The "Average" Doll

If you had the choice to buy your cousin a fantasy, typical Barbie doll this holiday season or an "average" doll, which would you chose to buy?

Consumers this year will be asking themselves this question when faced with the two different types of Barbie's on shelves. Nickolay Lamm created a new kind of Barbie based on "what the Barbie would look like if she actually had the measurements of an average 19-year-old woman’s body (based on CDC data)" , as stated in Time Magazine. He created this doll in 2013 as an art project, and since then the project has raised to a whole new level. Through social media, the Lammily doll reached thousands of parents and consumers, all inquiring about where and when they can buy the doll. Lamm then crowd funded money to produce the doll right in time for the holidays. In January, Lamm will be expanding on his creation, adding a sticker extension pack complete with acne, moles, freckles, the ability to blush, scrapes and bruises, scars, cellulite and stretch marks. Lamm also released a video of second-grade students reactions to the doll, shown below: (skip to 3:44 to see the kids comparison of Lammily to the typical Barbie doll)

Although Lammy has received a lot of positive feedback and support, he acknowledges and expects negative feedback as well. He "insists" all of his additions, like stretch marks and bruises, come from a good place, but knows that they will be questioned. "I hope there are enough people who believe what I believe. I think 25% to 30% will think the stickers are stupid and the rest will think it’s good." 

Don't get me wrong, I think this doll is great. I think that this is something our society needs and young girls could definitely benefit from. It could potentially raise self-confidence to girls from a young age, which is something that I think is amazing. However, it's hard to believe that this project will replace Barbie. Barbie is an icon, something that has been around for what seems like forever, and imagining a world without Barbie is almost impossible in my opinion. Unfortunately, I think this project will be a fad. I think it needs a lot more support in order to have the power it needs; it needs to be more than just a statement to society. The press that the doll has gotten has definitely helped and I hope this message reaches Barbie, hopefully helping them realize their dolls flaws.