consisted of Barbie's Bride's Dream outfit and Ken's Tuxedo, alongside an assortment of 900 series and Pak clothing pieces. Selling for $25.00, it must have been out of the reach of all but the richest or luckiest child.
Fashion Queen Barbie was so successful, that in 1964 Mattel decided to incorporate her wig feature into what they hoped would be the most exciting doll of the year, Miss Barbie. Far more technologically advanced than previous dolls, Miss Barbie had bendable legs and eyes that opened and shut, and was sold with her own lawn swing, perfect for showing off the doll's new posability. Unfortunately, whilst early catalogue photographs used a Fashion Queen head, the production doll had a very bizarre hard plastic head (necessary to house her sleep eye feature), that did little to endear her to Barbie doll buyers. In production for one year only, she did not come with the Fashion Queen wigs pictured in Mattel advertising, but with her own set, which included a titian bubble, brunette side part flip, and blonde page boy.
A more successful spin off, the Wig Wardrobe sets, were also available for the first time in 1964. A Fashion Queen head, sold with the wig set and stand, but no body, the Wig Wardrobe set could be used to update an old Barbie doll. Despite the fact that it sold for $3.50, which was $0.50 more than a doll, the set continued to be sold as late as 1967, and was so popular that in 1965, Mattel introduced a Wig Wardrobe set for Midge, including a newly designed (and in my opinion, rather silly looking) set of wigs. Interestingly, whilst most Wig Wardrobe Barbie sets were sold with the usual Fashion Queen wigs, some included left over Miss Barbie wigs.
In 1965, the Fashion Queen/Wig Wardrobe head appeared in the new Color N Curl sets, alongside a range of specially treated wigs that could be easily set, coloured and curled using the included solutions. Surprisingly wild for Barbie (shades included purple and flame red), the wigs must have looked rather out of place alongside contemporary fashions, but are highly sought after by collectors.
In 1967, the Barbie line was completely overhauled with the introduction of the new Twist 'n Turn doll and her updated face mold. A new set, Barbie's Hair Fair, which included a head with short, asymmetrical (rather than molded hair), wigs and hair pieces, was introduced, and the remaining Wig Wardrobe sets were sold off through mail order catalogues. Fashion Queen Barbie's long reign was over.
Because Fashion Queen Barbie's production was so long and so varied, it is hardly surprising that the dolls found today are so different from each other. The dolls pictured in this article are only a small group from my own collection, but just looking at them you can see just how much variety exists in these dolls. Some dolls can have pale pink lips, others are frosted, white, or bright coral lips. Most have no blush, whilst some have slight blush and others high colour faces any Color Magic would be proud of. The plastic varies, and can be hard and brittle, or waxy, like a slightly less greasy #5. Facial contours can be narrow, or chubby. Even bodies vary, particularly in the case of the Wig Wardrobe and Color 'N Curl heads, which were in production into the early Mod era, and could have been placed on any body, including the pink skinned post 1966 one.
As a best seller, there was little excess Fashion Queen Barbie stock left in storerooms or warehouses, meaning that most dolls found today are loose, and have been played with. Never removed from box dolls are quite hard to find, and are sought after, because of their attractive presentation and the fantastic box graphics. The doll was shrink wrapped into her box, wearing her earrings, so there is a premium on dolls with little or no green ear.
With no hair to cut off, the Fashion Queen was a robust little doll, and most have survived quite well. A good display doll, even with her accessories (which do not show up nearly as often as the doll herself) would probably be within the budget of most collectors, whilst dolls in need of some work regularly sell on eBay for less than the price of a new Barbie.
Rather than overlooking Fashion Queen Barbie, collectors should go back to her original concept and see her as the treasure she is. No other doll is so adaptable, capable of going from casual to high fashion with the change of a wig. Three dolls in one, and a perfect, affordable model, Fashion Queen is still the ultimate Barbie doll. |
