BarbieFashionistas Doll #135

Very clever doll with Vitilago such a good learning toy.

The doll arrived in excellent condition. In reality she is even more charming! Her clothes are perfectly tailored, her braids are impeccably done. I am pleased!

Awesome doll niece loves it. Nice to get mixed race dolls when I was a kid there was no mixed race dolls that looked like us.

I collect black Barbies and as soon as i saw this fashionistas hair I knew I had to buy her. She is a tall one. The hair is lovely, very slim braids. Her face is gorgeous and her skirt is just like a red leather one I had in the late 80's. The onle downside is I just wish all Barbies had made to move bodies. They are very expensive and they just dont move. Even if they just moved at the elbows and knees?!Oh well, mine is display only so it doesnt really mattet to me but if I were a child I would want the jointed ones at £25 each and many parents cannot afford that.Overall, a stunning addition to my collection.I paid £11.99

Daughter absolutely loves her still after over a year: opens up dialogue about diversity & role play using this Barbie along with the prosthetic leg one has helped my daughter understand the braider spectrum of diversity, disability & ourselves. The doll is actually smaller & slimmer than a regular Barbie but obviously doesn't make a bit of difference when playing with it.

When I saw this doll and the 1-2 month wait, I decided to watch and wait. I am so glad I did. The first batch arrived for sale in the UK by 20 May 2019. The next batch isn't due until late June!First, the biggest surprise, this doll (Fashionistas #123) was so tall she was literally bursting out of the top and bottom of the box! I know that will disappoint collectors who like to/must leave their dolls in their perfectly intact box shrines. A broken box devalues the doll, so beware if you're one of those. I'm not, so didn't care.The doll is beautiful, no doubt. But, per usual, you just cannot trust that the actual face and the marketing version in the pictures match up. Her face sculpt is dated 2016, and appears to be the one Kattis Dolls classifies as "Barbie 'smile'." See also Fashionistas #82 (Chic in Chambray), #88 (Unicorn Magic), and #110 (Sporty Smile, Tall).Her complexion is one of the popular 'mixed race' shades, IMHO not as reddish as #89 (Red Hood with Long Brown Hair, Tall, aka XOXO). Made-to-Move re-bodying fans will have a field day deciding among Curvy Dancer, Tall Basketball, or Original Soccer dolls. If you plan to keep her body intact, as I do, FYI, her right arm is straight, while her left arm has a gentle 135-degree bend (where 180 would be straight). Most of my bent-arm Fashionistas have one arm or both in a sharper 90-degree bend.Her makeup is subdued (no harsh eyeshadow or blush), with gorgeous deep burgundy lipstick. I do wish Mattel would choose this colour for many of their darker-skinned dolls. What is it with all this light pink and lilac nonsense (e.g. see #105 Curvy Bold Stripes, #90 Rainbow Sparkle, or #93 Petite Purple Lace Romper)?OK, the braids. I didn't want to get into the cultural appropriation debate here, but this doll release makes the topic pretty unavoidable. As a Black (Afro-Caribbean heritage) woman, let me just say that all sorts of trends that started in the Black community have been adopted by other races, e.g. popular music from the 1950s onward. Also, how many decades ago did Bo Derek appear in the film '10' with those blonde braids? That said, I do wish Mattel had released their first 'braids' doll ALSO as a darker-skinned African-American (AA) alternative, with what are considered more recognisable AA facial traits in the nose and mouth, e.g. using the Mbili sculpt. Maybe they will with the US release(s)? Frequent US retailers of AA Barbie dolls--e.g. Made-to-Move Yellow Top's original exclusive release--can influence this. Surely Amazon is big enough to have some input. Please?And then there's the hair skimpiness factor. Compared to Fresh Dolls' Indigo's braids (photo to come), Mattel has given us about half the hair! Worst sin is the hackneyed multi-length chopping they have inexplicably been doing to Fashionistas' hair for years now (see #16 Glam Team [shiny aqua & white '84' sporty shirt-dress]). Stop it already!I don't care about the outfits, because I always design new ones for the dolls. For those that rely on 'Atelier Mattel', her plastic bright red 'imitation-pleather' (separate!) skirt is wonderfully fresh, if a bit short (risqué when seated). Her (separate!) sleeveless black T-shirt is emblazoned with 'Girl Power' (!!) Both top and skirt are fastened with that annoying 'catch-in-everything' Velcro. The boots are a great choice of footwear--low-heeled per Tall-dolls standard, no silly high-heeled shoes. But lilac? Black, tan or even white would have looked better.Summary: Beautiful Tall doll with distinctive hair and hot red 'pleather' mini-skirt--all a plus--but come on Mattel, you can do better. Let's ALSO have a dark-skinned (e.g. in the ponytail brunette Made-to-Move skin tone) doll with an Mbili or Grace facial sculpt and thick black braids, please.

Arrived on time

I brought this doll because I liked her braided hair and outfit. She has cheery smile, wears complimentary bracelet. Good value for money.