
- Dining Table (Ref 44527), now shown with a seven piece cutlery service, and the Sideboard (Ref 44528) were shown in both the trade catalogue and style leaflet and were pictured in the Sindy Home photo. The trade catalogue described the Dining Room furniture for “A hostess that has the best”.
- The last room in the Sindy Home photo was devoted to Sindy’s Eastham ‘E-Line’ kitchen subtitled in the trade catalogue as “A discerning taste – must be Eastham E Line”. They were now shown with their accessories and available for sale was the Wall Cupboard (Ref 44546), Hob Unit (Ref 44547), Sink Unit (Ref 44548), Floor Cupboard (Ref 44549), and Wall Oven (Ref 44550). Again there was a ‘Kitchen Gift Set’ (Ref 44414) consisting of the Hob Unit, Sink Unit, Floor Cupboard and Wall Oven.
- Interestingly Sindy’s sun yellow bathroom furniture described as “bold modern colours” was not shown in the photo of a furnished Sindy Home, as not unsurprisingly the Home could only accommodate four rooms of furniture. But, the Bath (Ref 44540), Washbasin (Ref 44541), Hairdryer (Ref 44524) now described as “complete with hair rollers”, and Toilet (Ref 44551) were still available. There was also a ‘Bathroom Gift Set’ Ref 44413 which consisted of the Bath, Washbasin and Toilet.
Of Sindy’s previous large scenesetters:
- Sindy’s Horse was redesigned see below
- Sindy’s Carry Case was redesigned see below
- Sindy’s Pool Set was dropped, and
- Sindy’s Camper was still available.
Sindy’s home related Accessory Sets still included:
- Relax in Evening (Ref 44404) her lounge accessories, and
- Cook in Time (Ref 44409) her six kitchen work top appliances and accessories.
However her soft furnishings Live-in luxury was not shown.
Sindy’s new 1977 scenesetters were as follows:
To keep Sindy’s clothes clean she was given a navy blue cotton bib apron with a wide white chalk stripe and black cotton straps, and a pair of matching oven gloves.
Bar-B-Que (Ref 44420) (aka Barbeque & Barbecue)
This scenesetter was the first of the new mini scenesetters.
A clever little set with lots of accessories. It consisted of a black and red plastic pedestal barbecue with an integral shelf and a turning spit upon which a plastic chicken could be cooked. Beneath the barbecue grill shelf there was a printed cardboard inlay to provide the effect of hot charcoals. Both the grill shelf and the base were embossed with a moulded Sindy “S”. There was a barbecue utensil set of a carving knife, fork and tongs. The carving knife and fork were silver painted plastic with yellow painted handles, and the tongs were made of a matching yellow plastic. There was a yellow plastic tray and two matching plates all with a moulded “Sindy” underneath. A condiment set consisting a yellow plastic sauce bottle (with a label printed with the word “Sindy” over a picture of tomatoes) and a brown plastic seasoning shaker or mill (decorated with a moulded sindy “S”) was included. As well as the the brown plastic chicken this set also came with four brown plastic chops.
This set was called ‘Bar-B-Que’ in the 1977 Pedigree literature, however it was called ‘Barbeque’ on the box and in subsequent Pedigree literature it was called ‘Barbecue’.
Housework (Ref 44422)
The second of Sindy’s mini scenesetters was an indoor set to complement her home and all her new furniture.
This set consisted of:
An upright vacuum cleaner – a hoover – made in blue and white plastic. It was actually quite detailed with a moulded on/off switch painted red on the handle, a moulded Sindy logo on the upright part, a faux light panel at the front and mouldings on the bottom of the base unit to suggest wheels and the sweeper system. The hover is discussed in more detail below.
There was a swing-top bin in yellow plastic with a blue lid. The lid was embellished with two moulded Sindy “S” motifs and there was a moulded “Sindy” on the underside of the base of the bin. To match the bin there was a yellow plastic bucket with a blue handle, again with moulded “Sindy” logos on the base of the bucket and on the handle.
Made from red plastic there was a floor broom, a dustpan and brush, and a squeeze mop finished with a rectangle of sponge. The broom and the dustpan was decorated with the usual Sindy “S”.
This set came with a pretty pinafore apron made from yellow cotton with matching straps. Stitched to the front of the apron and trimmed with white rick rack was a cut-out piece of blue floral fabric stitched at the top and around the bottom, but left open at the sides, to provide a large voluminous pocket. It was made pretty floral cotton print with either a blue background. We have not seen the design shown in the Pedigree literature but we know that there were a number of variations of the floral fabric. We are showing three left, and it should be noted that the first two aprons on the far left can be found with a sea-green tint. However we think they are as a result of a particular dye-lot rather than being actual variations. We would be interested to know what collectors think and if they have any others? It is generally believed that the larger floral prints came first but we can’t confirm that. The pattern in the middle is very similar to the one in the 1979 Trade Catalogue.
