Toronto: All dolled up

by Connie Ng April 1, 2009

BARBIE BY DAVID DIXON. Photography by Jess Baumung

Prolific fashion muse Barbie turns 50 this year and in honour of the style icon’s birthday, a line-up of top designers collaborated with Mattel to bring Barbie’s luxe life of mansions, convertibles and lavish wardrobe options into reality. The long list includes Volkswagen, Calvin Klein, Michael Kors and Diane von Furstenberg. There’s also Canadian content from David Dixon, Cake and Town Shoes.

Nothing says birthday quite like Cake (cakebeauty.com). Available at Sephora, the line of beauty products comes in cheeky, vintage-inspired packaging. “Gotta Hand it to Her” ($20) will nourish every working girl’s hands with yummy ingredients like mango butter and marshmallow extract.

Over at the Bay Queen Street (176 Yonge St., 416-861-9111) is the Barbie Signature Store. Alongside T-shirts bearing a flaming heart with Ken and Barbie’s names, you’ll find a museum of Barbie in couture by the most renowned designers: the Dior and Bob Mackie pieces are not to be missed.

Also on display at the store are designs from the Dixon brothers. David Dixon‘s collection distills the essence of Barbie by pairing a cartoony colour palette with sophisticated tailoring. Everything from evening gowns to office attire is chic and wearable (Check out FASHION’s pics from the Fashion Week show). This tasteful kitsch leaks into Glenn Dixon‘s home decor, a modernized interpretation of Victorian furnishings with bold, playful accents. The Legally Blonde-meets-Jackie O aesthetic embodies everything I love about Barbie.

Barbie must have owned over a billion pairs of shoes since her debut and to pay tribute to this shoeholic, Town Shoes unveiled a line of heels that strikes a nostalgic chord. Just envision wearing the same iconic heels you spoiled your own Barbie with as a child: the zebra prints, the bright, bubble gum pink pumps….

Visit barbie50.ca for more Barbie goodies. One can’t help but wonder how Barbie feels about the world biting her style. Guess imitation is the highest form of flattery?

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