Vintage Barbie, Dioramas, Sewing and Retro Fashion

This transcript was generated from the episode captions and lightly edited for readability. Names and product terms may occasionally be imperfect. Quoted dollar amounts retain the wording of the interview; the currency is not always specified.

0:00Hello dolls and accessories. I'm your host Kelly and this is Barbie Talk. [music] Barbie Talk with Kelly in Pink. Today I'm joined by someone who brings dolls to life through incredibly detailed photography and custom-built scenes. Mike Dawson, known as Dawson Digs Dolls, creates content that goes beyond just posing. He's creating environments using dioramas that he built to create moments that truly feel cinematic. I'm so excited to dive into his creative process. Please welcome Mike. Hi Kelly. Hi Mike, welcome to Barbie Talk. How you doing? I'm doing well now that you're here. How are you doing? Doing good. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for being on the show. I'm super excited to dive into your creative process and see a little bit of your collection and your work. I cannot wait to get to it. So, let's get right to it. Tell everyone a little bit about yourself, maybe where you're from, and how your relationship with Barbie started. All right. Well, I'm I'm from actually from Knoxville, Tennessee, but I've been up here for 30 years. So, it's this is home now. I've always loved Barbie. That's the first time I saw her, I was 2 years old and my sister got one for Christmas and I would not stop screaming. [snorts] We were going to my

1:21grandmother's house and my mother said, "Just give it to him." I sat there and stared at her for 2 and 1/2 hours. So, that's where it started. [laughter] And now it's just it's um All right. you have such a beautiful vintage collection, which we're going to get to. You're from originally from Tennessee and where do you Where do you reside now? Providence, Rhode Island. We were in New Jersey, but we moved here just before the pandemic. So, how did your collecting kind of evolve into this photography and like building dioramas and other items for your dioramas? Like how did that go from collecting to doing all that? Well, I've always liked to make things, and we were always making and building, doing projects when I was a kid. And then, I guess when uh in the late '80s, I had decided that I was going to apply for a job at Mattel. And so, I set up a scene of dresses that I had made on vintage Barbies, and I made furniture. It was really crude. It was the first time I'd ever really done anything like that. It was foam core and felt. And then, when I moved in the '90s to New York, I moved uh a block away from a Barbie doll shop in um 25th Street. And then, it just took off. I mean, I I make friends with them, and anytime anything was new,

2:44they would call me. I would come. I spent my weekends over there. [laughter] So, that's where I got a lot of my my dolls that I have now was from that. And then, it just kind of went I mean, It kind of snowballs from there, doesn't it, Mike? [laughter] Yeah. If you live near a toy store, it's a recipe for disaster. This place was vintage Barbies and jewelry. Oh, dear. Vintage jewelry. It was a really good thing for me. Yeah, I I can imagine. So, I see you have some dolls behind you. Do you have any like one of your favorites that you'd like to show? I mean, I know it's hard to pick one, but maybe one of your favorites? my very favorite is And I got this from the doll show, is one of my favorite TV characters uh was Endora from Bewitched. And he got he got an Endora.

3:37And I I mean, I was just like, I've got to have her. And so, he he just actually gave it to me, this doll. Somebody re-rooted it. He didn't know anything about it. But, she's one of my favorite dolls. I was going going that hair is very red. Yeah. I mean, it's redder than her hair, but I it's still it's obvious that it's Endora. So. goodness. And that outfit is absolutely stunning. Pucci Pucci caftan. Yeah, very very Pucci, definitely. I see most of your collection is retro vintage. Do you have anything that's other eras or you predominantly like a retro vintage collector? Well, I like vintage, but I mean, like with my posts, I don't really use my vintage dolls very often. I I I use the repro dolls and I put them all on Made to Move bodies because I like how they can pose. And and you know, the older Barbies had straight arms and you couldn't really move or do anything with them. And so, um I like I like I I mean, I buy the new dolls, but I I make them all look I have a retro thing. So, that's what I keep it with. So, I mean, this is the the Trixie doll and you know, but she's very '80s. She She's even mod, you know.

4:58What I love about your content is I'll be honest, like I'm predominantly '80s, '90s, and maybe early 2000s collector. Anything prior to that, like I do have a few of my beauties that I wanted to bring specifically to show you cuz I do have a few from the '60s. So, I've got like this beauty. Oh, that bubble. Yeah, she's beautiful. but I got to fix the green on the ears, which she's I've recently got her, so now I know that there's a way to fix the green. Is she a side part? Don't I don't Again, I don't know anything about this era. I just wanted to have a few for my collection. Don't know. Yeah, she's gorgeous. I just I don't have a lot, but I want to get I wanted to start getting a few because you know what? In my the way I see it is like this is the origin of Barbie. Like this is how she started. I mean, let's be honest, the clothing just doesn't match to what we're getting today, right? No, the quality. Yeah, I also have this beauty who is a ponytail. She's the Plus curly. Yeah, she's the American American Airlines or something. Yeah, yeah. So, um I wanted to just bring a few to show you cuz I know you are um a big That's what I played with, you know, I mean Yeah, exactly. Just like the '80s, '90s is what I played with, so I get that. Yeah. Yeah, for with the mod, too, cuz my my my next door neighbor's, uh she had a lot of dolls uh the the the mod dolls. So, I that's where I I loved those too, I mean Yeah, and I've

6:20even purchased like a few a few repros. Like she's a repro, she's not an original, but again, like I love those. blame? I I mean I that I use that head all the time in my in with my pose. You do. So, when you plan your builds, whether it's a diorama or a piece of fashion, where are you getting your inspiration? Is it through something you see? Is it a memory? Like where's the inspiration coming from? Well, it's probably a memory and also I mean I I love to look at uh vintage magazines and ads. So, that's where a lot of it comes from, but I mean I don't do it as much as I used to, but I mean every day I would wake up and I would completely build a new set.

7:05And it would just come to me and, you know, that's where I got with the clothing matching the pillows or the sofa, and it's all pretty spur of the moment. When I think about it too long, I can't come up with something. I just start doing it and it might be just putting in a wall or knowing the doll that you're going to use like you the the outfit that she's in and it just goes from there. You're building your dioramas, you're you're creating fashions, which we're going to get into as well, but are you creating every single piece? Like a pillow or a couch? Like are you making all those? Most of it I would say 95%. I used to sew a long time ago and I stopped and then I was wasn't able to do it again. I I really could not figure out how I did it before cuz I used to do really detailed outfits with sleeves and nice closures, silk and and chiffon and I can't do that anymore. So I've had to learn a whole new way of approaching it now.

8:02And it's slowly getting more. So I'm hoping I'll get it back that those those things I lost. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. Do you have a doll there that has like a memorable story attached to it or something funny that when you look at it it brings you back to a moment? I have several of those. I'd love to see them. Let's take a look. [clears throat] These two. There's these two. I I call them the sisters. I was working in Wisconsin and I had gone to a antique mall. And over in the corner there were these two ratty-looking crochet toilet paper cozies. And it was these dolls. Someone had crocheted these big Southern Belle outfits to put on them. They had these big floppy hats and they were probably 50 or more stick pins in their head holding the hat on. So their hair was destroyed. I mean it was there but it just it was a mess. And so I bought them and it was only like I think $10 for for them. And I sent them off to someone to redo the hair and there they are. I mean somebody thought I don't know if they just took a Barbie and made toilet paper cozies.

