This is a question for fellow Barbie doll collectors…
I seem to have a gap in dark skin tones… yes/no?
missing shade(s) of black?
Are there any dolls that have a skin tone that is in between light brown and dark brown? Most of my other AA dolls are the same colour as Uhura (second doll of the left) and a few ever so slightly a teensy bit darker… but nothing quite medium-ish…
image belongs to Mattel - BarbieMedia.com
ADD – I *think* the shade I’m looking for is used for the doll head on the stick labelled 17442 Asha (left of image), or maybe even the shade used for 4092 Christie – apparently Barbie uses seven different skin tones… I’ve counted a lot more than that, must be the variations in different batches of dolly plastic…
doll skin shade scale
haha… I’ve even created a quick scale to compare the skin shades (seven variations as according to “official info”)… hmmm (am I weird?)
Aside – even my partner reckons his skin shade is in between (I’ve checked, it’s true lol)
Tags: barbie dolls, brown skin, dark skin
Yes, there are brown shades in the Barbie line. Here are a few:
Twist’n turn Christie
Purple Panic Christie
Shani
Shani’s Friend Nichelle (not as dark as the Milan Barbie)
Hip Barbie AA (2003)
Really Rosy Christie
Generation Girl Nichelle
Cali Girl Christie 2004
So in Style Grace
So in Style Kara
Hope this helps.
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Therese Reply:
August 8th, 2009 at 10:46 pm
oooer! the “brown” I was thinking of is more like Kiyoni Brown’s from your post Black Doll Hair by Mattel
so they (Mattel) obviously have the pigment formula for this shade, why don’t they use it more often? (as well as the “straightened black hair” texture)
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D7ana Reply:
August 9th, 2009 at 10:11 am
A close match to the Denim & Diamonds Kiyoni is the AA Zodiac Barbie, Cancer, from 2004. The original Nichelle is a tad lighter than those two dolls. And yes, the Princess of South Africa is darkest of these dolls.
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Therese Reply:
August 9th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
very cool! I’m a Cancerian
I have a “reason” to go find her now!
Chdenni Reply:
August 9th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
ME TOO! LOL!
Therese Reply:
August 12th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
I’ve just bought both AA and CC versions of the Cancer Zodiac dolls off ebay lol… now I have to hunt down all the other July dolls LOL *smh*
D7ana Reply:
August 14th, 2009 at 12:52 am
OMG! Cancer here, too.
I mean sun sign in Cancer ;-D .
Perhaps next year, I’ll do a spread of July/Cancer themed dolls? In addition to 3 Barbies, I have at least 1 July Takara Schoolgirl.
Therese Reply:
August 14th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
oh whoops, someone posted that AA Cancer Zodiac doll has the same skin colour as Milan! oh well, she’s so pretty… I’m looking forward to her coming home just the same
I have heard that Top Model Nikki might be *the* shade I’m looking for but I’ve also heard that she’s really HTF *sigh*
Paisley Reply:
October 26th, 2009 at 12:24 am
Asha is very light brown. She not a medium, in between brown like you want. I bought Asha for my bi-racial daughter when she was little because she was close to her color. Asha could even be percieved as Latino. I think the colors in the photo might be off. I would love to find another Asha for my now adult daughter, as it was her favorite, but I never see the doll in stores anymore.
Therese Reply:
October 26th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
Hi Paisley, Asha dolls are no longer being made – if you wish to buy one now, it is best to look on the secondary market (eg. thrift stores, garage sales, ebay). However the face mould originally used on the Asha doll are sometimes still used on Barbie’s Af-Am friend or Barbie’s Af-Am self, albeit in a big-head-version for both.
Most of the Christie’s/Black Barbie’s from the 80′s and 90′s have the medium brown tone. I think the Byron Lar’s Sugar doll so far is the lightest tone ever used on a black doll
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Thanks Dana and Chdenni…
I’ve just pulled out my Christie dolls and my Shani – they only seem a little bit darker than Uhura – just a little… not quite in between Uhura and Milan, more like a quarter or a third of the way. I’d also noticed that the skin tone of my older dolls are in a cooler tone – I wonder if that’s the plastic getting older or if they’ve just changed the pigments in the plastic…
I don’t have Nichelle (original) – I might have to go searching for her…
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Oh my! I didn’t know that Mattel has that many color selection. I would have asked the same question. Thanks for posting. And thanks to Dana for the list of dolls. ^_^
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You’re welcome Therese and Niel!
Glad to put my collection information to good use.
Oh and that’s one of the things that I LOVE about Mattel – in spite of times when I feel frustrated by them – is the wide range of skin colors and hair textures Mattel has had over the years. With other companies, I am grateful for the one or two ethnic dolls offered. Usually there is ONE AA or Black doll with a middle brown complexion. Mattel provides variety.
For male figures though, M & C Toys takes the prize.
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@ the author:
No, you’re not weird! LOL! I’m an artist and love dolls! So I pay attention to skin tones, molds, face paints, LOL! It’s so cute to me.
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P.S. The picture with the pre-painted bald Barbie heads on the popsicle sticks are kinda creepy! LOL! It reminds me of when my grandmother used to melt chocolate, white fudge, and butterscotch and make candy with candy molds. =)
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