Polly Pocket is a range of tiny plastic dolls and related toy accessories originally sold by Bluebird Toys. They are less than an inch tall and made of hard plastic. In 1998, toy giant Mattel took over the company.
Chris Wiggs invented Polly Pockets while making toys for his daughter Kate. In 1983, he created a toy house for a toy doll out of a small powder compact. These toys were small enough to carry around in pockets. In 1989, Bluebird Toys decided to manufacture the toys under their brand name of Polly Pocket , and Mattel distributed these toys during the early 1990s. But, by 1998, Mattel had taken over Bluebird Toys and all its toy brands including Polly Pocket.
The next year Mattel released a new design and Polly became a little larger with a more authentic appearance. Mattel had invented a new collectible series. Mattel still improved on the toys and released Fashion Polly, which was a plastic jointed dolls around 3.75 inches tall. Also the clothing changed from cloth to Polly Stretch garments made of rubber and plastic. These could be changed frequently without damage. The company also produced boy dolls called Rick and Steven.
Mattel went on to introduce a new line of toys call Polly World. Polly and her friends had magnets fixed to their hands and feet so that they could cling to metallic surfaces. However, this line was discontinued due to safety issues with the magnets.
Polly World is a complete toy series including Polly Pocket and her friends. The friends include Fifi who lives in Paris and Midge who has a flower shop as well as Japanese characters, Suki and Asuko, who have a teahouse. Then there is Alexia, a fun friend who loves to travel, and Little Lulu who likes camping and the beach. The series also has a town called Pollyville, complete with a pizzeria. The pizzeria includesKelly, its waitress; Belinda, the chef; and Torry, who accompanies Polly to the pizzeria.
Pollyville also has beauty salons, shopping malls, gardens, stables, water parks and transportation like limousines, cars and horses. Children who love dressing up Polly can do so with a variety of jewellery and hairdos. Children can also make Polly a part of their bedroom by decorating with Polly merchandise like lava lamps and real fountains. When children get tired of playing, they can even watch Polly Pocket on DVD too.
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