Who has stick thin legs, flawless skin, perfectly tamed hair, and a completely proportionate body? That’s right, Barbie does. But designer  Nickolay Lamm has made it his mission to create Barbies named Lammily Dolls that resemble “real” people.

Credit: BBC News Magazine Monitor
Barbie is shown on the left in comparison with a Lammily doll on the right. Credit: BBC News Magazine Editor

In his research, Lamm found body measurements for the average woman. He found an average height of around 63 inches and an average waist circumference of around 37 inches, compared to the waist of Barbie (scaled up to match he height of an average woman), which measures at just about 16 inches. Clearly, Barbie has tremendously smaller body proportions than most women realistically have. It was shown that if Barbie were a real woman, she would not even be capable of doing simple things like walking with her extremely petite figure.

Nickolay Lamm’s main goal in creating these Lammily dolls is to show that average is just as beautiful as anything Barbie represents. These new “normal Barbies” come with stretch marks, cellulite, tattoos, and even acne stickers to add on. These are features of women encountered regularly and should not be marks of shame. While there’s nothing wrong with a perfectly clear complexion, there’s also nothing wrong with acne marks. Women, and especially girls and young ages, tend to have this idea that Barbie marks perfection, and aiming to look like Barbie will make them perfect. While some women have even gone so far as to emulate Barbie’s figure, hairstyle, and makeup, it seems like Lamm’s ideas and creations are a step in the right direction.

Children should not have to grow up constantly feeling ashamed of their bodies. Barbie is an idealistic version of a real woman today, and Barbie dolls give off the wrong impression by spreading a narrow and specific message about beauty that relates “pretty” with “perfect.” Barbie’s body is unrealistic, and it holds way too high of a standard for women. These new Barbies teach young girls that they should not try to hide what they really look like.

Watch this video to hear Nickolay Lamm explain his inspiration and process for creating Lammily dolls:

 

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