There’s been a lot going on in my DOTW
collection. Since the beginning of the year I’ve managed to double their number
as well as find the two missing outfits for them. I’ve already shown you my
Italian Barbie and the two Mexican girls and my Irish doll is finally complete,
so now it’s time for my Russian Barbie 1995 to make her appearance. Now, unlike
the rest of my Dolls of the World, my Russian girl was a spontaneous purchase. The seller put out
the Mexican Barbie 1988/89 for sale but a couple of auctions below the Russian
girl was dressed in her stock outfit. As the seller was reluctant to switch the
outfits I was left with a choice of buying both or none. I looked the Russian
Barbie up and I was satisfied with what I saw. She was pretty and if I had had
any doubts, once she arrived they all disappeared and I made up my mind to
somehow get her stock outfit as well.
Mattel has released several Russian Barbie
dolls and the first one appeared in 1989 (produced in 1988) and that was the doll
I had planned to purchase. I think I will eventually. That doll uses the
Superstar face sculpt and has kanekalon hair. Her outfit is amazing, made of
magenta velvet with black accents and a fur hat. Some releases may vary in
terms of their jewelry. Some are wearing the early 80s type earrings and rings,
the ones with rhinestones. Others got the newer design popular in the 90s which
isn’t my favorite. The Second Edition Russian Barbie was produced in 1995 and
that’s the one I’m showing you today. She still has the lovely Superstar
headmold, 90 degrees bent arms and the imperial outfit. I really like them
both.
 |
| Russian Barbie 1988 |
The source:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/RUSSIAN-BARBIE-1988-SPECIAL-EDITION-DOLLS-OF-THE-WORLD-1916-NIB-NRFB-NEW-/190763293094
 |
| Russian Barbie 1995 |
Then there are two contemporary releases and
they’re based on the Mackie headmold. The first one is the gorgeous Princess of
Imperial Russia which belongs to the Dolls of the World: the Princess
Collection. She was given some amazing facepaint, just look at this cat eye and
the intriguing smile – she’s not to be trifled with! She’s wearing a very
elaborate, traditional dress and a tunic. 2009 brought us a completely
different Russian doll. She’s a very modern, high fashion girl. Linda Kyaw gave
her a fitting navy blue coat, stylish boots and an ushanka. And her box is just
exquisite. The doll is beautifully displayed against the graphic that shows a
dimly lit street of a Russian city, you can see the architecture typical of
that country there. Amazing scenery and a gorgeous doll. I just devoured the
pictures with my eyes.
 |
| Princess of Imperiall Russia 2004 |
The source:
https://barbie.mattel.com/shop/en-us/ba/princess-of-imperial-russia-barbie-doll-g5861
 |
| Russia Barbie 2009 |
The source: https://www.amazon.com/Barbie-Dolls-World-Russia-Doll/dp/B002IB2A8Y
As far as my Russian girl goes, I love her
beautiful, soft saran braid. One unruly strand got out of control and I had to
braid the beautiful, honey-colored hair anew –it’s really silky and long too.
It’s surprising to see such gorgeous hair at the time when brittle kanekalon
dominated Barbie world. After all, Dolls of the World is truly a spectacular
series and Mattel spared no effort to make the dolls really special. The doll’s
eyes are typical of the period, but the color combination is quite unique. Her
eyes are of course blue, but the eye shadows are vibrant lime green and salmon/peach.
Such colors normally don’t go well together, but somehow this time they do.
Just like any next Barbie of the time, her lips are full. That’s not my
favorite variation, I prefer the thin and more subtle smile of the 80s, but the
lipstick looks very nice against her pale complexion. The doll is a beauty, no
question about that.
As I’ve mentioned before, my Russian Barbie
arrived dressed in the Mexican’s outfit that quickly returned to its rightful
owner. I decided to purchase the stock outfit which I liked a lot. It also
tells her apart from any other doll. DOTW Barbies need their original outfits
because apart from the skin tone and the hair, it’s the outfit that reveals the
doll’s origin. When dressed in some contemporary fashions, the Russian would
look very much like the Polish Barbie, but give her the kokoshnik (traditional
headwear) and you know who she really is. Red and white dominate her dress that
consists of a blouse with a skirt (a one-piece) and a separate tunic. The skirt
seems to be very simple in terms of its design but if you take a closer look
there’s an elaborate pattern punched on it. The front of the skirt however, is
quite spectacular. The applique is intricate. There’s a little gold here and
there, but within reason. The outfit is imperialistic but not flamboyant or
ostentatious. Her kokoshnik is quite modest as well. While this traditional
Russian headwear can be incredibly rich and ornate, hers is of small
proportions and only three golden flowers with beaded centers decorate it. The
piece covering the doll’s forehead is however beautiful and makes her look so regal.
The Russian outfit is in great condition and it
looks like a completely new doll was stripped and both sold separately. These
practices are not uncommon, and normally I dislike them greatly. In this one
instance however, I have to say, with utter honesty that I’m glad it happened.
At least the outfit is worn by a Russian doll in the end, like it should. The
set also included a hairbrush and a pair of boots. I remember these from my
childhood when Barbie was a luxury product in my country. That was the time
when the companies producing clones of various shapes and sizes boomed. Such
clones were usually sold at department stores and newsstands and you could
easily tell it’s a copy. These dolls were simply ugly. They had sparse yellow
hair and were made of thin, almost transparent plastic you could dent easily.
And they would wear these boots, or should I say an imitation of them. My
Russian’s boots are made of soft rubber. They’re elastic so it’s possible to
put them on her legs. The copies were made of plastic and wouldn’t always go
all the way or they’d be too large. It so happens that My Russian Barbie
arrived wearing such clone boots. I still have them and out of some strange
sentiment for the times long gone I haven’t thrown them away yet despite them being so filthy.
My Russian doll, all complete and beautiful was
about to return to her shelf, but then I had a sudden inspiration and I took
all of my DOTW for a group photo. They’re a lovely bunch, aren’t they.
No comments:
Post a Comment