Tressy

Tressy and Barbie. One of my favorite things to do when I was living in Florida was to play Barbies. Except that I had replaced my Barbie with a Tressy doll. She was super cool as she had hair that could grow. If you pushed the button on her trim waistline and pulled the center strand of hair it would grow into long trestles. Then when you wanted a short, sassier look all you had to do was twist the button on her back. Voila, short hair! I spent many hours playing Barbies with my best friend Ann Marie. Back in the sixties you did not have a plethora of the dolls themselves. Rather, you collected outfits for your doll. I had a small, pink armoire that held all my Tressy clothes and accessories. One of my favorite outfits was the Jackie Kennedy pink suit with the pillbox hat. I even had a fur coat for mine. I remember painting my Tressy's lips with light pink nail polish, and piercing her ears with studded sewing pins. Years later when Ann Marie and I reunited, I packed Tressy in my luggage and brought her along to my trip to Ohio. As luck would have it, Ann Marie still had her beloved Barbie doll. While Ann Marie and I caught up on the years between our meeting, Tressy and Barbie had a reunion, too!