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[[File:PortfolioPastimes.jpg|thumb|350px|The cover of the Portfolio of Pastimes box (with all six book kits).]]
The '''Portfolios of Pastimes''' (or "Pastimes Collection") is a set of six books and portfolios that offered activities focused on the first three released [[Historical Characters]]. They were complimented with and integrated with the [[Historical Character Craft Kits]], and are the precursor to the later released [[American Girls Pastimes]].

==Overview==

The portfolios became available in early 1991; the characters only included [[Kirsten Larson]], [[Samantha Parkington]], and [[Molly McIntire]] as they were the only released characters at the time. Sets focused on each of the three characters fairly equally and had historical facts and data sprinkled through the text where it was available. Each portfolio was either a bound book or--in the case of the Games and Theater Kit--a folding envelope with an attached maroon ribbon that held the contents closed. 

The books could be purchased individually, as sets, or as part of a subscription. Sets could be purchased for flat fees of ''$79.95'' for all six books and ''$100'' for all six craft sets. 

A six-month subscription to the activity books was $84 ($14 per month) and included all the portfolios. A six-month subscription to the craft kits was $108 ($18 per month) and included all the craft sets. 

A one-year subscription was $192 ($16 per month) and received all the available items. It also came with a free bonus Introduction Kit and a craft apron, the ''Pastimes Play Apron'' (or ''Craft Apron''). The apron could also be purchased separately for ''$8'', though it was later sold on clearance for ''$6''. Through the subscription year, the sets alternated between the activity books and the offered Historical Character Craft Kits. The first month after purchase was the first received item (so if a collection was purchased in October, the first item would be the album).

The activity books remained available until 1994, when they were supplanted by the American Girls Pastimes for each character (which now included [[Felicity Merriman]] and [[Addy Walker]]). Three of the craft kits remained until 1996, as did the craft apron until at least 1997. 

The [[American Girl Patterns]] later used the same design for their covers.

===Schedule and Items===

The rotating year-round schedule was as follows:

* '''January:''' [[American Girls Diary]]
* '''February:''' Samantha's [[Victorian Valentines|Valentines]]
* '''March:''' [[American Girls Cookbook]]
* '''April:''' Molly's [[Knitting Nellie]]
* '''May:''' [[American Girls Paper Dolls]]
* '''June:''' Molly's [[Lanyard Kit]]
* '''July:''' [[American Girls Theater Kit]]
* '''August:''' Kirsten's [[Kirsten's Weaving Loom|Weaving Loom]]
* '''September:''' [[American Girls Historical Games]]
* '''October:''' Samantha's [[Embroidery Sampler]]
* '''November:''' [[American Girls Album]]
* '''December:''' Kirsten's [[Straw Ornaments]]

==Trivia==

* Samantha and Kirsten used portraits from their Meet book covers, but Molly's portrait was from the original 1986 cover of ''[[Molly's Surprise]]''.
* With the exception of the [[Embroidery Sampler]] and [[Victorian Valentines]] (loosely) for Samantha, the crafts are not mentioned directly in the character series. 

==See Also==

* [[Historical Character Craft Kits]]
* [[American Girls Pastimes]]
* [[American Girl Patterns]]
* [[An American Girl's Family Album]]
* [[Cookbooks]]
* [[Craft Books]]
* [[Paper Dolls]]
* [[Theater Kits]]

[[Category:Books]]
[[Category:Craft Kits and Activities]]
[[Category:Samantha's Collection]]
[[Category:Kirsten's Collection]]
[[Category:Molly's Collection]]
[[Category:Items Released in 1991]]
[[Category:Retired Books]]

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''This page incorporates text from [https://americangirl.fandom.com/wiki/Portfolios_of_Pastimes the source wiki] ([https://americangirl.fandom.com/index.php?oldid=130409 exported version], [https://americangirl.fandom.com/index.php?title=Portfolios+of+Pastimes&action=history contributor history]), under [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ the original text license].''