it's 1997, and everything is awesome

Remy Blake  american girl of today in 1997 ten years old   Portland Oregon, USA :-D

[americangirloftoday]

Image description: a graphic image with a blue background. The top reads “Remy Blake 1997". 

Underneath, a block of text says Ten-year-old Remy Blake has lived her entire life in California’s Silicon Valley, where her mom works as a computer engineer. When mom is offered a job to lead a new team near mama’s family in Oregon, Remy isn’t thrilled. Fifth grade at a new school isn’t easy, either. Suddenly, Remy has more homework, confusing feelings about her first big crush, and her new classmates tease her because she has lesbian mothers. But when the bullying leads Remy to make a new friend and find a passion for LGBT rights activism, she starts to realize that maybe Oregon isn’t so bad after all! 

To the left of the text block is a headshot of a light skinned doll with curly red hair. She is wearing a a striped scrunchie in her hair, a striped shirt, grey sleeveless dress with a dogtag necklace. Beneath the text is a tiny, multicolored logo of a girl with her arms raised.

[americangirloftoday]

Found Remy an original Tamagotchi from aliexpress, it's a gashapon toy mini. It's the perfect side for her!

[americangirloftoday]

I made Remy a ton of buttons today! Queer buttons thanks to Lesbian Herstory Archives

[zoominag]

1950-1999

This is part of a series in which I am posting clips of my larger project by decade as I finish them. For more about this project, or to ask me to include your doll or OC, check out my pinned post.

Previous posts:

17th century

1700-1739

1740-1769

1770-1799

1800-1849

1850-1899

1900-1949

The OCs in this post that are mine are He-Mei and Florence, Gertrude and Mabel, Hattie and Mattie, Diya and Medha, Bernice and Lawrence, Tammy and Donna, Ben and Rain, and Shazmeen and Liora (they're in pairs because I did the Best Friends series based on @americangirlstar's suggestions, and in the process created a Best Friend for each of my own characters). Francesca, Honoka, Chela, and Karine belong to @autistickirstenlarson, Lilyann belongs to @kirstenlarsons, Violette belongs to @getintothesun, Charlotte belongs to @gardner-n-pardner, Hope belongs to @Lorsdolladventures, Francie belongs to @futuristicsaladparadise, Alice belongs to @mapleleagirls, Remy belongs to @americangirloftoday, and Adrienne belongs to @addywalkerstan. Also I should have been mentioning it all along, but a very large number of the poses are from @adorkastock. If you'd like your historical doll or OC included in this project, HERE'S THE LINK; more detail about that at the end.

While putting together previous installations I became aware that I have the birth dates wrong for several of the canon characters. I'm planning a redo for the canon character set, eventually, so please do let me know if I'm wrong about anyone. I might already know, but since I have pretty severe dyscalculia as well as ADHD it's not bad to have the info available in multiple places.

I also feel that I should repeat the statement I made before that I had a hard time finding accurate, non-exoticizing references for Kaya, Speaking Rain, and Singing Bird's wardrobes without embarking on a level of research way beyond the scope of this project. If someone is reading this who has familiarity with and access to visual references for 20th century Nimiipuu, Salish, and Dakota/Lakota clothing, and the time and patience to help me understand them, I would be very interested in learning.

1950s

Addy Walker: 96-99 Sarah Moore: 96-99 He-Mei Hsieh: 85-94 Florence Coburn: 85-94 Lucy Morgan: 85-94 Gertrude Levy: 75-84 Mabel Kaplan: 75-84 Medha/Mahtab: 73-82 Diya/Nasreen: 70-89 Harriet Shapiro: 65-74 Matilda Greene: 65-74 Samantha Parkington: 56-65 Nellie O'Malley: 56-65 Rebecca Rubin 46-55 Ana Rubin 46-55 Alice McDougal 46-55 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 42-51 Francesca Vitale 41-50 Bernice Wright 35-46 Lawrence Ross 35-46 Dinah Hope Bellini 36-45 Kit Kitteredge 28-37 Ruthie Smithens 28-37 Lillyann Bonney 20-29 Nanea Mitchell 19-28 Lily Suda 19-28 Emily Bennet 18-27 Molly McIntire 17-26 Honoka Oishi 11-20 Adrienne Davis 6-15 Maryellen Larkin 6-15 Davy Fenstermacher 6-15 Chela Suarez 0-8 Val Porter 0-8 Melody Ellison 0-6

I actually kind of love how some of the canon outfits translate to the '50s. Kit's pencil skirt vs. Ruthie's crinoline, Samantha in pedal pushers, old lady Addy making one last appearance in her sash, Nanea's two-piece sun suit. Some of the Agblr OCs really shine in this one too, though: Francie's puffy apron over narrow dress was fun to imagine, as was Francesca's trendy pantsuit and Lillyann's summery hats.

