Barbara Millicent Roberts, known the world over as Barbie, celebrated her 50th birthday in style last year, with fashion designers and style makers lining up to toast the doe-eyed doll at what felt like a 12 month-long party. First came runway shows in New York and London, followed by tailor-made clothes by Christian Louboutin and Comme Des Garcons, cementing her every-girl’s-fantasy status. Over the holidays, Barbie Fashionistas (a line of runway-inspired dolls) were a top seller, and there are currently huge billboards on Manhattan's west side encouraging fans to vote for Barbie's next career. (Should she be a news anchor, architect or computer engineer? You decide.)

Still youthful at 51, Barbie remains as popular as ever. Currently, there are nearly 165,000 Barbie-themed goods on eBay, ranging from a collection of holiday Barbie dolls with a starting bid of $13,000 to Barbie doll clothing that can be purchased for one dollar. (The average selling price of Barbie dolls on eBay is around $25.) Recently, a lot of vintage 1950s and 1960s Barbie dolls was sold for $9,979 after nine bids, though the highest priced Barbie doll sale in recent years was a rare 1959 Original Vintage #1 Ponytail Barbie with a box and stand that sold for $14,600. Barbie dolls are the most popular doll on eBay, representing the largest majority in the Dolls category.  Sales spike in December for the holiday season, and seem to be recession-proof, as total sales continue to grow year over year.

Barbie's most recent breaking news is her new streamlined look: Mattel has just introduced a line of Barbie Basics, featuring dolls clad in a simple black dresses with accessory kits packed with shoe, scarf, handbag, and jewelry options so girls can customize her look.

To commemorate the launch, the Council of Fashion Designers of America has corralled twelve of fashion’s biggest stars to style one-of-a-kind Barbie Basics figurines to auction off on eBay. The participating team includes Devi Kroell, Betsey Johnson, Isaac Mizrahi, Rachel Roy, Albertus Swanepoel, Lorraine Schwartz, Alexis Bittar, Botkier, Philip Crangi, Tory Burch, Subversive Jewelry and Kate Spade. All were given free rein to tinker with Barbie's look any way they saw fit. The result? Each doll has a distinct skin tone, facial features, and hair color, and their outfits—some bedecked with loads of glitzy sparkles, others sleekly minimalist—are similarly disparate.

Kate Spade co-president and creative director Deborah Lloyd altered Barbie’s sheath with a ribbon belt and fringed tiers on the skirt, and added a polka dot tote and oversize crystal necklace, giving her a modern Breakfast at Tiffany’s vibe. Lloyd told The Inside Source, “This project was so nostalgic for me, as I began my 'career' designing beautiful dresses for my Barbie at the age of six. Now it has come full circle and I absolutely adored designing for her again. It made me remember how much I love what I do and that I am living out my childhood dream!”

Though jewelry designer Alexis Bittar admitted, “I never played with dolls, so it wasn’t something I was exposed to, [though] I totally understand the fascination of playing with Barbie and getting to dress her up. And the idea of making Barbie even more glamorous was appealing.” The designer described his design to The Inside Source: “We came up with this asymmetrical crystal pattern on her dress and reversed the jewels to make them look more like spikes, and gave her a super-messy Italian Vogue hairdo” he says. “She has a retro, going-to-the-Palladium-in-1992 feel.”

Each doll is completely unique and exclusive to eBay. Bidding for Barbie opens at $100 and kicks off this Thursday, January 28th, through February 7th, with proceeds benefitting the CFDA’s educational initiatives and scholarship program. 

 

**Barbie photos coutesy of Mattel.**