Celebrating Culture

Barbie Released Three New Dolls For Día de Muertos & The Designs Are Gorgeous

A special edition doll was added to this year’s collection — a collaboration with designer Benito Santos.

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Barbie has released a new collection of limited edition Día de Muertos dolls to celebrate the holida...
Mattel / Barbie
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Collectors, doll enthusiasts, and kids of all ages — Barbie has just released their new collection of limited edition Día de Muertos dolls for the upcoming holiday, and they are nothing short of gorgeous!

The Día De Muertos Barbie series, now three years running, honors the customs, symbols, and rituals often seen throughout this festive time of remembrance in Mexcian culture through the vibrant and detailed designs of this Barbie collection.

This year's Día de Muertos Barbie doll dons a royal purple dress with ruffles, embroidered calaveras (or skulls) and an intricate cempasúchil flower headband with streaming ribbons down the sides.

2022 Barbie and Ken Día De Muertos Dolls

Mattel

Ken’s clothing consists of a traditional charro, or Mexican horse rider, outfit along with a calavera sugar skull bolero tie and wide-brimmed sombrero. A special third doll was added to the collection which is a collaboration with Mexican fashion designer Benito Santos.

The special Día de Muertos dolls mean a lot, not only to the Mexican community, but to Barbie staff and designers who got to work on the project.

Barbie Signature designer Javier Meabe, who is Mexican American, said he was filled with a "flood of emotions" while working on the new Día De Muertos dolls.

2022 Día De Muertos Benito Santos x Barbie Doll

Mattel

“I’m honored and excited to represent this holiday that is so close to my own heart. I understand how important this holiday is and am grateful for the opportunity to continue celebrating these traditions with Barbie respectfully,” Meabe told Hola!. “I love celebrating the Día de Muertos traditions with my loved ones each year and honoring my family and friends that are no longer with us.”

He also expressed how thrilling it was to bring in Benito Santos for a doll design collaboration, noting his excitement about Santos’ vision for the special doll.

“Working with Benito Santos was a highly collaborative experience. What I loved the most about this collaboration was being able to bring Benito’s vision to life in a new way. He shared trend boards so we could understand what themes he was eager to convey, and then we worked together to bring his creative vision to a Barbie scale,” Javier notes.

“It was a passion project from both Benito’s team and the Barbie team. I’m thrilled to welcome Benito to the Barbie brand and share his vision of what it means to him to celebrate Día De Muertos with Barbie.”

The special edition Benitos Santos x Barbie doll wears a “statuesque black dress” which, according to the Mattel website, is inspired by the rich cultural tradition of charro suits. Her dress, embroidered with white and crimson, creates a dramatic silhouette with a layered mermaid hem. The outfit is completed with a cropped bolero jacket, red bow tie, and holiday-inspired headpiece.

Barbie's 2022 Día De Muertos dolls are generally priced at $80. The Santos-designed doll, retailing at $100, might be a little harder to find, it is currently sold out.

Shop all of the 2022 Día De Muertos Barlie dolls below.

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