9:13They look stunning. Stunning. they're beautiful dolls and they're very similar so they're the same like I think they're fives or sixes. I I don't remember anymore but That's old enough. Yeah. Must have taken quite some time to fix them up. There was a a guy who used to do hair and he would repaint the faces and I sent them to him and I think it probably only took about 3 weeks and I got them back. And that's when it was nothing to get it done, you know, like $10 to do the hair. Wow. You know. It doesn't cost that much now. Yeah, it would be nice if it did. It was Wouldn't that be nice? We would save so many dollars if it was, you know, affordable. But the dresses, I'm assuming you made those? Oh, no. These are vintage. Oh my goodness, they're beautiful. These are vintage uh I can't remember the name, but they're Pat dresses and they came in a ton of colors. And they're silk. They're It's It's like real silk. It's not fake. They even had zippers. Of course they did. Of course they did. Because that's how it should be made.

10:15Yeah. [laughter] I mean, they're just They're They're beautiful. I mean, that's why I love the vintage clothes cuz you can't find that today. You cannot. You cannot. And yes, I see you have a few more beauties back there. Oh, I have tons. When you go to make a scene or a diorama, how do you balance like what you do first? Because I'm sure it takes time to do a piece of furniture. I Is there a process there? Do you start somewhere? Or do you just kind of go whatever you feel you want to do? Well, I I've made so much furniture. Like I don't make specific furniture that much anymore to to be for a specific diorama. I'll I mean, I've got so many different colors and I have I have We used to have a pillow company. So, I make miniature pillows and I probably have 200. I don't know. [laughter] So, I have every color, every possibility that I can do. I mean, I like having all my options. I mean, this is just one box of pillows.

11:13Mike, those are stunning. Oh, thanks. Those are stunning. So, how long does it take to make one pillow? Uh [clears throat] maybe like 10 or 15 minutes because, you know, I have to have it printed, the the fabric and it's pretty easy. It's easy because it's just straight lines. Fair enough. It looks like, based on your background there that you have is this a studio in your home? It seems like you have lots of bins behind you. Is this where all your equipment is? Yeah. Well, this is where all the dolls are and clothes. That's where the dolls and clothes are. This was the living room in our apartment because we when we moved here, I just had I used to run a smaller room in the back and you know, when the pandemic started, this just started growing again.

11:58So, he just said why don't we just move in here and take it over and so I I did that and when I first started, I had a coffee table with a a lazy Susan on it and I still have it. This this moves. That way I can rotate it for the sun cuz I like to use natural light whenever possible. And then that grew into what you'll see later is this tower that I made. I I took two IKEA shelving units and put them back-to-back and then we built a table with uh wheels on it so I can roll it into the other room if I want if I need to. You know, I like that cuz it gives me options and I can change what whenever I want and my walls I'll show you this later too how how these are all just Like this is paper that I bought from Dollar Tree. But this is a shipping postal shipping box. It's like wrapping a present. And I usually put some kind of topper on them on the bottom.

12:58But that's why I can move all these around and they don't fall over. It takes up a lot of room and it's sturdy and all these you can stick pictures on here with putty and they come right off and I just find it easy to for me, it's just the modular thing was the way to go. As much as it takes up room, it's also mobile. You know, if you want to move it somewhere, if you want to put it in another room of one of your scenes or dioramas, like it's versatile that way. You can have a bunch of them which I'm sure you do. So, I know we're talking a lot about your dioramas. Not going to lie, I'm kind of eager to see some of this stuff. Whatever you wanted to show us today. Well, this could take a long time, but I'll try to make it fast. No, it's okay. It's okay. We kind of did a run through today and I'm like, you know, I've really done a lot. It's don't you don't think about what you've done, but when you start trying to think about it, it's like, oh wow, I've done a lot of things. And you can tell that you put a lot of work into it because it's nothing like I've seen before. Okay. [laughter] Well, there you can see that first.

13:56It's a perfect view. That's the new Do you follow Flip and Debbie create? They They They They do 3D printings. they just did this for um They just sent one to Beth. Beth got one. yeah, they sent this one to me earlier and I've been doing photos for them cuz when they bring it out, they're going to use my photographs to promote it on Facebook. Oh, my goodness. But it is so unbelievable. Are you going to Barbie convention? I wish, Mike. I've been on the wait list for many years. I never got the call. I wish. But this is so much fun and it is so much like the original, but it's not cardboard. It's sturdy and I I mean, I'm having so much fun with it and it's going to really help for me cuz I'm going to use it whenever I post a new dress that I'm a cut and sew dress because there's nothing more perfect than than a Barbie shop. It's beautiful. So, I'm assuming it's resin? Is it made of resin? Yeah, yeah, it is resin. Yeah, that's stunning.

14:57I mean, I saw when Beth did her revealing of it and it's the detail, the scale, it's impeccable. It's absolutely stunning. They just did those chairs in a beautiful cyan turquoise color. I cannot wait to get them. I love the chairs. Look at that chair. Wow. And it's so cool, the 3D, the color, it prints on there. That's not painted. That prints the gold. Can you believe what 3D printing can do? Like this is fantastic. It's amazing. It's It's amazing. It's wonderful. Look at that stand with the dress on it. They didn't do the stage, but I really wanted the stage, so I made my own. And those were curtains that I had made for another thing that I was doing. Then you've got the cabinet where the purses are, but that was exactly you could put hats in there and then there's the window. Which ultimately I'm going to build another set on the other side, so it's outside cuz I I would love to have photographs at Christmas or whenever looking through the the window um at the back Window window shopping, like a holiday window shop. Like that's genius. They made a little mannequin head.

16:09You made that? They even made the necklace uh racks like you see in a jewelry store. [laughter] It's just so cool. I mean, I love it. It's absolutely stunning. So, shout out to Flippin Debbie Create. It's exactly like the vintage department store. The little It's It's identical. Like I And the dressing screen. Everything. Everything. Look at that, the dressing screen and the chairs. Fantastic. What a beautiful display. I've always played with Barbie when I was a kid. I had a collection of dolls that I kept underneath my bed so that no one know about. But until like 1981 or two, I hadn't really started collecting a Barbie. So, this was the first one I ever bought. She was $25. This is the dress she came in that I bought her in. I don't think I mean, she didn't actually wasn't sold that way, but as a vintage item she was.

17:02And then it just sort of went from there. So, then I was going to show you my oldest doll. This is a number three. Is that busy gal? Yeah. I've never taken her out of the dress. That's what I bought her in and she's she's never been out of it cuz I just I don't know. I felt like it belonged on her. Oh my goodness. Wow. I have a busy Gal on Re Pro, not the same, but that outfit is just Even the Re Pro is great. Beautiful. The Re Pro is great. Yeah. So, um I used to have uh I it happened a lot when I was working where people would just give me their dolls and I was working with a girl and she brought her two, I think they're still number fours, uh into me at work one day. She said, "I want you to have these dolls. It's mine and my sister's." And she just gave them to me. And I sent them off. Their hair was a little messed up, so I sent them off to the same guy to do the hair. And I'm was so upset because this one she had a braided ponytail.

