I tell ya, sometimes even shopping eBay for dolls is an exercise in acronyms. What does half this stuff mean, anyway ? When you see these terms, be sure to read all the print, fine and bold. Terms aren’t always written in stone, and can be subject to interpretation by both buyer and seller, so make sure you know what you’re getting by reading the whole description and asking lots of questions. Here’s my list – feel free to write me with more, or questions ! For an added fun game, guess which ones originated from action-figure collector parlance !

NRFB – Never Removed From Box. This is what most collectors and fans want, so these tend to be more expensive, and garner higher bids. Whoever originally bought it never ever opened it. The tape seal from the factory is intact, the Certificate of Authenticity (if the doll had one) is there, not so much as an eyelash is missing. Now, if you’re a box collector, the box itself may have dents, dings, cellophane/plastic yellowed from age, or even price stickers or residue from price stickers. Life’s a little harder for the box collector.

MIB – Mint in Box. This one’s a bit controversial. It can mean the same as NRFB, or it can mean the current owner opened the box and displayed the doll, but everything’s back in, nothing’s missing. Some folks open the box and don’t remove the doll from the box liner, and display that way. Sometimes that box doesn’t go with that doll ! It helps to know exactly what you want and what it should look like. Many of Barbie’s accessories – tents, cars, etc. – are also listed as MIB.

Box Collectors – Folks who want the boxes to their dolls pristine and perfect, no dings, no dents, no shelf wear, no shipping damage, no price stickers, no markings, are often referred to this way. Their dolls are rarely if ever removed. Since the emphasis is more on the box, less on the doll inside, it’s easy to make this a disparaging comment. Fact is, most doll companies pack their dolls so tightly, nothing short of hedge trimmers, bolt cutters, and the occasional chain saw tools are needed to get the doll out, so it’s OK to be less concerned about the doll and more about the display box. As you can guess, I’m not a box collector – since most of my dolls are bought used without ‘em !

Loose – As you can guess, these are your played-with dolls. They sometimes come dressed with some props, more often, nude with nothin’. Any chews, missing hair plugs, or other defects should be noted.

MOMC – Mint on Mint Card. This is most often used for doll clothes and accessories. Since many of Barbie’s clothes at the later end of the vintage years on up to today were sold on ‘blister packs’ or ‘bubble cards’, this is a way to identify the most pristine ones.

MOC – Mint on Card. A derivative of MOMC, this means the goodie was still never removed, but the card has some wear, maybe bends, folds, price stickers, etc. Everything, like hangers and paper props, should be there just as it left the factory.

Blister Packs (also Bubble Cards) – Lots of Barbie clothes and accessories were sold this way. It’s often a thin piece of cardboard with either tape or glue on it. The outfit or item is applied to the adhesive, then covered with a stiff plastic bubble to protect it. Sort of like a blister or bubble.

OOAK – One Of A Kind. Barbie’s one of the best Muses ever ! And she’s readily available in dozens of versions that lend themselves easily to artistic interpretation. Some customizers remove all the face paint and repaint to suit their visions, others bend limbs, dye ‘skin’, style/cut/dye/mold hair, and create stunning clothes…or a combination of all these things. Or just one. Dozens of OOAK dolls are featured on websites, eBay, and doll shows. If you’ve ever cut a doll’s hair, you’re also a customizer, as your doll is now one of a kind…unless you cut a few doll’s hair the exact same way !

TLC – Yup, all you Elvis fans are right, this means ‘Tender Loving Care’. This term’s used for both dolls and accessories. It means there might be a swingy leg on the doll or the back snap closure on the dress is missing. Your seller should let you know exactly what issue the item has that keeps it from being in better shape. It sure ain’t  NRFB ! It needs your attention and skills to be its best again. These are often much cheaper than NRFB items, but if you don’t have the skills to fix it, it may be a waste of your cash. I like repairing doll clothes – in some ways better than making new stuff ! – but I have no idea how to fix paint rubs or attach limbs.

Swingy – This is the name of another Mattel doll I had as a kid. Got nothin’ to do with Barbies, but I thought you’d like to know. Swingy on a Barbie means that a leg or arm is loose, but in no immediate danger of falling off. It just feels, well, swingy. Check some of the dolls you already have – do some leg joints feel looser than others ? But you know it won’t fall off unless you give it to a three-year-old ? That’s swingy.

Chews – My only guess here is that somewhere, Mattel is advertising that Barbie dolls make great snacks. I routinely see loose dolls with mangled fingers or hole-poked feet, from where a kid has been chewing on a doll. Why, I don’t know. It never occurred to me to chew on a doll, even when I was a kid. Unless you want to try limb replacement from a donor doll, saving the head of the doll for a better body later, or want some true OOAK dolls, it’s best to avoid chews. Some can be covered up with gloves and boots, and I’m sure the poor damaged doll would  appreciate a loving home. I’ve had very minor success boiling a doll’s hands and feet to repair chew damage, but it was very little fixed.

Hair Plugs – Often, when describing a doll, a seller will say, ‘No missing hair plugs’. This should mean that the hair in each hole in a doll’s scalp is full and not thinned out by brushing, customizing, etc. A hole in a doll’s scalp with no hair in it at all has a missing hair plug. However, I’ve seen sellers do the ‘no missing’ listing when there’s all of three hairs in the scalp hole, and there should be far more. There’s no real ‘right’ number of hairs in a plug – it varies by doll, year it was made, manufacturer, etc. Again, get a really good look at a doll’s rooting pattern, know what the doll’s hair should look like.

Paint Rubs – Sometimes, when a doll gets played with, the facial and/or hair paint can get rubbed off a bit. It’s not usually a major pain to repaint over the bare areas, unless you’re going for a precise color match, but Vintage collectors like their stuff as factory-original as possible, and frown on unlisted paint rub repair. Any doll should have rub repair listed, for honesty’s sake. And, again, it’s a minor repair if you’d like to try your hand at some TLC or customizing.

Rerooting – this is very time-consuming, but lots of fun, customizing technique ! Basically, someone’s taken a doll with either damaged hair or even a brand-new doll, removed all the original hair and replaced it plug-by-plug with another color, texture, style, etc., giving the doll a whole new look. I’ve even seen folks ‘reroot’ dolls with molded hair !  I have a shortcut to directions on how to reroot on my ‘Links’ page. I use her directions, except that I use smooth, non-crinkly hair from beauty supply places like Sally instead of buying ‘Curly Hair’ and ironing it out. I’m too lazy to do that.