Barbie Fashion Month by Richard Quinn Milan Fashion Week by Alessandro Enriquez Barbie Doll

The pandemic has forced designers to rethink the way they present their designs to the world, leading to a host of creative solutions this season and last. For Richard Quinn that meant thinking small to think big.

Quinn is teasing her Fall 2021 (human-sized) collection by releasing a miniature creation designed to fit Barbie.

Richard Quinn opted for a sadomasochistic concept of Cat-Woman. It is quite obvious that the designer chooses the concept of a mask, as the mask changes an identity, invokes a certain atmosphere and has an instant impact.

Barbie's look, which features a highly embellished full-length gown complete with a crinoline, took eight days to embroider and two days to construct. "We wanted to re-create the bespoke hand-crafted artisanal dress for Barbie using the same beautiful techniques that we use on our RTW collection," Quinn explained. The dress wasn't outsourced, either — the entire thing was created by Quinn's atelier.

Quinn's partnership with Barbie is part of a London Fashion Week takeover happening on her official fashion account, @barbiestyle. According to senior director of Barbie Design Robert Best, the goal is to boost young designers' profiles in a year that's been especially challenging for the whole industry.

"Since 1959, Barbie has a been the ultimate canvas to design partners and we often hear that she was designers' very first muse," he said. "As a brand that invented the fashion doll category over 60 years ago, we've continued to reflect culture and trends. Barbie has always been a friend to fashion, and this year, we highlight brilliant young designers and celebrate the fashion community's incredible creativity and resiliency."

The look which Barbie is wearing on her Instagram page is a full-length embellished gown complete with crinoline which Quinn’s atelier made especially for the miniature clothes horse. “Barbie’s look was all about creating the idea of white roses growing around the dress placed in a way that makes it seem like a seamless gown,” Quinn explains.

But creating Barbie-scale versions of Quinn’s notoriously intricate creations was no more straight-forward than crafting full-size iterations. “The look took eight days to embroider and two days to construct including the crinoline in miniature underneath,” Quinn says. “We wanted to re-create the bespoke hand-crafted artisanal dress for Barbie using the same beautiful techniques that we use in our collections.”

“If we were able to show this season, Barbie would be our woman of choice to open the show,” the designer adds. “She stands for inclusivity and beauty in all forms and embodies the Richard Quinn brand. It has been an absolute honour to dress Barbie. It’s really amazing to work with such a diverse and beautiful range of dolls and it’s has been so much fun making everything in miniature.”