The Superstar mold with its irresistible
charm could easily obscure the beauty of all the other dolls that
Mattel had on the menu back in the 80s and 90s. No wonder it was
Barbie’s official face for good 20 years. But although Superstar is my
favorite of all Mattel’s creations, having a redhead, a brunette and a
couple of blondes, I could finally turn my attention to other headmolds.
The 1980 Oriental mold is so graceful I
really can’t understand how I could have been so blind as not to have
appreciated this face sooner. There were many prospective candidates to
my collection who hold the exotic, oriental features, yet, for all my
love and fascination for the culture of Japan, the choice was quite
simple.
This one came as NRFB and she seems to
have been packed a little more diligently than a play line, though I
have a very limited experience with boxes. The back of the box contains
some information about the country and its customs. The front of the box
informs it’s a collector edition and displays the doll beautifully. The
box contained also a stand, a brush, an invitation to subscribe Barbie
Bazaar and a 2-year warranty, precious little artefacts reminding of
Barbie’s glory from the past when attention to detail and high quality
of the product were more important than they seem to be now.
My Japanese is dressed in a Kimono 着物-
that literally means a thing to wear. My knowledge on this subject is
quite limited, but from what I know, Barbie is wearing a spring kimono
for young, unmarried women, which is evident by the length of the
sleeves. The kimono is closed with a gold, embroidered Obi sash tied at
the back and the purple layer underneath is slightly protruding. It’s
attached to the pink layer of course. To keep the kimono in place, it’s
been sewn with a single thread and there are 2 plastic snaps at the
level of the obi. Velcro holds the Obi in two places so it doesn’t slide
up or down. The doll’s kimono looks very accurate and authentic.
Barbie is also wearing the Tabi – the
socks, and her traditional clogs that have a slight tendency to fall off
but they keep to the feet far better than I thought. As for her
jewelry, she’s wearing a simple pearl ring and no earrings whatsoever.
There’s a pretty pink bow in her hair and I can see the rubber band has
started to disintegrate.
The hair of my Japanese is raven black
and incredibly soft. It’s completely straight and very long. The fringe
is unnecessary in my opinion and Barbie would look more authentic
without it, but the 90s and no bangs? No way! Her face is simply
gorgeous! Her lips are full and red and there’s a bit of lavender eye
shadow and a thick eyeliner over her slightly too large, hazel eyes, but
that’s Barbie, so whatever her origin, her eyes must be full of
expression. Her face speaks peace and harmony. I guess, she’s
exceptional in my collection in a way that she prefers tea to coffee.
Green tea, of course.
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