18:01And that was before we knew that they actually did that at Mattel. So, I had them take the braid out and I could kick myself for doing it, but it still looks good the way it is. She looks stunning. These are heavier cuz their bodies are solid. That's right. Oh my god, they're gorgeous. They're gorgeous. So, and then these are the sisters you saw. I see that. And then um I I have a thing about redheads. I love the redheads. I just bought this about a year ago. This is I've always wanted In the Swim, but I've never been able to find it in mint condition. This one is just it's so perfect and I just love it on her. And then these are some more redheads. Yeah, I know. I like the redheads, too, and the dark hair. I love Barbie and the blondes, but Yeah. I'm a brunette myself. I love the brunettes. always There's always more blondes than there are, you know, and I I like like hers is jet black, you know? Yeah. I love the jet black, kind of like my my American Airlines girl. I loved the jet black. Yeah. Yeah. This is a good story. I had a friend in New York who she didn't get her Barbies until she was a teenager because her mother bought them basically for herself cuz she liked the fashions and she wanted to make clothes for them.

19:16So, she brought me the case, which is up there. The black case up there was full of clothes. The early clothes. They were on hangers and all the accessories were still in the plastic bags. Purses had gloves in them. I mean, it was just stocked. Her mother bought everything. And she just gave gave [laughter] it to me. I mean, I've been lucky. Very very lucky. This is like such a rare collection, Mike. You've got some beautiful pieces here and the condition that they're in is fantastic. I don't have them out very much because I don't have the space, but I love them. It made me so happy to bring them out to do this. It makes me happy, too, that you brought them out. So, thank you so much. Like I said over and over, especially for someone like me who doesn't have a lot of the vintage stuff and it wasn't my era, right? But I've always had a respect for it. And now that I'm seeing these, I'm like, I think I need to get some vintage dolls. Just once you start seeing the quality, it's just nothing compares to it right now.

20:17And here's some more Miss World's. Look at this beautiful carousel of dolls. I could just stare at this all [laughter] day. I would just sit there and spin it all day. That's what I've been doing. Uh this is uh really hard to find. It's a bell pack dress, but it's silk. And I think it came in another color, like a pinky color. Like a dark pink. But it's just so beautiful, you know. So, where are you finding most of these pieces? Again, I know you were saying some stories, you know, some were given, some maybe you found and got fixed. Where are you finding most of these fashions? Well, a lot of the fashions I found when I was living in Jersey. They had a couple of doll shows down there and I would just go and buy then. A lot of this came from my friend who had the store in New York. I mean, I've gotten a lot from other places, but the majority of it came from that period of 10 years that I lived in New York. It was right at my fingertips, so I bought.

21:11I didn't need, I bought. I bought Barbies. Yeah, no for sure. Exactly. It's not as I I want to say almost I want to say not as available, it's just more difficult to find now. Like I'm sure you can go on eBay and probably find that way, but they're just not that easy to find. They're not that easy to find and they're and they're they're really over the top expensive, I think. I mean, I can't do that anymore, so. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I don't think a lot of people can, not in this economy, that's for sure. No. Yeah. When I first started collecting, Bubbles were everywhere. So, I have a lot of Bubbles. This isn't even half of them. Um But I I love them. They're so pretty. They're all so different. Like her hair, the way it kind of sweeps like that. I mean, it's just Yeah, I noticed that one in the front. I love that blonde with like the little sweep in the front. I've never really seen that. And then this one's got all these little curls, like I you know, I don't know if if a kid did that. But These are stunning.

22:12Oh my god, they're beautiful. And I love her cuz she's so pale. Like her lips are so pale pink. Now, this I wanted to get to I wanted to show you this. This is my sister's doll. This is the one that we all always used to bring out to play with my friends who had the mod dolls and she would be the mother. You know, she was only like three or four years older, but she was still was old old lady looking. But I don't know who made this dress. It was probably my mother and I have all of her other dolls as well. I have them in the boxes. You have the boxes. Wow. And this was one of the first ones as Lara was saying cuz it's got the headband. That's right. And she's got a toothy grin. You can't really see it here, but she's got a toothy grin. Yeah, it is difficult to see. Does she have the wonky eye? Yeah, oh yeah.

23:08Yeah, shout out to MidgeFan73. Yeah, I that's something I didn't know. I learned from her, so She's going to love that one. I don't I don't know if I've ever shown that to her. Ooh. She's gorgeous. Those shoes. And the and the bubblegum pink lips. Oh, yes. [sighs] Oh, my This is dangerous for me. This is dangerous. Must [laughter] be. That's the same dress that's on that bubble cut right there. Yeah. Yeah. Yep. Oh, stunning. Look at that hair. Is it Is it like a mini Is it like tied up in a ponytail? It's a ponytail, but you flip it over and put it on top. It's kind of hard to explain. Explain, okay. of fold the bottom curl underneath it, and then you you just use a stick pin and put it in place.

23:55And this is the way it was. I mean, I don't know. I've heard that that some of the vintage styles actually came this way, but I I don't know that for sure. But, this is the way that this doll always was. I remember playing with her with my sister, and it was always like this, so I'm leaving it that way. That's the way I like her. I have to control myself to keep my jaw closed. [laughter] Cuz otherwise, it will be on the floor. I literally have to like Oh, Ken. Oh, Kenneth. And And uh this suit is just like I don't know how these dolls survived. They were up in our attic in Tennessee, which was 120° during the summer [laughter] up there, and they all survived. He has this hat a hat and the the car keys that went with this suit.

24:46Oh my goodness, it came with car keys? Yeah, it came with a little thing of car keys. They're tiny, yeah. I don't have many vintage Kens. I have the first vintage Ken comes in the bathing suit, this guy. Oh, yeah, Yeah. Yeah, I got that as a gift. And then I have this guy who I fell in love with. He's in a cute little robe and his pajamas and he's got his cute little slippers. He's nice. He He's one of the first Kens. The first ones are the ones that had the flocking. Poor thing has sweaty face I call it and he is losing his hair. So I don't really know how to repair that if there's a way. Well, someone may say this is not the thing to do, but every time I have a greasy doll, I wash them off. You have to be careful cuz of the flocking cuz it'll come off, but take his head off and fill the head with baby powder. Oh, okay. Or cornstarch. It will help dry it. But it's not going to stop because it's just the natural breakdown. I mean, you know, these things are 60 years old. Prior to I don't know, a year or two ago, I never had popped any heads off.

25:45And I was doing that, Mike. I was just pulling them off. And at times I succeeded and the one time I didn't, I never did it again. Cuz most of the time it worked. And then there's like that one time and I'm like, "I'm never doing that again." Yeah, it hurts. [laughter] It's painful. It's hard on the heart. I feel bad for the doll. And then so I've tried heat with like the '80s dolls and I still broke the neck. Like the neck is so delicate in those like superstar eras, right? But you know what? With a heating pad, a heating pad should work. I mean, just leave it for like 30 minutes, forget about it and then come back. Okay, it's a good point. I should try that. So I've never tried that before. So thank you for that. Oh, you're welcome. Speaking of Laura, I see a couple Midges there. Yeah, I have a lot more. I mean, this isn't even half. I mean, there's still boxes of them up top. Midge is such a She just doesn't get the attention she deserves.

