We LOVE Groovy Girls:

http://www.manhattantoy.com/category/159423/Groovy_Girls

Just saw some poseables on this site:
http://www.geniusbabies.com/poseable-groovy-girl-dolls.html

http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&keywords=Groovy%20Girls&rh=n:166118011,k:Groovy%20Girls&page=1

Camille || Mother Lode
www.camilledawn.com

We love and recommend Only Hearts! We purchase them at Target.

I'm curious about this also. I have a four-year old and almost two-year old, both girls. So far we have baby dolls, but I'm thinking one day they may want fashion dolls.

When I was little I had a My Friend doll (made by Fisher Price) that had lots of clothes. They're bigger than barbies but skinnier than American Girl dolls. They don't make them anymore but you can still find them on places like ebay. And if you can sew you can also find patterns to make extra clothes on your own!

Haley @ http://aslanslibrary.wordpress.com

Love the My Friend Dolls! My sisters and I had My Friend Mandy(s). I got my daughter Madeline dolls - I think they were made by Learning Curve. I'm pretty sure you could still get them on ebay . . . they had lots of different dress-up clothes. Very classic, little-girl design (like the Bemelmans (sp) Madeline books.

Just checked - some of those Madeline dolls were made by Eden.

My mom was politically opposed to Barbie, so I had a Sindy Doll growing up. She had a bazillion fashions and was much cuter than Barbie - I even thought so at the time. I've been googling around just now and trying to find out whether they're for sale.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sindy

Oh, boo. Wikipedia says the originals have been discontinued. There are numerous fansites for "vintage" Sindy, you could always try the eBay route, but that may be too much effort for what you want.

My daughter collected Felicity Wishes magazines - the first couple in the series come with a few dollies. They are lovely skinny fabric dolls and so cute. Each magazine in the series comes with a gorgeous fresh outfit, as she tries out different careers: explorer, seamstress, photographer and so on - too darling for words - and heaps of lovely accessories.
http://www.felicitywishescollection.com/

You could go for the American Girls craze, there is some amount of an educational aspect tied in if that's what you are looking for.

haleyrs--I also had "My Friend Dolls," and they are still at my parents'! Great idea. I had Jenny and Mandy, and they are in a cute red case FULL of clothing including roller skates, funny 1980s aerobics outfits, raincoats, etc. I'm totally going to show them to my daughter this summer!
Thanks for reminding me about those :).

Oops, I just googled and found out I was wrong. I had Jenny and Becky, not Jenny and Mandy :).

My parents must have been opposed to Barbies, because I had a DARCEY. Her arms and legs bent, and she was a little heftier than Barbie, so she couldn't wear any of my friends' Barbie clothes.

Booooooooooo...

I never got into Cabbage Patch or any other trendy/princessy stuff - but I still tell the story today about how lame my fake Barbie was...

If I had a daughter, I'd just by the Barbie stuff. So many more options - like vet Barbie and OB Barbie, etc.

I had My Friend Mandy growing up. She's a 16" doll with a cute face, and looks more like a little girl, not a baby or an adult fashion doll, and she has brushable/stylable hair. She is poseable, with vinyl limbs and face but a huggable softer cloth body. I recently gave her to my three-year-old daughter who LOVES her. A bonus is that she is machine washable, and has held up beautifully for years. I got a My Friend Jenny doll off of ebay so there would be a doll for little friends to play with too, and they are a hit. Tons of cute vintage clothes for them, too, and easy to find on ebay.

Thanks for all the great ideas.
I'm going to check out ebay for those My Friend Dolls.
The Felicity Wishes magazines and dolls are on my list for the future.
Has anyone tried the Fisher Price Snap N Style dolls? They seem to be a good idea for the toddler age…

I had six American Girl dolls growing up and I loved and played with them endlessly. I got the first one when I was about 6, Molly. I see plenty of small girls carrying around American Dolls. I don't really see a reason why a 3 or 4 year old couldn't play with them. Some come with small accessories but you could just hide them until you feel she is old enough to not eat them or something. They are certainly no more inappropriate for a 3 year old than Barbie is. They're expensive but in my opinion worth every penny. Mine are still in perfect condition except Molly, who could probably stand to have her hair replaced...

Oh, another doll to consider are the My Twinn dolls. They're also expensive, but they are made custom to look like the owner. I have one made to look like me growing up that I also played with.

http://www.mytwinn.com/

It would be helpful to know what your objection to Barbie is? If it's the Made in China angle, most of the other recommendations are also made there. If it's the plastics angle, Groovy Girls are a nice alternative. If it's the Barbie-ness of her, then many other companies have tried (and some succeeded) in designing more wholesome dolls. In the stores now, I like the look of the Liv dolls, but they're age graded 4 . Good luck!

groovy girls! totally cute soft toys with awesome clothes and accessories.

Once they're a little older, American Girl dolls.

I had a couple of Cabbage Patch dolls as a kid, and I loved them. I took those dolls everywhere, and although I had a couple of store-bought CP clothing sets, many of mine were handmade versions (so cute!). I also recommend the American Doll line - great stories to go with the dolls. A little spendy, though.