1960s

He-Mei Hsieh: 95-99 Florence Coburn: 95-99 Lucy Morgan: 95-99 Gertrude Levy: 85-94 Mabel Kaplan: 85-94 Medha/Mahtab: 83-92 Diya/Nasreen: 80-99 Harriet Shapiro: 75-84 Matilda Greene: 75-84 Samantha Parkington: 66-75 Nellie O'Malley: 66-75 Rebecca Rubin 56-65 Ana Rubin 56-65 Alice McDougal 56-65 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 52-61 Francesca Vitale 51-60 Bernice Wright 45-56 Lawrence Ross 45-56 Dinah Hope Bellini 46-55 Kit Kitteredge 38-47 Ruthie Smithens 38-47 Lillyann Bonney 30-49 Nanea Mitchell 29-38 Lily Suda 29-38 Emily Bennet 28-37 Molly McIntire 27-36 Honoka Oishi 21-30 Adrienne Davis 16-25 Maryellen Larkin 16-25 Davy Fenstermacher 16-25 Chela Suarez 9-18 Val Porter 9-18 Melody Ellison 7-16 Karine Bedrosian 0-9 Julie Albright 0-4 Ivy Ling 0-4 Tammy Sussman 0 Donna Kim 0

Honestly I really love those 1965 evening gowns. Lillyann and Adrienne came out particularly elegant. I also had a ton of fun with the spring outfits, especially Maryellen's bridesmaid dress and Molly and Emily's matching ruffles.

1970s

Gertrude Levy: 95-99 Mabel Kaplan: 95-99 Medha/Mahtab: 93-99 Diya/Nasreen: 80-99 Harriet Shapiro: 85-94 Matilda Greene: 85-94 Samantha Parkington: 76-85 Nellie O'Malley: 76-85 Rebecca Rubin 66-75 Ana Rubin 66-75 Alice McDougal 66-75 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 62-71 Francesca Vitale 61-70 Bernice Wright 55-66 Lawrence Ross 55-66 Dinah Hope Bellini 56-65 Kit Kitteredge 48-57 Ruthie Smithens 48-57 Lillyann Bonney 40-59 Nanea Mitchell 39-48 Lily Suda 39-48 Emily Bennet 38-47 Molly McIntire 37-46 Honoka Oishi 31-40 Adrienne Davis 26-35 Maryellen Larkin 26-35 Davy Fenstermacher 26-35 Chela Suarez 19-28 Val Porter 19-28 Melody Ellison 17-26 Karine Bedrosian 10-19 Julie Albright 5-14 Ivy Ling 5-14 Tammy Sussman 1-9 Donna Kim 1-9 Tina D'Amico 0-4 Courtney Moore 0-2

Chela's Bata Cubana really shines in this decade, but there are really a lot of fun ones going on in the 70s. I like how Lillyann's holiday dress translates to an older woman's flowing 70s evening gown, and I enjoyed how Adrienne's spring dress came out too. With canon characters I liked Maryellen's spring dress and Melody's natural afro and platform heels.

1980s

Harriet Shapiro: 95-99 Matilda Greene: 95-99 Samantha Parkington: 86-95 Nellie O'Malley: 86-95 Rebecca Rubin 76-85 Ana Rubin 76-85 Alice McDougal 76-85 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 72-81 Francesca Vitale 71-80 Bernice Wright 65-76 Lawrence Ross 65-76 Dinah Hope Bellini 66-75 Kit Kitteredge 58-67 Ruthie Smithens 58-67 Lillyann Bonney 50-69 Nanea Mitchell 49-58 Lily Suda 49-58 Emily Bennet 48-57 Molly McIntire 47-56 Honoka Oishi 41-50 Adrienne Davis 36-45 Maryellen Larkin 36-45 Davy Fenstermacher 36-45 Chela Suarez 29-38 Val Porter 29-38 Melody Ellison 27-36 Karine Bedrosian 20-29 Julie Albright 15-24 Ivy Ling 15-24 Tammy Sussman 11-19 Donna Kim 11-19 Tina D'Amico 5-14 Courtney Moore 3-12 Ben Eichenbaum 0-4 Rain Einhorn 0-4 Remy Blake 0-2

The thing about the 80s and 90s fashions is that once we get into my actual lifetime I can feel the fabrics viscerally while I'm drawing them. There's soft knits, thick denims, stiff cottons and staticky polyesters, and from this point onward they somehow feel more real. And of course the formalwear, with what I once considered an aspirational number of ruffles. I was half tempted to include myself in the timeline.

1990s

Samantha Parkington: 96-99 Nellie O'Malley: 96-99 Rebecca Rubin 86-95 Ana Rubin 86-95 Alice McDougal 86-95 Frances Elizabeth Whitman 82-91 Francesca Vitale 81-90 Bernice Wright 75-86 Lawrence Ross 75-86 Dinah Hope Bellini 76-85 Kit Kitteredge 68-77 Ruthie Smithens 68-77 Lillyann Bonney 60-79 Nanea Mitchell 59-68 Lily Suda 59-68 Emily Bennet 58-67 Molly McIntire 57-66 Honoka Oishi 51-60 Adrienne Davis 46-55 Maryellen Larkin 46-55 Davy Fenstermacher 46-55 Chela Suarez 39-48 Val Porter 39-48 Melody Ellison 37-46 Karine Bedrosian 30-39 Julie Albright 25-34 Ivy Ling 25-34 Tammy Sussman 21-29 Donna Kim 21-29 Tina D'Amico 15-24 Courtney Moore 13-22 Ben Eichenbaum 5-14 Rain Einhorn 5-14 Remy Blake 3-12 Nicki Hoffman 0-9 Isobel Hoffman 0-9 Shazmeen Malik 0-8 Liora Blickman 0-8

