Coleco Signatures

Coleco created a different signature color for each production year of the Cabbage Patch Kid. You will notice that some Kids are dated and some aren't - except for 1983, the Kids were signed & dated in the second half of the production year.

Xavier also changed his signature for the 1989 production year.

The production colors are as follows:

Black - 1983

Brown - late 1983/Early 1984

Green - Mid to late 1984

Blue - 1985

Red - 1986

Mint Green - 1987

Light purple - 1988

Watermelon - 1989

The Hasbro Toy company took over the Cabbage Patch Kid license during the
summer of 1989 when Coleco went bankrupt.

COLECO PRODUCTION FACTORIES

IC - IC Factory:

You can usually spot an IC Kid by their porcelain looking faces - that and the fact that they are by far, the "littlest" of the 1980's mass market kids. ICs have well formed, perfect hands and feet - which sometimes is the only distinguishing feature between them and the UTs, who often have overstuffed hands. The boys have very short loops & the girls usually have short ponytails or braids. Some ICs though are reported to have an unflattering greying complexion. The well preserved ICs have nice rosy colouring.

There were several IC factories - ICą, IC2 & IC3, IC6 - IC8 reported too! Many of the 1985, #1 freckled faced dolls were made by IC, as well as the CPKs dressed in cowboy/girl outfits that came with the "Show Ponies".

KT - Kam Yeun Toy Factory:

These are among my favorite Coleco dolls - they are the "littlest" CPKs with softly painted faces (the colors in the eyes are softly painted, and blended), their arms & legs are well formed and they have little bodies. The wool used on their hair was very thin. Many of the earliest KT Kids now have very tanned faces due to a reaction between the plastic and natural sunlight.

1983 KT fuzzy haired kids are easy to spot as their fuzzy hair is the softest of all the fuzzy hair producing factories. KT was also one of only three factories in 1983 to produce freckled kids.

The KT factory was around since the beginning - my CPK boy with the embroidered tag was made by the KT factory.

  

OK - Kader Factory:

I believe this was the largest CPK producing factory. They were located in both Hong Kong in 1983, and China thereafter. Kader is the only factory who has consistently produced the Cabbage Patch Kids from 1983 to present.

These dolls are well made - usually overstuffed though -they are especially known for their BIG feet! OK dolls have good quality wool hair. Some of the #3 dolls have a little smudge at the top of their left eye. One of the biggest producing freckled face Kids in 1983.

P - the Perfeckta Factory:

These Kids were by far the most well formed. They have nicely shaped hands & legs and long bodies. Some of the first P factory Kids were almost 2 inches longer than the standard 16 inch Kids.

My guess is that the Perfecta dolls were first produced in Hong Kong in 1983.

These were the dolls 2" longer with tanned bodies to match their tanned faces. The #2 heads all had reduced eyes (many with freckles). I think there were a lot of leftover heads when they transferred to the China factory, as there are a lot of tanned #2 & #3 heads on pudgy bodies - uncharacteristic of the early Perfecta dolls.

Unfortunately, many early P Kids are coming down with what is known as CPK Pox - which is mould growth in the plastic. Once a 'Kid has pox, the only thing I would recommend is using Formula 9-1-1 & Remove-zit by Twin Pines - as these formulas were created by a chemist especially for vinyl used on dolls. I've never used these products but I have heard nothing but praise from others in the Cabbage Patch community.

If you would like to know more about CPK pox, or what they call in the toy industry as Vinyl Deterioration Syndrome, please click here.

PMI Factory:

An "overflow" factory in China, which I believe was contracted to make Cabbage Patch Kids when demand was highest in early 1984 and part of 1985 (they filled the gap in the market). PMIs have well shaped, thin bodies and little hands. Many of the #1 head moulds have larger eyes than the OKs

Again, this is another factory with Kids affected by the CPK Pox - what is known as reverse pox, which are white spots with clear rings which appear in the plastic.

SS/WS Factories:

I know very little about these factories, other than that they made some of the later Preemies and Babies. They also produced clothing for the Preemies and Babies too.

UT Factory:

UT - was a factory in Taiwan that mainly produced CPK clothing, but probably was contracted in 1984 & 1985 to make Cabbage Patch Kids. These Kids are hard to find - but are most noted for their porcelain looking faces and high cheek color. These kids are generally little in size and are well stuffed, many with big fat arms and legs. Cabbage Patch Kids made in the UT factory tend to be a favorite among serious Coleco collectors as A) they were not produced for a very long time and B) they are among the most beautiful kids produced in the 1980's.