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My interests change quite frequently, but one thing that has always stuck with me is Barbie. As a kid, I was obsessed with everything to do with her, from her dolls, movies, and website. I had so many dolls, and so much random Barbie merchandise. Even as I grew older, I still collected the dolls despite people telling me that I should grow up and find more "adult" interests.
I've never been the biggest fan of the Barbie Collector line. I just like the playline dolls, mostly from the 2000s. The newer dolls and movies don't really appeal to me that much. It's great that the dolls are becoming more diverse, but the quality of the fashions and accessories just aren't the same. Everything just seems so cheaply made. When I was a kid they did have dolls at a lower price point, but the clothes were at least still made well.
I still have most of my old dolls, except for the ones who lost their heads during play. (I know you can actually reattach the heads when they fall off, but I didn't know that back then.) They've been well played with, so some of the outfits and accessories are either ripped or missing. My favourite doll is probably my Jewel Girl Barbie that I bought as a teenager, or my Island Princess Luciana doll. (I will put a picture here eventually.)
When I have a doll, I like to be able to style her hair and change her clothes with ease. That's why I don't care for collector's dolls, because I'm scared of ruining them so I just keep them in their boxes forever. Doll are toys, they deserve to be played with.
Dolls I still want to get are the Chat Divas Barbie (I really wanted her as a kid!) and one of the BTS dolls (I missed the chance to get one when they were cheap!). I don't have as much space anymore, so I don't really want to buy many dolls. I don't really have any room to display them either, which sucks. They're just in a storage box that messes up their hair and causes marks on the plastic.
I don't really like the newer movies, but that's mainly because I've grown out of them now. But I don't like how they've made Barbie seem younger now. From the start she was always supposed to be the "teenage fashion model", but in the 2000s it seemed like she was portrayed as slightly older. She felt to me like an older sister and a role model. Now it's weird seeing her as a teenager with a younger sounding voice and still living with her parents. Maybe she's always been the same age, but because I've grown up she feels younger. 2000s Barbie voiced by Kelly Sheridan will always how I think of Barbie. When I used to make home made Barbie movies, I'd always either base my Barbie off of this portrayal. If the story was more comedic, I would usually base my Barbie on her portrayal in the webseries Life in the Dreamhouse.
My favourite Barbie characters are probably Raquelle, Ryan and Skipper from Life in the Dreamhouse, Barbie from the 2000s films, and Luciana from the Island Princess. When I was young I used to like the dragon Penelope from Barbie as Rapunzel, for some reason I used to daydream that I was her. I also liked the dragon villain henchman in Diamond Castle too. It's strange that I liked the dragon characters a lot, because I don't care about dragons at all any more. I think I just thought dragons looked cool. Aramina from the Three Musketeers was also a favourite of mine, since her outfits were all in my favourite colour.
As a kid I had only some of the Barbie movies on DVD. My most watched films were the Diamond Castle and Island Princess. It seems that the most popular movie was the Princess and the Pauper. I didn't watch that one until it aired on Nick Jr. when I was 10. I knew the songs very well before that, just not the film. It's a good film, but I don't feel as nostalgic for the actual movie, just the songs. Looking back, I think Barbie as Rapunzel has the best outfits and overall aesthetic. I haven't watched it for many years, maybe I should rewatch it one day...
Unlike most people, I never grew up with many Disney Princess films. Instead, I just watched Barbie princess movies. I've never been able to find fantasy movies that quite capture the feeling that Barbie's gave me. Disney's princesses aren't the same because they're not pink and they have boring outfits. The closest thing I can find is probably magical girl anime, but even that's just not the same.
Barbie's films are so pink and sparkly, and there's nothing else like it. Nobody even likes this kind of aesthetic nowadays. When I was a teenager I thought it was lame and uncool to like "girly" colours, so I refused to touch anything that was pink or wear skirts and dresses. Now I'm making up for those years and trying to make my life as pink and sparkly as possible.
The above image is from the opening of Barbie and the Diamond Castle. I really like the outfits they wear in this scene. Why didn't they make dolls like this?
All I used to do online was play on the Barbie website. At one point I managed to find a bunch of hidden pages, but they've all been taken down now. Some of the older games from around 2011 are still on Barbie.com, but the real classics are gone. My favourite games were "Let's Babysit Baby Krissy", "Superstar Makeovers", and "Snip 'n Style Salon". I sometimes used to go onto the Wayback Machine to play them again, but some of them aren't as entertaining for me anymore.
Barbie heavily influenced me as a child, and it has shaped my current interests. Every story I write and daydream I imagine have all taken a lot of elements from Barbie films. No matter what happens in my life, I'll probably never stop liking dolls. My head is mostly filled with Barbie facts. I would write a lot more about her, but then this page would be much too long. (One day I'll do a separate page dedicated to My Scene.)
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