Nichelle and Teresa In The House!

New in my shops: two super rare Barbie friends! First is Lights & Lace Teresa, made in 1990 only. This marks the transition of Tracy, a white doll, to Teresa, who is generally considered as Hispanic. Shortly after 1990 the Teresa face was re-sculpted, but if you compare this doll with Tracy you will see Teresa has darker skin and brown eyes. Her distinctive makeup identifies her as the Lights & Lace Teresa.

Next is a SUPER rare doll: Nichelle from the Mattel Shani series. Shani was envisioned as a Black contemporary of Barbie and she had friends just like Barbie, who were named Nichelle and Asha. Later she also got a boyfriend named Jamal. Shani dolls had curvier bodies with straighter arms but can still wear Barbie fashions. Shani had her own fashions in hip hop and Afro-Centric styles. Later all Barbies used the Shani body. Shani and friends were made in 1990 and 1991 before they were abruptly discontinued. The Nichelle face was used later on some special Barbies, like Bob Mackie’s Jewel Essence Ruby. Nichelle is extraordinarily rare today, and this one’s hair is still in its original style! You can find both these from my shops on the Home page.

Recent events have me feeling as depressed and powerless as many women are feeling right now. I’m already hearing stories from women who were denied medical care for various reasons. One, with an ectopic rupture, was left to bleed for NINE hours and was nearly dead when her doctor was finally cleared to operate. All for an egg stuck in her fallopian tube. Ectopic “pregnancy” is misnamed ~ the definition of pregnancy is when the egg implants in the uterus ~ so in that situation the woman is not pregnant, the egg will never implant, and yet her doctor had to risk her life! I can’t just sit around and feel helpless, so I designed these “More than a Uterus” tee shirts. They are currently available for pre-order from my Etsy shop and I will have them on this website Shop page soon. I will be donating 25% of the proceeds to the ACLU. We women are more than incubators. We have hopes and dreams and families and are as deserving of medical care as any man. I hope you’ll wear your shirt with pride; it’s a great peaceful protest fashion!