Barbie And Sindy Come Over All Anarchic 

Just about every girl on the planet had a Barbie or Sindy doll (or both) at some point of her childhood, it's a right of passage, for girly girls and tom boys alike. Sometimes you can throw the odd Action Man into the play mix; I have memories of suspending my Action Man and Sindy from underneath the living room table by a rope ... an adventurous descent.

Personally I've always been more of a Sindy girl, most likely because she's British made and was probably marketed harder to me than Barbie was. 

According to Wikipedia, Sindy is a British fashion doll created by Pedigree Dolls and Toys in 1963 as a rival to Barbie, and the page goes on to state that "Sindy's wholesome look and range of fashions and accessories made it a best selling toy in the UK in 1968 and 1970."

The influence of Sindy and Barbie across the world since their inception is huge, and recently on social media I came across a fantastic rebellious rendition of Barbie called Trophy Wife Barbie

It's well known that designers, artists and illustrators are influenced by the things they see around them and hence this wonderful Instagram account led me to illustrate a doll themed greeting card design, which depicts an unwholesome fashion doll. I think it will make a great birthday card for a friend.

On first glance it's one of those revolting overly girly pink riddled Barbie cards for little girls, but then - oh wait. 

"Lets party"  The design originally had the addition of 'Like fucking princesses' in the bottom left hand corner but I felt that this was needless clutter within the greeting card design and I'd just let the imagery itself do the talking.

I also wimped out and thought ... is that too sweary? What a wimp.

Birthday design card in stock soon

So this birthday card design has been sent to print, and according to my greeting card printing company has already been printed and dispatched today. They're amazeballs because I only sent it to them yesterday!

I'm really looking forward to a photo shoot with this new greeting design, I might see if I can get my hands on a fashion doll to pose with the card :D

Barbie was born in 1959 and has been a hit ever since. Sadly, her 'more wholesome' friend Sindy who came onto the scene in 1963 failed to upsurp her rival, and during the 1990's while Barbie's share of the doll market continued to grow, Sindy's diminished and she was delisted from major retailers in 1997.

Barbie manufacturer Mattel has sold over a billion Barbie dolls since 1959, however doll sales have dropped notably since 2014. If I'm speculating on the reason for the sudden demise of her popularity, could it be a recent rise in feminist values perhaps?

Barbie and Sindy have always been frivolous in that they have largely represented the enjoyment of possessions and fashion, and rightly so given they are 'fashion dolls' after all, but maybe it's time for a new breed of doll to dominate the marketplace - one that doesn't wear quite so much pink and is less of a feminine cliche.

Simply remoulding brand Barbie to become less of a feminine cliche might be a good starting point, as things have changed a lot since 1959. While Mattel have vaguely tried to keep up, I think it's been a struggle to match the ideals of the Barbie brand as it's always stood, with the ideals of modern women purchasing toys for their children.

Mattel probably needs to change the entire Barbie brand ethos - maybe Barbie needs to become a Lifestyle Doll rather than a Fashion Doll, allowing her persona to be about so much more than fashion, cars and fancy houses.

Some 'Alternative' Barbie Doll Resources:

The Lammily Doll - "Average is beautiful"

Anti Barbie - If you want to see Barbie as a nun or the statue of liberty, this is a good go to place.

Mattel Gives Barbie Diversity - more attempts to get Barbie to appeal to modern people, but she's still got that same 1950's housewife character, so is it enough to curb the downfall?

Why I Hate Barbie - bit o' ranting about 'the Kim Kardashian of the toy world'.

Barbie's Face Through History - Wow it changed MANY times over the decades, quite fascinating to look at.

Valeria Lukyanova, The Human Barbie - voyeuristic stuff.