26:36She is She's so cute. I love Midge. God. So I have a vintage Allan and I showed it to Laura in her episode. And now I'm on the hunt for a vintage Midge and I was at a doll show over the weekend and I didn't see any that I felt were worth the price. If I went out tomorrow or went online right now to buy one, which one would you recommend? You've got some red hairs, dark hairs, flips. What would you recommend? Midge only came as a flip until the bendable leg. And then she had this kind of poof hairstyle. I don't know what you call that, but I like the redheads personally. I mean, I like the brunette, too, because they didn't really do that many, I don't think. And she's just really cute. This one looks like Gidget to me on the TV show Gidget. Her hair's darker.

27:21Any Midge that I've seen, I want red hair, but I always see that blonde, the one in the blue dress. She's more of a blonde. Yeah, there's a lot of blondes. I don't know. Yeah. I just always think of Midge as being a redhead. She's a redhead. And the freckles, like the freckles just they go really nice with her red hair. So, I'm kind of going back and forth, but I want an original like redhead Midge to go with red hair Allan, right? I would if you're the first one, I would either go for a redhead or brunette. Okay. Not a blonde. Same. I don't want another blonde. Another blonde. I mean, it's a nice blonde. It's ash. It's not like platinum. Oh my Oh gosh, wouldn't that be great if there was headbands platinum? Imagine. I mean, listen, I'm not trying to Listen, blonde Midge looks great. Maybe she'd be like my second or third Midge I'd get. But if I'm going to get a vintage Midge, my very first one, I want her to be a redhead. Yep. Yeah. Look how cute.

28:12Look at that face. Come on. I could see why Laura just adores her. Let's look at her. Look at that, guys. And she doesn't have the wonky eye. She's got normal eyes. Oh my goodness, she's so cute. She's adorable. And I've never touched her hair. I guess I could comb it. It just looks fine. It's a little A few little hairs here and there, but I don't care. No, it's great. It's uh I was It looks like you did it yesterday. It looks fantastic. [laughter] That one I got with her bathing suit. That Midge in the back there, in the back against the wall. Her? Maybe I just needed a closer look. She looks different. Well, she looks different because I put her hair back. Sometimes her hair is very wiry and it doesn't want to do anything. So, I tried putting a headband on and I kind of like the little look it gave and then I also like I like her she's a little sassy with the earrings. She looked different to me and that's the hair because you see more of her face. Yeah. And you're right her hair kind of covers her cheeks and when you pull it back you can see her facial sculpture a little more. Yeah.

29:12I mean look she's cute. Look at that profile. Oh my goodness. Look at her. Okay. She's Okay, now I really like her. [laughter] And now I'm like maybe I got to look or just pull her hair back is something to consider, right? just have to play with a little bit because there's really no hair underneath there like you have to kind of pull it down and hold it I'm showing you and you're not I'm not even in the picture. [laughter] It's okay. So, here are the bendable leg Midge's. These two. And then the American girls. I love the American girls cuz I love that hair. The page boy haircut. Again, I have to keep my jaw from hitting the floor. Oh, who's that that really yellow hair?

29:59Her? She's a Color Magic. That was the one where it came with applicators and some kind of chemical that you could change her hair. One of them would change to red or orange and another one would change to black. I can't remember there were different colors. I think she turned to red hair. This color red. Wow, I'm learning so much. I did not know about that doll. This color I think is more like a neon orange color. It pops. They were pretty cool. I've never tried to change them and I've heard people doing it but I'm not going to this hair is so brittle cuz whatever the chemical is on it. You know what she's beautiful the way she is. Yeah, and she's got a high color face. And that eyeliner, stunning. Yep. Beautiful and these dresses, my goodness. I made that one.

30:46Oh my god, I love it. And this is a new little outfit I'm working on this top. Ooh. It's new. I didn't think I had anything that would really fit the vintage body, but I tried it on and I was like, "Oh, it fits." So, I was kind of It was a happy accident. I love your fashions. I just They're They're Thank you. beautiful. Beautiful, Mike. Thank you. I try to keep with that period, you know. Yes. So, here we're going to the middle '60s, the mod girls. I remember [snorts] when they did this, that when they first came out, you could bring in your old doll, your bubble cuts, your American girls, and you could get her for a dollar 25, something like that. So, it just made me It makes me so sad. Wait a minute, you would come in and trade? Yes. You could bring in your American girl, and you could say, "I want that that doll." And they would take your doll, and you would pay them a dollar and 25 cents or something like that, or dollar 50. And they would give you a new Twist and Turn. And just think about all the dumpsters You know. filled with all these older dolls.

32:08That's why [laughter] That's why I was asking. I was asking cuz I wanted to understand what's the incentive behind that. Like, I mean, for for the customer, I get it, but what's Mattel going to do with these used dolls? Nothing. I thought maybe they they used the bodies again? Like No, I don't think they they took them. Those dolls went in the garbage. Our people at the place took the dolls. I don't And even if they went back, I mean, Laura could probably tell you correctly, but I I don't think I don't think that they they returned because Mattel didn't keep any any samples in the early days. They didn't keep anything. They didn't have records of anything. Can you imagine though [laughter] I can't even. I can't even. I don't even want to. It's hurting my heart. I'm hoping that a lot of people took these doll these older dolls home to their own kids to play with.

32:56I would hope they didn't end up in dumpsters. I would you know, it would have been nice if Mattel maybe donated those to kids who couldn't buy dolls or were less That was a different time. Oh, you know? I mean Well, Laura, if you're watching or anybody who knows anything about that like leave a comment below because this is news to me. I didn't know this. Yeah. Wow. Oh my god, this is this is such a great It's just it's so great having you on Mike because I I'm learning so much here and that's why I wanted to start this podcast cuz I'm just seeing not only your beautiful work, but learning a lot about the older Barbie dolls and different eras. So, it's fantastic. It was fun to even start thinking about it again cuz I'm so into like the making the dioramas. I don't do this as much anymore. So happy they're staying out. They're staying out. They deserve to be showed off for sure. They do. These are my favorite twists and turns. They're all redheads.

33:47Oh, they are. That's right. I recognize that yellow fashion there. I have this one and this one because those are the two dresses I remember my friend having when I was growing up and I always loved those dresses on their dolls. So, I got them as soon as I started collecting them. This doll was given to me by a friend that I used to work with and she said, "Oh, I have this old doll at home and she's a mess in our basement. Would you like her?" And I said, "Sure." So, she brought me this doll and it was like a wadded up it looked like a hairball from a cat. It was a mess. The hair was like this really weird brown color and I thought, "Well, okay, I'll just try it." So, I washed her hair and after I washed it, it was red. And I was like, "What?" So, I just used aloe on it and it's still soft and this one you can't really tell, but I'd never seen this before. I thought it might be a form of greening, but she's got this really pale eyeshadow that's neon green, but it's very pale. I've never seen another doll, so I mean she could have used a magic marker. I mean, you can kind of see a little bit, but Is this like over like under her eyebrow?