Just a few words about the hoover which was interesting; it had three additional parts because just like the real thing, this hoover came with tools. An attachment hose could be plugged into the back of the base unit. The first part of the hose was made of white cord and attached to the other end was a white plastic handle part to imitate the flexible part of the hose. A white plastic tube to copy the rigid extension tube could be inserted into the handle. Then Sindy had the choice of two attachment nozzles for her cleaning, an upholstery furniture nozzle and a bush attachment. Although the hoover normally came in the blue and white colour scheme shown in the photo above, we have seen examples where these colours have been reversed on the hoover and where the attachment nozzles have been found in white rather than in blue.
In 1980 this set was combined with Sindy’s 1978 ‘Washday’ scenesetter and was renamed ‘Spring Cleaning”. The combined set was a regular scenesetter until 1984 when it was updated.
Sunlounger (Ref 44423)
Another outdoor Sindy mini scenesetter.
This set was based around a blue and white plastic parasol sunshade which was supported by a metal pole stood on a white plastic base decorated with a moulded Sindy “S”, and a large rectangular orange towel.
It came with a white plastic cool box with an orange lid with a moulded Sindy “S” on top of the lid. The cool box and lid had a small lug on each side which could be pushed through a hole on the white pastic strap to secure it shut. The cool box contained a clear orange plastic water jug, two matching tumblers and four yellow plastic straws.
For sunbathing Sindy had a yellow stretch nylon swimsuit, a pair of orange wraparound sunglasses and a bottle of sun tan lotion.
Picnic Set (Ref 44424)
This set was described in the Pedigree trade catalogue as a “Sindy pocket money play situation”.
This was a picnic set for two. Inside a yellow hamper which had two moulded handles, two latches and the usual “Sindy” logo, there was a complete picnic set. There was a white flask with a separate red lid bearing a moulded Sindy “S” and two red plastic cups (with moulded “Sindy” logos on their bases). Just as with a real flask a cup could be popped on top of the lid. There were two red plastic plates with a a moulded Sindy “S” underneath and two sets of a white plastic knife, fork and spoon.
This set was not named in the trade catalogue and was called ‘Picnic Set’ in the style leaflet.
Later versions of this set came with a brown plastic picnic hamper (shown left).
Grooming Set (Ref 44425)
This was another “Sindy pocket money play situation”.
A little set for Sindy’s horse was shown comprising a red plastic bucket, yellow horse comb and brush, blue broom, a red plastic rosette with “1st” printed in white on a blue paper centre decal, and a plastic silver coloured trophy. All the items were decorated with a moulded “Sindy” logo.
The horse comb and brush and broom have been found in a variety of colours, as you can see ours had a blue horse comb and brush and a yellow broom – sorry not one of our best photos.
This set was not named in the trade catalogue and was called ‘Grooming Set’ in the style leaflet.
Set in Style (Ref 44426)
This was a new accessory set.
In the late 1970s following the success of the TV series “Charlie’s Angels” (first aired in 1976), heated rollers became the must-have beauty product so that we could all copy their distinctive hair styles. One of the most sought after brands in the UK was “Carmen” and so naturally Sindy had a set. They were described in the trade catalogue as “A big seller for this season – “Carmen” heated roller set.”
The 1977 set was pictured in the Pedigree literature, and can be found, with both the Sindy logo and Carmen’s 1970s long-stemmed red rose logo on the clear lid. The red rose logo was found on the lid of all Carmen’s heated roller products of the time.
The heated roller set had eight detachable white plastic heated rollers with clear plastic roller clips (or pins). The heated roller unit had moulded on/off switch painted red and a white plastic lead with an imitation plug attached to a small runner “sucker” so that it could be attached to a suitable surface.
According to the Pedigree literature this set came with an orange towel and although we do not have this set of rollers MIP (Mint In Packet), we have seen it, and the towel was much more yellow in colour. As well as the towel, this set also included Sindy’s gold painted “S” logo brush, comb and mirror first seen with the 1975 Lovely Lively Sindy.
Later descriptions of this set did not make reference to the Carmen brand (although the 1978 Pedigree literature still showed the same photo), and as you can see our MIP (Mint In Packet) version of this set does not bear the Carmen logo nor does it include the towel, which would perhaps indicate that it is a slightly later set.
Kitchen Stools (Ref 44437)
This set was described in the Pedigree trade catalogue as another “Sindy pocket money play situation”.
Described as “for that fabulous Eastham E-Line kitchen”, two flat-pack (or as Pedigree called them “knock-down”) stools made of blue and white plastic. These were detailed with a Sindy “S” on the cross-bar supporting the legs.
It was not named in the trade catalogue and was called ‘Kitchen Stools’ in the style leaflet.
Carrycase (Ref 44563)
“Sindy sets the scene – Away from home
A new dimension in carry cases.
Not just a carry case – a complete play scene.
Another first in the fashion doll world.”
