It’s time to start shopping for Christmas and many little girls will be asking for Barbie dolls this year.
While Barbie has changed a lot over the years, a recent doll called Normal Barbie may bring the biggest changes yet.
The Normal Barbie, whose name is Lammily, is supposed to be modeled after the average 19-year-old woman.
She is curvier than the original Barbie and has thicker arms and legs. She also wear less makeup and comes with acne, blemishes and stretchmark stickers.
The normal barbie – complete with curves and cellulite – is our new favourite thing http://t.co/nczx8maoZv pic.twitter.com/9Z4Rj0V74R
— Stylist Magazine (@StylistMagazine) November 24, 2014
Over the years, many people have argued that Barbie’s unattainable looks make girls feel bad about themselves for how they look and give them an unrealistic image to try to live up to.
The Normal Barbie was made to help inspire girls and women to be happy with the way they look and to feel confident about their bodies. The Barbie was developed by Nickolay Lamm.
“I want to show that reality is beautiful,” Lamm said. “I just think she’s really relatable.”
This is how real kids reacted to the new "normal" Barbie: http://t.co/nUKfpTpoXl pic.twitter.com/iFqqsaivIC
— ELLE Magazine (US) (@ELLEmagazine) November 24, 2014
While the Normal Barbie may seem like a good idea, many parents don’t think they will appeal to their children.
“My daughter probably wouldn’t give this doll a second glance as it is now,” Jill McSheridan, of Harwood Heights, said in an email to the Chicago Tribune. “Give this doll more hair color options and better clothes, then it’d be great.”
Other women say that the original Barbie is fine the way she is and that just because she looks a certain way doesn’t mean girls expect to look like her.
Do you think the Normal Barbie is a good idea?