How This Woman Designed Barbie's Most Iconic Outfits For 35 Years
Carol Spencer was the unsung hero behind Barbie’s most iconic fashion designs from 1963 until her retirement in 1998. Recently, thanks to the success of her new book, “Dressing Barbie,” the 86-year-old designer is finally getting her due recognition. We went to Carol’s home, where she has a giant collection of Barbie dolls and memorabilia, to interview her about life, fashion, and what it was like to dress the most famous “woman” in the world. Will include archival footage about Barbie to fill out the piece visually.
MORE STYLE CONTENT:
What Barbie Would Look Like In Real Life
• What Barbie Would Look...
Inside A 5,000-Item Collection Of Vintage Vans
• Inside A 5,000-Item Co...
How To Spot Fake Designer Bags
• How To Spot Fake Desig...
------------------------------------------------------
#Barbie #Style #INSIDER
INSIDER is great journalism about what passionate people actually want to know. That’s everything from news to food, celebrity to science, politics to sports and all the rest. It’s smart. It’s fearless. It’s fun. We push the boundaries of digital storytelling. Our mission is to inform and inspire.
Subscribe to our channel and visit us at: www.insider.com
INSIDER on Facebook: insder.co/2NyYczE
INSIDER on Instagram: insder.co/2K8WGS0
INSIDER on Twitter: insder.co/2xyN5wE
INSIDER on Snapchat: insder.co/2KJLtVo
INSIDER on Amazon Prime: insder.co/PrimeVideo
INSIDER on Dailymotion: insder.co/2vmKnZv
How This Woman Designed Barbie's Most Iconic Outfits For 35 Years
I find it so cute that she wore *pink* for the interview.
maite herasme me too
It looks so good on her
Just true beauty
Elton John
Well it’s like pink pastel And I want wear it too 🥺💖
Dang, she has worked hard to make a ton of girls happy
youre, right but dont forget boys too :)
Michael Myers gender doesnt matter :D
@@hb-no9zk bleh
@@bloodlobster bleh you
;-;
I love her story! what an inspiration 👏💕
EverythingDolls hi
Omgggg I love youuuu you are so amazing
Hi
OMG hii!!!!
I agree my mate. Now I got influenced by Carol Spencer to make dresses for my Barbie!
I wish we could have some really over the top fashion Barbies again (that aren't the $100 & over collector Barbies)
I don't think we ever really did.. I think the ones she showed were collector Barbies.
@@igapaterska3544 I'm talking about 80s & 90s Barbies like Totally Hair Barbie (which is shown on the thumbnail), Jewel Secrets Barbie, Jewel Hair Mermaid Barbie, etc. There was more of a sense of fantasy back then.
@@StreetNoise Ohhhh okay. I understand now
True 😌
@@StreetNoise Yes! Bring back the quality fantasy Barbies!
wow, she really made my childhood a blast. thanks ma’am
-ella- I feel the need to insult someone idk why Im replying to you lol
Sassy Antelope That is really weird but ok lol
Avocado 🥑
@@QueenYossiB 😂😂😂
Same.❤😊
"there's a whole world out there that you can find if you look for it"
I'll use her method to get inspiration 😊👍🏼 sound good
Love her resilience
Even her current outfit is up to date. Dang it.
In my hometown there was a nice elderly lady with a barbie doll store she worked in, she made dresses for them and sold them, a lot of them vintage barbies as well. I lived for that store as a kid and I admired all that she did. I've moved since then by a good ten years and I heard of some grave news that a few years ago she was murdered during a robbery of the store. It was a nice town and then years pass and it's one of the most crime prominent cities in America. What kind of monsters would do such a thing?
God bless her soul
Omg T_T such a nice story Dang I feel bad now
That is so sad 😭
May her pure soul rest in peace.
She’s in a better place now T-T bless her heart
As a tomboy, I never had an interest in Barbie growing up and I was scornful of girls that did. But, now I can sew. Seeing this fantastic collection which chronicles decades of women's fashion means I shall by buying my very first Barbie in my fifties and making her some clothes! Inspirational.
I was tomboyish, so my Barbies were more like action figures with a better wardrobe. They fought and used weapons (the large scale GI Joes had weapons that fit her bent arms).
