“Average is beautiful,” says designer Nickolay Lamm, who created a “Normal Barbie” using the proportions of a 19-year-old American woman. He’s now trying to raise $95,000 through the sale of 5,000 of the dolls through a crowdfunding site.
Lamm maintains that if Barbie were a real girl she would look more like his vision. He used the measurements of an average 19-year-old woman and then molded them to a 3D model of Barbie. Compared with the original Barbie doll, the changes are drastic: Lamm’s doll is shorter and has more realistic proportions. Her feet are flat, not permanently built to fit into high heels.
Lamm has now launched a crowdfunding site to produce 5,000 dolls, which will feature average proportions, a light amount of makeup, and joints that bend.
“I’ll build new clothes and accessories after this crowdfunding. My plan is for Lammily to come in different ethnicities and body shapes. But all future body shapes will be of healthy typical women. Very few kids are concerned about body image like parents are.”
Lamm is adamant that kids just aren’t concerned about body shape or image, and he plans to market them without focusing on this aspect of the doll. It remains to be seen if kids will play with them or how popular they can be, but the idea is pretty cool and is a step in the right direction in promoting self confidence for girls concerned about their own body shape.
(Images and source – Buzzfeed)
