From the Toysit archive
What’s Her Face! Doll
Explore What’s Her Face! through pink pigtails, drawn expressions and changing fashions, then create three paper character portraits with their own little scenes.
The play at a glance
A character begins with a face, a hairstyle and an outfit
Long pink pigtails frame the face in Toysit’s small promotional photograph. A purple-and-white top, blue trousers and a pair of sunglasses complete the look. The expression is part of the design: eyes and a mouth give this particular presentation its smiling character.
What’s Her Face! brings drawing into fashion-doll play. Toysit’s original account describes expression stampers, markers, wigs and clothes as the materials for creating different looks.
Give an expression a story
The central play idea is choosing the face as well as the clothes. A small change to the eyes or mouth can suggest someone greeting a friend, listening closely or discovering a surprise. A player can begin with an expression and then decide what has just happened.
Try imagining the pink-haired character opening an invitation. Who sent it, and where will they meet? A second portrait could show the character arriving, while a third catches the moment a friend appears. The drawings become a sequence when the player adds a sentence to each.
Build a look around two colors
The original picture pairs pink hair with a cool purple top and blue trousers. Hair, clothing and accessories each contribute a different area of color. Choosing a pair of colors first can give a new character a recognizable look.
Mattel’s related instruction sheet illustrates a face mask and expression stampers, showing the design process clearly. For a paper version, draw a simple oval, experiment with eyes and a mouth, then sketch a hairstyle around it. Add an outfit that suits the scene you have in mind.
Open a paper character studio
- Draw three blank face shapes on a sheet of paper.
- Give them three expressions, such as cheerful, curious and surprised.
- Choose a hairstyle and two main clothing colors for your character.
- Write a short scene beneath each portrait explaining the expression.
- Arrange the portraits in story order and give the character a name.
This original Toysit activity keeps all drawing on paper. For an original doll and its accessories, use the instructions matching that set and the specified materials.
The historical record
Original Toysit coverage
The original product account and commentary are preserved below as historical coverage.
Girls can redesign any What's Her Face doll by changing her face, hairstyle, and clothing on a whim.
It's like having a new doll every day! Girls can redesign any What's Her Face doll by changing her face, hairstyle, and clothing on a whim. With the expression stampers, markers, and glitter stickers, girls can give the doll different expressions and makeup styles. Also included are three wigs, three changes of clothes, a makeup template, and three background scenes that can also be decorated and redecorated for more imaginative play. What's Her Face Doll is by Mattel.
A doll whose face can be changed with templates, markers, stickers, and stamps offers an interactive and creative play experience, bridging the gap between traditional doll play and artistic expression. Children can personalize their dolls to reflect various emotions, styles, or even to resemble people they know. This fosters creativity, fine motor skills, and emotional intelligence as kids explore different facial expressions and features. The reusable nature of the templates and stamps also encourages imaginative play, as children can continuously update and modify the doll's appearance to fit new storylines or scenarios they invent. The doll becomes not just a plaything, but a dynamic canvas for creativity.
Sources and editorial notes
The original photograph and full Toysit account are preserved. A catalog-style Hip image hosted by Dollect matches the pink pigtails, purple-and-white top, blue trousers and sunglasses. Its alternate view helps show how face and hairstyle choices change a presentation. Both pages of Mattel’s 54237-0920 instructions were reviewed; that related edition illustrates a different outfit and a color-change wig. Its contents and care procedures apply to that edition. The original three-wig, three-outfit bundle remains attributed to Toysit’s older account because an exact matching package was not recovered. The activity below uses paper; no physical testing was performed.
- Mattel What’s Her Face! instructions 54237-0920 (PDF) — Both pages reviewed as evidence for a related face-design edition.
- What’s Her Face! Hip promotional image — Catalog-style image hosted by Dollect; matching clothes, pigtails and sunglasses visually compared.
- Original Toysit coverage — Original photograph, product account and historical commentary preserved.
Images and descriptions are retained as historical material. How Toysit covers toys.
Created for Toysit by Tabbloza — the artwork in our header.