TREE CHANGE DOLLS

   Two years ago my sister-in-law was frustrated when her daughter asked her to buy a Monster High doll. She refused to such a doll as she thought it was not appropriate for a seven year old girl. The Monster High dolls are teenagers but they look like prostitutes. They have full makeup, wear provocative clothes and extremely high heels. Sonia Singh, who has two little daughters, also didn't like the look of dolls nowadays. She decided to restyle the dolls to give them the look of young girls. She repainted their faces to have a more childish look, combed their hair into pony tails or braids and sewed them new clothes. Sonia shared the results of her work on Facebook and she received very positive feedback from mums from around the world. She branded her restyled dolls "Tree Change Dolls" as the first photos of the dolls were taken on a tree in her garden. Currently Sonia shares her experience of doll restoration on her web page and encourages parents to provide their children with more appropriate dolls. She would also like to affect toy manufacturers to rethink the type of dolls they produce.

Tree Change Dolls by Sonia Singh

   Some time ago when I saw a Barbie doll in a second hand store I decided to buy it and give her a second life. I shared the idea of saving the poor Barbie with my daughter and she liked it very much. First we washed the doll in warm water with fabric softener. Then we detangled her hair with a brush and made her two braids. Next I slightly repainted her face - changed the lip color to be more natural and made the eyebrows a little bit thicker. Finally I sewed her a dress from a piece of my daughter old clothing. I believe the result of our work is quite impressive. Now our Barbie looks like a happy teenager and my daughter loves to play with her. 

Our Barbie "before and after" transformation

   The best thing about restoring our Barbie is that I spent a great time with my daughter. Now she is asking me to buy another doll to restore it ;)