A couple of years ago, Mattel and Barbie had to acknowledge that not everyone in the world is blonde, blue-eyed, skinny, and ill-proportioned.

Also, a lot of parents started feeling a little weird about letting their kids aspire to those standards. The parents are the ones with the cash, so if they’re not happy, Barbie isn’t happy, and things need to change.

The change was a necessary one. Instead of the classic Barbie, in all her ‘Californian’ glory, you can now get Barbies of all shapes, sizes, skin tones, and hairstyles.

The latest additions to the Barbie Fashionista line include bald Barbies, differently-abled Barbies, and Barbies with vitiligo.

Huffington Post with more:

While some of the dolls are already available —the Barbie with vitiligo can be bought at Target and Walmart now — some are slated to come out later in the year, including the doll that doesn’t have any hair, Mattel told HuffPost Finds in an email.

Mattel explained that it worked with a dermatologist to make sure that vitiligo was accurately represented with its new doll.
“As we continue to redefine what it means to be a ‘Barbie’ or look like Barbie, offering a doll with vitiligo in our main doll line allows kids to play out even more stories they see in the world around them,” Mattel’s spokesperson said.

More Barbies from the range:

I’m particularly fond of ‘intern Ken’ on the right.

Is that ‘Fabio Ken’ second from the left?

Barbie is now the most diverse doll on the market.

The newest Fashionista dolls haven’t reached our shores yet, but the rest of the 176-strong doll collection can be found, for the most part, on Takealot or in toy stores.

They’re actually pretty affordable, and the average Fashionista doll goes for around R200.

Also, while we’re on the topic, I have a lot of feelings about this Barbie self-care playset with DIY meditation room:

That Barbie clearly has a lot of feelings as well, and you can probably buy more.

Isn’t play basically self-care for kids? I mean, do we really need to ruin it with the message that small people should be meditating with an app, drinking post-workout smoothies and visiting the spa? For the most part, “self-care” and “wellness” are just words used to sell women things they don’t need in the name of mental or physical health. And now Barbie is getting in on that trend?

Also, please introduce me to the four-year-old who can sit still long enough to meditate.

I’m all for the diverse Barbie dolls.

I’m just not loving the playset.

[source:huffingtonpost]