35:02Yeah. Yeah, it's faint. I see that's faint. And even if it was done with a magic marker, whoever did it, did it right. So, [laughter] I don't mind it. I mean, it it makes her more special to me. Definitely. Oh my god, that hair is beautiful and you said you used aloe. Yep. I washed her hair with just regular soap and then I just got uh 100% organic aloe and I just lathered it on and left it for a day. or like cream? Mhm, a gel. Gel. Interesting. Nice little tip there. I use that all the time. I use that for setting hair when I do flips. Mhm. I use a little bit of that and it helps set it. Here are my hair fairs, which I I love them. They were the ones that came with the wigs and the hair pieces. It was just a head. You only got the head. I love that. I wish they would do that now. I wish they would do it do this hair fair with just the head and the wigs.

35:59Oh my god, I love that. I guess you just got the body separately. Well, I think what you did is you just ripped off your twist and turns head and you put that on the body. That's I guess. Yeah. You know, it wasn't so hard back then to take them off cuz they came off and so it wasn't that big of a deal to take the head off and Fair enough. Do I see Francie? Yeah. This is Casey, her friend. And these two are Francies. I used to have a huge Francie collection, but at some point I decided, you know, I don't want all these different size dolls. So, I sold it all and now I could kick myself because I had so many clothes and you can't find them anymore. Yeah. So, Yeah. but she is just she's so sweet. Yeah, I also didn't have really an interest in Francie and then I saw Beth's Francie and I saw Chrissy's Francie from Mountain Barbie Girl. She got some fashions from uh Bill Greening's collection and I'm like, great. Now I'm falling in love with Francie, too. [laughter] She had some of the best clothes. If you're you want the mod era, she had it. I mean, I mean, just look at all this detail in this little dress. It's got this nice little uh you actually tie that and it lays down flat. It doesn't stand out and I don't know what this is.

37:18It's some sort of It's some sort of a a silk-ish type fabric. It does look like kind of a kind of a silky looking. Yeah. And then and then this little thing comes off. It's like a little vest. So, you have this really cute empire waist mod dress. And even the shoes. The shoes are so different than what like I I grew up with. Like they're just Look at that. And they're all so unique. Yeah. I did that though. I put the dots on there. That's not Oh, that's a nice little touch though. That's nice. See? See? Small things can become big things. So. Yeah. Yeah. Wow, that's stunning. are we done? We we did all of We did all of this. That's beautiful. When I applied for the job at Mattel, I made a whole room. It was very 80s, you know, black and white tile floor, bright yellow walls with these primary colors. Uh but these are just foam core, spray painted and then covered with um felt. So, first things I ever furniture ever made.

38:17And that was like around 87. And then when I moved to New York around 93 I started making furniture cuz I I just wanted to do it. So I did it. So this was the first sofa I made at that point. So it was a completely different than that. What material is that? It's not real leather, is it? Or like a It's a It's some kind of vinyl. Thank goodness it hasn't started cracking. Yeah, it looks like a real leather. And then this is the first like TV I did and we have the door wide open and it's I Love Lucy. Mike, my [clears throat] my father who's no longer with us loved that show. It was It's still funny now. Classic TV, man. Lucy, I'm home. Lucy. And then here Here's some of the Here's some more pillows. Oh my gosh, they were great. I love them. Yeah.

39:12So I've got a I've got a bunch of Lucy dolls, too, but that's another conversation. Really? I only have two. Huh. [gasps] Do you want me to go grab one of mine? Yeah. Which ones do you have? I have the Vegavite vitamin and I have I have that one, too. Vegavite vitamin and what was the other one I have? Um it was a navy blue a dress with white polka dots. Like a like a um a shirt dress. Big full skirt. I don't remember which one that was. Think it had an apron. Oh, and she came and looked like she was vacuuming? Uh yes, I think so, yeah. Like I said, we've I've got this one with the chocolates. Yeah. But just the face, like her eyelashes, the red hair. This is what I love about Lucy. They did a great job, too. That looks like Lucy.

40:00They don't always do it right, you know, but They don't. They don't. She's got the little chocolates in her hand. And then I've got Oh, this was the one where she's making wine. Oh, yeah, the grapes. Yeah, the grapes. Her shoes are falling off. But again, the skirt It's just so cute. She's got the little grapes here on her arm, the bandana. Her earrings are little grapes. [laughter] That was one of the best episodes. There's so many. How do you pick? It's just Oh, what's wrong with this earring? It's not dropping. Anyways, the earrings are little grapes. And then my favorite. Oh my gosh, the Carmen Miranda look. Yeah. Right? She's just like comedy and like impersonations. Like she was so talented. She was brilliant.

40:47Oh, gems like that don't come around. Okay, sorry to get off No, it's okay. No, that was great. Uh so I like to take things that are just something that you find like it's staples. This is a pencil holder. It goes in your drawer. Pencils and whatever. Look at that. [snorts] It's a little TV area. Oh my goodness. I like options. [laughter] You have you have an eye, Mike. You have an eye for something and that's a talent. That's not something that a lot of people have where you see something and you're like, I can make that into something else.

41:39You have the vision. I think my dad I I'm a shoe hoarder. Let's see the shoes. Oh, are these [gasps] all Barbie shoes? Oh, oh yes. Oh, Alan. Hello, Alan. I love that new Alan. Sorry, he's my eye. him. I think he's so cute. No offense to the Michael Cera movie He does I would have been upset if they had made that doll. That he did not He does not look like that. [clears throat] He He does not. They made him too scary. The hair is too wild. And then look at this guy. Like look like He's just They did such a great job of reimagining him from the old one, the vintage. They did. And I love him because he looks like Archie. Yes. From Archie, you know, the Archies. Yes. I've made a whole bunch of outfits. I've printed them, I just haven't made them yet, but I just [laughter] I love I love that outfit he's wearing.

42:29Did you make those pants? Thanks. I did. I mean, I made everything but the shirt. Beautiful. Beautiful. Yeah, sorry, he caught my eye, but that's quite the shoe collection. Yeah. you have there. I used to buy dolls just for shoes. Like newer dolls. When shoes that I thought fit with the vintage feel, I would buy them. How do you have those sorted? Is it just color? Well, no. These are non-Barbie. Like some of them are I don't know. This was like some other doll, like I don't know who. Oh. And so were these. These were some little cheap doll from Toys "R" Us when we used to have it. And I used to buy them cuz they had really great accessories and they would come with these shoes. I love these. These are like very '40s looking.

43:14Yeah, with a little peek toe. Yeah, those are like not all Barbie. And then I have platform wedgies. [gasps] You know. This is so fun, Mike. This is so fun. Look at those wedges. Aren't they great? I've never been able to find another one. And people keep asking me where I got them and I'm like, I don't remember. It came on a doll, like maybe a Britney Spears or a Miley Cyrus, but I recently got a pair off of AliExpress that are these shoes, but they're just all yellow. But there's no other information about it. Huh, interesting. Well, if anybody has seen that shoe or recognizes it, again, leave a comment below. Let us know [laughter] Can you see it?

