Luxury sleepwear designer Karen Mabon collaborates with Barbie™ on a limited-edition collection.

In a cut-and-paste fantasy, luxury sleepwear designer Karen Mabon deep dives into the archive of the original IT girl for an exclusive six-piece collection with Mattel’s Barbie™. Combining nostalgia with the limitless fantasy of the iconic Barbie™ , Mabon explored the expansive Barbie™  back catalogue to combine her whimsical candy-coloured world with the Barbie™ universe.

Drawing upon some of the most recognisable Barbies™ from throughout the years, Karen Mabon has created a collection of high-octane nostalgia. Mabon pays homage to the original “1959” Barbie™ with the poolside print, taking inspiration from her instantly recognisable chevron swimsuit. The two 100% GOTS certified cotton pyjama sets make use of illustrations from Barbie’s™ 60th anniversary, right down to the contrast trim in an effortless ode to one of the most famous cross-generation fashion icons in one of her most prolific looks.  

The Barbie™ Archive print is inspired by Mabon’s own trips to the toy store growing up and seeing all the different versions of Barbie™.  An almost "too good to wear just to bed" mulberry silk slip is lined with some of the most iconic Barbie™ iterations from throughout the years. The instantly recognisable Barbie™ finds itself as a key signature throughout the collection, available in soft cotton loungewear through to a Summer ready sun hat. 

“Barbie™ was always a dream project. I grew up with her and have so many lovely memories playing with her, whether that was chopping off her hair and dying it with lipstick, or my Mum making my Barbie™ a new outfit for Christmas.  The archive is huge, and I got to see Barbie™ as an astronaut and a career woman, and just how she could be – everything! It was special to be able to play and experiment in her world again and see how she plays into mine.” – says Mabon. 

This once in a lifetime collaboration combines Mabon’s magpie creativity with the historic legacy of a pop culture icon, merging archival illustrations and bringing those memories with Barbie™ to a new contemporary audience.