Great minds think alike: @Americangirloftoday and I both chose classic 90s outfits for our 90s girls. Remy is a little older than Shazmeen and Liora, and she wears similar outfits for different occasions, but there's still going to be some visible overlap. Nikki and Isobel too have outfits drawn straight from the AGOT lineup, so I picked more of those to fill out their sparse collection. Fortunately drawing the same outfit a little differently, in case you haven't noticed, is kind of my thing. So I'm looking forward to it!

[ruinedchildhood]

[oldwebtreasure]

The Happy99 worm, also known as Ska or i-Worm, was a worm for Windows, appearing in 1999. The worm would display a gif of exploding fireworks in a window titled “Happy New Year 1999!″. This was the first worm known to spread via e-mail and usenet. Other than attaching itself to the user’s computer, this worm did no damage.

[girlsofmanylands]

Comparison of the new Hoffman twin grin pin stickers (middle) and the OG pin stickers. The new ones are so much bigger and thicker, much more like doll sized pins! And as you can see they made many updated versions of OG pin designs!

[mydollsaregay]

I ended up getting Nicki, and she arrived today!

she’s super cute! I got pretty lucky and her eyelashes are placed pretty well. I LOVE her meet outfit - not only is it super cute, but the fabrics all feel really nice, and it comes with more pieces than I generally expect from modern ag. The shirt and dress are separate, and the flannel is a regular doll shirt with functional buttons (!!). Her shoes are nice, but I watched a review on YouTube where they said the material felt like one that would start disintegrating with age, like a lot of older ag shoes, and I concur. Her accessories are also super cute, but I really wish historicals still came with a coin 😭

I read her journal, and it’s pretty cute! However, I stand by both my assessment that ag is sidestepping harder hitting historical events due to them seeming too sensitive, which like. If the past is so recent you can’t comfortably write about the realities of it, wait a few years -_- It read more like a goty story to me: more focused on relationships and inner conflict.

On the other hand, I also stand by my opinion that the switch to journals is totally fine, if not good. Ag’s target demographic has gotten younger, and the reading level of the books that come with dolls should reflect that imo. Also, if the name “journal” is tripping you up, it’s actually just a graphic novel, not like. An actual journal without a story. It had a similar feel to me as something like diary of a wimpy kid. There was also a section where “nicki” explained how to make zines, which was really cute.

Content-wise, it was fun, though a bit tame compared to other historical books (nickis anxiety about y2k was a nice character moment, but it alone does not make y2k a incredibly major historical event lol). My only big complaint with the story itself was the fact that they got their pets for Hanukkah. Like. I thought we all knew giving kids pets as gifts is a bad thing???? Not a huge fan of that. On a lighter note, Nicki loves lists (as do I!) and I thought it was a really fun detail.

(Guys, I think she might possibly love lists.)

However, I do have another problem with the journals - it seems like the book that’s coming out will be the exact same story, based on the name 😭 on the last page, it said to look out for the book, called “Isabel and nicki: countdown to y2k” which is like. The plot of the journal I just read lol

[americangirloftoday]

Remy is super excited to play with her new tamagotchi pet!

She keeps all her favorite things in her caboodle.

[lesbiansamanthaparkington]

[americangirloftoday]

New cold weather fits for Jeannie and Remy!

[americangirloftoday]

I had to take a nice photo of Jeannie before I changed her out of this outfit. She’s all dressed up for her school band’s winter concert! Doesn’t she look great?

Do any of your dolls play an unusual instrument or have an interesting hobby?

[lovemarisolluna]

The ‘90s kids are dressed for winter!

Jeannie is dressed for her winter cello concert, and Remy is cozy and ready to play some video games on Christmas break!

[americangirloftoday]

Winter break plans? I'm gonna beat FF VII and its gonna be epic!

[gardner-n-pardner]

omfg I'm dying at this

[americangirloftoday]

Remy is playing Final Fantasy VII

[lovemarisolluna]

Remy's Disneyland trip, July 1997

Remy packed her backpack last night for the long plane ride, with all her favorite Goosebumps books. She brought her decoder card for the Indiana Jones ride, too!

We're here! Remy snagged a churro to munch before she'd let her moms take her photo in front of Sleeping Beauty's castle.

Remy's consults the park map while waiting in line. She can't decide what her favorite ride is, it's a three-way tie between the Matterhorn, Space Mountain, and the Indiana Jones ride. She also loved the new Hercules and Light Magic parades, and of course FIREWORKS!

Books, park map, decoder card, and tickets by me, churro and Mickey pin are by ForgeandTinker on Etsy. Their items are made for Disney NuiMos, but they fit AG dolls perfectly. I used a little museum putty to help Remy hold her snack.

[americangirloftoday]

Happy pride from Remy!