Summer Outfit (Summer Riding Dress & Hat) (retired)

[cami713]

This outfit is worn by Josefina in the books Josefina Saves the Day and Second Chances, and the short story "Josefina's Song". Released as Summer Riding Dress & Hat in 1998 for $22, name changed to Summer Outfit in January 2009, retired in 2018.

Josefina could hardly wait to get her first look at American traders and the things they had to sell. Dress her for the trip to Santa Fe in a ruffled calico riding dress and tooled leather vest. Add a straw hat with braided trim, and tighten the leather strap to shade her eyes from the New Mexico sun.


(The name of this outfit changed to Summer Outfit in January, 2009 and price is now $28)

Bought this one in 2004, I think. One of my favorite Historical outfits .

The Good: I love the empire waist style (I'm not too fond of Josefina's skirt/shirt combos), and the hat is so cute. The little vest is the best part, and it looks really cute paired with a white shirt for modern ensembles.

The Bad: nothing.

Rating: *****, A+

[SailAwayAK~]

Sorry it took me so long. Mine came out a little blurry too.....

[americanmommy]

Summer Riding Dress & Hat
$22 JAO

A+

This set includes a ruffled dress, a hat and a tooled leather vest.

This outfit is just stunning. The colors are very vivid and saturated. It makes me happy to look at this dress, it is just so pretty!
The dress has an empire waist, and short sleeves. The stripes on the skirt are on the bias, which just adds more charm to this outfit. There are three rows of pretty ruffles at the bottom. The real tooled leather vest looks terrific over the dress.
The hat is just adorable on Josefina, it completes the set nicely.This may be one of the prettiest sets available from AG today.Just gorgeous.

[princessemily]

This outfit is adorable! I love the empire waist and the ruffles at the bottom. I don't have the hat, yet, since I bought the dress and vest from a HB member, but it looks cute, too. Looks good with the Horse Lovers hat, though.

Grade: A+

[parklife268]

This is a great outfit. I adore empire waist dresses so I was very pleased when I got this one. I think the dress looks great with or without the vest, and the hat is a great finishing touch. The boots look perfect with this outfit as well. A+!

[surfnsplash]

I love the entire outfit.... except the hat it messes up my Josefina's hair and it has straw poking out of it and the straw goes in her hair my grade

A

Would've been A+ but that hat... :/

[scandia]

I absolutely love this outfit. The dress' design and print are beautiful. Though orange is not one of my favorite colors, it looks very beautiful with Josefina's complexion. The leather vest and straw hat are very cute additions. It goes well with Josefina's other shoes- so the boots are not absolutely necessary. Another A+ from me!

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[American Girl Rescue]

[Wickfield]

The dress - I have a feeling that the original fabric was a bit thicker, but that's probably my only complaint. The print is orange with red stripes and yellow flowers with green centers. The dress is cut with a scoop neck and an Empire waist, and again the sleeves are gathered. The waistline seems a bit loose around Josefina which can be a bit annoying, but all you have to do is pull the velcro tighter. The skirt ends in three big ruffles that add weight to the entire dress. A-



The hat - I'm thinking this is the best part of the outfit. It's actually made of straw and it actually fits Josefina's head, plus it's got a leather cord that tightens at her neck. The bead sometimes slips but that's no big deal. There's also great detail around the crown of the hat - two colors of synthetic "fibers" are braided and then tie in tassels wrapped with rope. It makes the hat look very rustic. While it is fairly sturdy, the rows of straw are only stitched together so I think it's too fragile to allow piling a lot of things on top of it. A+

[Wickfield]

Okay, so here are some comparison pics as this set has evidently changed a good deal over the years.

First comes the vest - . I have three versions of this - the early PM version, what I believe to be an early Mattel version, and a late Mattel version from 2008. The early PM and early Mattel versions seem to be real leather, or at least real leather with some kind of overlay, and are actually thinner than the pleather version. The color of these is extremely different, a dark reddish-brown compared to the tan of the pleather edition. Neither is tooled very deeply, but the PM one is deeper than the early Mattel one (this is really the only difference between the two and it may not be so much a PM/Mattel issue as just a batch issue).

Then we have the late Mattel version. The one I received in 2008 is imitation leather, and boy does it show, rubbery and generic light brown. Interestingly, though the pleather version is stamped more deeply than either leather vest. I really love the leather ones in either version but the pleather one is junk.

From left to right: early PM, early Mattel, late Mattel
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The fabric has also changed between PM and late Mattel. The thickness is the same, but the original material is a bit more of a burnt orange than my Mattel version, and the flowers and stripes are slightly different. Not sure when this changed, but it's not too big of a deal.

PM on left, late Mattel on right (and the Mattel is not so warm in color, I don't know why it was taking like that)



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[green chile supergirl]

I flat out cannot stand the vest from this outfit, so I was rather pleased to buy it from a fellow collector without the abomination. The dress is lovely, with the ruffles at the bottom. It's not a color I would ever have chosen on my own, but it looks quite pretty with Josefina's dark hair. The yellow in the dress brings out her earrings nicely.

I could really do without the hat. I don't particularly care for straw hats, and this one is no exception. However, it's a very cute hat if you can get past the straw. I like the little decoration on the side, very jaunty.

Grade: B

[sarahgregarious]

I've got the 'pleather' vest mentioned by a member above and the fit is atrocious! It is huge on the poor doll and doesn't lay right. Now that I know earlier versions fit better I'll buy them! Latest Mattel version - B

[starwenn]

I just picked up what I believe to be a fairly recent Mattel version on eBay. Much to my surprise, the fit was rather loose on my skinny Mattel Josefina. I did end up with the cheap "pleather" vest; it doesn't fit that badly, but it doesn't look all that "real," either. I love reds, oranges, and yellows, so the colors here are right up my alley, and they look sensational on Josefina. The ruffles on the bottom add a sweet touch.

I probably should have waited for an earlier version of this to come along, but my Josefina came from a yard sale with only what was on her back and needed clothes. If you can find it online, you may be better off getting an earlier variation with a more real-looking vest. Still, it's very pretty for what it is now, especially the dress alone.

[lottie]

I just bought this dress from AG and so obviously it is a recent Mattel one I have, and the leather on the vest does not look like the "pleather" shown above. It is a warmer brown color, more like the older style shown in the picture link above, and the design seems etched into it, not just printed on. So perhaps they went back to a better quality material? The hat is lovely, and the dress is really gorgeous on Josefina, who tends to look best in warmer tones. I don't have a picture with Josefina right now, but here is one of my custom doll, Jane, with the outfit. It does look best on Josefina, though.

I give this outfit an A+.

[keeperofthepast]

I received this as a gift from a dear friend. I LOVE all the ruffles at the bottom and the dress is very pretty on Josefina. The hat is nice also and fits well. I don't care for the vest so I don't plan to use it as it detracts from the dress.

10 by Laura *, on Flickr

9 by Laura *, on Flickr