44:00Yep. Yes, I see them. I love these. Look at those. Cute. You know what's really hard to find? I'm struggling to find some of the Mego shoes for like the Share dolls. Oh gosh, yeah, they're bigger. You know, I would look at AliExpress, you never know. Yeah, I should give them a try because she did have big feet. Her feet were big. Yep, she did. Yeah. That's where I found all these really cute shoes. I love the curvy doll. I love the curvy doll, but I have a problem if they can't have shoes then I don't like it. Yeah. I got all these really cute little sandals Oh, how cute. on AliExpress and they were like a buck a buck a piece and they fit. They're great. fit? That's always the fear, right? Is it going to fit? Yeah. Look at that. Okay, well, I guess I'm going to have to and a gazillion and a gazillion colors, which of course I bought them all. Of course. That's kind of how it's arranged. I like that.

44:50But I do see you have, you know, some modern dolls, too, like a couple movie dolls. I see like a more modern Midge. Yeah, I love this Surf City Midge. She's on a curvy body. I really like her on the curvy body. Yeah, she is stunning. She is just Love that Vespa, too. What a beautiful Vespa. That's one of my prized possessions, that Vespa. Beautiful, beautiful. What have we got? Yeah, the the Midge is gorgeous. Just just another one. It's just she's the face is so great. Midge is just so beautiful. Yeah. So I wish they would use this face again. Yeah. So while we're here, let me just ask you a question. I always ask people if Mattel were to approach you and say, "We want to do another repro and tell us what doll we should do a reproduction on."

45:36What would you say? Oh gosh, well, I would want to do everyone. [laughter] Yes. I would definitely go with the vintage doll like before the bendable legs. I would go and I love old-fashioned magazines. Like I have a collection of 17s from the the late the 50s and the early 60s. And I would just go in there and pick a dress and say, "Do this one." cuz I like the everyday and that's what you got in those ads was everyday clothes and I like that. That's what I would do. Yeah, that's a good answer because I think a lot of times it's maybe it's not the dolls, it's just like fashion packs. Like we just really don't get like quality stuff. You know, another thing I would love for them to do is I would love them to do a gift set where you get I don't know. I mean they've done this before but like Grace Kelly. But you know, Grace Kelly and three outfits that Edith Head designed for her in the movies that she was in. Like Alfred Hitchcock movies.

46:33They could do that. Yeah. Elizabeth Taylor, they could do the same thing. Yep. I mean Elizabeth Taylor, they should have done that dress from What was that movie? I don't remember the movie but it it's this dress that she made popular and every girl teenager wanted this dress to wear to prom. It's like a sweetheart top and this whole part of the bodice is flowers and then it's this big huge full skirt that goes to the ground. It's probably got chiffon in it but everybody wanted that dress. And it's like why didn't they do that dress Yeah. for Elizabeth Taylor. Yes. There's a lot of things go on and on. Yes. There's a lot of things Mattel should have done or shouldn't have done or you know, we'll be here we'll be here for hours if we talk about that for sure. Yep. Do you want to show us anything else or like maybe that big diorama that you have with all the like the bookshelves?

47:23Oh, wow. So, we've already seen that the shop. We have. So, I'm going to rotate it around. So, we have one of my living rooms. I've been leaving it like this for a while cuz I like this setup with the stairs. It reminds me of something out of and I know that's it reminds you of like something out of like a TV sitcom. Like like a Brady Bunch or something. Yeah. It's so nice. You guys have to follow Dawson Digger's Dolls because he does feature this a lot in his content and it's or in his posts. It's beautiful. And this is a new thing. I haven't shown it yet. I haven't unveiled it, but this is something by Flip and Debbie. It's a bar [snorts] a bar. Another exclusive on Barbie Talk, never seen before. It's like a little Yeah, not a bar cart, but like it's like those retro bar It's a retro bar and and what's really cool is that this little thing here rotates around.

48:23Oh my goodness. Did it come with the alcohol or did you put that in there? No, you I bought I I don't know if they're going to sell it that way. I can't open it cuz something fell in the back, but that's it. We get the idea. That's stunning. And you know what? The alcohol, you can get that off of AliExpress as well. Yeah. Yeah, I mean [gasps] but it's just so cool. It's fantastic. And this this whole little technique of these doors, the way that they slide And this is again something that was 3D printed. Yep. Flip worked on this for a while and he perfected it and it's beautiful. Wow. And then we can move over here to this living room. Which, you know it's got the Flip and Debbie again, another their wall unit. I was going to ask, where'd you get the wall unit? Yeah. Oh my goodness. this is another one of those couches where I made it so that I could move stuff around. Ah, smart. I like that. I like the versatility of that.

49:30Yeah, cuz this way I can if I want to put it on this side then I can flip it around. That's right. You know? That's right. I can see you in the mirror, Pete. Give us a wave. [laughter] Wow, that's stunning. Stunning. And then this is uh my little bedroom for now. Yeah, I love it. know if you can see this, but again, Flippin' Debbie, they made me for Christmas this is the headboard on one of my favorite movies, Parent Trap, the original one from 1960. Okay. And they made it for me. 3D printed this thing. It's crazy. I can't believe Look at the intricacies of it. Like all the little things in it. It's wild. And it's all it's see-through and it's a little bitty pieces. It's just it's so cool.

50:25Wow. Shout out to Flippin' Debbie. Yeah. Again, this is just Look at this work. And the way you put your stuff together though, Mike. Like the interior design that you do. I'd love to see what your your house looks like. I'm sure it's not Oh. No, our house doesn't look like that at all. We fantasize about our house looking like this, but it doesn't. I guess it's more affordable to do do it in this scale. [laughter] Well, yeah. And you know, if if you had a house and you changed it as often as I change these rooms, where would you put all of it? I mean, but then okay, but one more room. This is uh Nobody's in there. Is the light okay? Yeah.

51:13Wow. Found that at the flea market. I love this like Asian-inspired. Right? I love that. Yeah. Well, I found this. This little thing pops up. It's a jewelry box. It's got a little mirror where you can look at yourself putting your earrings on. Like this whole thing pops up. But I thought, you know, it makes such a cool cabinet. And it would make it even a cool dresser. I've used it that way where I've opened it up so the mirror is open. But you know, I just found all these pieces that work together. Like this this This a little music box, right here. And these, you know, I'm always looking for stuff in flea markets or antique stores and I think these are so cool. I mean, the detail in that little thing is just amazing.

51:59It's all It's all What do you think it is? It's probably some sort of cork. I try to find these things when I thrift, too, but it's hard to find the right scale. Yeah, that happens a lot. Wow. This is beautiful. Do you want to see my most favorite fun thing to do for the summer? Yes. Before you do that, I'm assuming do you change or like rotate out your scenes based on like seasonal holidays or just maybe you want to change your mood? Do switch them out and if so, how often? I change them on a whim, whenever I decide I want to change them, but I always do Christmas, but I don't do it over the top. I love to have a Christmas tree. When I was growing up, we didn't do crazy Christmas. It was just one tree in our and that was it. And that's what I like.

