There is a handsome new Ken doll in Barbie’s life.  So, is he or is he not her boyfriend?  And what about KEN?  Look, all I can says is “It’s complicated.” The hair situation is also quite complicated, reflecting a change in how dolls are presented to collectors.

Barbie Basics Model Collector Ken Fashion Doll 10

First of all, have a look at the hair.  The picture above has been referred to as broccoli hair.  But don’t worry, nobody expects the doll to ever wear his hair like this.  Look at the promo pic below on the box.  One look is camera ready, while the other is just slightly odd.  It is a work in progress, and fans will do the work,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the past, you could take a doll from the box and take her or his picture straight away.  Things have changed and there is a huge group of collectors who want to make their Barbie doll their own.  The boxed dolls is just a starting point.  At the very least,  they will re-dress the doll.  It is becoming more and more common for owners to re-root the hair, repaint the face and swap the head onto a new body.

Swapping heads onto Made to Move bodies is a huge trend in doll collecting.  There is a very busy  Facebook group,  with many posts per week, where people ask for MTM (Made To Move)  suggestions to “match” their dolls with limited articulation.  The group, called Barbie Made to move Matches has nearly 9k members and  often shows a giant chart made by the group owners helping doll lovers to “bring their dolls to life.”  Boxers, basketball players and yoga tops in different colours make body donors for dolls with better face sculpts.

Boxer Barbie with a cycling doll.  They match!

So back to Ken and the broccoli hair.  He is an example of how Barbie is presenting dolls differently.  It is now understood that the photo issued of a doll by Mattel is only the start of a relationship.  With he Barbie Basics Looks dolls, buyers often wait to see how other people style up a doll to see how she may look her best.  In Ken’s case, people (myself included) love the face but have no clue how to make him look how I want him.  I am watching and waiting and asking for advice.  This Ken has a face sculpt called Sean. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Doll shoppers have noted that his clothes are not great and his body is not especially buff.  These criticisms are not stopping buyers from buying.  The body can be swapped, he works well as a teenager to accompany Teen Skipper, clothes can be found and now that just leaves the hair.  

A few examples of Sean/Ken with reworked hair are appearing on Instagram already.  There are a few videos of boil washes and hairdressing techniques.  I will style Sean/Ken as a student doctor.  I just need to gather visuual references. 

Once I gather some photos, I will post the best MTM match,  as well as styled dolls.  Watch this space.