Barbie Fashionista

Today, it's the Barbie fashion show! Well, not completely, but I decided to focus on a few outfits from my collection. Because boy, did the Barbie "brand" change from the time I was a kid to when my daughter was playing with dolls!

First, though, I just want to note that the red evening gown was made for me by my late Grandma Moore. If she didn't need glasses before this, she would have after. Talk about yer tiny seams!




The blue and white dress on the red-haired Barbie is a true classic. It has a zipper in the back - no velcro closings around yet.

Also note the hairstyle on that doll. Clearly this was before the folks at Mattel realized that doing the doll's hair would be a big draw, so the more hair, the better.


These are the two outfits I particularly wanted to highlight. First, note the colors - no pink! Back in the day, Barbie dressed in a host of colors.

You can't really tell what the fabrics are like, but there was a variety in that, too. The brown outfit is made of fabric that wouldn't have been out of place used for a real woman's jacket and skirt. And that fur trim? That's real fur. No way the PETA folks would allow that now, and no loss. I point that out to show the difference in quality of the fabrics used in the olden days. There's even fur on that gold purse.

In fact, take a look at those accessories.

The gold evening outfit cost a small fortune in the 60's. I found a $5 bill on the way home from school and it took the whole thing to buy this outfit.

The gold fabric is a damask and the whole coat is lined. Again, note the color choices - variety! Luxury! Sophistication!

There was also a catalog that came with every outfit. It was like a mini-Vogue to me.

I'd also like to note another change over time. The waist on my old Barbie is thicker than the waist on my daughter's. I immediately noticed the difference in the faces, too. At some point, Barbie developed bigger, Bambi eyes. Also, apparently, teeth.