52:45for me. And then, the other thing that I do is I always open and close my penthouse patio for the season. And it's just been reopened. When I say penthouse, I mean it. So, you have to get on the ladder to get to the penthouse, Mike? Yep. [gasps] Sorry, I just I'm so happy. I've wanted an awning forever and they were selling this at Dollar Tree. So, [laughter] I bought it. That's cute. Oh my god, I love My pool My pool is one of my favorite things. How did you do that water? I got it from Home Depot and it is a fluorescent light cover, like in a you know, like a drop ceiling. Yes. I see that now. And of course, all these plants are from Michael's. These plants are so crazy expensive from Michael's now. I used to get them when they would go on sale for 50 cents and now they're like five and six dollars. Yes, those plants are very cute. You can actually make plants out of paper. I love that. Yeah.

53:50But those look fantastic. And of course we've got the stunning stud Allen in the pool. Oh my gosh, he's sexy and he's cute [laughter] and he's He's all of the above. He's all of the above and more. Oh my goodness. I love it. I love doing this and I'll change this like I have different furniture and Yeah. I'll move it around every once in a while. Well But I'm going to leave that. I love that canopy or the awning. Oh my god. Even this like that with the little pieces coming down. It's a great frame. It sure is. It sure is. It's so cinematic. It's so cinematic. [laughter] Feel like this is my that. It's so and the little details like you pay attention to so many details like the the bag of soil or it's like plant food or something like it's just Yeah, I haven't gotten my my coffee. I use coffee grounds. And I'll I'll spill them out on the patio so it looks like she's working. Yes, sure. her hands are never dirty. [laughter] Barbie's hands never get dirty. No. It gives off such a feeling like we're all yearning for the summer and the beautiful weather. I mean here in Toronto it's been raining for a few days and just seeing this it's like oh, the summer's coming and I can't wait to be able to sit by the pool or get some sun or This always makes me feel like some tropical Hawaiian place or California, you know,

55:13some place. Yes, definitely there's nowhere like that in Toronto, not anywhere near me that that I can access. There's nothing like that here either. We have beaches but it's not like this. But isn't that the beauty of all this, right Mike? Is that we can use our imagination and fantasize and make something come to life. Yep. Yeah, it's beautiful. Oh my goodness. If someone was starting a diorama for the first time, what materials or techniques would you suggest that they follow? Well, I mean, I always use foam core for walls and this has got foam core in it. This has a little what [clears throat] I can't This has a little foam core in it, but this is This was a picture frame that I covered. [clears throat] And I added this whole back part that's wider cuz I wanted a little place where they could sit if I wanted them to sit on the beside the pool.

56:02That's all foam core. And I just added it to it. I mean, I use double stick tape. I use It used to be called cello mount. But I think they call it double tack now. It's these big huge sheets of double stick adhesive. And I use that for everything cuz it's like how I covered all these walls. That right there is wrapping paper from Dollar Tree that I bought every roll they had during the pandemic cuz I want to make sure I had enough. And then the turquoise wall back there, I created those bricks in Illustrator and then I printed them on wrapping paper. But I mean, I don't like mess like I don't really like glue that much. But with making the furniture, you have to use the like covering stuff, you have to use glue. Make friends with an X-ACTO knife. [snorts] Try [laughter] not to hurt yourself. We don't want anybody slicing fingers.

56:58But you also noted that you've even used just the cardboard boxes. Can you see it over there? That box, the white box with the type on it? I do. What I use, it's a postal service box. Hm. And they're free. You know, you just go in and grab as many as you need. I wanted to have a place up here that looked like it was going into the house. So, I found a I don't remember what box it was, but it was a box for like a humidifier that we had. And I'm using that box and I'm going to put sliding glass doors on it. I was just going to say, are you going to put sliding glass doors on it? absolutely. And if you're trying to keep on a budget of not spending money buying cuz foam core is expensive now, you have to use that cardboard. Yeah. Something after happened after the pandemic where everything just kind of skyrocketed in price. Yep, it sure did and it keeps on going.

57:46This used to be my doll cabinet. That's where all my dolls were. But now it is like a storage unit. With all my chairs and stuff that I've made. You've got a full-on warehouse here, Mike. I do. [snorts] But you know what? It's the same thing I said before. I like to have options. I have enough now that I can set my mood that I want. Because I've got it. All the colors and you know, the different chairs. [snorts] That's true. You're not tied down to something. You've got options. There's no limitations. Oh, wow. Look at that. this and the ottoman that goes with it. Oh my goodness.

58:33Oh my goodness. Oh, and one of my favorite things to do is we go to Savers all the time. And I love to go through the section that has Do you have Savers? We do. It's called Value Village here. Okay. Well, I go through the wooden section. Uh, little bowls make great ottomans. I love doing that. I look for them every time I go. Look at that. Look at that. There's probably so many things that we all walk by in a Savers or here in Canada, it's Value Village, and don't even realize the potential. Take that bowl home, flip it over, and you can do something with it. Yeah, I mean, for me it's always just been something that I do.

59:19I've always done that. And then here's a whole bunch of stuff that I have. I didn't make that, but No, that's from the Bratz. I recognize it. I made [laughter] I made my own version of the Dream House sofa. Oh, like the original. The original doll house. Oh, wow. Yeah, I scanned in the fabric and then made my own. You are so talented, Mike. You are so talented. There's just like couches and chairs. It's We're at IKEA. This is IKEA. [laughter] Yeah, sort of. This is like Barbie Land IKEA. Here's a bunch of different walls up here. Oh, yes. Oh, look at that. This is one of my favorite things to do I did. This is one of those bamboo drawer things that you can buy at any kind of home goods place. It lays down. Yeah. And I I found a spice rack from Savers that I took apart cuz I love these things. It was in a square on a rotate thing.

1:00:14Yes. And it makes a great room divider and then I have it two ways. Oh my goodness. Oh my god, that's beautiful. Look at that with spice rack. You used a spice rack. It's one of these. Yeah, I know exactly what it is. It's wild. Yes. And you just Oh, wow. This just pops right off with a little bit of a hammer. That's right. And this is your work space here I see with you creating some fashions. Yes. Wow. Well, maybe I couldn't live without my computer. Yeah, of course. Of course. I've had my computer all my life it feels like. Of course. These are some new dresses that are going to be for sale. Nice. Everybody who's watching should be following Dawson Digs Dolls. If you're not, go ahead and do that right now. When you click the link in his bio, he's got an Etsy shop. So, make sure to check that out. He's got some beautiful fashions there. A lot of your fashions, Mike, you've got the cut and sew. And your cut and sew is super simple. And then you also have Spoonflower account where there's a library of different wallpapers and fabrics. Right. You can order whatever you want on there. You have to sign up. I recreated this is Let's dance from the early 60s fabric.

1:01:26I just recreated my own. It's very similar and I did it in you know when they did those dresses that one of them was called let's dance and I don't remember the other one but one was blue. Let's dance was blue and the other one was green. But I wanted them in more colors. [laughter] Yes, that's beautiful. Yeah. You know I was saying earlier that I forgot how to sew Yes. and I'm having to learn again. Okay. That's what I used to make. I used to know how to do this. That was from a vintage chiffon scarf Huh. that I made and then I made a tool underskirt. I mean I just don't even know how I did it. Wow. Jeez. Oh my good chiffon Oh my god, that's stunning. And what I did with these is I just had old Barbie clothes that were trashed.