I warn you, collecting Barbie is like potato chips, you cannot stop at one. Best part is the diversity in theme: horror Barbie, epic fantasy Barbie, cultural Barbie, porcelain Barbie, movie Barbies, celebrity Barbies, etc.
@@evilsharkey8954 I'm gay, and I have Barbies but I don't use them for fashion. I watch WWE, and I like women wrestling, so I made them action figures as well, doing wrestling holds with championship belts. If not WWE, I turn them into Lara Croft, I pretend that she's on a Jungle and she's fighting some wild beasts there.
Congraulations!!! So happy for you! ❤🤩
I meet Carol at a Barbie Show in Seattle. She autographed my Doll that she designed. What I loved about her is she took the time to comb and style my dolls hair. She took her time with every person. A very lovely lady!
Aww lucky
That's so wonderful!
She’s a national treasure. Heart of gold.
Lucky
Carol is my hero, and possibly the second most important woman in Barbie's life (first being Ruth Handler of course). But it's Carol who gave Barbie her most iconic looks that made our childhood dreams. It's so heart warming to see she still genuinely loves Barbie, I can't wait to get her new book Dressing Barbie. I love you, Mrs. Spencer!
Don’t forget Kitty Black Perkins
@@brianaguilar8283came here to say exactly that 🫶🏻🙌🏻
It's because of this woman that I was enamored by Barbie. I didn't care about what Barbie did or what body she had. I didn't look up to a doll as a role model. It's her clothes that made me want to get a doll. It's the lavish dresses, the glamour, the sophistication, and the fun of it. Barbie's outfits made me want to wear them too. I would always imagine myself one day wearing a Barbie inspired dress. Thank you so much Carol Spencer! I loved your designs. I still do.
AMEN
Same here from the little girl that very much still exists & deeply loves Barbie💗🎀👸🎀💗
For me, it's the hair.
Same I never cared about her body or beauty either. Her clothes were amazing
Agreed. I hate my body but ive never been able to understand why people hate and blame a doll so much for an image. I never thought I should look like Barbie, maybe because I know I never could be, but she was a friend I could have and play with and express my creativity. With some of the other Barbie things, I would also sometimes feel pretty, which I rarely feel.
Can we just admire how beautiful the dolls outfits look 🤩
And colourful
the fact that she traveled out into the real world to find her inspiration… i wish more designers were like her. the trendy breaking news kinda fashion is already out there, you just have to go find it.
I love how she says numbers like 1968 as Nineteen Hundred and Sixty Eight. I also adore her story and creations.
Same! She is so charming.
It’s like a beautiful way of almost having a visual representation of History through fashion at those certain time periods
Ikr! I was looking at some of the dolls like, "That's the 60's!!" or, "That's the 70's!!" It was very nice and interesting to see
Tumultuous Chaos01 Omg same! It’s just so amazing
"At 86 years young"
That's the kind of attitude I want when I get old
Lol she so confident! Love it so much.
I was about to comment this haha! Isn't that cute!
Lol it is true tho
@@ThePsychicCellPhones same
When she (unfortunately) passes away, whoever inherits these MUST open a Barbie museum.
“I graduated from high school in nineteen hundred..... and fifty” Girl almost gave me a shock there, 1900 and still alive!
Nadien 🤣🤣🤣
Lol I thought the same!
I love that at 18 years old in 1950 she knew she wanted something more for her career than what women were being limited to and her dream became real! She seems like the sweetest happiest lady! She look great at 86 too!
People say Barbie is misogynistic, but look at all these women behind the concept and look of Barbie.
We need people like her back in the Barbie community. She has such a creative and flamboyant mind that came up with all of the wardrobe my Barbie dolls had. If only we took the time to create things rather than rush perfection.
Carol Spencer has single handedly influenced fashion for us all. These Barbie outfits are so intricate and she has such an eye for so many styles. She’s incredible
It's great to see black Barbie dolls that were available at around her time. I don't really get why people can call certain toy companies racist. They are just ignorant.
1 black barbie doll, with straight long hair, along with hundred of other blonde dolls. Well, if you call that "variety"...
