"Mai Tai Swizzle" Constance Madssen by Integrity Toys

December 3, 2024

Not everyone can pull off a green dress.

Come with me back to 2018, a time when I was totally unaware of Integrity Toys, and the year they unknowingly created my future cocktail having, two outfits for the price of one girl, "Mai Tai Swizzle" Constance. Honestly discovering the East 59th line was the beginning of the end of any last vestiges of fight I might have had in me against becoming a crazy doll lady. I'm fascinated by Constance and her frenemies at the East 59th agency in the 1950's, and if you've ever had one of these girls, perhaps they have worked their magic on you too.

Second outfit - shorts and matching jacket.

I found this treasure on Ebay, back when I was just beginning my collection. She came in a beautiful box with a magnetic closure and to her right was a plastic closet, with little compartments for her accessories. How charming it was to see, especially considering the state of IT boxes these days. They've become extremely simple, with an annoying thin cardboard sleeve that serves no purpose other than falling off repeatedly to drive you mad as you're trying to put the box away.

Very fashionable in the '50's, charm bracelets.

One of her first and most lovable accessories is this tiny charm bracelet, with green beads and gold medallions hanging off of it. A charm bracelet on an IT doll is instantly a favorite to me, they are a little touch of real life but so tiny and precious! Who even knew they wore charm bracelets in the '50's but I'd guess that's when they were originally created (which is what I say for most fads I don't know the origins of).

Constance goes to many Frank Sinatra themed pool parties.

This is the second time I've taken Constance out of her box to display, so as usual some things had broken mysteriously as she slept safely in her shipper box. Her right earring was missing the little chain that connected the stud and the gold hoop. So, I simply stuck the post of the stud right through the hole on top of the little dangling hoop and you can hardly tell, right? Aherm...

One thing I miss that seems to have gone by the wayside with the East 59th line is some of them had widow's peaks. Speaking as a peaked person myself I miss that representation. The different hairlines just made the dolls that much more individuals.

Who is sewing these buttons on? Are they using a magnifying glass|??

Constance's dress and her little yellow jacket have the tiniest green buttons you've ever seen, and as you can see from the above picture they are individually sewn on, which is impressive. Additionally, the mai tai she's drinking looks scrumptious. This was when IT dolls often came with a lot of accessories, multiple outfits etc. I've heard from some of the long timers on the forum that people really miss that quite a bit, and I have to agree even though it was before my time. In fact, there were seven dolls in this capsule collection - called the Cocktail Collection, and Mai Tai Constance has the least amount of extras of any of them, even with her 2 outfits and her tiny drink.

By this point in the party, she's definitely buzzed.

Overall, this Constance gives me the feeling that she's at a neighborhood cookout that you would have gone to as a kid. She's one of the drunken adults who've brought their kids to the barbecue and immediately forgotten about them as the kids went off to swim in the pool and Constance went off to dip into the cocktails. Actually, this may be a memory from my own childhood of my parents taking us to family get-togethers with my mom's relatives. The adults were drunk and loud, but we kids didn't realize what was happening because I was just so happy to finally dunk my annoying cousin in the pool.

Wedges

Con is wearing a little pair of darling tan wedges for shoes, and according to the bare minimum quality I expect from an IT doll - she's wearing panties. They are made of pantyhose, and therefore see through, but they are still covering her bare bottom, so I'm relieved they're there. Another misfortune that befell my Constance doll while she was laying quietly in her box untouched is that the string loop on her skirt which would allow me to close the hook and loop on said skirt has disappeared. I guess I was just too rough with it the first time I had her out (or the metal hook and string loop is a terrible design) because there is no trace of it left. The result is that the side closure of her skirt is open, but you can hide it in photos.

Mom has already been on alert keeping Connie away from Dad...

As the sun sets on the festivities at the Kershaw house, the mood of the party changes. The kids are all wrapped up in towels and sent inside to watch the only TV in the neighborhood that has cable. Constance has just switched the song to "Somewhere Beyond the Sea" and is sidling up to Mr. Rosenburg, her best friend's husband and the most handsome DILF on her street. It's the '50's so everything is subtle and classy but if I was Mrs. Rosenburg, I'd be very worried...