Sindy’s popular pink carry case was redesigned. It became a stylised brown “leather” satchel with faux black stitching made from vinyl covered board. It measured approximately 11½ inches wide by 13½ inches in length and 3¼ inches in depth. It had a hook-on vinyl shoulder strap which was thirty two inches long and a metal clasp. The top of the case was decorated with flag motifs bearing the names of capitals of the world and the “Sindy” logo printed white on a black rectangle and on the side was a white rectangle with black lines where the owner could write their name and address.
“Case or hotel room? It’s up to the child.”
“Holiday travel has given a new dimension to the carry case concept. It’s not just a means of transporting Sindy, but a complete environment at the flick of a catch.”
This scenesetter was only shown in the trade catalogue for 1977, and needless to say the pictures of the hotel bedroom in the trade catalogue were not the same as the version that was actually made for sale. It was probably the prototype.
in reality, the inside of the case was covered with yellow vinyl, and was cleverly decorated as a hotel bedroom by overlaying the additional colours of blue, white, red and black onto the yellow background.
The carrycase lid from left to right was decorated as follows:
A faux walk-in shower with blue tiles, a shower, soap rack, plughole and floral red, yellow and white floral shower curtain.
Next to the shower was a stuck-on faux mirror (similar to those found in the Sindy wardrobe). Above the mirror was a faux shelf on which was a red case and a back hat with a red ribbon hatband. Below the mirror was another faux shelf on which was a vase of flowers and two vanity items which look a bit like a lipstick and a perfume bottle. Below this was a blue moulded plastic fitting affixed to the wall providing a real top shelf and two further shelves which could be used for Sindy’s things such as shoes.
The other side of the case was divided into two. The larger compartment was the usual Sindy clothes hanging space with a metal rail at the top for Sindy’s hangers. At the bottom the inside wall of the wardrobe was decorated to look like a shoe rack with two pairs of high heeled shoes (one red pair with black heels and another black pair) and the back of the wardrobe space was decorated as two low-level shelves and a cupboard. On the shelves was a red and yellow diagonal striped box and a red suitcase trimmed in white with black handle.
The narrower compartment was very clever. It was Sindy doll-sized and had a removable blue plastic open sided box. The back of the box was decorated as the inside of a hotel bedroom door. It even had a poster displaying the name of the hotel, “Hotel Continental”, and the restaurant opening times. This box could safely accommodate a Sindy. But cleverly it could be dropped down to create the base unit for Sindy’s bed which could be made up using the bed linen included with the set.
The bed linen consisted of two fitted sheets made of cotton printed with a navy blue and white floral design with the pillow sewn into the back of the bottom sheet. Normally, the bottom sheet was a blue flower on a white background design and the top sheet was white on blue, however we have seen sets where colours of the bed linen has been reversed. We have also spotted variations to the floral design. Behind the hotel door (aka bed base box) the wall was decorated with a faux red padded headboard with a shelf above on which was a red and white alarm clock and a phone. Above the shelf was a large pierrot picture (pierrot clown designs and posters were very popular in the mid 1970s). Next to the shelf on the outside wall of the bed compartment was a stylised pull-switch bedside wall light.
You sometimes see the SIO version sold as Sindy’s stable, but the way to tell the Pedigree Sindy version is to look for the “Sindy” horse blanket.
A version of this stable was also used for Anna Moore and the Champions, also a Pedigree product.
Stable (Ref 44568)
Having developed a house for Sindy, Pedigree turned their attention to finding a suitable stable for Sindy’s ever popular horse. Sindy’s stable came flat-packed and it had to be assembled. And, what a great stable it was. It was designed as a half-enclosed stall for one horse with a half-door and two roof-height walls. The back wall and the faux tiled roof extended beyond the stall to provide a partly walled and covered stabling area. Attached to the side of the stall half-wall were seven metal hooks and on the wooden upright roof support and on the back edge of the wall there were two metal hitching rings. The board was beautifully decorated as a stable, and as it was Sindy’s, hanging up in the stall was a horse blanket with her name on it.
The stable was sourced from the Dutch manufacturer SIO (Speelgoed Industrie Overijssel) who specialised in brightly coloured educational wooden toys. There was an existing relationship between SIO and Dunbee Combex Marx (Pedigree’s parent company); the shares in SIO were transferred to the conglomerate in 1972 with the aim of increasing its turnover as part of a larger toy group. In the 1970s they made dolls houses and garages from wood and printed fibreboard/hardboard with plastic and metal fittings. This is why Pedigree’s Sindy stable says on the box “Made in Holland”.
Horse (Ref 44569)
Sindy’s horse was also redesigned in 1977. Johnny West’s thickset steed gave way to perhaps a more thoroughbred mount. This Sindy horse had a real mane and tail which could be brushed. It also came with new “improved saddlery” made in tan plastic with silver coloured plastic stirrups. Included was a black felted riding hat for Sindy.
No mention was made of the horse care accessories which came with previous horses. Presumably because there was a separate new ‘Grooming Set’ (Ref 44425) see above.