Antonieux those “other blonde dolls” are more in numbers cus its BARBIE, shes the main character, the black dolls are the only ones lacking in number, male dolls, brunette dolls, etc are all small in number when compared to all the variety of barbies
@@1JrRihanno1 sorry if that offended you but at her time racism was second nature. It was completely normal and I was surprised and happy that even when she was working with them that they could design black dolls. I was not talking about right now. Either way, more black dolls are being made now so I don't see a problem.
@@1JrRihanno1also no one said anything about variety....
totally cookie No barbies also have every race
I'm so sad that Barbie's quality is terrible today. She used to be so pretty and her fashion was gorgeous. Now she has plastic ugly shirts and ugly full printed on fashion.
The quality has gone down so much. As a Barbie collector, I own very few newer dolls as they lack the creativity and quality they once did.
I personally like the new Barbies, the new skin tones, body shapes, and face molds are all so unique. And as for clothing, Mattel is dressing uo the dolls in clothing that is trendy in this age
Millennial Lane Toys I only collect Barbie movie dolls, well the early ones of course. It’s sad because Mattel was going so well with “Barbie life in the Dreamhouse” ... the dolls were so lovely but of course they ended that :/
cool no doubt The diversity is great. But it doesn’t excuse the bad quality. We should get both quality and diversity.
choke So true. The fashionistas are crap. Like they’re so bad. Diversity really good but the outfits and articulation is horrid. Most of them wear oversized shirts because they’re to lazy to sew anything else 🤢
Imagine having all these barbies as a little kid
Isabella fr 😂
That would be amazing lmao
imtoohappy haha it really would 🥺
I would die happily
If I had these barbie dolls as a kid, I probably make a barbie film with them.
I miss the classic looks and the snaps instead of velcro
ghost girl 2018 ikr I personally love vintage fashion and I just think it looks so elegant. They definitely need to get this lady back to designing.. she made such iconic beautiful designs and I prefer her designs over the modern Barbie today.
@@molly6072 her classic looks were elegant and very well thought out
Bless this woman for giving Barbie some of her most iconic looks 🥹🩷
*Nineteen hundred and fifty* 👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽
In the year of Our Lord......... nineteen hundred and fifty. 👸👰
I remember my first Barbie in 1984...she was a basic one but I loved her so much. My grandmother bought her for me when I was 6 years old. Not many kids in my neighborhood could afford a Barbie and I felt so lucky having one. One of the best toys I ever owned growing up.
❤ My first Barbie was on that year too. I still have her. Barbie Ritmic.
IMAGINE the looks she would create on today’s dolls!! 🥺😱🥴😭❤️ Mattel should offer her a chance to release a special line of designed dolls! Kinda like BMR1959
She's adorable
......And 86
yolandita26 so???
@@yolandita26 don't be rude
Thank you for this interview. As a Barbie collector, I must say I’m deligted with the amazing work of this lady. I absolutely adore the Barbie period of 1989 until 1998, after that year magic was gone.
You know that moment when you have something very funny to say about the ad but then realise not everyone got that ad *:(*
Yes, yes indeed. Tell us about the ad. If your remember.
Max you*
tell us about the addd
@@redmantra07 it was an ad I'd been seeing everything I clicked on an insider video and was gonna comment how annoying it was but then realised not everyone got it 😂😂
@@bbueno2009 😂😂😂
My favorite eras of Barbie fashion were the 1959-60’s fashion, 70’s, and late 90’s-early 2000’s. The 70’s fashions in particular were very underrated. The “budget” fashions were a little gaudy, but the more high-end designs (that included shoes and sometimes an accessory) were very beautiful and are very hard to find now. The bidding wars on eBay get crazy over them.
Every outfit I played with, fawned over and dreamed of wearing, this woman made. She helped to make my sad childhood bright❤❤❤❤❤
4:50 I love how she says 86 years young🥺
i want more stories! I could hear that woman for days!!!!
I remember when I used to play with Barbie dolls... Ah... last week was amazing...
She made my life so much better because my mom gave me her dolls and my aunts and my grandma . So I got lots really cool vintage dolls
It's lovely to finally learn who was the genius behind my favorite aspect of Barbie: her fashion. On more than one occasion, I've imagined having a huge closet full of full-sized versions of Barbie's outfits.