1:02:15So I cut them apart and made patterns out of them cuz I knew that that would fit. This is the top to the wet one of the wedding dresses and this is just one of the skirts. And you just put them together? it into a dress. Oh my god, beautiful. This is absolutely beautiful. Oh wow, look at this. Such unique pieces, Mike. I can't do this now. I don't know how to get back to the hair. This is the busy gal top. I had one I took it apart and like this little collar, I don't know how I did that. Were these done long time ago? These were done in the early 90s. And look at how they're still beautiful today. They're timeless. Look at that dress. Oh my goodness, these are so beautiful. crew stripes. I took this dress apart.

1:03:01I had one that was trashed so I took it apart and it fits like a glove. Beautiful. What is it about this era that attracts you? Um well, you know I grew up watching these old movies. You know my mother loved all these old movies and you know, we watched them and I just loved all this This is like Hollywood glamour to me. I'm not a big ball gown person, but I mean like you know, that that's totally something that would you would have seen in a movie. That's why I like it. There was just so many designs back then. My suit that I made and also my mother made this hat for me. Aw. match. She made clothes for my sister all the time. That was back in the '60s when A-line dresses were very popular. Yeah. And she would come in and say, you know, I have a date.

1:03:52And my mother would have to make her a a dress in like a couple of hours. So, I she My mother never taught me how to sew, but I'm sure just watching her is how I became interested in it. Well, it sounds like between your mother's skills and talents and your father's, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I will say that you also do have quite the professional resume, working mostly like in art and creative directing for several major magazines and editorials. So, how do you balance doing that for a career while still keeping that energy for your doll content and your hobbies to ensure that it's still enjoyable and it doesn't feel like work? I don't work anymore, so I can do it anytime I want. Yay, there's the answer. Um But you were But you were still doing this while you were working. But when I was working, I would come home and spend my night doing this at night, you know, um and on the weekends, that's how I did it. And I mean I It has never faltered. Not once have I ever gone, "Ugh, I don't want to do this anymore. I don't care about Barbie or I don't want to do any of this." That's never happened. I can't imagine that will ever happen. I guess when your hobby and your work or whatever, if they collide, that's a dream. I plan events for a living and then when I plan my own events, I'm like, "Oh my god, I can't do this." because I I like it's too much like reminds me of work,

1:05:12but I guess Oh, yeah, yeah. I see that. But doesn't seem like that with you, which is great. Yeah, this was nothing alike my work. I mean, I designed magazines. I mean, it's still creative, but it's a different kind of creative. For sure. And you know, you know, one more one more thing I was going to show you. When I was working in Wisconsin and when I decided I was going to move to New York uh Barbie Bizarre was in Kenosha, Wisconsin and I had done a couple of little things for for them and on my way to New York, I said, "You know, how would you like me to redesign your magazine?" And Karen was like, "Yes." "Yes, come on." So, I was there for about 3 weeks and I redesigned their magazine back in 1993.

1:06:05What issue was that? Uh this is May-June 1993. I've got July-August 1993 in my hands. Oh my god, I wonder if I have that Well, that would have been I mean, if they were still using my redesign [gasps] for that. Oh, I have to see if I've got this May-June at uh I may have it. This was the Bible. I mean, you could find so much stuff from this out of this magazine. The ads and just new stuff and you know, talking about the vintage. Yes, I have to see if I have that one. I've been going through my Barbie Bazaars and trying to find the issues that I don't have. I've been on the hunt for it because it was this was like our internet, right? This was Yeah, it was. This is where we got our information and our photography and and we would stare at it for hours. And you know, they would they would get information from Mattel back then when they would share information. I based this on the Barbie game from the '60s.

1:07:09Wow, that's fantastic. I did that. Oh my goodness, Mike. Hold that up. Hold that up. Keep holding that up. Yep. Look at this. And your name is where? It's in the um In the front uh like the table of contents area there? table of contents, jeez. There you are. Oh my goodness. Okay, hold on. Let me pull this up. I just can't get that on the camera. [laughter] There your name There it is, right there. Contributing art director, Michael Dawson. Oh, wow. What an achievement. It was fun and they were really great. Karen, who is the editor-in-chief Oh my god, I can't even her collection was unbelievable. If you could design a dream diorama or scene, what would you make? I've been thinking about that and I would build a Barbie scale version of the house in North by Northwest. It was based on a Frank Lloyd Wright design and it's everything I would love about mid-century modern. It's beautiful. So, that's one I want to build and there's another Frank Lloyd Wright house in LA, it's the Ennis House and it's built with all these little concrete design blocks. Oh my goodness. So, I had a whole

1:08:33bunch of this printed up and I am going to do my version of one of the the rooms. So, are you saying that's still to come and we're getting a little preview here? Yes, I just got this paper. You got to follow Dawson Digs Dolls to see that once you get working on it, once you get started. I would love to see the process of that, too. Do you have a unique piece and maybe something that you were surprised to see that you have in in collection that you'd like to share? Uh, yeah. Years ago, I found this on eBay. I It was, you know, always looking for Barbie stuff. And this came up on the listing, and I'd never seen anybody do anything custom to a Barbie car before, or really anything, but I had to have it. So, is that the '57 Chevy? It is a '57 Chevy.

1:09:23And it came You didn't This came this way. You did not paint this. Someone did it, but I didn't. And then, you know, it's They painted inside red. Oh my goodness. That's stunning. And I love it cuz it's the time period for the vintage, you know. I mean, I love that car, whether it's the turquoise-y blue or the pink one. I love the car, but the black is just something you've never seen before. I've seen someone out there has a red one that's like candy apple red. It's beautiful. That is absolutely stunning. I would collect these if I had a place, had the room. The only thing is cars take up a lot of space. Yes, but that And I love where you have it displayed. It's just It's like the perfect spot for it. It was meant to be there.

1:10:08It was meant to be there. It feels like a car showroom from that time period. Yes, with the curtains in the background. Yes. Or our Barbie's bedroom for her dream house. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Exactly. So, Mike, thank you so much for showing us so much of your collection and your workspace and your dolls and your dioramas. It's incredible to just see all of that stuff. Again, I'm not a '60s expert in Barbie by any means, and I've learned so much today from you. Your passion for Barbie, the photography, the dioramas, the love that you put into your work clearly comes through, and it's some of the most beautiful things I've ever seen on Instagram. And you really have shown us how one doll can spark a creative vision. So, thank you so much. Uh, well, thank you so much for asking me to be on here. You know, I can talk about Barbie every day, all day.

1:10:57Me too. And you know what? [laughter] I think I'd love to have you on in the future as you continue to maybe build more things or create more things. I'm sure we can have a second episode at some point. Oh, that would be fun. I'd love that. Yeah. I definitely would love to have you on again cuz a lot changes in a few months. You maybe you design some more things, you buy some more things, and we can continue the conversation. Okay, that sounds good to me. Bye. Bye. It's amazing how one doll can open up a whole new creative world and make even the smallest details [music] feel big. Make sure to like, subscribe, and hit that notification bell if you love all things Barbie. And [music] if you enjoyed this episode, click here to see one of my other episodes. Thanks for watching.