My respects to this memorable tribute, in my lifetime. Thank you! 💐
"Here, in the dining room, you are never alone...." Me: starts getting a chilly feeling
Man her fashion line is just beautiful. I wish Barbie gets cloths like that again. Right now they are only printed .jpg on one piece of cloth to make it look like she is actually wearing jeans with pockets and such. There is absolutely not texture in them is so plain.
What an icon. Even her outfit looks like something a Barbie would wear she’s so cute I love her! 💗💗 Barbie fashion inspired me so much when I was younger I always wanted to dress like a Barbie in pink and glitter and frills and I still want to!
I had so many of those dolls as a child in the 80's and 90's, and even more now as an adult!
How old are you
@@problematicprincess6270 probably in their 40s or 50s
The coolest lady to touch so many of our childhoods. Thank you, Miss Carol.
is such a slay to 1900 and...
Right like should we start saying 2 thousand 23 😂
You must return to design new Barbie era, back to Barbie glam, chic y fashionista
This is so wholesome. I love the little response from the interviewer at the end, she seemed so proud of her adventures that they had to!
Omg shes delightful ❤ what a lovely lady. You can just tell she loved every minute of it.
Miss, I think your dedication is miraculously inspiring, you've really push forward when the situation gets hard and I can tell that you didn't just take your job seriously, but, you enjoyed it.The way I see it, you weren't just doing your job at what you love, but, you were also spreading your hopes, dream, love, passion and treasures to every little girl in the outside world to make them see and feel the love and joy that you do and I think you are one of the sweetest people born in this broken planet.I shall pray for your health and hope you will be in heaven, living peacefully in the afterlife happily.
Wow this woman is incredible. They should make an entire fashion line inspired by her Barbie designs 💕
Ever since she retired Barbie's fashion isn't the same 😢. They don't take her fashion off street fashion anymore.
She did a great job! I remember all Barbie's adds on TV and how I longed for her
You are so cool and appreciated! I played with Barbie from the mid 70s until I hit puberty in the early 80s. I even recently started trying to recreate my collection from when I was a kid.
My childhood (below ten), was built off of dolls. I can’t even remember my first Barbie doll, it was just always there, Now years later seeing how much effort is put into outfits I feel amazed.Also this woman is to pure for us (I still play with dolls every once in awhile.)
Thanks for this interview, thanks for this video!!! 😊😊😊
We love you Carol 💛 Thank you for all the inspiration
I love the history of her designs and where she got inspiration from! Thanks so much, Carol you're a real inspiration to girls+ women all over the world!
So nice to learn about the Lady who was Barie's inspiration!
So much fashion influence and inspiration💕 What a crazy talented artist 💕
I am here from 2023 this woman is amazing can’t believe I was late to this video it’s such a wonderful video that showed me the most hard working lady that was on top of fashion would put them on Barbie 💕✨😊💕
Carol Spencer is my hero!!! Seeing her sit among so many familiar faces she designed and brought to life...made me cry, the good tears of happiness! You are an absolute inspiration to so many and a pioneer in the industry creating such fashion! Watching her smile and beauty, class and humor gives all my dolls such life! THANK YOU so much ( I still have my dolls and my moms :)
Carol should be proud of herself. She really gave her all and you can see it. I mean look at Barbie today cheap and tacky.
Nathan Tisdale Yes! Like Quality with Barbie has walked right the hell out! Freaking made to move bodies are best at the moment paired with a lot of Fashionistas faces. But other than that, Barbie is quite cheaply made now..... I want realistic looks more like they used to and houses that are realistic not so pink, white and teal colored plastic!
@@lollylove1107 and you walk back 20 years and people would say the same thing about Barbie, and another 20, right back to her release 😂
What an exciting life she's had! I wanna hear all her stories!
Love. Im a 28 yrs old woman and I still love Barbie. 😍 Now I buy Barbie dolls for my little cousins. Sharing is caring, love. Cheers from Indonesia.
Thank you Carol for being the number 1 designer for Barbie. I have been collecting Barbie's since 1988. My favorites are the the MOD era Barbie's that I grew up with. God bless you.
this is so amazing! im such a doll fan her designs are literally so iconic
What a cool job! I love seeing stories like this! Good for her! 🤩
Thank you so much for gifting all of us with such wonderful childhood dolls..... I still have them❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
What a sweetheart of a lady! 🌸
I would love to hear madam Carol's thoughts on the newer Barbie fashions from 2015 till today. Honestly the quality really drops which is really sad :(
she made the most fancy looking outfits for Barbie, she’s such an icon tbh
Thank you Mrs. Spencer for making my childhood barbies so beautiful and wonderful. I appreciate you from the bottom of my heart.
Very interested video! I would love to see her collection! She seems like a fun lady to talk with about Barbie! I had so many Barbies growing up to the car, the airplane, the stables and the different fashions! Always will love Barbie! 💗
Legend.Unbeknownst to me, this lady shaped a big part of me!, she is pretty much the reason I became a designer and love fashion so much. I loved playing with Barbie as a kid but more than anything I loved designing for barbie! I could only get Barbies on Christmas or my bday and was never able to get the extra outfits so I would daydream of all the outfit possibilities and was always sketching new outfits for her. I even made her a dress and skirt one time 😭
She's so impressive but after watching 'the toys that made us' I *also* know she was COLD BLOODED when it came to competition LOL
Drewski217 omg i remember that too but wasn’t that the other lady that said “we would’ve killed them” 😂😂😂
Yeah It was judy shackleford who was the cold blooded when it came to competition
What a inspiration for us young women. Also that barbie doll collection was all i wished for as a kid. I watched all the barbie movies and had multiple barbie dolls.
Such a cute lady who did such a cool job! She made all of us so happy! Thank you!!
The way she says "nineteen hundred and X" year ❤
Omg. This was my dream job when i was a kid 😢
My grandma used to make me dresses for my Barbie (and me). This made me think of her.
Thank you for the Memories!! I just turned 55, I grew up with Barbies and collected some along the way. 👗👓👛👠👙
While many point to Barbie as reinforcing unhealthy body standards, I think we should at least appreciate how Barbie was originally meant to empower girls to be whatever they wanted to be.
Actually barbie was just a fashion doll. Her body suppose to look like a mannequin with the proportions. She's a doll not a human 😂. If they had human proportions on the doll the clothes will be too bulky for her.
Dolls are D O L L S. If you want to see realism, look at your relatives or go to walmart.
Still does. It was never meant to be a standard.
Barbie is a doll she’s never meant to represent realistic body standards. She’s a literal doll people are crazy for hating on her.
What a truly creative and lovely person
Love Barbie and Carol's designs! What a talented lady :)
What an incredible job, story....shes a really young 86! I loved my Barbie's so much as a kid, they even showed 1 of my fav, **sigh** good times 🤗
"theres a whole world out there that you can find if you look for it" - wise wise words my friend. wise wise words.
Woah thats cool! I cant even draw a simple dress XD
MR GACHA it’s actually quite easy to make a barbie dress you just half to be very careful
Love that she displayed Benefit Ball and Empress Sissy as favorites - two dolls that consistently get overlooked by collectors, when they are fabulous!
What a great video of a very talented and brave woman who lived her life her way. I wish I'd lived my life with as much gusto and confidence as she did from such a young age. She just seemed to know what she wanted, and what she didn't want also, two very important things. Back when it wasn't fashionable to stay a single career woman, she did and went to college and ended up designing for Barbie for years! She really is amazing, she even went to Japan to keep Barbie production and design quality up. I love her new book, it's a good read and beautiful pictures that any Barbie collector would love. I so enjoyed seeing her and her collection in this video. She looks so nice in her pink suit with her Barbie pin, truly fashionable, and like Barbie, a good role model. Thanks Carol. 💖🥰
I wonder how she feels about the new movie!
She should design a dress👗for Trixie Mattel 💗👑
Such a sophisted yet heartwarming woman. Barbie has done a lot to fill her with a lot of love for life.
I love her. She brought so much joy to so many childhoods with her designs. Totally Hair Barbie was one of my favorites.
I would watch a full length documentary on this woman.
She’s such an inspiration. 💖
She is so sweet! I'm so glad to know that such a nice person designed the clothes for the dolls I used to play with... she's so talented!
Aww thank you so much Carol Spencer i still play with my Barbie dolls thank you!! You are an ICON! May God bless you! 😊❤🤗